What Are Quilters Blogging About Today?

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 ...

read more

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 ...

read more

read more

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 ...

read more

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 ...

read more

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 ...

read more

 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 ...

read more

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 ...

read more

read more

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 ...

read more

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 ...

read more

 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 ...

read more

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 ...

read more

The freemotion design Paws is one of those designs that creates a lovely texture. You just want to pet the quilt!

This design works well for quilts with themes like animals, pets, water, sea, ocean, rain, weather, wind, flying, birds, and swimming. Is there anything else that this design reminds you of?

Pattern Tutorial

Create the dynamic design Paws by moving in all directions. The design sequence its pretty simple; curve round and add a teardrop or a paisley shape inside of the curve.

The teardrop is a symmetrical shape, while the paisley is not; it has a curve. Mix ...

read more

The virtual cookie exchange is one I look forward to. I like the opportunity to push myself into trying to convert another holiday recipe to a gluten-free version. This time, I decided to try making my younger daughter’s favorite…snickerdoodles! When I started looking at gluten-free recipes, I was surprised to see they didn’t call for cream of tarter. In my opinion, half the charm of a snickerdoodle is that slightly tart taste that lingers on your tongue. So, I went back to my 1980’s Betty Crocker Cookbook and I just subbed in the Bob’s Red ...

read more

This Thanksgiving was extra special for our family. Both of our sons got married in the past two years and our daughter is engaged to be married next year. All eight of us were going to have Thanksgiving dinner together. We also invited a couple missionaries over to have dinner with us. I am usually a bit more casual about our Thanksgiving dining, but I wanted to set the table for this occasion. I had a few days to prepare, and I decided to make 10 placemats. Shopping and cooking for Thanksgiving sounds busy enough and sewing placemats may sound ...

read more

A fun new way to sew with me each month.

I’ve been hinting that something new was coming… and today I finally get to share it with you!

Say hello to Make & Take Monthly — a simple, stash-friendly membership where you get one fun sewing project every month, complete with a printable PDF and a step-by-step video. Nothing overwhelming. Nothing complicated. Just something cute you can make in an afternoon.

This idea has been on my mind for years.
I love big quilt projects (and we’ll keep doing those!), but sometimes you just want a small win… something you ...

read more

If there’s one place quilting starts to go off the rails, it’s right at the cutting table. A crooked strip here, a stretched ruler there… and suddenly your blocks don’t line up and nothing fits quite right.

I’ve been there plenty of times—usually when I try to rush through cutting so I can get to the fun part: sewing.

Accurate cutting really does make everything easier. Your piecing goes smoother, your seams behave, your blocks finish the right size, and you spend way less time ripping things out. Whether you’re new to quilting or ...

read more

Learn how to make a shoo fly quilt block using one layer cake (plus a little yardage for the center squares). It’s a simple block with half square triangles and rectangle pieces. Easy enough to sew up in a weekend.

Materials Needed to Sew the Quilt

1 – layer cake or 42 10″ x 10″ squares – see below the cutting instructions

28 – 2 1/2″ x 2 1/2″ squares (center of each block – DON’T use the layer cake for these!)

Want the ad free pdf file?! Scroll to the bottom of the post for more details!

Layer Cake ...

read more

Learn how to sew a classic Courthouse Steps quilt block—with a fun little twist in the middle and easy strip sewing all the way through! If you’re like me and have a pile of leftover strips from past projects (or maybe a jelly roll or two you’ve been “saving”), this is a great way to put them to work.

This version of the courthouse steps block starts with a simple 4-patch center and builds out using all 2″ strips—no tricky measurements, no fuss, just easy sewing.

It’s perfect for swaps, scrappy layouts, and clearing out ...

read more