[100 day city sampler quilt challenge] day twenty, block nine

block nine

I actually finished this block two days ago. Turns out I'm not very good at updating my blog sometimes.

This block was quick and fun to assemble, and a great way to show off fabrics.

[100 day city sampler quilt challenge] day eighteen, block eight

block eight

This block was a doozy. I actually completed it last night, but I started it days ago. I unstitched quite a few seams before this was completed. It doesn't look that hard, but somehow my points weren't matching up nicely and then I placed a piece wrong, etc etc. Adam chose the fabrics for this one.
Onward!

[100 day city sampler quilt challenge] day fourteen, block seven

block seven

Clearly I have fallen behind. But I've been working on other crafty projects, which will be revealed soon, so I don't feel too bad about it.
Block seven was actually completed a few days ago. Adam chose the fabrics. I didn't follow the instructions in the book - at the suggestion of another blogger, I strip-pieced and then cut the checkboard pieces rather than sewing all the tiny squares together. This block was pretty easy to put together, and I am very pleased with how nicely all my points match up!

[100 day city sampler quilt challenge] day five, block six

block six

Huzzah! Another block done! This one flew together while I FaceTimed with my sister, which was lovely. I love sewing while talking.

[100 day city sampler quilt challenge] day five, block five

block five

This one practically flew together and now I'm caught back up!

I'm not loving the orange fabric, but I wanted a softer color, so that seemed like the logical choice. I'm also trying to avoid repeating fabrics as much as possible so that the quilt is extra diverse.

I'm pretty excited overall. I love turning the page after finishing a block to see what's next for me. Hopefully you have the same fun seeing new posts pop up!

[100 day city sampler quilt challenge] day five, block four

block four

Still behind schedule... but at least I got a block done today!

If any day was a day to "craft the pain away", today is it. Now I'm off to work on more sewing to distract me from this monstrous headache.

[100 day city sampler quilt challenge] day four block three

block three

I missed yesterday. I slept instead of sewing. Oops.
But today I primed our WIP kitchen island AND made a quilt block. This one was a bit finicky - I had to unpick a few seams in order to get all my corners to match up nicely. Adam chose the fabrics in it for me, and he said it looks like the sunrise. I agree - it's very bright and cheery!
Hopefully this weekend will hold lots of extra catch-up time for me to work on blocks!

[100 day city sampler quilt challenge] day two, block two

block two

I have officially made up for not making a lost yesterday, and I am back on track by finishing block two just now. This block had a lot of pieces and like block one, all the pieces are tiny. You must remember, these blocks finish at just 6.5" with seam allowances, so they will end up being just 6" when finished. Craziness. I've never sewn with such tiny pieces, and it's a bit tricky. A ittybitty difference in seam allowance could make the whole block wonky. (As this block might be...)

The fabrics are prettier in person than in this photo. I apologize for the poor lighting in these pictures - most of my sewing time is in the evening, so the light isn't the best.

[100 day city sampler challenge] day two, block one

all my fabrics for this project

So obviously, my 100 day city sampler life quilt challenge got off to a bit of a rocky start, and I didn't make a block or post yesterday, which was day one.

Today I redeemed myself, and after photographing my pretty stack of fabrics a few more times, I cut into the blue fabrics to make block one!

block one

I'm pretty pleased with this block. It looks very pretty - Adam chose the four blue fabrics for the block and then I cut into them sort of at random, trying not to think too hard about which fabric would be for which pieces, if that makes any sense? I was a little paralyzed at the beginning, thinking I needed to make my block look like the one in the book. But, in the beginning of the book, the author Tula Pink says something along the lines of "I numbered these blocks so that you could have creative liberty and really make it your quilt". So I'm trying to take those words to heart and just do it.

Like Nike.

[100 day city sampler quilt challenge] day zero

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my new quilty life challenge!

Let me explain. I've been feeling pretty down lately, what with my new job being stressful (as new jobs often are) and leaving little time for crafting. It's gotten pretty bad here lately. I've browsing quilt books and blogs, and I found this Tula Pink City Sampler book quilt-along. I kind of fell in love with the whole concept of 100 different blocks. 

Today I took a little (haha) drive to the nearest Barnes & Noble (which is over an hour away) to find a copy of the Tula Pink City Sampler book (see above!). I spent some time browsing all the beautiful quilt books there, and reluctantly left with just the Tula Pink book. Then I went over to the nearby Jo-Ann's and picked out a stack of rainbow fat quarters (see above!) with which to make the 100 blocks contained in the (really pretty) book. 

So here's the challenge: I am going to make at least one block per day, going in the order they are presented in the book. In approximately 100 days, I will (hopefully) have the blocks completed and will be able to start assembling the quilt.

My goal is to have grace for myself if I miss a day, but to have this project to keep me going and looking forward. I'm in love with my rainbow fabrics, and the whole idea. I am excited to see this quilt come together over the new few months!