Jelly Filled Parade - Smart Cookie Quilt and Giveaway!!

I was super excited when my good friend Vanessa from Lella Boutique  asked if I wanted to participate in a Parade for her new book Jelly Filled.    And I am thrilled today to get to share the quilt I made for the parade along with a giveaway ;)

I absolutely loved Vanessa's first quilt Charm School, a Charm Pack friendly book.  And if you can't tell from the title of her new book Jelly Filled, this book is all about Jelly Rolls!!!   

I got to make the Smart Cookie quilt from Jelly Filled and I just love this awesome design, doesn't it just shine!!!    You all know I love a good star quilt, and Stars combined with a Log Cabin design, and then to make it all interlock, brilliant!!!  This quilt just has so much movement, and I just love the twist Vanessa put on traditional blocks.  And it was so fun and fast to piece :)  

And I know that this is a "Jelly Filled" quilt, but I actually used a Half Yard bundle instead of Jelly Rolls :)   But can you blame me??  And soon as I saw the design of this quilt, I just knew it would be perfect for a bundle of New Ombre Colors  that I had.   I just loved the ideas of the Log Cabin parts of the blocks being an Ombre gradient of lights and darks.   It took me a little while to figure out how to get it all cut, but it was totally worth it.  Wouldn't you agree!!!

And  I took some pictures along the way of cutting, Just in case you want to make an Ombre Smart Cookie as well :)   You can just use the following directions along with your Jelly Filled Book instructions.  And if you have any questions, don't hesitate to email me :)

So first off, for the quilt top you will need:

 12 Half Yard Cuts of any Ombre Fabric (I used the New Colors bundle)
        - From the pattern, these will be used as the 12 Print Fat Quarters as well as the Cream Fabric.
             Cut according to the instructions below using the pattern for sizes :)

 2 Yards of White Grunge or White Solid
          - From the pattern, this yardage will be used as the Black Fabric
             Cut according to the instructions in the pattern ;)

Do the following 4 steps for each of the 12 Half Yard cuts.   The top or darker part will become your "print" pieces and the bottom or lighter part will become your "cream" pieces

Trim the 2 sides and top and bottom of  the Half Yardage piece so you have (2) 17 1/2" x 20" squares.  Keep the two squares stacked on top of each other with wrong sides together.

Cut a 2 1/2" x 17 1/2" strip from the top and bottom of the trimmed squares. 
Then cut the remaining square vertically into (2) 12 1/2" x 15" rectangles and (2) 5"  x 15" rectangles.  Set the 5" x 15" rectangles aside for a moment.

From the (2) 12 1/2" x 15" rectangles cut horizontally to make (12) 2 1/2" x 12 1/2" in 6 rows.

 The top three rows along with the Top 17 1/2" strip cut in the step above become the Print Rectangles from the pattern and you will use the "or 12 Fat Quarters" instructions from the Pattern to cut the Print Rectangles Designated below.

The bottom three rows along with the Bottom 17 1/2" strip cut in the step above become the Cream Rectangles from the pattern.  Follow the size directions below and take note of which pieces go in Block 1 (making 2 per Half Yard Piece) and which go in Block 2  (making 1 per Half Yard Piece).

 And finally, grab the (2)  5" x 15" rectangles that were set aside.
  From the first rectangle cut (2) 2 1/2" x 8 1/2" rectangles to use for the "cream" fabrics in Block 1
  From the second rectangle cut (3) 5" x 5" squares to be used in the Step 2 directions of both Blocks

And now you are all set to piece your quilt!!!   And then when it is all pieced together, you can quilt and bind it and have an awesome Ombre Smart Cookie quilt as well ;)    I decided to quilt mine with an all over bubble swirl ;)   And I used a Rainbow variegated thread and I just love how it adds to all of that ombre goodness of the quilt!!! 

And of course, it creates some gorgeous texture as well!!!   I used a black grunge binding and it finishes off this ombre rainbow just perfectly :)  Isn't it just so fun!!!  The quilt finishes at 84" square so it will make for an awesome quilt to take on a picnic or snuggle up in. 

And that is my Smart Cookie quilt from Vanessa Goertzen's new Jelly Filled book, made using the gorgeous new Ombre Fabrics by Vanessa Christensen.    And I absolutely love, love, love the way it turned out!!!  Thank you so much to Vanessa for having me along this fun parade :)  And be sure to check out Vanessa's blog for lots more quilts from Jelly Filled!!!

