Don't you just love it when something turns out exactly the way you envisioned it?

This is my center for the Modern Mini Mystery Round Robin. I pondered a ton about how I wanted this to look and although I considered a bunch of different block designs, I knew from the beginning that I wanted it rainbow colors.

I wanted this block to say something about me as a person and I think I achieved that. You see, for the most part I am a happy gal and I do my best to enjoy life. Yes there are times when I get like this

And since I love things in the colors of the rainbow (a very prevalent theme in quilt blog land thankfully) this mini had to be done in that color scheme. No other options existed for me.

On the other hand, I am not a straight and rigid person. I admit there are times when that is necessary, I am an accountant after all, but if I can be just a bit off kilter I will. I like to keep things unpredictable, outside the box. So that is why the bars of this of this are a little askew, just like me.

When I finished this center last week, I wasn't exactly sure if I was 100% happy with it so I put it on my design wall so I could gauge the way I feel about it every day. Obviously since I am posting about it here and it is now on its way to the 1st person in my group, I decided that I love it. I found that I like the way it looks like it is on the straight and narrow if you just glance at it quickly but if you stop and really look at it, you see the wonkiness in it. I think that sums me up pretty well.

Who knows if my group mates will add uneven borders to try and bring this visually back in line but that is the fun part of this Round Robin. It doesn't matter to me and since each person gets to do what they want with it, what happens will remain a mystery to me until I get it back in October.

I'm not telling which one of the group ladies gets the torture honor of being the first to add to this, she'll know soon enough when it arrives at her door but I'm willing to bet that all the members of my group are contemplating the options when it becomes their turn to add their spin on my Wonky Rainbow.

So today another brilliant idea came to mind....to every so often tell my readers something about myself. I find that I like reading quilters non-quilty things about other quilters on occasion too. What did I decide to blog about for my first topic?

Socks

You see, my BFF and I give each other fun socks. For special occasions like birthdays or holidays or sometimes for no reason at all. It is just this thing we started to do years ago when we first met and have continued ever since.

Besides I typically wear 2 pairs of socks every day from Oct through April (I have very cold feet), so more socks are never a bad thing to me and if they are fun ones, all the better.

I have a couple of pairs of Halloween socks.

Lobster (and Christmas Lobsters at that) and Crab socks. I LOVE lobster (and king crab too) and she finds me all sorts of lobster shaped things.

Bunches of Christmas socks.



(No clue why Blogger insists on uploading this picture sideways)

And these are the socks I wore today. Tells you a bit about where my mind has been all day, doesn't it.

There are more, trust me, but they are the shorty type that are still packed with the summer clothes. Sorry I wasn't up to digging them out today to photograph them. I love my silly socks and I think of my BFF every single time I put a pair on.

Life is short. Ya gotta have fun where ever you can. Why not include your socks in that? I see no reason not to. Do you?

While dinner was baking in the oven, I was upstairs in my studio working on the teacher quilt blocks. My little missy wandered up to check out what I was doing (something they do a lot when I'm in there). I glanced up at my machine and saw her attempting to "sew" a scrap of fabric on the old Singer. She learns so much just by watching.

I can't tell you how the sight made my crafting momma heart sing.

Back to work I was going to go but I thought the heck with it. I'm going to take a few minutes and REALLY sew with my girl! I grabbed the 6 charms she was given a few weeks ago when we were at a LQS, hastily cut 3 more that coordinated and off we went.

The Ghastlies are arriving!

Yup. Guilty as charged. I am seriously

Addicted to Organizing!

The diagnosis is official. I can't help it. It is in my blood. I've been an organizer all my life. Not only my spaces get organized (I like to find what I am looking for when I am looking for it), I've organized parties, charitable endeavours (I even co-founded a local non-profit many years ago that is still going strong) and now I'm organizing fun events in my quilting life.

Just call me "OO" for Organizing Obsessed!

Ideas just pop into my head and perculate there until I work all the parts out. There are not 1, not 2, but 3 projects brewing in my brain for the coming months.

The 1st one will be themed for my favorite holiday. Can you guess which one? Starting in April, details coming soon.

#2 will start in June and also involves a holiday theme.

3rd will be based on my favorite color scheme. It will take place in July.

Blog buttons will magically appear in my sidebar at some point so you might want to keep looking for them for hints as to what I've got up my sleeve.

Update: Sign ups for this are now closed. Missed out? Don't worry. I'm sure I'll be doing this again sometime in the future.

