Homecoming and NTT

Happy Needle and Thread Thursday, friends!  This week has been such a blast for me, because I traveled down to Baton Rouge, LA to teach the Remember Me Quilt Guild.  In fact, I just got home this afternoon.  We worked on improv piecing scraps with the Detour quilt from my book, Stash Statement.  Take a look at the original quilt from the book-

This is actually the first time I've taught in my hometown, and the church where the class was held is literally minutes from the house where I grew up.  We had such a good time that several ladies ended up leaving before I realized we hadn't gotten a group photo.  Oops!

It is always amazing to see how the variety of scraps and background fabric choices make such a huge difference in the feel of the finished quilt.  Each one is unique, and they are all beautiful!  That's one of the greatest things about this technique.

Usually, I teach and present my trunk shows on two consecutive days (or even sometimes in a single day), but since I was visiting my parents and grandparents as well, having the class on a Saturday and presenting my trunk show on Tuesday night at their regular meeting was no problem.  My mom and I did a little shopping, hit some of my favorite restaurants, and had a grand time.  Those extra days gave a couple of ladies the chance to really get busy on their Detour quilts-

and one super efficient person even finished her ENTIRE quilt between Saturday afternoon and Tuesday evening!  Amazing!

It is great to be back home with my husband and son, but if I have to be away, my hometown sure is a great spot to travel!  If your guild would like to learn a fun and EASY technique to tackle those scraps (I know we all have them!), just send me an email using the Email Me button on my right sidebar.  I still have plenty of availability in 2020, but it's filling up.  And, be sure to use the button at the top of my left sidebar to check out my book, Stash Statement, for yourself!

Before we get to last week's party highlights, I owe you FOUR winners from my September sponsor post.  First, the winner of the $25 gift certificate is comment number 11, Lee.  The winner of the cute wooly mug rug kit from Shabby Fabrics is comment number 50, Pamela.  The winners of the two cute charm packs from Fort Worth Fabric Studio are Kathy and Danette, comments 16 and 7.  Congratulations to all!  I sent emails to you this afternoon so you can get your prizes.  :)

Last week's party was awesome!  This cheery quilt is by Mary at Fleur de Lis Quilts-

These soft Ohio Stars are by Alison at Little Bunny Quilts-

And this pinwheel stunner is by Leanne at Devoted Quilter, and it's featured in Make Modern magazine!

Wow!  I'm a little travel weary from driving home today, but I know that browsing all of your beauties will perk me up.  Let's get our party on!

1. You can link finished projects or WIP's , but just keep it about quilting and sewing!

2. Link to your specific post (not to your home page!) to make it easier for others.

3. Please remember to spread the word and post my button or a text link.  

4. Spread the comment love far and wide!

5. Following me is not a requirement to link, but is so very appreciated!

*If you're new to the party, here's a helpful tip for linking up- select "Auto Crop"  when selecting your thumbnail photo.  For some reason, trying to crop your own image results in the dreaded "white question mark box," and we definitely want to see your awesome work!  :)

Seafaring and NTT

Happy Needle and Thread Thursday, friends!  My wild thing's quilt is all finished, and already in use on his bed, and let me tell you- it is definitely snuggle-worthy.

The pops of yellow, paired with the darker blues and grays give this quilt so much sparkle and depth, and I never seem to get tired of the Stacked Squares illusion.

I picked a dense ripple quilting pattern, and it adds lots of movement and texture.  As much as I love finishing my own quilts, my neck is glad that I sent this one to the long arm quilter.

On the back, I chose a gray print with tiny plus signs, and it perfectly compliments the strip of block leftovers that I added down the center of the backing.  And of course, I am in love with the way the quilting shows up against it!

For the binding, I chose a denim blue tonal fabric that almost has a Grunge look to it.  I usually like solid bindings when my quilt is a little busier, but I wasn't able to find a solid shade of blue I really liked.  I'm happy with the way this binding frames the quilt though.  It adds a little something extra to the quilt while still looking simple and clean.

