Friday, January 16, 2015

How now blue cow?

12" X 12" and that muzzle is pink not beige
I jumped (over the moon) into the RSC 2015 this year. Link is superscrappy
The first color is Blue, for January

I haven't finished setting any of  last year's blocks yet, but the fun is in using the color each month, so I looked around for some blocks  to make this year.

 I knew I wanted a paper pieced block, a scrappy free form block, and possibly a graphic one. I had so much fun last year with this project!
I found this cow block here http://piecemealquilts.com/2011/05/27/cow-block/

I can see the finished quilt already in my mind's eye and excited about doing it. It is 12 inches so large enough to make a statement. It is also one of the most challenging paper pieced blocks I've ever done.
If you choose to do it, I suggest laying out the un-numbered and un-marked sections first. Then numbering the sequence or coloring by pencil the sections with the fabrics you want to use. Then there are the weird angles.

The good news is I developed a way to cut and piece weird angles by doing this, and by the end of the block, I hardly had to rip out at all. (I'd do an emoticon here but there isn't one pulling out it's hair)

That being said, I appreciate the maker for providing this really fun block out of the goodness of her heart, and for free. Can't wait to see the cow in different colors!


39 comments:

Val's Quilting Studio said...

Oh this little guy is ADORABLE!! I love your scrappy blue fabric! I've never PP but sure love how everyones comes out...esp. this little guy!

Joanne said...

Good Morning LeeAnna!
What a fun and cheery way to start my day! A Happy cow looking at me from your inspiring blog!
Looking forward to seeing Cow in different colours!
Have a great creative weekend!
Joanne

Kaja said...

A blue cow - just brilliant. And what fun to think there'll be a new cow every month! I love how you think.

Turid said...

I thought of you when I saw this blue cow. With a closer look I saw that it was you. I love how it came out of the blue, your cow.

Preeti said...

She is a cutie!!! Looking forward to meeting with the rest of the colorful herd :-)

magistra said...

Squeeeeeee! How Mootiful!! I love your cow!! And congratulations with the paper piecing! I'm starting Rachel's (Stitched in Color) class on hand stitching this Monday and I'm so excited! One of the sections we'll be learning is paper piecing. I can't wait because of the cute blocks! So, I seem to detect a theme here - your friend sends you cows, I laughed and started following you in part because of deflated cows, and now you are making a cow quilt, "out of the blue" as Tubakk pointed out, haha! I know what all this means! Definitely a coral colored cow is going to come visit you before the next blue moon. She saw Cole reclining and her heart was immediately smitten 😀 I hope you have a week full of good health and good spirits! (I wrote earlier and then was in the process of sending another comment tonight when I saw that I was replying to no reply at Blogger. Doh!)
Beth

Siouxzq64@gmail.com said...

Oh that is a wonderful block! Thanks for sharing the link. I may have to do some paper pieced cows!

Scrappy quilter said...

I'm liking your cow block. Great job!

Sally Trude said...

Moo-nificant! Your sewing room must smell delightful. And what are you going to do if the color of the month is brown or black?

pdfrench said...

Thanks for sharing, I love this cow & how you pieced it together!

LA Paylor said...

I know, right?
A brown cow, how ridiculous!
I'll saunter over that bridge when I come to it...
LeeAnna
mooing with laughter

sunny said...

Awesome cow!!! That's going to make a fantastic quilt.

Sylvia said...

Fun block!

Regina B Dunn said...

I haven't done paper piecing in years, but it sure is fun. I love your cow. Wonderful fabrics!

Quilter Kathy said...

Such a cool project for 2015! Love it!

Linda M @ Pieceful Kingdom said...

Love the cow!

Terri said...

Love your cow - especially because it's blue. It's art - not a photograph. Love it.
I started paper piecing on the birds from the book - Backyard Birds. They are gorgeous, but with lots of hard to add pieces. I tried and tried. I wanted the quilt for my daughter. I'm so glad I stuck to it.
Thanks for the link, and I did go and print one out. I think you may have inspired a lot of folks to paper piece this face.
Hugs

Nell's Quilts said...

Now won't that be an interesting barnyard! Blue cows - what's next?

Mystic Quilter said...

Love her - I think she's wonderful!!

Marly said...

Beautiful; but she looks rather cold. A fun idea to have a farmyard full.

Cathy said...

Oh, how cute! No, I won't be trying one...I'll have to admire yours. I'm not a paper piecer but I love the unique paper-pieced blocks I see in blog land.

Alycia~Quiltygirl said...

Oh My Goodness!!! I made a cowblock a way long time ago and now I wonder where I put it - but it is NO WHERE as cute as yours!!! Cant' wait to see more!!!

Katie Z. said...

You are going to have a fabulous quilt!

Nanette said...

Wonderful cow!

Unknown said...

I love everything with cows. This one is so lovely!!!!cows

Sheila said...

Cute paper pieced cow! Love it : )

Bonnie said...

LOVE the cow. Are you doing all cows? I'm thinking art like gah... can't think of his name... the guy who did the soup cans... ugh, for want of a brain that can remember things... anyway it'll be a super fun quilt when done!

Ramona said...

Great cow! Using this pattern with all the colors will make a great quilt! It will be quite a conversation piece.

Yvonne from Quilting Jetgirl said...

Beautifully done!

AlidaP said...

Absolutely love the blue cow!! We have very similar ideas: few weeks ago I said that I was going to make some animal blocks with whatever scraps I have so if I ended up with a blue bear than so be it... well I think I may do this on purpose like you did!! :) Thanks for sharing at MOP Monday!!

Laura said...

Your blue cow is AMAZING!

Snow said...

Great work and wonderful color choice!

Michelle said...

I found your cow at Sew Cute Tuesday and had to click on it! It's adorable! I hope you keep linking more. I'd love to see them.

Renee said...

What a cute cow! Love your choice of fabrics!

Sarah Goer Quilts said...

Your cow is so cute. He stood out to me on the Fabric Tuesday linkup. I can just imagine a bunch of colorful cows to go with him! Fun!!

Deb@asimplelifequilts said...

Oh my this is one adorable Cow! Love it.

magistra said...

Andy Warhol. I thought of him, too!

Anonymous said...

I designed the cow block and I just love your version! This is the first (and last) representational paper pieced block I ever created, and it's a real challenge to piece. I think it could be simplified, but I can't muster up the energy to do it.

MegsAnn said...

Very cute blue cow.... from a really complicated pattern! Bravo for tackling it anyway. www.quiltartbymegan.com