Sunflowers Runner Pattern Release!

It's here - the much anticipated Sunflowers Runner pattern release!

I don't know about you, but I'm just in love with these sunflowers for the summer! 

And oh, the ladybugs too - how cute are they???

The Sunflowers Runner pattern has something for everyone - piecing, Dresden plates, and applique - techniques a very confident beginner or intermediate quilter can handle. Of course, my detailed instructions are there to guide you every step of the way!

                                     Sunflowers pattern snippet

Finishing at 41 1/2" x 16", with simple stippling and straight line quilting, the flowers and ladybugs just shine!

The Sunflowers Runner pattern is offered at Etsy. 

With that, may your summer be sunny and bright, and full of sunflowers!

Happy Quilting!

 

Pretty Posies, an X Block Quilt

Introducing Pretty Posies, my second X-Block quilt. The first, Diamond Ribs, was for the X Block Blog Hop.

Aren't those flowers bright and beautiful?

Inspired by the fun border fabric, I pulled bright prints to make the pretty posies.

Then pulled all the flowers together by giving them matching centers, which are squares appliqued on.

Here's a full on picture.

This quilt was based on the Bright Eyes pattern, which has one more row of flowers. Being that my border fabric was limited, I opted for a 3 x 3 layout. And a small flower print completes the back!

For this quilt, I have two quilting videos to share: 

one for the leaf stipple in the green background area, 

                                                            Leaf Stipple

and one for quilting the X-Block flowers, which can easily be done with a walking foot.

                                                  Posie Flower Quilting

Both of these designs require no marking, though they could be added to the flowers to more easily divide the area. 

Feel free to use these ideas to quilt your next flower quilt, or check out my YouTube channel for other ideas!

Happy Quilting!

Shadow Block Mini Quiltalong Reveal and Blog Hop

It's time for the big reveal and blog hop for the Shadow Block Mini!

I think mine grew into a Shadow Block Maxi due to all the extra borders! Just couldn't stop creating with that really pretty floral print. And now it's all gone, though it certainly made a gorgeous quilt!

And notice anything different? The blocks don't have shadows. Instead, the flowers are above squares of light, and glowing through a black background. Told you I was going to surprise you! Just a different way of thinking about this block, given the right fabric to work with. 

So now on to more fun! Check out the list below of all the other participants, as mine is just one of the many that were created for the Shadow Block Mini Quiltalong, sponsored by Janice at Color, Creating, and Quilting, and Jen at A Dream and a Stitch. Thank you ladies for organizing this, and thank you to Debora at Studio Dragonfly, for the tutorial. 

Here's a few more pictures, since all I gave you last week were teasers!

The Quilting.

The Back.

The Label.

Yes, I now have labels! How cool are those??? Name on the front, and washing instructions on the back. Hubby says they look so professional people will think the quilt was store bought. Hmm, is that a good thing?

Okay, time to go check out all the other quilts, after one last look at mine!

I'll be linking this beauty up to all the linky parties on the sidebar - be sure to visit those too!

Happy Quilting!

Jeweled Flower Garden Baby Quilt

Last week, I taught fellow guild members a Jeweled Flower Garden quilt, using the HexnMore ruler (affiliate link) by Jaybird Quilts. I turned my demo into a sweet baby quilt!

I was in a straight line quilting mood the day I quilted this, and I think it works perfectly.

Instead of the traditional 1/4" outline from the edge, I bumped it up to 1/2", plus stitch-in-the-ditch at all the seams. Wanting some yellow in the center, I ultimately decided to let the quilting do that for me. With a bit of yellow thread, I made daisy shapes in the centers, decreasing the size for three layers of petals.

This gives the centers the little touch of yellow that I was looking for without overwhelming the quilt.

At the edges, there's simple parallel lines, with leaves in the hexagons. I do wish I had put veins in those leaves for a bit more definition, but I don't think the baby will notice!

This is the second time I've made this pattern, the table runner being the first.

There may be a third sometime, as I have more jewels cut that I didn't use, and would love to go through the stash to find some coordinating colors with the purple. Then it would be a wildflower quilt! Of course, this idea is probably far down on my to-do list. But one can keep dreaming, right?

Have these two inspired you to make your flower garden? Definitely an easy quilt to put together with the HexnMore ruler! (affiliate link)

Happy Quilting!

Hex and More!

