2 New Patterns!!

So it is kind of funny, but I taught these patterns clear back in January for 2 different retreats and was frantically getting them ready to be published.  I finished the patterns in time for the classes, loved teaching the classes, got wonderful reviews on the patterns, and then somehow, after all of the excitement let down, I totally forgot to add the here on the blog and in my  Etsy Shop ;)   So without any further ado, here they are!!!  Petal Pop and Trade Winds are my two newest patterns ;)

Petal Pop was originally featured in Quick Quilts back in 2013 and ever since I got it back from the magazine it has been on my bed.  It just makes me smile every time I walk in the room.  I frequently got emails from gals who had the magazine but wondered if there was a way to make it in a different size and I would think every time that I really should make it into a pattern with more size options.   And last year, I had a friend from our local guild over and she instantly fell in love with it and absolutely insisted that I teach this quilt at the next Cedar Quilt Retreat.  Which just happened to be the perfect catalyst for getting me to actually write up a pattern for it ;)

I have always loved this quilt that was actually inspired by a gorgeous tatting.  As I mentioned, I taught it in January and it was so fun to see everyone's different choices of colors and prints!!!  And everyone just loved making their blocks, it really is a lot easier than it looks ;)  And it is totally Jelly Roll friendly, so your cutting time to start out is super small ;)

Petal Pop has 5 size options, a Baby, Twin, Full, Queen and King and uses 3 varied block sizes to make those sizes work ;) So no matter what size your bed is, there will be one that works for you ;)   So fun!!!

And that is Petal Pop!!!  Oh I hope you love it every bit as much as I do ;)

And the second pattern is Trade Winds!!!!

Trade Winds was originally made in January of 2014 and I am so excited to finally be sharing it!!!  The reason it has been secret for so long is that it was originally created to be part of my new book, Irish Chain Quilts, hence the beautiful twist on the classic criss cross Irish Chain design made with the pinwheels.   But as the book started to get a little long Trade Winds had to "hit the cutting floor".  Which was totally okay because now, it can just become one of my new patterns!!!!

And the fun thing about it being a pattern is that it has size options!!  Trade Winds has 3 size options, a Baby, Picnic, and a Queen.  And of course, it is super Pre-cut friendly as it is mostly made with lots and lots of HST's!!  You know how I love em ;)

And I wanted to share some of the quilting detail of this, because it was the first time I ever tried ruler work.  (which I still need a lot of practice on ;)  These diamonds really were the perfect way to offset the Chain of the design, and I was super scared to quilt them, but I was super happy with how they turned out!!!  I used Superior Threads So Fine #50 in  402 Pearl for the quilting.  Yup, this was essentially the quilt that I found this favorite color!!!  It just blends so perfectly!!!  If you haven't given So Fine #50 thread a try yet, I would totally encourage you to give it a whirl.  It really is some fabulous thread!!!

The fabrics I used for Trade Winds are Kate Spain's Daydreams line for Moda.  I just love all of the beautiful colors and amazing prints!!! It is just a super fun quilt to use lots of happy bright colors that will pop!!!  And that is Trade Winds!!!

I am so excited to finally be sharing these 2 new patterns and quilts with you ;)  Both of these patterns are available in my Etsy Shop and are currently on sale for $5.00 for their opening debut ;)  They will remain on sale for a week and then go to my normal $8.50 pattern fee ;)

Thanks so much for stopping in today ;)  Have a Happy Quilting Weekend!!  It is Spring Break around here so I am off to the park with the kids ;)

So excited to finally be linking these finishes up to Sarah's and Amanda's :)

Bitty Bits Mini

For March, Fat Quarter Shop hosted a March Mini Challenge , and making Mini's is totally fun, so I decided why not join in on that fun ;)  I thought for a bit on what I wanted to make, and then it hit me, everyone makes mini's of their new quilt designs, right  . . .  so why not follow suit!!  And here it is, my Bitty Bits mini!!!

Bitty Bits is one of the  quilts in my new book Irish Chain Quilts (that comes out in just 6 weeks, squeal!!!)  The book quilt is done in all solids so I thought it would be fun to play with prints for this version.  I used up lots of my little grey "Candy pieces to make up this quilt and love all of the fun variety in it ;)

And when it came time to quilt it, I decided, since it was just a mini, to quilt it on my home machine ;)  I don't do a lot of quilting on the home machine since I got the long-arm, so it was fun to shake off a little of the rust.   I got back in the swing of it before to long and absolutely love the way it turned out!!

And I had so much fun with this mini, I have started another one.  I was so happy with how this one came together and thought it would be fun to share it at market.  Then I figured, why not share the different way you can change up this pattern with simply changing out color placement and using solids, prints, or a mix of them.   So there will be a few more Bitty Bits mini's in the making ;)

Isn't it just so fun to make mini's!!!  I love that you get such quick results and can really enjoy a good challenge because it is done on a smaller scale.   How about you . . . have you given Mini's a try??

