I used a strip set from Island Batik called “Playful Purples” and Island Batik solid white for the background. If you want to use the same fabric, both the strip set and the solid white is available at Creekside Quilts HERE.
Clue #5
This is the final clue. I was going to have you sew portions of this together first, but a couple of people said, “no, let the participants organize the fabrics how they want.” So, that’s what I’ve done!
Edit: Cut 2 more 5″ squares. Cut them in half diagonally. These 4 HST will be your corner blocks.
Here’s a picture of my top … I’ve started quilting it … if you look hard, you can see the straight lines through the coloured blocks and on the top left, the curved lines in the white block. I’m hoping that next week I will have the quilt quilted and bound. Once it’s finished, I’ll have a link party where you can add your quilt to show everyone.
Edit from Clue #4: You will need 124 sections for the quilt. If you can’t get 8 from each strata, you can make a shorter quilt … but it needs to be shorter in groups of 12. For example 112 will work.
A few months ago, I was asked to use some left-over fabric from a quilt I made for an Island Batik catalogue quilt and send the mini to Hobbs batting. They have hung it in their booth at the Houston Quilt Market! It’s probably the only time I’ll have a quilt at the show (ha! ha!)
The collection for this mini is Petal Poetry, a signature collection for Megan Best of Best Quilter. This collection is so very pretty!
I ‘borrowed’ the following pictures from Hobbs Batting as I can’t seem to find one that I took. I find that highly unusual since I ALWAYS take pictures of my finished projects … but I’ve looked several times and can’t find it!
Yvonne, @ Quilting Jetgirl, has a link party with the Favourite Finish of the Month. As usual, I find it extremely difficult to choose only ONE favourite!! How can I even begin to choose only ONE??? Well, I can’t! I guess it’s because I generally like everything that I make! Which one is your favourite?
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.
I made 3 quilts for Create with Claudia’s Twilight blog hop. You can read about them HERE.
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!
Since we’re home now, I’ve been able to sew every day!
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!
Fabric Used in the last week: 13.5 yards
Fabric Used in 2024: 176.5 yards from non-IB: 70
Fabric Added in the last week: 0 yards
Fabric Added this year: 29.5 yards
Net Fabric used: 131.5 yards
To Do
Carol from Quilt Schmilt is hosting “To Do” every week.
To Do from the last report:
A little bit of this and a little bit of that was done, but nothing finished from the list this week.
Get Jelly Roll Mystery next clue & blog post ready! in progress
Quilt Floral FusionNOT DONE
2025 SAHRR get prompt 4 done √ DONE.
Monthly Colour Challenge – need to sandwich, quilt and bind NOT DONE
Work on Island Batik November project (Dresden Plate) in progress
Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder! √ DONE.
Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes.√ DONE.
To Do for next week:
Get Jelly Roll Mystery next clue & blog post ready!
Quilt Floral Fusion
2025 SAHRR Work on Prompt 5
Monthly Colour Challenge – need to sandwich, quilt and bind
Work on Island Batik November project (Dresden Plate)
Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder!
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.
Claudia asked if I would be interested in participating in her blog hop featuring her Island Batik signature collection. I love the blues and golds … it’s such a pretty collection! I paired it with Eggwhite, an Island Batik foundation that is available year round.
When I ordered fabric from her, I ordered what EQ8 said I needed. I should know better! It was way more than I needed!! So, out of guilt, I ended up making 3 quilts!
This first one was designed in EQ8 and is paper pieced. I like how the centre blocks go every which way. It measures 51″ x 63.5″
This was quilted with Silly Moon’s Drop 3 and Drop 1 rulers.
This 2nd one was cut with similar measurements in the squares. And they were all cut the same. It didn’t matter which way I oriented the blocks, the centre block looks like it is always in the same orientation. This quilt measures 52″ x 52″.
This one was free motion quilted, attempting to quilt daisies – like in some of the fabrics!
One of the fabrics reminded me of a giraffe. Of course, giraffes do not have blue spots, but I thought it would make a cute quilt. The grass and sky were from my Island Batik stash. The cloud is eggwhite. This quilt is 43″ x 47.”
I won binding chicken when I was binding this quilt!
And here’s a picture of all 3 quilts hanging on the clothesline:
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.
We are excited to have our great friends from ByAnnie.com feature this month’s challenge! ByAnnie will generously provided each ambassador with a pattern and all the necessary hardware to make a bag of our choice! We had to choose a pattern that had a supporting Add-On video.
As you can see from the above picture, I chose to make Payday in both sizes. ByAnnie supplied all the hardware and supplies I needed and Island Batik provided the fabric I had chosen.
I started out by reading through the pattern a couple of times. I often will skip this step, but not when making a ByAnnie bag!
My next step was to print out the labels and cut out the fabric, Soft & Stable, and Interfacing. ByAnnie patterns have little boxes that you can check off as you complete each step. This, and the excellent cutting directions make cutting out the pieces easy. Although, I find I do need to measure twice or 3 times before cutting. (don’t ask me why I tell you this! LOL!!!)
