Month: January 2026

Round #2 for the 2026 SAHRR

/ quiltinggail / 35 Comments

Did you see all the Round #1s from last week’s Link Party? You can see them at Songbird Designs.

This week is Round #2. Kathleen says: Make it a Double!  It is week 2 and I challenge you to use a  double block.  Here are a few examples:   

  • Double Z
  • Double 4 patch
  • Double Irish Chain
  • Double Cross
  • Double Hour Glass
  • Double Pinwheel
  • Double Wedding Ring (that would be ambitious) 
  • Double Wrench 
  • Double X

I wasn’t inspired by any of the Double blocks. I find this unusual as usually I am able to find something that works. I went to Quilt Blocks Galore for more inspiration. As I went through the list of “double” blocks, Nothing was saying “do this.”

And then … I was wandering around the Internet and came across Jenny Doan’s “Double Churn Dash” quilt. Now, I’m not about to make a whole quilt, but it inspired me to use 2 of the fabrics from the Radiant Burst collection and frame Round #1 with a Double Churn Dash. Yes, I know that a Churn Dash is basically the same as a “Wrench” block … but I’m also a bit of a rebel!

This is my finished Round #2 … This block is now 22 1/2” x 26 1/2“.

How I made this double Churn Dash: The strips of red, blue and neutral were all cut at 1 1/2” and the half-square triangles were cut at 21/2“, and will finish at 2” in the quilt.

Be sure to link up your round #2 on Kathleen’s blog: Kathleen @ Kathleen McMusing

The fabric I am using for this years SAHRR is Lumin Fabrics (Island Batik) “Radiant Burst” by Jerry Khiev, along with the Egg White neutral and solid white.

The Schedule

  • January 14   Each of the co-leaders will be sharing their centre blocks (you will have to visit each of their blogs to see them). I will host the first linky party where you can show your centre block.
  • January 21:  1st Round:    Brenda @ Songbird Designs
  • January 28:  2nd Round: Kathleen @ Kathleen McMusing
  • February 4: 3rd Round: Emily @ The Darling Dogwood
  • February 11: 4th Round:   Wendy @ Pieceful Thoughts of My Quilting Life
  • February 18: 5th Round:  ME!!! @ Quilting Gail 
  • February 25: 6th Round:  Anja @ Anja Quilts
  • March 25:   Parade: showing all of your finished SAHRRs!

We have Sponsors!

We reached out to several companies that we all LOVE and many of them agreed to sponsor the SAHRR 2026!!! (That means prizes for YOU!!!). We will keep track of all of the participants that link to our Linky parties each week. We will make a list and use a random number generator to choose the winners for each prize! So, if you link up to 3 Linky parties, you will have 3 opportunities to win! If you don’t have a blog or Instagram account, contact me, or one of the other co-hosts, and we will post your SAHRR on our blog. This way you still have an opportunity to win!

Other’s Progress

If you want me to put your picture on my blog, the deadline is Monday noon (Pacific Time).

Here’s Gail H’s Round #1

Robin’s

Fauntie’s

Donna’s

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail 

Linking to:  

Sunday Summary: January 25

/ quiltinggail / 22 Comments

This is true!

I’ve been MIA for awhile

I know that I have not posted much in the last month … I’ve had that horrid flu / cold that was going around. I’m finally on the mend and feeling much much better! So, I’ll try to catch you up to what’s happening!

For each of my weekly updates, I’ll be starting fresh!

Two Finishes

I have 2 finishes this month:

The quilt I made for the Starry Seas Blog Hop, along with the magnetic bowls see THIS POST.

And the Helen Godden Countdown to Christmas ’25. (See all the youtube videos HERE.) I have been doing her countdowns for several years. This was the 3rd year that my sister and I have done it together. We often do it between Christmas and New Years, but this year we did it this past week. As we are zooming, we watch the videos together and then quilt the various components.

I used Island Batik (Lumin Fabrics) solid white fabric. The project was traced onto the fabric using a Sharpie “Stained” marker (doesn’t bleed like a regular sharpie). The lines were all stitched with Aurifil #2692 (black). The various sections were coloured with Inktense pencils and Aloe Vera. Hobbs 80/20 was used as the batting. All of the micro quilting was done with black Aurifil thread. The quilt was bound with Island Batik’s solid black fabric.

And here is the finished project!

I always learn a LOT when doing these projects! It’s a LOT of fun and it doesn’t matter if it’s not perfect! It just gets done!

Stitching Stuff

Kate, from Life in Pieces, is hosting “Stitching Stuff” and the goal is to sew for at least 15 minutes a day. I use Kate’s guideline, but my personal goal is to sew for 30 minutes a day. On those “blah” days, it does motivate me to sit at my machine and 30 minutes often turns into several hours. Thank you Kate for the motivation!

I know that for at least 2 weeks, I didn’t go into my sewing room. I was too sick. And the rest of the time was hit and miss, so I’m going to take a wild guess that I have probably sewed for 30 minutes at least 10 days so far this month. I know it’s a low percentage for me, but it will get better!

