Spring Break Teaching and NTT

Welcome to Needle and Thread Thursday, friends!  At the moment this post publishes, I will be on a plane traveling to visit the Golden Triangle Quilt Guild in Beaumont, TX (thank goodness for scheduled posts!). I'll be presenting a trunk show and a full-day class with the Churn, Churn, Churn pattern from my book, Scrappy Improv Quilting.  

This week, I haven't sewn a single stitch.  I've been preparing for my trip and enjoying relaxed time with my son, who is on his very last Spring Break of high school.  We've rented his tux for his last prom, taken the dog on leisurely walks, eaten lunch together, had some great conversations, and I've even watched him play a video game he thought I would appreciate (it is strongly based in Greek and Roman mythology, so he was right).  Nothing earth-shattering, but quality time well-spent.  Mommas of little ones, the years really are shorter than you think.  I know that's an obnoxious thing that all of us "moms of older kids" say, but it really is true.  Even still, if you're raising littles, I know you won't fully appreciate that fact until you're here.  I know I didn't.

So, let's get right to the highlights from last week, shall we?  I absolutely LOVE this scrappy quilt by Sew Preeti, and the photo with those spring daffodils- so gorgeous!

And speaking of spring backdrops, take a look at this lovely quilt by Julie's Quilts and Costumes- and those stunning azaleas!

LeeAnna at Not Afraid of Color shared this finished beauty.  That wash of color is so soothing.

Hooray for Anne-Marie at Stories From the Sewing Room, who won a ribbon with this beautiful quilt-

And finally, Karen at Quilts...etc. linked up her progress on this cozy quilt top-

Y'all are just amazing!  You give me so much inspiration, week after week.  So, let's get our party on!

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Blossoms and Buds, and NTT

Happy Needle and Thursday, y'all!  I'm delighted to share my finished quilt with you today, and though the pattern doesn't take center stage (you can read more about my thoughts on that HERE), this quilt is still beautiful.  With these luscious Anna Maria fabrics, how could it not be?

Because these prints are so large and the quilt is a bit busy, I just quilted this one with a nice, easy stipple.  It adds plenty of crinkly texture, and doesn't add any extra pattern to the mix.

On this quilt, I also used my very favorite backing trick.  When I'm buying all new fabric for a quilt rather than using my stash, I find sometimes that half-yards are the smallest cut that some quilt shops will cut.  In that case, I always cut two fat quarters from each half yard, using one for the front of the quilt, and reserving the other one for a pieced backing.  For this quilt, I cut each "leftover" fat quarter down to 18" square, and was able to fit all sixteen prints on the back side.  It really is a lovely mix of fabrics.

Cutting the 18" squares from each backing fat quarter also give me a nice little strip for a scrappy binding.

As I mentioned in my post a couple of weeks ago, I will likely remake this quilt with different fabrics that will show off the actual pattern a little better.  Since I don't particularly enjoy remakes, that will probably wait a few months though.  I'm calling this one Blossoms and Buds. The primary shape of the blocks creates the "blossom," and the "buds" come together in the secondary pattern.

There were so many beautiful projects linked up last week.  Take a look at this stunner by Yvonne at Quilting Jetgirl (gorgeous against all that snow!)

This pretty quilt is from Brenda at Songbird Designs-

Sew Yummy shared this fresh, springy quilt top-

And finally, Kris at Sew Sunshine showed off this beauty-

Y'all make it so difficult to choose highlights!  There are always so many lovely things linked up!  So, let's do this!

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 

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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!  :)

Glorious (Probably Fake) Spring and NTT

Welcome to Needle and Thread Thursday, friends!  My latest quilt is ready for binding.  The quilting was done over several days in short little bursts because the weather has just been to pretty to stay inside and sew.  It has been a beautiful 75 degrees, breezy, and sunny, and though it feels like spring, I know I'm just being lulled into a false sense of hope.  Yucky, freezing weather is always a possibility through March.  It's supposed to start raining this evening and rain for three days straight, so the binding will get done then.  

