My Best of 2015

If you haven't seen it yet, Cheryl of Meadow Mist Designs is hosting a Best of 2015 Linky Party for everyone to share their 5 best blog posts of 2015.

The criteria is up to you. Most views, most comments, best finishes, best tutorials or simply your favorites. I decided to go with the posts that marked an accomplishment for me in one way or another. So here they are in no specific order . . . my best posts of 2015.

1.  I started and ended my year with this quilt.
A new Christmas quilt as part of the Drunkard's Path QAL.

It's the end result of hosting my first ever quilt along. You can find links to all the posts here plus you can do it anytime. It doesn't have to be for Christmas either.

A more accurate description might be a block a month plan because, from January through September, I made one block each month. Then I moved on to borders and finishing in October and November. Thanks to the commitment of monthly blog posts I was able to keep up and finish up.
A new Christmas quilt on my wall for 2015. WaHoo!!!

2.  Next up in 2015 came QuiltCon. I can't even express how rewarding it was to attend, meet online quilty friends in person for the first time, meet even more brand new people and make new online connections . . . and last but not least get to see two of my quilts hanging in the show. The first was Matrix Blooming, a quilt from my Matrix pattern made specifically to enter into the show.

The second was our guild charity quilt based on my design and put together by the Boulder Modern Quilt Guild. Great job ladies!

3 and 4.  Next up on my list are these two posts in July, Matrix and Offset. Each marked the release of a new pattern. Designs that were a long time in the making and big accomplishment to finally wrap up.

 


5.  The final post on my list is not really a single post but a series of posts on Color Inspiration.

So far I've done six individual colors plus analogous and complementary color schemes. I will be continuing these posts in 2016 as well as adding some other design topics so stay tuned. You can get to all the color links from here.

January 2nd is the last day to link up so don't wait a moment longer. Show us your best posts of 2015?

Happy New Year.
Here's to a fabulous and productive 2016!

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Drunkard's Path QAL: The Binding

December . . . the final month in my Drunkard's Path QAL, and I'm thrilled to say I'm starting the month with a finish. WaHoo!!!   You can find all the previous QAL posts here.

November was the month of machine quilting and I will admit it wasn't easy. Free motion quilting is not something I particularly enjoy but the QAL provided me with the motivation needed to have a finish. That's a big one for me since I'm better known for multiple starts and fewer finishes. You can read my quilting post here where I look at possible quilting motifs to use and my process of exploring ideas. I ended up going with a poinsettia looking leaf design throughout including the borders. You can see a bit of it here. I was worried that the change in thread color would look bad on the back but it's not that noticeable when you see the back as a whole.

With the quilting complete, all that remained was the binding. I find binding a relatively easy process. Especially after struggling with the quilting. Most often I don't decide on my binding fabric until the quilt is complete and then I audition various fabrics. I especially love to use stripes for my binding and usually keep quite a few stripes on hand for that purpose.

For this quilt I pretty much assumed it would be a red binding. I pulled out both red and green stripes to try and instantly knew the green was better. Either would look wonderful but the green really allowed the red fabrics within the quilt to shine.

When I put the following image up on Instagram, Linda of @FlourishingPalms made the suggestion to use both colors in a flanged binding and recommended this great tutorial by Karen of @RedBirdQuiltCo. Social media can lead to learning so many great new things.

I loved the look of Karen's flange binding and, after reading through the directions, felt sure this would be my choice. The best of both colors. Just a hint of red. Then I pulled a red solid and tried it. It looks really nice but once again I found the red shouted it's presence. The green 'leaves' in the quilt recede behind the red 'petals' in the design and I wanted the binding to recede a little as well. The red petals need to be the focus of this quilt. I felt any red in the binding simply brought too much attention to the edge of the quilt. I really do like Karen's tutorial though and will definitely be trying it on another project sometime soon. It's a great look for the right quilt.

So green it is. A lovely green on green small stripe from the Caterwauling line by RJR Fabrics. It's been in my stash for awhile, the selvage says 2011 so who knows how long I've had it. I love it when I find the perfect fabric in your stash?

