LMS

It’s that time of year again!–Time for the  Quiltmaker’s 100 Blocks blog tour. =)  This magazine is such a wealth of great block designs and I am excited to have a block featured.  It even made the cover–can you guess which one it is?

As many of you know the whole quilt/block design process is my favorite part of making a quilt–it ranks right up there with my love of fabric.  This block came to be after a fun time playing in EQ7–it combines traditional patchwork with a slightly modern spin.  The solids contribute to a modern feel–they are a mix of Moda Bella Solids and Cross Weaves, Robert Kaufman Kona Solids, and maybe a Free Spirit Solid or two).

The instructions for my block, Block #700, can be found on page 71 in the Quiltmaker’s 100 Blocks Volume 7  which hits stores next week.

This block is pretty cool used just by itself in a quilt–here it is in Marmalade by Bonnie and Camille for Moda:

But, it’s even niftier when used with a 2nd block–Here I’ve used a 2nd block and Folk Tale Fabric by Natalie Lymer for Lecien Fabrics.

Or this one using Avalon by Fig Tree Quilts for Moda Fabrics:

The possibilities are endless!  You can see another take on my block in the sampler, block tester, Sheryl Patton made.  It’s pictured in the Block Tester’s Gallery on page 90.  She used Lovely by Debbie Beaves for RJR fabrics and combined my block with two others to create this lovely sampler.

You can see more peeks of the blocks in the issue, visit other blogs participating in the blog hop, and enter great giveaways over on the Quiltmaker’s Blog.

Giveaway Details:

Would you like to win a copy of  the soon to hit Quiltmaker’s 100 Blocks?  Just leave me a comment here & tell me about your fave type of quilt–do you prefer modern, traditional, applique?  I’ll draw a winner on Monday.

Thanks for stopping by!

Giveaway has now ended.

I’m always pumped when I get to share another finished project with you all!  This is my Fresh Forest quilt which I designed for the holiday issue of Stitch Craft Create.

Fresh Forest is made using Vintage Modern & Ruby fabrics–both by Bonnie & Camille for Moda.  This is the bundle of fabric that I used.

The quilting was done by Mary of Quilt Hollow.  She used an all over pattern which turned out beautifully.

Of course I went with a stripey binding–it totally reminds me of peppermints or candy canes…perfect for this quilt!

The folks over at Stitch Craft Create Magazine liked my design so much they asked me to make a 2nd quilt for them.  This time using Tilda fabrics.

I was very excited to work with the Tilda fabrics.  They’ve been on my radar for awhile now–they are fabulous in person.

Photo Courtesy of Stitch Craft Create

The kit for the Tilda version of Fresh Forest can be found here.

And of course, SCC has been kind enough to send me an extra issue of Stitch Craft Create to give away to a lucky reader.  Just leave me a comment!

Today I’m sharing with you one of the most recent quilts I have designed for P&B Textiles, “Winter Solstice”.  I totally flaked on taking any pictures of my own, which I now wish I had so I’d have more pics to share with you!  When I receive fabrics for my quilts from P&B, time is truly of the essence and the quilt tops must be on their way back in as little time as possible…usually a day or two at most.

Winter Solstice Quilt using Marguerite & Marmalade Fabrics

My design features a Kaleidoscope quilt block and an alternate “9 patch block”(it’s not quite a 9 patch).  No curved piecing although it has the illusion of curves.

The free pattern is available in a large and small size.

The last two photos feature fabrics from Marguerite by Cindi Walker for Riley Blake & Marmalade by Bonnie & Camille for Moda.  The pattern works very well for showing off a limited color palette.  I was primarily working with blues/greys for the P&B quilt so I went with a high contrast design to show off the fabrics.

Hope your week is off to a great start!

The family and I just got back from a little vacation yesterday so, I don’t have a lot of progress to share on my Fusion Blanket.  I did manage to get my squares turned & am now ready to top stitch…however, this is the state of my sewing machine pedal:

It’s been hanging on by a wire, literally for a couple years now….I had professionally electric taped it all up which has been working for awhile.  I’m not quite sure what happened to it orginally, it’s quite possible I vacuumed over it, or the dog chewed it….whatever the case, it’s been mostly good to go with the electric tape in place until last week when something went horribly awry & it’s now in two pieces.  I just can’t bite the $150 bullet to get a new one….so, the hubs is gonna work a little magic…hopefully today….

In other news, I’m sure a lot of you read Camille Roskelley’s blog–last week she wrote a post I totally could have written myself.  All the “secret things” that I can’t share, that I’m even hesitant to mention, cause who wants to hear about a bunch of sneak peeks that can’t be shared for 6 months or longer.

So, I’m curious to know…are you guys interested in the fabric pictures of projects I can’t share with you?

