Okay, so it took me a little while to finish this quilt top. It is amazing that I find I don't have as much time quilting as I would like, but I am making it work and the quilts I am privileged to wo

These simple words speak tons. A touch... a life... a change... a difference. You make a difference. You touch lives.

Good morning Scrappers! Today marks Week 6 and the final Scrap Elimination blog of the summer. It has been a busy summer making fun projects out of my scraps and I love the results. This last one is perhaps my favorite, so I hope you enjoy it as much as I have. This week we are going to be using up 1 1/2" strips. You could also make this project with 2 1/2" strips, you're block would just have larger strips. Here's what you will need to get started! Materials:1 1/2" strips at least 7" long

My Shop My Quilt Patterns are Available for Immediate Download NOW from The Craftsy Website. You will find them HERE These are the patterns that are NOW available from Craftsy! "French Connection" Quilt Pattern Available Finished Quilt Size 54" x 72" "Kaleidoscope" Quilt Pattern- NOW Available.. Finished Quilt Size 66" x 84" 'Eden's Garden' Quilt Pattern Finished Quilt size 69" x 84" (175 x 213cm) Eden's Garden is made up using the traditional corner to corner curved piecing technique. (don't be nervous..its easy!!) These flowers are machine pieced blocks, to create a pretty modern floral quilt. This quilt uses 12 Fat quarters OR 12, 10" strips..plus background and border fabric. For this quilt I used the beautiful Paradise collection from Pat Bravo. 'Curlicue Crush' Quilt Pattern Finished Quilt Size 48" x 60" (120 x 150cm) Cirlicue Crush uses the traditional technique of corner to corner curved piecing.... Just revamped into a funky retro design!! For this quilt top I used 20 Fat Quarters from Anna Maria Horner's new range - Innocent Crush. 'Sand Castle' Quilt Pattern Finished Quilt Size 182 x 202cm (73" x 81") 'Sand Castle Quilt is a beautiful quilt to make. Perfect for your little Princess or your Knight! It covers a child's single bed perfectly. I have used 18 Fat Quarters from Heather Ross' Far Far Away 2 Collection. 'Star Jewels' Quilt Pattern Finished Quilt Size - 190 x 190cm (76 x 76") 'Star Jewels' is a great quilt to use up your fabric stash or going with a specific fabric range.. Maybe Christmas? For this quilt I have used Kaffe Fasset Fabric and Anna Maria Horner fabric. 'Rolling Meadows' Quilt Pattern Finished Quilt size 66" x 74" (168 x 188cm ) Now Available!! Rolling Meadows is a Quick and Easy quilt. Perfect for Beginners or a fun quick project. Its great for showcasing a whole fabric range and features your favourite fabric! Uses 1 Jelly Roll (2 1/2" Strips) and Coordinating fabric. (Would look amazing in a Christmas range!) 'Diamond Bouquet' Quilt Pattern Quilt Size 90" x 90" Is a beautiful Quilt to make. Its a great design to showcase large scale prints. I would recommend this Quilt as an Intermediate level Quilt.

Okay, so it took me a little while to finish this quilt top. It is amazing that I find I don't have as much time quilting as I would like, but I am making it work and the quilts I am privileged to wo

We attended Opening Day of the Pacific International Quilt Festival , the biggest quilt show on the west coast of the U.S.A. ! This yea...

