Merry Christmas

Christmas Quilting

Did you do any sewing for the holidays?

Making Christmas quilts was definitely NOT on my radar for 2019. I made the drunkard's path quilt shown on the wall above several years ago as part of this QAL. There's not a bit of Christmas fabric in it.

Two years ago I designed this small wreath wall hanging as a gift to my readers. It's a free pattern and is still available on the old Craftsy platform. You can find it here. 
Note: If you are interested in a copy of this pattern leave me a comment.

Then, while visiting the Missouri Star Quilts last May, I found myself buying a handful of modern Christmas fabrics in small amounts. Here are a few of them and I'm happy to say I've used them up. Wish I had more of the little bird print though. It's so sweet.

I decided to make another simple Irish Chain quilt like these quilts quilts made earlier in the year for my SILs. It's a fast, easy project. With 6" blocks finishing at 42 x 54 the small size is just right for my lap.

It's my first quilt using minky for the backing and was quilted by Cara of Sew Colorado Quilting using a design called Wild Cherries. I thought it felt like berries and love how it looks. Even though the thread is green, it gets buried into the minky giving an embossed look. I washed it yesterday and now it's so soft!

After finishing this one, I was hooked on Christmas sewing. Foolishly thinking I had all the time in the world, I decided to make two more quilts. And maybe stockings. Maybe a tree skirt. Maybe fabric ornaments. The list goes on. Of course that lead to buying even more Christmas fabrics online and down the rabbit hole I went. Big time!

Did I mention foolish in the previous paragraph. Ha! I only managed to finish one of those two quilts and none of the other things. Maybe next year. I certainly have all the fabric I need now to make the above mentioned projects and more.

My finish was this scrappy, mostly 16-patch, wonky star quilt for my daughter. I love it!

The original idea was to alternate red and green 16-patch star blocks in a 5 x 5 layout. Then I decided I didn't want stars in every block. Then I decided I wanted a few bigger stars so I made four 9-patch blocks with bigger wonky stars. Then I threw in a couple of 4-patch blocks to alter the scale even more. Finally, I decided I didn't want a square quilt so I added a row at the top and bottom using the same size squares as the 4-patch. I love letting a quilt evolve into something a little different from where it started. It finished at 50 x 60 so a large lap size.

The prints are so fun. I mixed the new fabrics with many from my stash. Some are really old Christmas prints and some are just stash prints like dots and stripes. Little deer, bears, rabbits, owls and birds make appearances here and there.

I'm especially fond of all the little deer . . . aren't they cute?

It's backed with the same red minky as the Irish Chain quilt and quilted by Cara with a pattern called Star Struck which was perfect for the star theme.

So two new Christmas quilts this year makes me happy. I think they look great mixed in with the other holiday quilts. Here's a few of my older quilts that make an appearance during the Christmas season. I think of this green, triangle quilt as a winter quilt but it fits right in for Christmas too. I blogged about it here.

This applique still life is very traditional but I love it!

And this little paper pieced cardinal. It was a struggle to make at the time but always reminds me of my Mom. Cardinals often visited her bird feeders throughout the year. We don't have them here in Colorado and I sure miss seeing them.

Thanks for reading along with my sporadic blog posts this year.
For a little more holiday cheer, check out my all red Instagram posts here.

Hope you have the most Merry Christmas ever!

Cheers!

Linking up with Wendy's Peacock Party for the end of 2020.
Also with Cynthia and Oh Scrap.

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My Christmas Gift to You, A Free Holiday Pattern

Today I'd like to share this sweet little holiday quilt with you by offering it as a free pattern.

If you're interested in a copy of Berry Merry Wreath, please email me directly at anne@springleafstudios.com to request a copy.  Do not leave a comment on this post requesting the pattern.  I have received too many requests from no-reply bloggers that I am not able to connect with.

The design is based on the traditional Friendship block. The circular block arrangement plus the addition of red circles gives this simple idea a lovely Christmas feel.

While I originally made mine for the wall, I realized it fit perfectly on top of my coffee table so perhaps it will find a home there instead. It would also make a lovely base for a small Christmas tree.

I know Christmas is fast approaching but I can tell you this quilt goes together pretty quickly and is super easy to make. The pattern yardage is for a small 28" x 28" finished quilt but I've included a list of optional sizes so you can make one that fits your space. A super sized version would make a beautiful cozy throw to keep you warm on those cold December evenings.

