The Patchsmith's Sampler Sew-Along - blocks 1, 2, and 3

Hello, Friends!

Have you ever joined a sew-along?
I would highly recommend one that is going on right now
over at The Patchsmith's lovely blog:

To get started, order your copy of the book,
The Patchsmith's Sampler Quilt Blocks here on Craftsy.
There are 50 amazing blocks,
fun for anyone to create, 
whether you are an experienced stitcher, 
or someone who is just developing your sewing skills!

The book is priced at only $12.99 - what a bargain!
It's in PDF format, and you can choose to print any or all pages.
I'm just using the computer or my phone for instructions, only printing
template pages as necessary, for applique pieces.

Photo from The Patchsmith blog, showing patchwork and applique blocks

If you're just starting out on your sewing journey as a beginner,
DoYouSew.com is a wonderful resource with some great information!


Today I'm sharing my first three blocks from the sampler book.

For my blocks, I've been using some leftover jelly roll strips
from a line called Simply Sweet by Barbara Jones of Quilt Soup.
I've had it in my stash for a good long time.

{Like...9 years!!! hahahaha}

Block 1 - Brick Wall,was the perfect place to start.
There were lots of little pieces, but no seams to match.

For the Guiding Star block (#2),
I selected four different colors of stars to make.
My background for the blocks is a tonal white dot print,
and I like the way it sets off the bright prints.

The third block was a Watermelon block, mostly patchwork,
but with a tiny applique accent.
I love to cut out my pieces when I have time,
then stitch them up in no time.

This little block comes together quickly,
from the inside out.
Look at the finished patchwork - very cute, huh?

And now...The Patchsmith adds her design magic...
little black appliques for the "pips".
What a difference they make!

I'll be continuing my sampler journey here on the blog,
and I would love to have you join me!

Find more photos by following me on Instagram.
I am @eamylove.The Patchsmith and I are no strangers to sew-alongs.
We became fast friends as a result of the Zakka Style Sew Along
years ago...maybe YOU can meet lifelong friends through the Patchsmith's Sampler Sew-Along!

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Out to Pasture and the Patchwork Pumpkin Blocks

Hello, Friends,

and welcome back to the Farm Girl Vintage sew along!

The two blocks I'm showing today were quite a pair!

The first one had just a few pieces and went together

lickety-split, using a partial seam technique.

For my version of Out to Pasture,

I fussy-cut some cherries and berries.

The fabrics in this block are almost all from Lori Holt's Bake Sale line,
but the red floral at the bottom is American Jane' Fresh Air.

So that block was very quick and easy.

However...

the Patchwork Pumpkin block called for 30 different scraps

of ORANGE fabrics.

Hmmm...I don't have orangeaphobia any more, 

but I don't have that many orange prints!

I just used 3 or 4 of each of my orange fabrics.

I highly recommend taking a photo of the layout,

once you've devoted all that time to making it look random.

I only mention that advice because...

mine fell off of the table, and I had to start all over again!

There was a lot of giggling when it happened...

and no bad words flew out of my mouth either.

It was just tooooooooo funny!

{Even my cute mini design board couldn't hang onto all those squares!}

Oh, well...at least it's really kind of fun to arrange all of the squares.

Here's my pumpkin, all made up.

I.Love.This!

I wonder what I can make with this sweet pumpkin.

I think I might make another one, in the 12 1/2" size,

and create a gorgeous pillow for fall.

Stop by again, for more sew along fun!

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Quilty Fun Sew Along - Apples!

What a coincidence that the same theme

I chose for this month's Across The Pond Sew Along

was the very first block of the 

Quilty Fun Sew Along!

APPLES!

{I had fun making this multi-purpose block!}

Not only is the Quilty Fun book filled with great photos,

but it shows every step of the way

for making fun and fabulous quilty projects.

There are lots of great diagrams and drawings.

You can only buy it at the Fat Quarter Shop,

you know.