P.S.  We had a lot of "extra" giveaway's here last week meaning not TTGD's.  Oh, so fun!!!   If you are wondering where the winners are they have been posted on the individual posts ;) Thanks and have a Happy Quilting Day ;)

Terrific Tuesday Giveaway Day!!!

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

First, we need to announce the winner from last weeks Terrific Tuesday Giveaway!!   I think we broke a record for most entries for a TTGD, Yippee!!!  The winner of The Taupe Box of Aurifil Thread from Fat Quarter Shop is . . .   Number #184 . . . Congrats Farm Quilter!!   I have emailed you :) 

    

    

    

And on to today's

Today's Terrific Tuesday Giveaway is being sponsored by Superior Threads!!   It's no secret around here that I am a huge fan of Superior Threads!!  You can go back through most of my completed quilts and see that So Fine is my go to thread!!  It always blends so perfectly!!  It gives you a beautiful quilted look without taking away from the quilt design, it is the perfect compliment!  

And the Terrific Tuesday Giveaway is for not 1 winner but for 10 winners who will all be getting a  Superior Threads Gift Certificate!!!!!  I will be giving away 5  $10.00 Gift Certificate to Superior Threads on my blog here!!!   And then Superior Threads will be giving away another 5 $10.00 Gift Certificates to Superior Threads on their Facebook site.  So be sure after you enter here to pop on over here and sign up for more chances to win ;)  

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 has the number 10 in it ;)  

 ENTRY 2 - Show your Superior Threads love. You can follow them on  Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Twitter, or their Blog. You can Sign up for the Superior Threads Newsletter or you can visit their Shop and then share a favorite item ;)   Just be sure to leave a comment of how you showed your Superior Threads Love!!!

And that's it ;)  The giveaway will be open until next Tuesday, April 7th when I will announce a winner at the beginning of next weeks Terrific Tuesday Giveaway Post :)

Good Luck and Have a Happy Quilting Day!!!

Brought to you by the letter M

Today's Monday Sewing Adventures are brought to you by the letter M.   First and foremost, that Must get done in the sewing room today is the Mending.   Please tell Me I am not the only one that procrastinates this.  My dear husband often reminds Me how ironic it is that I can spend hours a day pressing and sewing, but I can't find 5 Minutes to sew on a button or add a patch to a pair of pants.  I know, it is absolutely crazy, but Mending always seems to get pushed to the bottom of the to do list.   (Probably because it just isn't near as fun, right ;)  But this Monday, Mending is on the top of the list.  (That promise to My husband as he went to work this Morning that I would put a patch in his shorts before I started sewing will hopefully help it to actually happen :)

Next up, My March Mini Challenge needs to be quilted up and bound.  I only have 2 days left of the Month so I can't procrastinate it Much longer ;)  I can't wait to share this one with you.  It is a Mini that I Made up from one of the quilts in My new book!!!  So fun!!! 

And Maybe, just Maybe, if I Manage to finish up everything above, I Might just have time to whip up My March Bee Block ;)  I love Making this scrappy crossroads blocks so it should be a fun treat at the end ;)

So what about you???  What are you Making today??

Four Square - A Tutorial and Giveaway

It's another Friday and I have another finish to share ;)  This new quilt is called Four Square and I think it is pretty obvious where it gets the name ;)

When I was asked a few weeks ago if I wanted to participate with RJR Fabrics, Cotton Supreme Solids What Shade Are You Blog Hop I was all for it.  I have been playing with solids a lot more lately and am loving it!!!

I played around a lot with different designs that I wanted to use to really play up beautiful solids, but in the end, I just loved this super simple, and super chic 4 patches sashed with beautiful crisp white.   The 4 patches are made with Fat Quarter Strip Pieced Strips and then sewn into a 4 patch block to make the construction a super quick and super easy ;)

Here's how you make it :)

To Make your own 63" x 78" Lap Size Four Square Quilt you Will Need:

13 Fat Quarters in Assorted Solid Colors

2 1/4 Yards of White Solid for Sashing

2/3 Yard of Black Solid for Binding

4 Yards of a Favorite Fabric for Backing

When trying to decided from all of the amazing Cotton Supreme Solids which 13 colors I wanted to use, I finally opted to use some beautiful jewel tones.  I love how these colors go together nicely, but yet, they each pop on their own.   So fun!!

STEP 1: CUTTING

Start by pressing all 13 of your Fat Quarters and your White and Black Solid Yardage.  

From each of the 13 Solid Fat Quarters cut (5) 3 1/2" x 21" strips for a total of  65 Strips.

          You will use 64 of these strips , so 1 strips can be put in your scrap bin.