Instead, take a look at these beauties from last week!  This stunner is from Michelle at My Bijou Life-

This pretty quilt is from Maggie at Making a Lather-

I love this cheery quilt from Sew Preeti Quilts-

Time 4 Stitchn linked up this gorgeous quilt top-

Nancy at Grace and Peace Quilting linked up this lovely quilt (along with a second version in her post!)-

And Yvonne at Quilting Jetgirl linked up another version!

Okay y'all!  Let's get our party going!

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!  :)

A Lesson Learned and NTT

Welcome to Needle and Thread Thursday, friends!  Today I get to share my latest quilt top, made from that gorgeous Anna Maria bundle I shared last week.

This is a pattern that I designed several years ago, and though I think the quilt is lovely, it has reminded me of an important lesson.  The scale of prints for a quilt MUST be right for the pattern.  I really wanted to use the rich colors of Anna Maria's fabrics, and though I thought I was using fabrics that would work when cut up, I'm not sure they do.  This quilt is really pretty, but it's because the fabrics are pretty.  The pattern itself gets lost.  Here is the pattern mock up as I designed it.  

(Just a note- these are Anna Maria fabrics in the mock up, but the scale is not accurate, proving my point that print scale is critical for certain patterns.)

A fairly big difference, wouldn't you agree? Here, you can see that smaller scale prints really allow the pattern to shine through.  You can clearly see the primary flower shape, as well as the secondary square shape with the "flower buds" created when the blocks come together.

If you study the quilt you can make out the flowers, squares, and buds, but with the best marriage of fabric and design, I don't think you should have to study a quilt to discern the pattern.  Even a quilt made with a mix of smaller prints, blenders, and a few larger prints would probably work,  but this quilt made entirely from larger prints just doesn't (for my purpose, anyway).  I'm calling this one Blossoms and Buds, and I think I'm going to have to make it again with different fabrics that show off the pattern better if I want to release it for sale.  On the plus side, the larger blocks go together faster than I expected, so that shouldn't be too difficult.

It just goes to show that even if you have a gorgeous bundle of fabric and a pretty pattern,  it doesn't always mean that they are a good match for each other.  You can't always force certain fabrics into certain quilts, no matter how gorgeous they are.  A good reminder for myself!

What do you think?  Do you agree with my assessment?  Is it worth remaking and releasing?  Let me know your thoughts in the comments!

Last week's party was filled with eye-candy, like this puff quilt from Quilting Gail-

Anne-Marie at Stories From the Sewing Room shared this fresh quilt top finish-

And this lovely version of the Exploding Heart quilt is from Rita at Quiltpiecer-

Okay then!  Let's get to it!

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 

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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!  :)

A New Fabric Pull and NTT

Welcome to Needle and Thread Thursday, y'all!  Today, this gorgeous bundle is on my cutting table, and I'm super excited about the plan for these lovelies.

The quilt pattern I'm planning uses pieces that are fairly small, so I knew I needed fabrics that could be cut up without losing too much of the pattern, which can be tricky with some designers.  These are all Anna Maria Horner prints (plus one Alison Glass that fits right in), and so many of her fabrics have huge, gorgeous designs, but that wouldn't really work for this quilt.  I was able to find enough prints that would work by mixing the Love Always, Made My Day, Welcome Home, and Fluent collections.

My Flower Shower quilt was so simple, and it was perfect for shaking off the quilting cobwebs after the holidays, and now I'm ready to tackle something just a little more time consuming.  I'm actually pulling out a quilt pattern that's actually been sitting in my design book for a few years!

Last week's party had so many great projects linked up.  Take a look at this gorgeous Lone Star by Quilting Gail-

I love how the simplicity of this quilt top  by DonnaleeQ allows those gorgeous Tilda fabrics to really shine-

Something Rosemade shared TWO pretty finishes.  Check out her post to see the full quilt shots of each one!

