Blog Posts

Meet A Finish-A-Long Host - Marci Girl Designs (Me!)

6/15/2017

Hello! My name is Marci Debetaz and I blog over at Marci Girl Designs and this month it is my turn to share all about myself as one of the 2017 Global Finish-A-Long hosts. So here it goes...

Here I am, 4' 11.5" tall, so yeah I'm short and this photo was taken a little over a year ago but I mostly look the same, or at least I like to think so. I am currently 36 years old in case any of you were wondering because I know I have somewhat of a baby face. I was born in Fort Walton Beach, Florida, USA but have lived most of my life now in Louisiana. My family moved a lot when I was growing up, back and forth between Florida and Louisiana to finally settle in Louisiana much to my disliking, because honestly who wants to leave the beach for swampland? Not me. Anyways I went to Middle and High School in New Iberia, Louisiana and then attended College in Lafayette, Louisiana (about a 40 minute drive.) I met my husband in my second year of College, we both were majoring in Industrial Design and we fell in love. (Oh so sweet!) So we dated a few years, got engaged and then married all before we finished College. We graduated College together a semester after the wedding, both with degrees in Industrial Design. We found jobs, worked, you know, regular married life and then a few years later we bought our first house.

Here is our MAJOR fixer upper 13 years ago when we bought it (though this photo was taken after some serious cleaning up of the yard.)

Here is our home today, and what you can't see on the back corner of this house is the major addition we are adding and have been working on since February of this year, doing ALL of the work ourselves. We are hoping to be finished by Christmas, but who knows, fingers crossed. I had to mention our house because it has been a major focus of all my free time this year, which stinks because I miss sewing and quilting but will totally be worth it when we are done.

Ok, I got off track. So after we bought our house we had three kids, two boys, 9 and 5 and our little girl who just turned 2. I don't post about them directly on social media for their privacy but I promise they are super cute. It was after my first child was born that I really picked up the sewing/quilting bug again. I say "again" because I grew up sewing and quilting. My mom did both and taught me. I started by making Barbie doll clothing, then that turned into small quilts and sewing my own clothes through High School. Then when I was in College (and falling in love) I didn't have much time for those hobbies and they fell by the wayside. After my first was born I became a stay at home mom and discovered I had lots of free time during naps. Thus my hobbies began anew!

I started up my hobby again making handbags and pouches which I quickly realized I had way too many handbags and pouches, so I opened up an Etsy shop. I had my shop open for a few years until I closed it at the end of 2011 right before my second son was born. I always had intentions of opening again after his birth but alas it never happened. I do hope to one day open up my shop but for now I am enjoying sewing for my family and friends.

It wasn't long after I started sewing again that I discovered the world of blogs and designer fabric. Let's just say that was a total game changer for me and the true obsession began. I decided to start my own blog in February of 2010 and have been doing so on and off ever since. I use my blog as a form of diary or portfolio of things I have made through the years and though I find the writing difficult I am glad that I push myself to do so because it is so nice to go back and read about my own projects, many of which I have already forgotten about.

I love participating in Quilt and Sew Alongs and the occasional competition (for fun, I don't want to stress about it.) The above quilt was created for the Emerald Pantone Quilt Challenge (I can't remember the year.) It currently hangs in my bedroom. This quilt is my original design and entitled, "Emerald Cut."

I will still occasionally make handbags and pouches, I design my own patterns plus make them from independent pattern designers. The pouch above is one of my designs.

I make way more quilt tops than finished quilts, sadly I have a huge WIP pile. The photos above and below are examples of two of these quilt tops awaiting quilting. The top is a One Block Wonder quilt created from just one large scaled print fabric. The quilt below is another Pantone Quilt Challenge, the color that year was Radiant Orchid, this quilt is also my own design. It is one of my personal favorites.

In 2014 I was chosen to be a contestant in an online sewing challenge called "Sewvivor." The bag below was my entry for the very first round, which was nautically themed. Though I didn't make it past the first round, I made a great new set of online sewing friends and had a ton of fun in the process.

Within the first year or so of blogging I also found Flickr and through Flickr I found out about online Quilting Bee's. I quickly joined several and have never looked back. I made friends in those first groups, that I still have today and we are still sewing bee blocks for each other. Though Flickr isn't as predominant these days, things have shifted over to Instagram and the fun continues. A few years ago most of my quilting bees were coming to a finish and two of my fellow bee mates decided to create a new hand picked group that they named Bee Sewcial. The concept of the group is that we stay connected and in touch, use only solids and work in improv. This is our third year together and honestly one of my favorite things to do every month. The creativity involved and the friendship is just so fantastic. At the end of our first year together we opened up the sewing prompts to everyone interested and anyone can now sew along with us using the hashtag #inspiredbybeesewcial.

I guess that about sums of my life. Stay at home mom to three, in between running the kids to school and nap times I sew and quilt. I have tried crochet, knitting, tatting, beading and about every other craft you can think of but in the end I always return to sewing and quilting. I love improv but I also love traditional quilt blocks. I love to sew clothes, handbags and pouches. Don't ask me to alter your clothes or to iron like normal people. It isn't going to happen. I have a huge pile of WIP's and have been participating in the Finish-A-Long since its inception. I was thrilled to be asked to host this year and I have been slowly working through that pile. I do so hope you join us this year!

I'll end my post reminding everyone that in 10 days the second quarter finishes link up opens, you still have time to finish those projects so get to work!

Thank you for joining me today, Marci

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Meet A Finish-A-Long Host - Just Jude Designs

5/22/2017

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Once a month (and two months, twice) I will be featuring one of my co-hosts for the Finish Along so you can get to know them better. This month is Judith from Just Jude Designs and I'll wrap up here so you can read about her life directly from her! Enjoy!

