Join me in the "From Our House" Quilt-Along with Riley Blake Designs!

It starts today!

It's a classic Log Cabin quilt with a modern twist!  

Each Friday until December 6th a new block (or two or three!) will be released on the Riley Blake Designs blog.  Several Riley Blake designers will be sharing alternate 6" blocks (in addition to what you see in the pattern) so you can pick and choose your favorites!  

I designed a scrappy heart block that I'm calling, Love You.

Click HERE for the free pattern!

From Our House features low-volume fabrics from Hush Hush 4 and some of Riley Blake's new Shades Basics!  I got my hands on some of the Hush Hush 4 fabrics and I am swooning!

These are just a few of them.  There are 21 in the collection.  And guess what!  I was fortunate enough to be able to design a print for Hush Hush 4 (mine is the second one down on the left - with little Ohio stars).

I hope you'll join in the fun!  Click HERE for all of the details about this quilt-along.

Happy sewing!

Trip Around the World Quilt + Free Pattern

I loved the backing fabric from my Dawn's Delight quilt so much that I immediately wanted to use the leftovers in another quilt.  It's the black floral fabric I circled below and the biggest square I could cut from the leftovers was 4".  So what's a pattern that you can basically use any size square for?  The classic Trip Around the World pattern!  I had never made one but now I'm obsessed and would love to make more!

 I mocked up a Trip Around the World quilt with my Electric Quilt software and asked a friend if she wanted to join the fun.  I told her my goal was to not buy any fabric for this project (we could trade fabric but I was really hoping to not have to buy any).  She was up for the challenge!

We got together to look at our fabrics and did our best to plan the color/fabric placement.  It was kind of hard to envision how the finished quilt would look so I went home, laid everything out on the floor, made a few tweaks, and then once I was happy with the layout I sewed my blocks together in diagonal rows.

I had my friend Jen Ostler quilt it with a classic Baptist Fan pattern and then I bound it in this black fabric that I inherited from my grandmother after she passed away.  I love incorporating bits of her fabric into my quilts!

I added one of my favorite labels from Ever Emblem.  They're so easy to sew into the binding so I don't have an excuse to not label my quilts!  I get the 2" cotton, fold-over, sew-in labels.  If you want to get some for yourself, you will just have to pick one of their basic cotton labels and customize it from there.

In case you were wondering, I didn't have to buy any for this quilt!  I made a scrappy back using a bunch of orange remnants from my stash - which feels amazing!!!

Classic quilts are my favorite and I'm so glad I finally made a Trip Around the World quilt!

My quilt finished at approximately 70" x 80" and I have written some instructions for this exact quilt that I'm excited to share with you today!  

Click HERE for the free PDF pattern. 

Above is a digital mockup of my quilt so you can see the color placement.  I did include it in the PDF pattern (but wanted to include it here as well, for those of you that only have a black and white printer or don't want to print in color).  It doesn't use my exact fabrics but it's a very close representation of my quilt, don't you think?

Like I said, I loved making this quilt.  It's beginner-friendly, easy to adjust the square size or colors, and is just classic!  It would be beautiful in any color way!  I can definitely see more of these in my future!  What about you?  Have you made a Trip Around the World quilt or would you like to?

Dawn's Delight Quilt

 Hello!  Today I am sharing a recent quilt finish that I made just for fun!

But first I want to share with you the inspiration behind this project.  This color palette was inspired by someone I follow on Instagram named Jerina (her Instagram handle is @quiet.sanctuary).  She is a beautiful soul who shares her heart in every post!  She shares her love of crochet, quilts, antiques, family and sourdough bread!  Plus, she is an amazing photographer and writer.

[The above photo is shared with permission from Jerina @quiet.sanctuary.]

I think the above photo might be the exact photo that stopped me in my Instagram scroll one day.  I love the crocheted blanket Jerina made.  Oh how I wish I could crochet!!!  I also loved the cozy, moody, yet sweet colors that Jerina used!  The faded and worn look that she captured in that photo was so soothing to my soul!  One morning I woke up and couldn't stop thinking about her blanket so I went to my sewing room and started playing around - trying to achieve that same look with fabric.

Around that same time, I had also been eyeing the classic Rail Fence/Roman Stripes quilt pattern.

