Leaded Glass - BQF entry

Welcome to the Bloggers' Quilt Festival! 

This is my entry for the year -- my "Leaded Glass" quilt



The design was about 3 years in the making, inspired by its namesake of a cool window I wanted to re-create in fabric, and is featured in this month's issue of American Quilter Magazine (on newsstands now!)



The quilt measures 72" square, and is machine quilted by Natalia Bonner from Piece and Quilt. She did amazing feathers, and pebbles, and cool cathedral shaped petals in the centers. And swirls... I just love it.

You can see more of the quilting in this angle.



This quilt uses a combination of basic piecing and paper piecing, in order to ensure those "grout" lines line up just perfectly, and other than carefully planning your color placement (if you don't want to go scrappy), is actually not a hard quilt to make.

Julie from Intrepid Thread has the kit for sale using the True Colors fabrics featured here! (and she had a coupon code for 10% off the kit + whatever else you buy with code TJLG10 --> only works with the kit too though!)

Thank you for visiting! (You can find me in the ROYGBIV quilts!)

Rendezvous - Bloggers' Festival quilt, new pattern, and sale!

Happy Bloggers' Quilt Festival!

Introducing Rendezvous.

Photo credit: henleycreative.com

I love this quilt design. And I love the fabric it's made with.

It was born from a picture of a rug I saw that I thought would make a cool quilt. So I sketched it out, and figured out how to make it work with half-rectangle triangles, some rectangles, and the interplay of two different blocks.

It has sort of a "Comings and Goings" feel -- which is why I named it Rendezvous.

A while back, artist Melissa Ybarra of Iza Pearl design caught me gushing over her fabric. She left a little email, and I replied with, "hey! If you ever need someone to play with your fabric, I've usually got a few designs in the works."

And lucky me, she had a new line coming out, and got it to me just in the knick of time. :)
Her new line is called "Garden Party Tango," for Windham fabrics and the colors are bright and beautiful, with very fun designs, but the hand of the fabric was also exceptional. Melissa tells me she's not (yet) a seamstress, but she or someone sure picked a really nice base-cloth. (It's very similar to Art Gallery and Michael Miller's Cotton Couture).



This quilt is designed around six different types of fabric for the main blocks - the white/light, a "neutral," a medium, dark, stripe, and focal print (those are the rectangular shaped pieces). It lends itself really easily to a more cohesive or scrappy fabric selection, as well as gives lots of room for playing with value, texture, color, and style.

photo credit: henleycreative.com

I was really in a hurry to get this quilt finished and shipped to Melissa in time, so I did a quick free motion loop which you can see in this picture with this very dapper little lad (who does not belong to me). 

photo credit: thethreeco.com

I've got the pattern nearly finished, finished now, including directions to make this quilt in three sizes (a baby 48" square, throw 72" square - which is featured here, and a big queen or even king at 96" square). The pattern includes templates to show where to notch your half-rectangle triangles so they come together easily, is fully diagrammed, and of course includes my trademark coloring page so you can plan your own. 

You can get it now! and I will email the PDF to you by October 29, 2013. 

I will be printing some paper copies as well for wholesale distribution, but will wait until after Quilt Market to see how many I will need. 

My apologies for not having the pattern already ready... we just finished harvest. In fact, this was the only really fast picture in the early morning light I got. So thank you Melissa for sending pictures!

To make up for it, I'm also having a sale on everything. (Check out all available PDF patterns here) Use code "FallFestival" through November 1 to get 20% off everything. Including templates. Because I also just got my Roundhouse pattern ready to go (also available as a pre-sale). 

I hope you love this quilt and the pattern and have fun seeing all the other quilts at the Festival (or at Market if you're lucky enough to go!)

♥

Code: FallFestival for 20% off

And no worries -- all proceeds go right back in to the quilting industry. ;)

Thank you for stopping by!

Here's hoping we "rendezvous" again soon! ;)

Scrappy Sprouts for Chelsa - Festival Quilt

My Blogger's Festival Quilt is the most special quilt I think I have ever made.
And absolutely a favorite.
It was made with the help of so many of you... so thank you. ♥ Here is the story of my Scrappy Sprouts Quilt, and a transcription of the letter that was mailed with it:

To my dear friend:

When I first read your story, my chest and stomach just clenched.  I was sick with anxiety; trying to pray, but angry and scared.  You had just come through so much; how could this be added to it?  I really was angry.  I especially prayed for you while I was in the shower... I wanted to do something to help.  I couldn't really send you money, at least not much.  I couldn't come visit.  I knew though I could make you a quilt.
  One day, while I was praying for you in the shower, this idea came to mind.
  This quilt is my, "God... when I think of Chelsa and what she faced and is facing, I don't know what to say."  This quilt is my prayer for you Chelsa... it says what I can't always.
  These little sprouts are my favorite time in a garden -- they're so cute and new and growing... so much potential in those two little leaves.
  They show my prayer for new life.
  I did not like the helplessness I felt when I thought about those icky words like "incurable."  So I gathered women to my cause, and they joined in sending love and wishes for healing, and in literally covering you.  I got blocks from women in three or four different countries.  They put tiny bits of precious little fabrics in these blocks -- pieces that are hard to find and out of print and hoarded like gold by quilters.  They join my prayer.
  I wanted to make sure the quilt was big enough you could share it with your love.  We don't forget about you on this difficult road Matt.
  And it's a rainbow -- the symbol of God's promise.  And again -- my prayer for you. ♥

_______________________________

Specs for my quilty friends:

• Fits well in the Group or ROYGBIV categories for Bloggers' Quilt Festival
• a mini tutorial for folks who might want to make their own block is here.
• The sashing is the yarn-dyed Essex in flax by Robert Kaufman.

