Hive 3 block done

Hi, I'm Heather from QA Creations.  The block is already on its way to Ireland, but I need to get the post done!  I did a nature theme for my bookshelf block for Ruth.

She asked what our first quilt was and if we still have it... mine is kind of a two part answer.  When I first decided to learn, I bought some how to quilt books and signed up for a class at a quilt shop.

I very excited and got started on a rail fence quilt before I took the class.  Then I took the class and learned how I was really supposed to do it, and then finished the rail fence.  I donated the rail fence to Quilts for Kids, and kept the quilt from the class.  

The rail fence I donated is below.  It doesn't look that bad, but I really hope it didn't fall apart because knowing what I know now, some of those seams were less than secure.

The quilt for the class was supposed to be a 4 block sampler (if I remember correctly), but I decided to make extra blocks and turn it into a large lap quilt.  This still gets a lot of use.

And that is how you end up with two first quilts.  They were made and finished simultaneously, and I quilted them the same day.  I don't know how to decide which was truly first.

Ruth, I hope you like your block!

Hive #9, January block- check!

Hi folks!

Hope you are staying warm if you are in cold climates and enjoying the sun in the warm ones!
I would take Toni to The Palisades Restaurant in Eggleston, VA. It is an old general store that has been converted into a restaurant. It sits on the banks of the New River. The food is absolutely wonderful, everything from farm to table, wood fired pizza and my favorite; a brie and pear quesadilla! The restaurant also hosts great blue grass music from around the area!

Second, you would have to come experience the life of a Hokie, a Virginia Tech Hokie! I work at an amazing institution and the orange and maroon pride is felt wherever you go. I love my students. They embrace our motto, "Ut Prosim", That I May Serve in all aspects of their life.

January's block! I love this color combination! Gorgeous, can't wait to see this all together.

Hive 9 January Block

Hi Hive 9. I'm Tiffany. Here are my blocks for Toni for January.

Toni asked where I would take her if she came to visit. I live in a small town in Georgia about halfway between Athens and Augusta. Most people I meet have never heard of Washington, GA. Even people who have lived in Georgia their whole life! That said, there's not really a lot to see here. Kettle Creek Battlefield, from the Revolutionary War is nearby. But it's not much to see really. Rumor has it, the Confederate Army buried some gold somewhere in Wilkes County. So I guess we could go treasure hunting. I really don't know what else to tell you. There's not much going on around here. Two years ago, when I still lived in Colorado Springs, I'd have plenty of ideas!

Hive 4 January Block Completed

Hi all, My name is Heather and I am from Southeastern, CT, USA

I taught myself to sew 10 years ago, and I have been quilting for about 3 years.

I am excited to be part of this hive, and this is my second year of the Stash Bee.

 

Our January Hive Mama, Renae, asked us to help her finish up a quilt by making her a beautiful paper piecing block, designed by Wombat Quilts.

Colors of Raspberry, purple, lime, navy and teal and low volume background. Paper piecing is one of my new passions. Here is my block for Renae.

Renae wanted to know what was on our quilting bucket list.

 

I have many unfinished projects, but two important quilts on my bucket list. One is my quilt from last years Stash Bee. Last year I requested the Icky Bump paper pieced block from Wombat Quilts in Aqua, Purple, or Pink. Because I received so many aqua and only a few of the other colors, I need to make quite a few more purple and pink blocks for completion of the quilt.

 

These are the blocks I have received so far.

The second quilt I want to make is a King sized version of Kaleidoscopic Kites quilt from Fresh Lemon Quilts. This was the first quilt I wanted to make, but have found that collecting fat quarters for it has been very difficult. I purchase some, set them aside, organize them and then suddenly, I need to grab some from the pile to use for other projects. Hopefully some day this quilt will be laying on my bed.

I have a blog at HotPinkThread, although have not tended to it in quite  a while, but plan to start using it regularly this year. I have an etsy shop selling fabrics at HotPinkThread, and also a Facebook Page, HotPinkThread. I look forward to getting to know all of you, and seeing all the blocks this year!

