This is why I quilt

Remember this block from a few months ago?

At the time all I could tell you is that it was for a top secret project - Project Special Delivery, to be exact. What I can tell you now, is that Faith had organized a group to make baby presents for Heather Ross' first child. Heather has blessed all of us with her lovely and whimsical designs for so many years, and we wanted to do something special to thank her. Some people made appliqued onesies for each month of the year, others did toys, and a portion of the Project Special Delivery group decided to make a rainbow quilt "virtual bee style". We each signed up for a specific color, and tried to incorporate some of HR's fabrics into the block.

We mailed our blocks off to Mama Spark a few months ago, and she assembled the entire quilt and added the most GORGEOUS quilting. I can't imagine that anyone could have done a better job - I just love the motion and whimsy her quilting pattern added to the design!

Here's a glimpse of the back...

...with a close up of one block in particular. It's a message from our little group, and includes one of Heather's favorite quotes.

Just today I found out that Heather received her quilt, and she wrote us the most beautiful note in return. I have no shame in admitting I have an extremely tender heart (just ask Angela about the day she moved), and I cried a little bit when I read it. And this is why I quilt. I quilt because it allows me to give part of my time and my heart to other people through fabric. I quilt because it allows me to be a part of memorable events in other's lives; it gives me the unique opportunity to share a lasting gift with someone that will remind them of that moment, and hopefully, make them smile and bring them warmth.

To quote my dearly departed grandmother "My cup runneth over, I drink from the saucer." I am so blessed to know you all, and to be a part of the online quilting movement :)

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The Mo Pouch

1. I sit in a cubicle next to a lady named Carol, and every morning we swap stories about our impertinent pups. Hers is a wiener dog named Mo (short for Morpheus), and mine is a Scottish Terrier named Whiskers.
2. Carol also loves Coke, and drinks one like clockwork every day at 2 o'clock.
3. Her birthday is this week, so I combined her two favorite things: Mo and Coke.

And these are the humble beginnings of the Mo Pouch. I will be filling it with quarters and presenting it to her tomorrow :)

The main fabric is plain linen I bought at my local JoAnn Fabrics, and the weiner dog applique is courtesy of some Heather Ross fabric ("Dogs" from the Lightning Bugs & other Mysteries line) I had in my scrap bin. My inside joke "coke fund" tag is the type of thing I make all the time. I have a typewriter-style alphabet stamp set that I use for stationary and all my quilt tags. You can usually find rubber alphabet sets at stores like Michael's or Hobby Lobby - I think I got mine at Michael's, but I'm not 100% sure about that. Aside from the stamps, all you need is some linen tape (usually purchased on Etsy) and textile ink. Voila!


I also had a yard or two of the coordinating "Dots" from the Lightning Bugs line, so I used that for the lining. Since there's a lot of white in the print and money is very filthy (I know this because I worked at a bank every summer while I was in college), I used some iron-on vinyl to protect the lining. It's a big, crinkly pain in the butt when it comes to turning the pouch right side out, but I think it's worth it to prevent the fabric from becoming gray and dingy within a few weeks.

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Heather Ross Unicorn Quilt

I'd never heard of Heather Ross (sadly enough) until I told my friend Erin I would make a unicorn-themed quilt for her 3-year-old a few months ago. Her daughter's going through a big unicorn phase right now and even makes Erin kiss her stuffed unicorn (aptly named "Unicorn") every night before bed :)

Soooo...I googled unicorn fabric, and up popped a preview of Heather Ross' upcoming Far Far Away line. I was immediately obsessed and googled every combination of "heather ross/far far away/date/release/unicorn/fabric" I could think of for an hour straight. I think I might have blinked once (well, maybe twice) while I was searching through all the links. Whenever something is difficult to find on the internet, it becomes a little bit of a personal vendetta of mine that I locate it. It's a matter of principle...because I know someone, somewhere, in the vast universe of the internet has what I need. All I have to do is find it! :)

Long story short, I love her fabric because it's all fairytaley and whimsical without looking cartoonish. Plus I love any and all Japanese fabric, so win-win. Look how sweet this little unicorn is! The fabric is "Unicorns" in Peach:

I apologize for the blurry pictures. My camera battery died, and since my husband and I just moved a few weeks ago, the extra batteries AND my batttery charger are still buried in one of our boxes. You can't really tell in the pictures, but the white fabric has white stripes of varying size on it. It's from Prints Charming "Two Young Street" collection.

For the back I used "Frog Prince" in Blush:

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