DJYota's Crafty Endeavors

I am in between block pattern releases with the Little Miss Sawtooth Quilt-along hosted by Melanie Traylor of Southern Charm Quilts and Havel's Sewing.  I also have time on my hands with Thanksgiving break in full swing.  Add to that the fact that our school district released all schools two days early last week to combat the unfortunate spread of noro-virus throughout out our schools.  I had already been hit by the two day virus two weeks earlier and wasn't eager to experience another round, so I was quite okay with the early release.  Anyhow...what to do.  I was inspired by a quilt I saw on Instagram that had jewel toned stars placed inside dark blue borders, and I suddenly remembered the sparkling star fabrics I picked up from Joanns Fabrics last summer.  I don't have any solids on hand, so I raided my batik stash.  Even better. The combos remind me of camping; sitting by the fire and looking up through dark branches at the bright stars abov...

I joined Southern Charm Quilts and Havel's Sewing for their Little Miss Sawtooth Quilt Along just for the heck of it.  Something crafty with a bit of direction to keep me in the fabric game while in the throes of heavy duty school demands. But then I started collecting fabric for the project, and my creative juices began to surge with the potential of it.  I especially loved the idea of choosing bright and bold fabrics instead of the low volume prints that so many participants in the quilt project showcase. And then the first blocks were released, and, holy cow, am I hooked! I'm not sure what it is about this quilt along, but it's been so much FUN!  I think part of that is the fact that you just can't go wrong with star blocks.  Who doesn't love a star block? The quilt along called for completed flying geese blocks the first week, but I decided to complete them with each block instead.  I wasn't ready to commit to the star point colors y...

August is always a whirlwind as we report back to school, but this one especially so.  Due to a summer project of asbestos removal from my school, everything from my classroom was boxed up by the last day.  A healthy 49 boxes plus classroom furniture.  I think I was avoiding thinking about the fact that it would all need to be unpacked in August. Construction completed, our school opened two days before teachers were to report back for an in-service week.  I attended all in-service activities and spent an extra 43 hours setting up my room.  Not a healthy state of mind to walk into a classroom of kids so utterly exhausted.  In that depleted state, I embraced the first cold germ to enter my room and endured a head cold that first week as well. Needless to say, that was the one week of the year that I did not touch a single fabric project.  Survival mode! During that first miserable week, ray of sunshine.  I walked into my...

I picked up this fabric from Wilmington Prints last year, and I love, love, love it so much!  The floral prints fill my heart with joy and the gold text print...just so, so holiday perfect!  I knew I wanted to do some kind of scrappy quilt to bring all these beautiful colors together. I meandered around Pinterest until I found a tutorial from the Missouri Star Quilt Company called "Double Slice Layer Cake".  You can tell it is one of Jenny's earlier tutorials, but, as usual, she simplifies the process for the quilt top.  I just knew I wanted something a bit more random than uniform squares. Here is the link:   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jxC-0T5lXw4&feature=share So I cut my fabrics into 10" squares, layer cake style, then cut, sewed, cut, and sewed (see the tutorial). This was an easy one for chain piecing. The quilt top came together very quickly.  I find it interesting how the light interacts with these fabric...