New Neighbors

My little neighborhood from the Busy City Quit pattern has gone up pretty quickly.  The wall hanging pattern I am going to share soon uses just nine blocks of your choice.

My son requested these blocks from the 35 blocks in the pattern.  You see he was sure to include a garbage truck to pick up the trash from the bins I already created.

I'm looking forward to sewing these together and sharing the free wall hanging pattern soon.  In the meantime, I'd love to see your blocks.  Tag #busycityquilt on Instagram or add them to the Flickr group.

Update: Busy City is now available as a digital download.  Purchase the PDF from Empty Bobbin here.

Rugby Stripe Quilt

I finished up my Rugby Stripe Quilt this past week and have been waiting for a pause in the rain to snap a few pictures.    The color scheme and blocks were inspired by Samantha's blocks which she has now transformed into this unique sewing machine cover.  I enjoyed working with the rather unexpected combination of chartreuse, navy, plum, aqua and black, and I was able to use up quite a few of my 2 1/2" scrap strips.

I made 40 Rugby Stripe blocks (you can find a tutorial for the block here).  In this 8 x 5 setting, the quilt finishes at 56" x 70" which is a nice throw size.

I love the bird print from Violet Craft's Waterfront Park line on the back.  It's just the right scale, and the Comma dot binding frames the quilt nicely.

I quilted in a simple meander which I find to be a good choice for busy quilts like this one.  I've placed this quilt in my shop.

Rugby Stripe Block - a tutorial

One of my scrap management techniques is to cut 2 1/2" strips from scrap pieces of fabric.  The strips have been piling up, awaiting the right project, so when I saw this lovely photo by Samantha of Always Making Life Prettier, my mind went immediately to that box of jumbled strips.  Samantha was kind enough to allow me to use her idea as the inspiration for a new quilt and this tutorial (and believe it or not, her blocks are only a starting point for a much more elaborate design).

The Rugby Stripe block is extremely simple.  It is totally achievable for even a beginner, but it's also a great stash buster or way to use scraps for any quilter.  It's always nice to have a quick block for those fat eighth or fat quarter bundles or jelly rolls that doesn't require you to purchase a background fabric.
You can make a single Rugby Stripe block from two jelly roll strips, or simply use 2 1/2" strips cut from yardage, or scrap strips as I did, to create these 7" x 14" blocks.  You will need 45 blocks for a 63" x 70" throw quilt or 21 blocks for a 35" x 42" baby quilt.

To make a Rugby Stripe block:
1. Cut the fabrics

    Fabric A:
    1 strip 2 1/2" x 23"
    1 strip 2 1/2" x 7 1/2"

    Fabric B:
    1 strip 2 1/2" x 23"

2. Sew the 2 1/2" x 23" strip of Fabric A to the same size strip of Fabric B.

3. Press the seam as desired and sub cut the strip into 3 rectangles 4 1/2" x 7 1/2" each. I allowed an extra 1/2" wiggle room to trim away for perfectly straight edges.

4. Sew together the three rectangles created in  the previous step, alternating Fabrics A and B, and add the final 2 1/2" x 7 1/2" strip of Fabric A.

That's it!  These blocks sew up so quickly.  Of course, if you don't have strips or want to use fat eighths or fat quarters or smaller scraps, simply cut 4 rectangles of Fabric A and 3 rectangles of Fabric B, all 2 1/2" x 7 1/2" to make a single block. (FYI, if cut this way, two fat eighths will yield two blocks). Hope you enjoy the simple tutorial.  I'll be finishing up the blocks for my throw to show soon.

Sanitation Concerns Assuaged

As I mentioned before, my younger son was concerned that the Busy City quilt was missing trash cans. Well, no more.  Now every house can have its own roll out recycling and garbage bins, if you share his concern.  I will make the pattern for the bins a free download when I release the free wall hanging pattern.

