Terrific Tuesday Giveaway Day!! (The Very First One :)

GIVEAWAY CLOSED

Today is the very first Terrific Tuesday Giveaway Day and I am super excited!!!  Just FYI, each Terrific Tuesday will start with the winner from the previous week (which we won't have one today as it is the first :)  followed by the weekly sponsor and any special promotions or coupons you will want to know about, and then followed by the giveaway ;)  But I promise to keep it short and sweet :)  So lets get to it!!!

Today's Terrific Tuesday Giveaway is being sponsored by Green Fairy Quilts.  Along with sponsoring the giveaway, Green Fairy Quilts has currently marked down all of their Fat Eighth bundles, 35% off!!  No coupon necessary :)  And Green Fairy Quilts ships free in the US and discounted to international.

And today's Terrific Tuesday Giveaway is for a beautiful A Field Guide Fat Quarter Bundle by Janet Clare for Moda.   That's 28 Fat Quarters!!!  I love the text prints :)

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 word you would want to include if you could make your own text print :)  

 ENTRY 2 - Show your Green Fairy Quilts love.   You can follow them on Bloglovin, Twitter, Pinterest, Facebook, or Instagram.  You can Sign up for their Newsletter which will ensure you catch all of their amazing sales, 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 14th when I will announce a winner at the beginning of next weeks Terrific Tuesday Giveaway Post :)

Good Luck and Have a Happy Quilting Day!!!

Camping Quilt with the Bees Knees

So Sept. was my month for the Bees Knees quilting group ;)  I knew right off what I wanted to ask the ladies to make ;)   Here's a little backstory :)

A while back I was chatting with my mom about how my Grandparents need a new quilt for their new Trailer.  We spent the Labor Day Weekend at a Family Reunion (that my Grandparents haven't missed a year of since I was a little girl) and we both noticed that their bed quilt is just one that comes with the trailer and goodness, it is ugly!!!  It was just meant to be!!!  

So I asked the wonderful ladies of our group to make whatever comes to your mind when you hear the words  Camping, Nature, Outdoors, the Wild, Smores,  Ect, Ect. Ect.  This block will be totally up to their imagination.  They can applique, piece, paper piece, whatever!!!  Anything that makes you feel Woodsie ;)  When all the blocks come back I plan to turn them into a fun sampler quilt :)  

So Sept has come to a close and I have a few blocks back and I am just so excited!!!  Seriously, each time I get a package in the mail I just can't wait to tear it open, every one is a special surprise!!  And oh my goodness, Talk about a cute collection of Woodsie blocks!!! They are just so fantastic!!!  I can already tell that this quilt is going to be just perfect for Grandma and Grandpa.  I can't wait to see what the other blocks are going to be.   How fun!!!  

I have to show you these blocks close up!!  They are so great!!!  .  And I was so excited to show them I didn't even iron this one, ah well ;)   This one is from Kim and it so stinking adorable!!!  I just love it, especially the little appliqued heart carving on the tree and the adorable buttons to hold up the hammock.  So cute!!!.   

And from Cynthia, this ever so cute owl!!  Isn't that just so fun!!!  She even did needle turn applique, wow!!!  You can see details about how she made it here ;)  

And from Nedra, this adorable skool of fish!!  I already am envisioning these swimming along the bottom of the quilt ;)

From Shari, this super cute Crossroads block and some bonus improv blocks with it!!  She even added in some of patches from her own adorable fabric line ;)  

And finally, from Sherri, these super fun Log Cabin blocks.  Because you can't have a camping quilt without some log cabin blocks!!!

Seriously, like I said, an adorable collection of blocks ;)  I will be sure to share more as the additional blocks come in.  I can't wait to start putting this one together!!

Be sure to pop back in tomorrow for the first Terrific Tuesday Giveaway Day!!!

Have a Happy Quilting Day!!

Crossroads and Christmas

So ya, September is come and gone, but I never posted my bee block for the month.  It actually went out in the mail on the 30th so it's not like it is that old.  Yup, Sept. was a bit of a procrastination month on the bee block.    Anywhoo, We were asked by the wonderful Celeste to make a Scrappy Crossroads block in patriotic colors.   I love this block by Lori Holt.   It is so much fun to put together and once you have all of the scraps cut out it really goes together fast!!!

And the second part of today is about Christmas.   Can you believe how quickly it is sneaking up on us.   I am totally excited to get to announce that  Shabby Fabrics is doing their first blog hop and it is all about their new and exclusive Christmas Keepsakes Block of the Month!!!    And what makes me super excited about this as part of it, I get to play with their Laser Cut Applique!!!  It is no secret that I love applique and  I have wanted to try these out ever since I found out about them.  So exciting!!   If you don't know what Laser Cut Applique is, you are in for a treat ;)

Shabby Fabrics has a great group of bloggers lined up to share with your their experiences using Laser Cut Applique and these adorable christmas blocks!!   So be sure to follow along all next week, The fun starts Monday at  The Shabby!!  (and there's going to be prizes, just sayin :)

And that's it for today ;)  

Have a Happy Quilting Weekend!!!

Squishy Packages Equal New Projects

I received 2 squishy packages in the mail yesterday.   Don't you just love when those arrive!!!   I think the UPS guy thinks I am a little nuts as I am tearing them open before I even shut the front door ;)  


The first squishy package was from the lovely Frances Newcomb with cuts from her new Cherie line!!!  Oh my goodness, I love this line!!!  The script, the bikes, the dots,  Eeekk!!   I have a super chic quilt planned for these, and I am going to take pictures as I go . . . Yup, tutorial coming your way!!

And the second package was from Riley Blake Designs for my next Project Design Team tutorial.   This line is by Amanda Herring aka The Quilted Fish and is called The Cottage Garden.   And oh my goodness, I love it!!!!    I can't wait to start cutting it up!!

So I best get going.   A new blade in the rotary cutter and some tunes and I will be set ;)

Have a Happy Quilting Day!!!

The Wall - A Brick Wall Quilt Tutorial Featuring The Jolly Bar!!

I am very excited this morning to share with you a new quilt and a new tutorial that uses a brand new pre-cut!!!   Lot's of New going on around here ;)   So first, let's show you the quilt . . . here's The Wall.

A few months ago I was asked by the wonderful folks at Fat Quarter Shop if I wanted to play with their brand new exclusive to Fat Quarter Shop, Jolly Bar!!   And of course I wanted to play with it ;)  The Jolly Bar is the  in-between of a Layer Cake and a Charm Pack measuring 5" x 10".  You can see more about the Jolly Bar in this Video :)  I knew right away that I wanted to make a brick wall quilt.  It has been on my "to do" list since I started quilting and having already cut 5" x 10" pre-cuts are just perfect for it!!!  It really doesn't get much easier :)

And since I was making my own, I decided to take some pictures along the way and share with you how to make your own Simple and Fast Brick  Wall quilt!!!   I will be using the Somerset Jolly Bar by the ever amazing Fig Tree & Co.  I love the beautiful fall tones of this line!!!  

To make your own The Wall quilt You Will Need:

2 Jolly Bars  ( each Jolly Bar has (42) 5" x 10" rectangles and you will be using 72 of those)
1 1/2 Yards of a chosen solid for sashing.  I used Cream
4 Yards for Backing

STEP 1 - CUTTING

From your Solid Sashing fabric you will need to cut:
(7) 2 1/2" x Width of Fabric strips to be used for binding.
(17) 1 1/2" x Width of Fabric strips for sashing.
(65) 1 1 /2" x 5" rectangles for sashing.

From your 2 packs of Jolly Bars, first select 65 Jolly Bar pieces that will make up the full bricks in the quilt.  Then select 7 Jolly Bar pieces that you will then subcut in half to make (14) 5" x 5" squares. These will make up the half bricks in your quilt.   You only need 13 so put one square in your scrap pile along with the remaining 12 Jolly Bar pieces.

And your cutting is done.   Easy as that!!!


STEP 2 - SEWING THE ROWS

Place a 1 1/2" x 5" solid rectangle onto the end of a Jolly Bar with right sides together.  Stitch a 1/4" seam aligning as you go along the edge.   Repeat this for all 65 of your Jolly Bar pieces.  You totally want to chain stitch here to save oodles of time :)   Once your pieces have all been stitched, clip your threads between pieces and press your seam allowance on all 65 units towards the Jolly Bar.

And now you are ready to make your rows.   Layout 5 sashed Jolly Bars in a row and then add one half Jolly Bar 5" x 5" square to the end of the row as shown below.  When placing colors I like to not worry to much and keep it random, but I do make sure not to put the same color right by the side of another, so I guess I would say it is controlled random placement.

Now you can sew the row together.   Place the second sashed Jolly Bar onto the first with right sides together.  Stitch a 1/4" seam along the edge aligning as you go.   I don't bother to press yet.   Now keep adding blocks to the row.   Place the third sashed Jolly Bar onto the now sewn first and second units with right sides together.  Stitch a 1/4" seam along the edge aligning as you go.   Continue this process until your row is stitched together.  

Repeat the last 2 steps, laying out and sewing together 13 total rows.   You can chain stitch if you like, it will once again save some time ;)  Press all of the seam allowances towards the Jolly Bars.

STEP 3 - SEWING THE QUILT TOP

And now, it's already time to sew the quilt top together!!!  We are going to start by getting our horizontal sashing strips together.  Sew all of the 1 1/2" x WOF solid strips together end to end using a 1/4" seam and making 1 super long strip.   Press the seams to one side.   Then, you are going to take that giant strip and cut it into 12 sashing strips.  You can choose to do this a few ways, You can cut your strips 56 1/2" which is the exact measurement of your rows.  You can lay the strips between the rows and cut them based on the length of your sewn row.  Or, my personal favorite is to to cut them 58" so I know I will have a little extra to work with ;)

Now, on a large surface, lay your 13 rows out alternating each row as shown below to give you the brick wall effect.   Place a horizontal sashing strip between each row.    Go ahead and play with the layout for a bit until you get a color mesh that is pleasing to the eye.  It really helps to take a picture and view it on your camera or computer to help you see if the colors are all balanced.

Once you have your colors balanced, mark your rows so you won't have to accidently rebalance your colors again ;)  Now it's time to sew   Place a sasing strip onto the bottom of the row with right sides together.  Aligning as you go, sew a 1/4" seam along the entire bottom edge of the row.

When you get to the end of the strip, if you have used my preferred overage method of cutting, simply trim the sashing equal with the row.   I love that you can just align things as you go with this method and don't have to worry ;)

Repeat adding the sashing to each row for your 12 sashed rows.  You won't have to sew anything on to the last row.  Press the seam allowance towards the sashing strips.

And now, it's time to start sewing the rows together.  This is just like making the row but on a longer scale.   Place the second row onto the top row with right sides together.  I like to use a few pins just to keep everything aligned.  Sew a 1/4" seam along the pinned edge.  Just like making the rows, I don't bother to press yet.

Now, place the third row onto the now sewn first and second with right sides together.  Align and pin your rows together and sew a 1/4" seam along the pinned edge.

Keep repeating this process until you have sewn together half of the quilt top.   At this point, I find it easier to start a new section.   Placing the 7 and 8th rows together and stitching a 1/4" seam along the edge.   This just makes it so you don't have to bother with the quite as much weight pulling your quilt top.

Keep adding rows to the second half of the quilt until they are all sewn together.   So now you should have 2 halves that look something like this.

Place the bottom half onto the top half with right sides together.   Align and pin the edge, I use more pins here then I did before to help with the slipping from the extra weight pulling on the quilt top.   Stitch a 1/4" seam along the pinned edge.   And now, I press all of the seam allowances towards the sashing strips.

And your quilt top is done!!!!   Wasn't that just so super easy and fun!!!

And with your quilt top done, it is time to finish it up.  Just Baste It, Bind It, and Quilt it!!   If you are new to quilting, you can see my Finishing Your Quilt Video Tutorials here that will walk you through the individual steps of basting, quilting and binding ;)  

I quilted my quilt with an all over free motion Feathered Swirl.  It really is becoming my favorite and matched the beautiful fabrics just perfectly!!

And look at all of the yummy, yummy texture it creates. So fun!!!

And for the backing I used this beautiful print from the Mirabelle line.  For the backing, just cut your yardage in half and sew the 2 pieces together using a 1/2" seam ;)  And for the binding, use your already cut 2 1/2" strips to create a binding strip.

And before you know it, you will have a beautiful 57" x 70 1/2" Wall quilt!!   I can't wait to snuggle up in this one ;)  

I hope you enjoyed this tutorial, and if you make your own The Wall quilt I would love to see it!!!  You can email me a picture at happyquiltingmelissa@gmail.com or add it to social media with #happyquiltingwithmc  ;)    I can't wait to see your The Wall Quilts!!! 

Thanks so much for stopping by today!!   I look forward to seeing your Wall quilts!!!!  And be sure to pop on over to The Jolly Jabber for lots of Jolly Bar inspiration.  There will be 8 of us sharing our Jolly Bar creations over the week!!!

Have a Happy Quilting Day!!!