Stitch ’n Swap Blog Party

Have you been following Generation Q’s Blog Party to celebrate the release of their new book? It’s Stitch ’n Swap: 25 Handmade Projects to Sew, Give and Receive, and I’m on today’s party circuit!

My contribution to the book was a pair of potholders made from a version of Rail Fence blocks that reminded me of parquet floors—hence the alliterative project title, Parquet Pot Holders.

Though they look quite different, both of the potholders were made from exactly the same block structure. In bare black and white, it looks like this:

Not much to it when stripped down, but there’re loads of ways to dress it up! I envisioned a swap or guild challenge in which participants would all use the same basic design and “color it in” with different fabrics to show the versatility of the block. To make sure it was doable, I challenged myself to come up with some other designs for the same potholder block. These are just solids, but the possibilities multiply even further when using stripes and other prints.

Make sure to check out GenQ for the rest of the blog party and to enter to win your very own copy of the book. Good luck, and happy swapping!

How does this giveaway work?

I'm so glad you asked. Comment on the original Generation Q Stitch 'N Swap post letting us know if you've ever participated in a swap and the coolest thing you've ever gotten in a swap. That's it!

All winners will be chosen from the Generation Q Magazine post Wednesday May 7th and posted Thursday May 8th.

Stitch ’n Swap: 25 Handmade Projects to Sew, Give and Receive
compiled by Jake Finch of Generation Q
$17.95
112 pages

Get a signed copy from GenQ

Photo catch-up

It’s been a wild couple of months with a very full schedule—lest you think the piles of fabric and paperwork of my sewing room has finally swallowed me whole, here’re some shots from the more fun moments. (The paperwork piles are very real, but no fun, so I won’t subject you to them.)

Spring means picnic time with Miss Fluffinstuff! We couldn’t resist putting her in the oilcloth picnic basked I sewed for Stitch.

I’m teaching next week for Quilters Anonymous near Seattle, so I just finished a new trapunto pillow class sample…

A while back I stole a few minutes for a trial run of some screen-printing on fabric—lots of fun!

I’m really itching to sew something with the test swatch, and my head’s buzzing with ideas for designing and printing fabric. Sometime this summer I’m going to have to take a vacation to the print studio (that is, our garage) for some uninterrupted playtime. But not until after Quilt Market!

Bundle or cheat your way to a Paper Shredder quilt

Paper Shredder Quilt pattern originally published in Stitch, 2011

A couple bits of news about one of my most popular quilt patterns, Paper Shredder....

Firstly, Interweave has a great deal going on this month where you can get the Paper Shredder Quilt pattern, a couple more patterns by yours truly, the winter issue of Stitch, plus my home-dec video and webinar, all for only $39.99! Check out my home decor sewing bundle on Sew Daily.

Collage Newspaper Strips in Red by Carrie Bloomston of Such Designs for Windham Fabrics, 2013

And if you like the look of Paper Shredder but can’t be bothered to piece it yourself, I recently spotted a fabric print that might as well be a cheater cloth for Paper Shredder. But if you want the look of paper shreds piling up at the bottom of the quilt, you’ll still have to do it yourself—and if you’re looking for a bunch of text fabric to use, my website can help! Shop pages for patterns like Paper Shredder have a “Suggested Fabrics” section that links directly to hand-picked suitable fabrics on Fabric.com. (You can refresh the pattern page to see a different mix of fabrics.)

If these Suggested Fabrics listings are helpful to people, I’ll try to add them to more patterns and keep them up to date.

Bird Crossing crosses over into wool

My friend Frieda recently dropped me a line to say she saw this version of my Bird Crossing pattern sent by a reader to American Patchwork & Quilting. Peggy Bruns of Nevada, Iowa, made it for a friend from felted wool garments. I’d never thought of using wool for the birds, but doesn’t it look great?

APQ seems to have thought so too—they’ve included a wool-appliqué pillow pattern in one of their recent special issues that’s looks like it was inspired by Peggy’s version of Birds of a Feather (as the magazine called the pattern).

If you like the idea of a put-a-bird-on-it pillow, the Bird Crossing pattern available on my website includes an exclusive pattern for a pillow featuring a freshly hatched bird in a nest of free-motion thread. Or use the bird appliqué patterns to sew your own unique pillow, runner, or quilt—in cotton, wool, or whatever fabric strikes your fancy!