Sister's Choice Quilts

New Project: A Quilting Life 2025 BOM

"Whaaat? Another project, you say? And a Block of the Month? Seriously, Nicole, I thought you swore off these things for 2025?"  No, no, no. The project I have in mind is technically a Block of the Month hosted by Sherri McConnell of A Quilting Life. But I don't have a year to get it done. It needs to be finished, quilted, and bound by the end of May, and Sherri's BOM goes through December. I don't have time for that. But she has given me a brilliant idea for a quilt I hope to crack out in a few weeks. Thank you Sherri!

OK, here's the deal. Sherri does a wonderful BOM every year. The patterns are free during the year the BOM takes place, and then you have to buy them if you didn't download the free patterns when you had the chance. This year, each month has a six-inch block that is surrounded by a log cabin setting. Each block finishes at 18"!  That's big. Anyway, by the time you complete 12 blocks you have a really big quilt. You know going into the BOM, you will end up with 12 log cabin blocks with a different cute 6" block in the center.

So here is how I am going rogue with this project. I will not be making Sherri's center 6" block for each month. Instead, for each month, I am going to do my own themed center block that has to do with whatever season/holiday/motif is associated with that month. A heart block for February, a shamrock block for March, an acorn block for September etc etc. The six-inch center heart block above was a Lissa Alexander free pattern  "Zest" in the Moda Blockheads 3 sew-along. The shamrock came from a pattern I ordered off of Etsy.

I don't have time to wait for Sherri to come out with her monthly center block. I will forge ahead and find my own 6-inch seasonal blocks for the center of my 12 monthly themed log cabin blocks. My goal is to complete these easy blocks, send them off to my quilter, and get the quilt back in time to give to Eva as an eighth-grade graduation present by the end of May. How fun is that? Her whole life, we have done seasonal crafts, seasonal cooking projects, and seasonal decorating. Now, she can have a commemorative quilt that will celebrate all those months of the year when we spent time together creating amazing things.

The fabric I am using is Sherri and Chelsi's Laguna Sunrise and Raspberry Summer. I bought a layer cake and a jelly roll in each of those collections. Both lines are cheerful, fun, colorful, and perfect for a young teen's quilt. There are shades of red, blue, green, peach, aqua, citron and more. Each block will pull from one color and be in keeping with a theme associated with the month in question. The background fabric I chose is just amazing, and I recommend that you snap some up before it is sold out. It is a white tone-on-tone (with subtle tiny ditsy flowers) from the Laguna Sunrise collection. This is a great background and would be amazing in so many quilts that need a solid-reading fabric as a background.

Can you tell I am excited about this new project? I get to work with fun colorful fabric and give the quilt to someone I love when it's finished. Win, win, all around! 

 

 

And Some Sewing Happened

Lot's of sewing went on this week. Nothing actually finished, but I do have a lot of irons in the fire right now. The photo above is my Strawberry Garden project. I finished up three blocks with flying geese and six little pinwheel blocks. I love these fabrics and colors.


These are blocks for the Fat Quarter Shop 2012 Designer Mystery project. No, that is not a typo. These blocks are 13 years old. As my sister Kate says, fabric doesn't go bad, so these blocks are as fresh and fun as they were over a decade ago. My friend Lisa D. also finished these blocks recently and set them on the diagonal in a great looking quilt. At this point, I am not absolutely sure what I will do for a setting, but I will come up with something. These blocks are too great to languish any longer!


This is the block I finished most recently, Block 10. It came together so beautifully. I think the secret to getting good points and flat blocks is to starch your fabric and press your seams open. Before I started doing those two things, my blocks were never this accurate. 

I am so excited. I have decided upon a new project, which will be a gift, that I am launching into immediately. I need it done, quilted and bound by the end of May....Stay tuned. 

 

 

 

 

Quilt Journal

Do you keep a quilting journal? I keep a few pages on my quilting projects in an all-purpose journal where I track my reading, favorite recipes, and inspirational ideas. It helps me focus on what I have going on and my aspirational goals.

This past year was a sad one for finishing projects. So many were set aside when my husband was ill. Honestly, I look at my calendar, and October, November, and half of December are practically empty because I couldn't plan anything, much less get anything done. 

In terms of quilting, I do have another spiral notebook where I keep notes on various projects. It comes in very handy when I need to look up what background fabric I used for a quilt! You would not believe how many shades of solid white, off-white, ivory, cream, and ecru there are. It is also handy to keep notes if I change something up in a pattern or if there is an error in  the instructions. 