Stash Bee Hive #8 Block DONE!

Ok, so this will be answering both questions, two birds, you know. I LOVE Maroon/Burgundy so Marsala fits right in there. I love to wear these colors, not so sure about as a quilt but I would love to try... Maybe for my month.... Hmmm So many ideas!

On to the block! Audrey, I am glad you picked this block. Why? Because I am being lazy and the complexity of the block made me snap out of it. But in reality, it was easy. I am actually going to add it to my rep. for later use. :) Here it is. I hope you like it. This is what I had in my stash.

Hive 4 January Block FInished by Barb

I'm feeling very accomplished! This is my first paper piecing  project and I do think I'm getting the hang of it. 

I took a Craftsy class by Elizabeth Dackson and she was so thorough in her presentation, that it was a breeze.

I can't wait to see how Renae puts all these blocks together. Very fun!

Hive 6 Block from Michelle

Australia contributes to HIVE 6

Hi my name is Michelle and I live in rural Queenslands.
When I saw the lovely block that was picked this month my first thought was ... UGH HST !!! But when you throw in some contrasting colours, it turned out great. And then I saw QST.... Oh well.

I have participated in a few bees over the years but this is my first BLOG based one, so hopefully I won't suck at this too much.

The fabric choices were easy, No purples and yellows in my house, the are officially the least amount of fabric in my stash, now navies and oranges ... thats another story.
My choices were Stof fabric, botanicals and blue print that had no label but I'm sure it came with some lobster fabric I bought a few years ago.

My favorite vacation site... last year my hubby gave me a beach house for my birthday. If I could do anything and be anywhere it would be here, with my kids 

Michelle

Current Girlfriend meets Hunters Star

I boldly joined Stash Bee while ignoring nagging thoughts that I might be over committing myself, a character defect I have practiced a lot. Turns out to be a manageable project. My stash of scraps taunted me when it came to choosing colors. I want to do a good job and please Heather, of A Reformed Heathn, who has kindly helped us newbies. I have quilted for 41 years but not made a Hunters Star before. It was fun and I love it! Can't wait to see the collection. Here is my star:

The colors remind me of the winter hillsides of our canyon home here in the central Idaho Rocky Mountains, grassy yellows, lavender shade, blue skies...  We are close to the Salmon River and that segues to my favorite meal: barbequed salmon, pasta with home made pesto sauce, fresh fruit salad, and a sour cream chocolate cake for dessert. It is my birthday dinner every summer! The anadromous  Coho salmon hatch here, travel 800 miles to the Pacific Ocean to live for several years, then come back up the Columbia River and on to the Salmon River to spawn. Only the chocolate is imported, the rest is local.

Hive #1-Alison's Block!

Hi!  I'm Jennifer, the struggling end of Hive #1 I believe.  I guess that I love the look of flying geese but have avoided actually ever making them.  This block was quite the education!  Add to that, I'm a pediatric ER nurse and you may have heard...it's flu and RSV season.  No rest for the weary!

For my first attempt there are no pictures, just a bunch of crumpled up dead geese.  My second attempt has the pink center.  I think that I wasn't as precise as I should have been when making the geese, making the points and seams almost impossible to meet up.  I'm sending it along, just in case Alison has some idea for block rehab.

My final attempt used the "measure seventeen times, cut once approach" since I was quickly running out of my chosen fabrics.  It has the light blue center.

Of course even photographing these posed a challenge at my house.  Meet Knuckles the Corgi and photobomber.

As for quilting disaster, I have many.  I'm a bad pattern follower, tending to do the math and write my own.  This leads to many creative solutions.  But nothing tops the quilt that recently was a multiphase disaster.  It was a quilt I'd pieced very early in my quilting career.  Seams are wonky, pressed wrong.  I recently decided to go ahead and finish it.  While quilting it, the cat decided to "christen" it, where I learned that the red fabric ran.  Needless to say, it didn't work as a Christmas gift!

Hive #5 - January Block

Happy New Year!  I'm Christina and this is my second year with Stash Bee.  Below is my Hive #5 block for Lynn.

