2017 Finishes

Click here for the One Monthly Goal January link-up

2018 is here and I'm excited to get started on all of my projects.  But first, one last view of my finishes from 2017.  For me, it was quite the productive year.

First the larger quilts - Playful is twin bed sized and Christmas Holly, Be Bold, Happy Birthday Mom and Goldilocks are couch sized.  All the rest are wall hangings.

(1st row) Christmas Holly , Sunset Flight, Mini Charm Chocolates, Freedom
(2nd row) Be Bold, Playful,  Happy Birthday Mom,  Snail Trails
(3rd row) Our Land, Woodland Animals, Kindness, Goldilocks
(4th row) En Provedence, Tulips, Galaxy, Wayward

It is interesting (to me) that so many of these quilts were QALs or blog hop related.  There are four original quilts there - Sunset Flight, Birthday Quilt, Kindness & Goldilocks).  For the others, the blocks were part of a QAL and in most cases, I designed my own setting.  (There is one more finish not shown since it is part of some secret sewing.)

Contrast this with the minis and table runners below.  Only 7 of these came from others designs - the remaining 18 are all mine.

In addition, I created a number of new bag tutorials , some of which are pictured below.

Finally, I made plenty of bags, notebooks and pillows.  I posted about the pillows I made in 2017 here but am including a photo for completeness.  5 of these are original designs.

Thanks for reading through my projects of the year.  Now on to 2018!

Have a wonderful day! Patty

Playful

100 blocks made and shared through Instagram in 100 days.

75 blocks all set together without sashing.  Yellows, grays, whites and elephants blending together.

Asymmetrically framed with a slate gray solid and backed with flannel.  Stitched with organic wavy lines.  The binding is slate gray except for a 18'' section (upper right) which is bound in scraps of yellow.

Looks perfect on my daughter's bed in her newly painted room.

(Although quilts on her bed rarely look this neat and are usually twisted around and pushed aside after she wakes in the morning.)

We took the quilt for a photo shoot at our neighborhood playground - a place she hadn't been too since she was ten.

For my quilt, I used this FQ bundle of Pastel Pop by Michael Miller which was sitting in my stash. 

Read more about the QAL here and follow along on Instagram with #100Days100Blocks2017.  You can find the 100 Modern Quilt Blocks book on Amazon.

I'll be linking up my quilt Playful with  Freemotion by the River,   WIP Wednesday's,  Let's Bee Social, Midweek Makers.  Needle and Thread Thursdays, Finish it Up Friday and Finished or Not Friday.


Have a wonderful day! Patty

Playful - Bloggers Quilt Festival

Amy is back with this year's Blogger's Quilt Festival.

Every year Amy hosts a wonderful link-up where quilters can link-up two of their favorite quilts in a virtual quilt show.  It is so much fun to see what everyone is doing and visit new blogs.

My first entry is my quilt Playful which I finished recently.

The quilt used 75 of the 100 blocks I made as part of this years #100Days100Blocks2017 Instagram based challenge.

When I started making the blocks, I had no plan in mind for the quilt.  But my daughter saw otherwise.  She spent time this summer painting her room a pretty shade of gray.  So she claimed the quilt when there were only a few blocks sewn.  She regularly (and enthusiastically) checked on my progress in pulling the quilt together.  She hoped to get the quilt on her bed before she had to head back to college for her sophomore year.  I got it done with about a week to spare.

We took it to our local playground for the photo shoot.

Asymmetrically framed with a slate gray solid and backed with flannel.  Stitched with organic wavy lines.  The binding is slate gray except for a 18'' section (upper right) which is bound in scraps of yellow.

The solids were American Made Brand solids is several shades of gray.  The blocks themselves were from a FQ bundle of Pastel Pop by Michael Miller.  I had fun using yellow - not a color I sew with very often.  Some of the blocks have really sweet elephants in them.

The remaining 25 blocks will very likely end up as a pillow(s).

