Still chugging along!!

So I guess today is the wrap up of our Single Girl Quilt-along. My big confession: This is about as far as I've gotten. One big finished block and lots of pieced arches, some of them ready to have the curves  sewn. I certainly was crazy (blame pregnancy hormones, yes, Katy!) enough at the start of this quilt-along to think I'd be able to keep up pace, but as soon as that misleading beginning-of-the-second-trimester-energy-spurt petered out, it quickly became apparent there was no way on earth I'd have this all finished up by today. So, all of you other Single Girl laggers, don't worry. Katy, Nova and I will all still be around and active here and in the Flickr group. I have a deadline to finish this one up by June for a special gift, so I had better pony up my giant belly to the old sewing machine and get going. Because at this rate, I'll need every second! Oh, and who wants to baste and quilt it for me???

A big huge thank you to all of you who joined in all the fun for this quilt-along. Never in a million years while we were hatching this plan did we ever think over 250 Single Girl-ers would pop up! And thanks so much to my partners in crime, Katy and Nova, not only for holding me up and dealing with my slackness on this project, but for your incredible quilt-y genius!

So while I have been decidedly NOT sewing, I have still been doing lots and lots of knitting, and even more yarn ordering. An embarrassing amount, I fear. My latest thrill is the beautiful hand-dyed skeins of Rohrspatz & Wollmeise. These beauties are very difficult to get your hands on and now that I have some of my own, I know why. The color saturation is so incredibly vibrant! I can't wait to cast on. I think the blue is going first, to be knit up as a pair of socks my father-in-law requested for his birthday.

And in other news, I must take a moment to once again lovingly brag about my very talented husband. That's him, Mr. Winemaker of the Year! Our local Seattle Magazine (it's the same publisher that I believe most of the bigger cities have) just hit the stands and we couldn't be more thrilled with this honor. It's a publication that keeps big tabs on the Washington wine industry and holds it to very high standards. Mark works so hard and I'm so proud of him for earning this honor.

Happy Monday all. If anyone needs me, I'll be sitting on my bed drinking tea, knitting and reading book two of the Hunger Games. And thinking about working on my Single Girl:)

Single Girl Quilt-along: Part Deux

Congratulations! You made it through the most trying part of making the Single Girl Quilt! If you missed this part or you're just a bit behind, you can find Katy's clear and concise directions for templates and cutting your fabrics here.

I lucked out and got the fun and easy part of this quilt to lead you through - piecing your rings. For this stage you're going to need:

• All of your cut pieces, arranged in order and separated by each quarter, as follows - Quarter #1 - pieces A through H, Quarter #2 - pieces I through O, Quarter #3 - pieces P through W and Quarter #4 - pieces X through EE
• a quarter inch piecing foot
• a seam ripper
• your pattern for reference

I've laid all my pieces out alphabetically on top of some plastic lids I use to store my fabrics in. This way I can move them around without disturbing the order. I've found the best way to do this for me was to lay my plastic templates on top of each piece so I don't accidentally sew some wrong edges or pieces together.

To start the first ring, you will place piece A right sides together with piece B. All pieces allow for a quarter inch seam. Sew the pieces together on the right edge, matching NOT the top and bottom edges, but where the pieces intersect at the seam allowance. This is the most tricky part of the piecing and you may have to use your seam ripper to get the first few right, but once you get the hang of it, it's cake. The more extreme the angle on the pieces, the less the edges will match. 

Here's what I mean:

See how that seam intersects on both edges right where the fabrics meet? That's what you want. Flip the piece over and you can see it on the other side too.

Super easy once you get the hang of it, right? Diagram 4 in your pattern can explain this also.

Continue sewing each piece to the next, A through H for your first arc. I checked each piece for accuracy and finger pressed the seams toward the newest piece each time. Grab a cup of tea or coffee and continue all your arcs in Ring Quarter #1. It goes together quick once you're in the groove! Keep going in this way for Quarters 2, 3 and 4. When your'e all done, you can press all your seams.

Then admire your beautifully pieced Ring Quarters!

Make sure you keep all your rings pieces in stacks, all of Quarter 1 together, all of Quarter 2 together and so forth. And that's all there is too it!

It's really exciting to see all these Single Girl Quilts being made all at once! Make sure you visit the Single Girl Support Group regularly to see what everyone else is up to, and if you find yourself with any questions, there's tons of help there too. Please also feel free to email me directly at 

meggied23 at hotmail dot com

with questions or if you find any goofahs in my tute here. Make sure you don't forget to post your own progress pics in the group pool. And please, if you have any further tips on this portion please add them into the discussion in the group too!

Next week is the part everyone is dreading - sewing the background to the rings. But really, have no fear! Our in house curve-sewing genius Nova will be holding our hands all the way next Monday, February 28th, over on her blog.