Here are the labelled pieces of both bags up on the design wall. Yes, they are all bunched together, so you can’t see the measurements, but after the pictures were taken, they were spread out to make it easy to access the pieces I needed.
With the lining of the Large PayDay the same fabric as the outer of the Small, I didn’t dare try making both of them at the same time!
I got so involved in making the bags that I forgot to take progress pictures! Sorry! However, I did refer to the Add-on video several times to ensure that I was making it correctly!
Here are pictures showing the inside (large on the left, small on the right):
This is the large Payday:
This is the small Payday:
Both bags together on my design wall:
Bag Stats:
Size:
LARGE: 6″H x 10½”W x 1¼”D when closed,13¼”H x 10½”W when open
SMALL: 4¾”H x 9″W x 1¼”D when closed,10¾”H x 9″W when open
Fabric: Island Batik: from the Midnight Garden collection
I know it’s just the last day of the weekend, but I think this is true each and every day!!
I had a finish this week: It’s Jam Session. A pattern by Brenda at Songbird Designs. You can read about it HERE:
Monthly Colour Challenge
October’s colour is Black and Grey. Visit Jen at Patterns by Jen to get your free pattern for this month. It’s free for the month and after that you’ll need to pay a small fee for it.
I’m using Island Batik fabrics for my blocks. I am obviously rebelling and using pink! My sashing and border are black and grey, so I wanted this block to be different.
Here’s all my blocks to date:
WIPS-B-GONE
Leanne, from Devoted Quilter, is doing a WIPS-B-Gone again this year. I did it last year, and every day I worked on a project AND I cleaned my studio!!! It was great!! By the end of 2 months, I had a LOT of things accomplished and breathing room in my studio!
Obviously, I choose the flowers … Each petal indicates at least 15 minutes. Green is for piecing, Orange is for Quilting and Purple is for cleaning.
Here is the link, if you want to join in the fun. Get your projects finished, clean your studio or whatever you choose to do!
Here’s a picture of my clean cutting table: Yes, I know that I need to tidy up the bulletin board above the cutting table.
Floral Fusion Blocks
Denise at A Quiltery is doing “Floral Fusion” – a Sew Along with new blocks each Monday. This promises to be beautiful!!! Hurry and get this week’s block while it’s still free! (See HERE).
Here is a picture of my flower blocks all assembled. I’m using a variety of Island Batik scraps. I know that I’m biased, but I think it’s absolutely beautiful!!! Thank you, Denise.
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!
Since we’re home now, I’ve been able to sew every day!
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 Jam Session quilt used about 8 yards of fabric. No shopping, no fabric purchases.
Fabric Used in the last week: 8 yards
Fabric Used in 2024: 161 yards from non-IB: 66.5
Fabric Added in the last week: 0 yards
Fabric Added this year: 29.5 yards
Net Fabric used: 116.5 yards
To Do
Carol from Quilt Schmilt is hosting “To Do” every week.
To Do from the last report:
A little bit of this and a little bit of that was done, but nothing finished from the list this week.
Get Jelly Roll Mystery blog post ready! √ DONE.
Appliquéing Floral Fusion blocks √ DONE.
2025 SAHRR get prompt 3 done √ DONE.
Monthly Colour Challenge – need to sandwich, quilt and bind. NOT DONE
Twilight blog hop project. in progress
Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder! √ DONE.
Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes.√ DONE.
To Do for next week:
Get Jelly Roll Mystery next clue & blog post ready!
Work on Floral Fusion border
2025 SAHRR get prompt 4 done
Monthly Colour Challenge – need to sandwich, quilt and bind
Twilight blog hop project
Work on Island Batik November project (Dresden Plate)
Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder!
Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes.
Jelly Roll Mystery Quilt
On Tuesday, October 1, the fabric requirements were posted HERE. Each following week the clues will be published on Tuesdays. I hope you will join this mystery quilt!
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.
I was away for most of this month. First I had a quilt retreat at Loon Lake. Retreats are always lots of fun! Then we made a quick trip to the interior to try out our new (to us) 5th wheel. It was good that we were just doing a trial run. The water pump in the 5th wheel broke and needed replacing, so we were home for several days while handy hubby fixed it.
Our next trip took us to the east. We were dry camping. (That means no electricity!). This can be a hardship for a die-hard, must sew EVERY day quilter!! But, I took along my hand crank! Here I am, at the Kettle Valley Provincial Park, working on the sashing strips for the monthly colour challenge.
Here are some pictures of my set up and view. Although I didn’t get a picture of one, I was able to occasionally watch deer!
Floral Fusion Blocks
Denise at A Quiltery is doing “Floral Fusion” – a Sew Along with new blocks each Monday. This promises to be beautiful!!! Hurry and get this week’s block while it’s still free! (See HERE).
While we were glamping, I was able to cut out some appliqué flowers and glue them onto background squares. Then, there is a picture of my flower blocks to date. I’m using a variety of Island Batik scraps.
