March 13: Parade – showing all of your finished SAHRRs!
How I made my spool blocks
The half square triangles are tiny … they finish at 1″ …. so they are 1 1/2” unfinished … the blocks below the top HST are 1 1/2” square, unfinished and the center column is 1 1/2” x 3 1/2” unfinished … the whole block will finish at 3″ …
Linky Party
Roseanne & Sue @ Home Sewn by Us will have a linky party so you can see everyone’s 1st Round!
More Centre Blocks
Some people are participating in the SAHRR, but don’t do social media … so I and another hosting blogger are posting their blocks for them … It’ll be fun to see how these blocks grow into their own quilts!
Has started!!! Be sure to come back and see all the wonders that are happening!!! If you need some incentive to join in the fun, we have a lot of wonderful sponsors!!! and you could win some fantastic quilting goodies!
Classic Car BOM
The colour for January is pink. I used scraps of Island Batik to make this beautiful block. Visit Patterns by Jen to download the pattern this month. It’s free until the end of the month. She also has a video to help you make the funky flying geese!
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!
January: 22 / 22
Percentage: 100%
Stash Report
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!
I did finish this little wall hanging … and used 1 yard of fabric!
Actually, I could brag … it was a bit hard to resist going shopping with other retreaters … but I resisted!
Fabric Used this week: 1 yards
Fabric Used in 2023: 1 yards
Fabric Bought this week: 0 yards
Fabric Added this year: 0 yards
Net Fabric used: 1 yards
Just an FYI: I do not count any fabric that is given to me (Island Batik), but this year, I am going to count it as fabric used.
To Do Tuesday
Carol from Quilt Schmilt is now hosting “To Do” every week.
The To Do list from a last week:
Finish the sashing and borders Clue #7 Chilhowie. in progress
Classic Cars Colour Challenge BOM – Sept / Oct in progress – blocks are cut
More Nutcracker colouring. in progress
Sandwich Naturescape Lone Star.√ DONE
Work on Shades of Blue Blog Hop project in progress
Continue working on Island Batik February project in progress
Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes √ DONE
Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder! √ DONE
This week’s list:
Finish the sashing and borders Clue #7 Chilhowie
Classic Cars Colour Challenge BOM – Sept / Oct
More Nutcracker colouring.
Finish Shades of Blue Blog Hop project – I post on the 26th!
Continue working on Island Batik February project
Sandwich Bird Panels
Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder!
Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes
Design Wall
Judy, at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts, hosts a linky party for “What’s on your Design Wall” every week. Piecing:
Classic Cars Colour Challenge BOM – Sept / Oct
Chilhowie – Clue #7, sashing and borders picture shows most of the sashing blocks ready to sew … still in progress
Island Batik February project – isn’t the fabric beautiful?
Shades of Blue Blog Hop project – need to ‘get er done!’
Quilting:
Naturescape Lone Star is ready to quilt
The bird panels are ready for sandwiching.
Current Blog Hop
This blog hop starts Monday, hosted by Creatin’ in the Sticks: here are the links to all the participants:
If you need more information on the SAHRR … you can go to THIS POST.
Centre Block
Here is my centre block. The birds and the flowers were cut with Accuquilt dies that I borrowed from our guild’s die collection. (Go! Birds and Rose of Sharon). This piece is 9.5″ x 12.5″. I will do the applique stitching when I quilt it. I used Island Batik fabrics from the Baby Bloomers collection (by Kathy Engle for Karen Overton) and solid white. I initially used the Baby Bloomer fabrics for a Lone Star Quilt you can see HERE.
Now, you Need to go to the co-hosts blogs and see their center blocks! Their links are in the schedule below.
If you do not have a way to join the linky party, email me your photo by Sunday noon, and I’ll post it on my blog the following week. (quiltinggail@yahoo.ca)
Next week?
Roseanne & Sue will tell us what to do. Make sure you follow their blog, Home Sewn by Us .
Relax … this is easy … and it’s only one round each week!
Our Wonderful Sponsors
We will be drawing for prizes from our sponsors after the March 13 Parade.
Here’s a list of the sponsors and their generous gifts!
