I’ve been bouncing from project to project this week like the proverbial rubber ball and boy, has it been fun! First I made this little fabric box, using directions from my friend Viv:

I think Viv’s directions were adapted from a tutorial she found on the Internet. She made a box for me last year that I use all the time. In my sewing room it catches threads. When I go to a quilt class, it holds notions. So versatile and cute! I tweaked her directions to make my fabric box 4″ square.

Then I made a pair of king-size pillowcases for my twin sister, Diane:

My husband and I are spending two whole weeks with Diane and her husband around Thanksgiving; these cases will be a hostess gift. She fell in love with the fabrics when she saw them made into this sewing machine dust cover so I’m pretty confident the cases will be a hit.

Next I sewed those three kaleidoscope blocks from a couple of weeks ago into a table runner/wall hanging:

Isn’t it amazing that all three blocks were made from the same focus fabric? I’m going to put a solid piece of that fabric on the back.

Last but not least, I pulled some black and white fabrics from my stash to make this test block using the pattern Metro Rings by Jenny Pedigo of Sew Kind of Wonderful and her Quick Curve Ruler©:

This is Jenny’s modern take on the traditional wedding ring block. Those curved rings are made from strip sets! It’s the fourth design of hers I’ve made using her Quick Curve Ruler, and I continue to be amazed and delighted at how versatile the ruler is. I’m especially excited about this quilt-to-come because I’ll be teaching a class on it at the Pine Needle in January 2014.

I started out with this fabric . . .

. . . and wound up with this:

and this:

and this:

Can you see now why I’m crazy about kaleidoscopes?! I think I will turn these 16″ blocks into a table runner celebrating autumn, “season of mists and mellow fruitfulness.”

Sometimes the obvious escapes me. I’ve been working with this pretty hydrangea floral fabric for a couple of weeks now but didn’t notice until taking pictures for this post that the hydrangeas are made up of clusters of butterflies. I even missed the clue on the selvage:

You may recall from a recent post that I was using this fabric to make three sizes of kaleidoscope blocks that I was calling Papa Bear, Mama Bear, and Baby Bear to distinguish their relative sizes. The bear image is now banished from my brain; I see only butterflies.

And here are those butterfly blocks are, floating on a field of pale green:

The background fabric is Krystal by Michael Miller, and I’m pretty sure the solid green inner border in the kaleido blocks is Michael Miller, too. The pink and white print in the outer border is Yvette, from the City House Fabrics line by Swirly Girls Design for Michael Miller.

I’m thinking of binding the quilt in the solid green. (I do wish solid fabrics came with information printed on the selvages like print fabrics do. I like to know what fabric I’m working with — and what if I need more and can’t find it locally? That information on the selvage is essential for an Internet search.)

Now to ponder quilting motifs and quilt names. I’m thinking of simple cross-hatching in the background, spaced an inch or two apart, and some kind of floral design in the kaleido blocks. As for a name, I’m waiting for inspiration to strike. Bloomin’ Butterflies? Butterfly Kisses? Suggestions gratefully accepted!

You already know that I’m crazy about kaleidoscope quilts. My most recent effort, Cosmic Kaleidoscopes, contained five oversized kaleidoscope blocks floating on an inky background; it measured 62″ x 82″ before quilting. I wanted to try a scaled down version using softer fabrics and a light background. I sketched a design on graph paper and chose a luscious pink and green hydrangea print as my focus fabric.

The blocks are three different sizes, the largest being 20″ and the smallest 13½”. I suppose it was inevitable that I would start thinking of them as the Three Bears. Here is Papa Bear:

. . . and Mama Bear:

. . . and Baby Bear:

The next time you see these blocks, they will be in a quilt top, floating on a pale green background.