Lynn's question was which is my favorite season and why?  I really love all the seasons.  If I have to pick one, I'd say it's Fall.  The colors of the leaves are AMAZING here in the northeast -- red, orange, yellow, while the sky is still blue and sunsets are a glow of oranges, reds and even purples.  I love to walk on the beach in the fall when there's no people on the beach, the air is crisp and the water is cold.

I can't wait for the next block.

TTFN!
~Christina

Hive 6: January 2015 Swamp Angel Block

Hello everyone! My name is Julia and I'm from lovely Somerville, MA. Somerville is nestled up against Cambridge and Boston. This whole area is full of colleges & we have regular tourist seasons. Right now we're covered in snow thanks to the recent blizzard so minimal tourists. :)

I'm leaving this afternoon to fly to Orlando, FL to visit friends and go to a quilting event. When I travel I typically visit friends & relatives. I have family in Sweden & friends all over the world so that's great. I just finished my library & information science degree so I'm treating myself to a vacation in Cancun at the MC of February. I'm very excited for the trip. I've never been to Mexico & I splashed out for a beach resort. I'll be packing bikinis, caftans & books.

This is my first bee & I enjoyed making the block. It pushed me on dealing with bias distortion particularly when making QSTs. I tossed out several wonky blocks while getting my technique down. I really like how this looks. I chose blue & orange fabrics. I bought a FQ of plane fabric because it was a great match with the question of the month.

Stash Bee Hive 6 January Block

Hi Everyone!

I'm Tori (short for Victoria) from Camden Maine.

I've managed to finish my first block for Hive 6.  Yeah!  I would have been done sooner, but I've been sick.  And then we had a blizzard which meant an unexpected day off and an opportunity to finish my bee block.  I also made one for myself so I can do a sampler quilt of all the blocks throughout the year.

It's a block I've never tried before and I really liked it.

Question of the month:  How do you spend your vacations?

I live in Maine which is Vacationland.  Camden Maine is full of tourists 9 months of the year.  So I vacation to get away from vacationers.  For one week each summer we hang out at my in-laws poolside and take day trips as an entire family.  It's relaxing and energizing at the same time.

I can't wait for our next block!

Hive 2 - January Block

Hey all. I had my block all cut out and ready earlier this month but time got away from me, and other issues came to light that I'll share in an email. Needless to say, I forgot to piece the squares together and get these out!

Time travel. My daughter asked me about this the other day. I had to think for a minute, then I replied to her: If going back in time ment that I would then live during that time, I would want to go back to when Colorado was first being settled. I think in my heart I was ment to be a pioneer with a simple life. If going back in time was to witness an event... then I would go back into time to witness the last days of Jesus. (though that one tied with wanting to watch creation. lol)

My blocks were so much fun to make. I even tried a reverse block that I hope Caroline can use!

Hive 5 January Block

Hi Stash Bees!

I'm Rebecca from Hive #5 and I live in the Tauranga, New Zealand. I blog over at www.oneweebird.blogspot.com if you want to know more about me and my shenanigans.

Here's my block for Lynn....sooo much fun was had rifling through my scraps, I think it's bright enough LOL

We have very distinct seasons here in the Bay of Plenty,even though we seem to be currently experiencing a heatwave Spring and Autumn are my absolute faves hands down!

Cool crisp mornings and stunningly clear skied days....bliss!

This is my second year in Stash Bee as I had an absolute blast year so had to rejoin! I look forward to getting to know you all through the year.

Hive 5 January Block

Hi Everyone!  I'm Holly James from Hive #5!  I live in Scottsdale, Arizona with my husband Andy and our 2 Boston Terriers Hank and Roxy! 

To answer Lynn's question about our favorite season, as a born & raised Arizona girl we don't really get much in the way of seasons, but I would have to say Fall (which is basically spring weather - 70's and gorgeous) because it's when we get a break from the summer heat and college football season kicks up!  

Here is my block for Lynn.  It was really fun to make and came together easily!  Looking forward to next month!!

