Friday, June 3, 2016

Twin Size Looking Glass - Birch Farm

My co-worker just welcomed her first foster child into her home after battling infertility for many years and spending almost 2 years to get certified as a foster parent by the state.  What does every new child need?  A quilt!

This is the twin version of Looking Glass.  You can get your own copy of Looking Glass in my pattern shop (digital and print versions) and on Etsy.


The little boy is 3 years old so a baby sized quilt was not going to work.  I decided that I would make a twin size quilt for his new bed.  I only had 2 weeks between the time my co-worker picked the little boy up and our shower for her so at work I needed a quick and fast quilt!

After looking at my growing stack of charm packs, I decided to make a twin size version of Looking Glass.  I had already made a baby size version and a lap size version of the pattern so I knew that it would come together quickly and easily.  There are no half square triangles or flying geese so trimming is kept to a minimum and there are few seams to match (and the seams that do match up all nest).

I have had some Birch Farm charm packs (by Joel Dewberry) in my stash which seemed perfect for a little boy.  I only had 3 packs so I pulled some coordinating fat quarters to extend the charm packs to get enough fabrics to make the quilt.  I went with Kona ash as the background (I figured white would not be a good choice for a little boy).  Ash worked well as I was able to use both white prints and very dark prints in the charm packs because they both contrasted well with the ash.


By the end of week 1, the quilt blocks were made and then sewn into a quilt top.  I used a sheet as the backing (I have a post scheduled for next week talking about what I have learned about using sheets as backing materials).



In the second week, I quilted the quilt with a very simple and larger scale stipple design for its speed and to keep the quilt nice and soft.  After binding with a medium solid gray fabric, the quilt had a little photoshoot (I forgot how hard it is to take good pictures of a big quilt), went for a wash, and got all wrapped up to celebrate the little boy's new home.



My co-worker is such a wonderful person with so much love to give, I am so glad that she has the opportunity to share that love and give a child the best possible start to life.  I hope he loves the quilt!

You can get your own copy of Looking Glass in my pattern shop (digital and print versions) and on Etsy.  This makes my third version of Looking Glass.  Here are the baby, lap, and twin versions together...


I am linking up to Link a Finish FridayWhoop Whoop FridayThank Goodness Its Finished FridayFinish It Up FridayFabric Frenzy Fridayand Show Off Saturday @ Sew Can She.






Thursday, June 2, 2016

Meadow Mystery Quilt - 4 Weeks Until Kick Off!

It's almost time! Just 4 more weeks until the start of the Meadow Mystery Quilt!



The Meadow Mystery Quilt is a free quilt-along that will run from July 2016 until April 2017 with a set of directions revealed the first Thursday of every month


The mystery quilt is a 60" x 60" lap size quilt that is at an advanced beginner / intermediate level very similar to last year's Midnight Mystery Quilt.  (Piecing will include blocks such as half square triangles, flying geese, and square in a square blocks.  There will be no applique, paper piecing, or Y seams).   


There will be a number of posts throughout June to introduce you to all of the wonderful sponsors of the Meadow Mystery Quilt.


On July 7th, the first post for the mystery quilt will be posted containing the fabric requirements and some helpful hints to pick fabrics and colors (you will have an entire month to gather fabrics before the cutting instructions in August).  Also in July, there will posts about quilt kit bundle and fabric options.


Here are some more details about the upcoming mystery quilt...


1.  Quilt-along Instructions The monthly instructions will be posted to this blog as blog posts on the first Thursday of each month (and can always be found in the Mystery Quilt tab above) and also sent out as an easy to print pdf through e-mail to the distribution list.  


If you would like to be added to the e-mail distribution list, simply leave a comment on this post (with your e-mail if you are a no reply blogger) or send an e-mail to me at cheryljbrickey (at) gmail (dot) com. (If you received the e-mails for the Midnight Mystery quilt, you are already on the list so there is no need to sign up again).


2.  Button - I have made a button for the mystery quilt :)  If you decide to join in on the quilt-a-long and have a blog I would love it if you posted the button.







grab button for Meadow Mist Designs 
<div class="meadow-mist-designs-button" style="width: 200px; margin: 0 auto;"> <a href="http://meadowmistdesigns.blogspot.com/p/mystery-quilt.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> <img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV-QDEHtuF7nuazFFy8t1a0ovSUrxovrlpKdp9wkmVoZA7Et0Fyl7I1Yw-kX9yvICZx7G_w4T4wQehq6AOT8IJS8n7QbBVHFluAceW4iGTCwymVPT4clki-KfZXy1WzVa0qDJsAfA79o0/s1600/Meadow+Mystery+Logo+200px.jpg" alt="Meadow Mist Designs" width="200" height="200" /> </a> </div>

3.  Prizes - We will have prizes!  Prizes will be given out randomly to quilters who submit quilts or quilt tops to the reveal parade in April 2017.  More details about the individual sponsors and prizes will be announced throughout June.


