We Bee Modern

The Book!

I started a quilting bee with a girl that I met on Flickr called "We Bee Modern". It is going to be a bee based on the 99 Modern Blocks Book (compiled by Susanne Woods) so it should be a lot of fun.

If you have never been in an online quilting bee, you should definitely join one. Last January I joined my first (the New Newbie Bee) and we had a blast. You really get to push your creativity and making blocks for other people is so rewarding.

Also, checking the mail takes on a new exciting twist.

Everyone in the bee gets a month where they get to decide what kind of block they want and the color scheme that they prefer. Some people send out fabric, others just tell you to wing it. In the end, not only have you contributed to 11 beautiful quilts, but you have your own quilt that has input from 11 other incredibly talented people. 

This bee should really challenge us all since the blocks from this book are so non-traditional. By that I don't mean you have to be at an expert sewing level (I definitely am not, haha), it will just be more thinking outside the box than your traditional star block or flying geese. Currently we are still looking for people to join, so if you are interested, check us out on Flickr (We Bee Modern)!

Here is a taste of the quilt I am currently working on. This is this is the first one I have completely out of solids so I am pretty pumped!

My pile of strips waiting to be sewn together. It was a rather sunny morning if you can't tell.

One Giant Leap Into Blogging

I have never considered myself much of a writer. Quilter on the other hand, that's me. I have followed modern quilting blogs for years and have been so inspired by the creativity that all of these lovely people from all over the world share with each other. I never considered blogging myself until recently. I wondered, "Could keep up with it?" Maintain the effort that goes into these things, that is.

If nothing else blogs are an AMAZING way to keep a time line of all of the work you have done and projects you have created. Its like an online scrapbook of your personal creative history. Not to mention getting to see (and then obviously needing) the beautiful fabric that is constantly featured.

I will admit, I have a fabric problem.

But really, who doesn't? My goal is to find a reason to use it, to actually get the courage to cut it all. There are always those pieces that you just cant cut. For me, it's Amy Butler's Lotus Wallflowers. Particularly the mustard one. I will have to find the 'perfect' project to ever get up the nerve to cut that one.

I have no fabulous pictures to share currently as I have never had a reason to be too photographic with my quilts. I do however, have a picture of one of the blocks of my Single Girl Quilt. I did the quilt along that was hosted by a few bloggers on Flickr. It was so fun. 200 people all making the same thing with their own unique twists. Talk about inspiring. The pattern is by Denyse Schmidt and I used a lot of her fabric from the Hope Valley line with some solids intermixed. The quilt top is done, I just have to actually quilt the quilt. I am thinking straight line quilting, but we will see.

One block from my Single Girl Quilt

Not sure what this blog will end up being, but we will see. The plunge has been taken. Here goes nothing!