Starts tomorrow!!! Be sure to come back and see all the wonders that are happening!!! If you need some incentive to join in the fun, we have a lot of wonderful sponsors!!! and you could win some fantastic quilting goodies!
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!
January: 15 / 15
Percentage: 100%
Stash Report
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!
In 2023, I haven’t finished any projects, so haven’t used any fabric, but I haven’t bought any either!
Fabric Used this week: 0 yards
Fabric Used in 2023: 0 yards
Fabric Bought this week: 0 yards
Fabric Added this year: 0 yards
Net Fabric used: 0 yards
Just an FYI: I do not count any fabric that is given to me (Island Batik), but this year, I am going to count it as fabric used.
To Do Tuesday
Carol from Quilt Schmilt is now hosting “To Do” every week.
The To Do list from a last week:
Start Clue #7 Chilhowie.√ DONE
Classic Cars Colour Challenge BOM – July / Aug √ DONE
Start colouring Nutcracker. √ DONE
Work on Naturescape Lone Star.√ DONE
Start Island Batik February project
Pack for retreat! √ DONE
Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes √ DONE
Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder! √ DONE
This week’s list:
Finish the sashing and borders fClue #7 Chilhowie
Classic Cars Colour Challenge BOM – Sept / Oct
More Nutcracker colouring.
Sandwich Naturescape Lone Star.
Work on Shades of Blue Blog Hop project
Continue working on Island Batik February project
Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder!
Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes
Design Wall
Judy, at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts, hosts a linky party for “What’s on your Design Wall” every week. Piecing:
Classic Cars Colour Challenge BOM
Chilhowie – Clue #7, sashing and borders picture shows most of the sashing blocks ready to sew …
Island Batik February project – isn’t the fabric beautiful?
Shades of Blue Blog Hop project
Quilting:
Nothing … I need to colour the Nutcracker before I can start quilting!
Naturescape Lone Star is ready for sandwiching …
Maybe I’ll get Chilhowie to the flimsy stage!
The Quilt More just needs to be trimmed and bound.
The bird panels are ready for sandwiching.
Upcoming Blog Hops
Creatin’ in the Sticks: Sew It – Show It: Shades of Blue (January) My day is January 26!
On this first Friday of 2023, I don’t have any finishes … however, I do have many things partially done …
My Stay at Home Round Robin is close to being finished … but of course, I can’t show you until March … but you can watch my progress, starting January 16!
Would you be interested to know that we have several awesome sponsors and will be giving away prizes when the SAHRR is over??? So make sure you join us for the fun!
Bonnie Hunter Mystery
This is her latest mystery quilt. Chilhowie with Island Batik fabrics! I’m all caught up except for the clue and reveal that came out today. If you’ve ever done a Bonnie Hunter mystery quilt, you know that it involves a LOT of little pieces and can be quite time consuming. The first picture is the blocks in progress and the 2nd picture is the blocks as they are today. Now, I just need to do the final steps!
I’ve made and posted all of these during the past year! Enjoy!
January
This was a UFO from the “Any Which Way” mystery that was hosted on the blog in ’21. See HERE for the finishing details!
The first Island Batik challenge of the year was to use a Fat 1/4 bundle of Tantalizing Teals. You can see details on this challenge HERE.
February
I used Kelly Young’s book “Scrappy Improve Quilting.” You can see details of it here.
This was a quilt I made for Island Batik’s catalogue featuring the “Evergreen and Pine” fabric collection. See the link HERE.
This quilt was made for Island Batik’s catalogue featuring the “Contempo” fabric collection.
The February Island Batik challenge was to create a quilt with the Row by Row theme. I used the “Vintage Lace” collection, designed by Kathy Engle. You can read more about it HERE.
I made this cute little basket using Deco Revival fabrics. You can read about it HERE.
March
Here is the Stay at Home Round Robin that I made using the Flutterfly collection and Island Batik’s solid white. You can read more details HERE.
We were challenged to create a piece based on the Italian thread that we received from Aurifil. I received “Pompeii Red” colour builder set. See HERE for more details.
This was a table runner that I made for the Quilt as You Go class that I taught. See HERE.