The setting was part by design, and part by necessity.  There were a few variations in the idea of a "scant" quarter-inch (happens when gathering blocks from 40 or so different people), but I think it made for a more dynamic quilt than if the rows had all been straight.  I love the off-set.  I was also quite pleased with a mostly even distribution of color, because I simply told people to make their favorite.

The quilting was done by Lindsay at EileenQuilts.com.  The design is called Xanadu, and looks so organic and swirly.  I love it.

The backing is the Summer Totem from Anna Maria Horner (and I think Steiger likes the back more than the front; he kept telling me, "the back is really nice Mommy.") 

For binding, I chose an Alexander Henry stripe cut on the bias.

And of course, a special label.

A huge thank you to those who made and sent blocks.  They are so special, and the quilt was all I was hoping it would be.  

P.S. I'm extending the 20% off on patterns until I get back.  Use code "springmarket"

It's Cosmic Baby - Festival Quilt

Pattern is now ready!

Happy Bloggers' Quilt Festival!  Welcome!

Meet "Cosmic."  

Specs -- 

Measurements: 90" square

Techniques: This quilt is constructed with a combination of templates, and rotary cutting.  (Those of you interested in the pattern will be happy there are no Y seams)

Pattern and Design and pieced by me! 

Quilted by: Connie Adams at The Rabbit Hole Quilt Shop (thank you for the quick turn around time!)

Best Categories: Bed Quilt, Professionally Quilted, Quilt photographs

This is the quilt I've been so busy with the last few weeks, which is now hanging out in Houston with Laura Gunn, in the booth for her new line "Cosmos" with Michael Miller fabrics.

The pattern is in the writing/testing phase now, and I hope to have it ready soon!  (I'll be emailing those who are interested).

This quilt is built with BIG (28") blocks that were inspired by this vintage scarf I saw on pinterest.  I modified the design a bit, because I didn't want any negative space between the points.  After graph-papering, and then EQ-ing up a bunch of different versions to get it just right, I made up a few of the blocks.

When Laura contacted me about making her a quilt for Market, I thought this design would showcase her large-scale prints beautifully.

And it does.

The quilt measures 90" square, and I was happy to find someone local who could rush the long-arm quilting for me.  I think I was a little bit crazy trying to get this done during harvest time, but it worked out thankfully!

On the back, I pieced in some of the panel that comes with the Cosmos collection.  I love that Laura's collections really look like art.

A big thank you to my parents for holding up the quilt so I could get pictures before I sent it away, and to E @ pinksuedeshoe for editing my parents out of the shot, to Angela for sharing, to Connie for the quick quilting, and to Laura for this beautiful fabric and great opportunity!

Also -- thank you to Amy for hosting this fun festival! 

Harvest is almost over! (last field now!)

My plan is to work hard on finishing this pattern up as soon as I get my hubby back... so hopefully it will all be ready within a couple weeks! :) Check back if you love it! Which I really hope you do.

And link me if you see any pictures of this quilt hanging out at Quilt Market! I hope to join it in the Spring! :)

OK -- a couple more pictures --

Bloggers' Quilt Festival! - I dance in circles

I'm cheating a bit,  because I want to show you a new finish for my Festival quilt..

Here is "I dance in circles."

The full tutorial will be posted in the Moda Bake Shop on November 8.

And here is how "I dance in circles" came to be.

Back in April, the lovely Jacquie  posted a link to this video.  I had recently completed a wonky nine-patch, and wondered if the techniques of making that block could be combined with the gem in the video to make curves.  Because I love curves.

So I gave it a whirl that day, and made this:

I wanted to make it with Kate Spain's Fandango, and wanted solids that coordinated.

The geniuses in Moda's sample department sent me Grunge solids.  

♥

♥ again

What I love about this quilt:

• It has a lot of freedom in making the blocks
• The interplay of color
• The interplay of solid with print
• The interplay of scale with print with color
• Choosing the fabrics and cutting based on whatever I felt like at that moment
• Easy construction and piecing
• Steiger loves it.
• More glorious color

What I don't love about this quilt:

• I'm sure there was something, but I can't think of it at the moment.

Oh!  I know!  I don't love that my machine was having some MAJOR tension issues while I was trying to free motion stipple it.  

But all turned out well in the end.  And I might be getting a new sewing machine based on the fact that my husband sat next to me while I was battling said tension problems.

Go check out all the other Quilt Festival Quilts at Amy's!

(I'm just hoping I get to go to Market next Spring!... there's a good chance!) :)