My Best of 2021

Hi and welcome to my stop on the Best of 2020 blog linky party!  I had such fun going through my posts from the year to figure out which 5 posts I would be highlighting today.  It was a great way for me to review the year and revisit some finishes from earlier in the year that I had forgotten about.  I'm looking forward to 2022, how about you?

Click on any of the titles to be taken to the actual blog post for more details and pictures.

1.  Macaron Mystery Quilt

The Macaron Mystery Quilt kicked off in July and is going strong.  If you want to join in the fun, you can find all of the information about the Macaron Mystery Quilt here.

2.  Morewood Mystery Quilt

The Morewood Mystery Quilt kicked off in July 2020 and wrapped up this April.  The reveal parade had over 400 Morewood Mystery quilts in it!!  Check out all of the quilts here.  

3. Just One Charm Pack Quilts

I was so excited to release by second book this year, Just One Charm Pack Quilts and the response was so awesome!  I love seeing the quilts everyone is making from the book, using up their stashes of charm packs.  

I really enjoyed the blog hop where so many of my friends joined in to make and share quilts from the book.  You can find the wrap up of the hop here with links and pictures of all of the quilts and I just saw that the book is on sale on Amazon right now for $18.80 (affiliate link).

4.  Irish Puzzle Pattern

My most successful and poplar new pattern this year was Irish Puzzle which I made using one of my favorite lines of all time, Chicopee by Denyse Schmidt against a gray background.  You can see more pictures and read about the quilt here (you can find the pattern in my shop in both digital and print versions).

5.  Favorite Tutorial - Photo Stand for Quilts

One of my most asked questions is how I take my flat quilt photos outside by myself.  This post shows the photo backdrop holder I used along with how I attach the quilt to it.  

Thanks for stopping by my blog!  I hope you will consider linking up your favorite posts from 2021 or stopping by to see other blogger's best of 2021 posts!  You can visit the Best of post right here.

 

 

Best of 2021 of Linky Party

Welcome to the Best of 2021 Linky Party! 

 This is the sixth annual "Best of" blog party to share your and read others top posts of 2021.

Please enjoy the best of posts below and leave a comment for the blogger, your kind words will bring a smile to their face.

To include your blog in the link party, simply write a new blog post highlighting your "best" 5 posts from 2021 and linkup.  There is no set way or rules to pick your best, you can pick and highlight your posts anyway you would like.  Some examples include:

• Posts with the most views
• Posts with the most comments
• Posts that provoked the best discussions
• Posts showing your favorite 2021 finishes
• Posts of your best tutorials
• Posts that are simply your favorites

I invite you to grab a cup of tea, coffee, apple cider, or your favorite blog reading beverage, relax, and have some fun reading the best blog posts of 2021:)

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Please note that this year end party will take the place of the Favorite Finishes Monthly Linkup, so there will be no monthly linkup for December.

 

 

2021 Goal Review and 2022 Goals

Where did 2021 go?  Is it just me or was it just the spring?  Having my kids move up to the high school and middle school and all of their new school and after-school activities has made the time fly by.

I am looking forward to 2022 and teaching in person (safely) at QuiltCon 2022 and starting to meet back in person at the different guild events.

And now for a look back at my 2021 goals and plan for the new year...

My wonderful bloggy friend Yvonne, who blogs at Quilting Jetgirl, hosts an annual planning party to layout goals for the upcoming year. I thought that I would use this post to first go back to my 2021 goals to see if I had actually accomplished them and then post my 2022 goals.  

2021 Goal Check-In

Due to the uncertainty of life this year, I kept my goals for 2021 pretty simple...

1. Just One Charm Pack book launch - done over the summer :)
2. Pattern releases - 8 Total: Tahoe, Irish Puzzle, Supernova, Flagstone, Orchid Valley, Chloe, Raindrops, and Reedy River Falls.
3. Mystery quilt - done, the Macaron Mystery quilt along is under way.
4. Charity sewing - I am a little behind on this one.  Many of the Just One Charm Pack Quilts book quilts will be donated when I am finished with trunk shows.

2022 Goals

My main quilting related focuses for this year will be:

1. Working on my next book - this is going to be taking a good amount of my time this upcoming year.
2. Teaching - I hope to teach more in-person next year and work on some new workshops.
3. Mystery quilt - the next mystery quilt will kick off in July 2022 and the design is actually already set.

How are your 2022 plans shaping up?  You can read all of the 2022 planning posts at Yvonne's #2022PlanningParty.

