Summer Blossoms and NTT

Hey there, my friends!  Welcome back to another Needle and Thread Thursday.  This week has been a busy one around here.  As you may remember, gardening is another passion of mine, and we added a new, large flower bed along the side of our house, which required installing the metal edging, tilling up grass, and of course, planting.  After we got all of the new plants in, we did our annual mulching of all the flower beds, which amounted to seven yards of mulch!  It's hard work, but I really love being outside when the weather is pretty, and I especially love the gorgeous end result when my yard is in full bloom.  All of our spring planting and garden maintenance is usually finished by this time of year, but being out of town for five weeks really put a kink in the usual plan.  

Shockingly, even after all of that, I still found time to finish my Summer Blossoms quilt, which has been waiting for me since before I left for California.  And y'all, this one just makes me happy!

You may recognize this block as the Summer Blossom mini quilt from my second book, Scrappy Improv Quilting, but it looks very different with the low volume background. 

That being said, since I used every color in the rainbow in this quilt, I think the lighter background works better.  The background fabric I chose is from the Postmark collection from Alison Glass.  The print is called Margin in the Daisy color way.  It's a very subtle print and the sunshine makes it very difficult to see, but I grabbed an online photo for you.  It's just perfect with these flower blocks.

I stuck with the floral theme for quilting and added allover flowers to give this quilt lots of yummy texture.

Free motion quilting is just like riding a bike.  You never forget how to do it, but after being away from it for a little while, it does take a few minutes to find the groove again, especially when quilting a specific design, rather than stippling.

Once I had all twelve blocks put together for this quilt, I realized that I still had enough scraps for a few more blocks.  I didn't want to make the quilt any bigger, so of course I put them on the back.  I did have to buy a little extra background fabric to make that happen, but it was totally worth it.

When I made the huge push to sew ALL of my stash last year, I had a leftover chunk of this warm Alison Glass print from my Misfits quilt.  I initially saved this warm print for the back of my Starfire quilt, but decided it had too much pink to use there.  I love it on the back of this one though!  To make the backing long enough, I found this gorgeous green print on sale at my local shop, and just by happenstance, it's also by Alison Glass (Sun Print Crochet in Gulf).  Here's a closeup since the sun and quilting are making this one hard to see too-

By the way, do you ever wonder how I keep all of my quilt backs straight, centered, and aligned perfectly with the front?  Or, do you ever shy away from making a pieced quilt back because you're certain that you won't be able to keep it straight?  Well, I'm here to tell you that it's easier than you think!  A few well-placed pieces of painter's tape will help you get perfect results every time.  You can find the full method, along with thirty (!!!) different pieced quit backs in may book, Perfectly Pieced Quilt Backs.  Just click on the cover of the book on my left sidebar to visit my Etsy shop and start giving your quilt backs a little extra fun.  Check it out!

In an ongoing effort to use up what I have, the binding of this quilt is scrappy!  I had several large scrap chunks in my purple jar, all leftover from my Grape Soda quilt, and they make a great frame for these blossoms.

Okay, my friends.  It's almost time to party, but first, we can't forget to ogle some of the projects shared last week.  Sandra at mmmquilts linked up this sweet quilt, and it definitely gives all the summer vibes!

These gorgeous teal stars are from Gretchen's Little Corner-

And finally, this rainbow stunner is from Something Rosemade-

So, let's get our party on so we can see all of the awesomeness you have to share 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 within your 

    post.  

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!  :)

Home For Awhile and NTT

Happy Spring and welcome back to Needle and Thread Thursday, my friends! I feel like it's been FOREVER since I've posted, and I am so happy to be home!  From the time I flew to South Carolina on 3/13 to getting back home last Friday, 4/18, I was only at home for a total of five days.  For anyone counting, that's basically five straight weeks away from home.  The last four weeks since our last party included an amazing three-week vacation/teaching trip to California, plus an additional teaching trip to Colorado Springs.  Check out a few photos of all the fun times-

San Diego (we even had a couple of finished quilt tops!)-

           

           

And Colorado Springs-

           

           

           

           

I wish I was better about taking photos through the whole process of my classes, but suffice it to say, we all had a blast!  If your guild is looking for a fun workshop, send me an email using the Email Me button on my sidebar and we'll talk!  I currently only have one opening for this fall, but I'm scheduling into 2026 now!  And remember- I also offer virtual trunk shows if your guild prefers that.

As much fun as it is to travel, after being away for so long, it's always nice to get back to your own home (and bed). Since getting back home last Friday I've been busy, but not in my studio.  I've been getting my house back in order, taking care of unpacking and laundry, and working in my yard doing spring clean-up/planting before it gets too hot.  And of course, I got home just in time for Easter dinner with my husband and son.

What have you been working on for the past few weeks?  I can't wait to see all of the thing's I've missed.  Before we party though, here are a few highlights from our last party.  Take a look at this quilt shared by Nancy at Grace and Peace Quilting-

This beauty is from Shannon at The Flemings Nine-

This soothing quilt is from Gretchen's Little Corner-

And this sweet quilt top is from Kat at Scrapbook Quilts-

Okay, friends.  Let's get our party started!  I'm so excited to see what you've been working on while I've been gone.  Remember, if you have several posts/finishes, please feel free to link more than once!  :)

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 within your 

    post.  

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!  :)