Hi everyone, my name is Judith of Just Jude Designs and it's my turn this month to tell you a little about myself as one of the 2017 Finish-A-Long hosts.

I was born in Northern Ireland, and apart from 7 years living in England, I have lived here all my life. I currently live 5 minutes away from where the famous RMS Titanic was built in Belfast 1911.

I started sewing when I inherited my Nanny Maud's singer treadle sewing machine at the age of 11. I had already been crocheting clothes for my dolls from the age of 9, but now I could sew them blankets too!

When I started high school (11) I took Needlework. On my first day, I walked into the Needlework room and saw it was filled with electric sewing machines, but tucked away in the corner was a Singer Treadle machine! I pleaded with the teacher to let me use it, and then spent the next 3 years making garments on it! The start of my happy place!

I continued sewing on my Singer Treadle, teaching myself naive patchwork from recycled clothes, curtains and scraps. (I still love working with recycled textiles today!) I made my first little quilt, a pram quilt, when I was pregnant with my first daughter (1995).

2 days before my 3rd daughter was born, I turned 30, and my family bought me my first electric sewing machine. I'd been sewing for 20 years and had never used an electric machine! I fell in love with my Brother machine, and then upgraded to a Pfaff Quilt Expression a few years later, which I still use today.

When my youngest daughter started school, I went 'back to school' myself, studying City & Guilds Textile and Design. I thought it was time I learned how to sew and quilt properly! My motivation for taking this 2 year course was therapeutic, a kind of 'play therapy', recommended by my counsellor to overcome depression. It worked!

I finished and passed my course and was invited to teach patchwork to a group of women with mental health issues at a local community centre. I didn't even know how to teach patchwork, but I overcame my nerves and quickly started on a new passion for teaching and inspiring others to love patchwork too.

For 2 years I taught women suffering from a wide range of mental health problems and saw first hand the therapeutic benefits they experienced after only a few short weeks of sewing. One lady in particular, old before her time, stooped with low self worth and heavily reliant on a walking stick, made her first patchwork cushion and within 6 weeks was coming to class without her stick and walking tall!! Like many others, learning a new skill within a caring community, and having something to show and be proud of, elevated her self-esteem and ignited hope and positivity in many areas of her life.

Over the past 10 years I have continued teaching in different venues, running my own programme of classes and also teaching for others. I also design quilts, cushions and bags for a number of UK based quilting magazines, and sell my patterns via my website, Etsy and Craftsy.

As a sole trader it is important for me to connect with other creatives, both professionally and personally. Being part of the quilting blogging community for the past 6 and a half years has been a hugely positive and affirming experience for me, and it has been my privilege to be a part of many bees, swaps and charity groups.

Brit Bee 2012

If you have made it this far, thank you! Thank you for taking the time to read this and being part of Finish-A-Long 2017.

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Meet A Finish-A-Long Host - Studio Sew of Course

5/8/2017

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Once a month (and two months, twice) I will be featuring one of my co-hosts for the Finish Along so you can get to know them better. This month is Sandra (who technically isn't a host but rather the social media director) and I'll wrap up here so you can read about her life directly from her! Enjoy!

The 2017 Finishalong has a global team of hosts, and one by one they are introducing themselves in the "Meet the Host" posts throughout the year. Now I am NOT a Finishalong host, but I have the honour (!) of being the person behind the Finishalong Instagram and Facebook accounts (Social Media Director). And in that role I have been asked to introduce myself, too.

If you are meeting me today for the first time, you are very welcome to my blog Studio Sew of Course, where I share my quilts and other stitching, as well as glimpses of my garden and the area where I live.

Who am I?

My name is Sandra, and I was born and raised in The Netherlands. And before you think, "tulips, clogs, and windmills" that is not quite how it is living there. I never lived in a windmill, for one, though I lived in many places!

However, I did cycle every day to school at the other end of town - yes, everyone does cycle in The Netherlands! And in my student days I even went on a cycling/camping holiday to England with friends.

And I did not wear clogs... until I started doing a lot of gardening at our first proper "adult" house in Kent (UK). They do take some getting used to, but are perfectly warm and dry, and so easy to slip in and out of!

I also LOVE cheese, any cheese! And nowhere can you find such a wide selection of cheese as in The Netherlands, I think.

I studied at the Agricultural University in Wageningen (NL), and thoroughly enjoyed living in this small university town. Cycling all over of course! I spent a half year doing my internship in New Zealand, and eventually ended up with a MSc degree, and a future husband just months before he finished his studies and left to do a PhD abroad.

And so started my international life... Following my heart, and his work opportunities, we lived in many countries for relatively short periods of time. From three months to five years in one place, we lived in many different countries, in between coming back in The Netherlands for a while as well. And now we have ended up in Ireland, and have lived in this house longer than anywhere I have ever lived...

my first quilt, completely hand stitched

Growing up, I was often crafting, learning crochet and dress making from my mother, knitting from a neighbour, and many other crafts from magazines and books.
In England I came across my first patchwork quilt, and from then on I needed to learn how to make them. Beginner's classes started me of with drafting blocks, making templates and hand sewing (no rulers and rotary cutters at first!), followed by more classes, workshops, books and magazines, always wanting to learn more. A visit to a quilt exhibition has me peering closely at the way certain effects have been achieved, even now, so many years later. I just LOVE to learn new things!

Moving so often, quilt making also gave me an opportunity to find new people and make friends wherever I went. In some places it took a while to find out about them, but always I did find some group or other of friendly and welcoming quilters. And soon enough I was teaching quilt making, too.