We're so excited to share another free project with you! This one is called Seeing Stars, by Alex Anderson, and is from Make Star Quilts. FINISHED QUILT: 48 1/2˝ × 54 1/2˝ FINISHED BLOCK: 6˝ × 6˝ TOTAL NUMBEROF STAR BLOCKS: 27 I love Star quilts, so I guess it’s no surprise that I would include one in this book. I decided to emphasize the star motif by making the star points darker than the star centers (or “bellies”) and—taking my cue from modern quilters—chose a fresh, sparkling white for the background. As a finishing touch, I dropped in a few random polka dot squares for visual interest and to complement the polka dots I used in some of the blocks. Designed and pieced by Alex Anderson; machine quilted by Dianne Schweickert Materials Fabric amounts are based on a 42˝ fabric width. ASSORTED LIGHT TO DARK COLORFUL PRINTS: 1 yard total for stars WHITE SOLID: 3 yards for block backgrounds, filler strips, filler squares, outer border, and binding LIGHT PRINT: 1/4 yard for filler squares A TEAL AND A BLUE SUBTLE PRINT: 1/8 yard of each for flat piping BACKING: 3 yards of fabric (horizontal seam) BATTING: 53˝ × 59˝ Cutting All measurements include 1/4˝-wide seam allowance. Cut strips on the crosswise grain of the fabric (selvage to selvage) unless otherwise noted. See the introduction to Piecing the Blocks (next page) for the number and combination of pieces you’ll use for each block. ASSORTED COLORFUL PRINTS Cut 108 squares 2 3/8˝ × 2 3/8˝ in matching sets of 4 for star points. Cut 27 squares 3 1/2˝ × 3 1/2˝ for star centers. WHITE SOLID—LENGTHWISE GRAIN Cut 2 strips 3 1/2˝ × 42 1/2˝. Cut 2 strips 3 1/2˝ × 54 1/2˝. REMAINING WHITE SOLID Cut 27 squares 4 1/4˝ × 4 1/4˝ for star-point units. Cut 108 squares 2˝ × 2˝ for block corners. Cut 11 squares 6 1/2˝ × 6 1/2˝ for large filler squares. Cut 20 rectangles 3 1/2˝ × 6 1/2˝ for filler strips. Cut 4 rectangles 3 1/2˝ × 12 1/2˝ for filler strips. Cut 1 rectangle 3 1/2˝ × 9 1/2˝ for filler strip. Cut 4 squares 3 1/2˝ × 3 1/2˝ for small filler squares. Cut 6 strips 2 1/8˝ × the fabric width for binding. LIGHT PRINT Cut 9 squares 3 1/2˝ × 3 1/2˝ for filler squares. BLUE AND TEAL PRINTS—FROM EACH Cut 3 strips 1˝ × the fabric width. Construction PIECING THE BLOCKS For each of these blocks, use 4 matching 2 3/8˝ × 2 3/8˝ squares for the star points, a square 3 1/2˝ × 3 1/2˝ cut from a different print for the star center, and a square 4 1/4˝ × 4 1/4˝ and 4 squares 2˝ × 2˝ cut from the white solid for the background. 1. Use 4 matching print squares 2 3/8˝ × 2 3/8˝ and a white square 4 1/4˝ × 4 1/4˝ to make 4 Flying Geese units. Make 4 Flying Geese units. 2. Arrange the 4 units from Step 1, an assorted print 3 1/2˝ × 3 1/2˝ square, and 4 white 2˝ × 2˝ squares as shown. Sew the units and squares together into rows; press. Sew the rows together; press. Sew units and squares together into rows. 3. Repeat Steps 1 and 2 to make a total of 27 Star blocks. QUILT ASSEMBLY 1. Arrange the blocks, the large and small filler squares, and the filler strips as shown in the quilt assembly diagram. 2. Sew the blocks, squares, and strips together in “neighborhoods” as shown; press. 3. Sew the neighborhoods together; press so that seams fall in opposite directions whenever possible. 4. Sew the 3 1/2˝ × 42 1/2˝ white outer-border strips to the top and bottom of the quilt. Press the seams toward the border. Sew the 3 1/2˝ × 54 1/2˝ white outer-border strips to the sides of the quilt; press. Quilt assembly FINISHING 1. Layer and baste the quilt, and then quilt as desired. Dianne machine quilted an overall motif of large bubbles and swirls over the entire quilt, picking up on the circles in the many polka dot fabrics. 2. Sew the 1˝-wide blue and teal strips together end to end with diagonal seams, and press the seams open. Fold the strip in half, wrong sides together, and press. 3. Trim the batting and backing even with the raw edges of the quilt top. Measure the quilt through the center from top to bottom and from side to side. Cut 2 strips to each measurement from the folded blue/teal strip. With right sides together and raw edges aligned, use a machine basting stitch and a scant 1/4˝ seam to sew the piping strips to the sides, top, and bottom of the quilt. Add piping. 4. Sew the 2 1/8˝-wide white binding strips together end to end with diagonal seams, and use them to bind the edges of the quilt. ALEX ANDERSON is a founding partner, executive producer, and co-host of the web TV’s The Quilt Show with Ricky Tims, as well as founding partner of The Quilt Life magazine. She has authored 30 books that have sold a combined total of nearly one million copies. Alex lives in Northern California. WEBSITE: alexandersonquilts.com This project originally appeared in Scrap Quilting with Alex Anderson by Alex Anderson. Follow my blog with Bloglovin

I would love to tell you about my upcoming classes at the Empty Spools Retreat in Pacific Grove, CA. I am lucky enough to have taught there ...