Hive #5 - January Block for Lynn

I had a lot of fun digging through all of my colorful fabrics to cut squares for this scrappy HST triangle block for our January Queen, Lynn!  I hope you like it!

Lynn asked what our favorite season was and I love summer!  Yes - despite living in hot and humid Atlanta - I love summer weather.  Most people down here think I'm crazy!  But for me - bring on the heat and I'll enjoy the sunshine and the pool!

I'm working on my February post now and can't wait to share my block choice for next month with everyone!

~Kim

Hive 8 - January Block for Audrey

Hi Everyone,

I am finally getting around to posting my finished January block.  I am definitely a procrastinator, I had actually finished the block and put it in the mail more that a week ago. 

I actually had to look for the 2015 Pantone colour, Marsala, not a colour I had heard of previously.  It is a very nice colour, but not a colour that I would be attracted to.  I have always struggled with picking a favourite colour.  For me it probably depends more on the day, and the quilts that I have been looking at!

I did enjoy making this block, and I think it will make a stunning quilt!  I hope you like it Audrey!

 

Now I must go to prepare my post for my February block!

 

Keep on sewing!

Bonnie

 

Navys for Audrey

Here's my block for Audrey, January's Queen Bee for Hive 8. I had fun finding my navy scraps and putting this block together. It was so nice to see that none of the points are cut off even though I didn't get the spray starch out. My skills are continually improving! 

I blogged about making this block and some of my other projects. You can see that post here: http://quiltartbymegan.com/2015/01/19/you-are-not-a-yellow-starburst/

I look forward to next month's project! I wonder what that queen will chose. 

Hive 2 January Block from Kristen

HIve #2 - January block

Greetings from a very chilly Western NY!  I am Kristen, I am sorry for posting so late my blogging skills are a bit rusty...I just looked at my blog and realized I have not posted in 2 years!  

I have been sewing since middle school and had a business making childrens clothes back in the ebay heyday and at the beginning of etsy.... I took up quilting a couple of years ago as a means of working through my rather large fabric stash.  I ended up making 2 blocks for Caroline as I noticed a lot of pink squares popping up on the blog so I thought Id practice my HST and send along a purple one as well. :)

Caroline asked when in time we would like to travel back to.... hard choice!  I love the renaissance era but am also fascinated by ancient cultures - such as Greece, Rome and India.  Then sometimes I think it would be cool to travel a couple of hundred years back to see what my city,  Rochester NY looked like.

January's Finished Block: Hive #4

Good Day! I am excited to be sharing my first post here on the Stash Bee Blog for 2015. I've been sewing for somewhere around 15 years, and quilting for the last 8 years or so - and yet, in all that time, I only just started paper piecing this past December. To be quite honest, it always appeared to be a very intimidating process and I never had the gumption to give it a go. But now, it's not so bad - I've pieced several pillow covers and quilt blocks in the last two months and am glad for the practice, especially since Hive 4's January block is a paper pieced one. I was pleasantly surprised at how quickly Renae's block came together. Overall the pieces were fairly large and there were only 6 pieces per section, 24 pieces total. A perfect block for a still-new paper piecer.



I'm pretty sure the most time-consuming part was picking the fabric. Turns out, I have way less navy in my stash that I thought. It took a while to find something that would be suitable. 

I'll also admit that I was a bit skeptical about the color combination when I read the tutorial - but the finished block has won me over. I'm still not 100% sold on the tonal variation in my block, but I hope it fits with the other blocks Renae already has and will be receiving. 

Also, as a note to anyone in hive 4 still waiting to sew their blocks: I wish I had copied the pattern onto butcher paper and sewn from that instead of the regular copy paper. Having a base that the fabric can sort of "stick" to is way easier. I probably should have at least used a glue stick instead of nothing at all - the shifting fabric became more and more annoying as the sewing progressed. Even so, the block finished beautifully, and I cannot wait to see Renae's finished quilt. 

In her tutorial post, Renae asked if we had any bucket-list sewing projects. I must admit that I've had this Feather Bed Quilt on my bucket list for years - maybe I'll get to it one day. I did finally try out the pattern for the #schnitzelandboominiquiltswap - and was super pleased with how it turned out. I'm actually seriously considering using it as my tutorial for the bee ;) But I guess we'll have to wait until this fall to see if I go through with it or not. 