Then in 2012, I started a City & Guilds Level 3 Certificate course, and as part of that we set up a (private) blog to share notes and work between us students. Which led me to start reading blogs, and starting my own blog soon after. Since I have a compulsion to stitch and sew (I sew, of course!), and fill the blog with my creative works, its inspiration and anything that takes my fancy, I named it Studio Sew of Course, and followed by being "sewofcourse" for all social media. I am very active especially on Instagram, but can be found elsewhere as well if you are so inclined.

Of course, I learned so much again in the course! The range of techniques covered in City & Guilds is enormous, and the design process poses challenges of its own. The course includes many, many samples and small projects, as well as five main items to be made, see my City & Guilds page for some of it.
Since the course my way of quilt making has changed, too. I have always been easily tempted to try something new, but now I'd try anything. And of course I made the most wonderful friends!!

In all those years I mainly hand quilted my quilts, not having a lot of confidence to use my domestic machine for quilting. This has led to a rather large number of half-quilted quilts, and unquilted quilt tops! Then I discovered the Finishalong a couple of years ago, and joining in has helped me to reduce the number of WIPs to a more acceptable amount. I also got a lot of practice in machine quilting as part of the City & Guilds course, so my confidence has grown somewhat. Now I have to just put it into practice some more... and remember to quilt with a less stops and starts - I hate tying in a million threads! Machine quilting may help finish some of my projects a bit quicker.

What's next?

My current Finishalong list contains some rather varied projects, and is not in danger of being finished any time soon. Besides, there are more projects in the house that haven't even made it on the list (yet). I can see my list grow longer before it will get any smaller! I do like the idea that I am working to finish those quilts, but I won't be beating myself up over it. And only projects I still like are making it onto the list in the first place.

I still teach a weekly quilt group in our local library, and we hold a yearly exhibition of our work there, too. They have a great exhibition space!
I am also working on another pattern or two (my few available patterns can be found on the Patterns page), I have plans to improve and extend the blog/website, and ideas for several new quilts are being turned over in my head... I have also been editing quilt patterns for several people over the past few years, too, and hope to do some more of that. I just love to puzzle on the quilt maths, and improving pattern instructions.

Besides that, I have a part-time job, we have three boys (13, 18, and 22), and a large (and rather unconventional) garden:

And I love going on walks and taking photographs (these are from last weekend):

One thing is for sure: I won't be bored for a long time yet!!

Sandra

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Meet a Finish-A-Long Host - Throw A Wrench in the Works

4/15/2017

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Once a month (and two months, twice) I will be featuring one of my co-hosts for the Finish Along so you can get to know them better. This month is Ella and I'll wrap up here so you can read about her life directly from her! Enjoy!

Hi, I'm Ella, here at throwawenchintheworks. *waves hello* Welcome to a Meet the Maker Finish-A-Long installment, featuring me!

If you're new to the my blog, let me tell you a bit about me. I'm a teacher in Atlanta. (Still trying to wrap my head around the recent bridge collapse on I-85.) I've moved around a lot in my life, but I think Atlanta is home now. (I do miss the fall in Upstate NY, but I don't miss the winters.) I love Atlanta. It's extremely diverse. I love the blend of big city and neighborhoods. I love The Center for Puppetry Arts (and its huge Henson collection).

I love the Botanical Gardens.

I LOVE Dragoncon!

I live here with my husband (commonly referred to by me as The Pirate...because Pirates are awesome), a smooshy senior cocker spaniel (who has ruined me for all other dogs and who I need to clone into an army of lovey dogs), and a slightly evil tuxedo kitty (think Brain from "Pinky and the Brain").

Obligatory animal pictures:

(Sorry, the tongue is a bit disturbing, but I still find her forcible grooming, usually limited to his floofy hair, HILARIOUS.)

I'm new to hosting the Finish-a-Long, but I've been a long time participant (and long time overachieving list maker). I started blogging back in 2011. A bit of trivia about my blog name. I'm also a bellydancer (although my knee issue has me a bit sidelined right now), hence the wench part. I tend to throw myself into things whole-heartedly, but I'm also a klutz...so, um, the wench in the works. I didn't think about how often folks would read it as "wrench" and have trouble finding my blog. Ah well.

Ironically, I used to teach photography and now most of my pictures tend to be taken in my poorly lit living room at odd hours of the night. I *can* take better pictures; I *should* take better pictures; I'm just mostly working on things in the night-time. I apologize for that.

I started blogging the summer I decided to officially learn how to quilt. I've been sewing and knitting since I was little. (My mom taught me how to sew, by hand and by machine. My aunt taught me to knit when I was in third grade.) I made a quilt for my dorm room in college, but I don't count it as a quilt that was completely mine because my mom hand tied it. It didn't survive many washings.

I don't actually have most of my first quilts any more from back in 2011.
When I started sewing again back in 2011, after many years of hiatus, I was initially obsessed with disappearing nine patches. I gave most of them away. The one below went to a friend going through chemo.

In my first foray into non disappearing 9 patch quilts, I made a HORRIBLE quilt. I used crappy fabric that did NOT stand up to being washed, which was probably also a product of my seams being totally inconsistent. Ahem, I was in a horrible Hawaiian shirt theme for the quilts.

It was part of a Row Robin that was launched online. I loved the community that I found there. Folks were supportive and kind. That led to swaps and lots of groups on Flickr. (Remember when Flickr was awesome? *Sigh.*) I did a ton of block swaps, even ran the 4x6 for a while. I admit, I have not been blogging as much as I did in the past. Now, I tend to spend time over on Instagram, but the online community is still HUGELY important to me.