And a Parade wouldn't be complete without a Giveaway!!!   C & T Publishing has a copy of Jelly Filled for one lucky Happy Quilting reader!!!    

GIVEAWAY CLOSED - The Winner is #31 - Congrats Kira!!!

And entering is simple.    All Entries are welcome, including International Entries.  Please just be sure to leave an email address if you are a no-reply blogger ;) 

ENTRY - Simply leave a comment telling me what is your favorite pre-cut to sew with ;)  

And that's it ;)  The giveaway will be open until next Monday November 11th, when I will announce a winner on this post :)  Good Luck!!! 

Thanks for popping in today and each and every day.   I hope you have a Happy Quilting Weekend!!!

Tutorial Throwback Thursday - The Wall!!!

It's Thursday and that means another Tutorial Throwback feature.  And today's feature throwback is The Wall, and kind of a funny story how I decided this would be the feature today.   I was up most of the night with a sick kiddo, we have all been there done that right ;)   Anyhow,  this morning, I was mentioning to my husband all of the things I needed to do today, and how I hoped I could get through it all without hitting the "brick wall".  You know, that figurative "wall" where you are just to tired to do anything else.   And then I sat down to my computer to start on this morning's "to do" and at the top of the list was Tutorial Throwback Thursday, and wham, The Wall is perfect for today ;) 

The Wall features the Jolly Bar pre-cut.  This is a specialty pre-cut of the Fat Quarter Shop and it is a 5"x 10" bar.   (Basically think a Layer Cake, cut in half ;)   I designed The Wall to highlight this new pre-cut and I love how simple it is in design, but yet how well it highlights all of the fabrics!!!   

And because of it's simple design it goes together super fast!!!   All you need is 2 Jolly Bar's and 1 1/2 yards of a chosen solid fabric.   Just a few quick cuts of your solid fabric, and you are ready to start piecing your entire quilt together.    And it finishes at 56" x 70" so it is a great lap size quilt to snuggle up in.   

And again, because it goes together so fast, it makes for a great gift!!!  My wall quilt was given away to a special newly married couple!!!  I have also seen someone use it as a "signature quilt" at their wedding.   Those little bricks make a great space for everyone to leave a special little message on that very special day!!!   Whatever you make it for, it is really a fun one to piece and looks just awesome!!

I hope you have enjoyed today's Tutorial Throwback Thursday!!!    To make your own The Wall quilt  just click on any of the quilt name links for the free step by step tutorial.    And when you are done, I would love to see your quilt!!  You can email me a picture at happyquiltingmelissa@gmail.com, post it to social media with #happyquiltingwithmc  or or add it to my flickr group here ;)  I can't wait to see your The Wall quilts!!!

Thanks for popping in today and be sure to pop back in tomorrow for a new quilt finish!!! 

One Week Away!!!

Just popping in today to remind everyone, we have one week left until the Starstruck Quilt Along Grand Prize Winner's and Parade!!!!    If you haven't linked up your Starstruck Quilt Top (any size) yet, be sure and link up at the end of this post by next Tuesday night :)  And if you finished your Starstruck Quilt, (quilted and bound) be sure and email me a picture at happyquiltingmelissa@gmail.com so I can include it in the parade!!    I can't wait to see all of your amazing finished Starstruck quilts ;)

I made a backing for my Starstruck Quilt yesterday, and it's going on the long arm this weekend!!!  Can't wait to get this one all finished up.   This has been so great quilting along with all of you!!!

Terrific Tuesday Giveaway Day!!

It's Terrific Tuesday Giveaway Day so let's have some fun :)

First, we need to announce the winner from last weeks Terrific Tuesday Giveaway :)

The winner of the $25.00 Gift Certificate from Lou Lou's Fabric Shop is . . .  Number #44. . .   Congrats  OhioLori!!!   I have emailed you :)    

 

         

And on to today's

Today's Terrific Tuesday Giveaway is being sponsored by Olie and Evie.  Rhonda's shop is so fun and full of so much amazing quilting goodness!!!!  Of course, there is the amazing fabric shop we all know and love along with longarm quilting, gift certificates, preorders, and an awesome Clearance Sale!!    Rhonda has so much to share so be sure to pop on over and check it out!!! 

And Rhonda's has a fantastic Terrific Tuesday Giveaway Day!!!!     Olie and Evie  is giving one lucky winner a $25.00 Gift Certificate to use in her shop!!!    So awesome, someone is going to get a wonderful shopping spree for some end of the year fun :)  

You have two entry chances, the second being optional, and please leave a separate comment for each.  All Entries are welcome, including International Entries.  Please just be sure to leave an email address if you are a no-reply blogger ;)  

ENTRY 1 - Simply leave a comment that tells me what Sound do you Love??