Here's the finish . . .

At what point in the process do you choose the binding fabric? Do you have a go-to binding choice? Solids? Stripes? Prints? If you've made a quilt during this QAL along I'd love to see it. Shoot me an email with a photo.

I hope to show more photos in a few days when I actually get the house decorated.
Right now it's time to get my Christmas decorations put up. I think I hear Christmas carols calling . . .

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Drunkard's Path QAL; The Free Motion Quilting Begins

For those of you who know me or read my posts regularly, you know free motion quilting is not my favorite thing. I'd rather start a whole new project than quilt the most recent top. But with my drunkard's path quilt I am determined to get it finished by the end of November so I can use it this Christmas. I have 20 19 days!  For anyone just stopping by for the first time, you can find all the previous Drunkard's Path QAL posts here or see the tab at the top of my blog.

Making a block a month worked nicely. Adding borders last month worked well. Now there's nothing left but quilting. I managed to pin baste last week after finding numerous other things that had to be done. Translation . . . PROcrastination. The only good thing is that I get lots of other things done when I'm procrastinating.

The biggest question is how to quilt it?  For this, I looked through a few books for some ideas. Another form of procrastination perhaps?

Next I sketched ideas on paper at full size.

For my Kaffe mini quilt made with the same block design, I used a petal motif in the flowers (purple) and a vein in the leaves (green). Then I echo quilted the background areas.

I decided a variation of this would be good for the Christmas quilt but the petals would need to be more poinsettia like. I used tissue paper over the printout of the quit to see how it might look.

Once I had the basic idea, I turned to the dry erase board to practice a few times and get the general flow down. I find a dry erase board quite handy for practicing at full size. After a few times drawing it on the dry erase, I moved on to actually sewing it a few times on a practice quilt sandwich.

Another option for full size practicing is to place a piece of clear plastic over the quilt and use a dry erase marker to draw your design in the spaces. I highly recommend putting tape all around the edge of the plastic first though so you don't accidentally draw off the edge onto your quilt.

I've created a Free Motion Quilting Guide that includes the outline of the petal shape on one page and the sketch of my quilting motif on the second page for you to play with. Download it here.

Yesterday I quilted all the red petals. Next will be the green leaves. I may do the same leafy vein used for the mini or perhaps I'll just stick with the petal design like I used in the red. Poinsettia flowers and the leaves have the same shape so this seems somewhat appropriate. With such busy fabric it hardly shows anyway but I still want the motif to make sense for the design.

The biggest question will be what to do in the little background areas and along the border.
Any ideas? I wasn't thrilled with the echo look. I think something simple that flattens the areas a bit but is not too dense. There are so many little spots and a lot of stopping and starting without any easy connection from one area to the next. Originally I was going to stitch in the ditch between the blocks to anchor the diamond areas down. Then I realized this wasn't the best choice since I pressed those seams open. So I skipped that part and moved right into quilting the petals figuring something would become more obvious when the time came.

Now that I have finally started, it's not nearly as bad as I usually think it will be and the finish is in sight. So far my machine is cooperating. I have an old Bernina with a very small arm space so even a quilt this size isn't easy to push and shove through. Sometimes I roll the excess. Sometimes I bunch it up. Either way, there's not a lot of room to maneuver.

How about you, do you have Christmas projects waiting completion?
Do you procrastinate when it comes to free motion quilting? If so, why?
Linking up with WIP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced.

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Drunkard's Path QAL: Adding the Borders

Month 10 is here for the Drunkard's Path QAL. That means I have all 9 blocks done and they are now sewn together into a top. So far so good with my monthly schedule. November is quilting month and then it will be all done and ready to use for the holidays. WaHoo!!

When I first started my Drunkard's Path Christmas quilt, I didn't plan on adding a border. I don't often use borders on my quilts. But as I explored the design, I decided that borders would be a nice finishing touch to complete the design. In this earlier QAL post, I shared a few different border possibilities. Here is the one I have chosen to use.

