Thursday, September 29, 2016

Guest Posting at Quiltmaker

I just wanted to pop in very quickly to let you know that I am guess posting over at Quiltmaker Magazine's blog Quilty Pleasures today :)  

I am sharing a little back stage look at the making of the Kiku Quilt and sharing a paper piecing tip that will speed up your piecing.


Please pop over top Quilty Pleasures to check the post out, thanks!!




Meadow Mystery Quilt {My Block 6}

This month for the Meadow Mystery Quilt we started piecing some half square triangles and make some Block 6's.  I am loving seeing everyone's blocks coming together.  If you want to join in, it is not too late!

Some links for more information:

I am making two versions of the Meadow Mystery Quilt, a more traditional version using Gentle Breezes by Maywood Studio and a more modern version using some of my favorite text prints.  Don't worry, the blocks will not be placed in this orientation in the finished quilt :)



The instructions are given out on the first Thursday of every month so the next set of instructions will be posted on the blog next Thursday, October 6th.

I am linking up with Let's Bee Social at Lorna @ Sew Fresh Quilts and Needle and Thread Thursday at Kelly @My Quilt Infatuation.




Wednesday, September 28, 2016

Blogger's Quilt Festival {Voting}

The Fall 2016 Blogger's Quilt Festival is going on at Amy's blog Amy's Creative Side and voting is now open in the 12 different quilt categories.  Prizes are given out in each category by popular vote.


The festival has such wonderful inspiration, within each category, you can click on any of the quilts to be taken to a post explaining more about the quilt, usually including how the quilter made the quilt and additional photographs.

You can find all of the different categories to vote in here and enter to win a Baby Lock sewing machine here!

Just as a reminder, my entries are:



(Canvas Lines photograph by Kitty @ Night Quilter)

Thanks for taking the time to visit the Festival and vote for your favorites!




Tuesday, September 27, 2016

Vintage Star {Pattern Launch}

I am excited to announce my second pattern release this fall, Vintage Star, is now available! You can find the pattern in my pattern shop:




I actually made this quilt back in January 2014 (I can't believe that it was so long ago!).  The cover quilt was made using the Scrumptious fabric collection by Bonnie and Camille for Moda.

The pattern was always on my to do list but always seemed to pushed down the list for another project.  I am so happy that I can finally cross it off my list :)

Vintage Star is an intermediate-level, layer cake friendly pattern.  The blocks contain a bunch of flying geese and are not the quickest to make, but I think that they have a really cool look to them.  The pattern contains instructions for baby and lap sized quilts.

Each star block uses 2 layer cake slices (10" x 10") and some background fabric. I really like how this design is made from a layer cake but does not look like a typical layer cake pattern.



I want to thank all of my pattern testers and reviewers, their suggestions and edits have greatly improved the pattern!  Some of my reviewers are offering giveaways of both Vintage Star and Check Plus (released yesterday).  Click the links marked as giveaway for a chance to win!


Here are some of the wonderful tester versions:















Just as a reminder: You can find the pattern in my pattern shop:







Monday, September 26, 2016

Check Plus {Pattern Launch}

I am excited to announce that my pattern, Check Plus, is now available! You can find the pattern:

Digital download version: Etsy, and on Craftsy
Printed version: Etsy

The pattern (in both formats) will be on sale for $7.50 until October 4th. 
 (You can use coupon code TWOPATTERNS for $2 off two patterns or THREEPATTERNS $4 off 3 patterns in Etsy for even more savings!)


The lap size version of Check Plus was originally published in the November/December 2014 issue of Quilty Magazine and used the April Showers fabric collection by Bonnie and Camille for Moda.

I have received numerous requests for alternative sizes over the past couple of years so I am happy to be able to release the pattern with 4 sizes.  Check Plus is beginner-level, fat quarter friendly and is now expanded to include baby, lap, twin, and king sizes.


I want to thank all of my pattern testers and reviewers, their suggestions and edits have greatly improved the pattern!  Some of my reviewers are offering giveaways of Check Plus (and Vintage Star which will be posted about tomorrow).  Click the links marked as giveaway for a chance to win!

Beth of Cooking Up Quilts (giveaway, plus Beth is releasing her wonderful new pattern Stack O'Bubbles today!)

