Decades Past in Morrison Park and Giveaway!!!

I was so excited when my good friend, Pat Sloan, asked if I wanted to join in sharing her new fabric line,  Morrison Park!!!  I have wanted to do a two color Decades Past quilt (pattern here)  for sometime and I knew that the beautiful burnt reds of Morrison Park would be just perfect for a lovely fall wall hanging.   And didn't it turn out just so fun!!!  

I just love how this fun vintage modern pattern design just shows off those beautiful vintage modern fabrics!!   And I love the mono-chromatic feel of it.  It just makes me want to see leaves changing and bake pumpkin pies.   

And although I was drawn to the reds, there are lots of beautiful colors  and prints in this Morrison Park line by Pat Sloan for Benatex fabric (and keep reading for your chance to win some!!!)   Aren't those paisley's just so great, and the little flowers and polka dots.  So fun!!!  

And when it came time to quilt my Decades Past Morrison Park quilt, I decided for a fun all over open swirl.  I just love how it adds flowy curvy texture to all of those nice crisp piecing lines.   And I love how the 402 So Fine thread blends perfectly in both the light and dark prints.  So great!!! 

And speaking of quilty texture . . . Isn't that just so gorgeous!!!  I can't wait to hang this up on my wall in my dining room.  It is just going to bring so much fall cheer to the home ;)

And that is my Decades Past quilt in beautiful two color goodness from Pat Sloan's new Morrison Park fabric line!!!   I am just thrilled with how it came together ;)

And speaking of this gorgeous Morrison Park line . . . let's have  fabric giveaway!!!  

GIVEAWAY CLOSED - Winner of the Morrison Park Giveaway is #199 - Rosemary B.   Congrats!!!

- Prize Option 1 is US prize - of a Morrison Park layer cake and a Benartex Fat Quarterly club newsletter w/charm pack.  

- Prize Option 2 is outside the US - my Aurifil Perfect Box of Neutrals. 

  

We are going to run this the same way we do TTGD ;) 

You have two entry chances, the second being optional, and please leave a separate comment for each.  All Entries are welcome, including International Entries.  There are two prize options, the first for US entries, and the second for International Entries  Please just be sure to leave an email address if you are a no-reply blogger ;)  

ENTRY 1 - Simply leave a comment telling me the name of your favorite Park to visit ;)  

 ENTRY 2 - Show your Happy Quilting love. You can follow Happy Quilting on Bloglovin, Email Updates, or RSS to get daily updates.  Or you can like Happy Quilting on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter or Flickr.   Any one way will do . . . Just be sure to leave a comment of how you showed your Happy Quilting Love!!!

And that's it ;)  The giveaway will be open until October 11th , when I will announce a winner on this post :)

And for more Morrison Park Fabric projects (and more chances to win the beautiful fabric . . . check out all the stops on the Morrison Park Fabric Tour ;)  

September 28 - Cheryl Bricky Meadow Mist Designs

September 29 - Laura Pilan Slice of Pi Quilts

September 30 - Andy Knowlton A Bright Corner

October 1 - Amy Ellis Amy's Creative Side

October 2 - Yvonne Fuchs Quilting Jetgirl

October 3 - Pam Vieira-McGinnis Pam Kitty Morning

October 4 - Jen Shaffer Patterns by Jen

October 5 - Heather Valentine The Sewing Loft

October 6 - Annie Unrein By Annie

October 7 - Melissa Corry Happy Quilting Melissa

October 8 - Karen Pratt Cream Craft Goods

October 9 - Jane Davidson Quilt Jane

October 10 - Wendy Sheppard Ivory Springs

October 11 - Pat Sloan

I hope you all have a very Happy Quilting Day and good luck in the giveaway!!!

Terrific Tuesday Giveaway Day!!

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

First, we need to announce the winner from last Terrific Tuesday Giveaway!!  

The winner of the  Folktale Honey Bun from Olie and Evie is . . .   Number 39 . . . Congrats pharmgirl75!!  I have messaged you :)    

       

And on to today's

Today's Terrific Tuesday Giveaway is being sponsored by Fat Quarter Shop.   Fat Quarter Shop is amazing and they never cease to amaze me with everything they have going on at their shop!!!     And did you know they have a 24 Hour Flash Sale every day with 2 Flash Sales on Tuesdays!!   And not only do they have a daily deal, they have a Fabric Basic, Pattern, and Notion of the Month!!!!     All Essential Dots are on sale and you all know how I just love polka dots!!!  Also, Aurifil Thread are on sale for the Notion (Time to Stock Up!!!) , and Fig Tree Quilt Co. Patterns are on sale for the Pattern.   Save 20-30% off of all of them for the whole month of October!!  So great ;) 

And for today's Terrific Tuesday Giveaway Fat Quarter Shop is giving away this amazing Fat Quarter Bundle of Apricot and Ash by Corey Yoder!!!!  This line is selling out so fast, so someone is going to get super lucky to get a whole Fat Quarter Bundle of it!!!   Isn't that just so pretty!!!   