  • January 1 – 25: 10 /25
  • Total: 10 / 25: 40%

Design Wall Mondays

Judy, at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts, hosts a linky party for “What’s on your Design Wall” every week.

Piecing projects:

  • Meadow Mist Magnificient Mystery: I’m all caught up, just waiting for February’s clue. Apparently we’ll be told which blocks to make and how to finish the quilt … I’ll find out on February 5
  • SAHRR ’26

Quilting Projects:

Sunday Stash

Donna at Quilt Paint Create hosts a weekly linky party where you can display your stash numbers. This has really kept my stash from growing (somewhat!) Before I buy anything, I am always mindful of the fact that I need to report it on my blog … That sometimes stops me in my tracks!

No purchases so far this year!

The Starry Seas quilt and magnetic bowls used 7.5 yards and the Helen Godden Christmas used half a yard.

  • Fabric used this year: 8 yards
  • Fabric Used in 2026:     8 yards
  • Fabric Added in the last week: 0 yards
  • Fabric Added this year:   0 yards 
  • Net Fabric used:             8 yards

Rainbow Scrap Challenge

January’s colour is BLUE. Usually with blue, I would make at least a baby quilt, but I just made 3 nine patch blocks. The Island Batik 2.5″ squares were in my stash, no cutting involved! Just 3 different ways to do 9 patches with blues and a neutral.

To Do

Carol from Quilt Schmilt is hosting “To Do” every week.

To Do from last year ago:

  1. Laundry Basket Mystery: Finish Week 7 √   DONE. It’s ready to be sandwiched and quilted
  2. Continue to work on a Test quilt for Songbird Designs get the quilt webbed together. √   DONE. It’s ready to be sandwiched and quilted
  3. Sandwich and Quilt Arabesque Quilt for mmmquilts in progress
  4. Finish Quilting Friend’s Quilt √   DONE.
  5. Work on Magnificent Mystery: November & December √   DONE. All caught up!
  6. Work on 2026 SAHRR in progress
  7. Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder! √   DONE.
  8. Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes. √   DONE. 

To Do for this week:

I have my list, but I’m not going to stress about getting it done! There’s too much to get done in a week!

  1. Laundry Basket Mystery: Sandwich and Quilt
  2. Continue to work on a Test quilt for Songbird Designs Sandwich and Quilt
  3. Finish Quilting and bind Arabesque Quilt for mmmquilts
  4. Work on 2026 SAHRR
  5. Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder! 
  6. Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes.

SAHRR 2026

SAHRR 26

The SAHRR ’26 has started!! It’s not too late if you want to join in. See these posts for more details:

My SAHRR so far:

Don’t Forget

I am now a Silly Moon affiliate! So what does that mean? When you use my affiliate code Quiltinggail2024 at Silly Moon, you will receive 10% off your order and I will receive a small commission.

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail 

Linking to:  

The Round #1 for the 2026 SAHRR

/ quiltinggail / 26 Comments

Did you see all the Centre Blocks from last week’s Link Party? You can see them HERE.

This week is Round #1. Brenda chose this round and here’s what she had to say: Traditional hourglass block using HSTs OR Super Easy Hourglass block with Jenny Doan’s technique using four patch blocks. You can find her video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oK8vOFzYzwM. Make them any size you like to fit your plan for your SAHRR. Visit Brenda’s blog for more details: Brenda @ Songbird Designs

I hadn’t tried Jenny Doan’s technique and thought I’d give it a whirl. I cut my squares at 3″, made my 4 patches and carried on. The Hourglass blocks finished at 3 1/2″. I wasn’t sure that I liked just 4 blocks, so I made a second set, giving me 8 blocks.

This is my finished Round #1 … This block is now 13 1/2” x 17 1/2“.

Be sure to link up your round #1 on Brenda’s blog: Brenda @ Songbird Designs

The fabric I am using for this years SAHRR is Lumin Fabrics (Island Batik) “Radiant Burst” by Jerry Khiev, along with the Egg White neutral and solid white.

The Schedule

  • January 14   Each of the co-leaders will be sharing their centre blocks (you will have to visit each of their blogs to see them). I will host the first linky party where you can show your centre block.
  • January 21:  1st Round:    Brenda @ Songbird Designs
  • January 28:  2nd Round: Kathleen @ Kathleen McMusing
  • February 4: 3rd Round: Emily @ The Darling Dogwood
  • February 11: 4th Round:   Wendy @ Pieceful Thoughts of My Quilting Life
  • February 18: 5th Round:  ME!!! @ Quilting Gail 
  • February 25: 6th Round:  Anja @ Anja Quilts
  • March 25:   Parade: showing all of your finished SAHRRs!

We have Sponsors!

We reached out to several companies that we all LOVE and many of them agreed to sponsor the SAHRR 2026!!! (That means prizes for YOU!!!). We will keep track of all of the participants that link to our Linky parties each week. We will make a list and use a random number generator to choose the winners for each prize! So, if you link up to 3 Linky parties, you will have 3 opportunities to win! If you don’t have a blog or Instagram account, contact me, or one of the other co-hosts, and we will post your SAHRR on our blog. This way you still have an opportunity to win!