This is our first-ever post about scrap quilts, although we've been collecting inspiration for years. Our favorite scrap quilts are those with a cohesive design and color scheme; in other words, quil

Saturday was the last meeting of the Kim McLean club and unfortunately we were with only 4. I would have loved to see the quilts the other members are working on. I love most of them. However, I’m …

I had a ton of requests for Flying Geese for foundation paper piecing so this is my first stab at it - I would love some feedback! If you find the sizes adequate, if other sizes are needed, etc. My patterns are precisely drafted using a drafting program and then converted to PDF's for you to print over and over at home on your own printer. This is a PDF file that you download after purchase - not a physical item mailed to you. You will download the PDF (from your etsy.com account in a browser, you cannot download from the Etsy app) and you will be able to print your own, on a regular printer, as often as needed - only print the size you need, you do not have to print all 8 pages! The sizes are as follows: 1.5" by 3/4" geese - 2" by 1" geese - 2.5" by 1.25" geese - 3" by 1.5" geese - 4" by 2" geese - 5" by 2.5" geese - 5.5" by 2.75" geese - 6" by 3" geese. As you can tell by the images, the number of geese that fit on a sheet will vary so I've added "match lines" to the end of each strip - if you need additional geese of one size, print multiple sheets and then tape the sheets together at the matchlines to make the strip as long as you need - this is great for borders of geese - make a single long strip and sew it right to the quilt center in one fell swoop. So...if you want to add a 3" border of flying geese to your quilt, measure the length - a 60" quilt will take 60" worth of geese at 1.5" per goose (lol) so you'll want 40 geese, and you'll see the 3" size comes 6 to a strip, 2 strips per page, so you'd want to print off 4 sheets of the 3" geese per quilt side...it's all about the math. :) And I just tape 'em together with scotch tape - it's easy to sew through and you can make strips as long as you need that way! Lots of fun. These files are made to fit exactly on an 8.5" by 11" piece of copy paper, US Letter size. If you are from outside the US, I'd be happy to try to convert to whatever paper size you use - convo me for that. Print at 100%/no scaling for exact size geese. You'll receive one PDF file with this purchase that you can use as often as you'd like to print 8 different sizes of flying geese paper piecing foundation papers. Any questions at all, convo me - I try to help whenever possible! Thank you so much for visiting my shop!

Strings.. I am having so much fun these days with them, I would like to invite you all to join the fun. Come along with me and see how many different ways we can make string quilts. Here are few examples of what I have done with strings in the past.. Work in Progress 2010 Inspired by the quilts of Gee's Bend. 2009 My original design "Home on the river front" 2002 A class sample for "Inspirations from Quilts of Gee's Bend" 2003 "Ferris wheel" 2010 Original pattern that used up most of my strings at the time! "Snow falling on Cedars" 2011 String Quilt 2005 I guess I should call it, My library quilt! Crater Lake 2005 Cranberry Sauce 2004 Original pattern by sandy Donabed From the book, "A Colorful Journey" Okay, can you tell that I love strings? Have you made a string quilt? Would you like to make one? I am working on one right now and will post some pictures real soon! If you have already made one or are working on one.. I would love to see your quilt! Beth just made one! It is beautiful! Go check it out!

A loooong time ago I became increasingly frustrated with all the ways that existed to baste my larger quilts. I tried pin basting and oh m...

Explore ViLight's 250 photos on Flickr!

Hexi Magic! I’ve always loved making scrappy hexi hot pads and coasters, but I didn’t like getting up and down for trimming. I’ve been thinking for awhile how I might make it easier with a quilt as...

Okay, so it took me a little while to finish this quilt top. It is amazing that I find I don't have as much time quilting as I would like, but I am making it work and the quilts I am privileged to wo

From the Pat L. Nickols Collection at the Mingei Museum in San Diego Hexagon charm quilt Log Cabin Collector Pat L. Nickols donated her collection of 300 quilts and tops to the Mingei Museum of Folk Art. They are showing log cabin quilts in San Diego right now through July 3rd. UPDATE: Pat corrects me and says it is 350 quilts. http://www.mingei.org/exhibition/log-cabin-quilts-from-the-pat-l-nickols-collection/ The New England Quilt Museum is showing a selection of her charm quilts through July 6, 2014. See Charmed: Every Piece is Different at their website: http://nequiltmuseum.org/ In a charm quilt no two pieces are alike. They are usually pieced of one template pattern, above a 4-sided piece called tumbler. You can enjoy Pat's collection at home by clicking on the online catalog here: http://www.mingei.org/education/collections/?special-collections=17 The Quilters Guild of Dallas funded the digitization. An unusual charm quilt in a tile pattern, pieces appliqued to a white background. Right angle triangles, arranged according to color value. Thanks to Pat for her generous gift. And to the Quilters Guild of Dallas.

