What Are Quilters Blogging About Today?

Today we’re officially launching my brand new Sewing with Cotton Rope: First Edition course! read more

Vanessa has been playing around with different ropes/clotheslines and making a few bowls. Join the livestream today and learn a few more rope bowl making tips that you can use on your next rope project!

Vanessa will also share the rope projects she’s been working on. If you rarely use your sewing machine’s zig zag stitch this is a super fun project to work on.

• How to make a coiled rope bowl tutorial: https://youtu.be/Bpz6VTFS0Zo?si=pQB02DBK7CVyoSMi

• Scout Mini Satchel Bag: https://craftygemini.com/shop/scout-mini-satchel-video-course/

Join our email list: https://craftygemini.com/newsletter/

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Vanessa has been playing around with different ropes/clotheslines and making a few bowls. Join the livestream today and learn how to make a simple coiled bowl using a zig zag stitch! If you rarely use your sewing machine’s zig zag stitch this is a super fun project to work on.

• Slanted Zipper Pouch: https://craftygemini.com/shop/slanted-zipper-pouch-video-course/

• How to make a coiled rope bowl tutorial: https://youtu.be/Bpz6VTFS0Zo?si=pQB02DBK7CVyoSMi

• Gypsy Quilter cotton rope (100ft) (affiliate link): https://amzn.to/4mHrucy

• The Mountain Thread Company Cotton Rope: https://www.themountainthreadcompany.com/shop/p/316-100-cotton-rope-by-the-yard-made-in-america

Join our ...

Help us celebrate our 200th episode of WIP Wednesday today with a Q&A Chat, LIVE Giveaways and a sitewide sale!

In this episode of WIP Wednesday Vanessa is answering some questions from the Q&A submission form that viewers have filled out.

We had LIVE we will have giveaways availble only to LIVE viewers. So, tune in for some fun!

We are also running a 24-HOUR FLASH SALE to celebrate our 200th WIP WEDNESDAY episode. Sale ends on Jan. 29, 2026 at 11:59pm EST. The sale is for 15% OFF everything on https://craftygemini.com/shop (excluding: sewing ...

It has been a wonderful holiday week, with a slower pace, more time with friends, and the last of the shopping. Settle in with a cuppa for a long and picture heavy post. The gifts are under the tree, and the stocking stuffers are hidden for when Santa comes on Christmas eve. Handmade cards were sent, and Christmas cookies baked and frosted to enjoy at leisure. Tuesday night, we had dinner with friends and went to the Lake Julian Festival of Lights show.

This is a small show, in comparison to others. But we love it simply because it is ...

For the Mountain State Fair this past September, I wanted to enter the Twisted Snowflake that we made last year during a guild program. I thought I did a tutorial for it then, but it seems I didn’t. When I dug out the snowflake from the Christmas stuff, it was crushed due to my poor attention to packing it up. So, time to make another one. I started by fusing two pieces of fabric wrong sides together with Heat and Bond. I used a high contrast combination with one side black with gold stars, and the other a bright ...

Join me today to unbox and setup the new HTVront A200 auto tumbler heat press! If you already have a sublimation printer this would be a great way to whip up a bunch of custom tumblers to gift this holiday season!

• HTVront A200 Auto Tumbler Heat Press (affiliate link): https://tidd.ly/4pndhBP
*** SAVE $70 off with discount code: TU70

• HTVront A200 if ordering from Amazon (affiliate link): https://amzn.to/4oQcHwI
*** Use this code to save: W4D9J4EF

• ALL MY FAVORITE SUBLIMATION SUPPLIES (affiliate links): https://www.amazon.com/shop/thecraftygemini/list/

• Sublimation Printer I use (affiliate link): https://amzn ...