Keeping a journal helps me organize my thoughts, set and track goals, and improve my self-awareness. Journaling also enhances memory, boosts creativity, and strengthens writing abilities. Reflecting on past entries fosters pride in accomplishments and goals for self-improvement. Journaling also serves as a record of personal experiences, helping me learn from past challenges. Overall, I think it promotes a healthier, more reflective, and intentional way of living.

Besides, it is lovely to sit with a cup of tea and a cookie and write in a journal. You don't have to be a quilter to do that.

Progress on Brio

Well, I've got a sore wrist and feel like my life consists of nothing but trimming half-square triangles. 144 half-square triangles if I recall correctly. That is a lot, and I am thoroughly sick of it and haven't even finished half of them yet. 

These half-square triangles are for the Frivols 8 "Brio" table runner I am making along with Carol at One Stitch at a Time. This is a good lesson on why triangle papers are a good idea. We couldn't use them for this project because our fabric pieces were too small. You still have to trim with triangle papers obviously, but for some reason it doesn't seem like such a boring task.

I don't know, what do you think? If you have to do a gazillon hsts, what method would you go with?

Carol jokingly told me she expected to see a scrappy bear paw block by now, but this is all I've got:

One quarter of one block.

Do let us know in the comments how you would choose to make 144 half-square triangles!

Two More Riley Blake Designs Challenge 2025 Blocks

I made a couple more blocks for the Riley Blake Challenge 2025 project. This quilt is evolving into a red yellow and green quilt! I think I like it. 

I am only using scraps from my Lori Holt bin and am determined not to buy a thing for this project. I don't know how I ended up with so much Lori Holt fabric. I have some of her lovely autumnal-colored fat quarters that I haven't even unwrapped yet. I'd love to do something fall-ish with them. 

I've made six blocks so far. I see a touch of aqua made it into a couple of blocks, but I will leave it.

Out of the six blocks I have made so far, I have not cared for two offerings. What I did in those cases was to pull free patterns from the Riley Blake Challenge archives of previous years. My favorite Riley Blake designers don't let me down, and I have found substitute patterns by Sandy Gervais and Lori Holt. Heather Peterson and Beverly McCullough also have some nice blocks available. Be sure you check out the archives for patterns you might like.

I had a productive weekend despite some lovely warm springy weather. My husband and I were able to spend some time in the sunshine. Our gardener came over to do some extra work for us, and we had him plant six bare-root roses in big containers on our front and back porches. There, they will be protected from the deer, who consider roses a delectable salad.

Hope you all had a great weekend and will get lots done this week! That's my plan anyway.

Starburst by Amber Elliott-Block 6 Riley Blake 2025 Challenge

This is Block 6 in the 2025 Riley Blake Challenge, Starburst, designed by Amber Elliott. I've been fooling around with this sew-along, not fully committed to seeing it through. There have been six blocks so far and I've done four.

It is a gorgeous block, but the way the pattern instructions directed, I thought there were too many seams. The center unit was four half-square triangles, and I changed it up to a 4 1/2" square in a square unit. Those star points were supposed to be two half-square rectangles. I changed those up by making it a paper pieced unit finishing at 3 1/2" by 4 1/2".

Have you ever drafted your own paper pieced unit? It really isn't difficult, and this piece in particular was super simple. 

The first step is to draft the pattern. The unfinished piece is 3 1/2" by 4 1/2". Inside that shape is the 1/4" seam allowance/stitching line. Draw diagonal lines from the upper midpoint to the left and right lower corners.


Line your pieces up together and stitch right sides together on the drawn diagonal line. I cut my green pieces a full one inch larger than the width of the finished unit. (3 1/2" x 5 1/2").


This is what the unit looks like when pressed open and before trimming. You can see how much fabric is wasted. Oh well.


Trim on your outside drawn line to 3 1/2" by 4 1/2".


And there is your lovely trimmed unit. Now tear the paper away.


There is your perfectly sized foundation pieced star point unit. No seams through the middle! Whenever I can eliminate unnecessary seams, I am a happy camper.

Hope you all have a great weekend. I plan to do some sewing and some reading and get outside to enjoy the warmer weather we have been promised.

 

 

 

 

Lippies I am Loving Lately

Have you tried lip oils? Think of lip oil as a skin tint or glow booster for your lips. 

