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What we’re doing during our sometimes-annual Snowmaggedon week.

Snowmaggedon is being re-nicknamed to Snowzilla. Or Sleetzilla. The snow came and came and finally stopped Sunday, and sleet was off and on all day Saturday and I think that night. But we’re still warm and toasty inside, and if we wanted to go anywhere, we couldn’t. I’m ok with it. The windchill has us in the negative digits this weekend and Monday; no thawing will happen until Tuesday afternoon at the earliest, but it will take awhile for this stuff to go away. 

The photo above is ...

The small herd of five deer have been hanging around here lately. They were back earlier in the week on the mountainside behind the house. I believe they are all females. Two appear to be adults, while the other three are likely juveniles almost grown.

One was moving ahead of the others, and paused to look at me near the rhododendrons with their leaves curled up against the cold.

The others behind headed up the west side in the morning sun.

They nibbled their way behind the rhododendrons. I put an arrow to the one almost hidden.

They ate the ...

At the guild gift store at our last show, I bought a cute mug with a mug rug to go with it. I just loved the idea, so I made a couple of mats and found mugs to go with them. I put them out for sale at the Fall Fiber Faire at our local quilt shop last fall, and sold all but one.

This one was the first thing sold that day. The mug is huge, and really cute.

You’ve seen the one I did with the Paris theme fabrics. I found the mug first on this set ...

After finishing the previous denim jacket (Denim Jacket Refashion) using the embroidered panels, I was charged up to do another one to put in the guild shop at our upcoming show. Working on the second denim jacket, I had a lace collar that I thought might be a nice addition. But, when I placed it on the yoke, it just didn’t fit right.

Two small lace hearts are the perfect size to adorn the front pockets.

At the bottom, I used a flat lace with a pretty edge as a replacement waistband.

Start with folding the raw edge under ...

For this week’s tutorial we are back in business with free-motion quilting! This design, Hourglass, is basically a geometric and modern version of an earlier design: Cursive L’s. The technique of these two designs is very similar, so if you got one down, you can easily do the other!

Dot n’ Dash Quilt – Pick Up Piece and Quilt With Precuts

I admit I haven’t actually made a full-size quilt with Hourglass – that is on my bucket list! However, I’ve quilted a similar design on Dot n’ Dash, the featured quilt of this week. I call this ...

When we left off on Tuesday, both sides of the purse had pockets and handles attached. Today, I’ll show you the finishing.

Next is to put in the zipper. I place the zipper right sides together at the top of one side of the purse. Stitch at about 1/4-inch seam allowance. Stop when the pull is reached, lift the presser foot and move the pull out of the way, past the point of the needle. Then lower the foot again, and continue stitching to the end.

Fold over the zipper to the wrong side, pushing the seam allowance ...

After receiving a mystery box with some fun projects, I decided I didn’t want to do the one for the lemon print fabric on the left and the zipper with the lemon slice pull. I found another lemon print at my local quilt shop, and bought a half yard to make a purse. The lemon slice print is about 1/3 of a yard. The zipper is 16 inches long.

If you’d like to make a purse with this pattern, here’s the supply list –
1/2 yard print for outside of bag
1/2-yard of lining fabric ...

Want to level up your walking foot quilting game? Try combining straight lines and decorative stitches to create unique motifs that are super easy to do! Click below to watch my latest video tutorial and be sure to leave a comment letting me know what you think!

Get My Book – The Ultimate Guide to Machine Quilting

In the second book I ever wrote – The Ultimate Guide to Machine Quilting – I first explored this idea of combining straight lines and decorative stitches. The book itself includes 10 patterns and 20 quilts (each pattern is made 2 different ways). It was fun ...

A few days of warmth have been followed by a really cold snap. The deer have been here several days looking for food. I think it is fine for them to eat the vines and weeds out of the hosta garden.

This gal did her part.

Three of them moved through, and I wish they’d stay a bit longer and finish off the weed removal. But, it is hard to find good help these days.

In the birdhouse, I thought I saw a bird sitting in the opening with its head looking around. I realized after taking several photos ...

