Sunday, June 30, 2019

OMG: On the Go Quilt

My June One Monthly Goal at Elm Street Quilts was to assemble the blocks in my On the Go quilt. I finished! Taking a good photo was harder than assembling the quilt...

This pattern sews up quickly because each block has only one seam. Yep, just one! 

I actually just finished a baby-sized version, which I'll show later this summer. Now to write the pattern...

And of course, the outtake, with one of my photography assistants. :) 

Friday, June 28, 2019

New Pattern Release: Twirled Squares

I'm excited to release my newest pattern, Twirled Squares!



I used the Food Trucks collection by Jeanie Phan from Paintbrush Studio Fabrics for this quilt. The squares in the center of each block are perfect for highlighting a focal print (like the pretzels! or donuts! or burgers!). Don't you love the food truck stripe on the back?!


Two pieced frames create a wavy diagonal look in the quilt. I paired a solid with a stripe--this stripe featured silverware! I echoed the idea of wavy diagonals in the quilting.


You can really see the diagonal waves in this photo: 


The food theme of this quilt makes it our family's new picnic quilt.

Just for fun, I took a photo in front of a food truck: 


Want to make your own Twirled Squares quilt? Purchase the downloadable pattern in my Etsy shop.
Click here to order the pattern.

See the fabric requirements here:

Monday, June 17, 2019

Modern with a Twist - Sawtooth Star

I'm part of the Modern with a Twist feature in the newest issue of Modern by the Yard.
Find the issue here.

The concept behind this feature is to take a traditional quilt block and make it modern. This issue features the Sawtooth Star block. I chose to use the Better Basics White & Black collection paired with solids. I used a great black and white dot print for the entire star to make it a "solid" shape. I chose lime green to add a pop of color, and black for the corners to create dimension.


Here's what the single block looks like in a quilt. The way that the black and lime sections come together creates a secondary design. 


Then I tried the same design using a variety of black and white prints. 


And finally, I branched out in colors, adding in teal, fuchsia and orange. I like this one best! 

Be sure to check out the entire issue! There are two other Sawtooth Star variations, several projects, and lots more fun.

One last thing: I created a block for Modern with a Twist once before (see it here), and it became my Rolling Waves pattern. Find the pattern here.

Friday, June 14, 2019

ZuZu Squares Show and Tell

Earlier this spring, I taught my ZuZu Squares pattern in a workshop with the Great Lakes Modern Quilt Guild

Here's my sample quilt. Diane Oakes, who is holding it with me, quilted it. See close-ups of her quilting here.


I loved seeing all the different fabric choices these ladies made for their quilts! Today I'm going to share some of their quilt tops so you can see how this pattern looks with different fabrics and palettes. It's especially fun to see the different prints chosen for the skinny strips (in my original pattern, those strips are pieced from black and white solids, but I provide directions to use fabric strips instead).


Lynne used a white-on-black geometric print that creates really well-defined frames around each colored section.


Diane used a black-on-white skinny chevron print. She also made more blocks to create a larger quilt.


Jill pieced her skinny strips like I did. 

I love this pieced block she created in the middle of the quilt!!


Pam used a black-on-white dot for her skinny strips.


Jackie chose a complete different palette--I love it! 


Jane chose a black and white chevron print.


Here's my second sample version, ready to be quilted:
(Yep, I took it to Epcot!)



Want to make your own? Purchase the pattern in my Etsy shop. If you'd like me to do a workshop featuring this pattern at your guild or quilt shop, email me.

Friday, June 7, 2019

OMG: On the Go!

Back in May, I cut out the pieces for a new quilt, called On the Go using the Strata collection from Michael Miller Fabrics. The blocks have just one seam each, so once the cutting was complete, the sewing went pretty quickly. :) 

I finished all the blocks and laid out the quilt on my make shift design wall (aka the foyer floor). My oldest photo bombed off the back of the couch while I was trying to take photos from the loft above. My One Monthly Goal for June is to assemble these blocks into a quilt top.

We'll see if there's a photo bomb in my OMG finished post as well! :)