Sister's Choice Quilts

Centerpiece Tablemat Pattern is a Real Winner

I've got something cute for you today. A new mug rug pattern that would be an adorable Christmas gift. I think I may make a batch of them and give them to some of my besties for Fall/Halloween season. Who wouldn't love a seasonal mug rug?

The pattern is "Centerpiece Tablemats" designed by Terri Staats for Sweet Treasures. I saw it on Instagram, and there is a whole #centerpiecetablemat link you can follow to see what others are doing. Check it out. They are so darn cute, you won't be able to resist. The small mug rug size is around 9" and the largest could be turned into a Christmas tree skirt.

It took me about an hour and a half from start to finish. I started a little after 4 PM and finished just before 6 PM. You should check out the Halloween ones made with Kitty Corn, and the Christmas ones made with Swell Christmas. So adorable!

I was really wishing for a tutorial because I am such a visual learner. If I can't find one, maybe I will dive in and try to make one!

Hope you are all having a great week.

Super Cute Project with Spring Brook

Look at this adorable pattern using Corey Yoder's Spring Brook fabrics. The pattern is free on Fatquatershop.com, and I plan to make it with two charm packs and a bit of extra yardage. The quilt is a mini, at about 30 inches square. How cute would this be on an Easter dining table? Or any time during the spring and summer really.

That bee fabric in yellow is so adorable. I love the shade of bright yellow and sky blue. So so pretty.

This picture is from Corey Yoder's website of her finished quilt.

The pattern is put out by Fatquatershop because they had reached certain goals in a Make A Wish charity drive related to their Serendipity Sew Along. They offer the quilt patterns for the sew-along for free but gently request a donation of $5 for each pattern you download to the Make A Wish Foundation. Each time they reach a goal in their fundraising, they release a free extra project pattern. This mini quilt pattern is one of those celebration-we-did-it ones. 

FQS mentioned that they recently granted a wish to a tiny little girl who is very sick. She looked to be under 3, and wanted to build a teddy bear at one of those Build A Bear places. Is that sweet or what? (I am pretty sure she got more than a teddy bear, but that was all she wished for). Make a Wish seems like such a great charity and makes some dreams come true for some really deserving children.

Hope you all had a great weekend. I spent mine with my father and we had a lovely visit. I have to step up my food game I think. I stopped cooking for him because he never ate what I put in front of him. I started buying pre-made soups and pot pies and so on. You know, things from Trader Joes etc. He would eat them, but I think I can do better. So, I am going back to making things ahead and hoping I can tempt him to eat more than a bite or two.

 

Summer in Kansas is Calling to Me

I am getting quite excited about sewing this new project. It is Summer in Kansas by Carrie Nelson. I want to make this quilt exactly like she did because I can't imagine it being any more perfect. She used two different collections, Canning Day by Corry Yoder in the photo above, and Summer Sweet by Sherri and Chelsi below.

You need a layer cake and a mini charm pack of each. These are older collections and I couldn't find mini charm packs, so I went with the regular size. These fabric collections are just so summery and fresh looking. The colors do not exactly match each other, but somehow they just "go".

You also need 6 yards of Bella 98, and two #11 Cake Mix recipe packs. No doubt about it, this quilt is labor-intensive, with all those half square triangles. Still, I think it will make a fun summer project. I know I posted on this a few weeks ago, but I am just getting in the mood to begin, I guess.

The pattern is free. Here is a link. Well, I have a lot of starching to do, don't I? 

Have a great weekend everyone!

 

Summer in Kansas, a Cake Mix Quilt Pattern

Sometimes you see a quilt and you just have to make it exactly as shown. Typically I will change up a pattern or fabric to suit myself, but sometimes...I just want what the other person made.

This photo from the Moda website is Summer in Kansas, a Cake Mix quilt pattern by Carrie Nelson. She used two layer cakes, one Summer Sweet by Sherri and Chelsi, and the other was Canning Day by Corey Yoder. The pattern is free, be still my heart. Here is a link to it. You also need 2 packages of Cake Mix #11 papers, 6 yards of background, and a charm pack to match each of the layer cakes.

