Modern Mini Applique Block 13

I love the way this one looks like a frame.  It makes me happy.  If you look at the center ring you can see that I had fun with the stitching size.  The outside of the ring has longer stitches than the inside of the ring.

I hope you get to quilt today!
Stay safe and healthy!
Suzy

Modern Mini Applique Block 12

The real question with this block is which way is right side up?  I like to both ways and I can't decide which is better.  This way it looks like some bubbles in a spoon.

And this way it looks like a hood.

The back. 

Time will tell which way it will end up in the final quilt.

I hope you get to quilt today!

Suzy

Island Batik Ambassador's Creative Borders and Bindings Challenge

The April Challenge for the Island Batik Ambassadors is the Creative Borders and Bindings Challenge.   For this one I decided I wanted to try to challenge myself to incorporate a huge border into a quilt that could be pieced as one really large block instead of adding on a border later.  I was also going for that Scandinavian snowflake sweater look but in turquoise instead of more traditional colors.

I started with these gorgeous stash buster rolls all in dark teal and a cream neutral.  I cut all the pieces using my Accuquilt strip cutter dies.  It was an interesting challenge since the rolls are 5 inches wide.  I needed to make sure I had enough to complete the quilt and binding!  Careful cutting ensued...

You can see that I pieced this on the diagonal and ended up trimming off the excess edging later.

Since I decided to make this quilt look scrappy I decided the quilting should look scrappy too.  I just had fun quilting whatever came to mind.  It was awesome and freeing.  I of course used my favorite Hobbs 80/20 Blend Batting and Aurifil thread for the quilting.  The piecing was done with my new favorite Schmetz Chrome Microtex size 80 needles.  They slide through Batik amazingly well.

I love how playful and geometric this quilt turned out!

I hope you get to quilt today!
Stay Safe and Healthy!
Suzy

Be sure to check out what my fellow Island Batik Ambassadors are up to!

Asmussen, Carolina	Wilton, Connecticut	https://www.carolinasmussen.com/moodboard
Best, Megan	Ferndale, Washington	ww.bestquilter.com
Boatright, Pamela	Coos Bay, Oregon	https://www.pamelaquilts.com/
Fulton, Jennifer	Indianapolis, Indiana	http://www.inquiringquilter.com/questions
Govindan, Vasudha	Houston, TX	storiedquilts.com
Hart, Joanne	Birmingham, UK	www.unicornharts.com
Hatziioannidi, Mania	Athens, Greece, Europe	www.maniaforquilts.com
Henton, Carla	Wright, Kansas	http://www.createinthesticks.com/
Kauffman, Connie	Nappanee, IN	http://www.kauffmandesigns.blogspot.com
Leachman, Emily	Charlotte, North Carolina	http://thedarlingdogwood.blogspot.com/
Looney, Denise	Grafton,Il	https://fortheloveofgeese.com
Malasky, Leah	Lake City, SC	http://www.quilteddelights.com
Manke, Sally	Arcadia, Michigan	https://www.sallymanke.com/blog
McAuliffe, Maryellen	Franklin Square	http://www.marymackmademine.com/
Moellers, Carol	Greene, Iowa	https://carolmoellersdesigns.com/welcome/http-carolmoellersdesigns-com/
Renna, Gail	Tallahassee, FL	http://quilthaventhreads.wordpress.com
Riley, Sharon	Wallingford, PA	https://www.facebook.com/SewRileyDesigns/
Roberts, Michelle	Bethersden, kent, UK	www.creativeblonde.co.uk
Sheppard, Gail	Surrey, British Columbia, Canada	https://quiltinggail.wordpress.com
Strauser, Jennifer	METUCHEN, NJ	http://dizzyquilter.com/
Thomas, Jennifer	Henderson, North Carolina	https://curlicuecreations.blogspot.com/
Vermilya, Alison	Gettysburg, PA	https://littlebunnyquilts.blogspot.com/
Walker, Sandra	Kingsville Ontario Canada	http://www.mmmquilts.com
Webster, Suzy	Apple Valley, MN	https://websterquilt.blogspot.com
Yamamoto, Janet	Hamilton	https://www.facebook.com/WhispersOfYore/

Modern Mini Applique Block 11

All the orange triangles on this one were cut out of the same fabric.  It's one thing I adore about batiks is how they vary in color and you can get so many different patterns/effects from one fabric.  I also adore this coral color.  It's my favorite!