Learn how to sew the Blossom Block, one of the sweetest and simplest blocks in the Berry Blossom Quilt Along! This soft, floral-inspired block features a cheerful yellow center surrounded by pretty pink petals — the perfect mix of charm and simplicity.

In this tutorial, I’ll walk you through how to piece the Blossom Block step by step, with a video showing each part of the process so you can follow along easily. You’ll need the Patchwork Planner for the cutting measurements — or you can grab it free when you join Patchworkers Plus, where members get access to the ...

For this week’s tutorial, we have two geometric spiral designs: Square and Triangle Spirals. These two free-motion designs can be used separately, or you can combine them in the same quilting plan to give lots of texture to your quilt. If you want to check out this video, click the link below:

Piece and Quilt with Precuts

The quilt I feature in this week’s video is called Starstruck. I used both Triangle and Square spirals on this quilt, but you can choose any designs from this series, as the busy pattern for this quilt and fabric choice can ...

At a guild meeting a couple of months ago, one of my friends showed her fabulous vest that she recently got. It was made from an older denim jacket, where the sleeves were removed to make it a vest, and a lace panel was added to the back. The denim under the panel was cut away, leaving just the sheer embroidered lace. It was beautiful, and got me inspired to do something similar for the guild gift shop. I found a denim jacket at the thrift shop, and I had some white lace to play with, but not enough of ...

 Wow.  forty-six views last month.  

I have discovered ChatGBT after asking for help with my Japanese Vintage Sewing machine.  Err.  Don't do that.  While it knows some things, it started making up things as I went along.  Very funny, but not.  I had pulled out the top tension, took it apart, and somehow knocked the pieces over.  I can't find a picture of the machine from a Google search.  So, ask AI right?

It knew about Japanese Vintage machines.  Singer and other companies sent their specifications over to Japan after WWII.  Most of the machines were just rebadged ...

Several mornings this past week had such colors at dawn that I had to step out to the freezing cold to take pictures. This day had purple clouds low on the horizon, almost looking like a second mountain ridge with the sun coming up in front of them.

The birds seem to like the new feeder. A pair of chickadees take advantage of the bounty on a very cold and overcast day.

Here, a Carolina wren gets his share while a downy woodpecker has a meal on the opposite perch.

Another dawn in golden yellow and peach hues.

Morning fog ...

December has been a busy month for us. It’s that living in the moment thing again. 

One of our nieces contacted the Hubs a few weeks ago and told him that while she apologized for the late notice, she was graduating from nursing school in a couple of weeks and that since she was our favorite niece (her words), she knew we’d come anyway! And we did. It has been many years since we visited Hubs’ hometown and we squeezed in all the visiting we could along with attending Lauren’s graduation ceremony and celebration party. We played ...

This year has been an awesome one for members of Patchworkers Plus (I may say that every year). But it really has been! Let’s take a look at who we had as guest designers, what projects and quilts we sewed (and finished) and all the little bits in between.

I am so lucky to be surrounded by other quilters just like me. Quilters with piles of projects, piles of fabulous fabric and great intentions. Some things get finished.. and some just wait in the pile somewhat patiently until they are up on the ‘next’ list.

Every year I really ...

 It's down to the wire for class prep, and everything is right on target! The best news is that I have the entire day to finish up things, so that's great. I completed something significant for the homework last night, and I was dancing around the room as it looks fantastic! 

You have to love it when things come together like that. 

It was an enjoyable day teaching my in-person class, and everyone went home with their heads filled with information. Way too much, but I took full advantage of the day, and they will now have to ...

Come sew along with me and other quilters during 2026 with the block of the month. It’s the perfect combo of color and blocks. Dig through your stash and get sewing.

I am excited to announce the block of the month pattern for 2026 – Starlit Meadow. yay!! It’s a beauty.

You’ll be sewing along beginning in February. The first block goes live along with the video walking you through the process of sewing it up.

Every year there is a new design and this year features some of my favorite blocks – the basket block and a super ...