Learn about what Lutradur is and some tips for using it on your next quilting projects in this video from National Quilters Circle

I've had this customer quilt in my studio for awhile. I didn't want to start it until I was pretty sure what I would do and really had the ...

Im sure Im not really showing you guys anything new with these DIY cupcake holders / pedestals....

Learn about what Lutradur is and some tips for using it on your next quilting projects in this video from National Quilters Circle

Not much is known about Yumi Okita. But what we do know is that her moth creations are pretty, unique and GORGEOUS! I’d love to accidentally find one of her creatures resting on my wall. I would catch it, cuddle it and keep in a place where it cannot escape from. I know: that’s a bit cruel. Luckily, […]

It all started with a charm pack of Carkai by Carolyn Friedlander for Robert Kaufman Fabrics. I saw that gorgeous spectrum of color spread across my cutting table, and then my eyes drifted to a wooden spool of Aurifil floss in the tool cart nearby. And suddenly I knew I had to make this quilt. This is by far the most "modern" project I've attempted in quite a while. I modeled my spools completely on the tall, thin Aurifloss wooden version -- these are exactly twice the size of the original -- using about half of the Carkai charm pack for my "thread" colors. I couldn't resist adding an empty spool in there for fun. I used Quilter's Linen for the spool ends and an off-white shade of Kona solid for most of the background, tossing in some of the low volume prints from Carkai for more depth and interest. I love how one of the Carkai prints next to the brown spool had a line of the same color in it, so that it looks like a bit of thread is coming off that spool. Of course, I had to quilt this one by hand using creamy white Aurifloss, adding three rows of stitches between each horizontal row and one between every vertical row of spools. It was a joy to sit by the window at the end of our loft and sew by hand on this little quilt all afternoon. For my binding, I used a white crosshatch print from Architextures and included a spectrum of all the "thread" colors along the top left side of the quilt, leaving a gap for the empty spool. If you look closely, you'll see that missing "thread" color on the bottom right side of the quilt binding. This was one of those project ideas that hits you like lightening out of the blue. It's the kind that you just suddenly have to make -- and can't stop working on during every free moment you have until it's finished. And when you're done, you step back and look at it and it just seems like a gift that caught you by surprise, that was sent to you when you had no idea it was coming. But you're so glad it did.

Stories of Amish Quilt...... their doing by hand Floor quilting www.amishhandquilting.com/ That's the reason why their creations are so so expensive....Keep up a good work, Quilters

Moved to my new blog Belle and Ivy . Reusable (Unpaper) Paper Towel Tutorial. UPDATE 12May16, They are back! Click here to s...

Thought I would show you what I am working on today in my studio. You all know I love selvages, which are the ends of the quilt fabric that is usually cut off, thrown away, and look like this: So,…

