Quilters' Meet & Greet

Greetings! I was asked (again this year, oops) to be a part of this hop, and this time I said yes! Last year I was, I dunno, busy? an idiot? but I didn't sign up... Anyhow, I am in this year and I am very pleased to welcome everyone, including any newcomers to my blog.

I hope you'll stay, poke around a bit using the tabs up top, or visit some of the links in my sidebar which will take you to to the magazines in which my designs have featured, or my pattern shop on Etsy. Some of the links in the sidebar can help you investigate some of the linky parties I host here both annually and monthly.

I also hope once you are done here, you'll click the graphic above which will take you to the main page for this hop where you will find the list and links to all the other quilt bloggers in the hop. And, yes! There are some absolutely amazing prizes. Read on through to find out how to enter! The hop runs through the month of September, so you have lots of time to visit and enter from each blog.

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!

Getaway Island Batik Bloghop & Giveaways Week 4

Wow! Inspiration overload, right? Wrong! One can never have too much quilt inspiration and eye candy, at least in my humble opinion. Fabulous fabrics, gorgeous, creative quilts, ahhh. We are entering the final week of the month-long hop. My own post where there are three giveaways (I remembered I have an extra copy of January/February American Patchwork & Quilting, so I'm giving it away too), can be found here. The finished quilt can be found here, and seen below!

Modern by the Yard New Issue and I'm in it!

And it's not a quilt of the fabric kind but a block of the digital kind!

MbyY, in case you are not familiar with it, is the ezine put out quarterly, for free, by Benartex Fabrics. You can get your copy by going to their blog, Sew in Love With Fabric, where you will find the link to the ezine on the sidebar. When they contacted me to ask if I would like to design a digital block, the assignment being a modern twist on the Log Cabin block, I jumped at the chance for several reasons. First, I love a good challenge to my creativity and second, it was another opportunity to work with EQ8, and third, well, being published is always a thrill that never gets old. Fourth, I'd just played with a log cabin challenge for November's Island Batik challenge, so log cabins were still bouncing around in my head. You can see that quilt top here.

Getaway Island Batik Blog Hop & Giveaways

It's Week 2 of the Island Batik Blog Hop! I hope you got a chance to view all the quilts from last week. If not, no worries; the list is below of all the ambassadors showcasing various Island Batik collections, and they are all stunning. Lots of drool-worthy fabrics and quilts. Lots of giveaways, at the Island Batik blog, as well as at most, if not all, of the stops on the hop!

If you missed my own post, it is here. I have a couple of giveaways for you!

November Blogger Bundle & Giveaway

Yes! A big secret I've held onto (see Dayna? I can...) for most of this year can finally be let out of ....
the bag!😝

Welcome to everyone, new readers and regular ones.

Many months ago Bernie of Needle & Foot emailed me asking if I'd like to be the November Blogger Bundle chooser-upper. Pinch me? I was and am excited and so honoured that she asked me! It's another one of those things I've seen other bloggers do; the first one was Alyssa at Pile o' Fabric, and I thought, wow, I want to be her one day...well, I guess that day is today!

Without further ado, here are the fabrics I put together. It was such a fun process.

Beauties, right?!

This last Blogger Bundle for Needle & Foot for 2018 is extra-special: Bernie, in her generosity and inclusive nature, had the idea to have two giveaways, and asked if I'd be willing to send a bundle to one of my Canadian readers, while she would hold a giveaway for American readers. Anyone who's hung around my blog for any length of time knows how much I value inclusiveness, so I absolutely love this aspect of this month's Blogger Bundle. Would you like to open up that bundle?

Happy 5th Blog-iversary mmm! quilts

Five years ago today, after waffling for months, I finally wrote a blog post and published it. I still recall that vulnerable feeling of having sent something out into the world, where any and all eyes could see it... However, I have never yet not learned, not grown from facing a fear, so that was partly why I decided to just jump into the Quilting Blogland pool... and found the water warm and welcoming indeed. Here's the quilt I was working on at the time of that first post, still one of my all-time favourite makes:

Seaside Rose

I think five years is rather auspicious, so I decided to celebrate in fine form this year, with a blog post that has five sections of five points each:

• Five Favourite Quilting Tips
• Five Favourite Blogging Tips
• Five most popular/favourite Blog Posts
• Five Favourite QBL Activities
• Five Prizes Giveaway

Sounds like fun? Come on in and let's party!

