Love Birds in Make Modern Magazine

Finally! Finally, I can share this quilt with you! I have had it finished since June and it has been on our bed all summer, making me happy every time I walked past our door, but I haven't been able to show it to you. But now I can!

This is Love Birds, and it is in the latest issue of Make Modern magazine (affiliate link), which was just released today. From now until December 1st, you can get this issue for $6 AUD with the coupon code issue13friends.

 

Believe it or not, this quilt is based on this block, which EQ7 calls 'Eccentric Star 3'.

When I put the block into a quilt layout in EQ7, I decided to rotate every other block, which made me think of two birds kissing where the v's meet. The more I looked at the design, the more I liked it. I've been wanting to make a quilt for our bed for years, but I could never settle on a pattern I liked enough until I saw this.

As you can see from the block, the whole 84" x 96" quilt is made entirely of squares and HSTs. Lots of HSTs. I found they came together faster than I expected, though, probably because I made them in batches, sewing, trimming and pressing each batch before starting again with a new batch. It felt like I was making progress faster that way than if I had tried to sew all of them at once, then trim them all, etc.

I knew I didn't want to quilt this one densely, both because of the time that would take and because I wanted the quilt to stay nice and soft since it would be going on our bed. I chose this looping spiral design after seeing it on IG and I love how it looks.

I tried really, really hard to quilt the looping spirals bigger than my normal small quilting. It was tough, as all those empty spaces seemed to be calling out, "Quilt me, quilt me!" but I resisted and the quilt is lovely soft and drapes so nicely.

I did find it challenging to quilt on a larger scale though, and for the first time I found myself wishing for a machine with a larger throat space. It wasn't because I wanted to fit more quilt in there, but because I wanted more room to move my hands as I tried making those big circles!

I really wanted to get good pictures of this quilt, so I took it on a little hike shortly before sunset, to take advantage of golden hour. It actually took two nights, since the first night I couldn't find a setting I liked. The second night went better, mostly thanks to my friend Michelle who came along that night and had some great ideas. And we found this stump, which makes a great spot for a quilt roll picture, don't you think?

 

There were a couple of tiny iceburgs in the area when we were taking the pictures (early July).

 And this is how it looked just after the sun disappeared behind the hills.

Here's one more picture, just because I love it!

That feels better! Secret sewing is fun, but letting the secrets out is even more fun :)

*This post contains an affiliate link, which means if you click the link and make a purchase I may receive a small commission. This does not affect the price you pay.

Just the Basics Mystery Quilt Finish Parade

It's time to celebrate the wonderful finishes of the people who were sewing along with me for the Just the Basics mystery quilt-a-long!

First up, we have Shannon, who blogs at The Fleming's Nine. I love the black text print she used, which has the names of God printed in beautiful script. You can read all about her quilt in her finish post.

Next up is Anja, who blogs at Anja Quilts. Isn't it interesting how a busier background changes the look of the whole quilt? I like how it seems to soften the design somehow. You can visit Anja's post from when she finished her top here.

And then we have Kathy, of Both Sides of the Pond. Kathy hasn't quilted hers yet, but the top is gorgeous, don't you think? I love how the yellow boxes are so dominant in Kathy's version. You can see more pictures of her finished top in this post.

Did you notice whose finished quilt isn't shared in this finish parade? That's right, it's mine! Why, you ask? Ummm...because it's not finished :( How embarrassing to not have a finish for my own finish parade! I decided to custom quilt mine very heavily, which is taking longer than I expected, plus I've had some neck issues the last few weeks that have been keeping me from quilting as much as I want to. So, all put together, I'm a bit behind, but I hope to have my own finish to share soon.

I so want to thank those who were quilting along with me for my first quilt-a-long. It was so fun to see your progress each month and know I wasn't just talking to myself as I posted each set of instructions!

If you're inspired by these beautiful versions to make your own Just the Basics quilt, it's not too late. The instructions can all be found under the Just the Basics tab at the top of the blog. I'd love to see your version too!

Words as Weapons

Devotion for the Week...

"Sticks and stones may break my bones, but names will never hurt me."

Did you ever say that as a kid? I know I did, many, many times. But isn't it the stupidest of all stupid sayings? We all know that sticks and stones can hurt, yes, but we should all know words can hurt just as much, no matter how hard we try to strip them of their power.

People the world over are living with the scars left by harsh, demeaning and dehumanizing words spoken against them. We've all been hurt by someone else's careless comment that left us feeling somehow "less" than we had been a moment before. And, if we are honest, we've probably been the one to speak those careless words at times too.

The power of words is nothing new, of course. David wrote in Psalm 64, "Hide me from the conspiracy of the wicked, from the plots of evildoers. They sharpen their tongues like swords and aim cruel words like deadly arrows. They shoot from ambush at the innocent; they shoot suddenly, without fear" (vv. 2-4). 

Isn't it appropriate that David compared words to weapons? Just think about how a mean comment can make it hard for you to even breathe...how a dream can be crushed if someone you trust tells you it's a waste of time...how a child's whole day can be ruined if a friend says they won't ever play together again (even if we grown ups know the friend will have a change of heart by morning).

Though we're (hopefully) not intentionally using our words as weapons, the potential for damage is just as high when we're only being careless. After all, a gun shot accidentally still has the power to hurt someone. And perhaps the potential for damage is even higher with our careless words, because we sometimes don't realize we've said something hurtful and so we repeat it over and over again.

Proverbs 18:21 says, "The tongue has the power of life and death." Just think about that for a moment; think about the power that our words have. When we speak, we have the power to positively build someone up, to lighten their load, or to let them know they're not alone. Or we have the power to drag them down, increase their burden or make them feel isolated and abandoned. 

Now think about how often we speak without thinking. Scary thought, right? 

If our words have the potential to cause as much damage as weapons, then we had better be aware of what we're saying. We had better slow down and think before we speak. We had better be sure that what we say will be full of the power of life and not the power of death.