The Return of Me and My WIPs / Beauties Pageant 250

Hello. Is anyone out there?

It’s weird for me to take time off from blogging, to be creating behind the scenes without sharing with those of you who’ve been walking alongside me these past 10 years. I’m very happy to be back and in the swing of things.

The truth of the matter is that I just submitted the manuscript for my first quilting book. It has proved to be both one of the most exciting and most anticlimactic events of my quilting life. On one hand, I wrote a book! It’s going to be beautifully photographed and designed, and I can’t wait to share it with you! That. Is. Exciting! On the other hand, it won’t be released for another year. Many amazing publishing professionals will leave their mark on my work before it’s ready for public consumption (the book-production cycle is more complicated than you'd think). Still, twelve months is a long time to wait.

One of the challenges of writing a book is that you have to commit to making a certain number of projects upfront. There’s little room for much else, and I am eager to chase a few quilty squirrels.

In the few days since I turned everything in, I have been planning all the things in all aspects of my life.  On the quilting front, I am preparing some projects that bust through scraps and stash. These include:

• Chamomile: I am going to sew this pattern by Allison Jensen (Woodberry Way) in fabrics from Fig Tree and from Bonnie and Camille. The instructions call for strip piecing, the thought of which makes me very happy.
  
• Quilty Stars: The background of this design from Emily Dennis (Quilty Love) is going to make a huge dent in my low volumes. Now to decide on a color for my stars ...
  
• Tall Tales Block: Kate Basti is once again organizing a summer sewalong for her super-popular Tall Tales Block. I know I’ve signed up in the past and sewn zero blocks, but this year is my year, friends. I’m pulling fabric, ordering some newsprint for foundation paper piecing, and getting started. If you want to join in, you can sign up for free at the Summer Book Club site.

And then there’s the sweet miniquilt at the top of the post, made with a pattern by Kid Giddy. I was hoping to have her quilted and in the mail already, but did I mention I had a manuscript due this week? Ha! I’m hoping this lovely mermaid will still be appreciated when it arrives a few days after Mother’s Day. 

I cannot wait to hear what you’ve been up to! Please, upload what you have finished—anything from blocks to full quilts to other fabric-y projects—since I went radio silent back in late March!

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