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Emily shares her love for sewing, gardening, and children’s ministry on her blog, With Elephant Grace. When she’s not picking numerous loose threads off her lap, Emily likes to post about encouraging Compassion International Sponsors, straw-bale gardening, and crafting. You can find out more about Emily by following her on Instagram.

A block for Hive 5, January

Hi, Everyone!

Here's my block for January. I had fun combing through (and using up) some scraps for this one.

As for Lynn's question, my favorite season is fall. I used to live in Minnesota, and we had the most beautiful fall colors. I now live in the SF Bay Area in CA, and it's not quite as stunning (but there are other charms!).

Happy sewing!
Liz

Hive 6 - Finished January Block

Hello All,

I'm Kate, from Hollywood Florida.

The blocks this month were a lot of fun. This was my first time making QSTs, and it went better than I'd expected!

I ended up making two, one brighter and one a bit more muted--I hope they both fit in with your quilt!

Question of the month: How do you spend your vacations?

I grew up in Colorado, and my idea of a great vacation involves a lot of hiking, and being outdoors. I also love road trips--my favorite road trip was when we drove through all of Utah's state parks. Since moving to South Florida, we've been taking a lot of road trips to Key West (which I love!). It's my favorite spot in South Florida, even though you can't hike anywhere down here :)

Happy Sunday everyone!

Kate

Hive#1, January block

Having a sort of writing crisis / complete and utter melt down / wanting to quit attack ... I decided to best do somethign else so I sat down and did Alison's block - I did have some trouble with the "fig" and hope the pink is pale enough ...oh yeah and that almost black is really more a red purple - so much to night pictures ...

But to the question - a quilting disaster ... hmmm I don't think I have done anything really desasterous yet - the worst was probably sewing in 4 patches the wrong way in about 20 blokcks - I had to change out 40 4 patches and sew them back in ... but it's not a disaster it was fixable ...

January Hive 5 Completed Block

Hello Stash Bee Friends! Here is my super scrappy (for me!) diamond block for Lynn.  Lynn asked what our favorite season was - here in Florida we have summer and hurricane season - ughh.  Having lived up north, I miss fall and the first hint of chill in the air - reasons to wear boots and infinity scarves!  Now I look forward to February in Florida - its usually a little chilly so I can rock the few cool weather items I have!

Sorry for the bad lighting - its been pretty rainy here this week!

 - Emily

STASH BEE JANUARY SCRAPPY DIAMOND PATTERN

I am Shirley from SIMPLESEW . 

 MY FAVORITE SEASON IS SPRING !

I love playing outside whether its EPP, cross stitching or planting .. I have a new playhouse for the grandkids. I need to decorate it. So this will be fun this spring. I have 9 grandkids under 6 and I have alot of sewing to work on and This Spring will be granddaughter number 6 and I have lots to sew for her new nursery.

My first block is for Lynn ( January).  For her block she wanted this very scrappy diamond pattern.

 I enjoyed it because this was the time of year we were all cleaning our stash.. so I had the 3.5 squares ready.. I also havent been blogging and missed it a great deal. So I have joined a bunch of groups to get my mojo back and this was the first block of the year and it was fun ! Thank you Lynn for being our Hive Mama.. I mailed already.. hope you like it.. 

January Hive 8

I had such a HARD TIME posting this *GRRR*

Audrey should already have this, but I wanted to share it here. This was a lot of fun to make...not sure what I was thinking, but as I cut (assuming I knew where I was cutting what for), I was surprised at how it went together. This is now on my wish list...LOVE it and can't wait to see this all together!

My favorite colors are all over the place. It just depends on the day :) Can't wait to to get to know you all over the course of this year.

Karyn

Block for Heather

Here is the block for Heather! It will be fun to see your quilt come together.

You asked what my favorite home cooked meal is? I would have to say that my favorite meal would be something in the healthy range right now since I'm trying to eat low carb and lose weight I have found some fun meals at the Dashing Dish! 

