$5 Pattern of the Month - How They Shine!!!

 It's a new month and a new $5 Pattern of the Month here at Happy Quilting!!!  And August is  How They Shine .  And it is just $5 all month long!!!   

The  How They Shine Pattern can be found in my Etsy Shop in both a Paper version as well as a PDF version and both versions will be marked down to $5.00 for the month August.   This is such a fun quilt to make and you all know I just love a good star quilt.    It is rated for Experienced Beginners and is  Fat Quarter Friendly.  

 How They Shine  has 5 size options.  You could totally make a Holiday Version, or Wedding Quilt, or just about anything with this super versatile design.  Just change up the fabric and you will get a whole new look. The quilt is made with HST's, Stitch and Flip Corners, and basic piecing so it really comes together quick.   And with the two layouts of blocks, you get some wonderful secondary patterns in the design.   

And like I said, it is a very versatile pattern.  And I know, as I have made it several times.  Here is the actual original How They Shine in Corey Yoder Fabrics.   Aren't they just so soft and pretty! 

And you know I love to change it up with a dark background!   Here is a Country Christmas Version in Poppie Cotton.  I just love how the dark background really makes the designs in the prints just pop!

And if you have a Christmas version, why not a Halloween one as well!!  Here is the picnic size in Hey Boo by Lella Boutique.  Yup, just a super versatile design!!  

And that is my $5.00 Pattern of the Month!!!   August 2025 is all about the How They Shine Pattern!!!   You are going to have so much fun making these stars ;)   And of course,  if you have any questions at all, please don't hesitate to reach out to me ;)  And when you make your How They Shine Quilts I would love to see them!!!  You can email me a picture at happyquiltingmelissa@gmail.com or add it to social media with  #happyquiltingwithmc and #howtheyshinequilt ;)  I can't wait to see your Quilts!!!

So are you ready to start making your How They Shine Quilts???  Pop over to my Etsy Shop, to pick up your Pattern and get Happy Quilting!!!!   

Wedding Quilt Progress

 So it has been two weeks since I posted about my new Wedding Works in Progress . . . and I am happy to report that progress is being made!!  Honestly, I wish that there were more progress to share, but there is a lot of "Happy Quilting Pattern" going on as well right now, so  this is what I have squeezed in between.  

The  Folktale Layer Cake Signature Quilt top has been put together.  I am planning to write up a Free PDF Pattern with this one to share with all of you.  It is going to be so cute at the reception table!!  Now just to quilt it, I am thinking leaving the "blocks" unquilted and little curly q's around each block.  So ya, I need to get a backing made and then get this on the longarm so I can check one thing off the list ;) 

 

Next up . . .  the Nordic Nights quilt in Woodland and Wildflowers .  And I did get all of the cutting done (it's a queen size quilt so there was quite a bit of cutting!)  I whipped up the curves for the half blocks so that I could finish those up, ya know . . .I don't want to accidently mix them up with the full block curves ;)  Now, we are in full swing curved piecing mode!! I like to pin a big stack of curves while watching a game, then I just whip them through the sewing machine and press during another game.  Doing 75 ish at a time makes it so I will only have to repeat the process 4 times :)  

And my Jacks quilt from Fast and Fun Lap Quilts made in a Cowboys Layer Cake is in full stitch and flip mode!!  I love doing tiny little stitch and flips.  It is always fun to see how just a little 1 1/4" square can really make a design difference.  I have been using these as my Leader and Enders for those "Happy Quilting Pattern" projects, and I am super thrilled with how many have already been "snowballed" just doing leaders and enders!!   So ya, some for sure progress is being made!! 

There are 52 days until the wedding so I am feeling good about where things are right now :)   And speaking of the wedding, Jessi and Trey just had engagement photo's taken and I just have to share one!!  Aren't those two just so cute :)   I told Jessi this is their "Pride and Prejudice" shot, if ya know, you know!!     So looking forward to  September 20th :)  

So what projects are you working on this week?? 

July Sew Sampler!!!

 It's my favorite mail day of the month!!!   I am sure my neighbors just get a kick out of watching me do a happy dance at the mail box towards the end of each month ;)   But ya, I can't help but be happy when my Sew Sampler Box arrives!!  This month's theme is Summer Love and it is a bit of a change up from the last few boxes so that is super fun ;)    

I was pleasantly surprised to find this beautiful low volume bundle of Romantica by Art Gallery Fabrics.  It has been a while since we have had any Art Gallery, and I just love the hand of their fabrics so I am excited to get to create with them again!!   And I love this Serenade pattern.  What an ingenious way to make the super lights stand out with the navy, and the medium lights stand out on the white.  Just brilliant!!   