From your White Solid Yardage cut:

           (9) 2" x Width of Fabric Strips

           (45) 2" x 14" rectangles

           (40) 2" x 6 1/2" rectangles

From your Black Solid Yardage cut:

            (8) 2 1/2" x Width of Fabric Strips

STEP 2 - STRIP PIECING

We'll start by sewing the strip sets that we will use to sub-cut the 2 patch units.   So place one strip on another with right sides together.  Sew a 1/4" seam along the edge.

When stitching these,  I like to use a slightly smaller stitch length so that they don't come unraveled when you sub-cut the strips.

And after you are done stitching your first set, don't stop there.  Just continue feeding strip sets through your machine, aligning them as you go.  Continue Chain Stitching until you have sewn all of your strips into strip sets.  You should have 32 sets.   Now go ahead and clip your threads between each of the strip sets.

Now, take your strip sets to your ironing board.   I pressed my seams open so that when I go to put them together I have more color placement options, but you can just as easily press the seam allowance to one side.  Do whichever you prefer.

And now, you are ready to sub-cut your 2 patch units.  Align 3 strip sets on your mat using the horizontal lines on your mat as a guide.   Place your ruler along the edge of the strip and align it with the first vertical line that the strip sets are over.  Cut along the edge of the ruler to create a straight edge on all 3 strip sets.

Now, measure in 3 1/2" inches of your strip sets.  You can double check your measurements both on your cutting mat and along the cut edge of your strips, they should align with the 3 1/2" mark on your ruler.  Cut along the edge of the ruler.

Now it is just rinse and repeat ;)  Once again, measure in 3 1/2" using your mat and ruler as a double check on your measurement.  Cut along the edge of your ruler

Continue in this fashion until you have cut (5) 2 Patch Units per strip.  You will have a bit of scrap left over at the end that you can add to your scrap bins ;)

Now repeat this process for all 32 strip sets.  In the end you will have 160 2 Patch Units.  So fun!!

STEP 3 - 4 PATCH UNITS

 And now, it's time to turn those 2 Patches into 4 Patches.  To do this, you just place one 2 Patch onto another 2 Patch with right sides together.  Align and pin the center seam and then sew a 1/4" along the edge and then press the seam open.

But of course, we don't want to make them one at a time.  So start by pinning all of your pairs.  I like to put on a good movie while I do this ;)

Then once again, you are going to chain stitch all of your pairs.  Just keep sewing 1/4" along the edge of each set and sew, sew, sew.

And once you have finished sewing all the sets, clip the threads between your sets, and move to the ironing board.  Press all of the seams open.  This is a good time to turn that movie back on if you didn't have time to finish it when pinning ;)

And now, you have 80 beautiful 4 Patch Units!

STEP 4 - 4 PATCH BLOCK

So the next step is to turn those 4 Patch Units into a 4 Patch Block.  We will start by making the rows of the units.   So separate your 4 Patch Units in half with 40 on one side and 40 of the other side of your 2" x 6 1/2" Sashing rectangles.  Place the sashing rectangle onto the left hand side 4 Patch Unit with Right Sides together.  Aligning as you go, sew a 1/4" seam along the edge.

And you now what's next, don't clip your threads, it's time for more chain stitching ;)  Continue to add the sashing rectangle onto all 40 of the 4 Patch Units, sewing a 1/4" seam along the edges. When you are done sewing, clip the edges and press the seam allowance towards the Sashing Rectangle.

And now you are back to your original row and it is time to add the second 4 Patch Unit.  Place the right hand side 4 Patch unit onto the sashing rectangle with right sides together.  Aligning as you go, sew a 1/4" seam along the edge.

And continue chain stitching all 40 sets.  Then clip your threads and press the seam allowance towards the sashing rectangle.

Now, divide the Rows in half with 20 Rows on the top of your Block and 20 Rows on the bottom of your block with 20 2" x 14" Sashing Rectangles in between the 2 rows as shown below.

We will start by sewing the top row to the sashing rectangle.  Place the sashing rectangle onto the top row with right sides together.  Aligning as you go, sew a 1/4" seam along the edge.

And you've got this down now ;)  Continue stitching the Sashing Rectangle to all 20 top rows using a 1/4" seam.

Once finished, clip the threads and press the seam allowance towards the sashing rectangle.  And now all you have left for the block is to add the bottom row.

Place the bottom row onto the top row with right sides together.  Align the center seams.  You can check this by slightly lifting the bottom row at the center and double checking that the seams are lined up.  Once aligned pin in place.  Pin all 20 Blocks.

Now, for one last time, chain stitch a 1/4" seam along the pinned edge of each of the 20 blocks.  When finished stitching, clip your threads and then press the seam allowance towards the sashing rectangle.   And your blocks are done and you are ready to make your quilt top!!!!