Bella by Lotta Jansdotter for Windham Fabrics

 Or does it make you a little bit batty when I mention things I really can’t share right now?

For example, last month, I made 2 quilts & a table runner for magazines that I can’t share with you & in August I’ll be making 3 more quilts that I can’t share with you…yikes!

All of this not being able to share leaves my blog a bit high and dry at times!–Even though there is a lot of creating going on behind the scenes. =)

Any thoughts?

Welcome everyone to the Fusion Blanket Crochet Along!  Cindy , Deb, & I are ready to get this party started!

By now, you’ve probably picked up most of your supplies, if not, you can reference this post for what you will need to get started.  If you are looking for shops with great selections of precuts, Southern Fabric is a great one to check–I was just scoping out her site and she’s even got in some early precuts of Marmalade!  These are sure to go fast!  I also think Seaside would make an amazing blanket–Randi just got some in last week–it’s one of the lines that I have been waiting for. =)

So, let’s get cracking!

If you aren’t starting with charm squares, begin by cutting your fabrics into 5″ squares.  My blanket will be 8 squares by 10 squares so I have cut 160 charm squares, 80 for the front and 80 for the back.

Step #1.

Step #2

For this step, you could also opt to hand sew the opening closed.

Step #3

I marked my blanket stitch at 1/2″ intervals–you can certainly go closer together if you prefer!

You are now ready to complete the blanket stitch around the edge.  If you are unfamiliar with the blanket stitch, there are a lot of great tutorials on You Tube or via a quick google search for blanket stitch.

I used a double thickness of thread to complete my blanket stitch.  You’ll need a very sturdy needle with a large eye if you choose to double up your thread.  Also, make sure to give yourself plenty of thread to work with–it takes more than you might think!

*I am using crochet thread for my blocks.*  On my practice block, I used 8 wt. perle cotton which was also a great choice(it is easier to work with than the two strands of crochet thread).

Repeat for the remainder of your charm squares.

Next Tuesday, Cindy will be sharing Part Two of our Fusion Blanket Crochet Along.

Be sure to share your own progress in our flickr group.  We love to see how everyone’s blankets are taking shape!

*Original Fusion Blanket Pattern by Sewing Daisies can be found here.*

I’ve been slowly working on cutting my Marmalade charms for the Fusion Blanket Crochet Along.  However, this week is VBS at our church and that is keeping my evenings full.  We kicked off on Sunday evening and had 120 kids & last night we had almost 150.  I’m helping with the crafts….surprising, right? =p

For those of you joining in on the Crochet Along, you can snag the button on my sidebar if you’d like.  And I’ve created a flickr group here.  I’ve also teamed up with a couple partners in crime who will be co-hosting the Crochet Along.  We’ll probably be kicking off in the next week or two with some fun giveaways. =)

So, grab a button, spread the news, join the group, and start collecting some charms!

I’m a little bit excited about this whole fabric crocheted afghan idea that I talked about on Friday–and I’m pretty excited to have so many people interested in crocheting along! =)  I twisted my mom’s arm, well I didn’t have to twist too hard, to go along with me to Joann’s to pick out some supplies on Saturday.  I really didn’t know what I needed so I really had to have her help.

I ended up with Sensations Cuddle Yarn in Turquoise & I decided to use yellow crochet thread for the blanket stitch around the edge.  Of course, a trial block was in order….so, more arm twisting ensued and Sunday evening was spent at Moms.

The blanket pattern uses 5″ squares–perfect for using up those extra charm packs that you have been hoarding. =)  I happened to have some Kate Spain Charm packs handy so I grabbed a couple squares, plus the fabrics matched my new crochet hook & yarn….very important.  And with my mom’s help:

I now have a little trial block.  It’s not perfect….and I am far from speedy, but it’s pretty cute, right?  And, I love that the back is going to be different than the front…if you want it to be…of course, you could use the same fabrics on the front and back.

So, if you want to join in here’s what you will need to start:

First off here’s the original blog post by Sewing Daisies with her pattern.

• Charm Squares–You will need to decide how big you want your blanket to know how many charm squares you’ll need.  My completed block measures 6.5″ square.  So, I’m thinking maybe 52″ x 65″(a nice throw size).  I will need 80 completed squares ( my blanket will be 8 squares x 10 squares) which means I’ll need 160 charm squares.  The equivalent of 4 charm packs or 1 layer cake.
• Yarn–I picked up 3 skeins.  I will need to purchase more as I go.  I am not concerned about the dye lot varying a bit.  If you are, make sure to purchase plenty of yarn, or purchase yarn without a dye lot.  You could also opt to use different colors of yarn.
• Crochet Hook–Pick up the recommended crochet hook for the yarn you are using.  I am using a lighter weight yarn & the recommended hook is G which is what I purchased.
• Perle Cotton or Crochet Thread–This is for the blanket stitch around the outside edge.  For my trial block I used 8 wt. Perle Cotton which works great.  For my Marmalade blanket I will be using Crochet Thread–it’s a little bit more cost effective & I am all about that.

