On the flip side I used a cheery ABC block pattern that picks up a lot of the colors from the block side.

For the borders I used two different batik fabrics and inserted extra batting so those borders are a little puffy.

And since I was thinking of this as a play quilt more then a sleeping blanket, I added fun pom-pom trim along the top and bottom on the ABC side.

My completed version of the Asheville Cotton Company $5 Quilt Club pattern from 2011, designed by Robin Culbertson.

Starting from top left and moving across row, by row (with some interpretation of the word row needed) the blocks are:

• Tree
• Friendship Star
• Flying Geese
• Mountains and Railways
• Tree
• Contrary Wife
• Posie
• Indian Star
• Maple Leaf
• Native American Art
• Snail Trail (Virginia Reel)
• Shoofly
• Snowball
• Log Cabin
• 2 Bear Paws
• Little Red Barn
• Tree
• Stepping Stones (Jacob’s Ladder)
• Stream (Water)

Robin designed this quilt based around our Western North Carolina history, craft heritage, culture and natural beauty. Many of the blocks are based on traditional patterns which she arranged into a narrative picture. She also designed additional blocks for those in the $5 Quilt Club that wanted to make a larger size finished quilt.

The fabrics are all batiks and I used colored threads when quilting, adding details and textures along the way. The most visible examples, in this photo, are in the Indian Star, Little Red Barn and Snail Trail blocks.

Cowboy Boot Block Pattern Now Available (PDF format) from my personal website: http://www.aliceio.com

I had made a pair of cowboy booties as a shower gift and wanted to follow up with a cowboy boot quilt. I searched through pattern books and online shops and didn’t find any patterns for blocks that I liked. I found many that were appliqué and some that were close, but non that really were the cowboy boot I envisioned. So, necessity being the catalyst for invention, I got to work and designed my own block.

Once I had the pattern designed I spent a good deal of time deciding what fabrics to use. I had some baby-wale corduroy in various colors and decided that was the perfect base for the boot toes and heals. This does add a level of complexity to cutting the fabric since you need to make sure you have both the wale and the pile oriented correctly. I love the texture it lends to the boots – both tactile and visual. For the background around each boot I chose matching colors of tiny check fabric, which being lighter in weight necessitated care while sewing and directional pressing. The fabrics for the main part of each boot were selected for color, scale and whimsy. I ended up have a couple fabrics that were scene based and others that were tossed patterns which I think adds to the charm.

Once I had completed the piecing of all the boot blocks I decided to quilt each block separately so as to be able to give different patterns to each boot. The sashing was added using quilt-as-you-go techniques, which again allowed for detail stitching.

The images show the boot quilt front, block back and then close up details from each side.

This was the first time I used the “stack and whack” method to cut pieces for the blocks and I have to say I love the process. It is a pretty free form way of making a quilt and leads to some interesting interactions at block intersections.

One of the fabrics had these great flowers that I cut out and used as appliques in a random arrangement over the blocks.

Banana bike illustration on t-shirt. Photo courtesy Roly Poly Crafts.

I just competed a series of line drawings for Roly Poly Crafts to screen print on garments: t-shirts, baby one-pieces, diaper covers and the like. Roly Poly owner, Ruth, has a wonderful sense of hip nostalgia in the selection of images she asked me to draw for her. The illustration style is line art, with no shading, designed to be printed in one color.

Illustrations include a banana seat bicycle, high top sneakers, a prancing unicorn, a folk/country singer, iconic trees, and “Mixed Tape” cassette.

View more images and shop Roly Poly Crafts at Etsy: http://www.etsy.com/shop/rolypolycrafts

The first year I participated I chose to do the holiday color option: red/green/gold. Each month we made a different block, for a total of 12 blocks. The blocks were all pretty intricate pieced patterns and being that piecing was a new skill for me I decided that I needed to make each block more then once. Therefore I made three companion blocks to each club block with each of my blocks focused on one color: red, green or gold.

And to make it even more a challenge, I reduced the number of fabrics to four no matter how many had been called for in the original pattern. The goal each time was to keep the focus of the block the same even with the reduced number of fabrics and colors. I had some real misses requiring reworking a few of the squares over the 18+ months I worked on this quilt. I certainly learned a great deal.