 ENTRY 2 - Show your Olie and Evie love.   You can follow them on  Facebook, Instagram (And Rhonda will be announcing lots of Flash Sales over the coming weeks on Instagram, so it's a good thing to follow ;)  or Pinterest or you can visit The Shop and then share a favorite item ;)   Just be sure to leave a comment of how you showed your Olie and Evie Love!!!

And that's it ;)  The giveaway will be open until next Tuesday,  November 12th when I will announce a winner at the beginning of next weeks Terrific Tuesday Giveaway Post :)

Good Luck and Have a Happy Quilting Day!!!

Happy Little Things BOM - Block 4!!

Note - If you are looking for the A Cut Above the Rest Mini post, you will find it here ;) 

It's the first Monday in November and that means it's time for the fourth block  Happy Little Things Block of the Month!!!    This fun BOM is hosted by Jacquelynne Steves and you can still sign up as it will go from now until the end of the year ;)   And you can read all about Block 4 over at Jacquelynne's blog!!!    And so here they are . . . my Block 4's :)

And I can't believe, this is already our last set of blocks :)   Although, because I am doing a different layout,  I will be making a little bonus block next month so I can have nine blocks total.   So that will be a fun little surprise share ;) But aren't these so cute this month!!! 

I am using Gretel Fabrics from my wonderful friend Amy Smart and they are just so cute in these blocks ;)  Although, I will admit, I wish I would have used a different color than the pink in this particular block.   I just didn't get the contrast I was hoping for, but ah well.   It still is cute ;) 

And there they are!!!  Two #4 Blocks for the Happy Little Things BOM!!!    And if you are quilting along be sure to share all of your Happy Little Things  progress on social media with #HappyLittleThingsBOM and #HappyLittleThingsQuilt  and add them to the Happy Little Things Facebook Group.   And be sure to check out  these other bloggers to see lots more Block 4 Eye Candy and enter for more chances to win the November Giveaway!!!

A Quilting Life                               Flamingo Toes 

Podunk Pretties                            Kathy's Quilts  

The Crafty Quilter                         The Quilting Nook  

                  Allie-Oops Sweet Happy Life 

Yup, I said Giveaway!!!  With each month's block there will be a Happy Little Things Giveaway and you can enter at each blog as each blogger will be giving away a  A Holiday Pins Pack from Just Another Button Company and a Morse Code Quilts Book from Sarah J!!!  How great is that!!!

GIVEAWAY CLOSED - WINNER IS #55 - Congrats JULIE!!!

To enter is simple.   We are going to run this the same way we do all of our Terrific Tuesday Giveaways :)   (Which is tomorrow so if you are visiting for the first time, be sure to come back for a chance to win some more!!!)      

You have two entry chances, the second being optional, and please leave a separate comment for each.  All Entries are welcome, including International Entries. (but international winners will receive a digital copy :)    Please just be sure to leave an email address if you are a no-reply blogger!!    Comments can be left by clicking on the # Comments link in Red at the bottom of this post :)

ENTRY 1 - Simply leave a comment that tells me what is your favorite holiday??

 ENTRY 2 - Show your Happy Quilting love. You can follow Happy Quilting on Bloglovin, Email Updates, or RSS to get daily updates.  Or you can like Happy Quilting on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter or Flickr.   Any one way will do . . . Just be sure to leave a comment of how you showed your Happy Quilting Love!!!

And that's it ;)  The giveaway will be open until next Sunday, November 10th, when I will announce a winner and update it on this post :)

And if you are visiting Happy Quilting for the first time, welcome!!!   I hope you will look around for a bit as I have been writting here for 9 years and have so many fun quilt tutorials, project tutorials, quilt alongs, and patterns to share ;)  

Good Luck and Have a Happy Quilting Day!!!

A Cut Above the Rest Mini!!!

Fat Quarter Shop is hosting a fantastic Remix, and  it's all about their  Sew Solids Projects!!!   I have made both the Panda Sew Solid Mini and the Nail Polish Sew Solid Mini.   I love playing with Solid Fabrics and so I was so super excited about this newest Sew Solid Mini pattern being released to celebrate the Remix :)    It is called A Cut Above the Rest and isn't it just the coolest!!!!    And you know, my mini had to be purple!!!