4.  The Un-Mystery Quilt - Want to join in the fun but making a mystery quilt is not your thing?  If you would like to see the final pattern to decide whether to join in, or to help pick colors; simply e-mail me and I will send you a sneak peak (the only rule is that you have to keep the design completely to yourself as to not spoil anyone else's surprise).


5.  Facebook Group - We already have over 400 active members in our Facebook Group (Meadow Mist Designs Facebook Group) sewing together!  Join the group today so you can share and see everyone else's fabric, progress pictures, and finished quilts.



I think that is everything for now.  I hope that you are planning on joining me for a fun mystery quilt!  If you have any questions or would like to be added to the e-mail distribution list, you can leave them as a comment or e-mail me at cheryljbrickey (at) gmail (dot) com.

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, June 1, 2016

Introducing Miss Bee-Hivin'

The 2016 New Quilt Bloggers Blog Hop is kicking off soon! The bloggers have been hard at work behind the scenes getting their blogs and posts ready.

The hop will extend over the next 2 months and the blogs are going to be broken down into 3 hives hosted by Yvonne @Quilting Jetgirl, Stephanie @Late Night Quilter, and me!

Each week during the blog hop, I will be highlighting 4-5 of the bloggers. My hive is calling themselves Miss Bee-Hivin' and they made an awesome button for themselves!


Blog Hop Week 1 - June 13th
Miranda @ I Have Purple Hair


Blog Hop Week 2 - June 20th
Jennifer @ Inquiring Quilter
Abigail @ Cut & Alter


Blog Hop Week 3 - July 11th
Velda @ GRANNYcanQUILT


Blog Hop Week 4 - July 18th

I am looking forward to getting to know them better in the upcoming weeks! Be sure to stop by and check out the groups hosted by Yvonne @Quilting Jetgirl, and Stephanie @Late Night Quilter this week to get to know their hive members.

While we are putting the finishing touches on preparations for the blog hop, which will include weekly giveaways from our generous sponsors 

(yes, that is 9-10 giveaways for each week of the blog hop!), check out these great new advice posts from seasoned veterans:

Do you have a great advice post that we can link to? Send me an email or leave a comment and we will add you to our resource list!



I look forward to “hopping” along with you over the next 2 months!


I am linking up with Lorna @ Sew Fresh Quilts linky party.








Saturday, May 28, 2016

May is for Makers

I am a little late for the May is for Makers campaign with May being almost over, but I wanted to get in at least one pattern purchase to support a fellow designer.

If you are not familiar with May is for Makers, it is a campaign started by Lindsey Rhodes who blogs at LR Stitched to support all of the pattern makers and their hard work.  You can read more about the campaign here on Lindsey's blog.
I was not sure which pattern I wanted to buy until I say Rae from Made by Rae's new Feather Washi dress.  I have the Washi dress pattern (and have made one Washi with it, you can see it here) and have been considering buying the extension pack which contains a bunch of other necklines, sleeves, and construction options.  When I saw the fun tie neckline on the Feather Washi I knew that the extension pack was going to be one of my May if for Makers purchases.


I am hoping to use a some yardage I have of a Fleet and Flourish fabric by Maureen Cracknell for Art Gallery Fabrics to make a similar dress...hopefully before summer is over!










Wednesday, May 25, 2016

Foothills Mystery - Mosaic/que Guild Highlight

Today, I would love to show you the Mosaic/que guild versions of my Foothills Mystery Quilt for their mystery quilt-along that just wrapped up (The Foothills Mystery was a quilt-along that ran from 2014-2015, free pattern here). I was so excited when Chantal contacted me about the finishes and graciously allowed me to highlight her guild here on my blog.

Here is what Chantal said about her guild, "The Mosaic/que guild is located in Brossard, a suburb near Montreal, in Québec, Canada. It has around 30 members. It's an evening guild, meeting twice a month. Half of the people are French speaking, half of the people are English speaking. Half of the people are retired, half of the people are still working. We're all women, aged between 25 and 80, average around 60. It's really a good mix of kind women sharing the same passion.

We were looking for a mystery quilt for our 2015-2016 season. Most of guild members are very traditional but I was looking for something a little bit different, but that can be achieve with any kind of fabric. It's really stressful to pick a pattern for a bunch of people. We started the Foothills Mystery Quilt in September 2015. A new step was given each month. At reveal date in May 2016, 10 persons have completed the quilt on time. And some people were missing. And some have not completed it yet. Everybody loved the pattern, despite the 144 HST to do. Since most of the members are really traditional, nearly half of them couldn't help to add a border to their finished quilt, which makes them even more interesting."






I love all of the different colorways and the different borders.  Thanks Chantal for allowing me to share your guild's finishes!

Is your guild looking for a mystery quilt?  You are welcome to join in on the new Meadow Mystery Quilt starting in July or use the Foothills Mystery Quilt or Midnight Mystery Quilt patterns.  I would love to see your guild's take on the patterns!