Precious - Songbird Serenade Fabric Tour

 I absolutely adore Poppie Cotton Fabric by my good friends Jina and Lori and so I was super happy to whip up some cuteness for their Songbook Serenade Fabric Tour ;)    And a fabric that was so soft and precious needed an equally precious quilt design . . . so here is Precious and Too Precious!!!! 

 I really do love working with Poppie Cotton's!!!  The fabric is wonderful and the whimsical prints and soft colors in this Songbook Serenade line are just so beautiful!!!   I decided right away to pull the dark teal out to make a binding so that all of the super soft pinks, greens, blues, and yellows will just be soft and pretty on the Country Confetti Basic Background.   

And speaking of that background . . . this is Precious.  It was the original quilt design that I choose to make with these beautiful Songbook Serenade fabrics.   I love a good "chain" quilt, and adding precious little hearts into the chain, well, it's just adorable. This quilt is made up with Charm Packs so it goes together super quick.    I can't get over how soft and pretty this quilt turned out.   But my good friends at Poppie Cotton's were kind enough to send me a Fat Quarter Bundle, and since this quilt only needs Charm Packs, I had quite a lot of fabric left over . . . 

So I decided to whip up a second version of the Precious Quilt, only this time using the prints as a scrappy background.   I absolutely love scrappy quilts, and this was a fun way to play on the "low volume background" with some soft but not quite low volumes.  I paired it with Lead Grunge so the chain would really pop!!   And wouldn't you know, it gives a totally different look.   Soft and pretty turns into fun and adorable, and I just love it :)   So now the Precious quilt is transformed into Too Precious :)  

And I have plans to share free PDF Patterns of both Precious and Too Precious, just as soon as I can get them quilted and bound.  (I have been teaching for the last 3 weeks and I just didn't have time to get to the long arm ;)  So be sure to follow along, I am hoping to have them done by the end of this week or early next week :)  

And that is my Precious and Too Precious quilt tops in beautiful Poppie Cotton's.   I hope you love them both as  much as I do, and maybe have some plans of making your own Precious and Too Precious quilts soon!!!   And if you want to make yours just like mine,  here is where you can find Poppie Cottons in your area.

Thank you so much to Jina and Lori for allowing me to play with these fantastic Poppie Cottons fabrics!!!   And for more  Songbook Serenade  fabric fun, be sure to Hop over to the Poppie Cottons blog  to check out more blogger goodies from this wonderful fabric blog tour :)

Thanks for popping in today and every day.  I am just so grateful to have this space to share my love of quilting!!!

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

Diamond Dash - Fast & Fun Lap Quilts

  It's Week 3 of my Fast & Fun Lap Quilts Book Tour and today I am sharing a second version of the Diamond Dash quilt! It's always fun to see how different a quilt can look by changing things up the fabrics.    

 For this version of Diamond Dash, I decided on a monochromatic theme.  My goal with this version was to show how fun it can be to choose one color in all it's hues along with white, and make a stunning statement quilt.   And I even used a Chambray in Denim for the background.  I love all of the added texture it gives to the quilt, and it really makes it feel like a great picnic quilt as it has a little more weight to it ;) 

This version of Diamond Dash was made using Nantucket Summer fabrics by Camille for Moda Fabrics.  All the quilts in Fast and Fun Lap Quilts are made with 1 Layer Cake/10" Stacker and a background fabric.  Nantucket Summer was the perfect print for an monochromatic look as it has so many different shades of blue..  I just love how it turned out!  And of course, the scrappy binding is the perfect finish.   The quilt finishes at 64 1/2" x 64 1/2".  

