A Little Pick-me-up or Lay-me-down Cushion

This cushion is going to a dear friend who is going through a rough time this summer. Homemade cushions, in my humble opinion, are just the best: quick and satisfying makes, filled with meaning, simply trying out a cool block, and practical. This one ticked all the boxes.

It felt so good to dig through the two piles of Island Batik fabrics in my IKEA Kallax cabinet. Gosh, they were so generous, (I still have lots and lots of leftovers) and wow, their fabrics so divine!

Another Santa's Belly Pillow

When Dayna saw my first Santa's Belly cushion, she immediately texted, "I want." So what's a mother to do? Comply with her daughter's wishes of course!

This fun, quick-to-make design is by Kelly at My Quilt Infatuation from back in 2018. Little did I think I'd be making not one, but two of these in the space of about a week!

Two Big Bellies

On Instagram I alluded to making two new cushions, both of them bellies. The first is Santa Baby, designed by Kelly Young of My Quilt Infatuation. I've intended to make one since I first saw her post back in 2018! 

You can read Kelly's post here where she gives you a diagram with finished measurements to make your very own pillow.

Kitty Love

I’ve had this project in my head for a couple of months, so it feels good to finally have it finished and now gifted. 

Once again, it is all from stash and once again, several fabric companies blend together to create this pretty cushion.

Orinoco Flow Pattern Release

This is my latest finish in my favourite colours. It is the throw-size version of Tinker Toys, which was published last summer in the September issue of Love of Quilting magazine.

Unfortunately, they hold the rights until August 2025, yes, the contracts are now two years, so I cannot publish the baby size pink and orange quilt. However, I contacted them to ask if I would be allowed to publish a throw size with a little bit different construction method than they use and different colours and they said, yes. So I am very happy to have this quilt available as a stand-alone pattern. Next year I will be able to release the baby size as well and will update the pattern. Know that I will send the updated pattern free to anybody who buys it this year. The pattern also has instructions to make a cushion cover.

Greybird

 About a month ago, my good friend Liz had to say goodbye to her beloved cat, Greybird. She was 15 years old, a good age for a kitty, but still... I knew I wanted to make her a little something to show my sympathy and empathy for what she was going through. I had originally thought of a mug rug, maybe a mini cat with the Snail's Trail block tail.

That's not a cat, I know! And it's not a mug rug either, if you look at the size of it compared to the thread! As with many projects, things have a way of just flowing along in the way they mean to; I just have to listen, and then follow.

Kaleidoscope Dreams

Well I have a finish, and I am pretty stoked about it! For those who have followed the build on Instagram, here is the final cushion cover, which I've named Kaleidoscope Dreams.

I made the first cushion cover using Paula Nadelstern's line 'Wonderlust' for a Benartex blog hop in 2018. When Sheila was at our house for Dayna's wedding in November that year, she fell in love with the cushion, and asked me to make her one.  Exactly the same. Time went on. Earlier this year we were chatting, and she brought up the cushion again because she had seen it in a yoga photo I put on Instagram. I said I might have enough of the fabric left but I wasn't sure... She said she'd pay me for it, and I told her no, there was no need, but within 24 hours, she had emailed me some, and refused to hear otherwise.

Island Batik Blog Hop and Giveaway: Lake and Trees

I'd like to welcome everyone to my post on Island Batik's 'The Ultimate Home Décor' blog hop. I finally can show off this beautiful collection of fabric, River Valley, designed for Deb Tucker Studio 180 Designs by Kathy Engle.

I kind of went to town on this one!

Holiday House

This is my first project for the December challenge with Island Batik. We were to incorporate 3D elements into our project. As you know, I love depth perception, shadows and layers in quilting, so to say I was excited about this challenge is a bit of an understatement! Truth tea: I have exactly six project ideas for the challenge... Here is the first:

It's my House Block pattern (see sidebar link to it) with a 6" presents block on the side! All of the fabrics were supplied by Island Batik.  Hobbs Batting supplied the 100% wool batting (which I originally used in my suitcases quilt Oh! The Places You'll Go!) and Aurifil supplied most of the thread I used in the project. Some of the threads and the embellishments are my own.

The Marauder's Map OMG

I am happy to report that just past the mid-way mark of the month I had one of my two OMGs finished. This is a cushion, or as Dayna calls it, a pillow cover. It was supposed to be a Christmas present, but it got pushed out of the way, forgotten, remembered, no time, forgotten...and now DONE!

I picked up this fabric at JoAnn's to make Dayna a pillow cover at the same time as I picked up the Slytherin fabric for Brady's and Game of Thrones fabric for Brianne's. I got theirs done in record time since I was flying out there in a couple of days for Christmas. I meant to do Dayna's, but the suitcase quilt, and a Mexico trip got in the way... And then I forgot about it because I'd put the fabric in a cupboard, then remembered, then forgot...sigh. When I was packing up my sewing stuff for the renovations, I found it, and was stabbed with guilt, so I kept it out, and made it my OMG.

A Roll of the Dice Cushion

Last year I was part of a blog hop for Amanda Murphy's beautiful line, Free Motion Fantasy for Benartex. Teaser: I'm part of one coming up the first full week of May and I get to use her latest line, a Fall one, squeal! Once I designed the blocks and the runner for last August's hop, I had the idea to make the blocks smaller and create a cushion, and I finally have it done. Sadly I do not finally have the pattern finished, but the plan is to have it and my suitcases quilt, Oh! The Places You'll Go! both done by the end of my Beothuk Star QAL, which is June 15. This is the second finish for the Q2FAL. You can see my list here. I actually had this done over a week ago, just hadn't written it up.

Postcard Cushion

Sneaking in another finish that was on my Q1FAL List. This cushion cover is made from leftover HSTs from my Postcard from Sweden quilt. Cool: that finish post is April 20, almost exactly a year ago! I've had this top pieced for a couple months...

TBT #14 A Cozy Quilter's Christmas

Would you believe I have a couple of Christmas items still around my house? A snowman quilt or two, à propos for January wouldn't you say? A Stars and Mittens quilt... and this cushion, or pillow.

That other cushion is one of the items I made when I was chosen to do the Desire to Inspire Challenge for Henry Glass Fabrics back in 2016

I need to get back into stitchery. It is so portable, I enjoy do it, and I love incorporating it with quilt blocks. Welcome to Throwback Thursday Quilts if you are new here! This is a place where we can write posts about those quilts we made prior to our blogging days, and let others see our quilt journey. I find it's kind of therapeutic to revisit these, and discover stories you might not have realized are held within the fibres of those projects.