 

 

 

Here are the last few pictures from the NJ Quilt Fest show.

I'm not happy that the picture of this one came out blurry. I waited a long time for someone to get out of the way so I could take it, but I must have been hurrying. Blurry or not I still had to share it with you.

I like that this Asian quilt isn't symmetrical.

How do folks come up with ideas like this one?

This was a great show and I'll likely go again. There were a ton of quilts that were not traditional and very interesting. My friend is even hooked now and wants to try this, though she is more of an organic abstract sort of person. Given that she is a graphic artist, it will be fun to watch her progress. If you are the the area next year, I highly recommend this show.

Here are a few more lovelies to share from the NJ Quilt Fest show.

There are no words to describe how beautiful this one is.

From afar this looked like real stained glass.

It was quilted with the tiniest stippling that I have ever seen.

I wanted to steal this bring it home. I just love it. I think one like this is in my future for sure.

Can you say "mind boggling"?

This is what I have...a Brother NX 400. Normally I love this machine but right now there is not much love available from me for it. URG! The repair shop is an hour away and not open today so I have to wait until tomorrow after work to get it there. I guess I'll have to set up my mom's old Singer so at least I can get some more teacher quilt blocks done. I'm way behind on those projects and this certainly isn't helping!

Last Saturday I left the kidlets home with the hubby and drove 3 hours south with a friend to attend the NJ Quilt Fest in Summerset. There was more than a fair share of quilt eye candy and we didn't have nearly enough time to admire the quilts and shop at all the vendors. But I did manage to get pictures of some of the wonderful work there and I want to share them with all of you.

My friend is not a quilter and thought she'd only see a bunch of traditional quilts (so not her taste since she is a graphic artist) but oh was she hugely mistaken. There were art quilts everywhere at this show along with the traditional ones.

This is one of the 1st ones we saw and it took my breath away. Absolutely stunning.

The gradients of color in this were amazing. 

Neat combo of colors, neutral with a bit if pizazz.

The workmanship in this is beyond words.

This one took my friend's breath away. She quickly started to like quilting very much.

Wow! I'm blown away. Truly. I've only had the post up about my Round Robin for 2 days and I already have 19 quilters who have joined in on my little party.

There is still plenty of time if you want to join too. You can read all the details here.

A few questions have popped up and I want to provide the answers so even more of you will hop on board.

*You will create (1) 6 1/2" unfinished center block. The other 7 members of your group will add borders to it, either simple strips or pieced borders (their choice).

*If you'd like to ask your group members to do something you'd prefer, say putting the center block off to the side, go right ahead. Put a note in with your center block and ask. Want it to have a certain look because it will go in a specific place? Go ahead and mention that in your note .But there is no guarantee they will fulfill your request. Remember it is their choice what they ultimately decide to add to your quilt.

*The completed top will end up between 27" and 34", depending on the size of the borders that your group members add.

 *If group members do decide to put the center off on one side, than up to 4" can be added to the other 2 sides by each group member. Ultimately this should be no bigger than the size listed above.

*Novices are definitely welcome. If you can sew on a simple strip border, you can do this no problem. Want to add something more complicated, go right ahead. Just keep it to no more than 2" finished total. Again totally your choice.

*I was asked what happens if someone doesn't do their part and the quilt never gets returned to it's owner. Honestly before this person mentioned it, this possibility never occurred to me and I really HOPE it doesn't happen. I would hate for anyone to get disappointed and for me to have to send my buddy Guido after the offender. He's pretty rough and tough so just play nice and do what you are supposed to do. He hates sewing machines and likes to send them smashing onto the road from high above. Remember, I have all your addresses! And I am not above letting everyone else in the quilting world know if you aren't a good team player.

*If you decide you cannot complete this after all, let me know ASAP. I certainly understand (and so would everyone else) if something really major happened that prevented you from continuing. I would ask that you send to me the piece you received most recently and I will make arrangements to get it completed. (And no if you are honest about this I won't send Guido after you.)

*Anyone changing their mind before the official start is ok just let me know before March 18th so I can leave you off the final lists.

Any more questions, please let me know. I greatly appreciate all of you that have blogged about this little party on your blogs and have added the button. Keep spreading the word. It is only through the recommendations of other quilters like yourselves that I have "met" so many terrific people and have learned so much in such a relatively short time.

There are a ton of great swaps going on in quilt blog land. I wanted to come up with something to host myself. An idea got hatched in my brain (while I was in the shower this morning no less) and I decided to just run with it.

