I'm pulling my Christmas themed quilts and toppers out of the closets. They are SO excited to see the light of day. I wanted something small to send my oldest sister who already has several quilts I've made for her. I don't want her to roll her eyes, but just welcome something small for her holiday table. This is a block I made several years ago based on Katja Marek's calendar. It is the November 19 block and I chose Christmas fabrics from the Benartex Collection: Festive Season . I made this in late 2017. Christmas Star Hexagon Block I cheated and increased the size and rotary cut and stitched the patches! I drew it in Adobe Illustrator and figured out the sizes to cut. Of course I could piece it via EPP, but didn't want a little block. As you can see from this diagram, it will be 12" high and approximately 15" wide. Size for cutting patches (it makes sense to me, btw) And here it is with lovely borders added: Christmas Hexie Star: 20" x 23" So,...

. . . for now, at least! (Check last week's posts to see the other 3 quilts I made with many of the same fabrics.) I emptied my workshop box of all the blocks and parts using the same fabrics and found that I could squeeze one more quilt out of them! Added a lovely yellow print for the setting triangles and here she is! Holiday Splendor #2: 46" x 48"  These are the units I put together with larger triangles. These went on the back: Diamonds and triangles I had lots of red diamonds with small yellow triangles. Two different reds, but when you're trying to squeeze another quilt out, it's ok if they don't "match." I put the units shown above together for the center of the quilt back! I made two of these. Found an awesome print at Joann's last week and pieced the back. What do you think? I wanted to make sure there was a rod pocket at the top but ran out of the main print. Found something with similar colors. It works and more than that - the quilt i...

We had a holiday party here last Sunday and I hung up most of my Christmas quilts: walls, over the banister, draped on the backs of chairs. Then there were the table runners. It was like a Christmas museum. I think I overwhelmed my guests, but they loved it (or so they said). I'll share just a few here. Old and new quilts and those in between. This little quilt is at least 30 years old. I cut out some printed circle motifs and appliquéd them to a background square. Christmas Circle Motifs Another oldie is my Rose Wreath and Oak Leaf quilt. It technically isn't a Christmas quilt but the colors are! Rose Wreath and Oak Leaf quilt I made a snowman quilt. I've lived in a state that gets snow in the Winter, so it works here! We haven't had a white Christmas in years, though! I've made several table toppers using single blocks. This was made several years ago with a cardinal in the center and Christmas ornament motifs in the surrounding logs. One more topper (quite a bit ...

This is a repost from July featuring  Merry and Mod  fabrics by Windham. My finished quilt is hanging in my hallway and I can see it several times a day. This is such a fun and easy technique that I'm sure you'll want to try it with your own holiday fabrics (or go buy some of the Merry and Mod!) Merry and Mod by Windham Fabrics Here also is Diamond Dust, a set of blenders that I used with Merry and Mod. They are rich rainbow colors and even include some neutrals (black, browns, grays). Can you say "sparkle!" Diamond Dust  blenders I like to build my quilts from the center out. I knew I wanted to feature that lovely circular motif and so I grabbed one of my tried and true patterns and set to work. Remember, I only have fat quarters (and that means that's all I have for borders, too). You'll have to follow along to find out where I'm going! I figured out the size circle I needed to capture as much of the motif as I could. Yes, that also meant that I "bi...

My Block a Day perpetual calendar was first published in 2007. It remained a favorite for 10 years. I still sell the CD with all 366 blocks in 2 sizes and 12 quilts. To say it was a lot of work would be an understatement! I worked on it for the better part of a year (and other things, too). Here are the blocks for December 21 (Winter Solstice and first day of Winter) through the day after Christmas. I want to thank Patricia Bryant of Australia for these photos. She made every single block for the entire year! Garrett Window - December 21 block. 6" Alpine Cross is the December 22 block. 10" Market Square is the December 23 block. 8" Market Square Holiday Leaves is the December 24 block. 12". Hey! What's with those bugs, Patricia?!! Holiday Leaves Christmas Star is the December 25 block. 15". Shooting Star is the December 26 block. 8". Santa's waving bye-bye until next year. Here are some of my vintage Christmas decorations from at least 35 years ag...

Just a few more days and then we get to swing back and gather a minute of sunshine each day again! I really shouldn't complain because we've had a lot of sunshine so far in December (except for the snow yesterday!) I made this block 3 years ago. It's based on a design from Katja Marek's Hexagon calendar. But I didn't want to English Paper Piece it. I upsized it and rotary cut the patches. Katja's block is 6" high (sort of). My block is 12" high and was pieced very quickly! Hexagon block I added some borders and here she is! I quilted it on my Handi Quilter Sweet 16. So nice to work on something small. Happy Hexagon Table Topper Here is the schematic I drew up. All patches can be cut using normal rulers; you don't need a specialty template. I have a few more happy Christmas themed projects to share. I have them strategically placed around my house to remind me that the dark days will soon be past.

Today's quilt goes all the way back to March of 1998, when I first designed the digital pattern. I didn't make it in real fabrics until several years later. I call it Shark's Teeth . I only have one quilt made, but a lot of sample blocks. First a sample block (or two): Shark's Teeth: 10" block Shark's Teeth: 10" block Here is the digital file from March of 1998. Very colorful! Shark's Teeth digital file from March 1998 As you can probably tell, this is paper pieced. There's no way I can get such sharp points without it! Here are a few shots of the blocks in process. This is a 5" x 10" unit. Paper pieced unit from back before trimming Paper pieced unit from back AFTER trimming, leaving 1/4" seams Then I take the paper off. This is another set, this time in red and gold (Christmas colors). Four units (5" x 10"), both front and back Four units arranged as a square block (10" x 10") But I can arrange them as a border!...