I felt like, as I had with the bellydance community, I found a "tribe" to which I belonged. I had space to learn, people were so generous with their knowledge, and I could let my geek flag fly. I got to meet folks in real life from my first do.good.stitches group visiting Atlanta, Sewing Summit in Salt Lake City, Sewtopia here in Atlanta, Sisters in Oregon, and many years of The Stash Bash. I'm kind of a spazz and feel incredibly awkward in big social groups. Going to new places feels like a big deal. (If you ever meet me, this won't necessarily feel true. I TALK A LOT. I TALK MORE when I'm nervous.) I feel lucky to have met so many awesome, amazing women who remain important to me.

Charity is still a fundamental part of my sewing. I run the Serenity Circle as part of do.good.stitches. My circle makes quilts for hospice. I do this to honor my grandmother. She was a maker her whole life, making dresses for mission work, mittens in the winter, newborn items for hospitals. When she died, I saw how much the crochet blanket a stranger made impacted my mother. I'd love to do that for someone I will never meet with my quilts, to give some comfort in a really difficult time. I try to make as many as I can each year.

I've started doing a kindness project this year. I was feeling overwhelmed by how mean the world was seeming. I was constantly stressed. Sewing helped me deal with that. So far, I made over 40 infinity scarves to give to women I know to let them know they are amazing and loved and seen. My next project is pincushions. This lets me do at least something small to impact others, to spread a bit of love.

I've grown a lot as a quilter in the last 7 years. I still have a long way to go. (I still mostly straight-line. FMQ is still my nemesis.) I'm still addicted to QALs. I seem to have to have AT LEAST a dozen things spinning at a time. I can't seem to walk away from a challenge. I have only put 2 quilts in shows (the poppy below and the hexy garden). I'm trying to get braver about that. Quilting is still my least favorite part. I want to learn how to use a long arm this year. Goals!

Here are some of my favorite finishes:

I have another mahoosive finish-a-long list for Quarter 2 (I'm a card carrying member of Archie the Wonder Dog's #ridiculouslylongFAList)!

Here are a couple of WIPs that I will hopefully complete this quarter:

I'm looking forward to cheerleading this year. Y'all are amazing! Thank you to the phenomenal women of the Finish-A-Long for letting me join in the fun.

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My Quarter 2 2017 Finish-A-Long List

4/6/2017

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I made a decision to have a longer list this quarter. Last quarter I just had three projects and I felt very limited because sometimes you just don't want to work on a project, hence why it becomes a WIP. Be it that I have at least 20 WIP quilts plus a host of other smaller projects it just doesn't make sense to limit myself so much. Yes, I know I will not finish all these projects but my goal is 4 of the 7, more than half. Let's have a look at what I hope to accomplish or at least work on.

1. Economy Blocks Quilt - This one rolls over from the first quarter where it was just blocks. Now it is basted and ready to quilt. I have a plan and hope to work on this one next week as I really want to do some quilting.

2. Tooth Fairy Pillows - I have had these two tooth fairy pillows sitting at this stage for almost a year now, they are for my two boys. My oldest has one that I made out of felt but he literally has wore that thing out, so it's time for a new one for him and one for my middle child who will start loosing teeth any day now. I plan to add their names, stitch these together and stuff them, so close to finished already.

3. Tipi Quilt - I pieced this quilt (and wrote the tutorial) last quarter. I hope to finish it, but first I need a backing. I have a spark of an idea for quilting this one.

4. Bee Sewcial Triangle Quilt - These were the blocks that my bee mates made for me last year, I hope to at least get them together in a top this quarter. I need to get past my fear and just do it!

5. Persimmon Easter Dress - I have the fabric washed, pattern printed, taped together and size traced off. I better get cracking if I want my little girl to actually wear this on Easter.

6. Summer Picnic Dress - Fabric washed, pattern printed. I want to have this one for my little girl to wear this summer as the pattern is just so darn cute. It's a simple pattern so it should go together quickly.

7. City Sampler Quilt - I can't have a list without this quilt on it, can I? It's here, let's see if I get the motivation to finish it.

Well there it is, my longer but not crazy list. Wish me luck!

You still have time to link up your list, either via a blog post, Instagram or Flickr mosaic. The linky closes on April 8, so get cracking. Once you have your WIP list, work on it for the next three months and finish them up. At the end of the 2nd quarter you can link up those finishes to win great prizes, and there is no penalty for not finishing, win, win! Please join us, it is great fun.
Find the linky HERE.

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2017 Finish-A-Long - Quarter 2 Link Up Now Open

4/2/2017

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Optimism, the feeling I get at the beginning of each quarter! Oh the possibilities of projects completed. I love it. Are you ready? Make that list, link it up and then get to work. All the details and link up are below.

It's time to link up your list of unfinished projects that you propose to finish in Q2 of the FAL. I truly hope you are facing a new quarter with a brand new list - because you finished so many UFOs in Q1!

The FAL is hosted by a community of bloggers across the world. Our hosts are:

Rhonda - Rhonda's [Quilt] Ramblings - USA

Nicky - Mrs Sew & Sow - Great Britain

Jess - Elven Garden Quilts - Australia

Abigail - Cut & Alter - Great Britain

Izzy - Dizzy Quilts - Canada

Ella - Throw a Wench in the Works - USA

Lucy - Charm about You - Great Britain

Sarah - Sew me - Northern Ireland

Judith - Just Jude - Northern Ireland

Felicity - Felicity Quilts - Canada

Marci - Marci Girl Designs - USA

Karen - Capitola Quilter - USA

Leanne - She Can Quilt - Canada

Social Media Director

Sandra, Sew of Course - Ireland

For those of you who are new to the FAL, it is a place to find motivation and encouragement to complete those unfinished projects that are hanging about becoming UFOs. Every quarter you post a list of projects you hope to finish in the next three months, and then at the end of the quarter, you post a link from your blog, Flickr or Instagram of each successful finish from your original list. Each finish is an entry for wonderful prizes from our sponsors. There is no penalty for not finishing a listed project, so feel free to make your list long or short, as you wish. The 2017 Schedule and Rules for the FAL are on my permanent FAL page found HERE, let me know if you have any questions. Here are the fantastic and generous sponsors for Q2 of the FAL - you can see each of their prizes listed under their logo (think about visiting them and saying thank you):