Plus Playtime QAL Parade of Finishes and Giveaway

It's here! It's HERE! How did it come up so fast? Seems to be a theme in my life of late. Nonetheless, I've been getting more and more excited as I see all the finished flimsies and quilts in QBL, from blogs to Instagram to Flickr.

Before we go any further, I'd like to thank my sponsors once more:

Plus Playtime QAL Flimsy Parade & Giveaway

Here we go! Lots of you got your row 3, ha, maybe even your rows 2 AND 3, all done right away, so feel free to link up an older post, no need to write up a new one. Instagram and Flickr posts work too; just use the URL in the toolbar in the linkup widget.

This week for a finished top (save the finished quilt for the grand prize drawing) I am giving away the second $25 gift certificate to Stitch Stash Diva, done once again by random draw. I'm so pleased with the variety and number of participants in the QAL! If you don't have a blog or your Instagram is private, email me a photo and I'll link it for you using my own Instagram account. It's wonderful to see all the quilts out there!

"Winter Games" Blog Hop

I was super-excited to get to work with Amanda Murphy's fabric line "Meadow Dance" last month (heard in her newsletter today that it is sold out and being reprinted!) and then... to get to work with her next line, 'Winter Games' in my new favourite Christmas colours?  Over the moon!

Isn't that such a perfect winter print? There was no question that that was one I'd pick for using in my mug rug. Mittens with strings, how I always wanted a pair, thought it was so cool that you could just let them dangle, and even toques, which, as I said on Sew In Love With Fabric blog, rhymes with 'Luke' and is Canadian for a woolen hat just like those on the fabric.

Here is what I made:

The technique used will yield two mug rugs,  that you can whip up in a few hours. I like that!

First of all, I got the idea for the mug rug from the cover of Amanda's book, Modern Holiday. I've wanted to make that quilt for EVER. This book turned me onto fresh Christmas colours.

I've made free-form cut triangles before, along with several other shapes, thanks to Karla Alexander's Stack a New Deck book, so I figured I could do this without any paper-piecing or templates.
So let the games begin, shall we?

Leaning Tree Mug Rugs

Yield: 2 mug rugs 6.5" x 9.5"

Fabric Requirements
8 fat quarters in coordinating colours, or scraps, but note that the scraps need to be about 8.5" square for the large tree block.

Mini Trees
1. Cut four rectangles approximately 4.5" wide by 3.5" tall.
**Note that you will make four tree parts at once by stacking these four squares and making two slices with your rotary cutter. If that worries you, then you may do two trees at a time, but you will need to keep the partners together since this is freely cut without templates.

2. Place your ruler at a tree angle you like and slice through all four layers at once.
**Don't make these angles too sharp, or you will not have enough fabric to square to 3.5" in the end.

3. Now make a second slice to form the tree shape. Be sure to allow at least a 1/2" from the side edges.

4. Take the top tree and place it on the bottom of the tree stack. This shuffles the fabrics.

Piecing
1. First sew the left side of the tree to the background. Note that things won't line up perfectly; trim the extra bit of fabric as shown below, so you have a straight edge. Press to the background.

2. Now sew the background piece to the right side of the tree. Press to the background. Trim the bottom edge straight. Square this unit to approximately 3" tall by 3.5" wide.
**Tip: ensure you have 0.5" or more about the tree top. Make four.

3. Sew a 1" x 1.25" rectangle of tree trunk fabric between two 1.25" x 1.75" rectangles of background fabric. Press to the background fabric. Make four. You now have this:

Note that the tree section wasn't trimmed when I took this photo.

4. Sew the trunk unit to the tree unit. Press the seam open or to one side. Square the mini tree blocks to 3.5". Set aside.

Large trees
1. Cut a 7.5" x 6" rectangle of background fabric and the same of tree fabric. Place the tree fabric atop the background having the 7.5" width at the lower edge. Cut a tree triangle shape as you did for the mini trees.