You have two entry chances here on the blog, 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 was your first job??  (I worked at an Arctic Circle and my kids still ask me to make their ice cream cones whenever we are at a soft self serve ice cream place ;)  

 ENTRY 2 - Show your Fat Quarter Shop love.   You can follow them on   Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, You Tube or at their Blog.  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 Fat Quarter Shop Love!!!

And that's it ;)  The giveaway will be open until next Tuesday, October 13th,  when I will announce a winner at the beginning of next weeks Terrific Tuesday Giveaway Post :)

You can also pop over to my Instagram and/or Facebook to enter there as well :)  

Good Luck and Have a Happy Quilting Day!!!

Woodland Songbirds Fabric Tour!!!

 I absolutely adore Poppie Cotton Fabric by my good friends Jina and Lori and so I was super happy to when they asked if I wanted to join in their Woodland Song  Fabric Tour ;)    And you might recall I shared an EQ Sketch of this some time ago for one of my Charming Baby Quilt Remixs, and I just love how great it turned out!!! Isn't it fun how the quilt is always so much prettier than the sketch :)  And it is the fabric that just makes it shine!!!!  

 I really do love working with Poppie Cotton's!!!  The fabric is wonderful with a beautiful hand and the artwork is just stunning.   I love how all of their fabric lines just have a softness about them!!  It just makes you want to snuggle up with quilts made from them :)   It is just down home goodness!!!   

 The colors and prints in this Woodland Songbirds line are just so gorgeous!!!   I love the the flowers, birds, and especially the little mushrooms, so cute!!!   And I love the grey's and blacks brought in with those beautiful corals and baby blues.  It really has such a soft and calming feel to it, even with black and I just think that is so great!!!   Jina and Lori have a wonderful way with color!!!  

And if you are wondering about this  Charming Baby Quilts remix, no fear.  I promise to share more of the quilt later this week including the Remix Fabric Requirements and Instructions.     I also have to get the binding on still :)   If you look close in this picture, you can see the raw edge in one place.  My sewing machine is getting it's annual cleaning and I just love the walking foot and my big table for attaching bindings, so I am waiting to get it back for that final step :)  But when I do, I will be sure to share all of the Shine Bright goodness of this quilt!!

But today, it is all about the fabric ;) And I just love that Country Confetti Basic Background.   I think it is so cool that Poppie Cotton makes their adorable polka dot basic to match all of their fabric lines.  It is the perfect background to add just the tiniest bit of fun to an otherwise solid, while still being bold enough to pop as the background.  So great!!!   

And that is my Shine Bright Quilt from Charming Baby Quilts  (soon to be shared as a full Remix) in the beautiful Poppie Cotton's.   I hope you love it as much as I do!!!     And if you want to make your own  Poppie Cotton's quilt, here is where you can find them ;)  I highly recommend you try them out, they are just so pretty and perfect to work with!!!

Thank you so much to Jina and Lori for allowing me to play with these fantastic Poppie Cottons fabrics!!!   And for more  Woodland Songbirds fabric fun, be sure to Hop over to the Poppie Cottons blog   all of October for blogger goodies from this wonderful fabric :)

Thanks for popping in today and every day.  I am just so grateful to have this space to share my love of fabric, piecing, and all things quilting!!!

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

Texas Monthly - Month 1

 I was super excited when my good friends at Stitchin' Heaven  asked if I could participate in their Texas Monthly Block of the Month program and share tutorials for the blocks each month.  You all know how I love tutorials and this quilt is made from all Grunge fabric, my favorite!  So of course, I was all in.  So each month, be sure to check back in for the months blocks and helpful hints on how to put them together.

So now, let's get to Texas!!!  Month 1 is a Courthouse Steps Block and 2 Flying Geese Blocks.   And how great are those beautiful panels by Watercolor Artist Katheleen McElwaine from Georgetown, TX that we will be adding to the blocks!  So get your package open and let's get going.

The Courthouse Steps Block

STEP 1 - CUTTING

Cut your Courthouse Steps Fabrics 12, 8, and 19 according to the cutting instructions.  Trim your Boots Panel to 8 1/2" x 8 1/2".  To center your panel, use an 8 1/2" square ruler.   Measure in 1 1/8" in from the top of the ruler to the top of the boot.  Measure in 1 1/8" from the bottom of the ruler to the bottom of the boot.  Measure in 1 1/2" from either side of the ruler to the toe edge of each boot.   These measurements will center your panel perfectly, then trim around all 4 sides of your ruler so your panel measures 8 1/2" x 8 1/2" square.

