The Bitchy Stitcher and Clever Notions

I've mentioned The Bitchy Stitcher a couple times.  She makes me giggle (and maybe even snort).  She is smart and funny and no-nonsense about quilting.  I love these things about her.  She even wrote a book about how funny quilting is.  A few months ago she put out a call on Facebook for volunteers to test her virgin foray into pattern writing.  I'll admit, I'm not a pattern person.  I like to go my own way.  On the other hand... I wanted to do this so much it hurt.  I threw my name in the virtual hat.  I was pleasantly surprised when I was chosen.

Step one was to pull out a bunch of fabrics.  (I've been on a fabric diet this year.  I have self-imposed a rule that I cannot buy fabric to add to my stash or for new projects.  I am allowed to buy backing fabrics because that is the only way quilts are finished.)  That means I can file this quilt under Sew My Stash 2015!  I'm calling it a win!

I started with a yellow solid for the background and then started digging in my bin of batiks.  I've pulled three quilts (including this one) out of my bins and boxes of batik fabrics.  This is why I'm on a diet.

I stitched up the required number of blocks.  These blocks are really fun to put together and go together quickly.

Sadly, I still do not have a design wall.  I just don't have the room (or an appropriate wall) in my sewing space.  I've been using a design floor for a while so I suppose I can do it a little longer.  This quilt is big!  This photo doesn't show all the rows.

I love the way the blocks march across the quilt.  The block is easy to piece but it makes a big impact.  I'm still thinking of other ways I can use this block.  Keep an eye out for this block in other projects.

With all that yellow I have the perfect quilting thread.  Top thread is So Fine #50 and the bobbin thread is Omni; both threads are from Superior Threads.

I loved the area of negative space.  It was a perfect way to use some different quilting.

I love the texture that the swirl hook provides but I always seem to stitch it so small.  This means the quilting seems to take forever.  Totally worth it, though.

The final lap!

Here it is fresh off the frame.

With the dense quilting I ended up trimming just a tiny bit more than usual.

A quilt like this deserves an awesome label.  (DISCLAIMER:  Megan named the pattern Daryl, I named my quilt Blooming.)

Scrappy binding is the best!

Some outdoor lighting and the pattern release inspired me to run out in the yard and take some better photos.

The sun was setting so the colors aren't washed out but they do read a little closer to true.  Sorry about the creases, I've been keeping this one under wraps for a few weeks.

I had to work to get a good photo of the entire quilt.  My lawn is a little shaggy, but the quilt is amazing!

I'm super pleased with the finished quilt.  I recommend you check out this pattern and others from The Bitchy Stitcher.  At the very least you should pick up a copy of her wonderful book Quilting Isn't Funny.  Because quite honestly, it is.

Linking up with TGIFF.

Modern Quilting for The Bitchy Stitcher

WARNING:  If you think quilting isn't funny, or are easily offended by (im)mature language, I recommend you stop reading now.  You've been warned.

Back in April of this year, The Bitchy Stitcher wrote a fun post that tickled my funny bone.  I set out to make some of her amazing modern quilts.  In miniature.  I also found a short thread (that I can't find now) over on the Quilting Board where there was some butt-hurt that lasted about three posts until someone pointed out that her new book, Modern Quilting:  F*ck Yeah!, was a joke.  The original post was posted on April 1st, after all.

First I picked out my solids, because everyone knows that modern quilting demands solids.  Lots and lots of solids.  These are all Kona Cottons from Robert Kaufman that I had in my stash.  I have so many of these because they are quilting staples.  I also have batting by the roll and thread in colors the rainbow never heard of.  Don't judge.

I was going to use Kona white (there are actually several shades of white/neutral in this line) for the backing and the background for some of these.  I ended up changing my mind on the backing fabric since I decided to print the label directly on the backing fabric.  I used the prepared fabric you can get at quilt shops for printing with your inkjet printer at home.  I've had these fabric sheets for a long time and decided that I should use them.  It is only a matter of time before the sticky backing either doesn't come off or falls off before I can print on it.