Here's the finished blocks all sewn together before adding the border . . . 

And here it is with borders attached  . . . 

It's hard to photograph the reds and the light background fabrics in the same image. I tweaked it as best I could so you can see the different background fabrics and still see the reds too.

I think the use of a border sets off the blocks nicely by giving them room to breathe. And the addition of the drunkard's path units expands the block design activating the border space.

For my 9 block layout I needed 12 additional Drunkard's Path units for the border. I decided to match the reds in the quarter circles to the reds in the adjacent quarter circles. I think this continuity gives the feeling of the petal expanding beyond the block. There is one exception to this in the lower left corner because I didn't want to have two units with the same fabric on the same side of the border. The units came together quickly by using a chain piecing method. Love to see the little string of units swirling around behind my machine.

If you are using my templates for the drunkard's unit, don't forget they create slightly oversized units. Be sure to trim down to 4 1/2" square after you have sewn them. More on that here.

Since I used three background fabrics for the blocks, I used the same three fabrics in the border to continue the scrappy feel. I only had a small amount of one fabric left so I used that one for all the drunkards units. The other two fabrics fill in the rest of the border, alternating in placement and wrapping around the border corners.

To make this type of border you can download an information sheet that lists yardage and cutting directions along with placement diagrams. For Drunkard's Path unit sewing instructions see this post.

As I said earlier, November will be the machine quilting month. I don't know what type of quilting to do yet. For my mini for the KaffeMiniSwap I used a petal design in the 'flower' shapes and leafy veins in the greens. I might do something similar, or I just might send it out to my long arm quilter and let her do her magic. We'll see.

If you're on Instagram, check out Susan's Drunkard's Path quilt @susansquiltstudio. She used the checkerboard version for her border and it turned out great. She has also already done her quilting.
Go Susan!

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Finish Things Up

Today is most certainly a finish it up day for me.

My little quilt for the Kaffe Mini Swap is due to be shipped next week and I'm happy to say it's finished. Wahoo!!!  It will be in the mail the first part of next week along with a few little extras. Be on the look out partner. Believe it or not but this is my first swap. I can't wait to see what I get.

The block is based on my Drunkard's Path QAL concept. I just love how it looks in an alternative colorway. It's making me think a full sized quilt with different prints and background colors would be really fun. Hmmm . . . a new use for Kaffe and Amy Butler prints perhaps?

My other finish was this table runner made as a wedding present.
The front is low volume creams and gray strips. The couple's gift registry is mostly neutrals. White dishes. Silver serving pieces. A touch of wood. I thought the low volume would be a nice neutral to go with all their tableware.

After piecing the strips, I trimmed a narrow section off one side and then inserted it into the middle offsetting the strips a little to add movement. It finishes at about 14 inches. Not knowing the size of their table I went with a 72" length. Hopefully it will work well.

I wanted to embroider their names and wedding date on it but realized after the fact that this is better done in the early stages. That takes planning ahead which I didn't do. Instead I simply wrote their names and date on the end of the runner. It's understated which is what I wanted so it's more like a subtle personal message.

I opted for a double sided runner and used fall fabrics for the back to represent their fall wedding.

So these are my Friday finishes. Linking up with Finish it Up Friday at CrazyMomQuilts.

Just a reminder it's not too late to comment on on my Pin Cushion Party post for a chance to win a charm pack of Amanda Jean's fun new fabric line Good Neighbors.
I'll choose a winner Sunday the 27th.

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Catching Up

Oh my . . . summer has flown by and now here it is the middle of September. I'm still here. Still designing. Still sewing a little here and there. Looking forward to lots more sewing when the cooler weather settles in.

Last week it was time to get my act together and make a pin cushion for the Pin Cushion Party blog hop over at Crazy Mom Quilts. This is Amanda Jean's first fabric line and it's so so fun. You'll be seeing my post and pin cushion on Saturday so stay tuned. In the mean time, go check out some of the cute pin cushions everyone is making with her fabric line. The line is called Good Neighbors and is sold exclusively by Connecting Threads. Here's a little sneak peek of some of the fabrics.