PLEASE FOLLOW DOWNLOADINGINSTRUCTIONS BELOW We are so very, very excited to offer Ellis & Higgs patterns by Nadra Ridgeway!  Her lovely designs are easy to follow and especially creative as she adds a sweet touch of soft beauty that makes her patterns unique.  Using traditional quilt designs with simple angles and squares, Nadra created this darling little Sugar Candies Mini Quilt... isn't it cute!?  Her patterns are like having the pattern instructor right there with you as you construct each step.  I love sewing with Ellis & Higgs patterns!  This Mini Sugar Candies Quilt would be the perfect project for first-time Singer Featherweight owners.  Pattern makes an 18 1/2" x 18 1/2" Mini Quilt. For fabric requirements, please click on photo images above. © 2017 Nadra Ridgeway, ellis & higgs. All rights reserved. This pattern is not available for commercial resale. Pattern duplication and sharing is prohibited. TERMS OF USE: You may sell handcrafted items made from this pattern under the following conditions: The item must be made by the individual that purchased the pattern. Keep a copy of the receipt as proof of purchase. The item must be made by hand, one at a time, mass production is not allowed. Credit must be given to ellis & higgs as the designer of the pattern on a tag affixed to each item. If selling online, the listing must contain a direct link to the original pattern. **DIGITAL PATTERN DOWNLOADING & POLICY DETAILS: Downloading When you complete your order, you will receive an email that says "Your downloads are ready".  In this email you will have a unique URL link to click on which will lead you back to our website and the following screen:    Click on the words "Download Now" so that a little window pops up for you to select whether you want to open it as a PDF or save it to your computer.  Be patient with your first attempt - the file is large, so it may take a few moments to load the PDF depending on your ISP connection speed.   Once the window pops up you can select either option of whether to "Open" or "Save".  If saving it, just be sure to make a note of where you are saving it on your computer so you can retrieve it later. If you click on your download link and a web browser appears but only presents you with a white screen or downloading doesn't appear to take place, most likely there is an incompatibility between the web browser you are using, your system software, and the way our website serves files. First try switching to a different web browser. (For example, if you are using Internet Explorer, try starting the download with Firefox instead.  We have found that Firefox works very well!)However, if switching browsers does not work for you, try downloading it from your laptop or desktop computer rather than an iPad or mobile device.  This usually solves the issue as the iPad tends to hide downloaded files in odd places and requires a reader app to open it (Adobe Reader App or Kindle App are free).  If all else fails, you can forward your email link to a friend or local copy center business to have them download and print it for you. Digital Policy Details This digital product policy is designed to help you understand our commitment to you but also remind you of your responsibilities when you purchase digital products from The Featherweight Shop.  If you have a registered account with our website, then your order history is provided once you login to your account.  You can then download any digital product or pattern purchases at any time in the future using your order history.  Due to the nature of digital products, saving to computers, etc., refunds cannot be issued.  If you would like a hard copy of this pattern, then please feel free to forward the digital file that is emailed to you to a family member, friend or your local copy center for printing.  If you do not have a registered account, then please know that it is your responsibility to promptly download and save the file you purchased to your computer. Once you have downloaded and saved your item, safeguarding it is up to you. Be sure to back up your files, because it is not a matter of "if", but "when" your files will be lost. Carbonite, Backblaze or other backup file system is highly recommended. You set it up and never have to worry again.  However, if you ever need to recover your lost files, these backup programs are a life saver!

Kristie from OCD: Obsessive Crafting Disorder (don’t you love that blog name?) asked me if I would be interested in making her a mini to hang in her sewing room. She wanted something like the…

I've become a little obsessed with making Pine Burr blocks. This is my first. I thought I'd make only one. But...

At our October guild meeting I found out that we are making baby quilts for Our Lady of Grace. I have started piecing HSTs together. I would like to finish my donation quilt as my November goal f…

As promised, here is a tute on how to make this block, which I made for Sarah in the monthly Brit Bee. I've called it 'Wonky Corners' because I couldn't think of anything else! But if this block has a 'proper' name, please let me know! The effect of this block is achieved by alternating coloured strips with a dark solid (black in Sarah's block, and navy in this tutorial example). It works up to 12.5" finished. 1. Gather together scraps of fabrics. Varying lengths are good, and you could also use jelly roll strips. 2. Start with a 2.5" coloured square. Try to keep this in the same position - I keep mine to the top left hand corner of the block, and add strips to the right & bottom edges. 3. Angle the side of the starting square by approx. 0.5". 4. Pin a strip of dark fabric to this wonky edge. Flip it over to make sure that it will pass the top edge of the starting square. 5. Once in position, sew a 1/4" seam along the edge and press the seam away from the starting square. 6. Position the piece back on the cutting mat, making sure the starting square is lying square on the mat. Angle the side of the first dark strip & also the bottom edge. 7. Now pin, position & sew the 2nd dark strip along the bottom edge. Remember to overhang the dark strip slightly beyond the outer edge of the starting square. Again, iron the seams away from the starting square. 8. Angle the side of the 2nd dark strip and square off the opposite 2 edges - these are the edges which include the remaining raw edges of the starting square. They are the measuring point for keeping these outer edges square. I like to put a sticker in the left hand corner of my starting square to remind me to keep these 2 edges square. 9. Now add 2 more coloured strips in the same way as before. 10. Angle them, square off the outer edges, before adding another row of dark solid. 11. Continue adding alternate rows of coloured & dark solid fabrics, increasing in width as the block gets bigger. 12. I stopped adding strips when I got to 12.5" and then squared off the entire block. However you could stop or continue to whatever size you choose. Variations to this block could be .. * using white or pale grey solids with darker patterns * keeping the fabrics the same in each row (I used different patterns in my coloured sections) * using light shades on the top row and dark shades on the bottom row * using thin strips of solid with wide strips of pattern, or vice versa * increase the 'wonkiness' by increasing/varying the angles * not having contrasting solids at all! I would love to see your version of this block, should you decide to have a go. Please send me a pic of your finished block, and I'll put up a mosaic of all of them on my blog to inspire others to have a go! Happy sewing!