Autumn Winds & Giveaway

I am so pleased to be a part of the "Autumn in the Air" blog hop with Benartex! You can see lots more Autumn inspiration all week long at their blog Sew in Love With Fabric. Giveaways each day!

Even though autumn is the second furthest thing from my mind right now, winter being the furthest, I do so love the colours of the Fall season, so when I was asked if I would like to be a part of this hop, despite the real life goings-on right now (animals, renovations, summer planning, to name a few) I jumped at the chance. Besides, just say two words: "'free' fabric", okay yes, but I actually meant "Amanda Murphy", and you've got my full attention and adoration! This is her new line for Contempo, by Benartex, named 'Thankful'. It is wonderful, fresh modern colours for Fall. And yes, there is a giveaway of some of it! Be sure to hop over to the Benartex blog to read an interview with Amanda about this line!

The timeline was tight to get a project made, but I just 'saw' my very first published pattern, "Blue Skies and Sunny Days", in this line:

The neighbours' golden Forsythia is about as close to an Autumn vibe as I was going to get!

and I knew it would be perfect to show off all the prints in the collection.

Aren't they pretty? I mean who would think that turquoise would look so pretty with brown? And of course Amanda has her wonderful swirls incorporated in the tone on tone prints. I got a pack of 2.5" strips which Benartex appropriately names, Strippies along with some yardage for background, backing, and binding.

I also put my Accuquilt Go! 2.5" die cutter to use to cut the background, which did save some time.

Check my Instagram to see a video of the cutter in action.

I went from strips, to pieces...

to a bunch of chain sewing...

to a flimsy, in no time at all!

Digression:
That rhododenron/azalea has opened just beautifully over the past couple of days. It has settled into its new home just wonderfully, kind of like the current owners, who, like the plant, migrated from one side of town to the other basically.😎 (We actually brought two rhodos from our other house!)

Such intense colour. Mmm!

I had the perfect piece left of Hobbs Heirloom Natural Cotton batting for the quilt. Then I was off to the basement where Avril now lives while the upstairs is being gutted to the very rafters and roof boards...

This is the guest room my husband, aka the intrepid MacGyver, built last year. It has been dismantled and turned into Avril's lodgings (along with my shelves and cupboards for fabrics and books and sewing supplies, and batting)... for now. I didn't have time to root through the various Rubbermaid tubs for the shorter leaders, so I folded back my 10' ones to 8' and carefully rolled and then loaded this quilt, hoping it would work. I knew I could quilt the motif I wanted to so much faster on her than on my Bernina.

Have you ever known what motif you would quilt on a quilt before you even started making the quilt? This is what happened to me with this quilt.

Can you spot my initials in the lower left corner?

I did wavy lines with intermittent swirls, the same motif I used for my 'Love is All' quilt I made in December.

I just love the backing! Had I had more time, I would have quilted this upside down, using the motifs in this print as my quilting ideas!

Can you see the hexagons? Aren't they just the coolest?

I bound it with the dark turquoise, attaching it to the front of the quilt, pressing it and then gluing it down on the back of the quilt with school glue (such a great method), and then stitching in the ditch from the front of the quilt which catches the edge on the back. It's the closest look to hand-stitching a binding down.

After the label debacle (times two) with Pasque Star, my last quilt, I remembered to do both the satin sew-in and the corner, write-on label.

This shows you the look of the binding on the front, as well as the happy violets throughout the lawns...and yes, I left the yellow flower there, as bees need them, and besides yellow looks great with violet and green.😉

Here is the quilt one more time. I haven't washed it yet, but I'll post a crinkly photo, I mean a photo of the crinkly quilt! when I do. This is the fourth or maybe the fifth time I've made this pattern, and it really does go together like a dream. I made it from start to finish, despite doing a bunch of life things and finishing the sewing of 96 HSTs for my Beothuk Star QAL, in four days. The top can be made easily in one day, without the interruptions I had, all of which are okay: work, family, pets, sun, no complaints!

Quilt Stats:
Pattern: An original design, "Blue Skies and Sunny Days'
Size: 40.5 X 48.5"
Fabric: 'Thankful' by Amanda Murphy for Contempo by Benartex
Backing: as above
Batting: Hobbs Heirloom Cotton natural with scrim

Quilted: on Avril
Threads: Pieced with various cottons (Mettler, Gütermann, Aurifil, Coats and Clark); quilted with Essential 100% cotton 50 wt by Connecting Threads, The Bottom Line in the bobbin; binding stitched down with Gütermann 100% cotton 50 wt.

Linking up:
Sew Fresh Quilts
My Quilt Infatuation
Confessions of a Fabric Addict
Busy Hands Quilts
TGIFF at Anja Quilts


I have two giveaways for you today, as well as a sweet deal! First of all, to one lucky person who is a US resident (due to high postage costs), will go a fat quarter bundle of Thankful fabrics. To another winner, anywhere in the world, will go a PDF copy of the pattern I used to make this quilt, my Blue Skies and Sunny Days.

For a chance to win the fat quarter bundle, or the PDF pattern, simply leave me any comment about Fall: favourite colour, activity, why you do NOT like it, favourite memory, have you made a Fall quilt, etc. Followers can get an extra entry through the Rafflecopter widget. New followers welcome.

The deal is that I'm putting my pattern on sale until Saturday at midnight, for half price. It's currently $9CA, so that means it will be $4.50CA. There are two sizes in the pattern, this one, and one slightly smaller. No coupon necessary; I have marked it down. Also, note that if your name is drawn and you've already bought the pattern, I will refund you your money.😊

The giveaway and the sale on my pattern are open through midnight Saturday. I will have Rafflecopter draw two winners and contact them on Sunday.

Please be advised that due to the high number of comments during giveaways I won't be responding to, but I will for sure be reading, your comments! Thanks so much for reading and for your support of my blog!

I do hope you have visited and will visit the following bloggers on this week's hop. You will find a giveaway at each stop!

Monday: Lisa at Love to Color My World
Tuesday: Debby Kratovil at Debby Kratovil Quilts
Wednesday: Sandra at mmm! quilts (you are here!)
Thursday: Alison at Little Bunny Quilts

a Rafflecopter giveaway