Just Jude Designs - 2 PDF Patterns	Sew Sisters Quilt Shop, $25 gift certificate	Charm About You - 2 PDF Patterns
Fat Quarter Shop, $50 gift certificate	Elven Garden Quilts - 3 PDF Patterns	Tartankiwi - $25 gift certificate
Blossom Heart Quilts - 3 PDF Patterns	Mad About Patchwork - $50 gift certificate	During Quiet Time - 3 PDF Patterns
Happy Quilting - choice of 3 patterns	Cooking Up Quilts - 2 PDF Patterns	Sew Sweetness - 3 PDF Patterns
Knotted Thread, $30 gift certificate	The Littlest Thistle - Camp Bag Pattern Pack	Green Fairy Quilts - $15 gift certificate
Quilting Jet Girl - 2 PDF patterns	Sunny Day Supply - $30 gift certificate	Make Modern Magazine - 3 six month subscriptions
Clover & Violet - $30 gift certificate	Sew me a Song, $20 gift certificate	Imagine Gnats - $40 gift certificate
Studio 39 Fabrics - $25 Gift Certificate	Laurel Bee Designs, 2 pin bowls for 1 winner

InLinkz.com

As you may recall from last year, there was a return of tutorial week at the end of each quarter, between the opening of the link for finishes and the day that link closes. Are you enjoying this? Please share your thoughts in the comments section below! This will take place each quarter. Each host works hard to put these together so I hope you are visiting their blogs to encourage them. If you have a tutorial that you would like to share, please let me or another host know. It's time to round up those projects you want to finish over the next three months, take a photo of each one and make your list. Please ensure that you have at least started your projects - pulled fabric with a pattern is now considered a UFO, and remember it is only finished projects that will get you an entry toward the above listed prizes. So while we love to see your bee blocks, the "finish" is when they are a completed, usable project. It is very helpful if you tag your list as #2017FALQ2yourname when posting on social media: Flickr, Facebook & Instagram. Using the same hashtag over the quarter when sharing progress or finishes before the link, helps the hosts find your original list quickly - especially when this is done over a 3 month period. IMPORTANT: Don't forget to link your finishes up when the quarter closes.

The 2017 Q2 link for your list of proposed finishes is now open below on my blog and on each of the hosting blogs. You need only link your list once, on one blog - and that link will show up on all of the blogs.

If you are using Facebook, Flickr or Instagram, link a mosaic and put your list in the description. Katy of The Littlest Thistle has a great tutorial on how to link-up if you need it. We also ask that you become part of the FAL community. Please check out the links of others - visit and comment on their lists. We all need encouragement to get those finishes done, so please share some of your own too. When creating your list there is one thing to remember....No deductions for not completing something so ..... Aim High! Nothing to lose!!! Well Now..... Get those lists together and get linked up. The Q2 proposed finish linky party will stay open until 11 pm EST, April 8, 2017- as we are global, you might want to check your time zone to determine your last possible time to link. Remember: you only need to link up on ONE hosting blog and it will automatically show up on all hosting blogs.

An InLinkz Link-up

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Bee Sewcial April 2017 - Let's Get Creative

4/1/2017

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Happy April everyone! I'm the queen bee this month in Bee Sewcial and I get to pick our monthly prompt and like always I feel like I have to stretch our boundaries! Hope it's a good thing.

This month we are making miniatures!

My idea this month comes from the concept that I don't need a ton of large quilts in my house and I would really like some quilt art to hang on my walls, so why not have everyone make smaller blocks that I can turn into a series of mini art works for my house.

What will we be making? Florals, miniature improv floral pieces. One large flower, one small flower, a bouquet, a field of wildflowers. Doesn't matter, Just make some improv flowers. I created an abstract painting pinterest board to get the ideas flowing. I felt if you looked at abstract art of flowers that would better translate into improv flowers. Maybe? Hope so. You can see the Pinterest board below or HERE.

Details -
Size - The blocks should measure 6.5" x 6.5" square.

Amount - I am asking for 2 - 4 blocks per person depending on your comfort level of making these small scale blocks. If it takes you 4 hours to make 1 block, then by all means only make 2. But if you can whip up 4 blocks quickly and this isn't challenging then send 4.

Color - I made a Pinterest board for overall color inspiration, but here are the specifics. I want the background to be black or very dark blue, think midnight, the darkest blue you have. The flowers, foliage, vase or foreground should be bright, festive, saturated colors, check out my Pinterest board HERE or see it below but I think it is pretty clear. So no pastels, tans, greys and neutrals. You can use white but just little touches of it.

Techniques - Any and all, everything goes, regular improv, paper piecing, applique. Feel free to add any embroidery or stitched on details, but certainly not required.

Overall Vision - I've added this new category to give you an idea of what I see in my head. The color inspiration Pinterest board is almost exclusively Spanish/Mexican art/design/styling, I love it. The black background with the saturated florals will hopefully create a folk art styled piece. Bold florals on black. Think miniature black velvet painting of flowers. Ready, set, go!

I plan to make blocks soon and as soon as I do I'll blog about them and post to Flickr and Instagram.