This quilt is queen sized, measuring about 86" x  94", and it already looks amazing in my son's bedroom.  The stormy shades of blue and gray, sunny yellow, and ripple quilting all add to this quilt's nautical vibe, so I've decided to call this one Seafaring.

Last week's party was full of amazing inspiration!  This Jelly Roll Waves quilt by Anja Quilts is super cute!

I love this string quilt by Sew Preeti Quilts.  The colors are so soothing.

This lovely quilt top is by Linda at Koka Quilts.

And these two low volume beauties by Gretchen's Little Corner are so calming.

Wow!  So much awesomeness linked up last week.  I can't wait to see what you're working on now.  Let's get our party started!

1. You can link finished projects or WIP's , but just keep it about quilting and sewing!

2. Link to your specific post (not to your home page!) to make it easier for others.

3. Please remember to spread the word and post my button or a text link.  

4. Spread the comment love far and wide!

5. Following me is not a requirement to link, but is so very appreciated!

*If you're new to the party, here's a helpful tip for linking up- select "Auto Crop"  when selecting your thumbnail photo.  For some reason, trying to crop your own image results in the dreaded "white question mark box," and we definitely want to see your awesome work!  :)

September Fabric Deals and Four Giveaways!

How is September almost halfway over already?  If you're like me, this is the time of year when you really start making a mental list of everything you need to accomplish before the holidays... and then panic a little bit.  You know, it's closer than you think!  If you need some inspiration, or if you need the perfect fabrics to get started, read on!  I've rounded up the best deals from my favorite shops around!

First up is the sponsor of our first giveaway of the day, LouLou's Fabric Shop!  LouLou's is such a fun place to stock up on yardage and precuts, but one of my favorite places to check out is their Bolt End and Clearance section.  There are SO many great deals to be had.


Pictured on the left is the latest LouLou bundle.  These bundles are perfectly curated each week to take away the guesswork for you!  You can just grab one and jump right into a project!

LouLou's is giving away a $25 gift certificate to one lucky winner this month.  Woohoo!

Autumn is already in full swing over at Shabby Fabrics.  If you love just a pop of seasonal decor in your home, they've definitely got you covered.  One of my favorite series is the Year in Words wall hangings.  Take a look at the ones for October and November.  So cute!  You can check out ALL of the special Autumn products HERE.

               

Shabby Fabrics is also sponsoring the second giveaway for the month.  Check out this Wooly Mug Rug for September (yep, they have one for every single month).  If you've never worked with wool but want to try it out, these little kits are just perfect for you.  One lucky winner will get this fantastic September kit!                       

If you're looking for a Halloween collection with a bit of elegance, look no further than Lady Belle Fabrics!  I just love the Haunted Gala collection.  The colors are a bit softer, and the prints are a little more subtle.

Even if you're ready to get started on a Christmas project, Lady Belle it still a great place to shop.  This fat quarter bundle of the Garland collection is in the Last Chance section right now (along with SO many other great collections).  Check it out!

Finally, our last two giveaways for the day are sponsored by Fort Worth Fabric Studio, where there are lots of great things happening.  They have lots of new arrivals, including the Crescent and Brushed collection by Ruby Star Society.  I especially love those brushed prints.  They are such great stash builders!            


If you're a lover of holiday projects, Fort Worth Fabric Studio makes it simple to get everything you need.  Their Haunted House and Holiday House sections of their store keep everything organized and make life easy peasy!

Fort Worth Fabric Studio is generously giving away a charm pack from each of their seasonal houses.  One US winner will receive a charm pack of the Fab-boo-lous collection, and a second US winner will receive a charm pack of the Sweet Christmas collection!  Awesome!

                                  

To enter all of the giveaways, just leave a single comment on this post, and then hop over to these fantastic shops to take advantage of these amazing deals.

