Tula Pink Butterfly quilt

 Well, it took a bit of planning, but I'm ready for today! Actually, the first class of the weekend was last night, and we're working on The Butterfly Quilt by Tula Pink. 

I had purchased the original pattern years ago, and well, it had never been out of the package until yesterday! 

The original pattern for The Butterfly Quilt

I knew that some of the students had the old pattern, but most would have the new one, so I had to get the new one. 

Version 2 of The Butterfly Quilt

Here's MY take on the updated pattern. Of course, the fabric collection (Tula's) for the first quilt was long gone. She had requests from many people on where to buy the fabric, and once that pattern went out of print, she still had MANY requests for the pattern. So she decided to redo the pattern and, of course, in new fabric collections, but more basics that will have some staying power. 

The pattern was originally going to be released as a PDF, but then it became a physical item. And yes, it's pretty and glossy, and costs $40!!!! But that didn't deter any of us from buying it!

Anyway, I compared the two patterns, and with the addition of a big colored diagram of half of the quilt, the rest of the pattern is basically identical. Yes -- the coloring on the diagrams changed, but the diagrams did NOT change. I will give them credit -- it was an excellent way to generate new sales rather than republishing the old one. But that's what the world is all about these days. 

So our first class was last night, and I think I'm getting really good at putting these presentations together and covering ALL the bases - or all the information they could possibly want in a class. The best news? I sent the follow-up last night before I went to bed! Yep-- that's a first for me. 

I added this quilt to my Facebook group for the Tula Pink Sew Alongs (we did the 100 block sampler quilt last year). I just need to zip into Photoshop to make a composite photo of the three patterns (last year, and the two from this year). The big question will be -- do I remember how to do that? It's not urgent, but the banners on Facebook pages just look weird if you dump in a large photo. 

I swear that FreeSpirit (who makes Tula's fabric) has made a killing on her Line works collection. I was surprised at how many of the class will use those fabrics. And a fair number used it for the last sew-along. And I know of one person who is using the leftovers from the previous class to make this one!

While I really like both versions of the quilt, I don't want to make the same quilt. So I looked in my stash and spotted some stuff that had got pulled from the closet. I left it on my cutting table for a morning while I contemplated what to use. What to use? What to use? 

Sometimes I think about what color my existing quilts are. Have I done this color combination before? If not, that's a good one to try. 

So when I pulled stuff out of Pandora's Closet, I found two bundles of this fabric, and I decided to go for it. 

Pink and green for the EXOTIC butterfly

Yep -- those pinks and greens are BRIGHT!! I added a few more from my stash, and I'm good to go. OH -- I did remove all the ones with white in them. My background will be white, and I don't want any white in the butterfly's body. I don't have the background yet - well, I don't have enough whites, so I'll start with what I have and just buy more when I need it. I have no qualms about doing that. If I were using a specific print, I might be a bit more cautious, but I'm using a variety of white prints, so who cares? Throw caution to the wind, which the pioneers used to do. Use what you have!

I am determined to NOT buy anything if I can get away with that. I have to buy stuff from time to time, but seriously? I can't support my local quilt shop to the point of bankrupting myself, and what can I do with the stuff? My stash room is near exploding. Well, not that bad, but now that all the extra fabric is being moved in there, it's been an eye-opener, to say the least. So I support my local shops within my budget - both money and space. 

Here's the start of my quilt. 

I made some green blocks. 

Green blocks

And there are pink blocks as well. 

Mini pink blocks

Pink blocks

 

I also have some fabrics that are pink AND green, and those are going to be used in the middle to blend the two halves together. Fingers crossed that it looks like I envision! 

It will be loads of fun, and I can't wait to see all these quilts come together as the year progresses. 

Today, it's all about two more sew-along projects and a demo. I'll be sharing those projects with you later this coming week. They are both gorgeous quilts, and again, I found enough stuff in my stash to make them. I was a bit worried about backgrounds, but nope -- I found enough for the backgrounds! How did that happen? 

It's almost the end of January, and I was looking at my completed projects for this month. Wow -- NOT much got done. Well, a lot of complex stuff got done, but quantity-wise? Not so much. That's OK. I'm just happy with the progress that got made on other things. 

You know what they say about letting sleeping dogs lie. Well, look at these pictures. First, we have company, and said company doesn't remember to put the cushions back in their strategic spots. I walked into the living room, and WHAT???? Murphy -- you are NOT allowed on the furniture. 

But MOM -- it's so toasty warm here! 

Remember the discussion about the window seat for Murphy? Well, I've lined up someone to make it, and I purchased the dog bed that will sit inside it. I threw it on the floor yesterday, and guess who took it over? 

GRAMMA -- this bed is just right!

And then you have Lexi. While the other two lollygagged in the sunshine, Lexi is outside in the shade, in the snow. 

MOM  - I know you're there, but it's too cold for me to untuck my nose

What I don't get about Murphy is that she doesn't like to be hot, so why is she laying in the sun, curled in a chair? This usually is her sleeping pose. Tummy exposed on the cold tile floor. 

Murphy's usual sleeping pose

And Little Bear is a good helper when he's not stealing Murphy's new bed. He was helping me sew log cabin blocks the other day. OK -- I bribed him with a treat!

Little Bear keeping me company

Don't forget the last day of the QUILTsocial posts. I insert a zipper and finish off my appliqued cushion cover. 

And today is the first day of the Virtual Retreat. Yeah!!! I've been contemplating what I can sew. I haven't come to any conclusion yet, but I'm sure I'll find something to work on. Maybe that hexagon quilt. 

Here are the links. 

Saturday, January 29  - starting at 6 PM EST.

Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89254233911?pwd=VGQrTnFybW1HMWpleHA4M2Q2NGVwZz09 Meeting ID: 892 5423 3911 Passcode: 982797

Sunday, Januyary 30 -- starting at 11:30 AM EST

Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81693717518?pwd=STNoVVQzbDd4ZnROQndNNlpvcC90QT09 Meeting ID: 816 9371 7518 Passcode: 579285

And on that note, I'm out of here. It's going to be a busy day!! But I hope you can drop into the Virtual Retreat to say HI later today. It's always loads of fun, and where I live -- it's just too darn cold to be outside doing anything. So stay inside and sew. Of course, my girls think this cold weather was made for them, and so I'm getting ready to take them out! The little guy will lift his paws when outside for less than a minute. My girls can be out for hours, and there is NO paw lifting! Nope -- we've got rabbits to flush out!

Have a super day!!!

Ciao!!!