A little More Progress Before I'm Off :)

Well, I'm all packed and ready to head up to the Panguitch Quilt Walk to teach tonight and tomorrow.  So excited!!!!   Everytime I go to teach it cracks me up how much "quilting" stuff I bring verses how much "personal" stuff I bring.   One bag for hair, makeup, and clothing, and everything else is for class :)   And speaking of that one bag, seeing it sitting here will all of that handmade goodness sure makes me want to make a handmade duffle bag.   Any suggestions of a good one you have made, preferably one that a beginner bag maker could pull off ???    3-D sewing still intimidates me ;)

And before I go, I am happy to report that I did make some progress on my curved sewing from Monday.  I pieced the inner and outer curves of all 100 plus pieced rings and just need to do some pressing now.   Then it will be trimming and then just two more pieces to add to each block :)  It's coming along!!

And along with that piecing, I also quilted up my Mosaic quilt and Sew Sampler quilt.   I am so excited to almost have these two quilts finished, those blocks had to wait around way to long to be put into quilt tops ;)    I was hoping to get the bindings on before I had to leave, but alas, it just didn't happen.  So they will have to wait for Monday ;)  But it's all good because while going through some pictures on the computer yesterday, I found a quilt that I finished last December that somehow I forgot to post.   So I can still share that finish for Friday, yippee ;)
 

I hope you are having a very Happy Quilting Day and I'll see ya tomorrow!!!

Terrific Tuesday Giveaway Day!!!

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

But  before we get to today's giveaways . . . First,  we need to announce the winner from last weeks Terrific Tuesday Giveaway Day!!   The winner of the $25.00 Gift Certificate from The Scarlet Thread Quilt Co. is . . . Number #116. . . Congrats Nancy Lewis!!!!! I have emailed you :)    

 

So on to today's

Today's Terrific Tuesday Giveaway is being sponsored by Olie and Evie.  Rhonda has a fantastic Etsy shop that is just packed with wonderful pre-cuts and beautiful yardage !!!  And Rhonda is giving Happy Quilting readers a special discount of 10% off orders over $25.00 with the code MELISSA10.  You can use that on some beautiful fabrics, including some of the low volume prints in the giveaway that were recently put on sale  :)

And Rhonda's  Terrific Tuesday Giveaway is so super fun!!!!    Rhonda has been having lots of fun with Low Volume prints in her shop, and today she has an incredible 32 Low Volume Print Fat Quarter Bundle for one lucky winner :)  These would be perfect so so many projects . . .  So much 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 a favorite project you have made with Low Volume prints, and if you haven't made one, what one would you like to make ;) 

 ENTRY 2 - Show your Olie and Evie love.   You can follow them on  Facebook, Instagram (where you can see all of their pre-order specials), or Favorite their Shop, 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,  June 13th when I will announce a winner at the beginning of next weeks Terrific Tuesday Giveaway Post :)

Good Luck and Have a Happy Quilting Day!!!

Getting in the Swing of Summer

So school has been out for a week and a half now, which of course, seems more like a month with all the craziness that is the first week of summer;)  Since school got out in time for Memorial Day, we spent the holiday weekend getting some family property open and ready for the summer season. (think clearing fallen trees, fixing the roof, setting up the trailer, ect ;)   And of course, along with the work, we still had plenty of time to play!!!

The kids love going for rides in the side by sides.   We went exploring for new trails on Saturday morning and had a blast.   Oh, and if you are wondering why my boys are filthy . . . They think it is fun to ride close behind us to see just how covered in dust they can get.    I think they did a pretty successful job ;)

And once we had the mountain property ready, it was time to focus on our own home.  We are planning to put in some raised vegetable garden's this year in the backyard so that meant we needed dirt, and lots of it.  After one load by hand, we decided to rent this little tractor ;)  I even managed to figure out how to dig with it after a bit (well, sort of ;)

And speaking of gardens, I had to share these beautiful blooms that finally opened up this last week.   I don't have much of a green thumb, so I am grateful every year when these still decide to bloom even with my poor care of them.   So pretty!!!   So ya, to sum up the last week, it has been lots of dirt and sun and we sure loved it!!!