One of my favorite meals is: Apple Pecan Turkey or Chicken Salad! It's yummy and light! 

Hive #9 January 2015

Hi everyone, I'm Grace and this is my first time participating in a bee. You can also find me on instagram as chainofdaisies. I'm excited for this year and to see what everyone decides on for their block.

I love the block Toni has chosen for this month, I think I will have to do a bit more of this slash and sew thing.

Toni asked where we would take her if she came for a visit. I live in New Zealand, and personally think that it is beautiful here. There are so many places I had trouble choosing, so I've decided to include a few photos.

 I'd take her to the bird sanctuary on Kapiti Island to see the friendly kakas...

(this is my husband and I when we went there a few years ago)

To have the best burgers ever in Queenstown...so many people are wanting to try these burgers you have to line up for a couple of hours...but its still worth it. 

(also to see the beautiful scenery in Queenstown of course)

To Cape Palliser to see the fur seals... 

Up to the Sledge track in Kahuterawa..

and for a walk by the Whanganui river...

and so many more places.... You should definitely start planning your trip here.

Headed to the post office now to mail your block!

Hive #1, January block

Hello!

I'm Jackie, a stay-at-home mom of 2 from Oregon.  I was in hives #2 and #3 in the original Stash Bee a couple of years ago when it first started.  I finished my hive #2 quilt, Arkansas Crossroads, which you can view here.  
 I took last year off from bees and swaps to remodel our house.  Of course, when you replace one thing it always leads to replacing more.  The whole thing ended up being way bigger than expected and took longer to finish (we did the work ourselves) but it was totally worth it in the end!! I'm very excited to get back to sewing again!!  And maybe even keep my blog up to date :)
You can find me at :
blog:  www.nwpatchwork.blogspot.com
Flickr: nwpatchwork
Instagram: nwpatchwork  (just joined so I'm learning how to navigate it)

Here is my January block for Allison:

Our question for this month is "What is your biggest quilting disaster?"

Unfortunately they do happen, right?  I have had several in the 20+ years I have been quilting.  I don't care how experienced you are, stuff happens!  I have sewn things upside down, cut wrong and then realized I didn't have enough fabric to cut the right way and have had the dog actually chew a hole in a finished quilt. I think the biggest though was a few years ago--I was in the middle of FMQing a lap size quilt, for the second time mind you, since I ripped out the previous quilting.  I was half way through with it and decided to leave it and come back another day to finish it.  In the mean time the cat pee'd all over what was hanging off the table.  Between the ripping out of FMQ stitches and the pee, it has since been named "the quilt from hell" :)

Hive 3 January Block- Sewing Books!

Hi Everyone!

I'm Stephanie and this is my third round of Stash Bee.  Previously I was a hive mama (hive 2 in round 1 and hive 10 in round 2) but this round I decided to step down and just be a participant since I'm expecting my second child (a boy) in early March.   You can find me on Instagram as @StephGranite  or on my blog (if I ever update it) SewingByStephanie

This month we were asked to do a "themed bookshelf" so obviously I had to go with SEWING BOOKS :-) :-) :-)

The early morning sun is a little harsh for taking a good photo of this block but my 1.5 year old is running a temp of 103 so I didn't know if I'd get a chance to take a photo (or blog about it) otherwise.  Hopefully I'll find a chance to get this in the post soon!

And as for our question we were asked about our first quilt.  The first quilt I made was in high school and I made it without knowing anything about quilts, I'm not even sure if I did any quilting on it at all.  My second quilt was in college and I knew a little more, but not much, and I at least hand-tied that one.  But alas, no pics of either.....

This is the third quilt I ever made, and it was in conjunction with college friends for the birth of a friend's daughter.  My contribution was the snail applique block, and in piecing all the blocks together and quilting it. 

March 2010

And my fourth quilt (and the first one where I had at least some idea what I was doing) I made for my mom and she of course still has it.   The center is pieced and the leaves are all hand appliqued on.

August 2010

August 2010

-Stephanie