de Jong Dream House: July 2014

I'm going to try to do a monthly recap post. I've been having so much fun in my craft room (and out with my family), that I haven't been posting very much. So here's a sneak peek at what I've was up to last month.

I finally finished my brother and sister-in-love's...ahem...Christmas gift, a Viking-Packer quilt I call "Black and Blue" division.

Here's the label. You can also see the fun binding. It's actually from a Mardi Gras collection.

We celebrated the end of D's preschool career. He loves school.

We joined a CSA so I have been busy scouring Pinterest for new recipes.

We had our first garage sale.

I made Niels a money bag (apron).

I finished a quilt for a sweet girl my friend was fostering.

With a coordinating pillowcase.

And drawstring bag.

I was published again, and very pleased to learn that my story is the very first one!

We watched a lot of World Cup soccer/voetbal.

We gave up on the first lawn we put in two years ago. A freak windstorm swooped in and stole our seed so it was one big garden of weeds.

Less than twenty minutes after the new seed was sprayed, a freak flash flood hit. Sigh...

We are now on our third attempt at a backyard.

We've done lots of science experiments.

I made a baby quilt for friends in Wisconsin.

And attempted free motion quilting.

I discovered how to make homemade Mama Chia.

I designed a block for NASA astronaut Karen Nyberg's star block challenge.

I hit some early sales to get D's school uniforms ready.

I completed my first applique project.

And my second.

And my third and fourth.

I stumbled onto the BEST garage sale. A man was setting up a sale because his wife passed away (that part's not so great). She was an avid sewer and had totes and totes of fabric and notions. I got first nibs and came away with all this for $35!

Here's a better look at the stack of fabric. That bottom piece alone is five yards!

I made D some space-theme pajamas.

And then, because he asked nicely, I made him another pair.

And lastly, I supervised a lot of workbook time, aka "earn tech time."

Hopefully July will see a few more blog posts, but then, it is summer, so I wouldn't be too sure!

Linked to:

Show Stopper Saturday

Astronomical Quilt Block Challenge by de Jong Dream House

Our five-year-old is deep into his obsession with space. I am deep into my obsession with quilting. It's not often that these two passions meet, but thanks to astronaut--and fellow Minnesota native--Karen Nyberg, they have. Check out this video of the first quilter in space!

Take a look at her quilting space in the International Space Station!

And I'm pretty sure there's never been a more beautiful display wall.

She also made this star block during her stay 220 miles above the Earth.

This block is the first in a new Star Block Challenge presented in cooperation between Karen, NASA, and the International Quilt Festival. If you're a quilter (or want to be), create your own star-themed quilt block by August 1, 2014.

Click here to see the PDF in a larger size.

Houston, Texas is home to both NASA's Johnson Space Center and the International Quilt Festival. According to Rhianna Griffin, a spokesperson for the International Quilt Festival, nearly 600 blocks have already been submitted from all corners of the world, including Australian, Brazil, Canada and Ireland. The blocks will be pieced and on display at the annual festival in Houston this fall before being permanently display at NASA headquarters.

Clearly, this was a project both my son and I could get behind!

I use PowerPoint to design a block. The only requirements were that the finished blocked needed to be some variation of a star and have a finished size of 9" (unfinished 9.5"). I chose red, white, and blue as the primary colors to represent both the USA and the Netherlands (to honor our dual nationality family--do you see the red tulips?). I used black along the edge to represent space, and the blue arrows to express exploration.

I realized when I was making this that 32 2" squares don't leave a lot of room for error! The 3.5" NASA square seemed positively huge in comparison!

I started with the HSTs by cutting 6" squares as follows: 2 blue, 2 black, 1 red, 1 white. I learned a new trick while making this block, and it was really handy for making 8 little half square triangles (HST) at a time. First, I drew an X on one 6" square, then secured it to another 6" square, right sides together, with hair clips. (Refer to the chart for color pairings).

Then sew a 1/4" seam on either side of both lines.

Here's where the magic happens. By making four cuts, you end up with eight HSTs.

Repeat with all three blocks.

And voila! Eight half square triangles!

I copied the NASA logo from the web and used it to design my middle 3.5" square in PowerPoint. I added the dotted line around the inner 1/4" to make sure my words weren't cut off when stitched to the other pieces.