Since I custom quilted all the quilts in the Fast & Fun Lap Quilts  I thought it would be fun to do all over designs for these second versions.   For this Diamond Dash quilt, I quilted all over loose feathers.   This design is perfect for this quilt as it really plays nice in the negative space.   And the funny thing is, I quilted this the day after getting back from the quilting cruise, and let me tell you, when your body still feels like it is on a ship and you try to long arm, you are rocking and rolling all over the place :)

And that is another Diamond Dash quilt, the third lap quilt in my new Fast & Fun Lap Quilts book !  You can find the Fast & Fun Lap Quilts book in your local or online quilt shops,  C&T Publishing, or if you would like a personalized signed copy, you can order from my Etsy shop.  And if you make your own Keystone Corner quilt, I would love to see it!!  You can share your quilts with me on social media using hashtag #happyquiltingwithmc and #fastandfunlapquilts and tag me @happyquiltingmc or you can email me a picture at happyquiltingmelissa@gmail.com.   

Thanks so much for popping in for another Fast & Fun Lap Quilts book day of fun.    And if you haven't had a chance to enter Amy's Fast & Fun Lap Quilts Giveaway for some beautiful Blue Jean fabric that you can use to make your own monochromatic Diamond Dash Quilt, be sure and pop on over and enter.  

I hope you all have a very Happy Quilting Day! 

Diamond Dash - Fast & Fun Lap Quilts Book Tour

It's Week 3 of my Fast & Fun Lap Quilts Book Tour and today I am sharing the Diamond Dash quilt! Can you tell where it got it's name from??  Some diamonds added to a Churn Dash, pretty clever, tee hee hee.  These blocks are whipped up with some basic piecing, some half square triangles and some stitch and flip corners.  And I just love all of the negative space and the way the two different blocks float in it.    Just so fun :)

Here is the introduction I wrote about Diamond Dash in the Fast & Fun Lap Quilts Book.  "I love adding a twist to traditional quilt blocks to make them a little more modern.  Here, I stated with the classic Churn Dash block and created some diamond fun in the center.  After designing that block, I knew a complementary block would echo the diamond center and produce a secondary pattern.  Diamond Dash is fun and fast, a great quilt for anyone."

When writing this book, I tried to give you all of the tips and trick that I would share if I were teaching a quilting class.  This is my favorite tip from the Diamond Dash quilt.  I absolutely love nesting seams, and nesting an angled seam, just incredible!!  If you have never had the chance to sew a nested angle seam, sew this quilt, just so you can try it out.  I just love how perfectly they go together, just so great!!!   

Diamond Dash was made using Seashore Drive fabrics by Sherri & Chelsi for Moda Fabrics.  All the quilts in Fast and Fun Lap Quilts are made with 1 Layer Cake/10" Stacker and a background fabric.  You will use 38 of the 10" squares for this quilt, and the Plan Ahead tip will help you divide your fabrics, so you know which are for the churn dash blocks and which are for the diamond blocks.  This quilt finishes at 64 1/2" x 64 1/2", making it a great square lap size.  

I had so much fun custom quilting each of the quilts in Fast & Fun Lap Quilts .  For this Diamond Dash quilt, I quilted curly q's in the background, and then echoed arches in the diamond blocks and ribbon candy in the churn dash blocks.  Again, I used my favorite 402 So Fine thread to blend perfectly into the white background and all of the prints.   I just love how the echoed arches make the center of the diamond block look like petals :)  

And that is Diamond Dash, the third lap quilt in my new Fast & Fun Lap Quilts book !  You can find the Fast & Fun Lap Quilts book in your local or online quilt shops,  C&T Publishing, or if you would like a personalized signed copy, you can order from my Etsy shop.  And if you make your own Diamond Dash quilt, I would love to see it!!  You can share your quilts with me on social media using hashtag #happyquiltingwithmc and #fastandfunlapquilts and tag me @happyquiltingmc or you can email me a picture at happyquiltingmelissa@gmail.com.   

And speaking of making a Diamond Dash Quilt, my good friend, Amy Smart has mocked up Diamond Dash using her new Portsmouth fabrics that will come out in Feb of next year!!!   Isn't that just so great!!!!  I love the nautical vibe it gives the quilt. And Amy has done a dark background version as well, that you will so want to check out at her blog, Diary of a Quilter .

