It has been a rather productive weekend, I'm happy to report!
I have two quilting magazine-inspired projects going...
Quilt block as wall art as inspired by American Patchwork & Quilting June 2012 Pg. 128
(I still need to get a staple gun that works - the one I purchased from WalMart didn't have a tension lever, so I'll have to return it. I'm considering trying Ace Hardware or Sears next. Any suggestions for me?)
Very interesting reading this month...I enjoyed the "Quilt Your Way! Bend, Break or Follow the Rules" self-quiz and article. By the way, I'm a "do it both ways" kind of quilter...how about you? Are you a 'follow the rules' type or a 'rule breaker' or do you enjoy some of both depending upon the project?
My second project is inspired by the following magazine article and the Kitties panel I purchased a month ago with my mother in mind....
Kitty Belles from McCall's Quick Quilts April/May 2012 pg. 17
Here's my version - all done with 10.5" blocks, five across and five down
I like the idea of a small inside border and larger outside border.
For the outside border and four of the inside blocks, I found a full-sized vintage sheet for $5.50
at the local second hand shop...
For the 4.25 yards backing I found 1930's inspired material for just $5.00/yd on sale at a local quilt shop (below left), I had dark blue polka dot on hand for the inside border and then I'll use the rest of the pink dotted floral vintage bed sheet for the outside border and I might use a solid red I had on hand for the binding....
potential backing, binding in red and inner border in dark blue polka dot
It was very quick work to cut out my 10.5" squares (although the pattern calls for 10.25")
I prefer to use my AccuQuilt cutter, but was concerned with the Kitties blocks - I wasn't sure I could get them spaced right, plus my AccuQuilt Go! cutter doesn't have a 10.5" option (it's too large), so I wanted to play it safe and purchased a Fons and Porter safety rotary cutter and a 10.5" grid to use as my guide (10.25 grids weren't something I could find and template plastic at my local quilt shop came in 8x11 only.)
This rotary cutter is one of the safest I've seen yet...as soon as you release the pressure, the blade instantly goes back into position, thanks to Fons & Porter for the great idea!
has 'sticky' dots on the back to help prevent slippage for better safety!
What have you been doing this weekend? Please visit Linda's blog HERE for a fun feature on how her sister is creating and printing her own fabric - what an awesome opportunity from www.spoonflower.com !
Has the unseasonably lovely weather got you out in the garden already?
Best Wishes!
My DD needed a present for a friend, so when we found a miscut charm pack at our local quilt shop for only $5, we couldn't pass it up knowing that when we got home, we could use the AccuQuilt Go! cutter and re-cut them to a uniform 4.5" easily in a couple of minutes, including the 2.5" sashing and binding. This made it possible to complete the design layout, sew up the strip sets, cut the backing, iron together with fusible batting , and sew the binding on all in just four hours!
Trimming the miscut squares was an absolute breeze with the help of 
Mom's AccuQuilt Go! cutter rescued the miscuts!