If you a new visitor to my blog, welcome!  I hope you'll stick around a bit and visit.  I've some fun things going on right now.

One Monthly Goal is a monthly link-up party where you declare you sewing goal for the month. This could be to create a few blocks, add on a binding - whatever it takes to make progress on your sewing projects.  You can read more about it here - come link up in October!

The 3rd annual Elm Street Quilts Bag It event just began. There will be 3 months of fun including tutorials and designers spotlights on various bags to encourage handmade for the holidays.  

Making a bag - any bag, doesn't have to be from my tutorials - earns you entries to win some absolutely fabulous prizes from sponsors.  Don't miss this event - help me spread the word - tell your friends!

Thanks for stopping by!

Have a wonderful day! Patty

QuiltCon Recap Part 1 - My Quilts

QuiltCon took place in Atlanta from February 23 - 26. I attended the show, volunteered, took a class, saw some many friends and made new ones. It was awesome. Since there is so much to share, I'm splitting my QuiltCon recap into several posts. 

I feel incredibly fortunate to have had two quilts juried into QuiltCon.

My quilt Patent Pending was one of twenty quilts in the Group or Bee category. The goal behind the Patent Pending group quilt was to create a playful quilt that people would stop and look at. I hoped that many would follow the path of the ball through the quilt and be amazed by all the wonderful blocks created by my friends. (Read more about Patent Pending.)

So, yes, I quilt stalked. I stood in the main aisle and watched people approach the quilt. Many took photos and some definitely stopped, studied and looked at the details. I happened to overhear a few people shout with delight as they recognized it was a Rube Goldberg or referenced it as the board game Mouse Trap. One little girl stood in front of the quilt and had her mom take a photo since it was her favorite. (sigh.)

Six of the seven friends who contributed were at the show and we had great fun grabbing photos. Linda @florishingpalms, Kitty @nightquilter, Charles @feltlikesweets, Val @valbetweenquilts, and Me (kneeling).

I also grabbed 'ta-da' individual photos with each friend. Pat @peacockcreekdesigns and Sarah @saroy missed the group shot but their smiling faces are captured in these photos. (Check out Sarah's quilted sneakers!) Sadly Yvonne @quiltingjetgirl was unable to be at the show.

As a thank you to those who contributed, I made little notebooks using scraps of fabric and the seam ripper pattern.

My quilt Decade was part of the Modern X special exhibit in honor of the tenth anniversary of the very first QuiltCon. (Read more about the Decade quilt.) The QuiltCon show was spread over 3 floors this year - vendors were on floors 1 and 2 while the primary quilt show was on floor 3. The Modern X exhibit - there were 37 quilts in total - was on floor 2.

While I didn't snap any other photos from this category, there were some really amazing quilts. (While this category was juried, there was no judging or prizes awarded.)

I didn't stalk this quilt much at all but I did go visit it several times and got a thrill each time I walked around the corner and saw it hanging in the show.

So cool to see my name hanging up in the show!

Finally, I did contribute a single block to another group quilt - The Myriad Interpretations of Language - a Collaborative Embroidery Project by Sam Hunter.

In tomorrow's post, I'll share photos of the quilts that caught my attention during the show.

Have a wonderful day! Patty

Delightful Desert - A finish

I am just in love with this quilt!

These sweet animals decorated my design board for weeks.   While I love the cuddly bunny.....

..... the crane might just be my favorite.

For the quilting, I went with an all over FMQ design of loops, done on my domestic machine.  I briefly thought about custom quilting each animal but decided I wanted something that was playful.  The quilt is backed in the softest flannel and I'm hoping makes a baby happy. 

This was my very first commission quilt - I've always wanted to make a pattern by Elizabeth Hartman so was thrilled to tackle this one.

I'll be linking up my finish with  Freemotion by the River,   WIP Wednesday's,  Let's Bee Social, Midweek Makers.  Needle and Thread Thursdays, and Finished or Not Friday.