And while you are visiting Amy at Diary of a Quilter, be sure to enter her giveaway.  Portsmouth isn't available yet, but Amy has a Blue Jean 10" Stacker that will look just as amazing in this Diamond Dash pattern!!!  So fun!!!

And that is it for today, thanks for popping in for Week 3 of the Fast & Fun Lap Quilts book!

I am just so happy to share this Diamond Dash quilt and be sure to pop back in on Friday when I will share a second version of the quilt :)  

I hope you all have a very Happy Quilting Day!

Terrific Tuesday Giveaway Day :)

    It's Terrific Tuesday Giveaway Day!! Let's have some fun :)

First, we are going to announce the winners of the two week's Terrific Tuesday Giveaway today!!  

The winners of the Fast & Fun Lap Quilts Books are  #221  and # 114  . . . .Congrats to quiltbaker and    Lisa Marie !!!  I have messaged you both :)

       

    

The winner of the Daffodils and Dragonflies Layer Cake from Green Fairy Quilts is . . . #97   . . . Congrats to  sewducki2018!!!  I have messaged 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 stunning!!!  Isn't this new Late October bundle, just so festive!!!  Along with hosting the giveaway, Jamie is having a  Fantastic Sale  on Halloween Fabrics 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!!! I love something new on sale each and every day, it's so fun to see what shows up :)  

 In Celebration of the release of my Fast & Fun Lap Quilts book , for today's Terrific Tuesday Giveaway, Lou Lou's Fabric Shop will be giving one lucky reader a beautiful  Pumpkins & Blossoms Layer Cake by Fig Tree & Co. for Moda.  Just so pretty, which Layer Cake Lap Quilt would you want to make with these beautiful fabrics!!!!  

 

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 favorite Fall activity to do with friends and/or family?? 

 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, October 25th when I will announce a winner at the beginning of next weeks Terrific Tuesday Giveaway Post :)

Good Luck and Have a Happy Quilting Day!!!

Keystone Corners - Fast & Fun Lap Quilts

 It's Week 2 of my Fast & Fun Lap Quilts Book Tour and today I am sharing a second version of the Keystone Corners quilt! It's always fun to see how different a quilt can look by changing things up.    

 For this version of Keystones Corners, I decided on a neutral theme background.  My goal with this version was to show how amazing a neutral layout looks, they have truly become my recent favorite.  I used Black and White prints for the piecing and a nice Tan Linen background.  Yes, you don't always have to use cotton, Linen has such a pretty hand and gives another texture.   

This version of Keystone Corners was made using Flue Noire fabrics by My Mind's Eye for Riley Blake Designs.  All the quilts in Fast and Fun Lap Quilts are made with 1 Layer Cake/10" Stacker and a background fabric.  Fluer Noire was the perfect print for an all Neutral look.   I always love a good Black and White Line!  And of course, a black and white stripe binding is the perfect finish.   The quilt finishes at 60 1/2" x 60 1/2".  

Since I custom quilted all the quilts in the Fast & Fun Lap Quilts  I thought it would be fun to do all over designs for these second versions.   For this Keystone Corners quilt, I quilted L and E across the quilt.   This design is perfect for this quilt, as the pieced squares being perfectly lined up help me keep the L and E lines nice and straight.   And 403 (a slightly darker thread than 402) was perfect for this tan lined background, just so fun! 

And that is another Keystone Corner quilt, the second lap quilt in my new Fast & Fun Lap Quilts book !  You can find the Fast & Fun Lap Quilts book in your local or online quilt shops,  C&T Publishing, or if you would like a personalized signed copy, you can order from my Etsy shop.  And if you make your own Keystone Corner quilt, I would love to see it!!  You can share your quilts with me on social media using hashtag #happyquiltingwithmc and #fastandfunlapquilts and tag me @happyquiltingmc or you can email me a picture at happyquiltingmelissa@gmail.com.   