STEP 2 - PIECING THE BLOCK

Layout your Boot Panel and 4 Fabric 12 Strips as shown below with the shorter strips on the top and bottom and longer strips on the sides.

Place the top and bottom Fabric 12 strips onto the panel with right sides together.  Stitch a 1/4" seam along the edge of the top and bottom.   I don't use pins as I don't have to worry about aligning any seams, but you can surely use them to align the edges if you prefer.

Press the top and bottom seam allowance outwards towards the Fabric 12 strips.  Now place the longer Fabric 12 strips onto the two sides of the panel with right sides together.  Stitch a 1/4" seam along the edge of the two sides.

Press the seam allowances outwards towards the Fabric 12 strips.  And now we Repeat!   Layout the 4 Fabric 8 Strips and align the top and bottom strips with right sides together.  Stitch a 1/4" seam along the edge of the top and bottom.   

Press the seam allowances outwards towards the Fabric 8 strips. Align the 2 side strips with right sides together.  Stitch a 1/4" seam along the edge of the 2 sides.   

Press the seam allowances outwards towards the Fabric 8 strips.  And one more Repeat!   Layout the 4 Fabric 19 Strips and align the top and bottom strips with right sides together.  Stitch a 1/4" seam along the edge of the top and bottom.   

Press the seam allowances outwards towards the Fabric 19 strips. Align the 2 side strips with right sides together.  Stitch a 1/4" seam along the edge of the 2 sides. 

Press the seam allowances outwards towards the Fabric 18 strips.    And you are done.  Your unfinished block should measure 14 1/2" x 14 1/2".    You can choose to square your block up if you prefer, but I don't like to square blocks as I prefer to use my seam allowances as guides and not accidentally cut off points ;) 

The Flying Geese Blocks

STEP 1 - CUTTING

Cut your Flying Geese Fabrics 7, 19, 21, 25, and 11 according to the cutting instructions.  I found it helpful to cut Fabric 11 into a 4 1/2" x WOF Strip and then stack my Fabric 7, 19, 21, and 25 together and cut a 2 1/2" x WOF (21" in this case) strip.   Then I could simply crosscut all 5 fabrics at once 8 times at 2 1/2" to cut all of the pieces needed for my block.  

When trimming the panels for the Flying Geese Blocks I used an 8 1/2" x 8 1/2" ruler and paid attention to the 6 1/2" horizontal line on the ruler.  For the Longhorn Panel, Align as shown, with the top of your ruler 3/8" from the top of the horn.  Align the right hand side of the ruler 3/8" in from the edge of the horn.   And finally Align the bottom of the longhorn 3/8" up from the 6 1/2" horizontal line on your ruler.  This means the Left hand side will be overlapping the design slightly, but better to cut off some bush, then the horn :)      Trim around the two sides and top of the ruler.

Now rotate your panel 180 degrees and align your long 6 1/2" ruler up with the bottom of the panel.   Trim the top (which is actually the bottom of the picture) of the panel so your panel measures 6 1/2" x 8 1/2".

For the Flag Panel, Align as shown, with the top of your ruler 7/8" from the top of the flag.  Align the right hand side of the ruler 1/2" in from the top tip of the flag.  Align the left hand side of the ruler 1/2" in from the bottom tip of the flag.   And finally Align the bottom of the flag 7/8" up from the 6 1/2" horizontal line on your ruler.  Trim around the two sides and top of the ruler.

Now rotate your panel 180 degrees and align your long 6 1/2" ruler up with the bottom of the panel.   Trim the top (which is actually the bottom of the picture) of the panel so your panel measures 6 1/2" x 8 1/2".  And with that, we are ready to stitch.

STEP 2 - MAKING THE FLYING GEESE UNITS

Draw a diagonal line on the wrong side of each of your (32) 2 1/2" squares.  (Note* if you use a Clearly Perfect Angle, Diagonal Seam Tape or similar marker, you can skip this step. )     Divide your Marked squares in half, setting 4 of each of the 4 fabric squares aside.  Place a marked square onto a 2 1/2" x 4 1/2" rectangle of Fabric 11 with right sides together as shown.  Sew a 1/4" directly on the drawn line.  

To save time and thread, we will chain stitch these units.  Chain Stitching simply means not clipping the threads between units.  So to start, stitch on the drawn line of your first unit.  When you get to the end of the unit, just start feeding the next unit in your machine.   Stitch on all 16 units.   Then clip your threads between the Units.