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 got lots of sewing done while I was at a retreat, but not a lot while we were dry camping. However, I did count the time I spent cutting out appliqué pieces as sewing time.
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 figure that the tissue holders used up about 1.5 yards of fabric. Yes, I used bits and pieces, but they all came from my Island Batik stash.
Fabric Used in the last week: 1.5 yards
Fabric Used in 2024: 153 yards from non-IB: 63.5
Fabric Added in the last week: 0 yards
Fabric Added this year: 29.5 yards
Net Fabric used: 108.5 yards
To Do
Carol from Quilt Schmilt is hosting “To Do” every week.
To Do from the last report:
A little bit of this and a little bit of that was done, but nothing finished from the list this week.
Appliquéing Floral Fusion blocks. in progress
2025 SAHRR get prompt 3 done in progress
Working on sashing and borders for Monthly Colour Challenge.√ DONE. I finished this on my hand crank sewing machine, but no pictures until December after the final block is revealed!
Twilight Blog Hop project in progress
Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder! √ DONE.
Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes.√ DONE.
To Do for next week:
Get Jelly Roll Mystery blog post ready!
Appliquéing Floral Fusion blocks
2025 SAHRR get prompt 3 done
Monthly Colour Challenge – need to sandwich, quilt and bind
Twilight blog hop project
Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder!
Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes.
Jelly Roll Mystery Quilt
On Tuesday, October 1, the fabric requirements will be given. Each following week the clues will be published on Tuesdays. I hope you will join this mystery quilt!
PLEASE NOTE: Missouri Star is having a ton of promotions in September to celebrate their birthday! You will NOT receive 20% off these. Although, I may still receive a small commission! Thank you for your support!
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.
Challenge: September is the time to remember that a little kindness goes a long way. Share your “kind” projects. Your favorite charity project, a free online pattern or anything that shows you spread a little kindness, everywhere you go. The Bee’s are an important part of life as well, and we all need to be kind to them too!
I thought it would be cute to make a quilt with a bee on it. But “NO” was my mind’s response to that thought. I’m allergic to bees (their stings) and I generally don’t like them. Yes, I know they are good for growing things and are necessary, but honestly, I don’t want them anywhere near me. And not close-up in a quilt!
I do a LOT of donation quilts for numerous charities (see below), but I wanted to do something different.
So what to do???
I was thinking about what to do as I was making a ton of tissue holders. I was getting ready for a retreat and making them for every attendee. Tissues are something that we all use and need at one time or another. The holders are quick and easy to make. But making over 20 of them takes time. And yes, I was doing it as a kindness to everyone!
Here’s how to make them:
Step #1: Take a 6″ x 6″ square and an 6″ x 8″ rectangle. Sew them together on the long ends of the 8″ rectangle, wrong sides together, using a 1/4” seam.
Step #2: Turn it right side out and ensure the ends of the 8″ rectangle form a small ‘border’ on each end. (I don’t measure, I just estimate that they are close to the same width).
Step #3: Fold over one of the edges, measuring 1 3/4” up. Overlap the second side, folding down 1 1/2“. Clip into place and sew the ends. (Yes, they will overlap).
Step #4: Sew the ends, using a 1/4” seam.
Step #5: Make boxed corners. Fold as in the picture and sew a line 1/2” from the corner. Trim boxed corners and turn right side out.
Boundary Bay Quilting Guild accepts donations for baby quilts, comfort quilts and Quilts of Valour. I regularly donate to the baby quilt and comfort quilt committees. I make a lot of quilts and it’s nice to know that they are going someplace where they are loved. Here are a few that I’ve made in the last while:
At Christmas time, the guild collects placemats for meals on wheels. I make these throughout the year, using left-overs from quilts. I simply put some Christmas fabric on the back and the recipient will have a reversible placemat. Sorry, no pictures.
Bee Kind Blog Hoppers
Bee sure to see all the Kindness of other bloggers
For September, there is no 20% off an order of $50 or more. However, MSQC is having fantastic sales this month and if you use my Affiliate link, I will still receive a small commission.
Do you have Fabracadabra happening in your sewing studio? I do … and it’s often hiding in sight where I can see it!
Monthly Colour Challenge
September’s colour is Brown. Visit Jen at Patterns by Jen to get your free pattern for this month. It’s free for the month and after that you’ll need to pay a small fee for it.
I’m using Island Batik fabrics for my blocks.
Here’s all my blocks to date:
Floral Fusion Blocks
Denise at A Quiltery is doing “Floral Fusion” – a Sew Along with new blocks each Monday. This promises to be beautiful!!! Hurry and get this week’s block while it’s still free! (See HERE).
The pink and purple flowers on the left are all appliquéd on. I used batting as the stabilizer and will trim around all the stitching to give them a trapunto look. The 2 columns on the right have been glued into place and need stitching.
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 got lots of sewing done while I was at a retreat, but not a lot while we were dry camping. However, I did count the time I spent cutting out appliqué pieces as sewing time.
