Stash Bee Blocks & LQS Day Finds

I'm excited to be participating in Stash Bee this year! It's the first bee I've ever joined. I signed up in the fall and had to wait a few weeks to hear whether or not I'd gotten a slot, but I can't lie - part of me was sort of hoping it would be full because I was really nervous about how my green skills might pair up next to the many veteran quilters in the bee. I did get assigned to a hive, though, led by Alison of Little Bunny Quilts, and I am so glad that I did - it's just the challenge I need this year to try new techniques and practice working from someone else's color palette, and it's been a great way to meet other quilters from all over the globe!

my first block - trying to hit close to the tone of the example

Here are my blocks for January. The colors aren't ones I'd usually work with, but they really grew on me as I pieced. Plus, I learned a new technique - Fast Flying Geese (I pinned the tutorial over here if you want to give them a whirl) - and discovered just how easy they are!

my second block - after seeing a few others' blocks with brights, I mixed this one up a bit more : )

And I have to share my LQS Day finds! I took my youngest along with me in order to trick her into a nap (she wasn't going to go down easily at home, but she needed it and a car ride after lunch never fails!)... not sure if it was a good thing or a bad thing in the end. She woke up chipper and chatty when we arrived - singing and talking to me non.stop. the entire time I was in the store : P It distracted me enough that I couldn't think about big projects and stuck with quick finds for my stash, so she kept me from going overboard. But after thirty solid minutes of a little-bit-too-loud-for-inside-voice play by play of our visit, I think all the other shoppers must've been happy when we finally left the store! She's pretty darn adorable, and I had her in a sling so she wasn't touching a thing, but there is only so much, "Look! Dinosaurs, Mama! Look! Flowers, Mama! Look! Thread, Mama! Look! Cupcakes, Mama!" that others can smile at.

I picked up a few black and white prints and tone-on-tone white, both of which my stash could use, plus some stripes and dots for bindings. I also got a silicone thimble I hope will fit well, and a pair of tweezers for those pesky thread nests my Janome is prone to. The little yellow rolled up remnant was picked out by my daughter - she used it as a telescope while we shopped - "Look! Pirates, Mama!" I declined the pirate fabric, but agreed to apples instead : )

Did you shop locally over the weekend? Any great finds? And have you ever participated in a bee? I'm still trying to decide on the block for my month if you have a suggestion!