To get the shapes for the front of the quilts, I went with English paper piecing.  I have an unnatural (and disturbing) urge to do this sort of sewing.  It goes against everything I am when it comes to quilting.  I am a machine sewer.  I am a machine quilter.  I finish binding by machine.  But... English paper piecing is a topic for another blog post.

I attached the shapes to my white background fabric.  Sometimes, my hand work is better than others.  The hexie was fine.  That quadrilateral challenged my sewing ability and my inner calm.  I decided to just let that one ride.  Life is too short to rip.

The quilting is where I really let this project take off.  First was Far From the Madding Crowd.  I sort of let the walking foot do the work.  This is another thing you see a great deal of in modern quilting; long parallel lines that use some of the piecing as a base and just take off across the surface of the quilt.

Here we have Dream Your Explosion Tiffany.  I used one of the fancy stitches on my sewing machine to balance the feather I put in the white background.  That feather isn't perfect, but I love it anyway.  Sometimes the feather, an heirloom quilting motif, is stitched into the negative space of modern quilts because, well, feathers are awesome.

Finally, we have Meadowlarking.  I love the quilting on this one.  Each of those little clams challenged my free-motion quilting abilities.  Overall I like this one the most.  The quilting is perfect!

I trimmed and added the binding to each tiny quilt to contrast the quilt and really help the design stand out.  Nah, I just sort of followed the book on this one.  I still love the effect.  Megan picked great colors.

Each back was printed with the label prior to quilting.  This is a great way to label your mug rugs.  I should use some freezer paper to do this sort of thing with other mug rugs.  Sometimes I'm such a genius!  (One millisecond is all it takes.)  I suppose if I do that I should also share a tutorial.

 Far From the Madding Crowd

 Dream Your Explosion Tiffany

Meadowlarking

These quilts were a blast to make.  After they were done, I bundled them up and sent them to The Bitchy Stitcher.  I can only hope I did her patterns and designs justice.

As I mentioned before, The Bitchy Stitcher is collecting quilt blocks to create the Laughter Quilt.  This is a great way to share something that makes you laugh with the quilting world.  Seriously, lend a hand.  Remember, if you can't laugh, you'll cry.  There is no crying in quilting, especially modern quilting.

The Laughter Quilt

I've been following Megan The Bitchy Stitcher (yes, that all gets capital letters) for a while.  Not forever, but long enough to know that she has a great sense of humor and wants to share it with all of the quilting world. She recently asked for some blocks to make a quilt.  I finally set myself the task of making some of these blocks.  I know, how hard can it be?

I won't go over the instructions.  You can find all the instructions over at The Laughter Quilt blog post.  For the record, one 3.5" strip cut width of fabric will square up into 12 blocks.

If you decide to join in, you'll have to go there to get The Bitchy Stitcher's address anyway.  I paired my Kona White with some leftover charms from the Fossil Fern collection.

I even used my new thread snipper to snip apart those units.

She asked for bright and cheery colors.  I hope I managed to stay within the guidelines.

Again my piecing skills were saved by the Tucker Trimmer.  I love this tool!  Sometimes quilting is like writing.  It isn't about the first draft, it is about the editing!

Before I knew it, I had a cool dozen of these cute little blocks.

I backed them with a piece of freezer paper to stabilize them while I wrote on them.  I didn't back all of them at once since I had things to say early in the process and freezer paper is easy enough to move to the next block once it has served its purpose.

I won't share what I wrote on these until much later.  Heaven forbid I ruin the surprise.  I am looking forward to the finished quilt.  This will be a wonder to behold.  Or, it will just be a bunch of snarky blocks sewn up into a quilt.  Although, I think that would be pretty awesome, too.

Are you joining in the block-making?  Do you have something that makes you laugh that would be a good addition to this quilt?  I know I have more to say.