Blue dog and red kitties

I love testing new patterns and basically I love to sew and I truthfully accomplish more when I have a set deadline to finish by (especially when someone else sets the deadline, so I cannot push it back).

Here is the latest.... I was asked to test a new paper piecing pattern for Kristy of Quiet Play, and share the results by January 20.  This is my progress photo:

 

This shows the madcap scramble of the pieces to the puzzle that will soon morph into a completed 12 1/2" quilt block.  Can you guess what it will be?  (confession: I may have cropped out a few of the sections -- can you spy the dog's nose?)

Here is the finished block which I have titled: My Blue Doxie

Cute.  

Don't you agree?

This is called Geometric Doxie Paper Pieced Pattern and is one of the newest patterns released by Kristy @ Quiet Play.  Click here to see her website or here to see her patterns.   Kristy also has her patterns on Craftsy (click here).

I have tested a few other Quiet Play patterns as well.  My first (and still favorite) is this sitting kitty, which I've mentioned in a previous post, but here is a little more of the behind-the-scenes story.

The pattern is called "Geometric Little Cat Paper Pieced Pattern" and is only available on her payhip site (click here).   I pieced this in red as my Houston Modern Quilt Guild was having a red-and-white block exchange with the London Modern Quilt Guild.  The blocks were meant to be 12" finished and this measured a smidgeon too small so I added this border.

The upper portion was simple -- just cut more of the Kona white with my rotary cutter.  The lower portion was trickier due to the stripes.  Cut one lengthwise and then two crosswise.  But I do like how it turned out.  I have named this one My London Kitty and hope it finds happiness in its new London home.

In fact, I loved my London kitty so much that I decided I must make another one for myself to keep.  Here is My Houston Kitty.

When I was piecing this kitty, I totally forgot to use a different color for the floor that the kitty is sitting on, and originally pieced the entire kitty with an all white background.  I didn't like it and didn't know what to do to fix it.  I didn't relish the idea of restitching the entire tail section .... so ... I carefully removed the tail from the background white and the appliqued the entire tail onto the new floor section.  If you compare this Kitty to the London Kitty, you can see that the section with the tail does not have the same seams .....  I love this little kitty and am thrilled with how it turned out.  Perhaps I will make another ....

These are just two of the patterns by Kristy @ Quiet Play that I have made.  Her patterns are a fabulous introduction into paper-piecing -- although if you are a beginner, select a pattern without as many teeny-tiny pieces!  If you run into difficulties with her directions, Kristy is just a short email away -- or message her through InstaGram (@quietplay).  She lives across an ocean from me, but through the marvels of our digital age, she is much closer!