But today start's Summer Band, Reading programs, and some actual Summer Routine.  Which means, I might get a little more time to sneak away and sew on a regular basis.   But I am happy to say, that even with all the fun craziness that was last week, I did manage to finish my Curiosities Quilt Top and it is ready to be quilted ;)  Can't wait to share this finish!!!

And, since my twin sister is due to have her newest little arrival in August, I figured I better pull back out my Mini Rings quilt, that I keep managing to procrastinate.    Every time I pull this out I remember how fun these curves are to sew ;)   I am hoping to make some serious progress on this.

But I am teaching at the Panguitch Quilt Walk on Thursday and Friday, so I best get the progress done early in the week, right ;)     I can't wait for my classes, they are all full and I am so super excited to get to teach again!!!!   I will try and remember to take lots of pictures and share all the fun when I get back ;)

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

Jelly Roll Railway Quilt

Today I am so excited to share my newest quilt finish, Jelly Roll Railway.  And I just have to say, I am so loving those bold solids!!!    I just love a classic black and white quilt, and throwing in a red background, well that is just all the more fun :)

  

It's no secret that I love the Shortcut Quilt Patterns that the Fat Quarter Shop makes up for pre-cuts ;)  So when I was asked by them if I wanted to quilt along with their newest shortcut quilt made for Jelly Rolls, I was so super excited and of course, all over it!!!

I knew right away that this quilt would be perfect as an Alma Mater quilt.  I know I have said it before, but I am so glad my Alma Mater's colors are Red, White, and Black!!!  I just love getting to make quilts in this awesome color combo.   I played with the placement of the Red, White, and Black in just about every color combination layout there could be, and in the end, liked this one best :)

And I am so glad this quilt had a big border.  I love how it lets the design float and adds to the 3D effect.  Sometimes when I look at it those stripes are floating right off the background.   And I strayed from the pattern layout just a bit by alternating the corner blocks on the pieced strips.  I love how it gives the look of quarter triangle blocks in black and white.  So fun!!!

When it came time to quilt, I went with a favorite all over design of echoed paisley's.   This is so super fun and fast, and I love the extra movement it gives the quilt.  I made up this Free Motion Quilting Video Tutorial on how I do this design a while back, just in case you want to give it a try ;)

I finished it with a solid black binding and I love the way it just sets off the design.   And now it is all done and I can just add a little SUU logo applique (This is how I do my complex logo applique's ;)   and then it will be all set for homecoming and just perfect for someone to take to the game!!!  At 60" x 76" it really is just the perfect size for a stadium quilt.

And that is my Jelly Roll Railway quilt :)   And if you happen to have a Jelly Roll lying around that you want to make into your own Jelly Roll Railway quilt.  And be sure to watch the You Tube Video Kimberly made that has some great tidbits on how to get this quilt to come out just perfect ;)    And there is lots more Jelly Roll Railway inspiration from some of my blogger friends over at the Fat Quarter Shop !!  It is so fun to see what changing up the fabric does to give a quilt a whole new look ;)

And I have had several people ask how to make this quilt in this exact layout of red/black/and white so here I figured rather than typing it again and again in emails, I will just add the info here ;)

You are still making just 1 set layout of the block. 

Here is how much you need of each of the three fabrics :)

Red - 2 3/4 Yards

          8 Strips 6 5/8 x WOF   - 53"

          7 Strips 5 1/2 x WOF   - 38 1/2"  (Border)

White - 1 1/4Yards

           12 Strips 2 1/2 X WOF - 30"

             3 Strips 3 3/4" X WOF - 11 1/4"

Black - 2 Yards

            12 Strips 2 1/2 X WOF - 30"

             3 Strips 3 3/4" X WOF - 11 1/4"

             8 Strips 2 1/2" x WOF - 20"  (Binding)

Here is what you need to cut from each Fabric:

Your Fabric A Strips (24) 2 1/2" strips should be cut from Black and White

               . . . (12) White 2 1/2" x WOF Strips and (12) Black 2 1/2" x WOF Strips

Your Fabric B squares   (48) 6 5/8" squares should all be cut from Red

Your Fabric C Squares (48) 3 3/4" squares should be cut from Black and White

                    . . . (24) White 3 3/4" squares and (24) Black 3 3/4" squares

Your Fabric D Strips (7) 5 1/2" x WOF Strips should be cut from Red

Your Fabric E Strips (8) 2 1/2" x WOF Strips should be cut from Black

Then the piecing is just like the pattern .  Just be sure in the Block Assembly to Strip Piece 2 White and 2 Black Strips together in alternating order of Black, White, Black White.   Make Six Sets and sub-cut as directed.

When laying out your blocks, piece 2 Red B Triangles, 1 Black C Triangle, and 1 White C Triangle as shown in  the below block diagram.

Then when piecing your Quilt Top, be sure and  alternate your blocks as shown in the below Quilt Diagram paying close attention to the black and white triangles.  They should alternate.   Finally add your border ;)

I hope that helps everyone who wanted to make this quilt in the same fabrics and layout that I did ;)  If you have any other questions, just let me know :)

             

And that's all for today ;)  Thanks for popping in to share my newest quilt finish ;)     

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

Bella Skill Builder - Half Square Triangle

Can you believe it is June 1st!!!  The kids are out of school, the house is a crazy mess, and we are enjoying the summer fun :)   And June 1st also means month 5 of the  Bella Skill Builder !!  I can't believe this makes blocks 9 and 10 playing along with the Fat Quarter Shop and Sherri McConnell!!!!   Before you know it, we will be putting the quilt top together ;)   And this month's blocks were super fast because they are Half Square Triangles :)  My block building Bread and Butter!!!

For this month's tone on tone blocks I choose some greens and pinks.   I think it is the summer on my mind, because this color pick totally had me craving some watermelon ;)      For the large version of the block I used Bella Kiwi and Emerald.  And for the large version of the block I used Bella Peony and Magenta.  Seriously, how can you look at those colors and not want watermelon!!  

The tutorial for these blocks have you use the Triangles on a Roll papers, but I only had them in one size, so I just decided to do regular old Half Square Triangles.   But the nice thing was that I stacked my fabrics on top of each other when I cut them out, so they were already paired and ready to be sewn without having to match them up.  I went right from the cutting mat to the machine ;)  

And of course, because I cut my squares 1" larger than my finished size, I had to do a bit of trimming.   Which I love, because it makes for perfect HST's every time ;)   And ever since discovered the Matilda's Own Rotating Cutting mat  (I saw Kimberly using it on a video tutorial a while back and just had to get one!!!)  paired with my HST Bloc-Loc Rulers, well, trimming isn't so bad at all.  I just turn on a good book and spin my way to perfect HST blocks in no time :)  

And then it's just sewing the HST's into blocks!!! I love the layout that Sherri chose for the blocks :)   They just looks so nice and clean!!   These are 4" x 4" finished half square triangles so I cut my squares at 5".  And I did have one extra HST as they make 2 at a time and I needed 9, but you can always use an orphan HST ;)   

And again, I stuck with the same layout for the smaller version of the block.  Since that is how I did last's month's blocks and all the ones before I think I am pretty locked in at this point ;)   And again, I just love the crisp clean look.    And it's kind of funny that they almost look like little watermelon slices all lined up ;)

And that is the Half Square Triangle block, the Fifth set of blocks in the Bella Skill Builder!!!!  Be sure to download  the free pattern and watch YouTube video.  And also pop on over to the  Fat Quarter Shop's blog, Jolly Jabber  for lots more Half Square Triangle details and wonderful Half Square Triangle eye candy from lots more blogger friends ;)   All of the patterns from previous month's are available so it's never to late to start sewing along with the Bella Skill Builder fun!!! 

I'm off to do some quilting so I can share a finished quilt tomorrow ;)  

Have a Happy Quilting Day!!!