Tutorial Throwback Thursday - Sparkly Stars!!!

It's Thursday and that means another Tutorial Throwback feature.  And as today is Halloween, it should totally be a Halloween project right.    And can you believe it, I have never made a Halloween Quilt for our Family!!!  I know, I am sad to admit it, I have made a Halloween Block, a Halloween Bunting, and a Halloween Bag.   I even made this Halloween Night Flight Quilt sample this year, but never a quilt for my family!!!  So, here I have to admit, I don't really love Halloween, and especially the scary side of it.   But then I remembered that I picked up a Halloween Bundle at Market, Throwback to 2015, because the fabric was cute and not scary.  But somehow, that fabric is still on the shelf.   So today, I decided it was time to take it off the shelf and get stitching!!!   And of course, I need a quilt design . . . enter Throwback Tutorials.   So today we are throwing back to the Sparkly Stars quilt as I think it will be just perfect for our families first Halloween Quilt!!!    

I absolutely loved designing this Sparkly Stars quilt!!!   You all know how much I love making star quilts, and this simple opposite block layout is a great way to feature some fun fabrics!!!  And you are pretty much using larger squares for almost the whole quilt, so you can show off those fabrics without cutting them up to much.     Which is why I think it will be just perfect for my Halloween quilt!!  I wouldn't want to cut up those adorable trick or treater's :)  

And of course, I can't make up a new quilt plan without doing a little EQ8 Sketch :)   I plan on using black for the background. One, because black backgrounds will really make these fabrics pop, and Two, because, well . . . Halloween :)   And won't that be just so great!!!   I love the purples, and aqua's tied in with the oranges and grays.  Seriously, Cute Halloween is my kind of Halloween!!! 

And I love that I know I can easily whip this Sparkly Stars quilt together.   All of the star points are made with a Stitch and Flip method.  And double bonus, they overlap so you don't even have to worry about matching the points up when you sew the block together.   So easy, and oh so fun!!! 

And I am totally planning on doing this L and E quilting again.  This is one of my favorite things to quilt, but you have to have a quilt that has plenty of  "seam guidelines" in order to keep the quilting straight.  Well, this quilt is absolutely perfect for that, as you have 3 perfect guides for each block row!!  I can't wait!!! 

 The Sparkly Stars quilt is Fat Quarter Friendly, and you just need 15 of them along with 3 1/2 yards of background fabric and you are all set. The cutting is fast, the piecing is fast, and so it really becomes a wonderfully fun and fast project that highlights your fabrics!!!   I can't wait to make it up in my Halloween Magic fabric!!!  First Family Halloween Quilt, here I come :)   

I hope you have enjoyed today's Tutorial Throwback Thursday!!!    To make your own Sparkly Stars quilt  just click on any of the quilt name links for the free step by step tutorial.  It finishes at 67 1/2" x 81" so it is a great size to snuggle up in.    And when you are done, I would love to see your quilt!!  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 Sparkly Stars quilts!!!

Thanks for popping in today and have a very Happy Halloween with maybe even a little Quilting thrown in!!!   I know pressing Halloween fat quarters is on my to do list today :) 

October Sew Sampler!!!

Well those chilly Fall days came and went as it is full on cold here in Cedar City.   Looks like my little trick or treater's will be bundled up good tomorrow night.   But I am all good with the colder temps coming in, because that means bundling up at home and settling in to sew and sew some more!!!   And with my October  Sew Sampler Box arriving I have new goodies to sew with!!!  This month's theme was Savanna Sewfari, how fun is that.   Oh, and FYI, there are new spaces available for the Sew Sampler Box membership, so there is no wait list at this time, so awesome!!  

I just adore Elizabeth Hartman's Patterns and Fabrics!!!  All of her quilt designs are just amazing so I was so super excited to find a new Elizabeth Hartman pattern as well as this super fun Adventure Fat Eighth Bundle by Elizabeth :)  The bundle has such great prints combined with Essex Yarn Died Linen's which I am so excited about.  It is always fun to play with texture in your quilts!!!   This one is so going on the list to make!!!  