Lip oils offer deep hydration, keeping lips soft and smooth while preventing dryness and chapping. Unlike traditional lip balms, they provide a lightweight, non-sticky feel with a glossy finish. Packed with nourishing ingredients like jojoba, coconut, and argan oils, they help repair and protect lips from environmental damage. Many lip oils also contain antioxidants and vitamins that promote healthier lips over time. They enhance natural lip color, giving a subtle, plump appearance without irritation. Additionally, lip oils can be worn alone or over lipstick for extra shine and moisture, making them a versatile addition to any beauty routine.

I have to admit to a bit of a lip oil addiction. I have a lot of them from several different brands, from drugstore to high end.

The least expensive lip oils I have are the Glow Reviver Oils from Elf. They retail for around $8 and are available at Target, Walmart, CVS, and Amazon. Super sheer color. They contain avocado, apricot, and pomegrante oils. 

These are a new discovery: L'Oreal's Plump Ambition lip oils. They are around $10 each and are available at drugstores and big box stores, as well as Ulta and Amazon. The color payoff is a bit bolder with these than with Elf. They are infused with hyaluronic acid and tripeptides. 

Merit, my latest beauty brand obsession, offers a great lip oil, the first one I ever tried. My favorite color is Marakesh, but I just got a new one called Sangria that is beautiful. These Tinted Lip Oils are so emollient that your lips will think they are having a treatment. They contain shea butter, jojoba oil, and grapeseed oil. $24.


These Clarins Lip Comfort oils are some of the best I have used. They come out with limited release colors in the summer, which are fun to collect. They are actually the perfect thing to put on your lips during the summer. The color payoff is quite sheer, and they do an amazing job of conditioning your lips. They contain organic sweet briar rose oil, jojoba oil, and hazelnut oil. $30


As you can see, even the darkest shade is very sheer and has little color payoff. It is great when you want something on your lips but don't need the full lipliner/matching lipstick effect.


The Clarins Lip Perfector Nourishing Balm is my new favorite lip product. It is thicker than a lip oil and has a much stronger color payoff. The little sponge applicator makes it so easy to apply. It is more of a lip gloss or lip balm than an oil, but still delivers a super-hydrating and conditioning treatment to your lips. $30

If you are like me and don't want to go a full lipstick route, you might enjoy these lip oils and balms. Lip oils and balms provide deep hydration, preventing dryness and chapping, unlike regular lipsticks, which can be drying. They offer a natural, glossy finish while nourishing lips with essential oils and vitamins. Many contain soothing ingredients, promoting healthier lips over time, making them ideal for daily, long-term lip care.

Hope you enjoyed my share of some of the products I am loving lately!

 

 

 

Loving Lately February 2025- Merit Cosmetics

I haven't done a Loving Lately post in a while, so I thought I'd share with you all some products I have been enjoying. I have known about Merit cosmetics for some time and had purchased some previously. It recently came to my attention that I haven't been using them correctly. I watched a few YouTube videos on the way to apply them and am now a total convert to that line of makeup products and have even ordered more items from their line. 

Merit is a clean makeup brand that helps you look like "you" and not someone with a face full of heavy makeup. It is easy to apply, melts right into the skin, and is just about impossible to mess up. If you are over 50, you may suffer from drier skin and find that regular liquid foundation settles into fine lines, emphasizes pores, and sits on your skin in an unflattering way. With proper application, I think you will find that Merit is a brand that, with minimal effort, gives you a natural and flattering look with light coverage.

My most recent order came in the cutest little tan corduroy pouch. It is perfect for keeping all my Merit products together and will be nice for travel as well.


The keystone of Merit cosmetics is their Minimalist Blending Perfection stick. They claim that this product is not exactly a foundation or a concealer, but it will replace both in your makeup routine. The blending brush makes the product melt into your skin effortlessly. You won't be able to see the product sitting on your skin, but you will look like yourself, only better! I have been using the color Dune, which is perfect for my light neutral skin color. Bone is a bit lighter, and Ochre is a bit darker. They have a total of 30 shades, so you will find something that works.


The critical aspect to successful foundation stick application is to prep your skin in advance. If your skin isn't moisturized properly, the product will not apply smoothly and melt into the skin. Merit has a serum and moisturizer that work very well. However, if you already have a skin care routine that you like, keep using it. The thing that is critical is that you must let your moisturizer set for a few minutes after applying it before using your foundation stick. Let it soak in and get your skin all plump and happy. 


If you have super dry skin like I do, you will benefit from using a makeup primer such as Lancome's La Base. It gives your skin some extra slip that makes the stick foundation just melt into your skin. I apply this after moisturizing and before using the foundation stick. Your foundation will blend in effortlessly.

