Put A Little Love Checkerboard Mug Rug

We are fortunate to be able to join in our second blog hop!  This is another one hosted by Carol at Just Let Me Quilt who ran the virtual cookie exchange last December.  We like to stick with a good thing. ~smile~

The blog hop is called Put A Little Love In Your Quilt, and it runs from February 5 through 8.  Our feature article will be published on the 8th and we will have a free pattern for a mug rug.  Nothing earth shattering . . . I’ll bet if you applied yourself you could figure it out in a minute.  But some people like written instructions, and some people may be new to quilting and would enjoy it. ~smile~  We thought we would share the mug rug early so anticipation for the free pattern can build and build.  <big grin>

Here is the mug rug, cutely staged with my nice heart mug.  Isn’t that nice that it matches so well?!  This is the same mug that Sue’s mom uses every weekend for our coffee clutch.  We thought this little project would be great chance to practice different stitches in each block.  First, I stitched the maze block, and a few stitches were skipped. They are handily UNDER the mug so you can’t see it in the staged photo.

Here’s a better shot – see that top right square.  Yup, the upper thread needed to be rethreaded but I thought it was the bobbin.  Oh well, no big deal. I wasn’t ripping it out.  Next up was the diagonal stitching.  Still a few skipped threads and then I figured out it was the TOP thread not the bobbin.  Okay.  I went to the other side of the mug rug to do a completely different stitch . . . and ended up stitching the diagonal in the SAME EXACT direction.  Seriously?!  So I gave up after that, and limited the diversity to four different stitches.  Who cares anyway?!

You can’t really see it very well in this photo, but the hearts are stitched in light pink in the bobbin thread!  That is until the aforementioned issue with skipped stitches.  At that point, that is when the bobbin thread was removed and replaced with the thread that matches the top (and didn’t solve the problem).  Here you can better see the ‘fancy’ stitches which are pre-programmed in my Elna sewing machine.  Those didn’t quite turn out how I expected either but it will do.

Here’s how this little project started out as little fabric squares that Sue lovingly cut out for me.  And then how it progressed prior to appliquéing the hearts down.  Are you now wondering how many fabrics were pulled out by me for consideration and possible use all from our stash?!

Checkerboard Fabric Choices

As you can see above, only a select few made the cut out of this stack.  You may also be wondering why the heck is the very center square left plain with no heart??!!  Hmm, why might that be?  Can you guess?  Read on to find out.

Truth time, I guess.  Our plan was to embroider a cute little joined heart in center in red thread.  Sue has been working on our Valentine’s Day quilt that has a deadline of February 8th.  The embroidery sewing machine has white thread in it.  I was too LAZY to change the thread!  That’s the whole truth.  It might run out of thread before the 8th and then it will have the interlocking hearts for the final reveal and instructions, or it might not.  One more reason to come back and get the free pattern. ~smile~

See you on the 8th, if not before!  There are a whole host of friends participating – I’ll share the list in early February so you can visit them!  Our other Linky Parties can be found by clicking the link for more quilting fun – check out what our friends are up to.  Like/follow us on our Facebook page and you can share your photos of what you’re working on.  We would love to see them!