Have you seen Carla's cute Busy City blocks?  They are perfect!  She is also giving away a pattern today, so stop by her blog Lollyquiltz to enter.

Update: Busy City is now available as a digital download.  Purchase the PDF from Empty Bobbin here.

If you want to join in, there is an informal Busy City Quilt Along starting up over on Instagram, just tag your photos #busycityquilt or add it to the Flickr Group.  It won't begin for a couple of weeks, so you've got time to get the pattern and gather your fabrics.

Partly Cloudy

I've been back at my therapy, working with scraps to make more monochromatic strip set blocks.  The technique is the same as I used in the Therapist.  I simply limited my color palette to create this 40 x 50 toddler quilt. 

The intensity of the teal and navy is what I find so arresting about this quilt.  I wanted the colors to gradually soften into aqua on one end and gray on the other, finally fading to white.  I used the block format to keep it deliberately a bit choppy and graphic.  The blocks are quite simple to make as well and more much more manageable than making an entire column at a time.

The tight color scheme creates cohesion even though it is a very scrappy quilt.  I really enjoyed working with both my own scraps and scraps from friends. (If you want to make a scrap quilt but don't have enough variety of fabrics or have colors you lack, I suggest swapping scraps with a friend or two.  It is a fun way to discover new fabrics and work with colors you might not normally use.  Scrap packs are also readily available for purchase online. One tip I can offer is to follow quilters you admire on Instagram or Flickr.  If you like the fabrics they use in their quilts, you're sure to love a scrap bundle, should they ever decide to destash.  Guess how I know.) My friends may recognize some of their scraps here.

I used a figure eight free motion design for the quilting and simple gray Heath to bind. The back is a cute DS Quilts print you can find at JoAnn's.

Partly Cloudy is available in my shop.  FYI, I am planning to clear out the shop in the next month or two, so it's your last chance to grab anything you've had your eye on.  All the baby quilts unsold by the end of September will be donated for the 100 Quilts for Kids quilt drive.

Back to Bees

It's been a few years since I've participated in a virtual quilting bee.  I'm excited to join a couple of new bees with friends from my local KCMQG.  My first blocks are for Shea in the Crossing Borders Bee (at least I think that's name we settled on), who requested 6" x 6 " or 6" x 12" spool blocks and sent us some scraps to work with.  I was very happy to get to work with my favorite color.

I just had to make an Aurifil spool too.

The next block is a wonky log cabin in Quilt Con colors.  This is for the Blessing Bee which is a project for the guild as a whole, put together by the Community Service Committee.  Each month, members may make any number of 12" x 12" blocks they wish in one of three styles: wonky log cabin in these colors, wonky stars in pink and lime, or square in a square in orange and aqua.  Other members have signed up to assemble tops, make backing, quilt and bind.  I think this is such a great arrangement for a a bee, allowing everyone to help as they are able.  The types of blocks may change every few months, and of course, members are welcome to donate completed quilts they have made themselves.

Finished baby quilts will be donated to a local organization that gives birthday cakes and other things  to children who would otherwise not have a birthday celebration.  We are hoping to provide enough quilts for all the children turning 1, with hopes to expand if we are able. I'm looking forward to more bee blocks!

Busy City Giveaway Winner

The winner of the Busy City giveaway is Laura, a mom of three boys (!) and member of the St. Louis MQG.  I've sent you an email, Laura. 

My younger son is clamoring for his own Busy City quilt, and he wants me to add a block that somehow got overlooked: trashcans.  I have a fun wall hanging planned, and I'll share the layout as a free download when I get a chance (you'll still need to buy the pattern for the block templates). You can find the pattern online at Pink Chalk or at the Bernina store, locally, on Metcalf.  It is shipping to more stores right now, and feel free to ask about Empty Bobbin patterns at your local shop.

Update: Busy City is now available as a digital download.  Purchase the PDF from Empty Bobbin here.

Thanks to everyone for your kind comments.