Tim Holtz Creative Journey

I am pleased to know that my entry in the Tim Holtz Creative Journey block challenge has been selected as one of the 24 winners.  Here is my block:

I started this block by fussy cutting letters from the Eclectic Elements Stamp fabric and piecing them together.  Then I drafted a paper-piecing pattern for the balloon to fit the width of the letters.  I machine stitched the "ropes" holding the gondola, and appliqued a couple of smaller balloons.  The patterns for the smaller balloons were copied from a photograph.  I added the hills using improv curve piecing.

I really like Tim Holtz's fabric, and was excited to enter this challenge.  I used scraps from two quilts -- "Ode to Joy," and my broken star quilt (which is still a WIP).  I even borrowed the idea for the lettering from the Ode to Joy quilt.

When I chose a hot air balloon for this block, I was not intentionally thinking of the "Creative Journey" name of the challenge, but it fits.

My block will be sewn into a quilt with all the other winners, to be shown at the Spring International Quilt Market in Salt Lake City in May 2016.  If you are there, be sure to check it out.  (And I'd love to have photos!)