Working on sashing and borders for Monthly Colour Challenge
Twilight blog hop project
Work on Prompt #3 for SAHRR ’25
Quilting:
“5 fat quarter” quilt is partially quilted.
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!
I shared my Adventurous Appliqué Quilt this week … it used approximately 10 yards of fabric and a ton of thread! You can read about my process and this fun technique HERE.
Fabric Used in the last week: 10 yards
Fabric Used in 2024: 151.5 yards from non-IB: 63.5
Fabric Added in the last week: 0 yards
Fabric Added this year: 29.5 yards
Net Fabric used: 117 yards
To Do
Carol from Quilt Schmilt is hosting “To Do” every week.
To Do from the last report:
A little bit of this and a little bit of that was done, but nothing finished from the list this week.
Appliquéing Floral Fusion blocks. in progress
Make Rope bowl√ DONE
Working on sashing and borders for Monthly Colour Challenge.not done
Twilight Blog Hop project in progress
Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder! √ DONE.
Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes.√ DONE.
To Do for next week:
I won’t be home a lot in the next couple of weeks, so my list is limited, and likely beyond reasonable expectations.
Appliquéing Floral Fusion blocks
2025 SAHRR get prompt 3 done
Work on sashing and borders for Monthly Colour Challenge
Twilight blog hop project
Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder!
Visit Island Batik Blog for an opportunity to win some awesome fabric and see a recap of this week’s blog hop quilts!n some awesome fabric and see a recap of this week’s blog hop quilts!
PLEASE NOTE: Missouri Star is having a ton of promotions in September to celebrate their birthday! You will NOT receive 20% off these. Although, I may still receive a small commission! Thank you for your support!
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.
For this challenge, we were encouraged to use an edge-painting technique that was used for a quilt called Full Bloom. A great youtube tutorial was the inspiration. (Click HERE). The basic premise is to appliqué the pieces using the edge painting technique.
This is the fantastic fabric I received, along with 5 spools of 40 weight Aurifil thread. The collection is called Poetic Bouquet, designed by Kathy Engle for Heidi Pridemore of The Whimsical Workshop.
I decided to use the Garden Party quilt pattern by Laura Heine. You can get the pattern HERE. I wanted a pattern that had some fairly large pieces and this fit pattern with flowers and butterflies fit my purpose!
I traced out the pattern onto six 22″ background squares of Frosting – an Island Batik neutral that is available year round. The individual pattern pieces were cut out using 19 of the 20 fabrics in the collection. (The 20th fabric was used for the binding.). The design board was handy for pinning each of the fabrics on the main squares. I was able to ensure that the purple petals and the light petals were in different positions.
Then I started to glue each piece into place, using Acorn Seam Align glue. (You can get the glue HERE). I had this glue in a “Precision Piecing” kit that has been sitting in a drawer for a LONG time. I had never used the kit because I don’t see the point in gluing each and every seam that I sew. ANYHOW, I decided to try it for gluing the pieces onto the background. It worked like a charm!!!! Especially with the Oliso Iron, to press it into place.
When the 6 squares had the individual pieces ironed on them, it was time to audition the layout. The first was an attempt at alternating the butterflies. The 2nd had all the squares in the same orientation and the 3rd had the 3/4 flowers. The 3rd layout won!
I decided that I would appliqué each square on it’s own. Since it would be easier to manipulate a 22″ square than a whole quilt. I chose to use Hobbs Batting Heirloom Cotton with scrim as I knew that it would appliqué nicely on my machine and not get caught up in the feed dogs. (Yes, it required frequent cleaning, but it worked). I was able to cut several layers of the batting easily with the Missouri Star Amelia Scissors as the rotary cutter would not cut through the layers. A test sample was made to make sure I was on the right path.
I was using the 40 weight Aurifil Thread I had received in my July box and quickly realized that I shouldn’t (or didn’t need to) use the 40 weight in the bobbin or I would run out of thread for the top. I used a lot of various Aurifil Thread 50 weight bobbins in colours close to what I was using on the top. Here is what the stitches looked like on the back of the batting. I used a few different Appliqué stitches on my Janome M7 to thread paint the sides of the pieces. #18 was used the most, #17 was used occasionally and a simple zig zag was used once in a while (on the stems and leaf centres).
Here are some close-ups of the stitching from the front.
Once each of the squares was appliquéd, they were sashed together with Island Batik‘s solid grey and a backing applied. The background was free-motion quilted around each of the appliqué pieces. The sashing and borders were quilted using the same appliqué stitch that was used for the edge stitching.
Quilt Stats:
Size: 48″ x 70″
Fabric: Island Batik: Poetic Bouquet, Solid Black (butterfly centres), Amber (flower centres, from Opulent Orange), Frosting (Background) and Solid Grey (sashing and borders).
Make sure you visit Megan Best‘s blog! She has the same collection as me!!! And, I also heard that she used some of the same appliqué stitches as me!! I can’t wait to see her quilt!!
Where can you find Poetic Bouquet?