It's been days since my last post, but at least the absence has involved quilting. Last week, I taught fellow guild members how to make a Jeweled Flower Garden quilt using the HexnMore Ruler. (affiliate link)

The two yellow center flowers were an experiment. I thought it would look nice to have a little pop in the flower centers. But I realized that there was such high contrast with both the bright green and the yellow, that those dots of color would detract from the flowers. So, back to the green bin to find a muted green, and scrap the yellow center idea. 

Now the plan is to use the two yellow centered flowers as trivets, or maybe placemats, and continue on with the plain flowers. No idea how big this will be - could be a really large quilt or two small ones. And I may applique yellow centers in. Haven't made up my mind yet! We'll see.

But I do have some hints to share in putting one of these quilts together. First, get the HexnMore Ruler! (affiliate link)

It makes the cutting so easy! Not to say it can't be done with other rulers, but the marks on the HexnMore (affiliate link) really justify the expense.

Second, sew the triangle flower/background pieces into units of three for easier handling when it comes time to sew them in rows.

And third, press the seams according to the following picture:

At 1, press towards the flower. At 2, away from the flower. This allows the petal seams to nest when attaching the next petal triangle. At 3, press the seam open before stitching the seam at 4. This avoids a bulky mess in the center. Then assemble these units into rows, then stitch together the rows. Easy, right? Well, it really is! Guess I should be working on mine.

But, as usual life gets in the way. My father-in-law had successful surgery last week to remove his cancerous pancreas (plus some other parts). We've been running to the hospital daily to check on him, and so far, so good. Hoping he'll be discharged Sunday or Monday.

In between hospital visits, I've spent time learning Word, Inkscape, and Photoshop on a deeper level while writing up a pattern for another table runner. This time I've really gone pro on how this pattern is written. If all goes well, I should have it out in the next couple weeks. Hope you'll notice the change!

Have a great day quilting!

Flowers for Nana Girl

Doesn't this just say happy spring?

Look at those pretty yellow flowers! And my orange clivias blooming in the background. What could be a better way to welcome spring?

This cute pattern, Flowers for Nana Girl,

is from the book Scrap Quilting Strip by Strip by Kim Brackett. (affiliate link)

It's a very easy pattern to follow, using either pre-cut strips, or strips cut from stash fabric. 

I made a small version of the quilt, using just nine blocks instead of twenty.

Flowers for Nana Girl

The back is a soft, solid yellow flannel,

to show off the quilting. Here's a closer look, both front and back.

The border was done using a design from 501 Quilting Motifs, (affiliate link)

and in the next post I'll show you how that was quilted.

Until then, I hope spring has sprung where you live!

Happy Quilting!

April 2015 Book of the Month

In need of quilting inspiration? This month's book is full of ideas! The honor goes to Quiltmaker's 501 Quilting Motifs for Hand or Machine Quilting. (affiliate link)

This book has a huge selection of designs to choose from, and with a little creativity, they can be stitched continuously. I've already got some pages marked with ideas to use on my pretty yellow Flowers for Nana Girl.

Still pondering just what will go in the flowers themselves, but I know it will come to me! This quilt is next in line on the frame, right after Ice Crystal Medallion is finished. Here's a sneak peek at the progress on that.

The background is done, now it's on to the rings and the star. When it's all done, I'll post lots of detail pictures. To the finish line tomorrow!

Happy Quilting!

Irish Chain Twist Quilt Top and Flower Blocks

I am almost caught up with all of the piecing for a couple projects. First one is the Irish Chain Twist Quilt-along with Melissa Corry at HappyQuiltingMelissa.com.  

Isn't it pretty? Thank you Melissa for a terrific pattern, and a fun quilt-along! I'm thinking I might want to host one myself--anyone interested? A Fourth of July project, maybe?

Next up is the Book of the Month quilt. I chose the pattern Flowers for Nana Girl from the book Scrap Quilting Strip by Strip by Kim Brackett. (affiliate link)
I thought this pattern was pretty, and it would give me a chance to use up some floral fabrics. Finding this print for the background, 

I'm making the flowers in different prints of yellow.  And to be different, all the centers will have the same dark, golden yellow.

Happily following the directions, and sewing along, I realized after starting five of the flowers, that I was not sewing the background triangles in. I was using the dark, golden yellow in both spots, which does not give me the effect I want. Oops!

Starting all over, these are now the correct starts.

Prettier too, with that background fabric! Hmm, now I have to figure out what to do with the first batch!

After adding a few more strips, and sewing the units together, the flower emerges!

Today, I'm on to making the sashing strips and sewing the whole thing together for a really pretty baby quilt.

What are you up to today?