I made these little coasters with left-over fabric blocks from my SAHRR. See HERE for details.
This quilt was made for the Time in a Bottle Blog Hop. I used fabrics that were left-over from my gradation quilts (January). See HERE for more details.
April
April’s challenge was to make a Funky Friend. I chose Gregory Gorilla. He was a lot of fun to make!! See all the details HERE.
This little zipper pouch was made for the “World of Colour” Blog Hop. Details can be found HERE.
May
The following 3 projects were made for Island Batik’s challenge called “Triangle Tricks. I found the first one very difficult to make, but the last 2 were quite easy! See HERE for details.
June
June’s Challenge was to make a New York beauty and I was given the Harvest Night fabric collection. See HERE for details.
These 2 quilts were made with the “Jewel Carvings” fabric collection (designed by Kathy Engle) for the Island Batik catalogue. My friend, Amy, made the one with the light background and I made the one with the dark. See more details HERE.
This quilt was my very first magazine publication. It was in the Fons & Porter Love of Quilting July/August issue. See HERE for more pictures and details.
This quilt was designed by Sandra Walker at MMM Quilts. You can see more details of it HERE. If you want the pattern you can find it HERE
I made this window hanging in an on-line class with Epida Studio. Elizabeth is a great teacher! More details of my window hanging can be found HERE.
July
Island Batik’s challenge for July was “Christmas in July with Accuquilt.” We were all given the Tree of Life die. This was a super fun quilt to make and it was super fun to give it to a dear friend on mine! See more pictures HERE.
I had left-over HST from the Tree of life, so I made this little zipper pouch!
August
August’s challenge was to make a Marvelous Mini Quilt. I was inspired by a speaker we had at the guild, as well as many different Dresdens made with friends. This was my mini. Details HERE.
September
I received the “Corner Pop” tool from Studio 180 and was challenged to use it, along with a 1/2 yard bundle of “Flourish” by Kathy Engle It was a lot of fun to make this quilt using the tool, along with other Studio 180 tools! See HERE for details.
These were made using “Left-overs” from the above quilt. See HERE for details.
This was made for the Queen of Gadgets Blog Hop. You can read about all the gadgets I used to make this quilt HERE I used a 10″ stack of Pumpkin Spice and the background is “Celery”.
October
October’s challenge was a ByAnnie bag. I chose to make the “A Place for Everything 2.0” bag and paired it with fabrics from the “Bee Kind” collection. The pattern was easy to follow and with supplemental videos – it came together easily! See details HERE.
This tree skirt was made for Island Batik’s catalogue using the Winter Sky collection. I just LOVE the blues!
This quilt was made for Pinktober. October is Breast Cancer Awareness month. My heart is all a flutter when I think of the story behind the gifting of this quilt. You can read about it HERE.
And little bags made from the left-overs from the Pinktober quilt.
November
Island Batik’s November challenge was to make a Christmas stocking. These were fun to make! You can read about how I made them and used an Accuquilt die for the snowflackes … HERE.
This quilt was made with a 2 1/2″ strip pack of “Citified.” It was fun to make and I had a blast quilting it! You can read about it HERE.
This was made for the class I was teaching called “Travel Posts.” You can see class participants’ quilts HERE.
These little baskets were made with left-over fabric from making the Winter Sky tree skirt (see above). You can read more about them HERE.
I did a trunk show for Boundary Bay Quilter’s Guild – with ONLY Island Batik quilts and projects that I have made in the past 4 years as an Island Batik ambassador. You can see a glimpse of some of the trunk show HERE.
December
Island Batik’s challenge for December was to make a Lone Star! It was SEW rewarding to have this quilt turn out so nice! You can read about it HERE.
Left-overs from the Lone Star quilt turned into this cute quilt! Read about it HERE.
Little Pencil cases made with the left-overs from the Lone Star and the Baby Quilt:
The Scrappy Fall Mystery Quilt, background is “Linen,” all scraps from my Island Batik scrap bin:
This was my Spicy BOM Colour challenge Quilt. You can read more about it HERE.
A Winter Branches Table Runner … made a bit bigger to fit on the top of my piano.
