Santa Block by Linda of Living for Quilting blog There is a giant, 5 day Blog Hop-Hop-Happening online which begins with the wildly popular Sew We Quilt blog spot. It began yesterday and it's called "Think Christmas". All the participants post one or more blocks with a holiday theme and I am quite taken with many of them. I spotted this yesterday on Linda's blog ( Living for Quilting ) because in the bottom left hand corner is a page from my Block a Day Calendar! Wow! But, you have to admit, her Santa block is AWESOME and she gave me permission to repost him here today. If you want to be inspired and learn some neat tips with tutorials, start out at the Sew We Quilt blog and just hop, hop, hop to a variety of quilting blogs. It's an easy way to stay cool in the middle of a very hot summer! Chill Quilt with tote bag Here is my penguin quilt that never, ever got picked up by a magazine. I call it "Chill" and notice the fun penguin bag over on ...

Noblesse Collection by Blank Quilting Today is Monday and I've been busy over the weekend sewing with an upcoming line by Blank Quilting called Noblesse. They are very romantic in feel and while there are only 3 fabrics in each of the two colorways, the main fabric provides other possibilities as shown in the pic above. I selected 3 of Blank's blenders to go with my 1/2 yard cuts. Did you know you can do a LOT with 1/2 yard cuts? No? Then allow me to show you! I will upload more pics, the finished quilt tops (yes, 2 tops) and a chance for you to win some PRIZES - FABRIC! I will send out another blog update, so you need to be on my list to get that info so you can enter. Here is a one page pdf that works with any mitering project: Magical Mitering Here is my Magical Mitering technique which is used for these Attic Window blocks. I will reveal more as the week goes on, but first to show you how I created the blocks. Attic Window, Step 1  Since I was working with ...

Trumpet Flower Stencil Lookout, Pittsburgh/Monroeville Original Sewing and Quilting Expo ! I am bringing my dark fabric for one of our machine quilting samples. I love the way colored threads standout and then matching thread for the background enhances the design. I am NOT a professional longarm quilter, but I do love to go dancing with the feed dogs down! Yes, the white you see is the chalk marking pencil and I plan on keeping it there to show my students. Dancing with the Feed Dogs Down  Black batik fabric, poison green thread, and me! Nothing planned, just letting my inner self take over. I really had fun creating these.

Yes - Killer Corn Bread This was part of a magazine several years ago. All their quilt designers were asked to share a favorite recipe. I don't cook often, but when I do - I like to make this no-fail, never dry and dusty corn bread. Try not to think of the calories or cholesterol. But, hey, everything in here is natural I swore I wouldn't add recipes to my blog, but we all have to eat to keep up our strength to read blogs, right? I might even show some pictures of my sweat shop - oops!, sewing room! I cleaned it yesterday (not planned, but I couldn't move in there anymore) and now I can see my fabric!

I now hunt for yarn at thrift shops, Goodwill, Unique here in Fairfax, etc. I especially love to find little packs in ziplock bags and the green Moda Dea Vixen above was bundled with an exotic Di.Vé Makura purple yarn with little poms. I used my double crochet hook and crocheted until there was nothing left. Then I went to Ravelry and hit the jackpot! A lady was selling 10 skeins of Moda Dea for $1 a piece and she works just 8 miles from me! Divine providence, I would say. (Not sure if God knits or crochets?) Met Kelli yesterday and we swapped my $10 for her goodie bag. These are the colors I now have: Moda Dea Fuchsia Moda Dea Red Moda Dea Purple These are my HAPPY colors! This is just like how I feel with my fabric - it's the bright, happy colors that give me great pleasure when I sew. The same is with yarns. Now why did I buy those muted grays and mauves in January? Could it have been the weather? di.vé Starship Yarn The yarn above is about $8 a skein (a...

Moonstruck Quilt - 62" x 62" See the fabric swatches at the Windham Fabrics web site . Fabrics are availble in quilt shops September 1, 2012 This will be a FREE PATTERN in August! Here is a sneak peek at some upcoming fabrics and the pattern I have designed to go with them. Today I feature the two blocks (same pattern, different center 1/4 circle) which will make up the full quilt, size 62" x 62". The fun part of this quilt is that it uses 16 of these blocks in a fun arrangement. I will reveal more of this pattern, along with the full instructions as I finish sewing the blocks. Don't be afraid of curved piecing; I have a no-fail approach that is sure to bring more than one "aha" moment! So, stay tuned for more "reveal" and the pattern, with full size templates. Moonstruck Block #2 - 9" x 9"

Dylan's Squares by Debby Kratovil Block Size: 8" x 8"  Quilt Size: 40" x 40" Well, here it is, my Dylan quilt. I abandoned the plan to show off mirror image blocks and just sewed a few more of this color combination. The quandary? What should I do about a border? Well, I just tried to think outside the box; I'm so happy it's not predictable!  This is an easy quilt and can be sewn in one day. I will post the pattern and yardage later this week, along with a picture of ANOTHER, completely different quilt I'm hoping will be a new workshop. I emptied 3 out 4 suitcases from my teaching this past weekend. Now I've got to get back to work. It was so fun to play with beautiful fabrics from Windham. This has been my Win-Win-Win with Windham week. Hope you like this as much as I do!

I partner with Windham Fabrics to create quilt designs with their gorgeous collections. I received 1/2 yard cuts of the Dylan Collection by Whistler Studios a few days ago and I have allowed myself to sew yesterday and tomorrow, ignoring the suitcases that need to be unpacked, the laundry that needs to be done and other work that's not creative. I have come up with not one but two quilt designs that I'm sharing here (one at a time). Warning! My photography leaves a lot to be desired! The Dylan Collection by Windham Fabrics (in quilt shops August 2012) These lush floral prints in a simple color palette of black, blue, taupe and ecru give me a wide range of options. A variety of scale, color, big and small prints allow me to mix and match with a lot of options. OK? So, what is she doing with them, huh? Well, a very easy quilt . . . 8" Square in a Square Block I am just test driving the fabric and I wanted a very easy quilt that ANYONE could sew both quickly and wit...

I head off to the lovely Mount St. Mary's College in Emmitsburg, MD next week to teach 3 fun classes. Two are projects from my upcoming book, Paper Piecing Perfect Points (Martingale, February 2013). Here is a picture of the book cover. I love, love, love that cover quilt. It's my happy quilt and I called it Katie's Garden. Lots of sharp points, only possible with foundation piecing (those are NOT tiny blocks, btw). Paper Piecing Perfect Points by Debby Kratovil OK, back to what I am teaching next week: The Kaleidoscope Quilt - 10" blocks  The Kaleidoscope Illusions is a class I taught with the Sewing Expo and the pattern is so versatile. My pattern includes color step-by-step directions and a multi-size Kaleidoscope-Ruler to make up to 12" blocks. We will be working with just 3 different block colorings, but as you can see from the quilt below, you can get a different look when the shading and hue of fabrics changes. This is the class I am teaching on...