Happy Sewing!

Single Girl Kick Off!

The day is finally here! The Single Girl Quilt-along starts today, with the lovely Katy leading you through step one of cutting your templates and fabrics. She did a very thorough and clear tutorial on this part, but if you need any clarification or help, Katy, Nova and I are all happy to answer any questions and of course you can just pop in over at the Flickr group any time with over 200 willing Single Girls to lend you support!

The block above is the test block I made using some of my Liberty of London fabrics. I love how it turned out, but the bulk of that fabric already has a project, and for the quilt along, I've cut into my stack of precious Neptune fabrics. I think the scale of these prints is perfect for the pattern and will result in a soothing, harmonious quilt. It's destined to be a gift for a special family member. I know it will be hard to part with, but she'll adore it and I'll still be able to visit it regularly!

Here they were a few weeks ago all laid out awaiting the tedious cutting phase. I just popped on a few This American Life podcasts and it was done in a flash. And I promise, the rest is easier from here. I'll be leading you through step 2 - piecing the rings - next Monday the 21st, so get cutting!!!

Are you just thinking of joining in now? It's not too late - and Wondrous Wovens is having an opening day special on the Single Girl pattern today only. Use code singlegirl.

Well, I should be off working on this today but I'm a bit pre-occupied and anxious due to our 20 week ultrasound visit tomorrow, so I think it would be wise for me to stay away from any project requiring accuracy or brains. I think loads of chamomile tea and some knitting is more my speed today. 

Happy Valentine's Day Single Girls!

The Single Girl Support Group!

Don't worry, I didn't up and leave my husband with a baby on the way......we're having a Quilt Along!! Since I'm in the last time zone to post, you've for sure gotten the news by now - the crazy-talented  Katy, ingenious Nova and myself are making Denyse Schmidt's Single Girl Quilt and want you to quilt along with us!

This pattern has been languishing in my stash untouched for over a year now, and it's finally time to brave it. If you've been dreaming of making your own Single Girl Quilt, we've set up the Single Girl Support Group on Flickr, so we can all share tips and share this ride together, as well as keep each other motivated to finish our quilts.

Sound like fun? We're requesting that only serious Single Girl quilters join the group so we all stay on track to get it done. If a whole quilt sounds like too much of a daunting task but you'd still love to join, don't worry, you can make a pillow or baby quilt too. Here is what you need to do:

Go here, and request an invitation to join the support group. (You can still join the quilt along without joining the group as Katy, Nova and I will be taking turn hosting the steps right here on our blogs, but the Flickr group where be the place we can all have discussions and share our progress.) 

Get your materials:

* the single girl quilt pattern (there's a list of stockists at the bottom of the post)

* lightweight card stock or template plastic to make the templates
* a pencil for marking your fabrics (if you use dark fabrics a silver pencil or silver gel pen is a great tool)
* fabric scissors (yes - you have to cut those fabrics the old fashioned way with scissors)
* paper scissors (for cutting the templates)
* fabric - the requirements for each size are listed below;

Baby size (4 blocks) :: 43 x 50" :: 1/8 yard each of 31 or 36 fabrics for rings :: 2 1/2 yards of background fabric
Twin (12 blocks) :: 64 x 88" :: 1/8 yard each of 31 or 36 fabrics for rings :: 5 1/2 yards of background fabric
Queen (16 blocks) :: 85 x 92" :: 1/4 yard of 31 or 36 fabrics for rings :: 7 yards of background fabric
King (20 blocks) 106 x 92" :: 1/4 yard of 31 or 36 fabrics for rings :: 8 1/2 yards of background fabric

Scrap lovers - you will need strips of scraps that are at least 3 1/2" wide

The fun all kicks off on Valentine's Day, so that gives you plenty of time to get everything together, including your courage! But have no fear - although this pattern isn't suited to the novice quilter, it's really quite simple once you've got all your templates and fabrics cut. Curves can be a little tricky at first, but after a few tries you'll have the hang of it and we'll all be here to help you through it. Even Denyse herself will be keeping an eye on us, and has generously offered to clarify any of the steps if we run across any issues.

Here is the schedule we have planned:

14th February - Katy's blog - marking and cutting
21st February - my blog - piecing rings
28th February - Nova's blog - sewing the curves
7th March - Katy's blog - assembly
14th March - Nova's blog - marking the quilting design and hand quilting
21st March - everyone's blog - wrap it up!

Here are a few online shops where the pattern is currently available:
Pink Chalk Fabrics
Wish Upon a Quilt (on sale there!)Blue is Bleu (free US shipping!)The Stock Room

Sew Mama Sew

Are you excited yet?? We are! So come on, join the fun - you'll never regret having your very own Single Girl Quilt! And don't forget to grab our button for your blog!