Hello, Autumn, Darling Quilt

Hello, Friends!

Are you enjoying autumn as much as I am?

It makes me want to curl up with a new quilt,

for keeping cozy on these cool evenings.

I was stricken with All-Hallows-Eve fever

from the moment I discovered this beautiful fabric

from Fig Tree Quilts.

I first saw it used with the "Merry Christmas, Darling" quilt pattern

from Cotton Way, and it shot to the top of my must-make list.

I found this pattern to be extremely enjoyable to sew.

At first, I planned to stick with the color arrangement

shown on the pattern cover.

Pretty soon, though...a random design took over,

since I had orange, gray and black blocks

instead of the two-color palette.

I found it to be just as appealing, if not more so.

I think I love the all-black star best.

{It reminds me of a Halloween kitten.}

Before quilting, I pinned the quilt sandwich together with pins.

This part is not my favorite step in the process.

{Does anyone out there like making a quilt sandwich???}

The machine quilting process was much more fun!

I used a set of long wavy lines,

in the style of my sister of Susie's Sunroom.

The backing is a charming pumpkin colored floral print. 

For the binding, I selected the orange peel print.

It complements both sides. 

I don't ever mind stitching on the binding by hand,

because the big finish is worth it!

It's just scrumptious, when it's all rolled up, don't you agree?

If you enjoy sewing, I have a great resource for you to explore.

The website is called "Do You Sew?" and is fun for

anyone who sews, no matter your experience level.

Sign up here to receive their newsletter!

Now I'm all set for the month of October.

How about you?

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Reproduction of a Reproduction Quilt - Part 2

Hello, Friends!

Today I'll wrap up my story about my 

Aunt Grace Through the Year quilt.

Quilts, actually.

I loved this one so much that I made it twice.

You can read about the first quilt here,

and the second one here.

Do you love chain piecing?

{Thank you, Eleanor Burns, for teaching me how!

My mom doesn't even sew, but she went with me to a

Log Cabin Quilt in a Day class when I was in college.
To this day, I use lots of the information I learned from that class!}

Here's the heap of Dresden blades I made,

using chain piecing.

Never fear...here's how they look when they're untangled!

Here's my happy place...

stitching the prepared blades into pairs.

The plates look positively yummy in a stack.

They're super sweet when they're fanned out, too.

Each plate represented one calendar month.

Fortunately they don't take nearly a month to create!

I fussy cut the center circles, to show off the theme for each month.

My sewing machine has a great blanket stitch

for the applique step.

I chose to use neutral thread for every block.

I hope I'll make another Dresden quilt someday...

if only to take the glamour shots using a pretty cake plate!

I think that's my favorite subject to photograph!

If you liked this quilt, you might also enjoy

the post about my Winter Dresden Quilt being stitched together...

and the post about the finished Winter Dresden Quilt.

Stop by again any time!

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Guest Posting - Triangle Quilt Tutorial with Winter's Song

Hello, Friends!

I've got something special to show you today,

in a new guest post over at

Bear Creek Quilting Company!

I'll show you how to make this amazing

triangle quilt, using some fat quarters,

a cool ruler, and Triangles on a Roll.

I have to tell you truthfully

that this was one of the quickest quilt tops

I've ever put together,

and it was thoroughly enjoyable to make!

Head on over to see the details...

I'll be back soon to show you the finished quilt.

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Do You Want to Build A Snowball Block?

Hello, Friends!

Buds are blooming,

birds are singing,

but I'm in the mood for making

SNOWBALL blocks!

You know what I'm talking about, right?
When you take a quilt block

and round off the corners a bit,

by adding half-square-triangles,

it becomes a "Snowball" block.

It's a fun design element that is seen

all over quiltland.

These are some blocks I've made,

following the Missouri Star Quilt Company

YouTube tutorial,

for the Jump Ring quilt.

If you're short on sewing time,

like I am, you might enjoy some tips

for sewing snowball blocks.

1.

I love to precut my precuts...

if you follow me...so that I've got a couple of blocks

ready for sewing.

{I've been able to stitch 2 of these Jump Ring blocks in less than 30 minutes.}

2.

As you can see from the off-white pieces above,

as well as the tiny squares below,

I like to use an iron to "mark" the sewing lines.

I just press the pieces diagonally,

right sides out.

They are ready for stitching in no time.

3.

When I begin my stitching,

I always use a fabric scrap at the beginning

and again at the end,

stopping with the needle down.

This eliminates loose threads that need trimming later!

{It also makes the stitching nice and even, start to finish.}

4.

Another time-saver is chain-piecing.

Just keep the needle down between pieces,

and butt the next set up against the last one.

For snowball blocks,

it helps to alternate the direction of each block.

See the photo below.

I've started stitching the corners

from a different direction each time.

The pieces line up perfectly this way.

5.

I like to snowball all four corners,

before trimming and pressing the finished block.

{Because I've already pressed the sewing line,

there's less distortion of the block.}

6.

Have you ever made "bonus" half-square triangles...

a.k.a. HST's...

from your snowball blocks???

If your corner squares are at least 2 1/2" square,

this is a really cool tip to try!

BEFORE trimming away the layers

that are not needed for the finished block:

You can use a ruler to mark 

a SECOND line of stitching parallel to the first,

in the part of the square that will be cut away.

I make my second stitch line about 3/8" from the first,

to maximize the size of my bonus HST's.

Stitch this second line along all of the corners of the block.

I usually "eye-ball" the 3/8", to save even more time.

Just be sure the seam is parallel to the first stitchline.

NOW it's time to trim away the excess,

cutting in the space between the two stitchlines.

Take those formerly wasted edges to the ironing board,

and now you have a set of little bonus HST's!

Trim them to size,

and you've got a headstart on a new project.

I trimmed these to 1 3/4",

but you could make them into 1 1/2" HST's if you like.

I hope you'll stop by again soon

for more sewing tips and projects.

Wouldn't you like to see what I'm making

with all of those snowballs?

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Central Park Squares Baby Quilt

There's a new baby in my world...

one of my friends has waited for a very long time

for the safe arrival of little Samuel.

I just had to make a quilt for this special little boy!

{ALL babies are very special, but Samuel is truly a miracle.}

Samuel's nursery is filled with animals,

so I started with an animal print

from Kate Spain's Central Park line for Moda.

I found most of these coordinating fabrics at Rose Room Quilts.

I had recently stocked up on polka dots,

and they were fun to use in this quilt.

I love the Ta Dots in Sea...

 the small cream dot in orange from Riley Blake...

and the solid olive green.

My favorite print, though,

was the Random Pencil Check in Linen,
which I used instead of a plain background solid.

I labored {hee hee} over what pattern or design to use,

and in the end, I decided to use colorful squares,

set off by the neutral pencil-check blocks.

Before I knew it, I was ready for the quilting step.

I kept the quilting very simple, 
just stitching 1/4" on each side of the seams.

{I wanted to give this quilt to baby Samuel before he is ready for kindergarten.}

This quilting looks so cool on the back, too!

For the binding,

I chose those happy orange polka dots.

I finished the binding by hand-stitching,

and that is a process I really enjoy.

{Do you like that part, too?}

So there we have it...

just 5 different fabrics, made into a finished quilt, 

ready for a bundle of joy!

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