This won't be your typical Round Robin. Oh no, nothing typical for me. I prefer to add my own bit of quirkiness to a lot of things I do. I want it to be modern and fresh, not something you would have seen in the 1980s. Plus most of us are uber busy so I want to keep it small, wall hanging or table topper size. And my financially responsible side also wanted to keep it mega cheap to participate in, so lots of you will want to join the party. (The accountant part of me always has a say in these matters you know.)

The details you ask? I'm getting to that! Okay, okay since you beg, here it is:

 *You will make a 6 1/2" unfinished center block. Modern, Fresh, Fun! Brights? Only a couple of colors? A whole rainbow? Neutrals? Whatever you want! You will mail it to the 1st person on the list in your group.

*To the center you receive from someone else you will add ONLY a border, between 1" and 2" finished MAX. Each border can be a simple single fabric or it can be a mini pieced border, your choice. You could instead add (2) 1" finished borders, again your choice, but no more than 2" finished total. Your fabric additions will be minimal, likely no more than a FQ. You can purchase something that coordinates with what was already added or pull from your stash.

*You will have one month to receive the current month's mini from the previous contributor, add your part and send it on to the next person. You must be diligent on mailing on time so the next person has enough time to do her (his) part.

*Finished size of the top will be between 16 1/2" to 20". 27" to 34" (Oops! Thanks Annie for catching this little math boo-boo). Keeping this small means that it can be mailed in a padded envelope, keeping the postage costs down to a minimum (and hopefully avoiding customs for our international players).

*8 participants per group. If more than 8 people join in GREAT! We can have more than one group going. International participants welcome.

So I bet by now you are wondering "Where is the Mystery part of this Round Robin"? Well...I like to be a bit sneaky and I'm great at keeping secrets. I hope you all are too. This will have not 1 but 2 levels of mystery involved.

Mystery #1 - Unlike in a typical Round Robin where the owner sends all the fabric to be used for the rows being added to her (his) center block, the owner will have no say in what colors or fabrics get added. Each participant will make that decision. The owner can send along a note mentioning a general scheme or where the finished wall hanging will be placed to give everyone in the group a little direction, but the ultimate choice of fabrics/color/style will be up to each person in the round. If you choose to join in, you agree to accept the fact that you will have absolutely no control over the rest of the parts. Thems the rules!

Mystery #2 - Once the owner sends the center to the 1st person on the list, she (or he of course) will not know who else will be adding to it. I will email that list to the 1st person. So until the owner gets her (his) top back in December, there will be no knowledge (or emailing in the background with suggestions) by the owner to the other participants possible. (Except for me of course since I will putting the groups together, but there has to be some bonus since I came up with the idea and am hosting it. Believe me, I won't cheat! I really do prefer surprises.)

Sound fun to you? I hope so. In the end you will receive back a mini wall hanging/table topper that you can finish any way your little heart desires. I for one am needing something lovely to decorate the bare walls of my new studio.

You can certainly blog about this, I really hope you do so we can get lots and lots of participants, but during the Modern Mini Mystery Round Robin if you want to blog about your contributions to each quilt, you must be elusive and never reveal a picture the whole thing or enough that the owner will recognize it. Remember this is supposed to be a secret to the owner until it is received back home in December. A great little present to yourself!

Are you a bit sneaky too? Do you love to keep secrets? Of course I'm betting some of you will troll the blogs of the other participants looking for some info about your quilt. (Shame, shame. I chuckle at those that can't wait for anything. That's no fun at all! You're probably the ones who cheat and peak at your Christmas presents and then rewrap them so no one will know). At the end we will have a link up party so we can show off the terrific creations all made possible by our fellow quilting friends. I am looking forward to being able to look at mine knowing that friends all around the quilting world contributed to it.

If you want to play in this Modern Mini Mystery Round Robin, leave me a comment and let me know, and at the same time email me your full name and address. If you don't want to ship internationally please also let me know. I'm guessing that we will have enough groups that I can keep some of them US only. Deadline for signing up will be 5pm EST Sunday, March 18th (I know, short time frame to decide but I just came up with the idea this morning). Once you sign up you can get started making your center block. No need to wait. I will email everyone the name and address of the 1st person on the group list, where you send your center block to, by Tuesday March 27th. I will also then email the first person in each group the list of the rest of the group's participants.

Grab my button and take it to your blog. Pass the word far and wide. Let's get this party going with a giant bang in quilt blog land! Who's joining me?