When you apply the stick foundation, just dab a few stripes on your face and spread them out with your fingers or the makeup blending brush. You don't need very much. The idea is not to cover your skin entirely with the product. Use just a few dabs and spread it out. You will get light coverage, and your skin will look fresh and natural.  It does not look like a lot of product in the stick, but if you use it right, it will last a long time. 


Another product I like is the Merit Bronze Balm, a super sheer wash of color that will liven up your complexion. I apply it in the hollows under my cheekbones and a bit on my forehead. It is extremely subtle. You can apply this with your fingers or a brush. I have the lightest shade Quince. 


I couldn't live without the Merit Flush Balm blush. I have several colors, but my most recent one is Lusitano, which gives a lovely peachy flush to my cheeks. Merit also makes a sheer Day Glow Highlighter which is not sparkly in the least. It just adds a subtle gleam to your cheeks. I have the lightest color, Cava.


I love my Merit cosmetics and think you might too. They have a deal on their website where you can get all the products I mentioned today in one convenient set. You can custom-pick all your colors. Or, shop in person at Sephora and pick things out in person and purchase individually.

Here are some instructional YouTube videos that I found helpful in regard to the proper way to apply the products: Speed Beauty, Wayne Goss, and Lisa J.

I bought all these products with my own money and this post is not sponsored.

This post was getting long, so I decided to stop for now. Check back tomorrow and we will talk lip products!

 

 

 

Frivols 8- Brio

Imagine my surprise and glee when I discovered I had a stash of American Jane fabric that I could add to my Frivol #8, "Brio"! Actually, I needed a bit more fabric because I was a bit short after starching the fabric that came with the kit. I started this quilt pattern "Houses" a few years (maybe a lot of years) back and never finished it. I am not sure I need a full-sized quilt in a houses motif, so perhaps I will make a table topper and be done with it, freeing up the remaining American Jane fabric for this Frivols project.


I also discovered an entire American Jane Honeybun, which I can use for the pieced inner border on my project. Shop at home, people.

As you can see, I finished the four patches and have started on the half-square triangles.

I am not a big fan of the method used to make these half-square triangles. You take a 5 1/2 inch square and draw a grid on it, which you then sew along, and then cut out your hsts.

You are essentially making your own triangle "paper". This method works, but you still have to trim the units down to 2 1/4", and that takes time. Lots of steps. At any rate, I am making progress and hope to show you my first scrappy Bear Paw block soon.


Have you ever, in your entire life, seen such a cute handbag? This was my Valentine's present from my daughter Sara. The background is kind of a denim blue and the print is pink and red cherries. And notice the cherry purse charm on the side. Oh my goodness. I adore this bag. Do enlarge the photo to enjoy all its wonderfulness. 

It was a three-day weekend here in the US. Presidents' Weekend. I had a lovely three days and am so happy and relaxed right now. Nothing major on the calendar for a couple of weeks, so that is excellent. 

 

Remember Frivols?

Do you remember back in 2016 Moda Fabrics did something called Frivols?  Each month they came out with an adorable little tin that had a current fabric line and pattern from one of their designers. Finishing kits were available as well. The program was quite pricey, but I collected 11 out of the 12 tins and projects. I think I have sewn up perhaps three of them, which means the rest have been sitting on my shelf looking cute for almost 10 years. 

That actually was the problem. They were almost too cute to open up and take apart. One of my favorites was Frivols 8, called "Brio", designed by American Jane (Sandy Klop). Sandy is known for her bright primary colors and 30s retro fabrics. This collection was called "Bread and Butter" and is the cutest thing ever. 

My friend Carol, over at One Stitch At a Time, has been talking about going through her stash of kits and actually making some of them up. She mentioned Frivols and got my attention. We have chatted a bit and have decided to sew with one another and crack out this little kit. I may switch things up a bit and make my version a rectangular runner to fit my dining table. I think it will be adorable for this spring and summer. I. love the scrappy Bear's Paw block that is featured.

Stay tuned for more info, and go check out Carol's blog and see what she has to say!

Meanwhile, it has been raining cats and dogs over here in my neck of the woods. I've had to take a reluctant Archie out in the deluge to do his business. I am not sure which of us looks like the bigger dork: me in Dennis's rain gear or Archie in his doggie raincoat. We both look totally stupid.

Happy Valentine's Day and have a great weekend!