2.  Stitch and press as you did for the mini trees. Trim the bottom edge straight. Square the large tree unit to approximately 5.5" tall by 6.5" wide. Make two.

3. Sew a 1.75" x 1.25" trunk piece between two 1.75" x 3.25" rectangles of background fabric. Make two of these units. This unit will measure 6.75" x 1.75"; you will trim it to fit the tree unit after joining.

4. Join the tree unit to the trunk unit. Trim so that it measures 6.5" square.

You now have the following:

Assembly

Arrange these so that you have one large tree with two mini trees on one side as in the first photo of this post. Sew the two mini trees together, one above the other. Then sew this unit to the side of the large tree block. Square to 6.5" x 9.5".

Layer with batting (great to use up scraps) and a backing piece cut approximately 7" x 10". Quilt. I had fun with my metallic threads, Holoshimmer by Sulky, and the most perfect variegated Sulky rayon. I also used Aurifil 2600 in the white/grey areas, and pieced everything on my 1947 Featherweight with pale blue Gütermann.

Both were quilted on my Bernina. I did swirls, echoes, pebbles, dot to dot, a loops and snowflakes meander, and flowing lines. Fun!

When done quilting, square it up and bind. I did a single-fold binding, cut at 1.25" wide, applied to the back, and then top-stitched down to the front.

Here's the back:

My impatiens are hanging onto summer as much as I am!

I used the mittens and toques fabric on one, and the pale green fabric I used for the tree trunks on the other.

I got my Angela Walters cup out (fitting because I pulled out her Shape By Shape 2 for inspiration) to see how it went with these:

I'd say pretty fine! Turquoise is such a beautiful colour.

How would you like to win a few fat quarters of these fabrics for yourself? Maybe make this mug rug or one of the others on the hop this week? If you'd like to see all the fabrics (there are 25!) in Amanda's collection, and read about her designs, click here.

Tuesday: The Benartex Blog Design Team - they used the games fabric to create two mug rugs in motion!
Wednesday: me! at mmm! quilts
Thursday: Debby Kratovil Quilts

To keep costs down, Benartex is sending to US residents only please. Just answer this question: have you ever made a mug rug and do you use it? Followers, new ones welcome, can get a second entry if you tell me how you follow me. See the top of my sidebar for where to find me beneath my profile. Due to the large volume of comments during giveaways, I won't be responding to comments. Be sure to leave your address in your comment if you are a no-reply blogger, like this:  ephdra (at) gmail (dot) com.  Thank you for your understanding while I work my way through comments on the last two posts; things have been pretty hectic and stressful at my house this past 10 days. My previous post explains why.
Good luck!

The giveaway is open through Friday, Oct. 20 11:59 EDT. I'll announce the winner on my blog on Saturday. GIVEAWAY HAS NOW CLOSED.

Sunday! (just been rather preoccupied with a very ill doggie, sorry): The winner is #70, Abbigail, and she has been contacted. She uses mug rugs all the time. ☕

Thank you to all who entered, and commented, and welcome to new followers. I've been using one of my mug rugs all week! I find they are perfect for the morning coffee or afternoon tea when I am having something small to eat. If you make one of these, please send me a photo and with your permission, I'd love to post it on my blog.

Linking up in lots of places!
Free Motion By the River
Sew Fresh Quilts
Quilt Fabrication
My Quilt Infatuation

Meadow Dance Blog Hop - Baby Quilt and A Giveaway

Hello everyone, regular readers and new ones both! Today I am super-excited to share the tutorial for my Ribbon Stars quilt with all of you. It uses the gorgeous new line of fabric by Amanda Murphy, Contempo's (Benartex Fabric) Meadow Dance. I have loved Amanda Murphy's designs and her quilting for some time, so I did a little happy meadow dance of my own when I was asked to be a part of this hop at Benartex's blog, Sew in Love With Fabric.

Pinch me! Just looking at the lush designs on that button, which happen to be in my favourite fabric in the line, makes me smile.

So my quilt is one I designed two years ago for Sarah's (Confessions of a Fabric Addict) Hands2Help charity quilt drive. It got quite the love.
Readers:  Are you going to write a pattern?
Moi:  Yes! Of course!

