{amylouwho} mini quilt sew & tell challenge

One of my most enjoyable experiences at The Sewing Summit was the class Marvelous Mini's taught by Amanda of MsMcPorkchopQuilts. She's pretty much a rockstar! She was so excited and passionate about patchwork in general, and something she coined as everyday patchwork.

photo courtesy The Workroom via Flickr.

Everyday patchwork are things that bring the handmade to our daily routines and lives.  A bag, a notebook cover, a snack bag, a mug rug, etc!

She talked about creating a mini quilt as a way of acheiving the satisfaction of quilting in a short period of time.  I know I'm a sometimes quilter because it takes me so long to finish one large quilt.  But the best thing I heard was, "You don't have to make bed sized quilts to be a quilter." You DON'T?

see! look how happy I am after figuring that out!

That statement there changed my view on everything!

Look at all the wonderful minis that were on display during her class.

I was so jazzed after taking her class, that I stopped throwing away my smallish scraps and have visions of mini quilts dancing in my head!

She fussy cuts a ton, which I used to think I wouldn't like, until I met Heather Ross prints.  How can you NOT fussy cut them? She uses a fussy cut piece as the starting point for almost every patchwork project she makes.  It helps her tell a story with the quilt.  Which is what she encouraged everyone to do.  Tell a story.

I even signed up for the Post Summit Swap on Flickr so I could make a mini for my swap partner.  We have a short deadline and need to mail by this coming Saturday.  I have an idea I just need to start pulling scraps!

And then as a bunch of us were chatting on Twitter (@amy_louwho) the other day (which I never did before the Sewing Summit) an idea exploded.  A mini quilt party! How fun would that be!?  Oh WAIT! How about a Mini Quilt Exclusive Sew & Tell!??  Even more fun!  With giveaways and prizes!!!  Oh yes, that's right.

So the swap ends this weekend and I thought NEXT Friday, November 11, would be perfect timing!

So the challenge now, is to create a mini quilt in the next 2 weeks and come back here on 11 November to link up for Sew & Tell - Mini Quilt Challenge edition and we'll have ourselves a party!

I'll be posting an interview with Ms. McPorkchop and finding inspiration to share with you as well.  If you search mini quilt or doll quilt on Flickr you will undoubtedly find a LOT of inspiration.

So what constitues a mini quilt? Any small patchwork that is quilted.  It can be in the form of a doll quilt, small wallhanging, zipper pouch, drawstring bag, notebook cover, mug rugs, table runners, hot pads.  You get the idea.  Patchwork and quilted and small.  That pretty much sums it up!

I think it's good to try something new and break out of our comfort zones.  I hope you'll take up this challenge and whip something up one afternoon to share with us.  Remember it's as much about the process as it is the finished project.  You don't have to blow us away with your style and precision, just make something and enjoy doing it!

Here's a button to grab to spread the word!



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