Other’s Progress

Here’s Sue’s: she says, “I decided to go sweet and simple and make floral borders”

Here’s Robin’s pretty block:

And Donna R’s … and she’s in the midst of binding a previous SAHRR!!

And Rosie’s red white & blue

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail 

Starry Seas Blog Hop

/ quiltinggail / 29 Comments

I received a 10″ stack of Starry Seas along with along with 2 yards of Buttermilk (from the Neutrals collection) and 2 yards of Sea Urchins – Multi Pink (which is part of the Starry Seas collection) in my Island Batik (Lumin Fabrics) box in July. When I saw that Jennifer, from the InquiringQuilter was going to do a blog hop, I asked if she wanted me to participate. Of course, she said ‘yes.’

I used the “Kite” Accuquilt die and cut out a kite star from 20 of the 10″ squares, along with the coordinating pieces using Buttermilk. They were pieced together, then I added a 2.5″ sashing of Buttermilk and 2.5″ squares of Sea Urchins for cornerstones. This is the result:

I used Silly Moon’s “Rocket” to outline the kite stars and do the inner stars. The neutral was free motion swirls. On the border, I used the “Kite” ruler to make the kites circulating the quilt.

And a couple of close ups of the quilting!

Quilt Stats:

But there is more. When I cut out the Kite shapes with the Accuquilt, there were pieces left-over. Pieces that could not be cut into nice half-square triangles or squares. So … I had an idea to use some Mod Podge and cover some magnetic bowls. I covered a bunch of them and gave them to my quilting friends for Christmas.

The Blog Hop

Here is a list of the participating Blog Hoppers:

Don’t Forget!

I am now a Silly Moon affiliate! So what does that mean? When you use my affiliate code Quiltinggail2024 at Silly Moon, you will receive 10% off your order and I will receive a small commission.

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail 

The Centre Block for the 2026 SAHRR

/ quiltinggail / 45 Comments

The 2026 SAHRR was officially announced in December (you can read the announcement and all about the SAHRR HERE).

Everyone that is doing the SAHRR starts with a Centre Block. It’s up to each person to choose which block they want to use. Some people use an orphan block. Or you can use one of the blocks that one of the SAHRR team has used. OR you can use any block of your choice!! Any size that you want! It can be square or rectangle … even a triangle if you wish!  😉

This year I’m using an orphan block. It was a block from when I made “Bloomers.” Bloomers was designed by by Denise of A Quiltery. The quilt is a mixture of embroidered and pieced blocks. The embroidered blocks have a base that is half Egg White neutral and half solid white. However, if you put the base fabrics on the wrong side, it doesn’t work with the quilt. Thus, I had this beautiful orphan block.

You can contact Denise at if you want to use this block. It is available as an embroidery block or appliqué. Mine is embroidered. The fabric I plan to use this year is Lumin Fabrics (Island Batik) “Radiant Burst” by Jerry Khiev, along with the Egg White neutral and solid white. This block is 7″ x 12″ and theoretically, I should end up with a rectangle quilt.

The Schedule

  • January 14   Each of the co-leaders will be sharing their centre blocks (you will have to visit each of their blogs to see them). I will host the first linky party where you can show your centre block.
  • January 21:  1st Round:    Brenda @ Songbird Designs
  • January 28:  2nd Round: Kathleen @ Kathleen McMusing
  • February 4: 3rd Round: Emily @ The Darling Dogwood
  • February 11: 4th Round:   Wendy @ Pieceful Thoughts of My Quilting Life
  • February 18: 5th Round:  ME!!! @ Quilting Gail 
  • February 25: 6th Round:  Anja @ Anja Quilts
  • March 25:   Parade: showing all of your finished SAHRRs!

We have Sponsors!

We reached out to several companies that we all LOVE and many of them agreed to sponsor the SAHRR 2026!!! (That means prizes for YOU!!!). We will keep track of all of the participants that link to our Linky parties each week. We will make a list and use a random number generator to choose the winners for each prize! So, if you link up to 3 Linky parties, you will have 3 opportunities to win! If you don’t have a blog or Instagram account, contact me, or one of the other co-hosts, and we will post your SAHRR on our blog. This way you still have an opportunity to win!

The Link Party

This is where you can Link up and show us your Centre block. We want the actual block that you will be using. It’s OK if you change your mind, but if you don’t use what you show us, we won’t be counting it as an entry to join.

The Link Party will be open until midnight (Pacific time) on January 20.

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party! Click here to enter

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail 

Starry Seas Blog Hop starts January 12!

/ quiltinggail / 2 Comments

The Blog Hop

Here is a list of the participating Blog Hoppers and make sure you visit Jennifer’s blog to have an opportunity to win a Fat Quarter Pack of this beautiful fabric!

Don’t Forget!

I am now a Silly Moon affiliate! So what does that mean? When you use my affiliate code Quiltinggail2024 at Silly Moon, you will receive 10% off your order and I will receive a small commission.

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail