Friday, December 14, 2012

Kami's Room Makeover

When we moved into our house we painted the upstairs room blue because my younger son and daughter were planning on sharing it.  2 weeks later, the son decided he was old enough to be in the basement with his older brother and our little princess was left with a blue room.  Fast forward a year.

My mother was visiting a few months ago and we decided it was time to finally repaint the room to a more girl friendly color.  Out came the paint chips and we ended up with a soft yellow that is soft, warm, and that matches her bedspread.  (Kami is not very pleased at this point that I am not painting her room pink but I appease her by promising there will be lots of pink in it :)


So off to the paint store we go and a few hours later we have transformed the boy room into a soft girly yellow room.   And that is as far as it went.  (Don't we just look stunning in our painting garb)


So now that my Mother is visiting again, we decided we should finish up what we started.  First off, time to repaint some picture frames to add that pink I promised.  The girls had so much fun painting with their grandma, and Josie had fun pulling out all the pots and the pans while everyone was to busy to bother her.


Today we hung everything up, including that adorable curtain that my Mother made at the last visit and I never got around to hanging.  (Sad, I know.)  Kami loves the little jewels that hang from it.  I ordered the vinyl letting online and love how cute it looks over all of her dress-ups.  (And I am glad my mom was here to help put it up as I have never worked with vinyl before but she is a pro!)


The other side of the room has her cute little book canopy and her newly painted pink frames.  There is enough fabric left from the curtains to make a little pillow that will go in the book area.  My mom is tackling that WIP so that I can get to the final one.


A second bedspread to match the first.  I have the fabric bought, the idea planned, and just need to get cutting.  It's on next weeks list and I plan to do a little tutorial for it too.  I always get so excited to start a new quilt, I can't wait :)


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Wednesday, December 12, 2012

Whilst Lying About

I mentioned a little while ago that I was having surgery.  Well, that was Monday and it went very well.  Now I find myself lying about to let myself heal and trying not to overdo it.  (Which pretty much means not standing for more than 5 minutes.)   This is hard for me (as I am sure it is for any mom).  So, I am trying to catch up on some computer stuff since I can lie down doing that and finally add my patterns to Patternspot and Craftsy.  This is something that has been on my list for a while but I just hadn't taken the time to sit down and do it. Now, that's all I can do so it seemed like a good plan :)

       

       

I have to admit, it is kind of fun to see all of them together.

Thank you to all the well wishes that have been sent on my surgery and recovery.  I so appreciate your thoughts and prayers.  I am sure I will be up and sewing soon, cause I have lots of projects I want to do :)

P.S. If this post sounds jumpy, know that I am still medicated :)
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Sunday, December 9, 2012

Quilter's Gallery Blog Hop Giveaway Party


It's Quilter's Gallery's 5th Birthday and to celebrate they are hosting another Blog Hop Party with Giveaway's !!! This is going to be so much fun!!!  I know you have lots of places to visit so lets get to it :)


Up for the winning is a Fat Eighth Bundle of Sweetwater's brand new line Noteworthy!!!  I saw this line at market and it is fantastic!! These prints are so adorable (my favorite is the loopy one)  and the colors are just so soft and blend so well together!!  Noteworthy comes out in January but you can have a chance to win it today!!   A huge thank you to Fat Quarter Shop for sponsoring this incredibly generous giveaway!!



I will also be sending the winner 3 of my new patterns!!! Any of these three patterns would look so adorable in Noteworthy  :)  

                  


So what do you have to do for your chance to win???

Leave a comment here of the fabric you are most excited about that will be coming soon to Fat Quarter Shop.  (Obviously, I am super excited about Noteworthy!!)

That's it.  1 entry per person.  Giveaway is open to international entries.  It will close on Saturday, Dec 15th at 5pm and a winner will be selected randomly and announced shortly after.

Oh, and by the Way . . . If you are stopping by for the first time, Welcome!!   I am so glad you visited and hope you will come back often.  I have so much fun sharing my passion for quilting here.  If you would like, you can follow Happy Quilting and ensure that you catch all of the Quilty Goodness :)  I promise, I will make it worth your time with tutorials, giveaways, fabric eye candy, and lots of smiles :)
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Saturday, December 8, 2012

Winner

Thank you to Julie at the Intrepid Thread for sponsoring the Sew Mama Sew Giveaway.  Julie opens her Brick and Mortar shop in just a few weeks.  So exciting!!!  


The winner of the 7 Wonders Fat Quarter Bundle is . . . #94 

 Congrats to Ella!!!  Enjoy your bundle!!
  And if you didn't win this time it's okay, you can come back Monday for a chance to win at the Quilting Gallery's 5th Anniversary Blog Hop Party Giveaway!!  Have a Happy Quilting Weekend!!
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Friday, December 7, 2012

Scrappy Rainbow Star Tutorial

Well I finished my bee block and decided to take some photo's along the way :)  This is a great block to bust some of those scraps and who doesn't love working with rainbows :)   Enjoy!


To start - You will need some white yardage and scraps sorted by color.  Shown is my red pile, but you will need a pile of red, pink, purple, blue, aqua, green, yellow, and orange :)


We'll start by cutting squares from our yardage.  For a 16" finished block you will need (4) 4 1/2" x 4 1/2" squares and (4) 5 1/2" x 5 1/2" squares.  Now set those squares aside.  Note for size changes - If you want a larger 20" block do (4) 5 1/2" and (4) 6 1/2", if you want a smaller 12" block do (4) 3 1/2" and (4) 4 1/2" block.  Basically you are doing the math for a 16 patch block and on the second set of squares adding an inch :)

And now you are ready to start building some scrappy blocks.  So pick a color of scraps to start with and grab 2 scraps.  These do not have to be the same size, just make sure you have 2 straight edges. Use a 1/4" seam to sew the entire block.   Sew the 2 straight edges together and press towards either side.



Now time to start adding.  The basic thing you need to remember when adding is to have a straight line.  Now this could simply be to the right of the 2 scraps we just sewed, but I like my crazy patch to have lots of angels.  So,  just lay your ruler at any old angle along the two scraps and create a new straight line.  Then add a new scrap to the straight line created.  Always press towards the piece you just added.


Once again, create a new straight line and add a new piece.  When creating new straight lines, you don't have to cut an entire side, you can create new sides by cutting off portions, as long as the line is straight, you are good to add.


Also remember,  don't bother trimming pieces as soon as you have added them.  Often times, you find that having extra hanging over comes in handy when trimming because it allows for greater angles to be cut.


And lastly, if you find you have a long line you want to add to but want to keep the scrappy look, you can always sew 2 scraps together first and then add it to the straight line created.


Just keep making straight lines and adding until you have at least a 5 1/2" x 5 1/2" squares.  (If you are changing the size of your block, make your square the size of the larger white squares.)   You can spin your ruler at any angle to get it to fit.  (Also, as you get toward the outside of your block, don't be afraid to add bigger scraps as about 3/4" from the outside will be trimmed down. )

Once your block is large enough, cut a 5 1/2" x 5 1/2" square from it.  (And if you want to make more than one block, be sure to save those scraps you cut off, they make great starts for a new block.)


Repeat this process to make a total of (8) 5 1/2" x 5 1/2" squares, one in each of the aforementioned colors.


Now, cut all your scrappy squares once diagonally to create 2 triangles each.  Also, cut your white 5 1/2" x 5 1/2" squares once diagonally.


Match your triangles as follows.  One white triangle with 1 of each color triangle   And then match the remaining 8 triangles as so - aqua and green, yellow and orange, blue and purple, and pink and red.


Place each set of triangles with right sides together.  Sew a 1/4" seam along the long side.  If the color color combo's get a little off because of all the seams don't stress, that's why we trim down.   Press the seams towards the white of those triangles and open for the color color combo triangles.


Trim all of your newly formed squares down to 4 1/2" x 4 1/2" using the diagonal seam as a guide.  If you are unsure how to do this, see the 6th and 7th steps of this tutorial :)  (If you changed the size of your block, trim down to the size of your smaller white square.)


Now you are ready to layout your block.  Place your squares, including your set aside 4 1/2" white squares as follows.


Start your block by placing your 16 squares into pairs of 2, 2 sets for each row with right sides together.  Sew a 1/4" seam along the edge.  (You might want to pin due to the scrappy nature of the block.) Press the color/color seams open.  Press the color/white seams towards the white.


Now, you can sew those pairs into 4 quadrants.  Place the top pairs from rows 1 and 3 onto the bottom pairs of rows 2 and 4 with right sides together.  Take care when pinning to nest those center seams so you get nice points.  Sew a 1/4" seams along the pinned edge.  Press open.


Now sew the quadrants into 2 rows.  Place the right hand side quadrants onto the left hand side with right sides together.  Once again, take care to nest those center seams.  Sew a 1/4" seam along the pinned edge. (See next picture for note on stitching).  Press open.


In order to get really nice sharp points, watch for the little white triangle made in the seam of your piecing.  Sew directly along the bottom of that white arrow to get a perfect point every time.


Lastly, sew your 2 final pieces together.  Lay them with right sides together taking care to once again, nest all of your seams.  That center seam is going to be awfully bulky but is the most important so take the time to line it up perfect.  Sew a 1/4" seam along the pinned edge, once again, sewing along the bottom of your little white triangles in the seams.  Once your sewed edge is complete, go ahead and trim some excess out of your center seam.  Not more than 1/8" but just enough to allow you to lay it flat.


Now just press your seam open and give your entire block a good starching so it will lay nice and flat.  Now just enjoy your finished scrappy rainbow star!!!


Doesn't that center look so amazing!!!  I so love it!!!!


I hope you have enjoyed this tutorial and if you make your own Scrappy Rainbow Star Blocks I would love to see them!!  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 Scrappy Rainbow Star Quilt Blocks!!!    


And of course, you don't have to stop at just making blocks.   Here is a quilt my MIL, Barbara, made using 12 Scrappy Rainbow Star Quilt Blocks and then she just added in some basic stars in the sashing.    How awesome is that!!!    Have fun with those Scrappy Rainbow Stars!!!!
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