What Are Quilters Blogging About Today?

So, when I began this blog sixteen years ago I never seemed to have any difficulty finding things to post about. I was regularly keeping up with the goings on in and around Chez Goodneedle on an almost daily basis. Now, it's a workout. I don't know why. There are certainly no less things happening, that's for sure! And so, for today, accept this much: my current progress on the Workout Quilt from

So, when I began this blog sixteen years ago I never seemed to have any difficulty finding things to post about. I was regularly keeping up with the goings on in and around Chez Goodneedle on an almost daily basis. Now, it's a workout. I don't know why. There are certainly no less things happening, that's for sure! And so, for today, accept this much: my current progress on the Workout Quilt from

I don't like change!  How about you?

It took me a while (as I'm sure it did you) to settle into a Covid way of life and find a level of contentment in what I could safely function.  Now it seems I have to reverse engines and go back the other way.  The question is how far back do I want to go? 

As things would have it, an official diagnosis of arthritis in my back last week will be a factor in my return to "normal" (whatever that is?).  It's been suspected for several years and ...

2018 -- 05 Stitch and flip is a piecing technique that uses squares or rectangles to make triangles. In this tutorial you learn to use the stitch and flip method to make the Snowball block and the Flying Geese unit. Here is the 60 second video.

Stitch and Flip Tutorial

Place one small square on top of the large square, covering the corner as shown.

 

Stitch just inside the marked line ...

Finally — almost a year to the day since I last blogged — here I am again. What have I been doing?

Mostly just making these.

Lots and lots of these. Many of our neighbours, friends and others have been wearing some very colourful masks thanks to Kaffe Fassett fabrics. I had made a few masks for myself and a couple of friends and then was getting requests for them.  

Many other masks made mostly with other fabrics from my stash.

There were some with ties.

And some with ear loops.  I learned early on that I seem to know a lot ...

Don’t miss the sign-up at your local quilt store for the Vintage Jewel Block of the Month quilt that I designed for Blank Quilting. Must-make!

Here is Vintage Jewel right before I delivered it to Melissa from Sew Shabby Quilting for quilting. I designed it for and made it with the Jot Dot collection by Blank Quilting. How do you like the bright colors I chose?

Vintage Jewel measures 72″ x 86″ with blocks that are very easy to make. Follow the monthly program and put together a few blocks at a time. After 10 months, your quilt will ...

Chain piecing is a method of speed piecing where segments of fabric are fed into the sewing machine one after the other without stopping to cut the threads. This produces a chain of sewn segments that are then cut apart and pressed.

Chain Piecing Steps

Here are the steps to accomplish the chain piecing technique:

1. Have all your fabric pieces cut and stacked next to your sewing machine.
2. Grab a fabric off the top of each stack and place them together for piecing.
3. Sew the first two pieces together but do not clip the threads after sewing.
4. Repeat steps 2 ...

 Divided Hearts Block 7

 Block six

 DIVIDED HEARTS BLOCK 5

 Even though I'm not a fan, it was encouraging to me that the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade figured out a way to happen this year!  If they can blow up those monster balloons to walk around the block, maybe I can inflate myself back into a daily machine piecing routine!?!

So for the past couple weeks, I've been finishing up a table runner I cut out late in October.  I used the large hexagon template in Marti Michell's Set G (template #42 - 2" finished on each edge) and a pack of 5" Moda holiday charm squares ...

 Divided Hearts Block four

 Thank you Christa for sending me your block!

I know, I know — it has been an extremely long time since I blogged. I am going to give it yet another try and hope to post twice a week — at least at first. I’ve missed blogging and, given the fact that this is like a diary of my quilting, I know I’m going to look back and wonder what I was doing!

One thing I was doing was finishing Dance of the Poinsettias, my version of Can Can from Millefiori Quilts 3 made using the Inklingo Can Can collection. As it’s winter and the roof garden ...

Since I still had my small collection of Christmas fabric on the cutting table, I hunted through my saved patterns, and decided to try the "Gather 'Round Runner" pattern from Iowa Star Quilts, that was part of their year of runners in 2006.