Daughter (Sparkle Jane) is still quilting, but with a 2-year old and a second baby due any day now, her time on social media is limited. I wanted to share a recent project of hers, though, because I got to be a part of it.

She had twelve “figure” blocks made by Susan Nixon (her quilting grandma) that she wanted to turn into something special. With the addition of 13 9-patch blocks (and a truly inspired backing) she now has a throw quilt.

Some of the blanket stitching on the figure blocks wasn’t finished, so Sparkle did that part ...

Another autumn week went by in a flash! I am busy with customer quilts, several of which also required binding. I have a couple of tight deadlines because the clients are flying off to Australia and Houston and want to take the quilts with them. I went along to the Doughtys Fabric roadshow in a Cornish village Hall where I bought 3m of fabric to line the coat that has been on the go for ages since I “lost” its lining fabric in my move.

Nessie had a fancy haircut and the groomer decreed that she should attend the hairdresser ...

Meine Pläne für die letzten Monate  in 2025

1. UFOs zu Quilts machen

Natürlich reise ich gerne, aber genauso gerne bin ich auch zuhause. Deshalb freue ich mich auch sehr, wenn ich Zeit habe, die ich dort verbringen kann. Das war so in meinem Urlaub. Ich habe gehofft, dass es dann ganz heiß wird. Dann wollte ich mich im kühlen Keller verkriechen und quilten was das Zeug hält...

Projekte habe ich viele. Dazu gehören uralte Quilt-Tops, die noch gequiltet werden müssen, und auch neue Projekte, bei denen ich noch Blöcke nähen und zusammenfügen muss:

Meine Quilt-Projekte bis Ende des Jahres ...

You know me…

I love creating variations of the Ribbon Candy pattern. The design Sprout resembles sprouting seeds or maybe a small flame trying to grow. Or perhaps it resembles a swamp monster if you are in the Halloween mood.

This whimsical freemotion design can be used in a wider border but it can be stitched out in rows to too as an edge to edge. It looks great in quilts with themes like plants, horticulture, nature, flame, fire, growth.

Pattern Tutorial

This design has a series of decorative elements: a curl, a set of s-curves and a set of ...

Every year I tell myself that I'm not going to buy fabric without a plan. And every year I buy fabric without a plan because the deal was just that good. Or, the fabric was too awesome to leave behind. A local quilt shop owner retired and the shop changed hands. 

New ownership means new fabric lines and aesthetics. That means the old fabric needs to go and the discounts were great! They bundled several 1-yard cuts together and I couldn't leave them behind. I pulled two with Halloween prints and one with mid-winter prints.

I also picked ...

The edge to edge design Cogs is based on a soft curl surrounded by a boxy echoes and hops.

This funky design would be lovely on a quilt for a person who likes to know the inner workings of a piece of machinery. On the other hand, this freemotion design would work well within a mix of various flower designs too. 

The elements within the sequence of Cogs are pretty simple. A soft curl, a series of boxy shapes as an echo around to the curl and then to complete the shape, add a series of hops around it all ...

Here is my promised three-charm-packs quilt (could also be made with a layer cake or cut from scraps).

Finishes at 66″ square. Great throw, table topper, or even wall hanging (if you have a big wall).

Tutorial coming soon (probably next week).

 Several of my friends have participated in the Running Doe Topalong for a couple of years. In July I succumbed to peer pressure and registered for this round. Basically, you sign up and for six months you receive one pattern per month from Running Doe Quilts.  (There is a very small fee). There are monthly and grand prizes selected from those who finish their tops. I thought it would be a great opportunity to beef up my pattern stash, use some of my fabric stash and donate some quilts to my local guild's charities. I wasn't wrong!

Our ...

Halloween is getting closer, and I have a few small quilty projects planned to get done before then. I have shared a few freemotion designs in the past that suit the scary season, and I will share them again below.

This weeks’ design is called Hair, maybe not specifically named after Cousin Itt from the Addams family, but if the shoe fits…! The random and free-flowing design Hair looks just like ghosts flying and tumbling through the air, don’t you think? Maybe it makes you think of flowing water or kelp too. The edge to edge design Hair is ...

If you didn’t know this about me, I am a very deliberate person. When making a quilt for a person, sometimes it takes me years to come up with the design and color options for that specific person. This one … Continue reading →

A large pile of blocks came from Susan Nixon prior to her death. Unusual colors for a log cabin quilt. And not quite enough blocks. I added 4. Now I can’t tell which ones.

I call it Fireworks. The scattered, irregular shapes almost move. And the colors are so bright.

The finished size is 84″x84″. I don’t have definite plans for it yet, but I am sure it will have a home soon.

It is exactly a year since I ran away from home to Devon and lived in an old caravan until I found my wee cottage. I have now experienced all of the seasons, including what seems to be an early, wet autumn. The conkers on the trees in the park are huge. Nessie and I are now familiar with the regulars in the park, including the 2 resident geese. I was glad that I invested in a decent second hand raincoat and have now added some reflective heat-press flowers so cars can see me in the dark. 

I have done ...

Let’s do another zigzag design, which also works in sashings and borders. This week’s design is named Coral.

This design is based on fat curls and echoes and it can transition corners without stopping and breaking thread.

This whimsical design is very suited for projects with themes like the ocean, the sea, nature, octopus tentacles, kelp, coral, marine animals, ferns, and the forest.

Pattern Tutorial

The design can be quilted in any direction, horizontal, vertical or diagonal. In the tutorial drawings and video footage you will find all of these angles used.

In this tutorial I will use ...

These three 8″ x 8″ bears are great for incorporating into a child’s quilt, a table runner, or used as a repeat for a larger project. The three are all different patterns emphasizing the different head shapes that make these bears distinctive. They are meant to be pieced using the folded Freezer paper technique, but other methods work well too. The patterns are simple enough to be weekend.

The pattern comes as a PDF download for you to print, small enough to print on one sheet of paper. Click here for the $8.92 pattern. You can pay with ...

This interesting and simple grid design is based on wide wishbone designs placed on top of each other. It can be used as an allover, or just in a block or border. 

The design will look great on projects with a theme like farm yard animals. Don’t you think it looks like two layers of chicken wire, but then placed at right angles of each other? I can also see this pattern being used on clutch bags with a metallic thread. The grid is so beautiful!

This wishbone-based grid is pretty simple to execute once you have marked a ...

Young Son is getting married the end of September. She is a lovely young woman, and we are very pleased for them both. And, of course, the occasion calls for a quilt!

This is based on the CLEO Pattern . I did resize the blocks smaller, and I do love the look. Sort of modern/abstract. Or maybe just busy. Either way, it is done now… It is super scrappy with around 250 different green, brown, gold and cream fabrics.

Don’t you LOVE the gold thread in the quilting. (Thank you, Jennifer!)

We wish them a lifetime wrapped in quilty ...

Stella made the cover!

Published!

Stella is not only published in the We Like Quilting digital/online magazine's September 2025 issue, she made the cover! I am thrilled.

Stella

Star blocks alternate with Irish Chain blocks. A skinny border and a scrappy border complete the quilt top.

Egg White Background