I hope that everyone had a pleasant Christmas – if you celebrate! I know there were lots of changes in travel plans because of the weather across Canada and the USA. So, hopefully, you were able to celebrate with your loved ones!
A Dog Quilt
My daughter has been complaining that her beloved dog did not have a quilt of her own … so I decided I’d make one for Christmas for her. I went to my “dog” fabric bin and found this panel! Viola! A simple dog quilt. I quilted it with Silly Moon’s Cupid ruler. So fun to have hearts all over it! I think she loves her quilt!
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!
Lots of stitching in the past week!
January – November: 288 / 333
Dec: 24 / 25
Total: 324 / 358
Percentage = 87%
Stash Report
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!
The dog’s quilt used 2.5 yards of fabric for the front, back and binding!
My goal each year is to have a net fabric of 100 yards used. I didn’t make it this year! But at least I used more than I bought!
Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder! √ DONE
Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes √ DONE
This week’s list:
Start Clue #5 Chilhowie
Classic Cars Colour Challenge BOM – Mar / Apr
Re-do Nutcracker. … when I went to start colouring the Nutcracker, I realized that many of the black lines had run … well, duh, Helen said to use UNWASHED calico … and Batik has been washed a zillion times … so I need to re-trace it on some unwashed fabric!
Work on Naturescape Lone Star
Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder!
Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes
Design Wall
Judy, at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts, hosts a linky party for “What’s on your Design Wall” every week. Piecing:
Classic Cars Colour Challenge BOM
Chilhowie – Clue #5 When I went to start the block assembly, I realized that I had missed part of Clue #1 … so I’m currently catching up and finishing Clue #1!
Naturescape Lone Star …. after making the Lone Star for the December Island Batik challenge, I fell in LOVE with Lone Stars!!! I just happened to have an Island Batik 2 1/2” strip pack of Naturescape with coordinating green and so I started sewing and cutting! Yes, there is a LOT of matching of seams … every. single. one. But the end result is great – even if I can’t sew at 100 miles an hour!
Quilting:
Nothing … I need to re-trace the Nutcracker before I can start colouring and then quilting!
I made this beautiful tree skirt for Island Batik’s Fall/Winter ’21 catalogue. You can see the catalogue HERE. And, it’s now under my Christmas tree! There is Hobbs 80/20 in the middle and it was quilted with Aurifil #2600, Dove Grey.
And, in a previous post, I showed you a couple of little baskets that I’ve made with this same line of fabric.
I decided that I needed another table runner for the top of my piano. I chose a beautiful dark blue Island Batik fabric called “Ravine” and paired it with “Rice. This was also a DREMI: DRop Everything And Make It. This is the result:
Another DREAMI
I received a lovely charm pack and pattern from Missouri Star Quilting … and I just had to make it! Yup, it was a DRop Everything And Make It project! Such a fun project.
Another UFO Finish
The Spicy Colour Challenge quilt was started last December and I finally got it finished this month! You can read about it HERE. That makes 12 UFOs that I’ve finished this year. SEW … I will be getting my PHD in 2022. However, I still have a list of UFOs that need to be finished, so I will be having PHD in 2023!
Island Batik Fabric
Hobbs 80/20 on the inside
Aurifil thread (to piece and quilt)
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!
Lots of stitching in the past week!
January – November: 288 / 333
Dec: 18 / 18
Total: 306 / 351
Percentage = 87%
Stash Report
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!
However, this week, I went out to Chilliwack to Cozy Cotton Quilting to pick up some quilts, deliver patterns and give her another quilt for display. Angela had recently received a lot of Island Batik bolts (mostly from the Pumpkin Spice collection) and I just couldn’t resist … so I had 3 fabrics cut for me! Aren’t they beautiful ???? I will definitely be making the trip out to Cozy Cotton just to buy Island Batik fabric!!!
The Spicy BOM used 4.5 yards of fabric. The newest branches table runner used 1 yard. And the mugs / snowflake used 1.5 yards
Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder! √ DONE
Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes √ DONE
This week’s list:
Finish Clue #4 Chilhowie
Start Classic Cars Colour Challenge BOM – Jan / Feb
Start colouring the Nutcracker
Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder!
Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes
Design Wall
Judy, at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts, hosts a linky party for “What’s on your Design Wall” every week. I must apologize, I’ve been calling Judy by the wrong name !!! I’m so glad that she let me know and now I’m calling her by the correct name!
Piecing:
Classic Cars Colour Challenge BOM
Chilhowie – Clue #4 in progress
Quilting:
Once I do some colouring with Inktense pencils, I’ll start quilting the Nutcracker. Here he is on my window for tracing.
Upcoming & Current Blog Hops
Island Batik‘s December’s Lone Star Blog Hop. Week #3 is started! LOTS and LOTS of fabulous quilts!
This year, I participated in the Spicy Block of the Month, hosted by Patterns by Jen.
I used scraps of Island Batik fabrics to make the blocks.
Each month, Jen provides free directions for a 6″ and a 12″ block. When the month is over, you need to purchase the block for a minimal price.
Here is my December block: And yes, I goofed up and had to make adjustments, so it’s not exactly like Jen’s directions …
Here are the blocks in order …
And here is my finished quilt … I used Island Batik’s solid black for the sashing, 2 1/2″ squares of fabric left-over from the blocks for the corner stones.
And … with the quilt being a bit busy, I used wild quilting and thoroughly enjoyed quilting it!
2023 Colour Challenge
The 2023 Monthly Colour Challenge will be based on Classic Cars! Will you join me with the different monthly blocks? Make sure you follow Patterns by Jen and myself so you don’t miss a month! Jen will be posting the new blocks at the beginning of the month – me? I’ll be posting later in the month except for December, when I will post on the 1st!
This is Patti’s. I love the scrappiness and the dark background!
Here’s Dawn’s. She used 2 fabrics and the background. Doesn’t it look great?
Susan has the top together. It was a sunny day, so she was able to get a picture with true colours! And yes, you can see her shadow! She’s used ‘plane’ fabric! Very cute!
Jill has pulled fabric for her quilt … with those blues and greens against the grey – it’ll be lovely!
Isabelle says she still needs to add the border – and that will happen after Christmas.
Lynn K has the blocks laid out for one row. She says that she loves the scraps, but has very few left! That is amazing! And the background it totally scrappy – awesome!
Heather also did a scrappy background. And why not? Here it is with the rows ready to put together!
Irene ‘s inspector (Miss Hamish) obviously likes the blues in this quilt!!!
And here’s mine. The one with the dark background was the inspiration and the one with the light background was the one that I made while writing the pattern! Both are made with Island Batik fabrics, Hobbs batting on the inside and Aurifil thread for the quilting.
I taught the “Winter Branches” Table runner at Essem and I worked on my own table runner, but didn’t get it finished in class. But, it’s finished now! I used an Island Batik fabric from the Napa Valley collection along with Custard. There is Hobbs 80/20 on the inside and I quilted the straight lines with a walking foot and Aurifil #2311 (Muslin).
A UFO Finish
I finally finished this wallet! The outside is Cork and the inside is Island Batik fabric from the Napa Valley collection. The pattern is “The Necessary Clutch” by Emmaline Bags. For the twist clasp, the pattern said to follow manufacture’s directions. HUH!!! There were none!!! A friend of mine, Irene, told me to look at Spenser Ogg’s tutorial, How to Apply a Twist Lock. Spenser is brilliant. Her tutorial is great! This wallet would have been thrown in the trash if I hadn’t been able to do the twist lock. Thanks, Irene!!!
Now I can finally use this wallet! The cork on my current Necessary Clutch is falling apart. I’ve sprayed the new wallet’s cork with leather conditioner, so hopefully it will last longer than the first one. But really, 5 years isn’t too bad!
This is the wallet I made in 2018 … almost 5 years ago! And how it looks today. You can see how the cork is wearing at the edges and some of it is peeling off.
The Mystery Quilt is done!!!
This is a super simple mystery quilt! It is my own design. I designed it for the Boundary Bay Quilt Guild, but I’ve shared it with YOU as well!