This A Cut Above the Rest mini was so much fun to make!!! It took maybe two hours from the start of cutting to the binding finish, and it turned out oh so cute!!!    If you wanted to make the traditional aqua rotary cutter, there is  A Cut Above the Rest Mini Kit  but of course, there are lots of colors to choose from.    (And yes, I do realize that I have about every color of actual rotary cutters but the purple one, something I need to remedy :)     But regardless of what color solid you choose to make your Rotary Cutter, you totally want to download the pattern and whip one of these up for your sewing room!!!   They are just so great :) 

When it came time to quilt mine, I decided on just some simple straight lines in a beautiful variegated purple ;)  It reminds me of the cutting lines I make with my rotary cutter so it just fit ;)  And I quilted it on my home machine which was fun, as I haven't done that in a little while!

And wouldn't you know it, I had the perfect space on my mini wall for it.   Seriously, it could not have fit more perfectly :)     And it just makes me smile every time I see :)  I mean, how can you not love a Rotary Cutter Mini in a sewing room, to perfect!!!

 So be sure to pop on over to the Fat Quarter Shop and check out the Sew Solids Remix!!  Whether you decide to make your own A Cut Above the Rest Mini or try our a different Sew Solid Remix pattern, you are sure to have some fun playing with Solid Fabrics!!!   They are always a great way to mix things up and truly get back to the basics of playing with colors :)

Thanks for popping in today and sharing this finish with me!!

I hope you all have a very Happy Quilting Day!!!!

Tutorial Throwback Thursday - Sparkly Stars!!!

It's Thursday and that means another Tutorial Throwback feature.  And as today is Halloween, it should totally be a Halloween project right.    And can you believe it, I have never made a Halloween Quilt for our Family!!!  I know, I am sad to admit it, I have made a Halloween Block, a Halloween Bunting, and a Halloween Bag.   I even made this Halloween Night Flight Quilt sample this year, but never a quilt for my family!!!  So, here I have to admit, I don't really love Halloween, and especially the scary side of it.   But then I remembered that I picked up a Halloween Bundle at Market, Throwback to 2015, because the fabric was cute and not scary.  But somehow, that fabric is still on the shelf.   So today, I decided it was time to take it off the shelf and get stitching!!!   And of course, I need a quilt design . . . enter Throwback Tutorials.   So today we are throwing back to the Sparkly Stars quilt as I think it will be just perfect for our families first Halloween Quilt!!!    

I absolutely loved designing this Sparkly Stars quilt!!!   You all know how much I love making star quilts, and this simple opposite block layout is a great way to feature some fun fabrics!!!  And you are pretty much using larger squares for almost the whole quilt, so you can show off those fabrics without cutting them up to much.     Which is why I think it will be just perfect for my Halloween quilt!!  I wouldn't want to cut up those adorable trick or treater's :)  

And of course, I can't make up a new quilt plan without doing a little EQ8 Sketch :)   I plan on using black for the background. One, because black backgrounds will really make these fabrics pop, and Two, because, well . . . Halloween :)   And won't that be just so great!!!   I love the purples, and aqua's tied in with the oranges and grays.  Seriously, Cute Halloween is my kind of Halloween!!! 

And I love that I know I can easily whip this Sparkly Stars quilt together.   All of the star points are made with a Stitch and Flip method.  And double bonus, they overlap so you don't even have to worry about matching the points up when you sew the block together.   So easy, and oh so fun!!! 

And I am totally planning on doing this L and E quilting again.  This is one of my favorite things to quilt, but you have to have a quilt that has plenty of  "seam guidelines" in order to keep the quilting straight.  Well, this quilt is absolutely perfect for that, as you have 3 perfect guides for each block row!!  I can't wait!!! 

 The Sparkly Stars quilt is Fat Quarter Friendly, and you just need 15 of them along with 3 1/2 yards of background fabric and you are all set. The cutting is fast, the piecing is fast, and so it really becomes a wonderfully fun and fast project that highlights your fabrics!!!   I can't wait to make it up in my Halloween Magic fabric!!!  First Family Halloween Quilt, here I come :)   

I hope you have enjoyed today's Tutorial Throwback Thursday!!!    To make your own Sparkly Stars quilt  just click on any of the quilt name links for the free step by step tutorial.  It finishes at 67 1/2" x 81" so it is a great size to snuggle up in.    And when you are done, I would love to see your quilt!!  You can email me a picture at happyquiltingmelissa@gmail.com, post it to social media with #happyquiltingwithmc  or or add it to my flickr group here ;)  I can't wait to see your Sparkly Stars quilts!!!