STEP 5 - PIECING THE QUILT TOP

Layout your blocks in a 4 x 5 grid as shown below.  This is the time to really play with the placement of your colors.   I like to take a picture of my layout and then look at it on my tablet or computer.  That makes it easier for my eye to see all the blocks and once and know where I might need to do a little rearranging.  It is also a great reference when you start to sew these together ;)

Once you have a layout you like, you will be adding a 2" x 14" sashing rectangle between each of the blocks and at the beginning and end of a row as shown in Row 1.   Place the sashing rectangles onto the blocks with right sides together.  Sew a 1/4" along the edge, I just align as I go but you can use pins if you like.  And I find it easiest to stack up one row and take it to my machine and sew one row at a time so I don't mix them up.  Repeat this for all of your rows and then press the seam allowance towards the sashing rectangle.

Lay your blocks back out as shown in Row 1.  And now with the sashings attached,  you are ready to sew your blocks into rows.   To do this, place Block 2 onto Block 1 with right sides together.  Sew a 1/4" seam along the edge as shown in Row 2.  Then Open the sewn blocks and place Block 3 onto Block 2, which is now sewn to Block 1, with right sides together.  Sew a 1/4" Seam along the edge as shown in Row 3.  Then repeat this process one last time adding Block 4 as shown in Row 4.  Repeat for all the rows and then press the seam allowances outwards, towards the Sashing Rectangles as shown in Row 5.

And now your quilt should look something like this.  All that is left is to add the Horizontal Sashing rows.  So exciting!!!

Gather your 2" x WOF Strips.  Trim the selvages and then using a 1/4" seam sew them all together at the short end to make one very long sashing strip.   Sub-Cut them into (9) 2" x 65ish" sashing strips.  Place them between the Block rows and at the top and bottom of the quilt.

Now this is just like making the rows only on a bigger scale.  Place the sashing strips along the edge of the Block Rows with right sides together.  Sew a 1/4" seam along the edge.  You will have a little extra at the end of the row.  Trim the excess.  Press the seam allowance towards the sashing strip.

And now, you can sew the rows all together.  Place Row 1 onto Row 2 with right sides together.  Align each of the center sashing strips just like before, by lifting the top row just slightly to ensure that the seams are aligned.  Then pin them in place.  Sew a 1/4" seam along the pinned edge.

Layout your now sewn together  Row 1 and 2 and place Row 3 along the bottom with right sides together.  Once again, align the center seams and pin them in place.  Sew a 1/4" seam along the pinned edge.   Repeat this process until all of the rows are sewn together and then press all of the seam allowances towards the sashing strips.

And just like that, you have a completed 4 Square top!!!   Wasn't that so fun!!!

STEP 6 - FINISHING IT UP

Now all that is left is to Baste it, Quilt It, and Bind It :)  Yup, a whole lot in one little sentence.  If you are new to finishing quilts you can see my Finishing Quilt Video Series here, it will walk you through each of the 3 steps in great detail :)

When it came time to quilt mine, I opted on a Superior Threads Rainbow Thread, because you just can't have a ton of rainbow patchwork without a rainbow thread right ;)  This one is called Carnival and I love the way it pops off of the patchwork in an array of colors.  So fun!!!  In fact, I loved it so much I used it to machine tack down my binding and it adds the perfect finish to it!!!

I was having a hard time deciding what to quilt in the squares, so I flipped through my Shape to Shape book by Angela Walters and found this super fun square design.  I think it worked just perfect and I love the alternating grid work of it  to create a fun secondary criss cross in the quilting design.

Four Square finishes at  63" x 78", just perfect so snuggle up in ;)  I hope you have enjoyed this tutorial and if you make your own Four Square quilt I would love to see it!!  You can email me a picture at happyquiltingmelissa@gmail.com or add it to my Flickr Group here ;)

And be sure to pop on over to RJR Fabrics Facebook Page and check out all the other amazing What Shade Are You Cotton Supreme Solid Projects.  There are some super fun ones!!!

And remember how I mentioned Giveaway in the title!!!  RJR Fabrics has graciously offered to giveaway a custom bundle using My Color Bundle to one lucky reader!!  So one of you are going to be all set to make your own Four Square Quilt!!!!

         

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 is your favorite color??

 ENTRY 2 - All Happy Quilting Followers can have a bonus entry, just leave a comment here of how you follow  i.e.  Bloglovin, Email, Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter :) 

And that's it ;)  The giveaway will be open until next Tuesday, March 31st, and I will announce a winner Wednesday Morning, on April 1st :)

Thanks so much for stopping in today and Have a Happy Quilting Weekend!!!

Linking up to Quilt Story ;)

GIVEAWAY CLOSED

And the winner is . . . Mom C!!!!  Congrats!!!