October 2012 | Go-Go Kim

sewing + social media + so much more

Thursday, October 25, 2012

Wonky Shattered Window Cathedral Block {tutorial}

My week...my turn to share my fun block!!!!!


So happy to be here and many thanks and a shout out to Bree at My Crafty Crap,  my Magic in the Middle friends at Pellon, and the gang at Free Quilt Patterns for organizing this fantabulous sew along!!!! You are some kinda wonderful!!!!!


To download a pdf version of this pattern please visit Pellon Projects

Y'all are going to look at this tutroial and say "WAIT ONE COTTON PICKIN MINUTE", we've seen this before!"  I simply used the first part of my cathedral window pincushion to save me some time and photo shots :o)


I like to think of this block as a new modern twist on an old lovely favorite. This block is SO EASY  to do since it is the exact SAME as the traditional window it is just folded differently...you will see :o)








A new modern twist on a beautiful classic.

This is a super easy and fun wonky funky shattered glass window.  The block measures a 12.5in unfinished block. By using the traditional folding method that most of us are familiar with, it is an easy way to make a new favorite with very little extra effort. The lines are edgy and the colors bright to give the block a stained glass look. This block can be made without the border as a regular Cathedral window quilt and has a very different looking back compared to the traditional quilt. By using Pellon wonder under with craft fuse, it makes a great home dec project by giving the extra crispness to the fabric. Using Pellon wonder under and Legacy batting will give a softer finish for a quilt. Either way, it is a great project and I am very thrilled to be invited to play!


Fabric Requirements:
4 10.5in sq of background fabric
4  4.25in sq of inner window fabric ( I used Liberty of London Bloomsbury Gardens)
2   1.25inx9in strips of solid
2   1.5x 10.75strips of solid
Scrappy strips are 1.5 x of various lengths to sew and trim as final border 


Materials Needed:
4 4.25in sq Pellon Wonder Under
4 4.25in sq Pellon Craft Fuse or Pellon Legacy Batting
Thread (I use Aurifil 50wt)
Sewing machine
poster board or file folder for easy measurement
hand sewing needle



Cutting:
Cut the fabrics and interfacing to the sizes mentioned above


Assembly:

Cut your solid square 10.5 inches


Cut your template, I used a folder I found in the filing drawer, to 9 inches


Cathedral windows are mostly folding and ironing. Fold the corner over the edge of the template and iron into place. Then repeat on the other three sides.


Next fold the edges down and press. Repeat on the other three sides and you will have...

This!!!!! Woo Hoo!!!!


Take the template out at this point


Fold your square in half and press

This is what it looks like if you fold one side back


Fold the opposite way and press again. When you open your square it will look like this

Time for more folding. Fold the outer corners in and press

It will look like this when all four have been pressed


Now do it all again. Fold each of the corners in and press

Done with the folding/ ironing part!!!! Make four more of these folded babies!

This is where the tutorial changes including the color

Line the edges up 

 Draw a line and sew over the line

Line up the other two (top and bottom) draw a line and sew

Hand stitch the the inner centers, just a couple of stitches will do!

 This is where the "Magic in the Middle" ( I giggle every time I say it)  comes in to play


Cut your pieces out  for each inner square and attach the wonder under to the back side of the fabric, peel the backing and then iron on to the craft fuse ( or batting and you need to use two pieces of Wonder Under when using batting since batting is not fuseable)

Place in the center and use you iron to fuse the wonder under to the center of the block

 Take your point
and fold it at an angle, it will be wonky, not perfect! go around the block folding your angles

 Sew the angles into place

 This is how the back looks...I rather think is is SUPER COOL!

Add your solid 1.25 in border, then play with your scrappy 1.5 in pieces then attach and your block is COMPLETED!!!!!





Hope you have as much fun creating this block as I did!!!! I

Make sure to share your windows in the flickr group!!!!!

p.s. just in case black is not something for you I did one white one little white window just so you could see...


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Tuesday, October 23, 2012

A sewing playdate and some running excitement!

