I was super excited when I heard the word combo this week! I love drawing houses and was expecting to do something intricate when I thought of the word, but then when I heard Folk my mind switched gears and I couldn’t stop thinking about simple block houses and lots of swirly vines and flowers.

The word Folk is very broad. One of the definitions is “of or relating to the traditional art or culture of a community or nation” which is what first came to my mind and is the idea I ran with. I have always associated the word with Amish and/or Scandinavian art. So I decided to blend the two a bit, which is where I came up with the above design. Every single part came from hours of doodling in my sketchbook. I drew so many swirls, vines, tulips and houses. If I illustrated all of them I’d have a few dozen fabric lines. I loved this theme!

I may have loved setting up the examples even more! I had never used Photoshop mock-up files before, but I think i’m hooked now. I want to see how all of my designs will look as bedspreads, sheets, couches, dresses and more. This may be a new addiction, just saying.

The saddest part of this project is I don’t have a way of making the actual set. Technically I could piece some stuff together, but pieced fitted sheets aren’t very comfortable. The closest I could get was Society6 and their Duvet Cover option. It’s not exactly the same though because the back isn’t that cute little bird fabric, but it’s still neat. Oh and I made a matching rug too, because, “why not?”!

I’ve also ordered swatches from Spoonflower of those two fabrics shown as sheets, along with a baby cheater quilt version of that comforter. I’ll post photos once they come in!

Phew, I think that’s it! Heidi is on vacation, so were taking a week off since she won’t have time and I need to catch up on a few other projects. I’m excited to hear what the next set of words will be though, These challenges really were just the thing I needed.

If you’d like to read more about this project, check out the first blog post I wrote about it.

It’s also where we keep some of our little toys and collections… though why lie, there’s actually toys and trinkets all over the house! Which I am beyond happy about. I spend A LOT of time in this house, so I’m glad I can just walk around and find things to make me smile. As of late, I really need that.

I have this constant urge to rearrange, paint, build and more these days. It’s like my mind is being super cruel to me. I don’t have the energy to do such things, but for some reason it’s all I want to do. Ugh…

More on why I’m so tired…

my gluten sensitivity test / endoscopy was moved about 20 days from its original date due to the fact that I had a horrible cold and they can’t do a scope when someone is sick. This means I am STILL eating gluten everyday, and STILL feel super sick and tired. I seriously consume way too much caffeine just to keep up with CT, and I hate that. I just plain out hate being sick.

I have this plan to completely change my food intake and possibly TRY a paleo lifestyle change (not a diet, since it’s mostly not by choice) once all this crap is over. I have a dairy intolerance and a gluten allergy, so it’s right up my ally. I’m also planning on taking a lot of sugars and processed foods out of my daily diet too (since I notice even the gluten free stuff hurts my stomach) Not all of it though. I’m not the only one living in this house, so I can’t keep all that stuff away. I’m not going to deprive my family the foods they love just because I can’t eat them anymore. Plus we really like frozen yogurt (and our local place has soy options) and it’s a fun family outing.

I know I got off topic there, oops. It’s just been on my mind NON STOP.

Anyway, would any of you readers be interested in posts sharing my adventures into clean eating? Successes and failures?

The next morning I woke up before CT and went straight to my computer, I drafted a paper pieced pattern so I could test out my idea. I was very happy with the results, and as you can see from the photo on the right above, it worked!! I was so excited I set out to make 24 more!

Well, after searching through my fabric stash, I just couldn’t find 24 fabrics that matched the first one I did. So I narrowed it down to 12 total. I made each house block 10″ square, which meant I should end up with a quilt about 30″x40″ if I didn’t add a border, and a bit bigger if I did.

I spent a few days finishing up the other 11 blocks, doing four at a time (I feel like I get up to iron less and it takes less time, to me). I was on a roll and was set out to finish this quilt as soon as I could. So last Tuesday I finished all 12 blocks! I laid them out on the floor and didn’t quite like the set up as all house outlines. So I turned a few around, and a couple upside down, and ended up with a bunch of arrows pointing all different directions. Perfect!! I also decided at that point that I was going to add 2″ white strips in between all of the blocks and a 2″ white border around the entire edge. Now it was 40″x50″, a nice lap sized quilt. I needed one of those.

I pieced and quilted the entire thing Wednesday afternoon, and then added binding Friday Morning. I took photos Saturday, and here I am on Monday showing you all my finished quilt…

I’m calling it the “Which Way Is Up” quilt.

I LOVE the way it came out, and I love that each time I use the pattern it will be a totally different quilt! I can subtract the white and do all solids, so the arrows (or houses) will be subtle and surprise you! or I can switch the white and the patterned fabrics? Or I could be super crazy and actually have them all houses!! Ha.

Well, I’m so interested to see all of the different ways you could make this quilt too, so you can find the pattern in my shop!

I’m not including instructions on how to paper piece. I have no idea how to write it out in words… Yet.  If you’ve never tried it, I suggest searching for some videos on YouTube, that’s how I taught myself. Fresh Lemons Quilts blog also has a great tutorial if your not into watching videos.

If any of you do make a project using this pattern, I would love to see it (and maybe even share it on here).

I feel like I’m on a quilting kick now, so expect to see more sewing and a bit less of everything else…

1 – Girl in Boots Leggings – by ZIBtextile /// 2 – Wood Veneer Sunglasses by Tumbleweeds Handcraft (I didn’t link to a specific pair because I myself can’t decide which ones I like the best!)

3 – Large Liberty Satchel by Dr. Martens (I have been wanting this bag ever since I purchased these boots)

4 – Mega Munny 18-inch Glossy White Edition by Kidrobot (I think this would look awesome in my library, as is) /// 5 – National Parks Checklist Map Print by Ello There

6 – The Atwood Sofa by Gus Modern … We currently have the Karlstad three seater in Isunda Gray by Ikea, I love it! But it’s already wearing bad and light gray really isn’t the best color to have with a toddler in the house! I’m not saying teal is any better, but whenever the Karlstad dies, I’m hoping this or this will be the replacement!

A girl can dream right?