Mosaic Tuesday - Ocean Blue, Green, Sand {Quiltspiration365}

Thanks to some of the lovely ladies over at Late Night Quilters I'm happy to introduce a new series of weekly posts I'm calling Mosaic Tuesdays (for lack of a better name at this point).  It's part of an effort we're calling quiltspiration365‬, intended to fulfill your every need when it comes to quilty inspiration 365 days a year.  You can find more posts about the series on Facebook and instagram using the hashtag #quiltspiration365 as well as links to the other posts this week below.  I'll be sharing color mosaics that inspire me, and hopefully you as well.  This will be an interactive series so I'll encourage you to post links to the color palettes that have been inspiring you lately!  Feel free to use these to inspire your projects I just ask that you link back to the original color pallet post to give credit.  So without further adu...

As the trees are beginning to turn here in New England, I find myself clinging to the soft colors of summer.  This mosaic is inspired by a day at the beach.

Overcast skies lend themselves to soft muted colors of summer:  The light blues of the sky and water and the quieted colors of the green beach glass both stand out against the soft and warm colored tans and whites of the sand and sky.

 Left to Right, Top to Bottom: 1. Antique French Spools of Thread, 2. Low Volume Bundle, 3. Liberty Chevron Quilt, 4. Lace Pillow Cases 5. Lumimarja-Marimekko Fabric, 6. Blue and White Irish Chain, 7. White Work Bee Embroidery Kit, 8. Vintage Blue and White Quilt, 9. White Blankets, 10. grey and white herringbone quilt., 11. Custom Baby Quilts, 12. modern low volume blue cross quilt, 13. Churn Dash Quilt, 14. Green Improv Quilt, 15. Low Volume Cushion 16. Tali's Quilt

The other posts from this week can be found here:

Kitty from Night Quilter brought us Color Inspiration Thursday and food inspired palettes.

Yesterday Laura of Adventures of a Quilting Diva shared her Laundry Inspired Muse Monday.

Be sure to search for #quiltspiration365 for even more inspiration!

First a few rules.

1. PLEASE link back to my blog or put the Color Mosaic Button on your page.  You can find the button in our sidebar.
2.Please link directly to your blog post, not your whole blog.
3. Please keep it to a relatively recent post, let's say within the last 2 weeks.
4. Show us your color mosaics/fabric pulls/quilt tops that have been inspiring you.
5. Have fun and visit at least two other links from the party.

Post your link below!

An InLinkz Link-up

Round Trip Quilts

First things first: I was tagged by two people for the  Around the World Blog Hop.

The First is Chelsea at Patch the Giraffe.  Hop on over and see her post from today then check back next Monday, September 1st for mine!  Chelsea is an incredibly talented quilter and has simply amazed me with the amount of things she's completed over the course of the summer (puts me to shame!).  Plus she's from the Granite State like me! (Now we just need to find a time to meet up in person).

The Second is Leanne at Devoted Quilter.  You can see Leanne's post here.  Leanne's bright and colorful quilts are unique and fun!  She just finished a massive english paper pieced quilt top that is just stunning!  Leanne is also a member of the Round Trip Quilts group.  I'll be getting her quilt last and I can't wait!

I'm continuing work on my center block from last week for the Round Trip Quilts round robin bee that is just starting up!  We're supposed to mail by 9/1 so I still have a few days to get my block finished.  I have completed five NY Beauty blocks so far.  I plan on making 9 total then choosing my favorites to include in my center block.  I showed you block one last week.  Here are blocks 2 through 5:

Block #2

Block #3 | I just love Mirror Dots

Block #4 | Managed to sneak in some Heather Ross

Block #5 | My favorite so far!

My curves are getting steadily better as I move through the blocks which I'm very happy to see!  Pat at Life in the Scrapatch had the brilliant idea that this is actually at New Hampshire Beauty block!  With her permission, I have commandeered this name and will henceforth be referring to my quilt as the New Hampshire Beauty quilt!  I just love how they all look together!