It didn't happen.

Well I had notes jotted down and my graph paper drawings and figurings... And then I made it again, only bigger, Blue Ribbon Stars, for one of my aunts....and it got more love...

Readers:  Are you going to write a pattern?
Moi:  Yes! Of course!

Uh, it didn't happen, much as it wanted to be let out.

And then...this.

Well, I was asked to do a small, simple project.  But I couldn't decide which fabrics because I adored them all, even the ladybugs, and I do not like bugs.  However. Ladybugs I do like, and I will pick them up and save them...

So.

Like a Howler for Ron from Mrs. Weasley, this quilt FLEW into my brain and careened around my head.

Moi: Would it be possible to have a wee bit of them all because I kind of have an excellent pattern to show them all off...

No problem.  And here she is, third rendition of that pattern:

I promise you, she sews up super-quick. It makes an approximately 42X45" baby quilt. Or small lap quilt.  Or take-to-yoga-class quilt. 🙏 Don't the fabrics just sing like the birds in that meadow?

Flit (or careen, lol) on over to Sew in Love With Fabric blog where you will find the tutorial (finally!) for making one of your own.

GIVEAWAY Has now ended. Congrats to Lori, comment #20!
First though, or second, if you're coming here from there, answer this question for a chance to win a fat quarter bundle of this fabric for yourself!

Do you prefer all-one-fabric backings or pieced, fun backings on quilts?

Answer in the comments below.  Followers (new ones welcome) can have a second entry by simply telling me how you follow me.  US addresses only please, as Benartex is trying to keep shipping costs down. Unfortunately I will not be able to answer all the comments because of the volume with a giveaway.

Please please be sure to include your email address if you are a no-reply blogger so I can reach you. Otherwise I will have to draw another name. The giveaway will remain open until Sunday midnight EST, and I'll announce the winner on Monday, September 25.

Mine is not the only stop on the hop to host a giveaway! Be sure to visit these other sites:

Monday: Interview with Amanda Murphy on the blog Sew In Love With Fabric
Tuesday:  Alison at Little Bunny Quilts (pocket organizer wall-hanging)
Wednesday: Benartex Blog Design Team (strip pillows)
Thursday: Sandra (that's moi!) at mmm! quilts (baby quilt)
Friday: Chrissie at Made By Chrissie D (cushion cover and table runner)

I did a couple test blocks before cutting into Meadow Dance. This was made using some different Benartex fabrics, from Kanvas, "Fleurish" by Maria Kalinowski which I won last summer when I subscribed to "Modern By the Yard", Benartex's e-zine (link on sidebar--terrific magazine, and no trees are killed in the publishing!) and sent them several emails of my friends who I knew would like to subscribe. Here is a peek at how this one is shaping up:

Lots of possibilities for this design!

I also have a cushion cover on the go, with a completely different vibe from the baby quilt. It's hard to believe this is still the Meadow Dance line! Amazing. Isn't the border fabric, Crochet Lace Aqua, fantastic? Wait until you see it not cut up! I didn't quite get it completely finished, but here is the flimsy. I made the blocks smaller this time and played a bit with the ribbon centre blocks.

Linking up:
Let's Bee Social
Needle and Thread Thursday

SMS Giveaway Winners and Updates

Let's cut to the chase, shall we?
I had 142 comments for the three prizes.  Yay, in that only the very first draw was a no-reply blogger with a dead end and no email address in her comment. 😞 but only one!  All winners have been notified.

The first prize was the handmade mini, and it goes to:
Sandra C. of Quilting at the Cro's Nest

The second prize was $10 to spend at Pile o' Fabric, and it goes to:
Anita who has just and I mean just started a blog of her own, Domestic Felicity!  Maybe pop on over and visit, show her some comment love. :-)

Oh...oops, guess when I screenshot the #2, #1 was in front; you'll have to trust me on this one.

The third prize was a copy of my one and only 'for sale' pattern, Blue Skies & Sunny Days, and it goes to:
another Sandra!! Like I couldn't make this up! I was so hoping the prizes would go to someone I know, but a little voice, said, come on, that's how you get to know more peeps, Sandra, and voilà, I drew another Sandra! This Sandra blogs at The Bias Edge...Quilts and Quirks and lives in Singapore!