I have been one of the most fortunate people in the world!!!!! I have had the opportunity to actually meet and sew with some of the people I have met and adore in the online blogging community. Yesterday Em from Sewing By Moonlight stopped by with her two sweetie pie girls ( LOVE THEM) to do some sewing but there was another reason they were here...


One of Em's new blocks...stay tuned in for that one...it is a BEAUTY!!!!


Did I happen to mention that I will be running my very first half marathon?  I have been a runner since my mid thirties and thought it was over when we moved to VA and I had fallen down the stairs ( if you know this story you can skip ahead) with Adam, broken my ankle,two surgeries ( hardware in and hardware out), eight months (total) in a walking boot and was told I may not be able to do my running any longer...ummmm try again...gogokim will run her first 13.1 mile run almost 3 years to the day from when she first broke her ankle!!!!!

The really great part is that Em, who has run more than one half, will be running 20 weeks PREGNANT!!!!! And you all thought I was crazy!!!!!! Not to mention she is adorable pregnant, I look like a pumpkin pregnant ( true story).

And it gets even better...we have a WHOLE group of  really fantastic ladies that have been the best support on facebook a girl could have!!!!


WE CAN DO THIS!!!! The tutus help...a LOT!!!!! 



We decided to get a shot before the Nov 10th run while we are NOT sweaty and stinky,LOL!!!!
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Monday, October 22, 2012

Sewing for something!!!!

I am SO EXCITED to be going to Market!!!!  I had to do some sewing just for the occasion and found the perfect project...travel bags!!!!!  If you have not seen this tutorial from Noodlehead go see it...I may be the last person on the planet that has not made one of her little bags so off I went to get the tutorial, which can be found here.  I was thrilled to be able to use my two Alexander Henry fabrics that I love and never want to use for anything!  The smallest pouch is Dear Stella and who does not ADORE dots!!!!!



The inside of the bags...notice the center bag has a zip pull that is different?  I LOST the fist one by not paying attention while unzipping after trimming and so I took the pull of one and attached it, I will think of it as my Frankenbag forever more!

I also made a scarf!!!!!  Laura Gunn inspired me to find my inner scarf self, put on my big girl panties and JUST DO IT!  So I did, I made a wonderful Anna Maria Horner voile Good Folks scarf that feels like butter!!!! I think I can get used to this scarf stuff...and it makes me look like a star...kinda like in Whatever Happened to Baby Jane!!!!!


Now, I need to find a tutorial for a little sewing case for the plane..any suggestions?

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Thursday, October 18, 2012

OH! What a beautiful day!

It was so glorious this past weekend I carried my trusty old Singer 301 and some HAPPY sunny Aurifil out on the back deck and had some sewing FUN!




I have been watching the leaves change color



Finishing up my block for the Cathedral Windows Quilt Along...you will have to wait for that photo ;o)

And am starting to get ready for International Quilt Market in Houston next week!!!!!! If you are going track me down and say HOWDY!!!!!! Sara and I will be walking the floor TRYING to stay out of trouble...LOL!!!!! Trouble for us is found in many forms of cotton...
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Thursday, October 11, 2012

Go-Go Kim is NOT at Sewing Summit

Heavy sigh...HEAVY heart and a whole bunch of whining here at the homestead...why...because I have no swag bags...no fun instagram pics of HAWT sewing chicks all lined up together..no whisky bottles or yummy delights...

I am not at Sewing Summit!!!!!!  WAH!!!!!!  And, I am not alone, for all of us that are NOT attending the ULTIMATE sewing retreat of the YEAR, amylouwho decided to again start up an online  #notgoingtosewingsummit instagram ( If I am not boring you enough here feel free to come follow me on instagram) and twitter ( I am on twitter too) party!!!!



Me and Amy a couple of weeks ago at Joann's!!!!

So, we can all enjoy the posts of our friends and all their fun stuff while they are having the fun while we are picking kids up at school, scrubbing toilets and saying " GET IN THAT BED NOW!!!!" then we can show our latest projects or not and whine a little and give big hugs to each other!!!!!