About half way through, I decided I would gift this quilt, when completed, to my in-laws. Knowing that they prefer blue tones and that they would appreciate a quilt that could be used outside of the holiday season, I decided to make the reverse side of the quilt a snow theme in blues. Since I was planning to “stitch in the ditch” on the holiday side, I decided to make the blue side predominately big squares, but with a fun border along the sides. (I had already decided to put a fun border on the holiday side.)

And, of course I needed to add another challenge, I decided to use a modified quilt-as-you-go technique. Turns out that was a very good choice as the quilt by the end was BIG and would have been extremely difficult to quilt as one piece on my small machine. One of the images in the slideshow shows me standing in front of the quilt. With my boots on I’m a little over six feet tall, so that gives you the scale of the overall quilt. I told my in-laws they would need to buy a bigger bed.

Short sleeve and sleeveless examples of the Essential Journeys Bicycle Jersey. Photo by rebecca d'angelo, courtesy Essential Journeys.

Kimberly, owner of Essential Journeys, is an avid bicyclist. When she isn’t making her wonderful soaps she is usually out on the road with a group of friends riding around Asheville, or off leading a group of bicyclists on an Alaskan adventure.

So to combine her two passions she asked me to design a bicycle jersey that would be fun, colorful and promote Essential Journeys.

We started with the base art from label designs for the floral pattern on the front and sleeves. We made one sleeve green and one purple – why not, much more interesting then both the same.

On the back we used her biking diva logo and added bright sun rays behind her. The back pocket list her product lines and of course the website URL. Another fun feature of the jerseys are words up the sides: “Soap Pedaler” and “Petroleum Free.”

The jerseys are offered in short sleeve and sleeveless options in cuts for both women and men. For information on ordering, visit Essential Journeys online shop: Bicycle section where you can order jerseys as well as matching arm warmers.

All good, then I put it together and once again didn’t like it. It still looked too chunky. So, I did a crazy/brave thing, I cut the quilt right through the middle of each row of squares and reassembled. And… yes, that is the look I wanted, whew. Of course that means that my seams don’t line up, but if you don’t look too close you don’t notice.

Roller skate buttons! Perfect for the daughter of a roller derby fan.

Knitting while listening to a book on tape is one of my favorite relaxing activities.

My favorite things to knit are baby gifts. For Emilia I decided to make a color block sweater as I had some single balls in really wonderful colors of an amazingly soft wool. I used a basic cardigan pattern with pretty scalloped edges at the base, sleeve cuffs and neckline. The fun roller skate buttons topped off the colorful look.

My love of knitting comes from my mom. She taught me the basics and encouraged me on projects throughout the years. I inherited a large portion of her knitting tools, materials, books and patterns. Although it saddens me that I can’t show her my recent projects, it is wonderful to remember her each time I sit and work on a new sweater. Thanks, mom.

"Sunset" placed in the top twenty quilts as choosen by customers in Asheville Cotton Co.'s first Customer Quilt Show.

It took me close to two years, working on and off, to complete my first large quilt. Previously, I had made a few quilts as baby gifts which are generally weekend projects. A quilt large enough for a queen-size bed I discovered is considerably more challenging.

Part of the reason it took a while to complete, was the time I spent in organizing, and reorganizing the blocks. The original materials and base design came from a quilt kit my mom had given to me. I followed the first couple steps of the instructions, but then reached a point where I didn’t like how they were pulling the elements together.

Fortunately, I have a large work table and could spread the pieces out for review. They were there for weeks. Each time I walked by the table I considered and often rearranged the pieces. Finally, I was happy with the layout and could finish up the sewing.

When I got the top pieced together I took it down to my favorite quilt material shop, Asheville Cotton Company, and got terrific advice on fabric for the backing and border. They also suggested I do the actual quilting with a variegated thread. The look is great and makes the flip side of the quilt quite interesting.

I used the block ends and extra strips of fabric to make a Sunrise Baby Quilt as well.