You can use traditional holiday fabrics or go modern with solids or modern styled prints. I didn't even use holiday fabrics, choosing instead to go with reds and greens from my stash. The only truly seasonal fabrics in the whole quilt are a few squares of white-on-white snowflakes and a holly berry print for the border.

The pattern includes a page of design variations to give you some additional ideas and a coloring page so you can play around with your own color schemes. Nothing says it has to be red and green. How about soft wintery blues, whites and silver? I think that color scheme would be so, so pretty.

Again, if you're interested in a copy of Berry Merry Wreath, please email me directly at anne@springleafstudios.com to request a copy.  Do not leave a comment on this post requesting the pattern.  I have received too many requests from no-reply bloggers that I am not able to connect with.

If you make your own Berry Merry Wreath, I'd really really love to see it. 
Tag me on Instagram @springleafstudios and use #springleafstudios and #berrymerrywreath.

And just in case you're wondering about the other Christmas quilt on the wall above my couch, it's from a quilt-along I did a couple of years ago. You can find all the information here. Making this quilt is what turned the corner for me in terms of wanting a more updated look to my Christmas decor. Now I have another new one with my Berry Merry Wreath.

I wish you peace and happiness during the holiday season.
Remember to relax and enjoy time with family and friends.

Cheers, Anne


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Quilt Along 2015, Time to Get Started

I've been teasing you with my first two posts about the Drunkard's Path Quilt Along 2015. Now it's time to actually get started. You can read the intro here, and I really suggest checking out the second post here, which shows optional fabric choices. Just because my quilt is meant to be a Christmas quilt certainly doesn't mean yours has to be. There are sooo many other possibilities.

The design is based on a Drunkard's Path block with a slight variation. A traditional Drunkard's Path block would look like the small block shown below in the upper left corner. 

Notice how the quarter circle does not come all the way out to the corners of the square. The result is a leg that breaks up the design giving a staggered appearance when several blocks are put together. This style of Drunkard's Path block creates a lot of interesting designs. Just search for Drunkard's Path quilt designs and you'll find several.

However for the purposes of my design, I wanted the quarter circle to come all the way to the corner of the square and flow unbroken into the next block. This variation feels more modern to me and lends itself to many wonderful possibilities. I might even have new designs to show you down the road.

Quilt Basics:

• Each Drunkard's path unit made up of 1 quarter circle and 1 leg finishes at 4"x 4" 
• There are 16 units per block for this design.
• Each block finishes at 16" x 16"
• A quilt of 9 blocks set in 3 rows of 3 blocks will be 48" x 48" without borders. 

I haven't decided yet about borders. I've sketched up the quilt both ways but am taking a wait-and-see approach. Most of my quilts do not have borders and I like it that way. In this case, I may want them if I feel they complete the design better, plus they would also make the quilt a bit bigger. But I'll be using my quilt as a wall hanging for the holidays so a bigger size isn't so much of an issue. I'll take a look at borders in a future post and show you some options.

Templates:

Go here to download a PDF of the templates. Be sure to print at 100% to get the correct size. I have included a 1" scale box on the template for reference. All printers are different. For some reason, I need to print at 98% to get a true 100% on my printer. Go figure.

I recommend using quilter's plastic available at most quilt and craft stores to cut your templates. It's more durable than cardboard and easy to cut. If you don't have plastic, any stiff cardboard like cereal boxes will do just as well. The easiest way to cut the templates is to glue the printed copy directly to your chosen template substrate and then cut out with an exacto or sharp paper scissors. Just be accurate.

NOTE: The leg template is drawn to include an extra 1/4" on the two outside straight sides. That's why they measure 4 3/4" while the quarter circles are 4 1/2" along the straight sides. I did this because the end of the leg only needs to be 1/2" wide but this can be a little tricky to cut and sew since it's so narrow.  I prefer to leave the leg a bit wider and trim after the pieces are sewn. It's much easier to work with and more accurate in the long run. The quarter circle templates are the exact size. More on trimming will be in the next post. Just don't forget it before you start sewing the pieced units together or you'll end up with a traditional style Drunkard's Path.

Yardage:

Yardage will vary depending on what size quilt and type of design you decide to go with. The cutting info below lists how many pieces you can get from various fabric cuts.