Now move to your cutting mat and align your ruler 1/4" over the stitched center line.  Cut along the edge of the ruler and scrap the two loose triangles.  Press the seam allowance upwards towards the triangle.  And now you can repeat for the second side of the unit using those 16 squares you set aside.  Place a matching colored marked square on the other side of the unit with right sides together.  Stitch a 1/4" seam along the drawn line, trim 1/4" over the seam line, and then press towards the triangle.  

Once again, we will chain stitch these units to save time and thread. Stitch on all 16 units, clip your threads, trim and press.

STEP 3 - PIECING THE BLOCK

And just like that, you have 16 beautiful flying geese that should measure 2 1/2" x 4 1/2", and again, I don't square these up, as I want to be able to have the seam allowance at my point.    Now layout your 16 Flying Geese Units in two blocks as shown below paying close attention to color and orientation.  

Sew the 4 rows of units together in the 2 blocks.  To do this, I simply place the first Unit onto the second with right sides together and align and pin the raw edges.   Stitch a 1/4" seam along the pinned edge. (* see next picture for hint in stitching).  Then repeat by placing the now sewn together first and second unit onto the third unit with right sides together  and align and pin.   Stitch a 1/4" seam along the pinned edge.   Repeat for the last unit in the row.   Again, chain stitch all 4 rows will save you time and thread!

When stitching the flying geese units together, I have you pin with the first unit on top for a reason.  This way you can see your seam lines.  If you stitch directly through the center of the thread X created by your seams, you will get a perfect point every time.

Now. I like to press my seams open at this point to avoid bulk, but pressing is personal, so if you prefer to press to one side, go for it.   Now simply align the top row onto the bottom row with right sides together.   I like to use this Pin Trick (click on link for tutorial) to align my matching points of the flying geese.   Then stitch a 1/4" along the pinned edge of each of your two blocks.

And again, there is a trick to stitching to get those perfect points.  If you stitch directly along the bottom of the fabric V you will get a perfect point, especially if you used the Pin Trick, as the below point is perfectly lined up as well!

Now once again, I like to press the center seam open so the bulk of all those seams lies flatter but you can press to the side if you prefer.   Finally, Layout your two Panels below the Flying Geese portion of the block.  Place the Flying Geese portion onto the Panel with  right sides together and align and pin the edge.  Sew a 1/4" seam along the pinned edge and again, stitch directly along the bottom of the fabric V's.  

Press the seam allowances towards the Panels.    And you are done.  Your unfinished block should measure 18 1/2" x 14 1/2".    

And that is it for Texas Monthly, Month 1 :)

If you have any questions on this tutorial, please don't hesitate to email me at happyquiltingmelissa@gmail.com or leave a comment.  

Hope y'all enjoy making this month's blocks and maybe even learned a few tidbits along the way.  Next month . . . Paper Piecing!

September Sew Sampler!!

 September is just about gone, and wow, did that month just fly by or what.  And with another month means another Sew Sampler Box :)   And what a fun box the September 2020 Sew Sampler box.  You know I just love it from the start with all of that pretty purple!!!  It is totally like it was made just for me ;)   And yes, there are lots of Hidden Gem's inside ;)  

First I unboxed these beautiful Petite Balboa Fat Quarter Bundle, and oh my was I excited!!!!   These Balboa Fabrics by Sherri and Chelsi for Moda are just so pretty, I know because I have already used them to make another quilt ;)  And you know I love, love, love the purple in it!!!   And the exclusive Pack-and-Go Project Bag pattern, so on my list to make!!!  In fact, I didn't even put the fabric on the shelf, I grabbed a zipper, the pattern, and fabric, and placed it right in the project pile on my desk.  Here is hoping I can get going on this soon!!!  

And next came the notions and they are purple!!!     I am so excited about this Silicone Applique Mat.  My ironing board covers for sure shows lots of little bits of Heat N Bond, and this mat keep them looking prettier ;)    And the Quilt Clips are so cool!!!  I most likely wont use them as I quilt on the long-arm, but what a great idea for quilters on their domestic machines.  I am sure I can find a good home for them.  And lastly, this adorable Sewing Life Tea Towel from Gingiber.  It will be finding a special place for it for sure!!  

And last, but not least . . . a new box means a new Block!!   .This year we are working on the Greatest Hits Quilt and this block is Track 6  ;)   I am really getting excited to see these blocks come together, they are going to make such a great sampler quilt!!!   And I just love the muted happy colors in this block with that pop of yellow.  So fun!!!

And just a note, if you are wanting to get in on the new year of Sew Sampler boxes you have to get in line.  There is currently a waiting list as the box subscription is full.   But hopefully the wait isn't to long.  (I have been told new spots open up each week!!!)

And that is the September Sew Sampler Box from Fat Quarter Shop :)  I just love this Subscription Box!!

I hope you all have a very Happy Quilting Day . . . Let's make this a great week!!!