Blocks #1-4

Round Trip Quilts now has a Flickr group and you can follow us on Instagram using #roundtripquilts!  You can also find a summary of all of our posts on my Round Trip Quilts page in the toolbar at the top of the page!

The full list of members is below:

Heather at QA Creations

Leanne at Devoted Quilter

Kim at Ties That Bind Quilting

Liz at Green Cheese Quilting

Mary at See Mary Quilt

Christina at WIPs and Tuts

Jennifer at Never Just Jennifer

Chelsea Huckins at Patch the Giraffe

WIP Wednesday - Playing Catch Up...Again

Remember how back in May I had to play catch up on my Aurifil Block of the Month blocks?  And I said something about keeping up from now on?  I didn't keep up.  This weekend I was again playing catch up and managed to get the blocks sewn for June, July and August.

June's block is called Chain Link and was designed by Heidi Pridemore from The Whimsical Workshop.  I changed up the fabric placement a little bit on this block.  I didn't really feel like the two-color version that Heidi designed played to the strength of my color palette.  Over all I really like this block.

July's block was designed by Camille Roskelley of Thimble Blossoms and is called On the Plus Side.  It's a cute star block.  I had fun playing with color placement on this block, trying out several different combinations before I settled on this one.

Michele Foster, of the Quilting Gallery, designed the August block called Button Block.  Again, this was a quick, easy, and fun block to make.  Couldn't you just see a whole quilt of button blocks stitched up for a baby quilt?

Finally, here's all of my blocks together.  Even though all of the blocks are unique, they still play together nicely don't you think?

 Four months left, here's to hoping I don't fall behind again!  I'm linking up with this weeks WIP Wednesday over at Freshly Pieced.

Mosaic Tuesday - Peach, Canary, Beige, Gold {Quiltspiration365}

Thanks to some of the lovely ladies over at Late Night Quilters I'm happy to introduce a new series of weekly posts I'm calling Mosaic Tuesdays (for lack of a better name at this point).  It's part of an effort we're calling quiltspiration365‬, intended to fulfill your every need when it comes to quilty inspiration 365 days a year.  You can find more posts about the series on Facebook and instagram using the hashtag #quiltspiration365 as well as links to the other posts this week below.  I'll be sharing color mosaics that inspire me, and hopefully you as well.  This will be an interactive series so I'll encourage you to post links to the color palettes that have been inspiring you lately!  Feel free to use these to inspire your projects I just ask that you link back to the original color pallet post to give credit.  So without further adu...

Today's mosaic is inspired by the colors of the sunset on the water in summer.  Golden rays of sunshine illuminate the water while shades of Peach begin to emerge as the sky turns orange.  There's nothing I love more than sunset on the water.

 Left to Right, Top to Bottom: 1. Whip Stitch, 2. Botanics Metallic Charcoal, 3. Happy Quilting Melissa, 4. Grab Some Color Bundle - Yellow, 5. Botanics Curry, 6. Peach and Navy Plus Quilt, 7. Quilt Story, 8. Patty Sloniger, Les Amis, Lil' Meadow Peach, 9. Moda Storybook #2, 10. GOLD cateye modern GEOMETRIC circle quilt , 11. Grab Some Color Bundle - Cafe au Lait, 12. Around the Color Wheel-Solid Gold Fat Quarter Bundle, 13. Lella Boutique, 14. Brown Nine Patch Baby Quilt, 15. Raw Color, 16. Modern Geometric Crib Quilt - Linen Pinwheel

The other posts from this week can be found here:

Kitty from Night Quilter brought us Color Inspiration Thursday

On Friday, Nina and the Sea brought us inspiration from France

Yesterday Laura of Adventures of a Quilting Diva shared her Making of a Medallion Quilt Design

Be sure to search for the hashtag #quiltspiration365 for even more inspiration!

