My Wide Open Spaces Quilt in McCall's Quick Quilts April/May 2017

I am so excited to share my most recent published quilt pattern!  It is in the April/May 2017 issue of McCall's Quick Quilts and it's called Wide Open Spaces.

This pattern is modeled after those vintage chenille bedspreads, where the pattern was along the outside border and the center was empty.  I thought it would look beautiful hanging over the sides of a twin bed.  It's an extra long twin, with the finished size measuring 70"x 90.5".   If you look closely at this picture, you can see the beautiful quilting done by Laura McCormick of Always Keep Quilting.

I used some prints from BariJ's Joie de Vivre line and lots of Art Gallery Pure Elements Solids.

You can purchase just the single downloadable PDF pattern here:

http://www.mccallsquilting.com/quickquilts/articles/Wide-Open-Spaces-Quick-Colorful-Quilt-Patternhttp://www.mccallsquilting.com/quickquilts/articles/Wide-Open-Spaces-Quick-Colorful-Quilt-Pattern

One of my favorite parts of having my quilts in magazines is the artsy photos they do to show off the quilt.

If you'd like to buy just the one issue, you can do that using the link below:

http://www.mccallsquilting.com/quickquilts/issues/Quick-Quilts-April-May-2017 

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NOW what do I do? Plus quilt that's already almost 2 years old

I've seen a million plus style quilts.  I've seen scrappy ones, and modern looking ones.  I've seen them with lots of space between the pluses and no spaces at all.  I bought this pattern in 2014.  Yes, that's right.  2 years ago and then some.  One holiday vacation, I did all of the cutting.  I posted pics of the tiny pieces on my Instagram feed.  That was December 2014.  Next week, it's December 2016.

Great, simple Plus Quilt pattern by Cluck Cluck Sew

Every time I get a break between projects, I go back to it.  I was doing 10 blocks at a time.  I could crank them out in about an hour and 15 minutes.  But I didn't really seem to be making a dent in how many I needed.  My eyes were WAY bigger than my stomach, and I cut enough fabric for a twin size quilt.

That's right.  149 blocks.  

So, in my new line of thinking, which is to say, DONE is better than BIG, I looked at the pattern and lo and behold, if I made all of the blocks, I'd have enough for THREE baby size quilts, and I could make two of them, RIGHT NOW.

That, my friends, is appealing.  Then I think, would I really want three quilts that are pretty much the same?  They WOULD make awesome baby gifts.  

Now I can't decide.  Do I forge on?  For another year?  And make the twin?  Or do I give myself a little satisfaction and put together the two baby tops I have enough for now, and work on the 3rd (which will seem VERY achievable) in the future?

20 of my not yet near 149 blocks 

Magic Show by Villa Rosa in Purebred

One of the great parts of QuiltCon 2016 were the vendors.  I bought a lot of great stuff, but I didn't go too crazy, it all fit into my suitcase (which weighed 49 pounds at check-in YEAH!).

I bought this adorable kit at Villa Rosa's booth.  It is for their Magic Show pattern, made with Purebred fabric.  Big surprise...I saw horses and had to buy the fabric.  

It went together in a flash, literally.  I made this in about an hour and fifteen minutes.  The fabrics on the pattern were for another line, so I got to choose which fabrics went in which places.  Funny, after I made it, I went on to the Villa Rosa website and they had this kit for sale, and they had put the fabrics in the same places!

Can't wait to get this one quilted and into my daughter's hands.  

Quilt measures 45" x 62"

Detail of some of the horses in the paint by number print

T-Shirt Quilt number 2, back from the dead

Wow is that scary.  Months and months go by and I barely pick my head up to look around and see what I’m missing.  But we had an awesome summer, with some really fun vacations, and I have been sewing, just not taking pictures of my work or taking any time to reflect on it.

This t-shirt quilt that I made for my son was the second one I made.  I made one for a customer earlier this year, and my son loved it so much he immediately made a pile of his old shirts for me to make him one.  Like with SO many other projects, I had it all cut out and the top sewn in less than a week.  I did it all while we were at the Cape in June.  

20 of his old favorites

Flash forward to last week and I was just putting the binding on.  But look, he loves it, and I’m already working on one for my husband.

(photo approved by new quilt owner)

I use Pellon 101 woven fusible interfacing to firm up the t-shirts.  It’s time consuming, but the body of the quilt is nicer, and it’s thin enough that it doesn’t take away from the awesomely soft t-shirt feel of the finished product.

This shows the back - one of the first fabrics I ever bought

I’ll probably make one for myself out of my race t-shirts.  I never wear them, and I won’t feel so lazy resting under a quilt made of shirts I had to RUN to earn!

Sock Monkey Square Dance - Say that 10 Times Fast

This is the third quilt I've made in this pattern.  It's Square Dance by Bits 'n Pieces.  It goes together SO quickly and it looks so fantastic.  I made this for my friend and personal trainer who is having her FIFTH baby.  Yowza!

I used an all yellow chevron back, and I love that this pattern only needs one WOF for the back, so 1 1/2 yards does the whole thing with no need to piece.

It uses eight fat quarters and a 1/2 yard for the back.  She's not sure if she's having a boy or a girl, and I thought these bright colors were gender neutral.  I love the bright colors anyway.

 Here it is all folded up with my label.  I love my labels.

Only one more baby quilt to go and I can get back to working on three other WIPs at once!

Ally's Tumbler Lap Quilt - long time UFO

I.am.finally.done.  I have so many UFOs.  This was one of the quilts that I took to my aunt to long-arm quilt for me.  I got all of the red, white and black fat quarters during a shop hop...dear lord...was it THREE summers ago??  This was the first quilt I cut using my Accuquilt GO cutter and then the pieces just sat and sat.

My daughter LOVES to have a quilt on her lap while she watches TV, and she had actually forgotten that I was making this for her.  She's very happy with the finished product.

She was willing to pose for a few shots. Gotta love that summer, unbrushed hair look.

The back is some Anna Maria Horner Innocent Crush that I just love.  I have a ton of red fabric, and it is amazing how broad the spectrum of red can be.  This was the perfect color for the back.

The binding is some of the first fabric I ever bought...years and years ago from Jona Giammalva's Fabritopia.  It's Mary Englebreit bowls of cherries.

I found out about two friends having babies in the last week, so needless to say the next two quilts you'll see will be baby quilts.  One boy and one girl.  Wondering if I should do the same quilt in different colors?  Likely I'll just use it as an excuse to buy more fabric.  Which I do not need.