I hope you get to quilt today!
Stay safe and healthy!
Suzy

Modern Mini Applique Block 10

I love dots!  I had fun fussy cutting these teal pieces so the dots would go up into the corner.  I also really like the contrast of the bright salmon.

I hope you get to quilt today!
Stay safe and healthy!
Suzy

Modern Mini Applique Block 9

If I were to do this one again I would make the blue bars go underneath the purple part completely to make sure that they lined up a little better.  But that's probably just me being really picky.  

I hope you get to quilt today!
Stay safe and healthy!
Suzy

Modern Mini Applique Block 8

It's always interesting trying to pick a thread color for a multi-color batik.  In this case I chose a dark, dark, pinky purple for the big ovals because I wanted it to stand apart from the blue and purple.  If I'd chosen either of those colors it would have blended more and I wanted it to stand out.

I'm quite happy with the results.

I hope you get to quilt today!
Stay safe and healthy!
Suzy

Modern Mini Applique Block 7

This block would look way more traditional with four points.  So I decided to only give it two.  I also had fun fussy cutting the light green fabric so it has ovals in it and the orange fabric so it has those three dots at the top.  I love this fabric combination too.  It sings.

I've been trying to be careful with my stabilizer so I don't run out.  Thus some blocks end up with more than one piece.

I hope you get to quilt today!
Stay safe and healthy!
Suzy

Modern Mini Applique Block 6

I love the flow of this block!  It's such fun.  I wanted to see what happened when I started to interlock the U shapes.

This is the block before stitching.  I didn't like how pale that green was compared to the burgundy so I decided to stitch it in a much darker thread.

Now you can really see the outline of the Green U's.  Problem fixed.

I hope you get to quilt today!
Stay safe and healthy!
Suzy

Modern Mini Applique Block 5

I wanted to play with long skinny triangles on this block.  I also had to add dots.  I love dots.  What was I thinking?! with such tiny dots?!  Oh well, it worked out.  Thank goodness there were only 6 of them.

I hope you get to quilt today!
Stay safe and healthy!
Suzy

Modern Mini Applique Block 4

Today's block is fun with half circles going in a circle.  We're all going a little circular right now (crazy?) so it seems appropriate.  Hang in there and keep on quilting!

I hope you get to quilt today!
Stay safe and healthy!
Suzy

Modern Mini Applique Block 3

This block is totally fun because it's on a diagonal that is NOT in the center of the square.  The middle circles are also slightly larger for variety.  

I had fun fussy butting the green circles out of one of my favorite Island Batik striped fabrics and the coral dots with the light coral dots.  Such fun.

I decided to use a large size blanket stitch for the big circles for emphasis.

Done!

I've been having a lot of fun altering the size of my blanket stitching for different pieces.

I hope you get to quilt today!
Stay safe and healthy.
Suzy (Sheesh...I've been signing so many emails Mrs. Webster I almost put that! LOL)

Modern Mini Applique Block 2

I am having a ton of fun making modern mini applique blocks!  They're quick and different and such fun.  I'm loving this color combination today.  It's so cheerful

Here's my start without stitching.  The stitching really enhances the block.

Green stitching complete.

Stitching complete.  I had fun doing different widths of blanket stitching.  The orange is much wider than the other colors.

I hope you get to quilt today!
Stay safe and healthy.
Suzy

Modern Mini Applique - Introduction

You never know when inspiration is going to strike.  It struck me the other day as I was walking past a Christmas wreath quilt along I did with Helen Godden a few years ago (yes, I keep it up all year long because I love it and my family hasn't noticed it's been there for almost two years).  The idea was that each day you free motion quilted one circle.  I thought, well, that would be fun to do for quarantine, but what?

My friend Shelly is doing a fabric postcard a day.  It's fun to watch her.  I have decided to do a Modern Mini Applique block everyday or two (I am a teacher after all and I'm still not quite sure how distance learning is going to work and function yet!)

So, here's my first block:

The Lime all stitched.  I'm using Glide thread by Hab + Dash.  This particular color name made me chuckle as it's called Kryptonite.

Done!

And the back.  I use a stabilizer so my double blanket stitches don't pucker the fabric as I'm stitching.

I hope you get to quilt today!
And stay safe and healthy!
Suzy