Remember this isn't just for the Bee Sewcial ladies, we would love for you to play along. Just follow the monthly prompt and post on Instagram using the hashtag #inspiredbyBeeSewcial.

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Tipi Quilt Pattern and Tutorial for Sewing 60 Degree Triangles

3/30/2017

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This quilt pattern and tutorial are part of the 2017 Finish Along Quarter 1 Tutorials Week.

Find the link up to the Quarter 1 Finish Along HERE or on any of the other hosts blogs.

*Warning this is an extremely long blog post.*

Back in July 2014, so almost three years ago I posted my finished triangle quilt and you can read all about it HERE and see more photos. Since then I have received several requests for a pattern or a "how to" and I've even seen at least one copy without a tutorial, which would have been cool if I had received credit, but whatever. Back to the point, today is the day for the FREE pattern. I've named this quilt the "Tipi Quilt" because of the "tipi" shape created with the triangles and to me this quilt has a real Native American feel to it.

The photo below is the new version (un-quilted) made specifically so I could write up the pattern for you guys. The fabrics used for this version are by Miriam Bos for Birch fabrics and is named Wild Land. I also used a variety of solids, mostly Kona. Are you guys ready? Below you will find the tutorial on how to make this quilt and if you aren't interested in making the quilt, in the tutorial are detailed instructions on how to sew together 60 degree triangles and that can be used in a variety of applications. So hopefully you will find something useful.

Tipi Quilt Specifications and Fabric Requirements

Quilt Size - Wall Hanging or Baby/Toddler Quilt measuring roughly 36" x 42.5"

Fabric Requirements - Fat Quarters or 1/4 Yard Cuts
10 Busy or Focal Prints, if you use less plan to have duplicates.
15 Solids and Less Busy (optimally prints that are not directional), if you use less plan to have duplicates.
1 Background Fabric, either a solid or a blender.

The key step with this quilt pattern is fabric choice and placement. This quilt pattern was born out of the desire to feature several larger focal prints uninterrupted (not cut up!) Both of the quilts that I made with this pattern used one fabric line and each of these lines had great focal prints and good smaller prints, thus this quilt pattern was born. Your very first step is going to be choosing a fabric that will fit the bill appropriately. I can't tell you what to use, but I can show you what I've chosen and how I went about it.

In the photo below you can see I've separated the prints into two groups, less busy prints and focal/busy prints. The focal prints will be large triangles that will be fussy cut to feature specific images (like the little Native American girl.) On the "less busy" side I decided to add in a good handful of solids to break up all the prints (so it isn't crazy time carnival quilt) and by adding solids it gives the eye movement and you can appreciate the designs more.

I didn't separate it from the group below, but you will also need a background fabric. This print or solid will be used along the edges, top and bottom of the quilt. It will fill in the gaps created from the "tipi" shape and the large triangles. In this quilt I chose the dark navy blue solid below as my background print.

Once you have decided on fabrics and divided them into three groups (large triangles, small triangles or tipi shape and the background) you are ready to get started.

Cutting Instructions

This is a Fat Quarter (FQ) friendly pattern, but you can also use 1/4 yard cuts. The directions below are for cutting from Fat Quarters.

Large Triangles (that will be fussy cut) - 10 Prints
Cut a 9" strip.

Large Triangle "Tips" - 2 Prints, duplicates of the 10 above.
Cut a 4.75" strip or you can use scraps, you only need one triangle.

Small Triangles - 15 Prints or Solids
Cut 2 - 4.75" strips along the 18" side of the Fat Quarter. If the print will be duplicated, cut 3 strips.

Background - 1 Print or Solid
Cut 2 - 4.75" strips.

A quick note - these cutting instructions do produce some scraps, it's inevitable, but I have tried to reduce the amount of waste or scraps as much as possible.

Step One - Cutting out the Triangles

Let's start by talking about rulers. You don't need a fancy 60 degree triangle ruler to make this quilt, though it does make cutting easier. All you need is a ruler that has 60 degree lines on it, both the rulers to the left and right above have these markings.

We are going to start by cutting the small triangles, so using the 2 - 4.75" strips we will cut the triangles. Using the 60 degree marking on your ruler, line it up along the bottom of the fabric strip and cut. After this cut, turn your ruler in the opposite direction, but still using the 60 degree marking and cut a triangle. YOU WANT TO KEEP ALL THE POINTS. As you can see from my triangles above, keep the points and cut full triangles, this will help with piecing, I promise!

Continue cutting the whole first strip and then onto the second strip. You need 8 small triangles for each "tipi." I was able to cut 6 small triangles from one strip and 2 from the second. If you look closely on the first row above, the triangle on the left, the first in the series has a point missing. This is ok, it is less than 1/4" and is where the fabric strip cut off or ended. If this bothers you, then cut 5 from one strip and 3 from the next.

If you will be duplicating this print, then cut 16 small triangles from the 3 strips of fabric. Continue cutting all the small triangles from the 15 assorted prints and solids.

You will cut one large triangle from each strip and I recommend fussy cutting it to feature exactly what you in your quilt. Yes this produces scraps, but what fussy cutting doesn't. The important part of this step is the cut triangle needs to have the point on the bottom and the triangle "base" at the top. So you can see from the large triangle above, I have fussy cut so that the Native American girl is centered and the point is on the bottom. You want your prints to be in the right direction in your finished quilt.

You also need to cut 2 large triangle "tips" from these busy focal prints. Using either drop from above or scraps, cut 2 different 4.75" strips and cut a triangle from each, once again maintaining the triangle tip on the bottom and the base on the top of the strip. These two tips will be on the very top row of your quilt.

