Wings of ink

For the theme 'WINGS' this month I am taking inspiration from tattoos. I love the bold look of these designs and tattoos by artist Gre Hale:

source: all work by Gre Hale

I'm not getting another tattoo just yet but I love these styles.

If tattoos aren't your thing then here's some other ideas of wings and fabric inspiration from the Fat Quarter Shop
Boys Toys by Print & Pattern, The Birds and the Bees by Tula Pink, Timeless Treasures Grey Wingtip

How are you all getting on with your projects? What is your inspiration?

And the winner is... {sponsored by the Fat Quarter Shop}

Thank you to everyone who participated! Lucy and I are declaring the first le challenge a success! So much creativity! There can only be one winner so here it is...

... entry 23

... Alyce @ Blossom Heart Quilts

Congratulations! I hope you enjoy your $20 gift certificate - you may find something towards the next theme?

We will be coming back with some inspiration in the coming weeks!

next up...

The theme for May is WINGS.

Interpret that in any way you like! All manner of wings welcome. Think laterally or literally... it is up to you.

Come back to Le Challenge on 15th May to link up your projects!

Giveaway winner!

The winner of Susan's wonderful giveaway is...

Congratulations Dree! I have sent you an email.

Thank you to everyone that commented!

There is still time to link up your finished geometric projects here and stay tuned because the next Le Challenge theme will be announced later today :)

Le Challenge #1 - GEOMETRICS

The day has finally arrived! We cannot wait to see your projects!

Here are ours....

read all about this little cushion at Charm About You

Read all about this crochet 'quilted' baby blanket at Made in Home

Now it is your turn!

Guest post from Susan aka Canadian Abroad + Giveaway!

**GIVEAWAY NOW CLOSED**

First off, a huge thank you to Lucy and Nat for asking me to do the guest post for the first Le Challenge month. I think they came up with a brilliant idea starting this blog, though the fact that they both have young babies stymies me to when and how they even have the time to feed themselves let alone be so actively involved in their crafts and blogs still. I am sure I didn't string together a legible sentence for the first three years of my children's lives! 

Geometry - the study of points, lines, shapes, solids, etc.  

In my mind quilting is geometry. You take shapes and make them fit together, from the simplest design using squares or triangles...

... to more complicated shapes like lozenges, diamonds and hexagons (or half hexagons too).

As long as you have the angles correct so that joining pieces of fabric can be sewn together to form a flat surface the possibilities are endless.

When the patterns get complicated paper piecing is usually involved. Whether you like freezer paper piecing, foundation paper piecing or English paper piecing doesn't matter. Utilising the techniques involved in these methods of piecing allows you to increase the possibilities in your quilting designs. I have used English paper piecing (epp) as a means to demonstrate how simple geography can lead to interesting blocks. The best tools to start out with are pencil and paper. If you have graph paper all the better. A ruler helps too. Below you see two simple blocks I drew out. The block on the left was inspired when I saw a drawing for the Pythagorean theorem whilst preparing for this guest post. What I love about it is that I can already see further possibilities based on this design, taking it to another level for me. The design on the right was just me doodling and seeing what I could come up with. 

I shall not go into how to English paper piece. There are plenty of good tutorials online if you would like to learn more, or feel free to ask questions. I will help to the best of my ability. Suffice to say, I took those drawings above, cut them up into their individual shapes and sewed them together again. The resulting blocks were quick to make and good fun.

Inspiration for quilt design is found everywhere. Look around you as you go about your everyday life and you will see geometric design in wall tiles, floor tiles, wood floors and modern art. The more you look, the more you discover, and the more you will find that the world provides a constant stream of inspiration. Take a camera with you, or use your phone if you have one with a built in camera, and take photos when  you see interesting design. Open your mind to how colour and fabric design can completely change a simple design into something amazing.

All photos taken from Google images.

Geometry - points, lines, shapes and angles. You couldn't quilt without them, could you? As shown above I made two small epp blocks using geometric shapes. Having made the blocks I thought it was best that I turn them into something useful. So using the wide mouthed pouch method of inserting a zip (tutorial here and it is an excellent one) I made two pouches.

I am giving away both pouches to one winner. As a bonus, I will cut a bunch of paper hexies of various sizes and put them in one of the pouches for the winner. You have two chances to win. 

**GIVEAWAY NOW CLOSED**

• First up, just leave a comment on this Le Challenge post. Any comment will do, or you could tell everyone else who reads this post where you find inspiration for the craft of your choice. 
• For a second chance to win, leave a separate comment letting Nat and Lucy know that you are a Le Challenge follower and the method which you use to follow - GFC, Bloglovin', etc.

Lucy and Nat will choose a winner randomly on the 15th of April at approximately noon British time. I can't wait to see what everyone comes up with for the first Le Challenge. I love that this can involve all sorts of mediums besides quilting. Don't forget to link up your geometrically inspired project.

Le Challenge in 10 questions

We have received a few comments and questions about Le Challenge. Here is a summary of the responses we have given. We hope that will clarify a few things.

What is it?

Every 15^th of every month, we set a theme for all crafters to interpret in their choice of crafty weapons.  There will be projects involving painting, quilting, cross-stitching, crochet, knitting … with one common theme.

Which craft to choose?

The one you feel fits best the theme. If you have made it with your little hands, it qualifies for entry.

How much interpretation am I allowed to?

As much as you want, although try to explain how your interpreted the theme if it is not obvious. 

What project to enter?

We would like the projects to be finished so that the next month we can move on to the next theme. It is not always easy, but we do not judge the projects (nor the size or the craft chosen) – so it could be easily one big project one month a smaller one the next if you want to enter every month a project.

Do I need a blog to enter?

You don’t. We will be using inlinkz so you can upload your picture from your computer as well as from your blog. It is of course fun to share more information about your projects to other participants.

Does my project need to be finished?

Yes it does.

Can I enter more than one project?

We hope you will be so inspired by the themes that you will want to make more than one project, but we will only allow one entry per person – you can share as many projects as you wish on that entry – the more the merrier!

When can I submit?

Submissions are on 15^th of every month. As this is not only opened to GMT crafters, we will open it from 14th at 10am GMT and finish on 16th at 11am GMT so that everyone has a chance to submit in their own time zone on the 15^th.

When is the next theme revealed?

Themes will be revealed on 15^th at 13h00.

How will we choose the prize winner?

The aim is to have fun and discover how you and other crafters look at a theme, so we are not going to judge the projects – anyway it will be way too hard for us to pick one winner – so it will be done through random.org. For a chance, you only need to enter your finished project.

If you wish to sponsor Le Challenge – as a one-off or every month – do not hesitate to contact us.