Thanks for popping in today and have a very Happy Halloween with maybe even a little Quilting thrown in!!!   I know pressing Halloween fat quarters is on my to do list today :) 

October Sew Sampler!!!

Well those chilly Fall days came and went as it is full on cold here in Cedar City.   Looks like my little trick or treater's will be bundled up good tomorrow night.   But I am all good with the colder temps coming in, because that means bundling up at home and settling in to sew and sew some more!!!   And with my October  Sew Sampler Box arriving I have new goodies to sew with!!!  This month's theme was Savanna Sewfari, how fun is that.   Oh, and FYI, there are new spaces available for the Sew Sampler Box membership, so there is no wait list at this time, so awesome!!  

I just adore Elizabeth Hartman's Patterns and Fabrics!!!  All of her quilt designs are just amazing so I was so super excited to find a new Elizabeth Hartman pattern as well as this super fun Adventure Fat Eighth Bundle by Elizabeth :)  The bundle has such great prints combined with Essex Yarn Died Linen's which I am so excited about.  It is always fun to play with texture in your quilts!!!   This one is so going on the list to make!!!  

And this month's notions are just fantastic!!!  I love this new Kona Color Calendar for 2020!!!!   Each month is a new color family, and each day is a different color in that family.   How fun is that!  And each month also has a free pattern from the Robert Kaufman website, double bonus!!  Oh, and when 2020 is over, this calendar might just still be on the wall forever on the January all purple page :)  And you know that I love that these Sewing Edge Stops are purple too!!!   And of course, you know I can never have enough Storage Tins, and I love this one with it's happy colors (including purple :) 

And of course, with another month is another Goodness Grows Block!!!  This month the block is called  Nourish Yourself  and it was a super fast one to make and oh so cute!   Oh, and I noticed while I was looking up the name of the block, that the Sugarcreek Goodness Grows Quilt Kits are now in stock!!!  (This is the same fabrics I am using :) The kit comes with the 14 yards of fabric you need for the quilt as well as a full set of pre-cut fusible applique shapes.  And there is a Sugarcreek Backing set as well.   I am just loving seeing these blocks come together each month in these gorgeous fabrics.   Only 5 more blocks to go :) 

And that is my October Sew Sampler box  :)  And I am already looking forward to November's box :)   It is always a good day when the little aqua box of quilting goodness arrives in the mail!! 

I hope you are all having a Happy Quilting Day!!

Terrific Tuesday Giveaway Day!!!

It's Terrific Tuesday Giveaway Day so let's have some fun :)

First, we need to announce the winner from last weeks Terrific Tuesday Giveaway :)

The winner of the $30.00 Gift Certificate from Shabby Fabrics is . . .  Number #130. . .   Congrats Cathy B. !!!   I have emailed you :)    

 

         

And on to today's

Today's Terrific Tuesday Giveaway is being sponsored by  Lou Lou's Fabric Shop .    Did you know that Jamie makes a new Lou Lou Bundle every Tuesday . . . there are so many to choose from and they are all just so fun, like this fantastic Spook bundle!!!    Along with hosting the giveaway, Jamie is having a  Fantastic Sale with with lots of amazing discounts!!!! And don't forget to pop over to Lou Lou's Fabric Shop each day for the Daily Deal!!  Which is also filled with more Halloween goodness, just sayin!!!

Today's Terrific Tuesday Giveaway is for some shopping goodness!!  Lou Lou's Fabric Shop is offering one lucky reader a $25.00 Gift Certificate perfect to use on anything in the store, including any of the awesome Lou Lou Bundle's or on the Daily Deal!!  Just perfect!!!!  

You have two entry chances, the second being optional, and please leave a separate comment for each.  All Entries are welcome, including International Entries.   Please just be sure to leave an email address if you are a no-reply blogger ;)  

ENTRY 1 - Simply tell me your all time favorite Halloween Costume??

 ENTRY 2 - Lets show Lou Lou's Fabric Shop some Love!!!!   You can follow them on   Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, or Instagram.  Or you can follow their blog or  visit The Shop and then share a favorite item ;)   Just be sure to leave a comment of how you showed your Lou Lou's Fabric Shop Love!!!

And that's it ;)  The giveaway will be open until next Tuesday, November 5th,  when I will announce a winner at the beginning of next weeks Terrific Tuesday Giveaway Post :)

Good Luck and Have a Happy Quilting Day!!!