Now we need to cut the background fabric. Cut 13 small triangles just like above. Then we need to cut 12 half triangles for the sides of the quilt. You could just cut more small triangles, but once the quilt is pieced you will cut off this odd triangle scrap that isn't very useful, so I cut these specific side pieces in order to waste less fabric. If you look at the photo above, you can see I have the bottom of the ruler lined up along the 60 degree line, and then slide it over on the cutting board to exactly 1" from the edge and cut. It will produce a piece that looks like the shape in the bottom photo to the left.

Now move your ruler to cut a straight line exactly 1" from the top cut 60 degree angle. Now you have two side half triangles. Continue cutting in this manner until you have enough.

Congratulations! Cutting is finished. So you can see from the above photo you should have:
10 Large Triangles
2 Large Triangle Tips
15 Sets of 8 Small Triangles
12 Background Edge/Side Triangles
13 Background Triangles

I honestly feel that once I've reached this point, the hardest part is over, so pat yourself on the back and get ready to sew.

Step Two - Basic Assembly and Design Layout

Now logic would tell you that it is time to move to the design board (or the floor) and play around with fabric placement, but I will tell you WRONG, let's do a wee bit of sewing to get our feet wet sewing triangles and this little bit of sewing will make your layout design of the quilt so much easier and a lot of the work will be done already. So the next step will be to sew together some of the small triangles to create groupings. You can see what we will be sewing together above on the right.

First layout the 8 triangles in the formation to the left. We will be sewing the second row of three triangles together and then the bottom row into two groups of two. Easy peasy!

The image above shows step by step how I sew together 60 degree triangles:

1. Lay two triangles right sides together on top of each other. Stitch a 1/4" seam. I find you can use either a scant seam or a full 1/4", it doesn't matter as long as you do the same thing for the entire quilt.
2. Press the seam open. PRESS don't iron. So carefully open the seam with your fingers and place the iron down and don't move it back and forth. You don't want to stretch these bias seams.
3. Now take a third triangle and put it right sides together on either side, I did mine to the left. Because you kept those points, you will see that it is easy to line it up. Just match both the points at the top and bottom. Stitch 1/4" seam. After this seam you will trim that one little point that is sticking out as indicated in the photo. Trim only this point.
4. Press this seam open.
5. This is what the back should look like. You still have points sticking out on the top and bottom of the grouping and this is good.

Now repeat this three grouping for all 15 colors/prints of the small triangles and then sew together two groupings of two. Chain piece all of this and it goes together so quickly.

One more thing to sew together and then we will get to the design board. Taking your background pieces, sew some of them together in the above groupings. So four sets of two and then one side triangle with the straight edge to the left and one side triangle with the straight edge to the right sewn to full triangles. These two pieces will be the top corners of your quilt. There will be leftover background pieces that you don't sew right now.

When you sew together your side triangles to full triangles you will line up the points just like a full triangle grouping. Once you press the seam open it will look like the shape to the left in the above photo. You will have some hang over from the side triangle piece. This is fine. Just trim it off straight across. So once it is trimmed it will look like the shape to the right.

Now it's time to play!

You can see I don't have a design board, so I use my back hallway floor, which can be quite challenging with little kids, but hey if you work on the floor just take a lot of photos to reference in the future in case things get kicked around a bit.

Start by laying out 5 sets of the small triangles in the "tipi" shape, which is dead center above. See why I had you sew things together, so much easier to move around chunks instead of individual triangles. Next layout the 10 large triangles with the points at the very bottom of the "tipi." This will create a missing row at the very top and this is where the 2 large triangle tips come in. Put those down and then add in the background triangles that you have sewn together.

Finish laying out the remainder of the "tipi" shapes and then fill in the gaps with background fabric at the bottom and the sides. You will have to move things around quite a bit to get it perfect but take your time, step back admire your quilt. Take photos, look at it that way. Ask opinions, do whatever it takes to get you to your final layout. I spent a morning rearranging until I settled on the above photo. For me it is about not having too many same colors or prints next to each other. Evenly spacing the solids throughout and just overall being pleased with the final look.

Now let's sew this baby together!

Step Three - Quilt Assembly

We will start the quilt assembly by sewing together all of the small triangle groupings that are contained within two rows of the quilt. So skip the very first row of the quilt and start with rows 2 and 3. I have the pieces laid out in the photo above. So on row 2 stitch the background side triangle to the 3 triangle grouping. Trim that one point as indicated in the photo. Press open and trim flush. Now on row 3 sew the two triangle groupings to the different colored center triangle. Trim that sticking out point and then press open. Repeat this same process for all the small triangle sections. When you are done it will look like the bottom right image above.

Now it's time to sew that "tipi" together. This is my method for getting all those points to match on each and every row. Taking the top three triangle grouping, push your pin from the back to the front of the point, right in the seam. So your pin should be sticking out just like the top left photo. Then taking your bottom row of fabric triangles push the pin directly into the right side triangle point (seam.) So both of these points are now on the pin. Move them carefully together until they are mated up with one another and using another pin, pin to the left side and then using another pin, pin the right side. I do it like the bottom right photo. Then I remove the first pin completely. Now that the center is pinned, just line up both ends, matching points and pin if you choose to. I do not. I just stitch my 1/4" seam and line up as I go, it's a short seam and just saves time.

Now that the seam is stitched, open it up and make sure you like how your point looks. If you don't, redo it. If it looks great, carefully open up the seam and press the seam open. Remember, press don't iron. You don't want to stretch anything. Once you are done pressing, the unit should look like the photo above.

Continue sewing all of your two row "tipi" units together. Once that is complete it will be time to sew those units to the large triangles.