Best of 2021 Linky Party Coming Soon

It is no secret that I love blog link parties.  One of the main reasons I started my blog was so that I could take part in the sharing of knowledge and inspiration through the parties and so I am very excited to announce that I am hosting my seventh annual blog linky party, the Best of 2021 Linky Party!

Please note that this year end party will take the place of the Favorite Finishes Monthly Linkup, so there will be no monthly linkup for December.

To take part in the link party, simply write a new blog post highlighting your "best" 5 posts from 2021 and linkup.  There is no set way or rules to pick your best, you can pick and highlight your posts anyway you would like.  Some examples include:

• Posts with the most views
• Posts with the most comments
• Posts that provoked the best discussions
• Posts showing your favorite finishes
• Posts of your best tutorials
• Posts that are simply your favorites

This post is not only a great way to find new readers, it is also wonderful to be able to highlight some of your best posts for those readers who have joined your blog throughout the year.

The link party will open the day after Christmas, Sunday December 26th and will be open for one week ending on Sunday, January 2nd.

While you are waiting for this linky party to start up, you can take a look through the Best of 2015-2020.  Thanks!

 

12 Quilts of Christmas

I thought it might be fine to do a mash up of holiday quilts, not just ones that were specifically designed for the season, but other patterns done up in holiday colors as well.  Here are twelve quilts for Christmas :)

The first two quilts were made originally as Christmas quilts...

Winter Wreath

Poinsettia Pinwheels

Here are ten other designs decked out for the holidays...

Broken Frames

Camden Road

Diamonds in the Sky

Foothills Mystery

Irish Puzzle

Morewood Mystery

Raindrops

Reedy River Falls

Ruby Roads

Supernova

 Which is your favorite?  Have you ever made a holiday quilt?

Macaron Mystery ++ Square in a Square Units

 

Happy December :)  

Welcome to the sixth month of instructions for the Macaron Mystery Quilt!  This month we will be making some Square in a Square units.  We are only making 13 units total so this month instructions should take less time (as I know December tends to be busy).

There is plenty of time to join in on the quilt along!  You can find all of the information about the Macaron Mystery, including schedule, past instructions, links to the Facebook group, sneak peek, and more at the Macaron Mystery Page.

The Macaron Mystery Quilt is a lap sized, free quilt-along that will run from July 2021 through April 2022 with a set of directions revealed the first Thursday of every month. 

Now that the Macaron Mystery quilt along has ended, 

you can find a easy to print, full version of the Macaron Mystery 

pattern for sale in my pattern shop.

Square in a Square (SiaS) Units

Combine 26 fabric D squares 2 ⅜" x 2 ⅜" (these may have been oversized to 2 ⅝" x 2 ⅝" during cutting) and 13 Bg1 squares 2 ⅝" x 2 ⅝" to make 13 square in a square (SiaS) units 3 ½" x 3 ½".

1. Cut each fabric D square 2 ⅜" x 2 ⅜" in half once diagonally to form 52 fabric D triangles 2 ⅜" x 2 ⅜".

2. Center a fabric D triangle 2 ⅜" x 2 ⅜" along one side of a Bg1 square 2 ⅝" x 2 ⅝" right sides together.

Sew along the edge with a scant ¼" seam (shown as a dotted line), pressing seam open or towards the fabric D triangle.

3. Sew another fabric D triangle 2 ⅜" x 2 ⅜" on the side of the Bg1 square opposite to the first seam, pressing the seam open or towards the fabric D triangle.

Note: you can sew both of these triangles on then press instead of pressing after each addition.

4. Continue by sewing two more fabric D triangles onto the remaining outside edges of the Bg1 square, pressing the seams open or towards the fabric D triangles.

5. Trim off the tabs (dog ears) formed by the sewn on triangles and square the unit to 3 ½" x 3 ½" if necessary making sure there is ¼" between the corners of the inner square and the outer sides of the unit.

6. Repeat steps 1-5 to make a total of 13 SiaS units 3 ½ " x 3 ½".

Many thanks to the generous sponsors of the Macaron Mystery Quilt!

Backside Fabrics | Quilting by Anne-Marie | InkTorrents | Quilt Pattern Mart

Busy Hands Quilts | Quilting Jetgirl | Aurifil | Fat Quarter Shop

Cotton Cuts | Brewstitched | Sew Colorado Quilting LLC | Meadow Mist Designs

Any questions? Leave them in a comment below or post them to our Facebook group page.  The next set of instructions will be published on the first Thursday of January, the 6th.