So I decided to "kill two birds with one stone" and combine that pattern with those colors.

I cut some 2" x 5" rectangles and got to work.

Each block was made with three 2" x 5" cut rectangles so the blocks finished at 4.5" x 4.5".

I did a 13 x 15 block layout so my quilt finished at 59" x 68".  This pattern is a great way to use up scraps and is beginner-friendly!  

I love to reward myself with these kinds of projects once in a while.  It's good for my creative juices to do some mindless, just-for-fun sewing!  Plus, I just love a good scrappy, classic quilt pattern!

I used my stash and scraps for the quilt top but did end up buying the back and binding fabric.

The longarm quilting was done by my friend Jen Ostler in Highland, UT.  We decided on a pantograph called Moon Phases.  I had never used that one before but I felt like it matched the vibe of this quilt!

I wanted to name this quilt something other than Rail Fence or Roman Stripes because:

 A.) It didn't feel like a typical Rail Fence quilt (because the fabrics weren't making a secondary zig-zag design).  And B.) I just don't like the name Roman Stripes!

So I asked my Instagram followers if they could help me name my quilt!  I got tons of great suggestions but I finally landed on "Dawn's Delight".  It seemed to fit my color scheme, the quilting panto, and the pattern well.  The way the blocks are rotated just seems fun and well, delightful!  So thank you Janet (@janlynnsquilts on Instagram) for the name suggestion!

I took so many pictures...but I will share just one last one.

This was a fun project and I highly recommend making one of these quilts.

I plan to wash this soon so it will crinkle up and get even cozier!

Thanks for stopping by today!

Gigi's Quilt: A New Pattern

 Hello, hello!  Today I have a fun new pattern I want to share with you!  It's a sentimental one for me.

It's called Gigi's Quilt and was inspired by one of my grandmother's quits.

This is my grandmother, Delma Baldridge (circa 1960).

She taught me how to quilt; we had a special bond.  She had a Churn Dash quilt that I always admired.  I loved the classic block, the scrappy red and blue color palette, and the Baptist Fan hand quilting.  

Several months ago, I wanted to design a quilt pattern in honor of my grandma.  So I took the Churn Dash block but I flipped it on it's head.  I designed this block with the same construction but different color placement and some 9-Patches added in.  It looks so different don't you think?  (That's the beauty of quilting!  With a few small changes you can completely change a design.)  

I ended up using the above block as a test block and started over with this color palette:

I used blues, purples, dark greens, and browns.  Several of the fabrics are wovens.  

Jen Ostler in Highland, Utah quilted it for me with the Gemma 3 pantograph.

I made the throw-size quilt but the pattern includes instructions for 5 different sizes.

I love the secondary designs this pattern makes.  Stars, Half-Square Triangles, 9-Patches...

everything that makes my quilter's heart happy!

I even made up this red and blue block to try to make one that more closely resembled my grandmother's quilt.  I'm not sure if I'll make a quilt with it?  Or maybe a pillow?  I think it's super cute and the red striped fabric was my grandmother's so I'm loving that!

I can't stop making these Gigi's blocks.  I have another quilt in the works as we speak.

I'd love to hear what you think about this pattern.  What colorway would you make it in?

You can grab the paper pattern HERE or the PDF pattern HERE.

Thank you for stopping by today!  Let me know if you have any questions!

Welcome Wreath: a 2-Color Quilt

 Hi there! This past month has been a whirlwind with my nephew's wedding in Montana, kids home from college, and out-of-towners staying with us here and there. It's been fun and I've loved every minute!  But now things are slowing down and I want to share a quilt I finished a little while ago.

Back in May, I had the idea to make my new pattern, Welcome Wreath in a 2-color version.

You can check out the original, colorful version HERE.

I mocked up a few samples of 2-color Welcome Wreath quits and liked them!  So I looked in my stash for a pretty fabric that wasn't too busy but had just the right amount of print on it to be interesting.  I ended up using this pretty, blue-gray floral print for the main fabric and a white solid fabric for the background.

I made the lap-size version this time but Welcome Wreath comes with instructions

for three different quilt sizes - lap, throw, and full.  