Here are some of the wonderful tester versions:


Just as a reminder: The pattern is now available on Etsy and Craftsy for $7.50 until October 4th.

Come back tomorrow for the release of Vintage Star :)

I'm happy to be linking up to Beth @ Cooking Up Quilts's linky party Main Crush Monday






Thursday, September 22, 2016

Handmade Halloween Linky Party



You all know I love a good linky party, they are such a great way to connect with the online quilting community and get new ideas and inspiration. 

There is a new link party happening on October 4th, to celebrate all handmade Halloween over at Bernie's blog, Needle and Foot.  The link party is for all handmade Halloween projects, including costumes, quilts, and decorations. You can link up old as well as new posts and there will be tons of great prizes too!

You can find out more information on the Needle and Foot blog and make sure to hop over to Needle and Foot on October 4th for the linky party!


Also, I wanted to announce that Barbara S. was the winner of the Cloud 9 fat quarter bundle from the Cloud 9 New Block Hop.





Wednesday, September 21, 2016

Quiltmaker’s 100 Blocks Sampler - Sewing Triangles


Quiltmaker started a new Block of the Month series that began in March 2016 called Quiltmaker’s 100 Blocks Sampler. This 48-block (with a 49th bonus block) sampler quilt features blocks from all issues of Quiltmaker’s 100 Blocks reduced to 6” from their original 12".

I was honored to find out that my block, Sewing Triangles from 100 Blocks Vol 10 was included in the sampler.

Here is the sampler in three different color ways (you can purchase the pattern and kits here). As part of this year-long program, Quiltmaker will be featuring a different block on their blog quiltmaker.com/quiltypleasures each Wednesday (4 blocks per month).



Here was my original version of Sewing Triangles with a single focal fabric and a scrappy background:


For the 6" square version I decided to use a number of navy prints for the focal fabric and a single print for the background.

Once the block is shrunk to 6", those HST are 1" finished and so to make the piecing easier and more precise, I decided to paper piece the block. I used my free Square in a Square templates for the middle area of the block and quickly drafted the paper piecing templates for the corner sections using EQ7. (I was just playing with different arrangements of the corner blocks below.)



I made 4 blocks, then pieced them together to make a mini quilt 12" x 12". I quilted the mini using Aurifil 50 wt in Dove, which matched the background in a crosshatching design. The finished mini is going to go on my sewing room wall :)





You can find more about the Quiltmaker’s 100 Blocks Sampler on the Quilty Pleasures Blog and find purchase the pattern and kits here.

I am linking up with Let's Bee Social at Lorna @ Sew Fresh Quilts and Needle and Thread Thursday at Kelly @My Quilt Infatuation.


Thanks for stopping by my blog!




Monday, September 19, 2016

Blogger's Quilt Festival - State of Being - Fall 2016


It's that time of the year again...twice a year during quilt market, Amy, who blogs over at Amy's Creative Side, hosts the Blogger's Quilt Festival.  We are allowed to link up two quilts to the various categories and have the opportunity to visit and be inspired by other blogger's wonderful quilts.  I am excited to be not only a participant this year, but also a sponsor of the festival.

My first entry to the festival is my State of Being quilt which I designed and made for the pattern of the month for the Modern Quilt Guild.  The pattern is available as a free download to all MQG members and is now for sale in both paper and digital formats in my Etsy shop and in a digital format in my Craftsy shop.  The pattern is on an introductory sale for $7.50 for 2 weeks (until October 1st)


My post about the quilt and design of State of Being can be found here and I am entering the quilt into the Modern Quilt category.



“State of Being” is a modern take on a traditional Ohio Star block.  The design begins with one full star block in the corner of the quilt and becomes increasing fractured as the design extends into the negative space of the quilt.  Both the design and quilting represent our complex and sometimes chaotic state of being.

The quilt was made using Kona Cotton Solids in white and shale and a print from the Doe collection by Carolyn Friedlander, all from Robert Kaufman.  

For the quilting, I quilted the star pieces with dense back and forth quilting and quilted the background using Wild Quilting as taught by Christina Cameli (which I learned in her Craftsy class (not an affiliate link)).  In Wild Quilting, a bunch of different quilting motifs are combined together.  I quilted State of Being on my home Bernina sewing machine
.