Thanks so much for popping in for another Fast & Fun Lap Quilts book day of fun.    And if you haven't had a chance to enter Kristina's Fast & Fun Lap Quilts Giveaway for some beautiful Nutmeg fabric that she used to make her own Keystone Corners Quilt, be sure and pop on over and enter.  

I hope you all have a very Happy Quilting Day! 

Keystone Corners - Fast & Fun Lap Quilts Book Tour

 It's Week 2 of my Fast & Fun Lap Quilts Book Tour and today I am sharing the Keystone Corners quilt! This quilt looks a little complex, but it really goes together super easy.  It uses no-waste flying geese to create the blocks with a snowballed center.  The no-waste method of flying geese is my favorite method.  Not only is it super fast, making 4 geese at a time, it also has no waste, as the name would suggest.  

Here is the introduction I wrote about Keystone Corners in the Fast & Fun Lap Quilts Book.  "Inspiration truly comes from everywhere.  This beauty was inspired by a garden path at a flower nursery, which had an amazing stonework design.  I quickly snapped a picture, thinking it would be a wonderful quilt.   And yes, I snap pictures of everything, including bathroom tiles!  Keystone Corners is made with two simple units, so it's quick to piece.  And it can also easily have a more masculine feel, depending on your fabric choices."

When writting this book, I tried to give you all of the tips and trick that I would share if I were teaching a quilting class.  This is my favorite tip from the Keystone Corners quilt.  Have you used the Fabric V?  This is such a great little guide for making sure all of your points stay perfect.  Once you get used to seeing it, you will look for it in all of your quilts to keep your points spot on.   

Keystone Corners was made using Meander fabrics by Anneela Hoey for Moda Fabrics.  All the quilts in Fast and Fun Lap Quilts are made with 1 Layer Cake/10" Stacker and a background fabric.  You will use 35 of the 10" squares for this quilt, and the Plan Ahead tip will help you divide your fabrics, I like using the larger scale prints in the snowball centers.  This quilt finishes at 60 1/2" x 60 1/2", a nice square lap size.  

I had so much fun custom quilting each of the quilts in Fast & Fun Lap Quilts .  For this Keystone Corners quilt, I quilted straight lines in the arrows, swirls in the centers, and loops and cobblestones in the background.  Again, I used my favorite 402 So Fine thread to blend perfectly into the white background and all of the prints.   The cobblestones reminded me of the inspiration behind the quilt, so it seemed fitting for the quilting.     

And that is Keystone Corners, the second lap quilt in my new Fast & Fun Lap Quilts book !  You can find the Fast & Fun Lap Quilts book in your local or online quilt shops,  C&T Publishing, or if you would like a personalized signed copy, you can order from my Etsy shop.  And if you make your own Keystone Corners quilt, I would love to see it!!  You can share your quilts with me on social media using hashtag #happyquiltingwithmc and #fastandfunlapquilts and tag me @happyquiltingmc or you can email me a picture at happyquiltingmelissa@gmail.com.   

And speaking of making a Keystone Corners quilt, my good friend, Kristina Brinkerhoff has made her own Keystone Corners Quilts.  Isn't that just so amazing!  Kristina used a Nutmeg Layer Cake to make her project, and it is just stunning.  It has such a perfect look for Fall!   You can see all of the details of her project on her Instagram at CenterStreetQuilts.  

And while you are visiting CenterStreetQuilts, be sure to enter her Nutmeg Giveaway!!!   You can win the fabric to make a Keystone Corner Quilt just like Kristina's.  So fun!!!

And that is it for today, thanks for popping in for Week 2 of the Fast & Fun Lap Quilts book!

I am just so happy to share this Keystone Corner quilt and be sure to pop back in on Friday when I will share a second version of the quilt :)  

I hope you all have a very Happy Quilting Day!

Terrific Tuesday Giveaway Day!

