Build your favorite city as you piece and applique modern quilt blocks. Select the ones you like for smaller projects, or make the whole quilt! Welcome to City Blocks - my first quilt book! Published by Leisure Arts and already on sale, this book features 32 blocks I designed, each portraying a place or an experience in a city. There are also six coordinating, smaller projects, many diagrams, and easy-to-follow instructions. Those of you who have been following me since I began this blog and my Etsy store (2013!) will remember our Sew Along. We made a block every two weeks. We had tons of fun! Leisure Arts loved the quilt; the rest is history in 96 colorful pages! I am a city girl through and through, so it was time to celebrate the places I enjoy when I walk or drive about town. I created my city using vibrant fabrics, beginner-friendly piecing techniques, and machine applique. As I was designing the blocks, I kept thinking of how some places we visit or live in make … [Read More...] about Piece and Applique Modern Quilt Blocks
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One block modern quilt
Download this free pattern for an easy one-block modern quilt. It's great for beginner quilters and seasoned sewists! Island Breeze is the quilt I designed for Danielle Hartgers's Zanzibar collection for Blank Quilting. It measures 62" x 74" and has 12" blocks. Although the block looks complex, it is easy to assemble, requiring only half-square triangles. What do you think of those fabrics? I, for one, am smitten by these prints! Danielle was inspired when she assembled this beautiful fabric collection, with geometric lines invoking tiles and natural elements in neutral tones that will complement any home decor. My quilts are usually very bright (check this one out!). This collection, though... I can hardly wait until June when it begins shipping to stores! Check with your local quilt store to see if they will carry it. The block I chose for Island Breeze is very simple. Make the half-square triangles eight at a time, then use the stitch-and-flip method to add squares … [Read More...] about One block modern quilt
Beginner-friendly modern batik quilt
Make this beginner-friendly modern batik quilt using your favorite collection or as a scrap buster! One easy quilt block is all it takes! Nature Study is my latest quilt, published in the February 2024 American Patchwork & Quilting issue. It measures 67" x 82", and the blocks finish at 6". I used greens and blues from my batik fabric 'collection' - I still have enough fabric to make five quilts in the same palette! The photographer, Adam Albright, always transforms my quilts into works of art when he stages the lifestyle shots! I began Nature Study as soon as I moved to Georgia. I wanted to make a one-block quilt using many fabrics from my stash. I also wanted it to have a lot of [negative] space and be just as light as I felt then. I was beginning a new phase of my life; there was a lot of uncertainty - an everyday reality when you embark on an unexpected journey. With all that was changing, there was no time to seek relief in sewing. However, designing and sewing … [Read More...] about Beginner-friendly modern batik quilt
Paper Piecing Tutorial
This Paper-piecing tutorial is so easy to follow! With paper piecing, you can create amazing blocks or borders for your quilts! [Updated 01/08/2024] I LOVE Carol Doak's 300 Paper-Pieced Quilt Blocks (I found it here)! It has tons of wonderful blocks, and the possibilities are infinite. The book comes with a CD so you can print the blocks you like when you are ready to start your project. I usually print a few blocks, then cut and paste them onto a page so I can get as many blocks as possible (sometimes 2, sometimes 4, depending on block size) on one page, making sure I leave about 1/2" between blocks on all sides. Once that is done, I print the page onto foundation paper (vellum paper) and cut each one. Then, I choose fabrics, cut them per her cutting instructions (Carol Doak tells you the size for each piece - little fabric waste!), and put them together. This is another must-have book for your library. One note about foundation paper: I've switched to regular copy … [Read More...] about Paper Piecing Tutorial
One block modern quilt
Download this free pattern for an easy one-block modern quilt. It's great for beginner quilters and seasoned sewists! Island Breeze is the quilt I designed for Danielle Hartgers's Zanzibar collection for Blank Quilting. It measures 62" x 74" and has 12" blocks. Although the block looks complex, it is easy to assemble, requiring only half-square triangles. What do you think of those fabrics? I, for one, am smitten by these prints! Danielle was inspired when she assembled this beautiful … [Read More...] about One block modern quilt
Beginner-friendly modern batik quilt
Make this beginner-friendly modern batik quilt using your favorite collection or as a scrap buster! One easy quilt block is all it takes! Nature Study is my latest quilt, published in the February 2024 American Patchwork & Quilting issue. It measures 67" x 82", and the blocks finish at 6". I used greens and blues from my batik fabric 'collection' - I still have enough fabric to make five quilts in the same palette! The photographer, Adam Albright, always transforms my quilts into works … [Read More...] about Beginner-friendly modern batik quilt
Piece and Applique Modern Quilt Blocks
Build your favorite city as you piece and applique modern quilt blocks. Select the ones you like for smaller projects, or make the whole quilt! Welcome to City Blocks - my first quilt book! Published by Leisure Arts and already on sale, this book features 32 blocks I designed, each portraying a place or an experience in a city. There are also six coordinating, smaller projects, many diagrams, and easy-to-follow instructions. Those of you who have been following me since I began this … [Read More...] about Piece and Applique Modern Quilt Blocks
Paper Piecing Tutorial
This Paper-piecing tutorial is so easy to follow! With paper piecing, you can create amazing blocks or borders for your quilts! [Updated 01/08/2024] I LOVE Carol Doak's 300 Paper-Pieced Quilt Blocks (I found it here)! It has tons of wonderful blocks, and the possibilities are infinite. The book comes with a CD so you can print the blocks you like when you are ready to start your project. I usually print a few blocks, then cut and paste them onto a page so I can get as many blocks as … [Read More...] about Paper Piecing Tutorial
Free patterns for 2 Christmas projects
Download these Free patterns for 2 Christmas projects, gather the fabrics, and get ready for some easy and fun sewing time! Will you have some downtime during the Thanksgiving long weekend? If so, I have some quilting ideas for you! They are fast to sew and will get you ready for Christmas. The first idea is a Christmas Tree Skirt. I worked with the All Spruced Up collection by Satin Moon Designs for Blank Quilting. This collection has traditional colors and motifs for Christmas; yet I … [Read More...] about Free patterns for 2 Christmas projects
Free patterns for Thanksgiving quilts
Download these free patterns for Thanksgiving quilts and be ready to welcome friends and family to your Thanksgiving Feast! I designed Blessed Bounty for the Late Summer Harvest collection by Blank Quilting a little while ago. The collection will be available in April 2024, yet I thought it would be cool to alert you to it right now so you can ask your local quilt store to carry it. I love the prints in this collection and I think you will love it, too! Blessed Bounty measures 71-1/4" x … [Read More...] about Free patterns for Thanksgiving quilts
Modern quilt pattern for home decor
This modern quilt pattern for home decor looks complex, but it's easy! Beginner blocks and contrasting colors combine for a stunning effect! This is Candyboard, my latest quilt pattern available at my Etsy Store. It measures 64" x 76" with blocks that finish at 12". I designed it for the Tonga Honeycomb batik collection by Timeless Treasures. You know how much I love batiks, right? If you would like to make it using the same collection, I know that Hancock's of Paducah is selling the kits … [Read More...] about Modern quilt pattern for home decor