Last year when I wasn't buying fabric, I missed out on these two fabric collections but was able to find layer cakes from sellers online. My NO BUY 2020 was a failure since I seem to be buying all the things I missed out on last year.

I am excited to start this and make it my spring/summer project. I won't be starting it for a while yet. I am planning to finish my Moda BlockHeads 3 before moving on. 

Would you believe I have never used the Cake Mix papers? I have used the smaller version "Cupcake" papers and liked them. I have the Cake Mix book and am intrigued by the idea of using the papers. There are a heck of a lot of half-square triangles in that quilt, so maybe it will be a time saver?

Have a happy Easter everyone, if that is a holiday you celebrate. Our weather is perfect for an egg hunt or a brunch outside. I know there is a ham dinner in my future, so that is something to look forward to. Whatever your plans for the weekend, stay safe and have fun.

 

Cutest Mug Rug Ever

You have to admit this is the most perfect mug rug ever. I am just so pleased with this and want to make one for every woman in my life. If you need a cute, last-minute gift for someone, this might do the trick for you too.

The pattern is a block from one of Lori Holt's books, "Quilty Fun". I added a border to the block to make it a bit larger. It took no time to make, and is such a great gift for a girlfriend, a teacher, a stocking stuffer.  Who wouldn't love one of these? 

I apologize for the brevity of this post. My husband and I have doctor's appointments on Monday and Tuesday and are getting ready for a trip out of town to see the doctors. I have a busy few days coming up! 

Hope you all have a great weekend.

Quarantine Chronicles Day 296

It may not be 296 days of self-isolation, but it sure feels like it.  I had a live video phone call with one of my sisters yesterday and I was embarrassed to have dirty hair, no makeup and sweats on.  She looked much better than I did, I assure you.  It was nice to at least touch base with a living soul other than my husband.

The fabrics in the basket above are slightly different than the ones I posted last week.  I swapped out the former blues for some new ones that are brighter in tone.  The color is called "Cadet Blue".  I like it.  I also received the neutral fabrics I ordered online.  When I order online I try to shop independent shops that have an online presence, rather than "big box" fabric stores.  I occasionally order from the larger outfits, but right now it is the small companies that are getting my business.  And they are so grateful.  In three out of my last five orders I got a nice handwritten note included telling me how much they appreciate my business during these troubled times.

The Piecing the Past Sew Along starts next week, and I am excited about it.  I  have gotten about half the fabrics starched and pressed and ready to go.  I wish this sew-along was a little faster paced than a block a week, but I will live with it.  Heaven knows I have enough other UFOs to work on to fill my time.

These are my most recent Book of the Month Club selections, which got here in record time despite the delays in shipping I hear folks are experiencing.  Have you read any of them?  I love the title "The Guest List- You'd Kill to be On It".  Makes me want to jump right in.

Hope your week is going well.  Gosh, every day is feeling kind of the same isn't it?

More Halloween

All it took was Eva going back to school and some new Halloween patterns and I am back in the sewing room again.  The little pattern above is by Margot Languedoc, whose company is The Pattern Basket.  She is known for her wonderful designs that involve blocks that depict something-strawberries, acorns, pumpkins.  If you want to make something really seasonal, check out her website or her Instagram @thepatternbasket.

This little quilt is only 25" square, which is perfect for my kitchen counter.  I love to have a cute table topper with a candle or floral arrangement on my big counter.  

I've been collecting some pretty oranges for the scrappy pumpkin.  I tried my best to get my hands on some of that black Halloween fabric used in the quilt on the pattern cover, but that ship has apparently sailed.  I did find a super cute black, grey and orange pumpkin print that I could use (upper right in photo).  Unless any of you has a half yard of that black print you'd like to sell me?  It is Gone Haunting by Clothworks from last year.  Let me know!

 

Oh My Goodness. Going Batty.

Can you even?  Is this not the cutest little Halloween block ever?  Actually, it is two blocks from the Night Flight pattern by Basic Grey.  The fabric is Hallo Harvest by Basic Grey.  This was a $130 purchase I do not regret whatsoever.  I am thinking I may not make the entire quilt, but make several table-toppers instead.  One for me, one for my daughter, one for my son in law.  And leftovers for future projects.  I love this fabric so much.