This week it was on to getting my mini started for the Kaffe Mini Swap happening mostly on Facebook and Instagram. If you're a Kaffe lover then take a look at #kaffeminiswap on Intsagram for some inspiration. Lots of fun things going on there. Here's some of the Kaffe prints I'm using. The one in the lower right, called Ferns, is a new one in my stash. I'm just loving the purple and aquas together. Definitely need to get more of this one.

This is what I have going on so far. I may add a little more . . . or not. We'll see. You might recognize the block. It's the same one I'm using for my Christmas quilt. You can see more about that on my blog under the Drunkard's Path QAL tab.

My other major WIP of the month is my next color post. September is the month for Yellow so I'm seeing yellow everywhere. Each new month finds me searching my home and environment for the chosen color and as a result I have become even more aware of color. Try it. You really will see more.

If you haven't seen my other color posts go here. So far I've done Purple, Green, Red and Blue. You can also see my daughter's color posts here on her blog.  Her jewelry is all about color so she's having just as much fun as I am looking for color. See her jewelry at Emily Claire Studio.

Linking up with WIP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced.

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Drunkard's Path QAL: Block 8

Block #8 for the Drunkard's Path QAL is done. Only one more block left so I feel like the end is in sight. Here's my August block . . . I so love the variety of reds and greens in each block. It's going to make a wonderful new Christmas quilt for my home.

I'm finding it a little hard to photograph the blocks with all those hot red fabrics that I've used. The background fabrics aren't 'dirty' looking at all but they look like it here . . . oh well. Thankfully it's easier to sew the blocks than photograph them. Especially when I'm sewing just one block a month.

I don't know how this summer has slipped by so quickly. While I'm sorry to see summer coming to a close so soon, I'm happy to know there's only one block left to make for my Christmas quilt. I'll be back next month with the last block and my plan for the borders.

How are your blocks coming along? I know Susan has already added her borders and they look terrific! Check out her Instagram account @SusansQuiltStudio to see her border choice.

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Drunkard's Path QAL: Block 7

I'm checking in with block #7 for the Drunkard's Path QAL. It feels so good to be making monthly progress on my Christmas quilt without feeling like I have to get it all done at once.

I've said this before, and I'll say it again . . . making one block a month can really make a project feel doable rather than overwhelming. If you've never worked this way, give it a try. Even if you're working on other things, one block a month is a great way to create forward momentum on a project. Especially something special that might be on your bucket list. It feels sooo good to see progress without a huge time commitment. This is my 7th Drunkard's Path block. Just two more to go.

Now I'd like to talk just a little about technique. A Drunkard's Path block isn't hard. Sewing curves isn't hard. There are several different techniques for sewing curves that are worth exploring. In my tutorial,
I recommend pinning the pieces with three pins. Others prefer lots of pins. Esther of ipatchandquilt uses glue. This month I decided to try a no-pin method I came across in this video tutorial. It actually worked quite well. But after making a few units without pins, I decided the pinning method worked better
for me and actually took less time. So pinning it is. Try different methods. See what works for you.

Same goes for pressing methods. I generally prefer pressing to the side so my seams will nest, but if pressing open works better for a particular block or quilt, then I press open. For this tutorial I press the curved seam toward the circle. That first seam really needs to be pressed toward the circle or it will end up in the seam allowance when the units are sewn together. How the rest of the seams are pressed can be a matter of personal choice. I found that pressing the rest of the seams open worked best for me. It distributes the bulk and lays flatter. Esther found better success with a different method and blogged about here. Try both and see what works for you.

The point I'm making is this . . . explore different methods and techniques when you sew. Just because a teacher shows her way doesn't mean you have to do it that way. Just because I tell you how I do it doesn't mean you have to do it that way. Do what works for you.

My last thought for today is about perfection. Accurate cutting and sewing skills are certainly something you should strive for as a quilter. Better skills will come with patience and practice. But don't beat yourself up over points that don't match perfectly or curves that don't come together just right.