For each full block of the Christmas version like I'm doing you will need: 

1. 8 red quarter circles  (2 each of 4 different prints per block)
2. 8 green quarter circles  (2 each of 4 different prints per block)
3. 4 green leg pieces  (1 each of the same 4 green prints from step 2)
4. 12 background leg pieces  (I am using 4 each of 3 different light green on white prints) 

For the 9 blocks total that I'm making I will need:

1. 72 red quarter circles  (2 each of an assortment of prints, feel free to duplicate prints, just remember they need to be in pairs of two)
2. 72 green quarter circles  (2 each of an assortment of prints, duplicate prints in pairs of 2)
3. 36 green leg pieces  (1 each to match each pair from step 2)
4. 108 background leg pieces  (I'm using 36 each of 3 light green on white prints but you could just as easily use all the same fabric in the background.) 

Cutting:

For quarter circle:

Cut strips 4 1/2" wide. Use the quarter circle template to trace and cut the number of pieces needed per fabric. The most economical way is to flip the template back and forth to get the most pieces from each strip. You should be able to get approximately 8-9 quarter circles from one width of fabric strip or at least 16 from a fat quarter if the templates are tucked in. If you're using scraps you'll need pieces at least 4 1/2" x 8 1/4" for each pair of quarter circles.

For leg pieces:

Cut strips 4 3/4" wide. Use the template to trace and cut the number of pieces needed per fabric. You should be able to get approximately 12 leg pieces from one width of fabric strip or about 24 from a fat quarter if the templates are tucked in. If you're using scraps, one 4 3/4" x 5 3/4" rectangle will give you two leg pieces. 

Preparation:

I decided to cut all the pieces for all 9 blocks at one time. I find it easier and more time efficient to cut all at once while I have all the fabrics pulled out. I even placed them on my design wall to see which fabrics I wanted to repeat and how to distribute them around the quilt. You can see below that I repeated several fabrics but generally no more than three times. I also grouped darker fabrics so that some of the blocks would be darker overall than others. The middle block in the top row is the first one sewn together so it looks smaller.

Once I liked the layout, I took a digital photographs of the overall layout AND each individual block for future reference. Then I removed the pieces from the wall one unit at a time, placing the leg piece on top of the correct quarter circle. I stacked all the units for that block and placed each stack in individual ziplock baggies labeled with row and block numbers. Now all I have to do is pull a baggie and sew when I have time. My plan is to sew blocks on guild sew days throughout the year. A project all ready to go. I really like that.   : )

Now you have the info you need to print your templates and get started with the cutting. Perhaps you'll opt to cut one block at a time rather than do them all at once like I did. Whatever works for you.

I'll be back in a few more days with the piecing instructions. See you then.

Drunkard's Path Quilt Along 2015, Fabric Options

Today I'd like to show you some design options for the Drunkard's Path Quilt Along I posted about at the beginning of January. You can read the first post here. This is my first block and I love it!!!

One of the first things I want you to know is that while my plan is to make one block a month (9 blocks total) and get my quilt done for Christmas 2015, you can go at whatever pace you'd like. Don't want to invest in the whole quilt idea? Well how about making 3-4 blocks for a nice table runner or bed topper for the holidays? Or even just a single block made into a pillow. The block is 16" x 16" so you can go with whatever fits your needs and/or your motivation level.

Secondly, I'd like to show you how well the design lends itself to lots of different fabric styles. Your quilt doesn't have to be a Christmasy at all. With all the cold temps around the country you might be wishing for spring to arrive NOW!  So how about a fresh spring color scheme? Pinks, yellows, corals. The design is meant to invoke flower petals and leaves but who am I to say. Maybe you see propellers and all things spinning and whirly. Here are some illustrations and fabric combos showing just a few of the optional ways you could approach color and fabric types.

First up is a modern fabric version. A very springtime look I think. Love those pinky, peach, coral colors. In this example, the center of each flower is emphasized by using a darker shade of the outer petal color. Of course it would look great done with scrappy petals and no value change more like the Christmas version but with fresh modern fabrics.

This second example is a more traditional floral and leafy print version with each block using a different floral and leaf print. Even though I don't use this type of fabric much anymore, I have a lot in my stash from my impressionist quilting days. I love flowers regardless of type so maybe I'll make one of these. To be honest I sometimes find gardening with fabric more successful than gardening in real life.

And finally, here's a completely different approach. Forget about the concept of flowers and go for something fun and playful. Maybe propellers or colorful pinwheels. I think solids and modern prints would look so good. Maybe your favorite line of juvenile prints for a kid friendly version. Or what about some sky fabrics for the background and lots of fun colors for the propellers/pinwheels.