Since two of today's giveaways are only open to US residents, please be sure to let me know if you're international.  Don't forget to leave an email address if you're a no-reply blogger, and only one entry per person please!  Unfortunately, replies to your own comment counts as an entry (the system numbers those, too), so remember to put your email address in your comment if necessary.

Additional replies/comments/entries are always deleted.  I'll announce the winners at next week's NTT (September 18th).  Happy shopping and good luck!  :)
This giveaway has now closed.  Thanks so much to all who entered!

Stacked Squares Top and NTT

Happy Needle and Thread Thursday, friends!  I've finished up my Wild Thing's queen size quilt top, and I am so pleased with how it turned out.  More importantly, he loves it too!

I laid this quilt out a little differently from the other Stacked Squares quilts I've done.  I made the quilt a little less busy by allowing more of each square to show.  It took a little bit of playing, but I love the layout, and I'm really happy with the movement of the quilt.

Since injuring my neck last fall and having months of physical therapy, I have vowed not to finish anymore quilts this large on my home machine, so this one is off at a friend's being longarmed, and I can't wait to get it back.  The binding is all ready for it which is good, because Wild Thing is ready to sleep under his quilt!

Last week's party was full of amazing inspiration, like this fun quilt from Celine at Espritpatch-

This quilt by Micki at 2 Dogs Studio is so calming-

Myra at Busy Hands Quilts showed off this fresh and cheery quilt-

And finally, isn't this summery quilt by Laura at Slice of Pi Quilts so yummy?

Y'all really know how to bring the eye candy each week, so without further ado, let's party, friends!

1. You can link finished projects or WIP's , but just keep it about quilting and sewing!

2. Link to your specific post (not to your home page!) to make it easier for others.

3. Please remember to spread the word and post my button or a text link.  

4. Spread the comment love far and wide!

5. Following me is not a requirement to link, but is so very appreciated!

*If you're new to the party, here's a helpful tip for linking up- select "Auto Crop"  when selecting your thumbnail photo.  For some reason, trying to crop your own image results in the dreaded "white question mark box," and we definitely want to see your awesome work!  :)

Big Blocks Rock!

Happy Needle and Thread Thursday, friends!  I missed y'all last week, but enjoyed my trip teaching the Houston Modern Quilt Guild, as well as my visit with family.  I'm back in the saddle on my Wild Thing's queen sized quilt, and I finished up all of the blocks just this morning.

Any queen sized quilt is going to take more time than the usual throw size I usually make, but at least these blocks are big and go together quickly.  I just have to press them, chop them into quarters, and lay them out.  If you haven't already guessed, Wild Thing chose the Stacked Squares pattern because he thinks the illusion is super cool.

Before we get to the highlights from last week's party, I owe you a winner for the August sponsor giveaway from Fort Worth Fabric Studio!  Comment number 27, Kris at Sew Sunshine is the winner. congrats to you, Kris.  I'll be contacting you soon!





Okay then!  Last week's party was amazing!  Take a look at this super cool graphic quilt by Jayne at Twiggy and Opal-

This table runner by Anja Quilts is so neat!

I love the design and the unexpected color palette in this quilt by Sophie at Luna Lovequilts-

And I am drooling over this improv floral quilt by Cynthia at Quilting is More Fun Than Housework-

It's been awhile, but I'm ready to party.  Let's get it going, friends!

1. You can link finished projects or WIP's , but just keep it about quilting and sewing!

2. Link to your specific post (not to your home page!) to make it easier for others.

3. Please remember to spread the word and post my button or a text link.  

4. Spread the comment love far and wide!

5. Following me is not a requirement to link, but is so very appreciated!

*If you're new to the party, here's a helpful tip for linking up- select "Auto Crop"  when selecting your thumbnail photo.  For some reason, trying to crop your own image results in the dreaded "white question mark box," and we definitely want to see your awesome work!  :)