The way these Drunkard's Path blocks come together is different that the traditional Drunkard's Path block. The curve comes right into the seam allowance as the units are joined. This detail makes joining units a bit more challenging but is worth learning. Just don't let perfection stand in your way. My curves don't all come together perfectly but in the bigger scheme of the finished quilt no one will notice.

Perfect curve joints . . . I'm striving for these nice smooth curves with each block I make.

Not so perfect curve joints . . .
In reality, I have some of these less-than-perfect curves and I'm just not going to worry about it.   : )

I hope this post has encouraged you to try new methods. Be willing to find what works for you.

I'm linking this WIP up with WIP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced.

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Drunkard's Path QAL, Block 6

Squeezing this post in before the end of June. There's not much to report for the Drunkard's Path QAL other than I now have 6 out of 9 blocks done for my Christmas quilt. Here's my June block . . . #6

I love how they look when they come together. I've already sewn the first three blocks into a row.

This week I'll sew the second row together. Gotta love progress however small it may seem.

The last three blocks are cut and ready to be sewn. One each month taking me into September to have all nine blocks finished. Six of these little bags are now empty . . . just three more to go.

Then in October I'll add borders. I'm leaning toward this version right now. See the other options here.

That leaves November to quilt and bind. Still seems quite doable. While I may take my time getting certain projects done, I don't usually spread out the blocks. For this quilt, the block-a-month method has been working quite well. It doesn't feel like a big commitment and yet knowing I will have a new quilt for Christmas is very motivating. I've wanted to make a new holiday quilt for years but usually never thought about it until November, so of course it never got made. Year after year after year. Now, I'm looking forward to having a brand new Christmas quilt for 2015. Just saying that makes me even more committed to getting it done.   : )

There's till time  . . . why don't you jump in and join the fun. If you're not up for nine Drunkard's Path blocks, then make three or four for a table runner. At least one other reader is doing just that. The block width of 16" makes for a nice sized runner. You can find all the information here.

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Drunkard's Path QAL: Block 5

The start of a new month and time for another Drunkard's Path block for the QAL. This is block #5.

If you're playing along with me, give yourself a big pat on the back!!! You're halfway there now with five of nine blocks done for the QAL. Just four more to go and then it will be time for borders. If you choose to add borders that is. I'm still undecided and will wait until all my blocks are done before committing one way or the other. Right now I'm leaning toward this version.

There are several good possibilities on how to handle the addition of borders. I'll address the border specifics in a later post as the time gets closer. For now though, be sure to check out last month's QAL post, Layout Ideas, to see all the other layout ideas in addition to the one above..

I've found that making one block a month has made this Christmas quilt seem quite doable. Otherwise I'd probably think about a Christmas quilt in November and never get started in time to finish for the holidays. I can definitely see a new Christmas quilt done by December. That's a good feeling.  : )

How about you . . . do you spread out the process? Do you have more than one project partially made at a time? I often have several projects in various stages at any given time. I don't usually stretch out the time when actually sewing the blocks though. Most of the time I do all (or most) of the cutting, then sew all the blocks, then piece the rows into the top.

Once I have a finished top is when the "stretching things out part" really starts.  I'm not known for finishing, finishing, as in a quilted and bound quilt. That's an area I'm trying to improve upon by participating in the Finish Along hosted by Adrianne of On the Windy Side. It's paying off too because I won a gift certificate from The Fat Quarter Shop during the first quarter finishes link-up. WaHoo!!!!

Linking up with WIP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced.
Also linking with Fabric Tuesday at Quilt Story.

Drunkard's Path QAL: Layout Ideas & Piecing Tips

It's already slipping past the middle of April . . . how did that happen so fast?

April means it's time to sew the fourth Drunkard's Path block for the QAL. Just one block a month and by the end of September you'll have nine blocks done which is enough for a lovely Christmas quilt with  a couple of months left to finish it up. That's my plan anyway.

