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Finally this quilt is done! I thoroughly enjoyed quilting this one and it didn’t take as long as I thought it would be! Mindset is really key to enjoy the free motion quilting process. By taking regular breaks and limiting my quilting sessions to 20-30 minutes at a time, I found myself fully immersed in the free motion quilting process without feeling overwhelmed or fatigued. And that has surely made a big difference!

Together Quilt Pattern and Tutorials:

• Together Quilt Pattern
• Together Quilt Moda Stitch Pink Sew Along using this pattern – video tutorials

Quilting Tools and Notions I used ...

 Well, I sure didn't mean to step away from my blog for months and months, but here we are! I have no excuses really and lots to share with you so let's get to it, shall we?

My most recent quilt finish is Seasons in the Sun, my entry for the Pantone Quilt Challenge this year. In case this challenge is new to you, Pantone chooses a color of the year ever year, this year it is Peach Fuzz. Not really a favorite color of mine, but when you combine it with shades of teal and aqua anything ...

You know by now how these things get started: someone gives me something. In this case, as part of a larger bundle of possibilities, there were three matching 6-1/2″ applique hearts. Much too cute to trash. I did consider pot holders, or a table runner, or a banner. But what they wanted to be was a baby quilt.

I had a little bundle of fat eights that “happened” to match perfectly. I love it when that happens. All that was needed was some background fabric and something to make centers for 6-1/2″ star blocks. I really wanted to ...

Over the millennia and different cultures, people have created labyrinth designs on walls and floors. This ancient tradition endures in new buildings, parks, computer games and from today also in quilting! read more

This is another of the charity quilt kits Sparkle Jane and I created several years ago. One of my goals this year is to get them all put together and delivered to people who can use them.

The colors scheme came from the tipi print–too cute! Some colors are all the same, and some are mixed scraps. Works for me!

There is nothing wrong with simple quilts. They have their own appeal.

Who’s your favorite uncle?

It isn’t often that you get a call, and you immediately know the caller wants something, BUT, that whatever they are going to ask of you might actually be fun, so you let them talk you into a “Yes”. In this case, I became immersed in my first full T-Shirt quilt that I have dubbed “Decades of Decibels”.

I can’t claim design inspiration on this one as my uncle knew what he wanted. He had taken time to inventory and visually lay out the shirts he had collected from rock concerts over the ...

When I saw this panel by Rubin Design Studio “Intricate Illustrated Kitty” of EQuilter, my heart skipped a beat. I just love the colors, the curves and the movement in this panel.

The panel measured 29″ x 43.5″. I could have cut 3.75″ strips for 6″ finished hexies and trimmed the panel to 42″. But, I decided to cut 3.25″ strips for 5″ finished hexies using my Star 60 Ruler. I would need to trim more of the panel, but I felt a smaller strip would make more interesting hexies. There is some stretching with bias ...

There isn’t much I love better than teaching, other than a well-struck iron shot into an elevated green. The Creative Design Society is my ongoing membership, and it focuses on all things machine quilting. Someone asked me what is the thing I love about it the most. That is an easy question to answer. It is all of the members. While the primary focus is on quilting, we have supported members through some trying times. I, for one, leaned on all of the members when my mother passed away. The support was incredible. Other members have had falls, cancer ...

Vergangenes Jahr im Herbst habe ich Paula @paula_handmade besucht und gemeinsam haben wir an einem Mosaik Workshop im @baumhaus.atelier in Echzell teilgenommen. Zwei Tage konnte man dort nach Lust und Laune mit Porzellan Fragmenten tolle neue Objekte schaffen - dazu vielleicht in einem anderen Blogpost mehr... 

Paula Vielhaber - @paula_handmade

Auf jeden Fall war das ein extrem kreatives Wochenende und wer Paula kennt, der weiß, dass sie immer noch eins drauf zusetzen hat! So kam ihr während dieses Wochenendes die Idee, ein gemeinsames Quiltprojekt zu starten. Ihr gefielen die Quilts rund um die Blumen vom Midnight Garden Quilt, den sie auf ...

That’s right… we, meaning me, are changing the name of the monthly membership. So I am enlisting your creative minds to help me! Quilter’s Groove TRIBE will live on with a new name. So far, a few suggestions… Quilter’s Groove Society, Quilter’s Groove Insiders, Quilter’s Groove Clique, Quilter’s Groove Guild, or Quilter’s Groove Posse.

What do you guys think?

On the back end, I will combine the Design Decision Dilemma and QG TRIBE. I don’t even think many people know about the Design Decision Dilemma membership, so by combining them, when I ...

Have you ever made your own free motion bunting?

A basic bunting design is pretty easy ‘to put up’. Before you start, add some guidelines on your fabric so you know the curve of the bunting. Use chalk or a fabric marking pen.

Begin by stitching out the arches of the bunting, freehand or with a ruler. Then go back in and add the zigzag line for the little flags. It doesn’t matter if you start the zig zag from the right or the left.

Explorers

April 2024

These cute little explorers were among the fabric I received from Jocelyn over at Happy Cottage Quilter. I fussy cut them, and then dug into my scraps bins to make the string and four-patch blocks. The backing fabric is a print of boats, telescopes and compasses – everything an explorer needs for a grand adventure.

As a sailor, backpacker and general fan of the great outdoors, this saying speaks to me:

“Not all who wander are lost”
                            — J.R.R. Tolkien

Well in my case, not always. There was one backpacking trip when my husband and I were ...

I KNOW I saw a tutorial for this, but now I can’t find it. If you know of it, please tell me and I will update the post.

So, the point is that I had this pile of novelty fabric squares that needed a job. An Eye Spy quilt is the obvious solution, but I felt that there was something more possible.

I love the way this turned out. I had yardage of this interesting green, and it seems to highlight without overwhelming. (More of it will be featured in another upcoming quilt.) If you squint, you might recognize ...

I really like hand-me-down projects. They introduce an element of mystery and challenge my skills and assumptions.

The bag held a pile of friendship stars. Some had names written on the seam allowance, leading me to believe they were part of a long-ago block exchange. Some spin one way, and some another. Maybe that is what held the original maker back?

They finish at 6″ square, so, to make something of a usable size, something would need to be added. Sashing is an easy go-to. But, what color? Not white. Not cream. Not black. None of them worked. Oddly, as ...

While you have the option to hand quilt, machine quilting is my favorite way to finish a quilt. Specifically free motion quilting. Free motion quilting, in particular, opens up a world of possibilities, enabling you to create stunning designs and textures on your quilts. 

Free-motion quilting is a technique where you manually move the fabric under the needle of your sewing machine, rather than relying on the machine’s feed dogs to move the fabric forward. This technique gives you complete control over the direction and movement of your stitches, allowing for endless design possibilities. 

You can free-motion quilt using ...