ahem

So, right now I guess the blogging thing just isn't for me.   I can't explain why, but when I think about writing a blog post I feel stressed and nervous.  I don't know about you, but I personally don't like to feel stressed and nervous.  So I'm not going to think about writing blog posts anymore, at least for a while.  Which sucks, because I was so excited about how cool my blog was going to be.  Mayhaps I'll try again in a few months.       

Hexagon top finished

Finally, my hexagon top is complete!

It took longer than I'd anticipated, but I LOVE it.  Although I originally hoped to have the lighter brown fabric separating the hexies both vertically and horizontally, I think this compromise acheived the funky look I wanted, without requiring any Y-piecing.  I'm really proud of this little top.

I used the "measure once, cut twice" method for the dark brown around each hexie, which means I cut my fabric strips too long, then sewed them on and trimmed them up before joining everything together.  I haven't done a lot of angled seams before so this was a good (but time-consuming) way for me to make sure I didn't end up with mismatched edges.  This backlit picture shows the seams so you can get an idea of how I constructed everything.

I'm not quite ready to start quilting this yet - I think I'll just enjoy it as a top for a few days, while I work on some other projects that have been kicking around in my head.  Besides, I have no idea what to use for the back.  Any suggestions? 

Larissa 

Playing With Solids

A few months ago, the internet was awash with awesome pieced hexagon quilts, thanks to the Hexagon Quilt-Along over at jaybirdquilts.com.

 

Of course I signed up, and I decided to use my Kona brights roll-up, but even though this design was super easy, I managed to get sidetracked (as usual) and my hexies got forgotten for a while.  Here’s how far I got:

Well I was looking at quilt pics (fabric porn) on Flickr recently, and came across this unique and lovely quilt.

The dark & light brown combo gives it such a funky, retro look, don’t you think?  I’d love to add a similar dark & light brown double sashing to my hexagons so they can be retro-funky too. 

Figuring out how to add sashing to hexagons is a challenge, but I’m determined to make it happen.  Let me know if you have any advice!

In other Kona Solids news, I received these 4 fat quarters at the Philly Modern Quilt Guild meeting last week for our next challenge quilt project. 

We’re allowed to add one yard of any fabric or fabrics we choose, not including backing and binding.  I love these challenges and I have a pretty good idea of where I might go with this one!  

Larissa 

First Post

Hi out there.  I'm Larissa, and this is my shiny new blog, Cotton Sunrise.  I’m a maker of fabric things, and I’m very excited to get started on this journal of my projects and inspirations.



My first quilt

 

About a year and a half ago, I taught myself how to quilt.  Before that, I’d sewn some very basic projects, like aprons, and curtains, and while I loved doing the sewing, I had a problem.  I couldn’t pick out fabric.  It took me hours.  I simply found it way too difficult to go home with just one or two fabrics from the menagerie of delightfulness that is a fabric store.  Then one day as I stood among the bolts, completely overwhelmed, it hit me: patchwork.  I could buy them all!  OK, not ALL, but lots.  I could take them home, cut them up, and sew them back together.  Eureka!  So I bought a beginner quilting book, this one , and I read and studied and gathered my basic tools, and the next time I went to the fabric store I left with at least 25 different fabrics.  Which is how I managed to make a scrappy quilt before I even had a fabric stash to speak of.    

My second quilt, inspired by this tutorial



Later, thanks to the internet, I found out about designer fabrics, and pre-cuts, and most importantly, I learned that there is a whole virtual community of quilters and sewers out there inspiring, supporting, teaching, and learning from each other.  Awesome!   As a new quilter I’m still “finding my voice,” and by that, I mean I haven’t really settled on one particular style that is uniquely me.  I’ve really enjoyed doing some modern, even liberated, piecing, but there are also some more traditional block styles I’m planning to try.  I am certainly more drawn to bright colors and vivid patterns, but sometimes I go for a more subdued look, and recently I've even been working on a quilt top with ALL solids (which I never expected I’d like so much).  I'll get my groove all figured out eventually, OK?

When it comes to sewing, patchwork is my first love, but I also enjoy making non-quilty projects too, and I find that I often need to work on things that I can start and finish quickly to get that instant gratification which is so NOT a part of quilting.  So, interspersed with quilt work, I sew handbags, table-runners, and other small-ish projects.  

Anyway, this is my blog! 

Larissa