Thank you so much for all of you who commented, and shared your favourite ornament stories; I read every one.

Here is a quick update on two ongoing projects.  The first is the 150 Canadian Women BOM from Next Step Quilt Design.  If you are interested in joining in, it's not too late, go here to sign up.

Here are blocks 1-3:

Obviously, by this photo, you can see I am doing my version scrappy.  I love the hit of pink here and there in the original quilt and I am doing the same.

Blocks 7-9

Oops, this is #8 - Sharon Adele Wood, mountaineer and the first women from the Western Hemisphere to stand at the top of Mount Everest; then #7 - Geraldine Moodie, photographer, and first woman to take professional photos of the Inuit; and finally #9 - Viola Desmond, civil rights activist, started the Desmond School of Beauty Culture. Note about this last block: the centre 'bow' is a rich purple fabric, because of her name Viola, and the red fabric has that same violet colour in it. I only had a 2 1/4" wide strip of it so had to take 1/8" seams.  When one works with scraps...

Blocks 10-12

#10 - Esther Marjorie Hill, first Canadian woman registered architect; #11 - Nellie Yip Quong, bold and outspoken advocate for her adopted community; #12 - Charlotte Elizabeth Hazeltyne Whitton, first female mayor in a major Canadian city, Ottawa.

Here are all 12!  I am thoroughly enjoying this project.  I have plans to add sashing on one side of the blocks, but I am not divulging them just yet!

The Scrap Vortex has left the building well, the smaller ziploc bag, and is now in slabs in the zipper vinyl bag. Here are the latest slabs; I did a fair bit this weekend:

Seeing it here, I'm not seeing vomit as much anymore, and I'm starting to kind of like it?  I think?
😎 It may have helped to see, yesterday on FaceTime, two of Preeti's Scrap Vortex quilts both in progress but both in flimsy form, to realize mine is okay too.  Ah, the friends of QBL are the best.

Linking up with
Cooking Up Quilts because I am crushing on these Canadian women blocks!
Mrs. Sew and Sow because it never ceases to amaze me what beauty can come from a pile (or several) of scraps.

Sew Mama Sew Giveaway Day

I love these giveaway days at Sew Mama Sew that are usually hosted twice a year; I've been a participant from both sides, giveaway and trying to win!  There's like this frenzy similar to that of Christmas morning excitement in QBL!

I have three lovely giveaways for you today, but first I hope you stay a bit and snoop around, have a look at the tabs at the top of the page and see that yup the main priority here is quilting, in all stages of the process, with tips, several tutorials, delicious favourite recipes or books from time to time, and once a month, a Yin yoga pose that can help ease aching muscles and promote good health.  Basically it's a bit about my life.

I started this blog just over three years ago as mainly a way to record my work, my thoughts, and to keep in touch with friends and family.  Little did I know the wealth of friends it would bring me, friends who I consider friends of the heart, some of whom I've met and some yet TO meet...  I love and always have loved writing, and it gives me that outlet as well.  So without further ado, let's get on with it, shall we?  (Not only my mum's English voice is often in my head, but of late it is the Queen's, since I am happily immersed in "The Crown" on Netflix at the moment - and I'm choosing it over Season 1 episodes of "Gilmore Girls" - gasp! - when I do sit down, which isn't often, to watch TV.)  But I digress.

The first giveaway is something I've planned for a couple of months.  It actually is one of my goals on my Q4FAL list, to make a second small giveaway prize with Windfall fabric.  I'd hoped to have it as a my second freebie in the Autumn Abundance blog hop I was a part of in October, but the making of the big quilt, Windfall

Here is Bella, classy cat that she is, lolling about on some of the gorgeous Windfall fabric from Paintbrush Studio used in this mini mini.  Beside the fabric is a pair of my husband's shorts waiting to have a button sewn on...mending or creating? I know what I'd choose, and she does too!😽

and some life drama (selling and moving house, wait, no house to go to, so make that moving into storage) meant I had no time to make that second freebie.  It evolved from original plan, and you will understand why, given that it is now December:

I love it posing in the branches of our friend John's Christmas tree, now freed from the pot!  Here's a sunny shot so you can see it better:

This mini finished at 4 1/4" square and is quilted with Sulky threads: a red, gold and green metallic and a white rayon.  The squares finish at 1/2".