There are several stores throughout the USA that sell Poetic Bouquet, here are a few:
PLEASE NOTE: Missouri Star is having a ton of promotions in September to celebrate their birthday! You will NOT receive 20% off these. Although, I may still receive a small commission!
Thank you for your support!
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.
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.
So, you might be wondering WHY I’m a Silly Moon affiliate? Well, I was asked and said, “yes.” But also, I absolutely LOVE ❤️ the rulers.
Here’s a little about the beginning of my Silly Moon journey:
The first Silly Moon ruler I bought was “Turkey.” A friend of mine was helping vend at a quilt show and convinced me to buy it (Thanks, Judy D!). It was something that sat and sat. Finally, one day, I decided that I would use it on this donation quilt. You can read about it HERE.
My next venture with Silly Moon was with a “Cupid” ruler. I did all over hearts. I backtracked on a heart, then did another one from that point … it’s fun and simple and fast! The quilt on the left used all 4 sizes, the one on the right used mostly one size.
I believe it was during the Covid days that our guild had Kellie (owner of Silly Moon) do a workshop using 2 rulers, “Charming” and “Edgie 6“. We were instructed to make a small table mat using 5” squares. Well, for those of you that know, me, you know that I often don’t follow the exact instructions and I obviously made the following quilt bigger than a small table mat. In the centre, I followed the instructions in the class and used the appropriate rulers. Practicing the different motifs on different blocks. Then, I used a mixture of the Charming and Cupid rulers when finishing the quilt. You can read about it on THIS POST. I found the class was excellent and the rulers were easy to handle. You can access the on-line class HERE.
I’ve been buying Silly Moon rulers ever since. Rare is the quilt that doesn’t have some ruler quilting on it!! I think “Rocket” is the most used ruler I have. It is fantastic for stitch in the ditch, or a 1/4” echo and a zillion other uses.
At one point, I bought the “Twinkle” rulers. I made this Christmas wreath for an Island Batik challenge in July 2021. I used the Twinkle ruler in the centre and the 4 corners. You can read about it HERE.
“Rocket” was used to do a 1/4” outline on all the stars. You can see a close-up of it HERE.
The “Beanie” rulers are VERY versatile! They can do circles, arches and tons of things. I used them to do a Baptist Fan on this quilt. You can read about it HERE.
Visit Silly Moon to shop for the rulers and also visit their YouTube channel to see videos!
I have other Silly Moon rulers, but these were quilts that were quilted when I began my Silly Moon journey!
PLEASE NOTE: Missouri Star is having a ton of promotions in September to celebrate their birthday! You will NOT receive 20% off these. Although, I may still receive a small commission!
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.
As a Missouri Star Quilt Company Affiliate, I was given the opportunity to receive some Christmas Templates.
And the BEST part: Is that YOU have an opportunity to win a set as well. You have to follow both Missouri Star and myself on Instagram (@quiltinggail and @missouriquiltco). Find my IG post that talks about the templates and leave a comment. I will choose a winner on August 25!
A Finish!
This has been waiting to be finished for quite a while! This quilt was made with the left-overs from the Lone Star Quilt I made with Island Batik‘s Pin Dot Floral (a signature collection for Megan Best). You can read about that quilt on THIS POST! I didn’t want to do a straight piece in the back, so I used a bunch of the left-overs and made the strip piece in the middle. The quilt was quick and easy to quilt – just a simple stipple.
A Squirrel hit me!
Something new to tempt me!! And it promises to be oh, so pretty!
Denise at A Quiltery is starting “Floral Fusion” a Sew Along with new blocks each Monday. Hurry and get this week’s block while it’s still free! (See HERE).
Here’s my first block … isn’t it pretty? It was pretty quick to cut out and fuse onto the background fabrics!
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!
Island Batik October project. This is a byAnnie bag called “Payday.” I’m making both the Large and Small bags.
Fall ’24 mystery quilt. Some progress made
2025 SAHRR. I’ve started …
Monthly Colour Challenge: Layout (Jen has posted the sashing and border blocks for this challenge. You can access it HERE.). I’ll be doing this as a leader and ender.
“Stash Yardage” I took 2 pieces of stash and sandwiched them.
“5 fat quarter” quilt is sandwiched … need to decide how to quilt it!
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!
The Lone Star- left-overs was finished. It used 5.5 yards of fabric. No shopping this week!
Fabric Used in the last week: 5.5 yards
Fabric Used in 2024: 146 yards from non-IB: 57
Fabric Added in the last week: 0 yards
Fabric Added this year: 29.5 yards
Net Fabric used: 101.5 yards
To Do
Carol from Quilt Schmilt is hosting “To Do” every week.
To Do from the last report:
A little bit of this and a little bit of that was done, but nothing finished from the list this week.
Work on Island Batik October project. in progress
Finish the Fall Mystery Quilt flimsy and writing directions. in progress flimsy almost done!