The Quilty Fun Blog Tour

lets us use the book to make

a whole new quilt from the same blocks featured in the book!

I wasn't sure I would like my apple core block,

because I wanted to use a pale print,

but my background is white.

I think it turned out just dandy, though,

with the gray print for the inside of the apple.

I'm going to be using lots of prints

from Lori Holt's Bake Sale line for Riley Blake,

but I'll mix in other fun fabrics

from my bright stash, too.

I hope to add a dash of black to each block,

to add some definition and rhythm.

Note the little black stems for the apples.

 This particular block was fun and easy to stitch.

One reason was that I use a cool tool,

called The Angler 2, created by Pam Bono.

This tool eliminates the step

of drawing stitch lines onto

all of those tiny squares!

It's sew easy to use.

{You can even find videos, like this one,

to demonstrate how to use it.}

I'm a little bewildered about joining

yet another sew along with weekly projects,

but one block is sooooo much more doable

than a bag or a quilt in one week.

I'll join in as often as I can with Quilty Fun.

I hope to finish the entire quilt at some point.

It's going to look really cute in my kitchen someday!

I sure hope you'll join along!

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Polka Dot Cafe Apron - Zakka 2.0 Week #4

What's cookin' at your house?

Here at mine,

I've whipped up a little Polka Dot Cafe apron,

as part of the Patchwork, Please Sew Along!

Grab a tall glass of sweet tea,

and get ready for a lot of pictures of my version of

the Polka Dot Cafe Apron.

In my humble opinion,

I used some of the cutest fabrics on earth,

from Lori Holts' Bake Sale for Riley Blake.

I decided to use the same print for the center squares on each block.

I love the way they look with my

vintage Pyrex bowls!

{Do you see those tiny little spatulas on the green and blue block?}

Shall we "dish" about my likes and dislikes?
Dislikes are always first...

Okay...I haven't seen this mentioned

in anyone else's posts,

but the cutting instructions say to cut 4 of the 

large squares.

Um...there are 5.  The one in the center

is a different print, but the same size

as the four squares around it.

As much as I have joined in the lament that

this book lacks diagrams,

I found this project's piecing diagram to be very confusing.

The instructions said "Sew

in the order shown...," and referred to the figure,

but there were 5 #1's in the diagram.

{I did figure it out, but only because I'm an experienced sewist.}

The templates...oh, I didn't use those.

I measured them in the book and kind of rounded them up a bit

to the nearest 1/4" figuring I could trim them to size.

{I believe she meant to advise using freezer paper for templates, but it didn't come out and say it like that in the description.  Again, it was confusing.}

Oh.My.Gosh.

When I was finished making my blocks,

I barely had anything to trim off, as shown below.

I did not have 1/4" to spare, to preserve any points!!!

{My 1/4" seam can't be THAT far off!  How on earth did the template users manage, I wonder?}

This is one of those projects that looked like

it was going to be quick and easy,

but it took me almost all day to complete.

Maybe it was just because I kept stopping to look at how cute it was!

This is really a time-saving tip, rather than a "dislike"...

I pressed my binding in the same way as I made the apron ties.  

Rather than attach the binding as described,

I stitched it on "taco-style" in just one step,

enclosing the raw edges.

{How about that darling text print?}

I also added a 1 1/2" sashing between the blocks,

so I didn't have to try to line up all those "missing points" I had.

And now for some more of the "likes"...

Obviously,

the blocks themselves are just sooooo sweet!

I love that they are retro-style and allow the fabrics to shine.

I also like that the patchwork pocket

fit just right onto my plain turquoise tea towel!

What a nice shortcut for me!

My most favorite detail is just about the best "like" ever for me!

The sample has a little piece of fabric tape tucked into the side of the pocket.

I didn't have any decorative tape to coordinate,

so I just made a little fussy cut tab.

Would you like to see it really close up???

{I knew you would!}

Someday, I hope to adjust the measurements

to re-create this adorable little block,

points and all.

{If I figure it out, I promise to share!}

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