Bummer,

I just found out this is for the paying members only and this lets me out. I only have dial up and it is way to expensive to try and get anything faster here in the boonies. As is it takes me over 15 mintues to download the blog due to all the picture contact...

I will just have to watch your ladies progress instead.

Bummer again

I think I am going to do what I always do with BOM CLUBS

I make the blocks I like...Good to Great blocks go into my collection of blocks for a quilt.

Not so good blocks usually go into a not so important project. ie pillows, pillowcases, table toppers, wall-hanging.

Since all my BOM come out of my Christmas stash fabrics all my items tend to be coordinated. I have been working out of this stash for TWO years adding fabrics that meet the general requirements... frosted, gold and /or silver tinged. More formal than informal. I stay away from the SANTA TYPE prints and go for the traditional colors, religious motifs.

All the reds, greens, blues, golds, white or creams, burgundies (sometimes black) work will together. None of the colors jar or fight with each other. Occasionally I add a different color but something related to the other fabrics.

I started with several yards of multiple HOFFMAN Christmas fabrics, Renaissance Angels and fabrics called Christmas in England. They all blend together. All my items are scrappy but because I repeat using fabrics in them all they work. For Borders I try and repeat colors in the quilt or project.

My backgrounds are also color coordinated but a mixture... mostly off white, cream, some white all with touches of gold and silver.

One day I will pass on a totally coordinated collection of Christmas colored quilted items to my DD. She says she can't wait.... not for me to die ( HEE, HEE) but to get her hands on my Christmas treasure troves of quilted items. My parents came from Italy with nothing. It is important to me to pass on something I made to my DD. I feel these items will be treasured in the future. .... But she can't have them til I am gone...

I've printed off the overall instructions and month 1. I am an experienced quilter but have avoided making a feathered star until now. I am using all the leftover fabrics from three years of theimbleberries BOM so should have loads to play with. My background is going to be scrappy creams. Time to get up and enjoy New Year's Day.

Sue

Thanks, Margo! I just wanted to be sure I was on the right track I feel better about shopping the stash, too!

Absolutely, Lisette!! Your plans sounds great! Some of the pieces that I used for mine were just 10" squares, so even smaller scraps than FQs will work!

I think that for this kind of quilt, with so many pieces, it's more important to be aware of fabric value (light/dark) than the colors. If you have a definite contrast between the background shade and the piecing, it's going to show up better....and after piecing all these blocks, I wanted it to show!! LOL!!

(Now, watch someone prove me wrong! Doncha just luv it?)

OK...bump me!! So that I have pictures to show you on January 1, I'm trying to make the alternate center block that will be Sarah's graduation quilt, and realized that the background fabric I've chosen is not as light as I thought it was.
But...I'm really trying to make this quilt out of my stash fabrics, so I'm going to try it with this center block and see how it goes.
I'll let you see it on Thursday and you can let me know if the value is going to work!

I also attempted a few of the 08 bom's, it didn't go well for me. So I went with printing off all the months and will wait for my skills (patience) to grow.

I recently attemted paper piecing it turned out upside down and backwards!? so in reality it's ready to be part of a rag quilt.

I am thinking monochromatic, shades of red maybe blues. I'm planning to shop my stash.

Margo, do you think fq's be good for this?

Safe Holidays TQS

I am also one that started the 2008 BOM and after a few months decided to wait. I have printed out all the instructions, very organized in a binder by month, background fabric put aside. For 2009, I am ready to jump in, I think I have my fabric, creams, blues, greens, pinks, peaches from my stash. I have paper pieced before, and I found that if I take my time and double check before stitching I am ok. Thanks Sue and Margo and the all the TQS family for making this doable! Pat

Paper piecing is one of my favorite things as I took some classes from Carol Doak back in the early 90s when she came out with her first book. Just went to see the quilt and thought piecing then read that some is paper pieced. I will download the instructions but want to continue with the 2008 one. My Christmas gift from my siblings is fabric for a machine embroidered quilt so starting a 3rd one may be too much. lol. Will love looking at all the progress from the group tho.
MA

I can't remember HOW I got the picture in there? Isn't that a hoot!?

I will have to play around a little. I know they had at one time asked us not to do it - server space etc, but I just wanted to stick it right in there on the forum in the thread of 'gathering the fabrics' so I tried it! Sorry, Ricky and Alex, if I was being overly 'bad!'

I'll see if I can figure it out if the rest of you want to be bad too!
Lynn

I too am very excited about beginning the 2009 BOM. I didn't get very far with the 2008 BOM, but I do have all the instructions printed out and will work at it in between other projects. For the 2009 I bought a pretty light/med taupe fabric for my background fabric and a very pretty batik with oranges/greens/browns for the focus fabric. For the rest of the fabrics I will select from my large stash of batiks (I'm a batikaholic!!!) so it will look pretty scrappy, but colorful, in the end. I can't wait......

Patricia in IL (with very weird weather...high of 63 today when it was only -1 a week ago!!)

Lynn I'm absolutely nuts about your french provencial fabrics. I couldn't figure out how to post my multiple pictures so I just made a blog with my main fabrics.

OK, Lynn....please tell us how you got that BIG picture on the forum!!! (Your fabrics are great....all piled up around the HQ!)

I'm in! After only completing January and February last year (I have found that hand applique just isn't my thing) I thought twice before making the commitment to the 2009 BOM.... but I am really excited and jumping in with both feet!

All I pulled out so far is a dark/dark blue batik background - and I have only 4 yards of it, so I will have to be creative right out of the gate. I am also only going to pull from my stash this year - I have found that this forces creativity on my part.

I really like paper piecing (the Bella that is STILL in work, was a paper pieced pattern and I liked the simplicity of sewing "on the lines").

I am looking forward to January 1!!!!

Wow, that's beautiful! I wish I were even close to being that prepared! I know I'm going to be using tones/shades of burgundy, gold, tan, and deep green with touches of blue, and I'm sure many other colors will play a part since mine is going to have to be VERY scrappy! So far, though, all I have I actually bought is a batik neutral tan for the background, and a floral focus fabric. Hopefully the stash will play nicely with those. QuilterLynn....yours is wonderful!