   It's Terrific Tuesday Giveaway Day!! Let's have some fun :)

First, we are not going to announce the winners of last week's Terrific Tuesday Giveaway today!!  

I am currently in International Waters so I will pick a winner next week when I am home :)   Which gives you another week to enter.  

       

    

                     

And on to today's

Today's Terrific Tuesday Giveaway is being sponsored by Green Fairy Quilts.  Green Fairy Quilts is your home for pre-cut goodness and they always have amazing sales going on every weekend on a selected pre-cut or notion!!!   And did you know that Green Fairy Quilts has a Deal of The Day, I just love these!!!     Also, Green Fairy Quilts has just added lots and lots of new pre-cuts to their 50% off Page, you won't want to miss these!!! 

 In Celebration of the release of my Fast & Fun Lap Quilts book , for today's Terrific Tuesday Giveaway, Green Fairy Quilts will be giving one lucky reader a beautiful Daffodils and Dragonflies Layer Cake by Kansas Troubles for Moda.  Just so pretty, think of all the Layer Cake Lap Quilts you could make!!!!  

You have two entry chances here on the blog, 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 Do you name your Sewing Machines?? 

 ENTRY 2 - Show your Green Fairy Quilts love.   You can Sign up for their Newsletter which I highly recommend as it will ensure you catch all of their amazing sales!!  You can follow them on Instagram or Facebook,  or you can visit the Shop and then share a favorite item ;)   Just be sure to leave a comment of how you showed your Green Fairy Quilt Love!!!

And that's it ;)  The giveaway will be open until next Tuesday, October 18th, when I will announce a winner at the beginning of next weeks Terrific Tuesday Giveaway Post :)

You can also pop over to my Instagram and/or Facebook to enter there as well :)  

Good Luck and Have a Happy Quilting Day!!!

Three In A Row - Fast & Fun Lap Quilts

It's Week 1 of my Fast & Fun Lap Quilts Book Tour and today I am sharing a second version of the Three In A Row quilt! The quilts in the book all are done with a white/cream background, so I wanted to make a second version to show you how fun it can be to change things up.  

 For this version of Three In A Row, I opted for a colored background.  My goal with this version was to show how you can make a quilt lean toward all girl or all boy by simply changing the color of the background.  We tend to lean to white backgrounds, but choosing a background color that matches with the prints, but isn't the exact same color of the prints, really adds an extra flair to your quilt. 

This version of Three In A Row was made using Wild Meadow fabrics by Sweetfire Road for Moda Fabrics.  All the quilts in Fast and Fun Lap Quilts are made with 1 Layer Cake/10" Stacker and a background fabric.  I am sure it is no surprise that I was drawn to this fabric, with all of it's beautiful hues of purple.    And the pops of gold are pretty fun as well!   The quilt finishes at 54 1/2" x 65".  

Since I custom quilted all the quilts in the Fast & Fun Lap Quilts  I thought it would be fun to do all over designs for these second versions, just to show how it can be finished custom or all over and still look amazing.  For this Three in a Row quilt, I quilted wavy lines across the quilt.   I liked the idea of the wavy lines, because it reminded me of my kids slashing their three in a row line across their X's or O's when they win ;)  And I used a nice soft pink thread, so it blended very nicely.    

And that is another Three In A Row quilt, the first lap quilt in my new Fast & Fun Lap Quilts book !  You can find the Fast & Fun Lap Quilts book in your local or online quilt shops,  C&T Publishing, or if you would like a personalized signed copy, you can order from my Etsy shop.  And if you make your own Three In A Row quilt, I would love to see it!!  You can share your quilts with me on social media using hashtag #happyquiltingwithmc and #fastandfunlapquilts and tag me @happyquiltingmc or you can email me a picture at happyquiltingmelissa@gmail.com.   

Thanks so much for popping in for another Fast & Fun Lap Quilts book day of fun.  

I hope you all have a very Happy Quilting Day!