This is the complete kit, which makes a lap-sized quilt.  Those Moda kits that come in these beautiful boxes are just stunning.  My thought is to make table runners consisting of five blocks ( a row of bats and stars blocks).  Don't you love the sprinkling of albino bats throughout the top?  Oh, those fabrics.  Mostly Halloween, but some great "grunge" almost solids, and some beautiful fall florals.  It was so gratifying to open that box for the first time and see this:

The kit appears to consist of the pattern, a fat eighth bundle and three cuts of fabric that seem to be about a yard and a half each.

Hope you all had a terrific weekend!  You can see how I spent mine.

Stripping

My friends, I have been starching and cutting fabric for a week!  I am going to make the Temecula Quilt Company's One Block Sew Along (which is actually over).  I wanted a huge variety of fabrics.  There will be around 360 blocks and I did not want to repeat combinations.  That meant 45 lights and 45 darks, or 90 fabrics total.  I thought I was going to have a real issue getting that many suitable light backgrounds together, but, um, no I didn't.  

My gosh, starching all that fabric took forever.  F.O.R.E.V.E.R.  I must have used 10 bottles of spray starch. But I'm done now, and the strips are all cut-all 180 of them.  You see how I lined them all up on the upstairs railing.  I don't know why I bothered, except to keep track of how many strips I had so far.  They will all end up balled up in a bin while I grab a light and a dark to each block pairing.

So the really ridiculous thing is--how much fabric I have left over.

Just feast your eyes on that pretty sight.  I have an entire bin of mostly fat quarters with four inches cut off.  You will be seeing  more of these in future projects, I promise.

I am so eager to jump in and start making my blocks.  Monday is the first day of Summer Vacation however, and Miss Eva and I have plans.  We need to make a very cool Father's Day card for her daddy, do a cooking project, do some home schooling and go see Aladdin.  So I may have to wait until Tuesday for any sewing  machine action.

Hope you had a splendid weekend.  It warmed up into the low 90s here, so as I predicted, we skipped spring and went right into summer!

Starting Something

Well, this weekend I started something.  And it's been awhile since that has happened.  Honestly, I just have not been excited about any new projects lately.  None of the latest collections, or patterns or color schemes have appealed to me much.  I don't recall ever being in such a creative slump.  All the designs by my favorite designers have seemed to be much of the same as that which they have produced in previous seasons.  Nothing has grabbed me, or sparked that excitement of new possibilities.  

It is making me wonder if my taste in Reproduction fabrics and classic quilt designs has become passé?  Barbara Brackman stated on her blog Civil War Quilts, that the number of reproduction fabric collections at Quilt Market this past weekend was very sparse. 

From the photos I have seen from Spring Market, apparently there is a big trend towards all grey or black, grey and white quilts.  No color.  I am not completely opposed to this concept, it is just going to take me a bit of time to come to terms with the idea.  I crave something new and innovative, but am not sure if that is the direction I want to go.

At any rate, I have been browsing various online sites for glimpses of upcoming kits, collections and patterns.  I found one by 3 Sisters that appealed to me.

3 Sisters has a collection called Cinnaberry that is all red and cream fabrics.  I love the look of this simple design, called Holly Berries, made up entirely of triangles.  I was so close to ordering it when I remembered I had a collection of French General fabrics called Chateau Rouge.  I have hoarded this fabric for years, because it was just too pretty to cut up.  The Chateau Rouge collection came with a free pattern of the same name, and guess what?  It is made up entirely of triangles.

I decided this time that I would shop at home, and make up this quilt that I have been thinking about for years.  The red triangles are actually made up of red strips, which give the quilt top so much texture and dimension.  It is a simple design, but taken just that one step further.

So with Eva and Ozzie's help, I got my fabrics washed and starched over the weekend.  I hope to start cutting today and am keeping my fingers crossed that this will get me out of my quilting doldrums.

How about you?  Am I alone in not relating to a lot of the new trends and collections that have been on offer the past year or so?  What is new and exciting to you?  Please share what you are drawn to lately.  I know I can't be the only one wishing for some inspiration.