Block of the Month - Dixie Diary and RBD Things We Love

I made progress on more BOMs recently, and am enjoying the change of pace these blocks bring to my creativity.

I am incorporating embroidery pieces into The Dixie Diary blocks, as you may know, and it is a challenge to match the fabrics to the embroidery to the pattern for the month.  Although this month 4's pattern, Asylum, wasn't initially my favorite concept, I very much like how the block turned out:

I am not know for my "sweetness" in my quilts, but this really is rather sweet.  It just goes to show a little bit of embroidery can go a long way towards making a block special.

I also completed month 4 -- Sunshine -- of the Riley Blake Designs BOM, "Things We Love".  It's my more typical bright and fun fabrics, and I am enjoying the larger block size on this one as the blocks will finish at 12".  I snuck an owl in the corner -- cute, huh?  I also decided to have contrast between all the fabrics so that both pinwheels would each stand out.  In the sample block provided by RBD, there is very little contrast between the outer points of the star and the inner pinwheel (where mine is the dark purple).  I like it even though it makes the yellow pieces look a little odd in the center of the block.  I thought about putting the background color in those small triangles, but in the end decided to stick with the yellow.  All in all, it makes me smile.

It would appear that the advent of sunny weather this Spring has me in a sunny mood with all this yellow!