2025 SAHRR. get centre block done. √ DONE.
Monthly Colour Challenge: Layout (Jen has posted the sashing and border blocks for this challenge. You can access it HERE.). I’ll be doing this as a leader and ender. in progress
Twilight Blog Hop — square up the blocks and web the quilt in progress Blocks are squared … need to figure out the layout and then web them
Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder! Not Successful. I started the Floral Fusion
Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes.√ DONE.
To Do for next week:
Work on Island Batik October project. Try to finish the Large one.
Finish the Fall Mystery Quilt flimsy and finish writing directions
2025 SAHRR. get prompt 1 done
Monthly Colour Challenge: Layout (Jen has posted the sashing and border blocks for this challenge. You can access it HERE.). I’ll be doing this as a leader and ender.
Twilight Blog Hop — web the quilt
Make a decision on the Be Kind blog hop.
Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder!
Here is my Affiliate link: https://glnk.io/mzmmj/quiltinggail If you order over $50 from Missouri Star, you will get 20% off your order and I may receive a small commission. Thank you for your support!
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.
It’s August and some kids are back to school and others will be heading back in September. At any rate, the stores have all their “back to school” sales on. Do you take advantage of these sales for your sewing room?
I do. Here are some of the products I use in my sewing room and some are suggestions from other bloggers and quilters.
A flannel back tablecloth is great for a design wall … especially if I’m going sewing somewhere besides in my home.
Hair clips are great for clipping labels onto fabric
Spray bottle for water (I always use a dry iron … and I spray the fabric if I want steam)
Shelf liner
will hold your sewing machine foot in place
add it to the back of pincushions to prevent them from slipping around
in a pinch, you can use a couple of pieces (3″x 3″) to place under your hands when you free motion quilt
Put a small square between your small rulers and your fabric – it’ll prevent the ruler from shifting
Hair ties – place them around the thread and the bobbin and you know which bobbin goes with which thread … plus it keeps the thread from unwinding
These are the small hair ties … they are cloth covered elastics. You can see in the picture how small they are. When my thread and bobbins are in the drawer, it’s super easy to figure out which bobbin goes with which spool of thread. Plus there isn’t miles of thread all over!
Notebook with grid lines … for planning that next quilt and Pencil crayons to colour your quilt
Mechanical pencils for fine lines (on the back of HST) or to mark the centre of a block
Elmer’s School Glue … I use this a LOT … dilute it 4 parts water to 1 part glue and it’s perfect for gluing down binding or whatever needs to stay in place.
Binder clips – they are perfect to supplement your smaller clips … great when you have a large number of pieces or ???
Flag post-its, or just plain post-it notes are perfect for short-term labels.
Disappearing Elmer’s Glue Stick. These have MANY uses. I often use it to pre-baste my binding. Then when I get to the sewing machine, binding is done in a flash.
Coloured Sharpies … OK … confession here … these are great for colouring that white thread that is showing, or for outlining shapes (as per Helen Godden).
Painters tape. I use it to label things and to quickly mark my sewing lines when quilting.
These “Stained” Sharpie markers are fantastic for quilt labels, or anything you want to permanently mark.
I was Featured
Jennifer, from Inquiring Quilter, Susan from Quilt Fabrication, Andree from Quilting & Learning and Denise from A Quiltery all featured my Turkey that I shared last week.
Oh Dear … Something New to Start
Denise at A Quiltery is starting “Floral Fusion” a Sew Along with new blocks each Monday. This promises to be beautiful!!! Hurry and get this week’s block while it’s still free! (See HERE).
Here’s the start of my Block 1. I’m using Island Batik fabrics. The background is from a stash-builder roll and the flower and future leaves are from my scraps. This should decrease my scraps … a little!
Don’t Forget!
Here is my Affiliate link: https://glnk.io/mzmmj/quiltinggail If you order over $50 from Missouri Star, you will get 20% off your order and I may receive a small commission. Thank you for your support!
In the spring, we had company and they commented on my ‘heart’ quilt on the piano. It was April and well past Valentines … call me lazy, but I hadn’t changed it.
I mentioned that I needed to make a mini quilt for a future Island Batik project. Tessa, age 13, suggested that I make one for Thanksgiving. Jokingly, I asked if she wanted to design one for me. She eagerly said, “Yes!” I gave her some graft paper and she went to work drawing up this cute turkey!! Isn’t he sweet? And, although I didn’t time her, she had the drawing done in less than 30 minutes!! Talk about a talented young lady!
Then, we visited my boxes of Island Batik Stash and these are the fabrics she picked!
Here is a list of the fabrics that were labelled:
Spots – Green Hunter
Dot Orange Cheddar
Dots – Brown – from Harvest Night
Circle Orange from Celtic Fields
Celtic Fields Mini Knot Red
Acorn Wheat – from Napa Valley
Cheerios – Walnut from Harvest Night
Dijon
Dark Grey is the border
Hexagon – Orange is the binding
The next step was to enlarge the picture, so that I could accurately cut out the pieces. (Note: The enlarged picture has numbers to help me keep the fabrics in order!)