The Parade is on Tuesday, Dec. 13, so be sure to come and see the wonderful quilts!
Here are 8 clues.
Oct 18: Clue #1: Fabric Requirements and Cutting HERE
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!
Lots of stitching in the past week!
January – November: 288 / 333
Dec: 11 / 11
Total: 299 / 344
Percentage = 86%
Stash Report
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!
When I made the Lone Star quilt with Island Batik’s Baby Bloomers collection (see HERE) … I had left-overs. The tutorial suggested using them for a border, top and bottom, but I didn’t want to do that on my lone star. And, since I’m on a mission to use up left-overs asap, I HAD to do something!
So, I paired up the left-overs, sewed them into squares, put them on-point with Lime Green (Island Batik solid basic) and voila! A baby quilt is born!
It was sandwiched with Hobbs 80/20 and quilted with Aurifil 2520 (violet).
The binding is Small Check-Multi Pink (part of the Baby Bloomers collection).
Here is the quilt – all quilted and bound! I LOVE how bright and cheery it is!
There were still some scraps left-over … so I made these 4 pencil cases, following a tutorial byAnnie. The “A Pencil Case for Lola” pattern is free HERE and the Youtube tutorial is HERE. If you’ve never made a byAnnie bag, this is a fantastic way to start!
On one of the pencil cases, I used Soft and Stable, on 3 of them I used Hobbs 80/20 batting. Each of them is fine, but the one with Soft and Stable holds it’s shape better.
Lone Star Blog Hop
Have you been following the Lone Star Blog Hop? There have been some wonderful quilts!!! Tons of eye candy!!! Visit Island Batik’s blog to see a re-cap of Week 1! Plus an opportunity to win fabric!
Coming in 2023!
For the past several years, I’ve hosted PHD in ???? (year). The idea is to decrease the number of UFOs that you have and to NOT increase the number! This is accomplished by finishing ALL of your new starts. There are a few exceptions, but I’ll be posting about it in the near future!
Several blogging friends and I will be hosting the Stay at Home Round Robin (SAHRR). Typically, groups of quilters do round robins where the quilt is passed on to other quilters to add the next round. With the SAHRR YOU are in control of the fabrics that are used and how big the quilt is. We’ll be starting this in mid-January! It’s a lot of fun, with quilters joining from around the world. There will be a post with more details in the coming weeks.
In July, I received an awesome Surprise package in my Island Batik, box and this is what I got: 20 half yard cuts of fabric from the Baby Bloomers collection, a signature collection for Karen Overton. Also included was 2 yard of Dots-Pink Carnation and 2 yards of Cow Moon Clouds – purple.
The only Lone Star I’ve made was a Judy Niemeyer pattern and I didn’t really want to purchase one of her patterns. I knew that there must be other options!
So, what to do??? EQ8 to the rescue … I downloaded the Baby Bloomers fabric collection and started to play! I’m not sure when, but I must have followed a tutorial at one point, because I found a folder called “Lone Star Practice.” Bingo! I found exactly what I wanted to make. I substituted the original fabric with the Baby Bloomers fabric and came up with this:
When I searched the Internet for “How to make a Lone Star Quilt,” I came across a few tutorials by Donna at Jordan Fabrics. WONDERFUL!!! Here’s the tutorial I mostly followed: One Jelly Roll, Lone Star. However, in order to make the quilt I wanted to make, I needed to make some adjustments. Mainly with the purple going up each point of the star.
I needed to make a strip set of my fabrics, I used my 2 1/2” Accuquilt die and made perfect strips very quickly!
I laid out the strips and pinned them onto my design wall.
I sewed the strips together (picture above) and cut according to the directions. And forgot to take a picture of the cut pieces!
Then, I made sure to mark Every. Single. Intersection. to ensure almost perfect points … (hmmm, that didn’t always work according to plan!)
Yes, I used “Dude” from Silly Moon Rulers and a pencil to mark the intersections. Then I used the forked pins to hold the intersections in place. I’m usually not a pinner – but it was a MUST in this case!