The NC Mountain State Fair this year has been as much fun as ever. I worked the quilt take-in table for a shift on Labor Day, then back to the Expo building on Wednesday to work as a judge for the Professional Crafts Division. Both days were fun, and so inspirational to see the wonderful projects and quilts coming through. Back to the fair on Friday evening for the first cooking competition, I had a chance to look around the exhibits to see how my entries fared. I was so excited to see Koi Pond with a First Place ribbon ...

It is less than three weeks from the turn-in day for entries to the Mountain State Fair, and I am in the process of getting it all together. This year, the turn in day is September 1, the earliest it can possibly be. The first thing I did was to register online for all the categories I entered in previous years. I may not actually have an entry for everything, but it is far easier to turn in an unused entry tag rather than try to add an entry. I printed out the entry list, and started looking around for ...

The flowers on the veranda continue to be happy with the high humidity these past days. The geranium keeps giving me gorgeous blooms. The plant is really leggy now, and I need to cut it back, but I want to wait until these blooms fade.

Sunset one day last week after a rainstorm had passed gave an interesting look to the clouds. The section lit by the fading sunlight just glowed.

On the bird feeder, the cardinal pair visited again. The female and male took turns on the perch. I think the one on the right is a female house ...

Make Your Own Custom Quilted Sneakers—Yes, You Can!

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It has rained most of the week, which has been wonderful for tamping down the wildfires. It has made the grass and weeds grow, and brought the azaleas in full bloom. I’ve been taking more photos of them. We have this deep pink, along with the pastel pink and white ones. A few days from now, there should be blooms all the way down the driveway.

My Merlin app says we have a blue-grey gnatcatcher in the local avian choir, but I have not seen it yet. They look a lot like a titmouse without the tufted head. There ...

In a heartfelt journey of transformation, we embraced change, moving closer to our grandchildren, and creating a new dream studio. Through meticulous design and cherished memories, I built a space brimming with intention, comfort, and inspiration. Blessed with love, light, and creativity, it reflects a life dedicated to passion and purpose. Continue reading →

For many Christmas’s, my five siblings, and I, rotated through our names and each made a hand crafted gift for another. I almost always make a quilt. I had previously made three (sadly no photo of the first…) for this … Continue reading →

This Christmas 2020 wallhanging quilt for our youngest granddaughter, Amelia, the unicorn loving one. This Laura Heine collage was a winner! Even after quilting for well over 40 years there was still so much color value to be learned! This … Continue reading →

This is the second time I’ve made this Freewheeling Single Girl quilt. The first time was for our oldest granddaughter’s high school graduation in 2017. Both times I resized the rings so you got more rings per quilt. To make … Continue reading →

Well, here we are, the last weekend before the big day. I still have a lot I want to do! Even starting early, time always seems to run out before I have done all the things on my list. Are you like that, too? Today, I’ll give you some ideas for those last minute needs with easy solutions to make Christmas more relaxed. Most of these are fun things that I enjoy like baking cookies, making cards and visiting with friends. This past week, I made the Cranberry Eggnog Biscotti to go with the Fantasy Cookies, and gave the ...

When I saw this design I knew I needed it in my life!!! And then I decided I needed to make it for all three of our children as Christmas quilt. I have made each of them many quilts over … Continue reading →

Lots of piddling around was done yesterday, starting with this ornament that I began at the November guild meeting workshop, and didn’t finish. These are easier than they look. Our presenter had done the fabric fusing for us, and cut the basic square shapes. All we had to do was the folding, cutting and gluing.

Next was to glue the pieced together at the sides, making sure all the bits were facing the same way to make the colors alternate.

Pull the bottoms together and begin gluing them. I found gluing half at a time worked well.

Then, glue ...

It is Cyber Monday, the day we are encouraged to shop at our favorite online merchants. So, come shop with me! Thank you for using my links when you can, your purchases may earn a small commission for me that does not affect your total cost, and you can use your own accounts. Supporting the costs of the blog means I can continue to create and share free patterns, ideas and inspiration through the year. I only share these links when you can take advantage of a sale or special.

Fat Quarter Shop has new Cyber Monday Combo Craze for ...