And this month's notions are just fantastic!!!  I love this new Kona Color Calendar for 2020!!!!   Each month is a new color family, and each day is a different color in that family.   How fun is that!  And each month also has a free pattern from the Robert Kaufman website, double bonus!!  Oh, and when 2020 is over, this calendar might just still be on the wall forever on the January all purple page :)  And you know that I love that these Sewing Edge Stops are purple too!!!   And of course, you know I can never have enough Storage Tins, and I love this one with it's happy colors (including purple :) 

And of course, with another month is another Goodness Grows Block!!!  This month the block is called  Nourish Yourself  and it was a super fast one to make and oh so cute!   Oh, and I noticed while I was looking up the name of the block, that the Sugarcreek Goodness Grows Quilt Kits are now in stock!!!  (This is the same fabrics I am using :) The kit comes with the 14 yards of fabric you need for the quilt as well as a full set of pre-cut fusible applique shapes.  And there is a Sugarcreek Backing set as well.   I am just loving seeing these blocks come together each month in these gorgeous fabrics.   Only 5 more blocks to go :) 

And that is my October Sew Sampler box  :)  And I am already looking forward to November's box :)   It is always a good day when the little aqua box of quilting goodness arrives in the mail!! 

I hope you are all having a Happy Quilting Day!!

Terrific Tuesday Giveaway Day!!!

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

First, we need to announce the winner from last weeks Terrific Tuesday Giveaway :)

The winner of the $30.00 Gift Certificate from Shabby Fabrics is . . .  Number #130. . .   Congrats Cathy B. !!!   I have emailed 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 so fun, like this fantastic Spook bundle!!!    Along with hosting the giveaway, Jamie is having a  Fantastic Sale 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!!  Which is also filled with more Halloween goodness, just sayin!!!

Today's Terrific Tuesday Giveaway is for some shopping goodness!!  Lou Lou's Fabric Shop is offering one lucky reader a $25.00 Gift Certificate perfect to use on anything in the store, including any of the awesome Lou Lou Bundle's or on the Daily Deal!!  Just perfect!!!!  

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 all time favorite Halloween Costume??

 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, November 5th,  when I will announce a winner at the beginning of next weeks Terrific Tuesday Giveaway Post :)

Good Luck and Have a Happy Quilting Day!!!

What's Sewing On :)

With the Starstruck Quilt Along starting to wind down to it's close, there is suddenly more time to work on some more projects!!!   So I thought it would be fun to share that today as it has been awhile since I did a "what I am working on" post, other than of course, the weekly Starstruck posts, tee hee hee ;)  

So first off, I am super excited that I finally got my "Vanessa Squared" blocks sewn into a quilt top!!!   If your remember, I shared last month  that I am using the Smart Cookie pattern from Vanessa Goertzen's new Jelly Filled book, combined with Vanessa Christensen's  new Ombre Fabrics.  I loved the quilt blocks but basically just needing enough time to figure out a color layout I liked.   So this weekend I did that.   And funny thing,  once I had the layout figured, the blocks sewed up into a quilt top in an hour ;)   And I can't wait to get this quilted and share the finish.  My stop on Vanessa's Book Tour is Nov. 8th, so not to much longer to wait!!! 

And I have also been working on a new Leader and Ender project while constructing all of the Starstruck Quilt Along tutorials and Charming Baby Quilts.   Since I finished piecing all of my Scraptastic Star Blocks  I needed a new Leader and Ender project and my Be Fruitful project I planned back in June was the perfect fit!!! I have now finished all of the block centers, and corners, and only have the 4 sets of side blocks and cornerstones left ;)  I can't wait to see these blocks come together, it is going to be such a pretty quilt!!!