First a few rules.

1. PLEASE link back to my blog or put the Color Mosaic Button on your page.  You can find the button in our sidebar.
2.Please link directly to your blog post, not your whole blog.
3. Please keep it to a relatively recent post, let's say within the last 2 weeks.
4. Show us your color mosaics that have been inspiring you.
5. Have fun and visit at least two other links from the party.

Post your link below!

An InLinkz Link-up

The beginning of a round robin quilt

Do you remember the New Quilt Blogger's Blog Hop?  No?  Read about it here, here, here, and here.

One of the things I that really love about having participated in the blog hop this year is the opportunity to meet other new quilt bloggers who are just as passionate about the art of quilting as I am.  We have had the opportunity to critique each others blogs, learn from all of our collective mistakes, and share our quilting with each other.

A small group of us from the US and Canada thought it would be fun to get together and form a round robin style quilting bee.  The way this bee works is that each person makes a center block/starting block and then mails it to the next person on the list.  With each rotation the quilt grows with a new border or section being added each time.  The quilt grows a little bit each time it's passed on and when you get your center back, it's now a beautiful finished quilt!  There are a lot of example of round robin quilts. Some are more traditional with a four-sided border being added each time.  Others are very modern and free form with each person adding a little something extra each time, maybe a few blocks, or a large section.

The other participants can be found here:

Heather at QA Creations

Leanne at Devoted Quilter

Kim at Ties That Bind Quilting

Liz at Green Cheese Quilting

Mary at See Mary Quilt

Christina at WIPs and Tuts

Jennifer at Never Just Jennifer

Chelsea Huckins at Patch the Giraffe

This weekend I began working on my starting blocks.  First I pulled a nice bundle of warm off-white low volume fabrics to use as backgrounds...

Then I pulled some fun prints from the Mormor bundle I had sitting around and the new Cotton + Steel basics bundle that just arrived.  I was going for a scrappy-bright look.

I've decided that I want my quilt to be a modern cabin in the New Hampshire woods quilt...think log cabin blocks, and flying geese, and maple leaves, and everything else that I love about living in New Hampshire.  So what better way to start that than with a compass.  Inspired by this beautiful mini-quilt, I dove in and got one of my blocks sewn this weekend.

Julie, who made the previously mentioned mini quilt, was kind enough to send me a link to some free New York Beauty block templates. (Thanks Julie!) I printed them all on legal sized paper and plan to make one of each then see which four I like best.  Then I'll either include the other 5 blocks to be added to the quilt later on or use them to make my own mini-quilt to proudly display.

I'm also using the Just My Type alphabet templates from Quiet Play for my compass letters and plan on piecing the New Hampshire state motto:  "Live Free or Die."  Because it can't be a New Hampshire quilt without the motto!

I'm so excited to be participating in this group of wonderful and talented quilters.  We're still working out a name but will be sure to share more as things progress.  Stay tuned for this fun adventure of ours!  You can find links to all of our blogs below:

Heather at QA Creations

Leanne at Devoted Quilter

Kim at Ties That Bind Quilting

Liz at Green Cheese Quilting

Mary at See Mary Quilt

Christina at WIPs and Tuts

Jennifer at Never Just Jennifer

Chelsea Huckins at Patch the Giraffe

I need your help! [a call for string scraps]

I need help.  I'm making a string quilt in cool colors (Blues, Greens, and Purples) and I my scrap pile is lacking a significant variety of strings that fit these requirements.  That's where you come in.  I need your help!  If you have string scraps that you'd part with, I'd take them off of your hands!

Comment below and I'll send you a message with details.  Thank you!!

