reading week

My university doesn't even call it "reading week" any more -- now it's "winter break" -- but for faculty this "break" really does involve a lot of reading!  I am working my way through a stack of papers...but I have managed to work in a little sewing too.

First up were the six blocks for the 3 x 6 mini sampler bee.  This is the 3rd quarter in which I have participated.  Unlike many VQBs (virtual quilting bees), this one lasts just three months, and in that time you make six versions of a block design, all from stash fabrics, in the colour choices of your fellow hivemates -- that is, one for each member of your "beehive."  Here are the ones I made this time around, using the "dandy" star (http://www.quilterscache.com/T/TheDandyQuiltBlock.html)

The first two were a red, aqua and white block for Adrienne (l) and a red and white block for Lisa.  My hive happens to like red....

But next up was the block for January, who wanted to be surprised.  Surprise!  No red here!  But some fun with "Tufted Tweets" and a little zebra striping:

Meg requested gray, green and white, so I cut into a pretty 1/2 yard of "Monaco":

Anita wants blocks for a future Christmas quilt, so I had fun with some remnants from last year's holiday buntings:

Solidia shares Adrienne's enthusiasm for red, aqua and white; I used some Denyse Schmidt dots from my dwindling supply of reds -- and was all done!

But I have also managed to whip up blocks for two other VQBs: freecut blocks for Kerry, using the great assortment of kitchen and sewing-themed fabrics she sent out, in Bee (A Little Bit) Japanese:

And a block following a Lecien tutorial, for dresdenquilter in the all-Canadian Sew Modern Bee:

Phew!  Back to grading....