My First Brown Bag Challenge - DONE!

My quilt guild, The Procrastinating Quilters of Clearwater, has a yearly challenge called the "Brown Bag Challenge." This is my first full year in the guild so it is the first time I was able to participate. What fun it is. What you see above is what I created.
SIDE NOTE: The wall hanging really isn't wonky. It just looks it because it was blowing in the wind.

Here is how the guild describes the challenge to us:

"What is a Brown Bag Challenge?" It is a time for you step out of your comfort zone to do something fun and receive something wonderful in return. The following outlines what you need to know in order to participate:
1. 3 COORDINATING FAT QUARTERS
2. Place the 3 COORDINATING FAT QUARTERS in a brown lunch bag with no markings (I will have extra bags if you don't have one); please no notes requesting a particular item to be made - that takes away from the challenge.
3. Bring your bag to the guild Summer Party
4. Hand it in
5. Near the end of the Summer Party, you will select a brown bag that is not yours for the challenge. From these three fat quarters we are instructed to do the following:


Use the 3 COORDINATING FAT QUARTERS on the front/outside of your project.
Please use at least 75% of the fabric provided on the project.
You made add as many other fabrics your heart desires - quilt store quality please.
The project MUST be QUILTED - machine or hand.
The project MUST be FINISHED.
The project should be no larger than a lap size.
Please put a label on your project.


We call the party that we have in November, "The Big Reveal" because that is where we reveal and give what we have made to the person who owns those three fat quarters. I didn't set this blog to post until after "The Big Reveal" because the surprise is such a big part of the fun.

There is my label and the three scraps that were left over from making the project - it's nice to include a piece of each color (if you can) because many of us forget what we put in the bags seven months ago! It's OK if we forget, thank goodness, because the person in charge of the challenge records each bag handed in.

First Hand Applique ~ Done!

So here she is. My first guild challenge, and my first hand applique all finished! The tip of my middle finger on my right hand may never regain it's pain free existence, but I am pretty pleased with the results. I actually think I will do another hand applique project when I stumble onto a project I like.

As I had stated in a previous post, this was the President's Challenge from my local quilt guild, the Procrastinating Quilters. It is titled "The Paint Chip Challenge."
Here are the paint chips that were in my sealed envelope. I think I did pretty good on the fabric choices, but we shall see...

Here is the back of the quilt. I spent an eternity quilting this puppy. I really got excited as it started coming together and I could see the patterns on the back unfolding....

And yes, though I always drag my feet, the rules insisted on a label, so here it is...

And here is where my quilt shall sit. Don't you think it is the perfect place for a "glass tea party*" with my granddaughters?

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*"Glass tea party" is what my granddaughter, Madelyn, calls her tea parties when she gets to use the real china tea set.

Stepping Outside of My Box - Hand Applique

I belong to a wonderful quilt guild, The Procrastinating Quilters. Our president, Cathy Starman, has come up with a challenge she titled "The 2008 Presidents Paint Chip Challenge." I was so excited to get involved. Each member who accepts the challenge is given a closed envelope with three paint chips in it - you don't get to choose the colors. My paint chips are shown above, but the color in the photo isn't true. The real colors are a very warm grey, a pretty pink and a very light blue grey. Not seeing the colors before you choose your envelope allows us to step outside our comfort zones in the choice of fabric colors. There are also size restrictions. The perimeter of the quilt can not exceed 100 inches and must be no smaller than 60 inches. In the spirit of stepping outside our comfort zones, I decided that after all these years of quilting it was high time for me to try hand applique. As you can see in the photo above, I have started the project. I based my challenge on an applique quilt pattern I had saved for years from an old magazine. Thankfully, I had to modify the pattern because it was for a bed quilt and that didn't fall into the size limitations. Thank goodness I didn't have to make it bed size because my grandchildren would be out of college and I would still be working on the hand appliqued flowers! What you see above is the first of four flowers. It took me longer to sew that one flower down than it did for me to piece and cut the entire top. The flower isn't even done, as the center circle hasn't been applied yet. My goodness, do I have new respect for hand appliquers. I have machine appliqued hundreds of designs, and I must say, this IS quite the challenge for me. I am using the freezer paper method where you iron the freezer paper template onto the right side of the fabric and then turn the seam allowance under using the needle. What a sadistic process! I will post photos of the finished project or the entrance to the insane asylum I am residing in, whichever comes first....

There has been some fun and excitement in my life recently. My Grandtots came down to sunny Florida to visit Grandma and Grandpa with their parents. They stayed for 2 and a half weeks and it was glorious! Above is Little Lucy, who took quite well to the beach life. Below is Madelyn who, as you can see from the photo below, loves the water. That photo was taken at the Florida Aquarium's little water park for the kids. What a great place that it! The Aquarium is in Tampa and if you are ever in the area, I highly recommend a visit. There is something there for everyone!