Here's my April block. This is one of the darker, more red ones. For the other blocks, some lean toward pinkish reds, others toward the orange side. The range of reds and the subtle value shifts will really add to the overall variety when the blocks come together.

As I've worked on my blocks I've noted a couple of tips that might help as you piece your blocks.

1.   Pinning the edge of the quarter circle and the end of the L-shaped leg together so the edges stay even with each other really helps keep everything aligned. I like to pin the edge where I will start sewing at an angle so my machine foot has room to take a few stitches before bumping into the pin. (See below left)  At the opposite end, I pin both parallel and very close to the edge. (See below right)  This works for me, so if you are having trouble with the ends aligning, give this a try.

2.   The second tip is in regard to piecing the Drunkard's units together. As your sewing machine foot nears the curved seam, you may find the bulk of the curved seam tends to push your foot to the right making it difficult to maintain your 1/4" seam allowance. By anticipating this, slowing down and even using a stiletto or the tip of a small pair of scissors, you can ease the foot over this bulk and maintain the correct seam allowance. This seam should end up coming in right along the edge of the curved seam. See the circled area below. If the seam does gets pushed too far off course, you can just go back in and resew this area without any need to rip out stitches.

When this seam is sewn correctly, your curves come together in a nice continuous curved line without any background fabric showing. (see below)  If too much background peeks out, you might want to resew the seam by taking a bit wider seam allowance. I want you to know that not all my seam connections are perfect by any means, so please, please don't stress about this point.

Speaking of blocks coming together, I though it might be a good time to show you a few layout options. Especially since some of you might be surging ahead with making more than one block a month. CJTDecatur on Instagram already has 12 blocks done. WaHoo!! Way to go!! Check out  #drunkardspathquiltalong to see them.

The illustrations below show quilt layouts using nine blocks plus some table runner ideas. If you opt for a table runner, you can add as many blocks as you'd like. I've shown it with three. And of course your quilt can certainly have more or less than nine blocks. Nine just happens to work for my plan.

1.  First up is a borderless arrangement. Most of my quilts these days do not have borders. I prefer the design going all the way to the sides and engaging the edge. This is what I thought I'd do, but now that I see the options, I'm liking some other possibilities. This layout finishes at 48" x 48". A nice wall hanging size.

2.  Here's how it looks if you add a simple border. In this case the width of a single unit.
Final size 56" x 56"

3.  Here it's shown with a scrappy pieced border. The checkerboard border somehow just says Christmas and adds a festive touch. Final size 60" x 60"

4.  Another option would be to add lattice strips and cornerstones? This opens up the design and gives the blocks a little breathing room. Each block now becomes more distinct and stands on it's own merit which can be good if you'd like to showoff the individual blocks and fabrics. 56" x 56"

5.  Here's an option that spices up the border by adding petals into the space along the edge. This idea activates the edge and makes the flowers seem more expansive. 56" x 56"

6.  The last idea expands upon #5 by adding petals and lattice strips between the blocks as well as the outer edges. The flowers look even more expansive and the space even more active. It also creates some interesting white spaces in the middle that add to the swirling feeling. 64" x 64"

These are just a few of the ways you could choose to arrange your blocks. There are certainly other options as well. I hope this gives you something to think about. Play around and enjoy the process.

Keep in mind the finished blocks are 16" x 16". The addition of borders or lattice adds to the overall dimension, so base your decisions not only on the look you like but also the quilt size you need. You could make more or less blocks to fit your needs. A smaller wall quilt with just four blocks might be perfect for the holidays. Or a larger quilt with 12 blocks would make a nice throw quilt. My quilt is meant to hang on the wall of our family room for the holidays, so available wall space dictates my final size. That's one reason why #5 just might be the perfect option. The final size would be 56" x 56". That's a good size for my space and it could work well as a throw too.

To see what others are doing, check out  #drunkardspathquiltalong on Instagram and please add your blocks to the show. You can also now follow me on Instagram  @springleafstudios

See you next month with block five.   Happy QAL.    : )