It comes together pretty quickly because you use the 4-at-a-time method for making Flying Geese.

Oh, and by the way, I made a video tutorial with Riley Blake Designs for this block!

Use THIS link to check it out!  I shared all of my tips and tricks for getting nice points!

The original version of Welcome Wreath is fat-eighth or fat-quarter friendly 

(depending on which size quilt you make).  

If you'd like to make a 2-color version, you'll need the following fabric amounts:

LAP: 2-1/2 yards for the main fabric and 7/8 yard for the background fabric.

THROW: 4-3/4 yards for the main fabric and 2-1/3 yards for the background fabric.

FULL: 6-1/2 yards for the main fabric and 3-1/4 yards for the background fabric.

Note: The "main fabric" is the blue-gray fabric in my quilt and includes the binding.  

The "background fabric" is the white fabric.

I had my friend Jen Ostler in Highland, Utah long arm quilt this for me using the Goose Down pantograph.  I thought the feather design complemented the timeless look of this quilt.

This quilt is so soft and serene.  It makes me so happy!

I think it would make a really sweet baby quilt.

If you'd like to make this pattern, you can grab the paper pattern HERE or the PDF pattern HERE.

I think 2-color quilts are so classic and vintagy at the same time!

I need more of them in my life.  What about you?  Have YOU made a 2-color quilt?

Let me know in the comments below.

Thanks for stopping by today!

Happy quilting!

Feels Like Home Quilt-Along

 Good morning!  I have some exciting news!  Later this summer, I will be hosting a quilt-along 

for this pattern, Feels Like Home and I'd love for you to join the fun!

Dates: August 7th - October 16th (11 weeks)

The quilt finishes at 92-1/2" x 92-1/2".  It's big but oh so cozy!

You can use your stash and scraps for a great scrap-buster quilt!

OR, you can get a kit for the exact quilt shown in the pattern from The Quilter's Crossing, HERE.

The kits are on pre-order right now.  Limited quantities will be available.  The fabrics in the kit are from my new collection with Riley Blake Designs called Feels Like Home (which is what I'm using for my quilt).

There is a little bit of paper piecing for the roof units but everything else is traditionally pieced.

If you haven't paper pieced before, don't be intimidated!  There are only 13 roof units with only 5 pieces in each unit.  I have a really awesome video coming out with Riley Blake Designs at the end of the month that will show you exactly how to do it!  This is a great time to learn and master the art of paper piecing.  You can do it!

The materials/supplies needed are: 

1 yard of light leaf print fabric for blocks & inner border

½ yard each of 9 light print fabrics for blocks

1¾ yards of pink floral fabric for blocks & outer border

1 yard of navy floral stripe for blocks & binding

1⅜ yards of brown print fabric for blocks & roofs

½ yard of yellow floral fabric for blocks & chimneys

⅜ yard each of 10 dark print fabrics for blocks

100” x 100” piece of batting

8⅜ yards of backing fabric

7 copies of roof foundation paper pattern (14 roofs total, one is extra)

Elmer’s Washable Glue Stick

The schedule is as follows:

Aug. 7th: Get fabric & make copies of roof unit FPP pattern

Aug. 14th: Do all the cutting

Aug. 21st: Make 13 Roof units

Aug. 28th: Make 25 Heart units

Sept. 4th: Make 6 House blocks

Sept. 11th: Make 7 House blocks

Sept. 18th: Make 6 Courthouse Steps A blocks

Sept. 25th: Make 6 Courthouse Steps B blocks

Oct. 2nd: Make the quilt center

Oct. 9th: Add the borders

Oct. 16th: Show the quilt top

If you'd like to quilt-along with me, please sign up HERE.  

It's free and you'll only receive emails about the quilt-along.  

You can unsubscribe from the emails at any time.

You can snag the PAPER pattern HERE

and the PDF pattern HERE.

Annnd, if you write "sticker" in the message to buyer at checkout the first 50 people will get a free sticker with their Feels Like Home pattern purchase (paper patterns only)!

And finally, HERE is a PDF with all the quilt-along details including boxes you can check when you complete each weeks' assignment.  I hope you'll join me for this quilt along!  Please let me know in the comment section below if you have any questions!

Happy quilting!