Looking through my most recent pics, I have a couple of things to share. I have been a little negligent of my blog and I am so sorry!!!!!


I made this block when sorting through my scraps and I think I need a rainbow quilt of these blocks!!!! I found the pattern in a quilting book I found at a thrift store...SO AWESOME!



I also replaced the handle on this vintage leather bag I thrifted with a vintage fabric scrappy handle!!!!



so if you are at home reading this and not at Sewing Summit...come join our little pity party!!!!!!


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Sunday, October 7, 2012

A mythical creature and a scrappy Quilt-Along!

If the Scrap Rabbit  ( distant cousin of the Easter Bunny, kind of a black sheep of the Bunny clan)leaves a basket full of lovely fabric bits on your front step what would you do!?!



I know what I would do...HOP on over to the Scrappy Stash Quilt-Along

Jennifer at Ellison Lane Quilts  is having a Scrappy Quilt-Along with all the treasures that the Scrap Rabbit left you or the little gifts you make yourself :o)

I know when my basket overflows with love I do to keep it somewhat under control :o)


I enlist the hands of young worker bees that can be bribed with ice cream, icarly or itunes...the i's seem to be popular in this house...

I sort out the user friendly pieces

The larger pieces go into shoe boxes

the smaller ones go into Ball jars ( thank you amylouwho...I LOVE YOU)


The MOST important thing I try to do OFTEN is share with friends!!!!!! I have had some pretty amazing swaps or sent some outta love...

Get your scrap together and HOP on over to Ellison Lane Quilts  to check out some of the very cool sponsors




and if you missed out on sneak peeks at other scrap stashes ( you know you want to) here is the list


Blog Hop:
The following fabulously talented ladies have so kindly offered to share their scrap secrets with you as well as helping spread the word about the Scrappy Stash Quilt-Along. Be sure to stop by each day and check out their scrap storage!
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Thursday, October 4, 2012

Scrappy Stash QAL {or Scrap HAPPY}

Jennifer at Ellison Lane Quilts has put together a Scrappy Stash QAL for all of us that LOVE scrappy quilts ( ME! ME! ME!) or for those of us that just have too many scraps and don't know what to do with them but put them in a pile...in the corner...and watch them mulitply ( ME! ME! ME!) I hope you will all join in on the fun of sewing with your scrappy stash! We're going to be digging into those scrap bins and putting those precious pieces you've been hanging on to, to use. It's about time, right?! 

So, first things first: go sort those scraps! Over the next week, you're going to have sneak peeks into scrap organization from a slew of talented quilting bloggers. Take notes, pin ideas, just get busy. 

You are going to need your scraps sorted by color. We're going to be sewing fast and loose- no measuring, nothing exact. Freedom and liberation while we dig into those scrap bins. 

What kind of scraps get to play? Well, anything 2" x 2" and larger. We'll be using strips of fabric in widths 1.5" - 2". 

What are we making? Monochromatic Improv Log Cabins! 

Ready to sew? Good! The QAL kicks off on October 9 with giveaways, special sales, discounts and all the details to get you started. 

Sponsors: 
The many prizes offered to those of you that join our quilt-along are graciously donated by the following sponsors. 






Timeline: 
Scrappy Stash QAL starts October 9. 
Scrappy Stash QAL ends November 13. 
Link up finished quilt November 13-15. 
Prizes drawn November 16. 

Blog Hop: 
The following fabulously talented ladies have so kindly offered to share their scrap secrets with you as well as helping spread the word about the Scrappy Stash Quilt-Along. Be sure to stop by each day and check out their scrap storage! 

10/4: Craft Buds
10:9: QAL kick-off day at Ellison Lane Quilts
10/10: Maureen Cracknell Handmade (QAYG tutorial!) 

OK, who's ready? Grab a button for your blog then pop on over to see Dana at Old Red Barn Co. and let's get this party started! 

Scrappy Stash Quilt-Along at Ellison Lane Quilts
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