The relatively small scale in the quilting and the matching threads give the background texture and interest.   I used 50 wt Aurifil thread in 2024 (white), 2610 (gray), and 1154 (orange) for the quilting.  The background alone took over 25 hours to quilt (most of the pebbles are about a 1/4" to 1/2"). 

My other entry the Canvas Lines is entered into the Original Designs Quilt category and can be found here.

Here are my entries over the years:

Fall 2016: Riley Blake Triangle Quilt
Fall 2016: Improv Table Runner

Spring 2015: Use Your Illusion
Spring 2015: Plus Plus - Two Tone Version

Fall 2014: Oh The Places You'll Go
Fall 2014: Vintage Star

Spring 2014: Kona 2013 Quilt
Spring 2014: Improv Quilt Two

Fall 2013: Pi Quilt
Fall 2013: Pink Broken Herringbone Quilt




If you have stopped by my blog for the first time from the quilt festival thank you!  You can find some of my 2016 finishes and the free Meadow Mystery Quilt Along going on right now in the tabs at the top of the page.  


If you would like to follow my blog, here are some links for some different following options: BloglovinEmailInstagram.

Thanks for stopping by!!






Blogger's Quilt Festival - Canvas Lines - Fall 2016


It's that time of the year again...twice a year during quilt market, Amy, who blogs over at Amy's Creative Side, hosts the Blogger's Quilt Festival.  We are allowed to link up two quilts to the various categories and have the opportunity to visit and be inspired by other blogger's wonderful quilts.  I am excited to be not only a participant this year, but also a sponsor of the festival.

My second entry to the festival is my Canvas Lines quilt which I designed and made for The Quilter's Planner 2017.  The pattern is included with the planner along with a number of other wonderful patterns.  You can find out more about the planner and pre-order a copy here.


My post about the quilt and design of Canvas Lines can be found here and I am entering the quilt into the Original Designs Quilt category.

photo by Kitty Wilkin

I designed Canvas Lines with a slight tribal feel with alternating diagonal geometric shapes and negative space. Canvas Lines combined some of the prints from the Doe collection by Carolyn Friedlander for Robert Kaufman with some crisp Kona white fabric. 

I quilted Canvas Lines with a square meandering pattern using Aurifil 50 wt in white (color 2024). I think that the square meander added great texture to the negative space without taking away from the pieced blocks.

 photo by Kitty Wilkin


photo by Kitty Wilkin

Aren't these some of the most beautiful quilt photographs you have seen? Kitty from Night Quilter took all of the photos on this post.  (You can find out more information about her quilt photography offerings right here).


My other entry State of Being is entered into the Modern Quilt category and can be found here.

Here are my entries over the years:

Fall 2016: Riley Blake Triangle Quilt
Fall 2016: Improv Table Runner

Spring 2015: Use Your Illusion
Spring 2015: Plus Plus - Two Tone Version

Fall 2014: Oh The Places You'll Go
Fall 2014: Vintage Star

Spring 2014: Kona 2013 Quilt
Spring 2014: Improv Quilt Two

Fall 2013: Pi Quilt
Fall 2013: Pink Broken Herringbone Quilt




If you have stopped by my blog for the first time from the quilt festival thanks for visiting!  You can find some of my 2016 finishes and the free Meadow Mystery Quilt Along going on right now in the tabs at the top of the page.  



If you would like to follow my blog, here are some links for some different following options: BloglovinEmailInstagram.

Thanks for stopping by!!






Wednesday, September 14, 2016

Cloud9 New Block Blog Hop - Day 3

Today is the third and final day of the 2016 Cloud9 New Block Blog Hop! Cloud9 generously sponsored this New Block Blog Hop featuring their Cirrus Solids.




Stephanie @ Late Night Quilter is hosting today's group of participants so please hop over to her blog for the links to today's participants (over 20 new block tutorials!!) and a chance to win a 5 piece bundle of Cloud9 Cirrus Solids!


Tuesday, September 13, 2016

Cloud9 New Block Blog Hop Day 2 and Giveaway

Welcome to the second day of the 2016 Cloud9 New Block Blog Hop!

Cloud9 generously sponsored this New Block Blog Hop featuring their Cirrus Solids and is also generously sponsoring a fat quarter giveaway (at bottom of post).


