I hope all of you had a good weekend. Mine was good and it was fairly productive. I didn’t do as much house cleaning as I had planned, but I got the bathrooms cleaned, load of laundry done, and the floors vacuumed. I also made a pass through my closet and removed some things that need to be donated. I had been meaning to do that for a few months now, and kept putting it off. 

I also got this quilt finished.

It was one of my goals to get it done, and it was such a relief. They ...

What’s the Project? Irish Chain quilts use simple squares and blocks to create that wonderful chain design that travels across the quilt. They look impressive, but the piecing is surprisingly simple—and they’re perfect for scraps, precuts, or a favorite fabric combination.

Free Irish Chain Quilt Patterns

There are some quilt patterns that just never get old, and the Irish Chain is definitely one of them. In fact, an Irish Chain was one of the first quilts I made when I started quilting.

What I love about this pattern is that it looks much more complicated than it ...

It is absolutely gorgeous weather here in Northern Virginia - sunny, breezy and temps in the 60s and low 70s. To celebrate this delightful day, here is a brand new quilt/pattern - layer cake friendly and on sale! It is 25% off till Sunday, June 7, 2026. 

Thank you, Paul

Arboretum is a layer cake friendly quilt that I made for the Norwegian Quilt Magazine, Quilteblad. 

Arboretum on the Cover

It is the fabrics, Garden Glory - an original collection by Claudia Pfeil for Island Batik, that enchanted me. 

I love every fabric in this collection, no exceptions. So I designed a ...

Hope you are having a glorious Sunday.  I have a bit of news. This is the current issue of American Quilter.

My picture is from our Hawaii visit

Picture Courtesy - American Quilter

My quilt, Trillium Trail, is published in the January 2026 issue of American Quilter. 

Backing is Island Batik Multi - Marbles

Designed in EQ8, and made with the Island Batik collection Enchanted Flutter, Trillium Trail finished at 60" by 80".  

Enchanted Flutter

Orange Peel Units are appliquéd in threes forming the shape of the Trillium flower, alternating with Irish Chain blocks. A scrappy border ...

Double Irish Cabin again, but with flowers.

Perhaps I should add an elf to these designs.

Interesting!

They look a bit like it  is on point with pieced sashing.

I love the second one … and think it would be possible to make the Irish Chain blocks, then do machine embroidery on some of the blocks.

Spring bulbs bursting into life. A bit early here, winter has just started.

Both piecing and applique are fairly intricate, but effective.

Welcome to my stop on the Island Batik + Accuquilt Irish Chain BlogHop. 

Directive - Create a stunning quilt using the GO! Irish Chain Die from AccuQuilt!

Here is my response!

A Stunning Finish, as requested!

But let's start at the beginning. 

The Challenge

Fusion  by Jerry Khiev for Swan Amity Studios

Inspiration Board

Accuquilt Die to make 10" Finished Irish Chain Block

Dull

Meh

Whatever

I have always used the Irish Chain as an alternate block, not the focus block. Naturally, I was ...

Welcome to week three of the Island Batik (Lumin Fabrics) Ambassador Irish Chain Blog Hop! This month, we are excited to have Accuquilt as our sponsor. Each ambassador received the GO! Irish Chain Block on Board (BOB) 10” die. This month's task is to create an Irish Chain quilt using this die and a special Winter 2024 fabric bundle.

Today, Carol Stanek from Stitch with Color and I are sharing our interpretations of Irish Chain quilts made with Jerry Khiev's Merry Moments Winter Fabric Collection. Additionally, we received 2 yards each of Green Christmas Trees and Neutral Champagne ...

 I've always wanted to make a traditional Irish Chain project.  To me, it seems to call for plaid fabrics; so I pulled out the plaids, and started to make 3-inch nine-patch blocks.  

STATS:  Chain Link, 2025, 28" x 28", Machine pieced, Machine quilted.

I love the comfortable look of this simple, old-fashioned quilt.

I'm asked repeatedly about what I do with all of the small quilts I make.  Some I give away to ...

Interesting design, but it could use some fabric modifications.

Second design is much better, but could be better still … more play time needed in this project file.

I quite like the designs in this project file, but the title leaves a lot to be desired!

I like the first design because there is more space for quilting to shine, but I like the effect of the centre in the second design.

This project file is Burgoyne Surrounded by Irish recoloured. Much prettier than the original!

The mixture of shapes is still interesting, and much more suitable for the lady of the house.

The centre of the design above is interesting. It is 9P blocks surrounded by blocks with contrast corners, but the corner squares are part of the joining blocks.

The second design is a bit of a tangle, but interesting.

PS Sorry, I didn’t press the buttons required to publish this yesterday!

I have had a lot of fun using traditional quilt blocks in ways that are not traditional, including Irish Chains.

Love both these designs, but I think there are a lot of applique blocks which would work better than those I am using in this project file.

Scrappy Irish Chain Cuddle Quilt

Scrappy Irish Chain cuddle quilt