Hopefully this has given you a few ideas. There are just soooo many possibilities beyond the Christmas theme that I'll be doing. I could easily be tempted to start one of these other options too. I love the idea of a springtime version with fresh modern fabrics in a scrappy style. But for the time being I'm going to retrain myself. For awhile anyway.    : )

I'll be back in a few days with the templates, directions and all the info you'll need to get started. Hope you'll consider sewing along with me. I'll leave you with this lovely block made by Cynthia, one of our guild members. The two of us sewed a block last weekend during our guild sew. She's planning to use up some of her older Christmas fabrics and make 12 blocks instead of nine. I think it's a great use of her Christmas stash don't you?  I hope you'll consider playing along.

Linking up with WIP Wednesday and Needle and Thread Thursday. Always fun to see what everyone is working on.

Drunkard's Path Quilt Along 2015, Intro

How many of you thought you'd get a Christmas quilt done only to once again set the idea aside because all the other holiday things got in the way?  Me too!

I started. I really did. Here's a peak.

Actually I haven't made a Christmas quilt in years. And as long as I'm confessing that, I might as well fess up and tell you I have more Christmas tops than I have Christmas quilts done. But guess what?  I hang the tops up anyway raw edges and all. Yep. Unfinished quilts hang on my walls during the holidays. But hey, they add a lot of holiday color and cheer even in their unfinished state and most people don't even notice. Each year I think I'll finish them and each year they get folded back into storage. This is what one of the unfinished tops looks like . . . border test strip along the side and all.

After all these years, I'm embarrassed to still have the same unfinished top hanging in the family room, not to mention my tastes and style have certainly changed. I've decided it's definitely time for a new Christmas quilt. Of course I didn't remotely start it in time for this past Christmas. But I did start. And in order to actually get it done for Christmas 2015, I have a plan and I'm inviting you to join me.

I plan to make a block a month. Then possibly add some borders and get it finished in time for Christmas 2015. Really. Finished. Want to join me?

I love poinsettias so I designed a block with the feel of this lovely Christmas flower. Here's the first one. I'm using those great red and green Kaffe fabrics I posted about here.

This block design will look just as good with modern prints or even solids in lots of different shades of red and green. It would also look great with bright pastels for a springtime look. I might even sew one up from some older floral/leafy prints just for fun. I'd really like to put those older fabrics to use in fresh new ways.

Here's the general layout. Nine blocks total. I may add borders as things move along. We'll see. Doesn't it look like a bunch of blooming poinsettias?

I'll be back later in the month with more details. Optional layouts. Templates. Instructions. Maybe even some alternative fabric samples. This won't be anything formal. Just a monthly goal to sew one block and finish in time for Christmas 2015. I hope you'll consider sewing along with me.   : )

Linking up with WIP Wednesday for what will be a year long WIP.
I'm also linking up with Needle and Thread Thursday.

Merry Merry Happy Happy

Wishing You All 

a Very Merry Merry Christmas

and a Happy Happy New Year

I wish you all a joyful, peace filled holiday. 

Time spent with family and friends to truly enjoy each other's presence.

Laugh together, play together, love each other.

God Bless.

Christmas Projects / Kitty Beds

Well, the kitty beds are finished and they came out pretty well.

I used this tutorial with my own modifications. Rather than felt like the tutorial called for, I repurposed an old fleece blanket that the kitties often slept on in my studio along with some leftover home decor fabric from years ago. For stuffing I used scraps of fleece and batting instead of fiberfill. I want them to be completely washable.

With the multiple layers of fleece and decor weight I had to wrestle the curves quite a bit to sew the sides to the bottom. Using those nifty little red wonder clips would have been easier than pins but I only have 9 of them. Wish I had a big box of 50. Hmmm . . . hint hint family. Christmas gift alert.

Since I was using fleece and home decor fabric I thought the sides would be firmer than they turned out. I wish they had a little more body so they would stand up a bit. They are quite floppy but the sides do roll down nicely . . . just not as stiff as I thought they'd be. Ha . . . what am I saying, they aren't stiff at all. Oh well. If I ever make them again I'll add some interfacing for more shape.

Now if only the kitties liked them . . . . so far they prefer the cardboard boxes.

This may very well be the only real Christmas project I get done. There were a few other maybes on the list but I don't see them happening now. Did you get all your holiday projects done or did you have abandoned ideas too? I always think I'll do so much more than is realistic.

I'm linking up with Finish it up Friday over at Crazy Mom Quilts.