Several times over the course of making this micro-mini or mini mini, I had a heart-grabbing, 'No! I want to KEEP it!' feeling.  Stay strong Sandra.  Those are the best gifts to give, those you want to keep for yourself, right?

Here is the back:

In the hibiscus plant!  Wait, you thought I was Canadian? I am! But we are fortunate enough to spend  a few months in warm, sunny southwest Florida.  This mini can be used as a coaster, a mini mini to go with your collection of them right, or as a Christmas tree ornament by simply putting a hanging thread on it.

The second giveaway is a $10 gift certificate to Pile o' Fabric.  Alyssa ships fast and has excellent customer service.  I have followed Alyssa for quite some time; hers was one of the first blogs I was attracted to when I first found QBL about 4 years ago.  Just last week I decided to check out her sale (getting updates by email is great but also dangerous...) and I was very pleased to find some Avant Garde by Katarina Roccella! 

Several other hunks (and I mean that in the "gorgeous" way as well as in the "piece of" way LOL) found their way into keeping company with Avant Garde.  She saved me a little moola on postage (so sweet) and so I'd like to give back by sending her perhaps a new customer or three, wink!  Supporting the smaller shops is very important.

None of these were more than $6/yard!  Art Gallery, Windham Fabrics, oh and did I mention she has a wonderful selection of Kona solids?  Although $10 isn't much, it should easily get you a couple yards of fabric.  Alyssa mentioned that she just might throw in a fat quarter or two into the lucky winner's cart!

The third prize is a copy of my pattern in my Craftsy shop, (affiliate link), Blue Skies & Sunny Days.

Ahh, hanging in the branches of my friend's Japanese Weeping Cherry tree, mmm!  Both quilts are for sale in my Etsy shop.

All right, all that to say you have a chance to win three items.  You don't get to pick, sorry.  ;-) I will ship internationally so anyone on this blue and green planet can enter.  How do you enter?

Leave me a comment telling me your favourite Christmas ornament on your tree. Note, you must answer the question in order to qualify!

Followers of mine can get a second entry; just tell me how you follow me.

**If you are a no-reply blogger, please leave your email in your comment box (not a separate box, that's cheating!) so I can find you; otherwise I will draw another name.

The giveaway is open until Sunday, Dec. 11 and I will announce the winners on Monday, Dec. 12.  I always reply to every comment but during a giveaway I will not be able to  due to volume.

Good luck and happy hopping to all the blogs!  How do you find all the blogs with giveaways? Click this link, or the button at the top of the post or the Sew Mama Sew link in the first sentence. 😀

It's a wonderful day today too because Angela Walters' first episode of the Midnight Quilt Show was uploaded about an hour ago!!  I watched it already and downloaded the pattern, which is terrific, but even more TERRIFIC is her quilting on the quilt (like of course, duh) and also terrific is just HER.  Love that girl.  But you knew that if you've read this blog any amount of time!

Linking up with
Sew Fresh Quilts
She Can Quilt (for the Q4FAL when that linkup opens)

Angela Walters Rocks My World--Final Day of the Hop

By now, if you've read a few posts, you will know that I have a MAJOR CRUSH on Angela Walters.

  

Adoration.  Admiration. Awe.

Wonder.  Wizard. Wicked talent.

AW, yeah!!

April 21, 2015

I do hope you've managed to keep up over the past 5 days with all the bloggers' posts on this Craftsy Sweetens Up My Quilting Life blog hop.  I hope you've seen that yes, there is a wealth of excellent educational classes to be had (remember those reviewed in this hop are on for 50% off through the particular blogger's blog until next Sunday), but I hope maybe you've been shown that there is more to Craftsy than you may have thought.  I myself learned about sewing tools like that nifty iron that Jayne reviewed.  I may also have bought some floral fabric (thanks Preeti!) in a 6" strip, a precut that I had never heard of before.