And finally, this awesome, unique baby quilt is from Yvonne at Quilting Jetgirl-

Y'all are amazing!  It's time to party, friends, so let's do it!  

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!  :)

Flower Shower and NTT

Welcome to Needle and Thread Thursday, friends!  What a difference a week makes.  Last week, we were waiting out an ice storm (and we did get just under 1/2" accumulation here), and today it is in the upper 60's and feeling very much like spring.  We lost some limbs from a big pine tree in our yard, so we did have quite a bit of cleanup this weekend, but it could have been SO much worse for us, and I'm very thankful it wasn't.

Instead, I worked through another round of book edits and finished this beauty.  Since these blocks look like window panes, I'm calling it Flower Shower.

Instead of my usual favorite stipple quilting pattern, I opted for a graceful design that reminds me of petals.  I think technically this is called a paisley quilting design, though I don't think it really resembles paisleys at all.  Is there another name for this motif?  

It's really visible on the back side of the quilt-

I used 30 different fabrics for this quilt (one complete block cut from each fabric), which was way more than I really needed for the front.  Of course, I wanted all the leftovers for the backing!  Even with all those scraps, I still needed a little extra fabric, so I bought some extra yardage of this navy crosshatch to fill it out.  Rather than using a single strip of navy I decided to sprinkle the navy rectangles throughout the backing so they blend right in with the leftover rectangles.

And I used the same fabric for the binding as well!

I really enjoyed making this quilt.  The simplicity of the pattern made it stress-free, and I love that the pattern allows the gorgeous fabrics to take center stage.  Sometimes I need to get out of my own head and be okay with simple, easy patterns.  I haven't decided what to do with this quilt just yet, but I'm sure it will find a good home!

Last week's party was filled with eye-candy, like this lovely quilt from Something Rosemade-

And this one from Turid at Den syende himmel-

This stunner from Maggie at Making a Lather-

And this sweet quilt top is from Linda at kokaquilts-

Okay y'all!  I hope spring is starting to emerge where you are (even if that ridiculous groundhog says six more weeks of winter), and I hope you're all getting plenty of good creative time.  Let's party!

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!  :)

Waiting out the Ice Storm and NTT

Happy Needle and Thursday, friends!  The story of this week, aside from finishing my book revisions, is the ice storm that is sitting over the middle of the US.  Here in the Memphis metro area, we've had about 1/4" of ice so far, with a little more expected overnight tonight.  The ice-coated trees and and icicles on the houses are really beautiful, but boy do they cause problems.  We've been very lucky that we've kept power, but there are others who are not faring as well.  Knowing the ice storm was coming and not knowing what to expect, I worked late Monday night finishing the review of my book draft.  I didn't want to be stuck with no power and a deadline looming.

Between watching the sleet and freezing rain and watching the weather forecast, since my book review was finished, I finally got to baste my latest quilt.  It's laid across my table (which is why it isn't super smooth) and ready to quilt!

This is all supposedly going to move out tomorrow (and switch over to plain old rain), and then we'll be in the 50's and 60's before the week is out.  That's Memphis weather for ya. 

Let's go ahead and check out the highlights from last week.  This gorgeous quilt top is by Karen at Quilts... etc.

This cute quilt is from Jan at The Colorful Fabriholic, and there's a tutorial!

This red beauty is from Julie's Quilts and Costumes-

Kat at Scrapbox Quilts shared this pretty finish (and you MUST go see all of the quilting on the back side!

This sweet pink pillow was linked up by Sally at Crafts, Cavies, and Cooking-

And finally, Nancy at Grace and Peace Quilting shared this Meadowland quilt.  I never tire of this pattern.  It's so simple, yet so satisfying!

SO MANY amazing projects were linked up last week.  I had such a tough time choosing highlights!

Okay friends!  I hope you're not dealing with this ice storm, but even if you are, I hope you're nice and toasty in your house!

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!  :)