And, there you have it.  I’ll be working on cutting up my charm squares, sewing together my squares and working on the blanket stitch.  I’ll keep sharing as I go along so you can play too. =)

Today’s the big 34 for me…does anyone else have trouble remembering how old they are? Seriously, I’m all…”so, I was born in ’78, that makes me 30 in ’08–add another 4 years…ok so I must be 34 this year…Ryan is 3-4 years older than me so he’s 37 right now…so, yeah 34 sounds right”. It is such a thought process each time I try to figure out how old I am–Chloe thinks I’m nuts that I have such a hard time remembering. But now, I think I have it figured out…see Tracey, is 1 year younger than me and her birthday is exactly 1 week before mine. So, as long as she posts every year on her birthday, I should be good to go! =p

Everyone attending Quilt Market this weekend or visiting there LQS in the upcoming months is in for a realy treat. The new lines are all just marvelous! I was anxious to see Vanessa’s debut line of fabric after seeing her sneak peeks on her blog;

Photo Courtesy of http://www.vanessachristenson.com

It totally doesn’t disappoint!–Wonderful line of fabric and I love seeing those purples in there–definitely need more purple fabrics!

Aneela’s new line “Sew Stitchy” fab as usual! You can see a great quilt Aneela made using Sew Stitchy here.

And I’ve been scoping out Kate Spain’s new line Cuzco–I always love a fabric line that has a rainbow of colors & I always feel like Kate really incorporates color into her fabric designs…love it!

And we all know how I feel about Bonnie & Camille’s lines of fabric–fabulous! Another little bundle of Vintage Modern fits right in!

Thank you, Thank you Moda Fabrics!

I am happy to report that I have been drafted into the ranks of those busily preparing for quilt market. =)  No, not my own line of patterns…yet…but, I have designed a couple quilts for P&B Textiles which will be at quilt market this year…how fun!  That lovely stack of Color Weave fabrics arrived yesterday courtesy of P&B, and has since been whipped into a quilt top.

This little number was bound this past weekend and will soon be on it’s way to one of my new favorite magazines.  Oh how I love Bonnie and Camille’s Vintage Modern line of fabric….so fabulous!  And did you all see this:

Yes, indeed…it’s Bonnie & Camille’s line of fabric which will be debuting at quilt market in just a couple weeks.  It’ll be available for purchase this fall….I’m pretty sure I can’t wait that long…doesn’t someone going to quilt market want to take pity and pick some up for me…. =)

I’ve also added just a couple more items to my Etsy shop:

In between all of my other projects, one of my number one priorities is planning a 7 year birthday party for this gal:

May is totally going to zip on by!

Bliss Quilt

I thought today that I would share a quilt top that I have had finished for quite some time.  I haven’t shared it earlier because up until recently I wasn’t sure what to do with the crazy thing…it is a really big quilt top…I’m not sure of the dimensions off the top of my head but rest assured a whole family could sit on this thing (maybe even the Duggars–ok, so maybe not all of them–maybe Jim Bob, Michelle and the first 5 or so). =p 

Actually, it’s not so terribly huge, queen size ish or a little larger….it’s just big for me–I tend to stick in the twin size range–it’s not a quilt I’d want to man handle on my machine to get it quilted so I’ve kind of stuck it on the back burner.

I made the quilt using a scrap bag(I think it was just one) of Bliss fabric–so, it has all these cute little selvage edges spattered about here and there.

I made this quilt without a specific pattern–I just started sewing.  First I sewed all the scrap bundle strips together into several large rectangles.  Scrap Bundle strips tend to be about 22″ long and vary in width from 2″ or so to 4″ or so—each bundle is different.  Some of the strips have the cute little printed selvage edge and some don’t.  I sewed together several strips and made several large rectangles.  After sewing these rectangles, I chopped them back up again into long multi print strips which I sewed together to make the strips used in the quilt.

To make my strips even less “patterny” I picked them apart here and there and re-sewed them to the other side of the strip.  That way the fabric placement was more varied.

After the patterned strips were complete I added the aqua strips (these were cut at 1.5″) and the white fabrics(these varied in sized depending on what I felt like cutting).

As I was re-arranging my sewing room a couple weeks back I came across this quilt again & it hit me how fab it would look hand quilted–imagine straight line hand quilting in all of the white spaces using red/aqua/pink/green…pretty, right?  I haven’t talked to my mom about my plan yet–I’m hoping I can convince her this is a perfect fall project. =p  We all know she is the queen of hand quilting!