Mosaic Tuesday - Coral, Blush, Lavender, & Grape {Quiltspiration 365}

Thanks to some of the lovely ladies over at Late Night Quilters I'm happy to introduce a new series of weekly posts I'm calling Mosaic Tuesdays (for lack of a better name at this point).  It's part of an effort we're calling quiltspiration365‬, intended to fulfill your every need when it comes to quilty inspiration 365 days a year.  You can find more posts about the series on Facebook and instagram using the hashtag #quiltspiration365 as well as links to the other posts this week below.  I'll be sharing color mosaics that inspire me, and hopefully you as well.  This will be an interactive series so I'll encourage you to post links to the color palettes that have been inspiring you lately!  Feel free to use these to inspire your projects I just ask that you link back to the original color pallet post to give credit.  So without further adu...


Something a little softer this week.  The warm colors of fiery Coral and delicate Blush combine with the cool colors of wispy Lavender brighter Grape.  I love this color palette personally.  These are an analogous color scheme, meaning that they are all next to each other on the color wheel.  This makes the combination both soft and vibrant.  I don't generally work with a lot of purple but I may need to change that soon and make something in these colors!

The other posts from this week can be found here:

Kitty from Night Quilter brought us Color Inspiration Thursday

Sweet Dreams Quilting showed us some cute chicks

Yesterday Laura of Adventures of a Quilting Diva showed us her new Quilt Design a Day project

Tomorrow be sure to visit Sara Pitcher of Pitcher Family Adventures

Be sure to search for the hashtag #quiltspiration365 for even more inspiration!

First a few rules.

1. PLEASE link back to my blog or put the Color Mosaic Button on your page.  You can find the button in our sidebar.
2.Please link directly to your blog post, not your whole blog.
3. Please keep it to a relatively recent post, let's say within the last 2 weeks.
4. Show us your color mosaics that have been inspiring you.
5. Have fun and visit at least two other links from the party.

Post your link below!

An InLinkz Link-up

Sugar Block Club Catch Up

After playing catch up in May, I again fell behind on my Sugar Block Club blocks, partly due to a lack of motivation and inspiration, partly due to my new race training plan (I'm running a half marathon in October), partly due to the beautiful, perfect summer we've been having here in New England, and partly due to increased workload and extra projects at work.  But after a roughly three week hiatus from my sewing machine, I finally had the chance to sit down and sew this afternoon.  What better way is there to spend a Sunday?

This is one of my favorite blocks so far (along with February's Mercy block).  I think its the on-point center square that I really like.  I played around with the color placement a little bit and made a few changes to the block but it still holds true to Amy's original design.  In June, Amy (of Stitchery Dickory Dock), or rather her husband, Mr. Dock, challenged us to be a Teacher, to share our passion with others.  I've always loved teaching people about the things for which I am passionate.  I taught downhill skiing for 8 years through high school and college, and my friends know just how passionate I am about the sport.  Though I still have much to learn about sewing, I have been able to share my passion for quilting also.  Online groups through Facebook and Flickr give us the the chance to share knowledge and hard learned lessons with others.  Our shared passion for quilting make us all teachers.

June Block | Teach

In July, we were challenged to be Servants.  Mark 10:44 says “And whoever wishes to be most important and first in rank among you must be a slave of all.  For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as ransom for many.”  And Matthew 23:11 says: “The greatest among you shall be your servant” -Matthew 23:11.  Amy challenges us to be a servant by practicing humility and be a servant to others.  This means being there for other when they need you, helping to pack a lunch or taking extra projects on at work to help out a co-worker,or volunteering or donating.

July Block | Serve

For the August Beyond the Block challenge, Amy challenged us to be Bold.  This means speaking up about the things that are important to us.  For Amy, it was standing by her decision to home school her children, regardless of how others perceived her.  For me, it could be many things.  So often I struggle to speak up to voice my opinion or share my beliefs, fearing how others will react.  It is that confidence that I have struggled with for a long time.  Amy's Beyond the Block challenge helped encourage me to speak up.