When I put the light pink from the collection up on the design wall with the star pieces I had assembled, my immediate thought was “what in the world were you thinking?” It did NOT look good. It looked washed out. I started digging through my stash! Many different fabrics were auditioned. I found this slightly darker and brighter pink tied up with one of my Island Batik precuts and BINGO, it was perfect for the quilt. It is called “Floral Carnation” and is from the Blenders collection (available at all times).
I quilted it with Aurifil Thread, #2515 (Light Orchid) on the top and Aurifil #2423 (Baby Pink) in the bobbin. When auditioning the threads, I felt that the Baby Pink was too light for the top but the Light Orchid was perfect. However, I didn’t know if I had enough Light Orchid to use for both the top and bobbin. I used Aurifil #4225 (Eggplant) to attach the binding.
Quilting Close-ups
The Finished Lone Star
Be sure to visit Maryellen at MaryMackMadeMine! She had the same fabric collection. I haven’t seen her quilt, but I just KNOW that it will be a totally different Lone Star!
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This is a super simple mystery quilt! It is my own design. I designed it for the Boundary Bay Quilt Guild, but I’m going to be sharing it with YOU as well!
This quilt will finish at 43″ x 53″
There are 8 clues. They will all come out on Tuesdays, starting October 18.
Oct 18: Clue #1: Fabric Requirements and Cutting HERE
I will be teaching this table runner at Essem on Wednesday. I believe there is still room for one more. You can register for it HERE. This table runner will take you into the freeing world of slightly abstract and each table runner will be unique.
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!
Lots of stitching in the past week!
January – October: 258 / 303
Nov: 27 /27
Total: 285 / 331
Percentage = 86%
Stash Report
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!
The backing for this quilt used 4 yards of fabric. You can see details of this quilt HERE.
Fabric: Island Batik Citified collection, FMQ with Aurifil thread, Hobbs 80/20 batting in the middle!
But I did go shopping. I stopped in at Castle’s Sewing Centre and just HAD to buy some of their Island Batik fabrics! I bought 1 meter of each! Aren’t they just beautiful???????
Melodic Mystery Quilt: November clue is done … but I still haven’t fixed my previous mistakes. It’s not too late for you to start … the clues are at Meadow Mist Designs.
I received a 2.5″ strip pack from Island Batik awhile back … It’s such a beautiful collection … and I debated long and hard about what to make with it! It’s so pretty with the purples, oranges, golds, neutrals and blues!
I decided to go with a simple partial log cabin. The hardest part was deciding where each block should go!
Here are some close-ups of the graffiti quilting! I really enjoy quilting whatever I feel like! It’s so much fun! And, to be totally honest, it’s perfect when the quilt front is busy! And, it’s fast! I used Aurifil thread for the quilting and Hobbs 80/20 is in the middle!
This week’s class
This week, at Essem, I taught how to use an Easy Angle Ruler to make this quilt: (same block, different layouts.)
The ladies made a great start on their quilts! The quilts are going to be so different and each will be stunning!
A New Start #1
Have you ever made a Bonnie Hunter mystery quilt? I’ve made several in the past! But for the last few years, I haven’t made one. However, that is going to change this year! I’m going to make the Chilhowie mystery quilt! The first clue came out today and you can access it HERE.
I just might have enough Island Batik scraps to make this quilt! Are you going to join me in making this?
This quilt finishes at 78″ x 78″. If you don’t want to make one that big, just make half of the units that Bonnie suggests.
A New Start #2
Helen Godden, an excellent quilter and teacher is offering a FREE Christmas sew-a-long. If you want to improve your free motion quilting and only spend a few minutes each day – this is a project for YOU! You can access the pattern HERE. Then, starting Dec. 1, watch a daily youtube video on how to quilt it!
Patterns by Jen has hosted a Spicy BOM this year. November’s Spice is Cloves. The block on the left is November’s block – with alterations … The photo on the right is all of the blocks so far this year. You can get November’s block FREE – for the rest of the month … HERE. I’ve used scraps of Island Batik fabrics to make these blocks … that’s why some of the pieces are pieced together!
The Mystery Quilt has started!
This is a super simple mystery quilt! It is my own design. I designed it for the Boundary Bay Quilt Guild, but I’m going to be sharing it with YOU as well!