Placing the large triangle on the bottom, right side up, I put my "tipi" unit on top and line up the points on both ends. I find it easier to sew with all those seams on the top. I put a pin at both ends. Stitch a 1/4" seam straight across. If any of those little points are sticking out of the seam you just stitched go ahead and trim them off. Carefully press this seam open. Your finished unit should look like the photo below.

Sometimes (for a large variety of reasons) the large triangle may extend a wee bit from the edge. In my case it was 1/4." I am pointing to it above. You want that point to end at the bottom, otherwise if you sew it as is you will end up with a blunt triangle and no point. So we don't want that, we want pretty, perfect triangles. So if your large triangle ends up being a tad bit too large, take a ruler and carefully trim along the side so the bottom of the triangle meets perfectly with the bottom of the "tipi." On my example above you can see what I trimmed and that my point is now flush at the bottom. If you do end up having to trim, you will probably have to trim every large triangle, but it only takes a second and isn't a big deal.

Keep in mind, before you press a seam open if you have any of those over hanging points, take a moment to trim them off.

Now continue sewing all of your two rows together until you have five large rows.

You can sew together that top single row at any time. Just sewing a bunch of small triangles together.

Now let's finish this quilt up!

Starting with the top row, sew it to the row 2 and 3 grouping. I push pins in each of my points doing one at a time down the entire row, making sure all those points match up while pinning is much easier than picking out stitches and re-doing it later. I put row 1 on top because the large triangles will end up on the bottom (less seams) and I prefer to have more seams on top Stitch 1/4" across the whole row, check your points on the front, if they are good, trim any sticking out points and then press the seam open. Repeat this procedure until all the rows of your quilt are sewn together and you have a completed quilt top.

Now that the quilt top is complete, your quilt sides will look like the above left photo. Take your ruler and line up the 1/4" mark directly on top of the corner triangle seams, as you can see on the above right photo. Trim both sides. When you cut 1/4" away from the corner seam, once you add your binding you will maintain those perfect triangle corners and they won't be chopped off.

Congratulations you have a finished Tipi Quilt!

I would love for you to make one and if you do please tag me in any photos and use the hashtag #TipiQuilt.

If you need any help with the pattern, don't hesitate to contact me. Thanks for joining me today and I hope you enjoyed the pattern and tutorial.

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2017 Finish-A-Long - Quarter 1 My Finishes

3/29/2017

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Floral Fiesta by Marci Debetaz

A quick reminder before I get started on my list. Today is the day for voting in my round of March Madness, Mad for Solids 2017 hosted by Paintbrush Studios. You can vote on Instagram and you can vote HERE. All you have to do is leave a comment on the blog post. Really easy. So please take a moment and go vote, you don't even have to vote for me, I don't mind, all of the bundles are beautiful.

At the beginning of the year I chose three projects for my Finish-A-Long list. Want to know how I did meeting those goals? Well let's see...

1. The Mini Carol Quilt - Yes, it is done and I blogged about it yesterday!

2. Economy Blocks Quilt - Well the blocks were turned into a quilt top, the quilt top did get basted. But that is it. I honestly thought I would get the time to finish this one, but the kids getting sick and then I've been sick for the last 2.5 weeks have really put a halt to sewing/quilting.

3. City Sampler Quilt - Sadly this one hasn't even been touched. I'm feeling bummed about that and honestly debating on whether or not I should even put it on the list next quarter. We will see.

Statistics:
1 Complete
1 Progress Made
1 Untouched

Not horrible but not great either. Hoping for more finishes next quarter.

You still have time to link up your finishes for the first quarter. The link up can be found HERE.

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The Mini Carol Quilt

3/28/2017

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Yay! I'm here today to share a finish (my only finish from my Finish-A-Long list.) I actually finished this quilt over a month ago, but being sick (and I still am) and sick kids and everything else in the world seemed to keep me from blogging about this mini quilt.

I started this mini at some point last year when Erica at Kitchen Table Quilting released the pattern, the Carol Quilt. I fell in love with the pattern and wanted to make it instantly. I also didn't want to make a full sized quilt, thus this mini was born. I had to do some math to figure out how much to cut out, as the pattern doesn't include instructions for a mini. It wasn't that difficult to figure out, just took a little bit of counting.

I used a charm pack of Moda Gooseberry by Vanessa Goertzen of Lella Boutique and a charm pack of Moda Modern Background Paper by Zen Chic. I also threw in a few low volume scraps that I had to round things out for the background. I love how these fabrics play together.

This is a two block pattern (only two different blocks make the whole quilt) so it goes together really quickly. This mini measures 24.5" x 24.5". Once I had the top together it sat basted for quite a while because I couldn't decide on quilting. This always seems to be the case with me, held up on the quilting phase.

Finally I decided to stop over thinking it and just quilt a simple diagonal grid following along in the ditch of the design. I'm happy that I chose this as I feel it really adds to the design and makes it pop. Sometimes simpler is better. I quilted it with a 50 weight Aurifil in white.

The pieced back is a scrap of low volume that I had (the print to the right) and the small + print is a pillowcase from Target. Lately I've started to use bed sheets as backing as they are usually big enough to get away from a pieced back and the quality is really nice. The thread count of these sheets is almost exactly the same as quilting cotton so the sheets play nicely with other fabrics. The cost of a set of sheets are a lot cheaper too, especially when you buy them on clearance!

Below is an example of how I hang my mini quilts. I save random bits of scrap ribbon and stitch little loops to the top before I sew on the binding. When I go to hang these mini quilts I just have to put some nails in the wall and hang these little tabs on the nails. It works for me and I don't have to figure it out later.

That's all folks! I'm glad I at least finished one of my projects this quarter, thank goodness for a mini quilt. I'll leave you today with an "artsy" photo of my mini.