Finally, Here are all the blocks together.  Aren't they pretty?  I can't wait to see the last four blocks to finish up this pretty sampler.  Hopefully I won't fall behind again... unlikely as that is.  I take over as President of my local quilt guild (visit us sometime if you're ever in New Hampshire!) and it's very likely that I won't have anytime for sewing for awhile.

January through August Sugar Block Club blocks

I'm linking up with Stitch by Stich for anything goes mondays.

Mosaic Tuesday - Purple, Aqua, Green {Quiltspiration 365}

Thanks to some of the lovely ladies over at Late Night Quilters I'm happy to introduce a new series of weekly posts I'm calling Mosaic Tuesdays (for lack of a better name at this point).  It's part of an effort we're calling quiltspiration365‬, intended to fulfill your every need when it comes to quilty inspiration 365 days a year.  You can find more posts about the series on Facebook and instagram using the hashtag #quiltspiration365 as well as links to the other posts this week below.  I'll be sharing color mosaics that inspire me, and hopefully you as well.  This will be an interactive series so I'll encourage you to post links to the color palettes that have been inspiring you lately!  Feel free to use these to inspire your projects I just ask that you link back to the original color pallet post to give credit.  So without further adu...


Today's mosaic is inspired by the colors of a red/purple maple against the bright green summer grass an clear blue sky.  I saw one of these colorful trees while on a run the other day and was immediately smitten.  Isn't it amazing the bright color combination we can find in nature?

Be sure to search for the hashtag #quiltspiration365 for even more inspiration!

Other posts from the series can be found here:

• Last Thursday, Kitty from The Night Quilter made color photo palettes in Color Inspiration Thursday
• On Friday, Chelsey from Nini & the Sea gave us a Weekly Inspiration Linky Party
• Sunday, Artfully Caroline shared some new sources for FMQ from a walk through Boston.
• Yesterday, Laura shared her scrap inspiration with Muse Monday

Now it's your turn.  Has something recently inspired you?  Create a mosaic inspired by it and share it with us here!  But first, a few rules.

1. PLEASE link back to my blog or put the Color Mosaic Button on your page.  You can find the button in our sidebar.
2.Please link directly to your blog post, not your whole blog.
3. Please keep it to a relatively recent post, let's say within the last 2 weeks.
4. Show us your color mosaics that have been inspiring you.
5. Have fun and visit at least two other links from the party.

Post your link below!

An InLinkz Link-up

Giveaway Winner

Thank you again to everyone who entered the giveaway for this weeks Mosaic Tuesday post.  The winner of this lovely bundle is Laura!  (Laura, I've sent you an email directly to get your address).

Drowning in Orange Peels

Thank you to everyone who entered the giveaway from this weeks Mosaic Tuesday post.  I so much appreciate all of your comments and loved reading about where you find inspiration.  I've tried to reply to each of you but with so many I may have missed some.  If so, I'm so sorry!  I'll be picking a winner tonight and announcing tomorrow.

I've been steadily working away on my Orange Peel quilt along quilt.  I spent a decent chunk of time top stitching the orange peels down.

When I was finished I ended up with this massive pile of peels and half-square triangles ready and waiting to be laid out.

 But when I started laying them out.  I didn't like the size or how busy it was.

So I spent another day cutting 2.5 inch solid squares to break up the noise a little bit and ended up with this layout.  You sort of lose the effect of the orange peel pattern I think....

I'm still not in love with it like I hoped I would be.  The points on my orange peels are iffy at best.  But I started piecing it together anyhow.

And when I did I ran into more problems with none of my seams matching up.  Ugh.  It was just one of those weeks I suppose.  I set it aside and haven't touched it for 5 days.

I also wanted to give you a heads up that I'm training for and running a half-marathon at the end of October to benefit the Children's Hospital at Dartmouth or CHaD.  You can find more information or donate on this page.  I'm sure I'll still have time for sewing but the timeliness of my blog posts may suffer as a result.

Thanks for visiting and happy quilting!