NTT Today

Unfortunately, there will be no Needle and Thread Thursday this week. Strong storms moved through our area on Monday and our house was struck by lightning.  Among many other things, it affected our internet and home phone, and it has not yet been restored. In fact, I am making this post from my cell phone. :(.

I am hoping to have my service back up and running after my service appointment  tomorrow afternoon. I can't wait to show you my finished Stacked Squares quilt!  Until then, I'll be spending plenty of time at my machine!

Thanks so much for your understanding and I'll see you next week!

:) Kelly

Stems and Stones with the Courthouse Quilters

This weekend I had the pleasure of teaching my Stems and Stones pattern (along with a foolproof method for sewing snowball corners without drawing lines!) to the Courthouse Quilters Guild just outside of Nashville, TN.

It was so much fun to see all of the different interpretations of the pattern, from more muted colors, to seasonal fabrics, to vibrant batiks with a black background.  One quilter is using Kate Spain's Cuzco collection with a teal background, and I can't wait to see it all finished!

I didn't get a photo of everyone's fabric choices, as several quilters in the class opted to make a larger sized quilt.  Since they wanted to be sure that they had plenty of flexibility in their layouts and had a good grasp on the design of the pattern, they opted to work on individual block components during the class, rather than finishing a smaller section.   I made everyone promise to send a photo to me when they put their quilts together, and I can't wait to see them start rolling in!

It was such a joy to have the opportunity to laugh and visit with these fun ladies, and I'm super excited to know that I get to return there in August to be a part of another event.

Winners and Needle and Thread Thursday

Happy NTT, friends!  Lately, I've been working on a Stacked Squares quilt in shades of aqua, gray, navy, and green.  I have always loved the illusion of this quilt, and although I have made a few of them, I have never kept one for myself.

This is such a soothing color palette, and since this entire quilt came from stash, clearly I'm drawn to fabrics in these colors.  Now that I am presenting classes and trunk shows, I have the perfect excuse for keeping plenty of my quilts!  In fact, I'm traveling to teach a class this weekend, so finishing this one will have to wait a little while.

I owe you some winners from my June sponsor giveaways!  First up, the winner of the Shabby Fabrics Welcome Home giveaway is comment number 7 (Kathy E.)!

And the three winners for the Juniper Berries Jolly Bars are comment numbers 92 (Teje), 12 (Jen), and 46 (Therese).

                           

I'll be contacting you via email very soon so that you can collect your prizes, ladies.  Congratulations to all!

So, let's get to the highlights from last weeks fantastic party!  This Fractal quilt from Afton at Quilting Mod is absolutely stunning!

and check out this Fabulous Foxes baby quilt from Lori at Crossquilt.  I was privileged to see this one in person at our guild meeting and it is so cute, and especially cuddly with that minky backing!

Finally, I am loving this Scrappy Strips quilt from Sarah at Georgia Girl Quilts! 

Let's link up, y'all!  

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!  :)

Jingle All the Way

Okay, so let's just all pretend that this quilt is showcased with a pristine snowy backdrop, and a mug of hot chocolate in hand, instead of the lush, green landscape that is reality.

The heat index was close to 110 degrees today, and it feels a little weird to be spreading Christmas cheer amidst these sweltering temps, but I really love this finish!  The Baubles pattern works perfectly with the Jingle holiday fabrics, and really look like vintage blown glass ornaments.

I used all of my Jingle scraps, along with a leftover piece from the Santa's Here line, and filled out the backing with Kona Basil Green.  The darker solid and tonal green fabrics really make those scraps pop, and I do love how the quilting really shows up on a solid.

This one got a Kona Red binding, and it creates a perfect frame for the quilt.

I have made several Christmas quilts over the last few years, but I've never kept one for myself.  Well, this is the year that my own couch gets a special, snuggly quilt during the holiday season, because this one is all mine!

Jingle and NTT

Nope, your eyes do not deceive you.  I am in fact working on a Christmas quilt right now, complete with my fave Christmas music playing while I sew.  You might recall that last summer, I posted a tutorial for a Poinsettia Table Topper made with Kate Spain's Jingle collection.  I fell in love with the fabrics then, and have had this bundle for a while, just waiting for the opportunity to turn them into a Christmas quilt for myself (can you believe that I don't already have one??)