This quilt will finish at 43″ x 53″
There are 8 clues. They will all come out on Tuesdays, starting October 18.
Oct 18: Clue #1: Fabric Requirements and Cutting HERE
I will be teaching several classes at Essem in November. You can register for them HERE. This week it will be learning to use an Easy Angle Ruler for perfect Half-Square Triangles and making a scrappy quilt.
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!
Lots of stitching in the past week!
January – October: 258 / 303
Nov: 20 /20
Total: 278 / 324
Percentage = 85%
Stash Report
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!
I finished the little zipper pouches for the Music Blog Hop. They used 1.5 yards of fabric. The travel post quilt used 1.5 yards as well.
But I did go shopping. A fabric store that is closing had wide back fabric for $10/m. I couldn’t resist! I bought 21 meters! That’s gonna hurt my numbers – but at that price, I just HAD to!
Melodic Mystery Quilt: November clue is done … but I still haven’t fixed my previous mistakes. It’s not too late if you want to start this mystery … the clues are at Meadow Mist Designs.
This week I taught “Travel Posts” to 2 lovely talented quilters! Travel Posts is in the book Color Block Quilt Making by Elizabeth Chappell. It’s a great book and if you’re looking for quick and easy patterns – this book is for you! Essem may have this book in stock.
This is the quilt I made for the class sample. Simina helped pick out the fabrics: the coloured portions are grunge.
Anyhow, the class participants came very prepared and had their fabric all cut and labelled and were ready to roll! They finished the tops in class! Aren’t they great?
Here’s the 2nd one I did using Island Batik fabrics from the “Mystery Collection” and Island Batik solid grey.
Oh ya!!! I started ANOTHER new project. When my cousin, Connie and I were shopping at the Cloth Shop, we saw these super nifty bowls. I fell in love!!! However, they did not have the pattern in stock. But a couple of weeks later, I was at Chitterchatter fabrics and they had the pattern. Of course I had to buy it! There are 7 different sizes included in the pattern. The pattern is “Goodness Bowl” by Jean Paccagnan. There is even a great youtube video to go with the pattern! And BONUS: Jean Paccagnan is a local designer!!!
I know it’s English Paper Piecing, but if I only sew for about 10 minutes a day, I’ll eventually get it done!
I decided to use some beautiful blue scraps of Island Batik fabric.
The first thing I did for this stocking challenge was to find a stocking pattern. I printed it out and I didn’t like I. My husband adjusted it, making the toes larger and I liked it way better!
For my first stocking, I cut out 2 pieces of Hobbs Batting 80/20 and drew lines on it to guide me as I did the striped quilt as you go. I used 2″ strips of each fabric. Prairie Spirit Alpacas/Wool pressing mat made everything lie perfectly flat!
I needed to be careful to ensure that I covered the batting with the fabrics … Jack the ripper came out to play here …
The stockings needed to be trimmed. I used the 1/4” mark on my ruler and worked around my template. (Yes, I used the page from a large calendar for my pattern!)
The 2nd stocking was a crazy patch that I attempted to do as a quilt as you go – but I had drawn too many intersecting lines to make it work … so it became an improvised crazy patch stocking.
I used “Pinecone – Dark Teal” and the red is #121913380 from Season Splendor (Fall/Winter 2019 collection) for the stockings and “Coconut” for the snowflakes. The snowflakes were cut with Accuquilt dies that I borrowed from our guild’s die collection.
Appliqueing the snowflake and marking the stocking for the crazy quilting.
Aurifil Thread # 2021 (Natural White) was used for the applique process. #2692 (Black) was used for quilting, assembly and the hanging tabs.
I wanted a little flange on the cuff – so the red was cut at 1 1/4” and the green at 3.” This made it possible to fold it 3/4” of the green to the inside so that the lining didn’t show. I used Island Batik solid white fabric for the lining.
Here’s the first 2 stockings hanging on my design wall.
I think the stockings look a little more Christmasy pinned to the wood pile! The third stocking is for our grand-dog, Daphne! The larger stockings are 21″ long and Daphne’s is 17″ long.
Quilting Gail 