Once all the applique was done, as well as the quilting, I measured the outside to make sure I had enough fabric for the binding. OOPS!!! It measured 24″ x 26.” The maximum size for this mini quilt was to be 24″ x 24″. It was 2″ too long!! I immediately saw where I went wrong. See that strip of mottled orange under the turkey? I had forgotten that it was there. At this point, I had 3 choices:
The first was to take off the stitching at the top and shorten it. YUCK. I hated the idea of doing that!
The second was to make the whole border 1″ wide instead of 2.” No … I think that would unbalance it.
The third was to make another mini quilt and give one of them to Tessa. My sister had suggested that I do this – to thank Tessa for designing it and picking out the fabrics!! This felt like the right decision! However, I didn’t have any more of the background fabric she choose. But, I did have something similar. So, away I went!
Here is my Affiliate link: https://glnk.io/mzmmj/quiltinggail If you order over $50 from Missouri Star, you will get 20% off your order and I may receive a small commission. Thank you for your support!
August’s colour is Purple!!! Here is my August block. Visit Jen at Patterns by Jen to get your free pattern for this month. It’s free for the month and after that you’ll need to pay a small fee for it.
I’m using Island Batik fabrics for my blocks.
Here’s all my blocks to date:
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!
Island Batik October project. This is a byAnnie bag called “Payday.”
Fall ’24 mystery quilt. Some progress made
2025 SAHRR. I haven’t started, but we have a plan and I’m hoping to get it done early!
Monthly Colour Challenge: Layout (Jen has posted the sashing and border blocks for this challenge. You can access it HERE.). I’ll be doing this as a leader and ender.
“Stash Yardage” I took 2 pieces of stash and sandwiched them.
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 finishes, no shopping
Fabric Used in the last week: 0 yards
Fabric Used in 2024: 136.5 yards from non-IB: 56
Fabric Added in the last week: 0 yards
Fabric Added this year: 29.5 yards
Net Fabric used: 92 yards
To Do
Carol from Quilt Schmilt is hosting “To Do” every week.
To Do from the last report:
I’m amazed!!! I guess by keeping my list short, I was able to get things done!
Finish “It’s a Jungle” √ DONE
Work on Island Batik October project in progress
Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder! √ DONE
Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes.√ DONE.
To Do for next week:
Work on Island Batik October project
Work on Fall Mystery Quilt and writing directions
2025 SAHRR. get centre block done
Monthly Colour Challenge: Layout (Jen has posted the sashing and border blocks for this challenge. You can access it HERE.). I’ll be doing this as a leader and ender.
Here is my Affiliate link: https://glnk.io/mzmmj/quiltinggail If you order over $50 from Missouri Star, you will get 20% off your order and I may receive a small commission. Thank you for your support!
I totally agree!!! But I also know that you can’t quilt without the collected fabrics!
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 was away for 2 days this week. I cannot sew while we’re driving, so that limits my days this month!
Jan – June: 165 / 181 days
July: 26 / 28 days
Total: 191/ 23083 %
A Finish
I finished my “Something Smells Fishy” quilt and posted it earlier this week! You can read about it HERE. Yes, Island Batik fabric, Hobbs Batting and Aurifil Thread. The pattern is adapted from a free pattern from Arts East Quilt Company.
Island Batik October project. This is a byAnnie bag called “Payday.”
Fall ’24 mystery quilt. This is in the beginning stages
2025 SAHRR. I haven’t started, but we have a plan and I’m hoping to get it done early!
Monthly Colour Challenge: Layout (Jen has posted the sashing and border blocks for this challenge. You can access it HERE.). I’ll be doing this as a leader and ender.
Quilting:
“It’s a Jungle” blog hop project
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!
There She Blows used 4 yards of fabric. (see picture above)
No shopping this week!
Fabric Used in the last week: 4 yards
Fabric Used in 2024: 136.5 yards from non-IB: 56
Fabric Added in the last week: 0 yards
Fabric Added this year: 29.5 yards
Net Fabric used: 92 yards
To Do
Carol from Quilt Schmilt is hosting “To Do” every week.
To Do from the last report:
OK … trying to keep my To Do list short, but there are so many things happening in my studio …
Here is my Affiliate link: https://glnk.io/mzmmj/quiltinggail If you order over $50 from Missouri Star, you will get 20% off your order and I may receive a small commission. Thank you for your support!
Carol from Just let Me Quilt is the host of this blog hop. Here’s what she had to say:
Challenge: This one is easy! Make something with a fish in the fabric or in the quilt design (applique or pieced fish.)
Well, Carol might have thought this was easy … but I had SEW many ideas, it was hard to choose!
Call it a miracle, or fate, or whatever, but I received a free pattern “There She Blows” from the Art East Quilting Company. It’s a 20″ block and I wanted to make a baby quilt, but didn’t feel like making 4 whales … so I decided to just double the size of all the cutting. Well, it was good in theory, but didn’t always work out … so I had to do a bit of re-calculating. However, the directions are full of tips to make the block easily! And, if you want to make the bigger size, check out their Resizing Cheat Sheet (–> “More” –> “Resources.”)
