A Fishy Story - and a Giveaway!

Welcome, friends!  

I have a lot to share with you today (even some pictures for a change!), so let’s not waste any time! I’ll begin with A Fishy Story...... hehehe. My dear friend Preeti. who is also an Island Batik Ambassador, has a great new pattern that she is calling A Fishy Story. She tells the tale on her blog, which you can visit HERE if you haven’t already seen it.

Preeti asked me to be a pattern tester for her, and I excitedly agreed. Why? Because I saw the pattern and knew that this would be the perfect opportunity to learn how to make HRTs, or half-rectangle triangles. Well, also because I love Preeti to the moon and back, but that’s another story.....   Anyway, it was a super quick timing window, so I only had the opportunity to make a wall hanging. But rest assured that these fishy beauties are going to be a super Rainbow Scrap Challenge block for me in 2024! I need more of my fishy friends in my life (said the Pisces girl!)

Without further ado, let’s first view the “class picture” of this school of fish, shall we? I’ve got to add a disclaimer here. The last several days have been cloudy, dark and blustery. So I apologize for the (lack of) photo quality. Outdoors was not an option, and indoors was gloomy. Except for this lively school of fish!

 

Look - I cropped the nose off the lead fish with the camera. But let me tell you, there is NO chance of that happening when you are sewing them and following Preeti’s stellar pattern. Her directions for making the HRTs are so clear and concise - I felt as though she was there in person, guiding me along step by step. 

I made two of these batik buddy fish (individual class photos, LOL).

This one’s body is a different batik, because..... variety is the spice of life. And after all, they aren’t twins! But look at their nice fins!!

Speaking of twins, I did make two of these aquamarine fish. Preeti’s pattern has you make them in pairs to save fabric and time. It’s a slick technique!

The quilting, some serpentine lines done with my walking foot, were supposed to be random widths apart, but I don’t think I made them random enough. Live and learn. Next time I’ll just use a regular straight stitch and sew the wavy lines more organically/naturally.

You can find the A Fishy Story patten in Preeti’s Etsy shop. In addition to the adorable pattern, the directions for making precise HRTs alone are totally worth it! And for the next week, the pattern will be on sale for 20% off, so don’t wait. 

So, here are my silly fish, clowning around on the design board. First they decided to swim one direction....

And then they decided to swim a different direction.... They must be in middle school, LOL!!

I told the class that they were going to have to make up their minds so that I could sew on a hanging sleeve. They finally calmed down enough to decide to swim west.....

And that’s where they’ll play for awhile on the living room wall. 

Now it’s time for the giveaway announcement! Preeti is giving away a free copy of her pattern to one lucky person who leaves a comment on this blog post. All you have to do is tell me what your favorite type of fish is - whether that favorite type of fish is to eat (don’t say it too loud, we don’t want the class to hear! Wink!) or just to look at.  I’ll use a random number generator to pick the winner and will announce the winner next week here on the blog. You have until Thursday, April 27 at midnight (Mountain Daylight Time) to get your comments in. Also, please leave your email address in your comment if you’re a No-Reply Blogger.

Don’t forget to check out Preeti’s blog post and her Etsy shop!

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Oh, and of course I didn’t forget my Rainbow Scrap Challenge blocks this week! Here are the 37 - 6” (finished size) purple string blocks I sewed. Two sets of 15 will go to Quilts for Kids to be used in quilt kits. The other 7 will go into the ever-growing pile of assorted blocks and scraps that will eventually become a Purple Creature quilt. 

Next week: Giveaway winner announcement and the long-awaited Elephant Trunk Show! That is, if I don’t spend too much time in the garden hauling fresh new soil into the flower beds. We’ll see which way Mother Nature and her April Showers vote!