So here's the thing.  By the time the Christmas season rolls around, we are all bombarded with red and green everywhere, and I don't really want to sew Christmas things.  I enjoy my Christmas projects much more when I'm not seeing the decor everywhere.  I know it's a little bit weird.

I have always thought that my Baubles pattern would be perfect with holiday fabrics, because the shape of the blocks look like vintage glass ornaments, and it definitely creates the effect I was hoping for.  Unfortunately, I didn't have enough forethought to order backing fabric from the Jingle line when I got the bundle, so I need to figure that out, but I can't wait to get this one finished!

Last week's party was full of amazingness!  It always makes me smile to see someone enjoy making one of my patterns, and Celine at Espritpatch shared her version of my Stems and Stones pattern last week!

Jennie at Porch Swing Quilts shared this happy, and fun Polka Dot Pinwheel quilt.

and Jess at Quilty Habit shared this wonderfully modern Emergence quilt.  Look at the all of that awesome quilting!

Choosing highlights each weeks is so difficult. Y'all just rock!  Let's get to it, 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!  :)

Text and Tiles, and NTT

Happy Needle and Thread Thursday, friends!  The party is a tad bit earlier than usual today, but I know if I wait until this evening to post, I'll forget.  Today is my wild thing's 12th birthday, and yesterday was mine (39, which is a hard number to type).  Anyway, wild thing and I have spent the day making cheesecake from scratch, his favorite dessert EVER, and my hubby is coming home early this evening.  Then we are heading out for an evening of laser tag, miniature golf, go-karts, batting cages, and arcade games.  These activities were clearly chosen by the birthday boy, and not necessarily the birthday mom, but I know we will all have tons of fun.   Sometimes, when life gets crazy, you just have to get things done while they're on your mind.

I am super excited to share my latest finish with you though.  I've named it Text and Tiles, and now that it's all quilted, I love it even more.

*Edited to Add- since a few have asked and I forgot to mention it, this is my Courtyard Tiles pattern, and it is available in my Craftsy and Etsy shops!  :)

I think the scrappy text background adds so much great texture and interest to the quilt, and doesn't detract from the focus fabrics at all, which was an initial worry.  Even though the pattern and fabrics themselves are both modern, something about the text background makes it feel even more artsy and modern to me.

I pieced the backing with all of my scraps, and although you can't really see it in this picture, the text prints are pieced together in a large strip across the top of the backing.

I opted to make a scrappy binding, and that kept me from adding those pieces to my scrap jars, so that's definitely a win in my book!

Without further ado, check out some of the highlights from our last party two weeks ago.  I'm loving the color illusion in this quilt by Quilting is More Fun Than Housework-

Erica at Dresses and Spurs shared this fun quilt.

And this rainbow Modern Cross beauty is from Deb at New Creative State.

Even though I was having a fabulous time on vacation, I really missed last week's party.  I can't wait to see what you link up this week!

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!  :)

Texts and Brights

Well friends, we just got back from vacation last night, and though our trip was exhausting, it was so much fun.  It was my wild thing's first trip to Washington, DC and the surrounding areas, and so much was crammed into the past week.  I finished up this quilt top right before we left though, so I wanted to go ahead and share it.

Once again, the siren call of large scale, bold prints has taken hold.  I love making quilts where I can throw all of them together.  This quilt is made with my Courtyard Tiles pattern and in this quilt, I decided to set these bright fabrics against a scrappy text background.  

I've been hoarding text fabrics for awhile to use as a background, but have been a little apprehensive about using them with other prints.  I needed to be sure that there was enough contrast so the pattern wasn't a busy mess.  The Courtyard Tile blocks are large though, and the prints are so bright and bold that I think they work beautifully with the text and have plenty of contrast.

I have really missed sewing, and can't wait to get some time on my machine to finish this one up.  Of course, since we just got back last night, my bags are still waiting to be unpacked and the resulting mountain of laundry will have to be tackled first.  As nice as it is to be home and sleep in my own bed, somehow the aftermath of vacation isn't nearly as fun as the preparation.