What Are Quilters Blogging About Today?

Not being a coffee drinker, I enjoy my tea. I especially like pouring it from my grandma’s teapot. With that said, I have completed the A Little Break pattern by Satomi Quilts. I’ve had the pattern for a few years, and it seemed like something I could just repetitively do in a few afternoons.

I didn’t intend to copy the pattern but I kind of did. I just couldn’t see it in other colors, or multiple colors for the hearts. I love my grunge collection and chose one for the cups and one for ...

My youngest grandson is Anders. In fact, he’s the youngest of all the grandchildren. Anders is my daughter Kailssa’s youngest child. I didn’t get as much time with him when he was little because I was working at the vet clinic. I’m so thankful I always worked at home up until then, as it allowed …

Anders Days… Read More »

I have done so good in the sewing room for the last month or so. I wanted to keep up the momentum and keep working on a few of the projects. I was up early and worked on my Twirl Around quilt. I should maybe rephrase that…I think the quilt worked on me. Notice the …

What I’m Working On: February 9th, 2026 Read More »

If you are new to paper piecing, I would love to share some tips for a beginner, or as a refresher. This past year I did a series of patterns and helpful videos for the American Quilter magazine. I can’t offer the pattern to you at this time because of publication rules, but I would love to share this short video on paper piecing tips. The video was linked to the January/February issue. Every issue in 2025 has a link to a video with my paper piecing tips.

PRESS HERE TO WATCH VIDEO

This video explains the “butterfly ...

This Christmas my family made a rag rug together. Like many families in this mad and increasingly bad world we are treasuring and prioritising analogue entertainments as a bulwark. Despite the global chaos, 2025 was for me a year dominated by the connections and comforts that the four humble pieces of wood that make up… Continue reading The Cymbeline Rug: Rag rugs in the frame.

…and just like that, a month passed. Wow. We’ve already stitched ourselves into the month of February. I got quite a bit of stitching time in last week. If you remember, Arnie went ice fishing, and I had lots of sewing and stitching time. I wanted to work on Oh Joyous Day. I had finally …

Cross Stitch Update: February 6, 2026 Read More »

You all might remember that my daughter Kelli is a big-time Frieda McFadden fan. She reads and reviews many of her books on the blog. I haven’t read any of them. I just haven’t gotten to them yet. When I saw that one of the books was being made into a movie, I thought Kelli …

At the Movies: The Housemaid Read More »

I told you Arnie was gone for the weekend ice fishing in Minnesota. Well, while he was away, I made a plan to get as much sewing done as I could. Those UFOs on my sewing island are driving me to sew (better than driving me to drink!!) I told you about my week, Monday …

What I’m Working On: February 2nd, 2026-Part TWO Read More »

Kelli has no plans to visit me this week. So, no. I didn’t get as much sewing done this week as I did last week, but I still got plenty done. Monday morning, I was up and went straight to the sewing room. In between other projects, I’ve started sewing strips together. They are for …

What I’m Working On: February 2nd, 2026-Part ONE Read More »

On Facebook recently, there was a post that caught my attention. Usually, especially given a long narrative, I don’t pay much attention. But the following was posted on my friend, Helen Sitler’s Facebook page. I’d love to hear your comments!

Women weren’t burning out faster because they were weak.

They were burning out because their bodies were responding exactly as designed—to pressure that never shuts off.

Her name is Elissa Epel, and her work quietly dismantled one of the most damaging lies modern women have been taught: that exhaustion is a personal failure.

For ...

I took each day one stitch at a time this week. My cold is gone, so I don’t have the excuse to sit, stitch, and binge watch!! It’s the reality of a cold at least in the world of a cross stitcher. HA!! So what was I up to? The first thing I worked on …

Cross Stitch Update: January 30th, 2026 Read More »

Hold onto your hats, friends…A whirlwind hit the sewing room, and I accomplished a LOT!! I have been on a roll getting things cleaned up and worked on in the sewing room. My sewing room island looked like this… There were projects everywhere… When I knew my daughter Kelli was coming home last week on …

What I’m Working On: January 26, 2026 Read More »

Oh my gosh, it’s been so long since I posted that I don’t even know where to start so let’s just jump into Project Quilting. My first week was a big swing and a miss so this week I simplified things a bit. The theme was Scads of Plaid and my friend, Dawn, had a spare kit for this plaid. I did toss out the really anemic tan-ish color and replaced it with a floral that’s probably been in my stash for 20 years. I have to admit, that I’m wishing I had time to ...

Every so often, questions and comments come from readers, and I think others would like to hear my response.  That’s when I feature them on the blog.  This is one of those days. The questions today come from the comment section. So many of you were excited about a quilt that Joey recently finished. Many of you …

Ask Jo: From the Comment Section Read More »

There is something comforting about a quilt-along. It feels a bit like a recipe card that’s been passed down for generations. Same method, same heart, but every time it turns out a little different depending on who’s in the kitchen or sewing room and what fabric is selected.. The True Blue QAL is exactly that kind of experience. last week it was picking fabric. This week it is making block 1.. Following directions in the magazine gives you exactly how many pieces you need to cut and sew. I never mind having some extra so ...

In the cross stitch world, projects that are carried over are called WIPS…Works in Progress. The truth of it is, many of the projects haven’t been worked on for a long time…even years. HA!! So, I thought I would do a little inventory check to see where I am in the WIP department. Honestly, I’m …

Cross Stitch WIP Parade Read More »

Thursday was a fun day. Arnie’s sister-in-law is a huge Iowa Women’s Basketball fan…such a fan that she has two season tickets. Typically, her husband goes with her, but this was a weekday game, and he had to be up early to go to work. I was available, so lucky me!! I got to go. …

A Little Thursday Fun… Read More »

I am determined to keep my quilting projects moving along. That led me to be up early on Monday morning at the sewing machine. Last week I had cut out some of the sashing and cornerstone pieces for my Emerald City quilt. Monday morning I sewed all of the nine patches that are needed for …

What I’m Working On: January 19th, 2026 Read More »