And finally, you know I can't help but start a new project when I have a little open time, right!!!  I was thrilled when my good friends at Fat Quarter Shop  asked if I would like to participate in their new Perfect 5 Quilts Quilt Along!!!   Of course, with the announcement of my Charming Baby Quilts book it is no secret that I am a big fan of working with Charm Packs, so I was all in for playing with the new Perfect 5 Ruler (specifically designed for Charm Packs) and making a new project from the amazing pages of the Perfect 5 Quilts book.  I plan to use 2 Wonder Charm Packs and a combination of 2 blocks to make a super soft and adorable baby quilt!!  Can't wait to share more ;)

So that is what I am working on . . . So how about you???  What's on your cutting tables, sewing machines, and ironing boards today??? 

Tutorial Throwback Thursday - Super Scrappy Single Irish Chain!!!

It's Thursday and that means another Tutorial Throwback feature.  As I mentioned on Monday, I spent last weekend sharing my Irish Chain Quilts and when I shared this Super Scrappy Single Irish Chain quilt as part of my trunk show I just knew it would be perfect for today's throwback!!! 

I absolutely love how happy and scrappy this quilt is!!! I love collecting 2 1/2" squares and I keep them divided by color.  I find that is a great way to store them as it makes starting rainbow quilts super fast and fun!!!   And of course, the Super Scrappy Single Irish Chain tutorial goes over just how many of each color you need ;)  I also love that I used up all of the bits and pieces of my solid neutral yardage in this quilt!!  You know, all of those 1/4 and  1/3 of a yard cuts that you have leftover from making a big quilt.   They worked perfect for the background of this quilt and I love how it adds that low volume flair!!!  

I actually made most of the blocks for this Super Scrappy Single Irish Chain quilt while making the quilts from my Irish Chain Quilts book.  These were my Leaders and Enders project at that time, which if you haven't tried before I highly recommend checking out this tutorial!!    It's like making a free quilt while working on other projects.   And this Leader and Ender project started out as 4 patches, but then I had so much Irish Chain Quilts on the brain, it morphed into this Single Scrappy Irish Chain Quilt.  And I just love it!!!  I finished this Super Scrappy Single Irish Chain quilt quilt just in time for the big release of my Irish Chain Quilts book so ya, between it's finish time and piecing progress, it always has had special place in my heart. 

So as I said, I had the blocks made up , but then they sat and waited.   Sometimes that just happens in the craziness.  Finally, when I realized I really wanted this to be finished before  Irish Chain Quilts was released, I got going on piecing the blocks into the quilt top and then quilting and binding it.    And when it came time to quilt it, I had some serious color fun!!!  I figured it waited so long, it needed something special!!!  I quilted all of the background in swirls in my favorite 402 So Fine, and then for the blocks, I changed out colors of Fantastico Thread  which is an awesome variegated thread.  I had a spool for each of the 6 basic colors that are variegated in hues of that color, so fun!!!    I love how it just made the colored blocks pop all the more!!!! 

And what yummy texture!!!  This quilt is still a treasure today and has a special place on the quilt racks outside my little sewing room.   In fact, that rack is my "Classic Irish Chain Rack" as it has this Super Scrappy Single Irish Chain, my Super Scrappy Triple Irish Chain, my Splendid Sampler Irish Chain, and my Double Irish Chain, which is the first quilt my mother made, and she made it for my wedding.  So Irish Chains were mine (and my mother's) introduction to quilting which is why they are so special to me!!!   

I hope you have enjoyed today's Tutorial Throwback Thursday!!!    To make your own Super Scrappy Single Irish Chain quilt  just click on any of the quilt name links for the free step by step tutorial.  It finishes at 86" x 86" so it is a nice big quilt.    And when you are done, I would love to see your quilt!!  You can email me a picture at happyquiltingmelissa@gmail.com, post it to social media with #happyquiltingwithmc.    I can't wait to see your Super Scrappy Single Irish Chain quilts!!!

Thanks for popping in today and have a very Happy Quilting Day!!!