A little bit about the Art East Quilting Company It is a Canadian 🇨🇦 company, but they ship all over the world. Our guild had them do a zoom presentation and it was wonderful. So if you’re looking for something different and fun, check them out!
When quilting the water, I used both “Turkey” and “Jelly” from Silly Moon. I wanted the waves all different.
Anyhow, this is my “newest baby quilt “There She Blows”! I live on the west coast of Canada, so I had to make my whale an Orca!
Here is my Affiliate link: https://glnk.io/mzmmj/quiltinggail If you order over $50 from Missouri Star, you will get 20% off your order and I may receive a small commission. Thank you for your support!
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!
Estrella Bag: something different! A bag … The pattern is available HERE. I found some fleece lined vinyl in my stash and paired it with some quilting cotton, also from my stash. (Picture on the right).
Island Batik September project
Quilting:
Jam Session … but I can’t show you until the pattern is released.
“Something Smells Fishy“
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!
I did finish up 2 Luminous Layer Quilts that used 7.5 yards each!
No shopping this week!
Fabric Used in the last 2 weeks : 15 yards
Fabric Used in 2024: 131 yards from non-IB: 53
Fabric Added in the last week: 0 yards
Fabric Added this year: 29.5 yards
Net Fabric used: 86.5 yards
To Do
Carol from Quilt Schmilt is hosting “To Do” every week.
To Do from the last report:
I’m amazed!!! I guess by keeping my list short, I was able to get things done!
Finish Quilting “Gardenia“. √ DONE
Sandwich and Quilt Lone Star Left-overs from Pin Dot Floral lone star. √ DONE
Work on “Something Smells Fishy”. √ DONE
Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder! √ DONE
Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes.√ DONE.
To Do for next week:
Finish “Something Smells Fishy”
Finish “Estrella bag“
Work on Island Batik September project.
Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder!
Here is my Affiliate link: https://glnk.io/mzmmj/quiltinggail If you order over $50 from Missouri Star, you will get 20% off your order and I may receive a small commission. Thank you for your support!
OK … I was really really busy when all the instructions came out for this quilt-a-long! I LOVE doing Sandra’s quilt-a-longs (from MMM Quilts) and I just didn’t have time to pull fabric. THIS LINK has all the information and links to each weekly sew-a-long.
Well, fast forward a few weeks and when I started to pull fabrics, I ended up pulling fabrics for not one, but TWO quilts.
#1
#2
Background
black
Background
Swirl Teal Jade- Copper Patina
Fabric A
Scuba – Tantalizing Teals
Fabric A
Unknown IB fabric (older collection)
Fabric B
Slate – Bodacious Blacks
Fabric B
Teal – Floral Wonders
Fabric C
Marble Aqua – Blender
Fabric C
Mini Sprigs – Pink – Wild Blooms
Fabric D
Unknown IB fabric (older collection)
Fabric D
Swirl – Multi Purple Green – Copper Patina
Fabric E
Rain
Fabric E
Ornate Scroll – Neutral – Copper Patina
Progress was slow … but progress happened.
Here are the progress pictures of #1
Here are the progress pictures of #2
Each one finished and the different quilting on each one!
Quilting: Free motion and straight lines are with Silly Moon’s Rocket
Don’t Forget
Here is my Affiliate link: https://glnk.io/mzmmj/quiltinggail If you order over $50 from Missouri Star, you will get 20% off your order and I will receive a small commission. Thank you for your support!
I was Featured!
Wednesday Wait Loss and Free Motion Mavericks featured my Sly Fox Quilt. You can read about it HERE.
Twice a year, Island Batik sends the Ambassadors boxes, full of fabric and supplies from industry partners. Here is a slide-show video of what I received this month:
Below is pictures of what I received with details:
10″ stack of Floral Fun, paired with Muslin and Seaweed
2 packages of Stash Builder rolls: There are 4, width of fabric strips in each roll.
Black, White and Dark Grey solids, 4 yards of each
I received a 10″ stack of Bodacious Blacks and a 2 1/2″ strip pack of Ravishing Red.
6 yards of Frosting – such a pretty neutral!
This is Poetic Bouquet, designed by Kathy Engle for Heidi Pridemore of the Whimsical Workshop. It is paired with 2 yards of Whip Cream (a neutral) and 2 yards of Bluebonnet-Purple Egg (part of the Poetic Bouquet collection). I will be using this in the September challenge. Descriptions of the Aurfil Thread are below.
By ByAnnie supplies. Everything I need for the Payday bags. The fabric is from the Midnight Garden collection: Vines and Sprigs-blue, Medium Floral Multi E and Mini Floral Multi Blue for the linings.
Hobbs Batting is my absolute favourite batting and I am always thrilled to receive it. This time, I received:
Here is my Affiliate link: https://glnk.io/mzmmj/quiltinggail If you order over $50 from Missouri Star, you will get 20% off your order and I may receive a small commission. Thank you for your support!
Quilting Gail 