My co-hosts, Yvonne @QuiltingJetgirl and Stephanie @Late Night Quilter, and I had fun selecting the color palette for this blog hop. We named the grouping “Berry Harvest” and it is comprised of Cirrus Solids Amazon, Sky, Iris, Lilac, and Shadow.



All of the quilt blocks featured this week are going to be assembled into quilts and donated to charity. Here are today's participants, but be sure to visit Yvonne's group (posted yesterday) and Stephanie's group (will post tomorrow)!

The blocks are each 12" x 12" (finished) and use techniques from traditional piecing, paper piecing, applique, and more!

Monday, September 12th - Host: Yvonne @Quilting Jetgirl

Tuesday, September 13th (today) - Host: Cheryl @Meadow Mist Designs
Wednesday, September 14th - Host: Stephanie @Late Night Quilter



MY BLOCK - The UFO Block

The UFO block is a very simple and easy block with an improv look to it.

Cutting

Amazon, Sky, Iris, Lilac: Cut each color into 7-8 strips varying between 1 and 1 1/4" wide by about 4" long

Shadow:  Cut the following pieces:
2 rectangles 3 ½" x 8 ½"
1 rectangles 2" x 8 ½"
1 rectangles 3 ¾" x 12 ¾"
1 rectangles 1 ¾" x 12 ¾"

Piecing
1.  Sew the Amazon, Sky, Iris, Lilac strips together along their long edges until you have 2 chunks of striped fabric about 9" long. (Each of my chunks of fabric contained 13 or 14 different strips).


2.  Trim each chunk into a rectangle 3" x 8 ½".
(For a different look, you could sew the strips together wonky, or just use a single fabric with a print instead.)

3. Arrange and sew together the fabric pieces as shown below.  The block will measure 13" x 13", trim down to 12 ½" x 12 ½".





Here are some pics of the finished UFO block:




GIVEAWAY!!

For a chance to win the fall inspired (5) fat quarter bundle of Cirrus Solids curated by Cloud9 pictured below (Twig, Amber, Olive, Denim, Lava), please use the Rafflecopter widget below. 

The giveaway is open to everyone (international entries welcome), and the giveaway will be open through September 17th at 11:45 pm EDT when I will let Raffelcopter select a random entry to win. The bundle will be shipped to the winner directly from Cloud9.
a Rafflecopter giveaway Thanks for hopping along with us!



Monday, September 12, 2016

Cloud9 New Block Blog Hop - Day 1

Welcome to the first day of the 2016 Cloud9 New Block Blog Hop! Cloud9 generously sponsored this New Block Blog Hop featuring their Cirrus Solids.




Yvonne @Quilting Jetgirl is hosting today's group of participants so please hop over to her blog for the links to today's participants (over 20 new block tutorials!!) and a chance to win a 5 piece bundle of Cloud9 Cirrus Solids!


Friday, September 9, 2016

Paintbrush Studio New Block Hop Quilt Finish

I have just (finally) finished my charity quilting using some of the beautiful blocks made for the Paintbrush Studio's New Block Hop back in the spring.  And not a moment too soon...the Cloud9 New Block Hop kicks off on Monday :)


Over 35 bloggers participated in the hop which was co-hosted by Yvonne @ Quilting Jetgirl, Stephanie @ Late Night Quilter, and myself using Paintbrush Studio's new line of solids called Painter's Palette. 



Here were all of the blocks before sewing them together:



And here is the finished quilt, the blocks are all so different yet work so well together and links to the tutorial to make each block:



Row 1: Smiles Too Loudly, Sew Psyched!, Wanda's Life Sampler, Stitches Quilting
Row 2: Childlike Fascination, 123 Quilt, Quilting Jetgirl, The Carpenter's Daughter Who Quilts
Row 3: Up It Is QuiltsTrials of a Newbie Quilter, Late Night Quilter , Quilts of a Feather
Row 4: I Love You Sew, Patchwork & Pastry, Meadow Mist Designs, Quilt'n Party
Row 5: Red Delicious Life, ? , Orchid Owl QuiltsNeedle & Foot

You can check out all of the great blocks along with their tutorials on Jayne @ Twiggy and Opal's Pinterest page.

The quilt is going to be donated to the Greenville Hospital System in South Carolina where it will go to a child that was recently taken from their home into protective services.


Many thanks again to Paintbrush Studio for providing the fabrics to the participants and the binding and backing for this charity quilt.