And the notions for this month are so very practical which I so very much appreciate!!  Wonder Clips in pretty pink, never can have to many!!   A Frixion Pen for marking, so perfect as my last one was just starting to dry out.   And Aurifil Thread in classic white!!!  My heart just loves this :)    Yup, I will use all of this and a whole lot!!  

And were are on to block 4 of this Flowering QAL!!  .  I am using  50 Years of Moda!!!  This month I did a little finagling.  I wasn't paying attention and chopped off an incorrect piece, so then I had to add back on and ya know, things got a little messy.  But it all came together in the end ;)  I really love the colors of this one and am excited to put it with the other Flowering Blocks!! 

And that is July Sew Sampler Box.  And I am already looking forward to August, luckily, this month seems to breeze by with school starting and everything, so it shouldn't feel like that long of a wait!! 

Thanks for popping in again.  

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

He's in Africa!!

Well, our Kristian has now been in South Africa for 3 weeks.   Kristian is serving a 2 year mission in the Durban, South Africa Mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.  We are so excited for him and so proud of his decision to serve!!  

This is the third time we have sent one of our children out to serve, and the goodbye doesn't get any easier.     I was so glad to get to have the drive up as a family before dropping him off at the Provo Missionary Training Center a few weeks ago.   With Spencer now married, and Jessi engaged, and Kristian leaving, our family dynamic has gone through a super change.  Most of the time we are down to 4 at home (and even then, one is always at friends and the other is working :)   So ya, it was a treasured last bit of time all together filled with lots of laughs and of course, some tears!!    

We are so very happy and excited for Nader!  Already, in just three weeks we are seeing him growing so much.   Nader is so happy to be serving in South Africa and we know he will have so many wonderful experiences!   And I am so very grateful for the wonders of technology so we can all chat with Kristian each Monday for an hour over zoom, what a blessing!!   We love you so much Nader!!!  

Desert Rose in Rosy Cheeks!!

Today I am super excited to be sharing this beautiful new Desert Rose quilt finish with you featuring the oh so cute Rosy Cheeks Collection by Lori Woods for Poppie Cotton!!  And you know, when I remake a pattern quilt, I like to change out the background . . . so this time I went with a beautiful soft green!!  Isn't it just so pretty!!!   

This Desert Rose Quilt is so much fun to make and it is Fat Quarter Friendly so you can just grab a bundle and add your background fabric. Aren't the prints in this Rosy Cheeks collection just so adorable!!  I love those little tea cups, and the florals are just so pretty :)   I used Sea Glass Mint Country Confetti for my background fabric and I love how it makes all of those charming prints just look so bright and happy!!  It really keeps the white and light prints from getting lost ;) 

And while this might look a little difficult, Desert Rose can be broken down into basic piecing units.  You will learn Half Square Triangles, and lots of No Waste Flying Geese making this quilt.   And then you get some great practice on lining up pretty points!!   And with the big block size, once you get the units all made, the quilt comes together in a snap :) 

This design has always been a favorite of mine!!  I just love the big floral blocks that have the echoed background throughout the petals.  It just creates a lot of great negative space that really shows off the design.   And I just love it in this fun background . . . it always blows me away how much it changes up the quilt to go from a white background to something different.  Just so cool!!! 

Barbara did the quilting and piecing on this one as I am a little swamped with working on new patterns :)  And her quilting is just oh so cute!!  She quilted all of the negative space in fun loop de loops and flowers and left the prints unquilted.  This really makes the design pop in this quilt and adds so much amazing texture.  So great!! 

 And like all of my Happy Quilting patterns, the the nice thing is, the  Desert Rose Pattern  has multiple size options, so you can make whatever size you like. This is the picnic size, but you can make it from a baby size all the way to a queen size ;)   The bigger the quilt, the more flowers dance across it!!  

And that is the new Desert Rose Quilt! I hope you have enjoyed this post and consider making your own Desert Rose Quilt!!! And if you do, I would love to see them! You can share your projects with me on social media with the hashtags  #happyquiltingwithmc and #desertrosequilt and tagging @happyquiltingmc or email me a picture at happyquiltingmelissa@gmail.com. I can't wait to see your Desert Rose Quilts!!

Thank you so much for popping by and sharing this finish with me and thank you to my wonderful friends at Poppie Cotton for always letting me play with their gorgeous fabrics!!! 

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