14 Quiltcon bound and some things you may not know about me.

As you read this, I am headed off to Austin for Quiltcon!  I am seriously excited and yet, always nervous for these types of events for some reason.  Being mostly an introvert makes things like this a little overwhelming for me.  I'm sure some of you can relate?

The Modern Quilt Guild is encouraging everyone to post a picture of themselves to put a face to the blog to make it easier to meet in person, and I am late to the party but still wanted to share, so this is me.

And just for fun, here are five things you may not know about me:
|  One  |
By day, I am a biomedical engineer.  I work for a medical device company doing usability/human factors testing and user interface design, and am lucky enough to work from home most of the time!  I do have a cube in our Boston-area office though and have to show my face there once a month or so :)

|  Two  |
I have three wonderful sisters, and each of us are a little over 5 years apart in age (17, 23, 29 and 34).  We are all in different places in our lives and our personalities are all completely opposite, but thankfully we still get along really well for the most part!

|  Three  |
My husband and I met in high school.  I spent a portion of my junior year trying to set him up with one of my best friends for some reason, but thankfully neither of them was very interested in the other :)  We've been together for 12 years now, and married for 3.5.

|  Four  |
I am very picky about the types of meat that I'll eat.  I can't even swallow a piece of steak because of the texture (it feels like I'm eating muscle, which I suppose is true!).  I am in love with vegetables though, and I've never met a vegetable I didn't like (other than green beans...ick!).

|  Five  |
You will probably never see me in public without a scarf or a necklace on.  They're my wardrobe security blankets!

and a bonus  |  Six  |
I never considered myself a creative person until a few years ago, and I still have a hard time defining myself as a designer/quilter/blogger/etc.  For the most part, I don't believe that creativity is something you are born with, I think it is something that is learned just like science or math.  The more time you spend doing creative things, the easier it becomes and the more you improve, just like with anything else in life.

Now that I've gone all philosophical on you, I think it's time to end this list!  If you see me at Quiltcon, please say hi!  I am terrible at approaching others but I really do want to meet you :)

259 a little v-day washi love.

Happy Valentine's Day friends!  I just wanted to show you all a little love to let you know how much I appreciate all of you for stopping by!  Today that love happens to be in the form of a giveaway, not sponsored by anyone other than me :)

I have a minor obsession with washi tape.  It's pretty and has about a million uses, so what's not to love about it?   I thought I'd pass along my obsession to one of you, in the form of these 7 pretty rolls of washi!

To enter, simply leave a comment on this post.  Tell me what you're doing to celebrate Valentine's Day, or your favorite use for washi tape!  Followers get an extra entry by leaving an additional comment.  Please make sure I have a way to contact you.  I'll pick a winner on Monday!

Update: This giveaway is now closed.  Congrats to our winner, Sew Nichole!

23 weekend sewing.

I finished quilting my x plus quilt this weekend!  

The velveteen backing feels so amazing.  I cannot wait to wrap up in this quilt on the couch.  Some people have been asking how it was to quilt the velveteen, and honestly I feel like it was just as easy as a normal quilt if not more so, provided it's basted well.  I used a lot of pins!  The feed dogs grip the velveteen as it's going through the machine and pull it along really well.  It is heavy though, so I had to make sure it wasn't getting stuck due to the weight while quilting.

I kept it simple and quilted along the edges of the pluses and through the middle of the x's, and I'm happy with how it turned out.

I used Aurifil 28 wt variegated black and white thread on the front.  I like how it looks but I wish the stitches looked more defined in the black areas like they are in the white.

It's all squared up and ready for binding!  I've got a few options but I'm leaning towards this Architextures text print.  I like the way it ties in both the blacks and whites!

Shouldn't be too much longer before this quilt is finished!