*** Please note - blogger has made changes to how I am notified of new blog comments which is making it difficult to reply via email.  Until another solution is available, I will reply directly to the comment on the blog . ***

Have a wonderful day! Patty

My Best of 2017

Click here for the December One Monthly Goal Finish link-up

With just a few days left in 2017, it is a perfect time for reflection and revisiting favorites from this year as we get ready to wave goodbye to one year and welcome the next.

Cheryl @Meadow Mist Designs is hosting a Best of 2017 link-up to highlight our 5 best blog posts of 2017.  (For reference, my 2016 post).

I really love sharing my creative journey through my blog.  I meet new friends and have a written record of everything that I've made.  I am so glad you've come to visit!

I made lots of quilts in 2017 but my favorite quilt finish is the one I made for my mom in celebration of her 80th birthday.  I collected signatures and messages from everyone in the family and choose a design that highlighted the signatures.  It was really special to see her put the quilt on her lap and read every message.  Happy Birthday Mom!

You can also read more about the process of creating a signature quilt on this quilting tip post.

Every year, I run a blog link-up event called Bag It.  I share new bag tutorials plus the work of some talented designers.  This year's event was bigger than ever and so much fun.  From my new batch of tutorials, the most popular tutorials are the Project Bag and the Sewing Machine cover.

In addition to bag tutorials, I've posted other quilting tips throughout the year.  My most popular quilting tip is Prepare your Quilt for Binding.

A goal from 2017 that will become even more of a focus in 2018 was to get  a magazine publish of one of my designs.  I was thrilled to be part of Quiltmaker's 100 Block Volume 16 issue with my block Scattered Triangles and it is my favorite (and only!) magazine publish.

Finally, my most popular posts are the link-ups associated with One Monthly Goal.  (If you haven't participated in One Monthly Goal, check out the sponsor announcement for 2018 and give it a try!)

Goals for a given month need to be something associated with making with thread, fabric or yarn.  You don't need to actually finish a project each month - for example, you could have a goal to make ten blocks from a project along.

For this Best of 2017 post, I revisited all my monthly goals for the year and created a collage of some of the projects that were my One Monthly Goal projects.

Some of the quilts I completed are pictured above -  Goldilocks, Galaxy, and Autumn Hexies (top row), Woodland Animals &  Our Land (middle row),  Playful, Be Bold  and Christmas Holly (bottom row).

Thanks Cheryl for a chance to link-up!

Happy New Year to everyone!   

Come back on Monday, January 1 and join the One Monthly Goal link-up.

Have a wonderful day! Patty

QuiltCon 2025 - My Quilts

Phoenix was the site of QuiltCon for 2025 and I had a terrific time! The conference center was really nice with plenty of wide open spaces for the quilts and the vendors. 

I arrived on Wednesday, spent time with my sister visiting the Botanical Gardens and then did my favorite volunteering shift during registration. (If you've an upcoming visit to Phoenix, I would highly recommend spending time at the gardens.)

I was fortunate enough to have two quilts juried into the show. Showing them off to my sister Thursday morning was priority one! (She encouraged a fun photoshoot too.)

For fellow Trekkies, Island in the Sky is my rendition of the utopian island featured in TOS “The Cloud Minders” episode.

Inspired by Irene Roderick’s Dancing with the Wall book, the creation process for this quilt was a slow dance as I worked through different book chapters to create a pile of improv units over the course of several months. Overall, the final dance with the design wall was an incredibly fun and playful experience.

This is one of my all time favorite makes and it was thrilling to see it in the show. It was in the Small Quilts category.

Arcturus, a red-giant star, is the 4th brightness star in the Northern sky. It is easy to find for amateur stargazers (like me!) by following the curve of the Big Dipper's handle - extend the curve beyond the handle and you’ll find Arcturus. The star can be found right overhead in the summer night sky. 

The quilt design was loosely based on the concept of a medallion quilt and was a fun challenge to assemble.

Arcturus was in the Fabric Challenge category. The other quilts in this category were just spectacular and one of my favorite group of quilts to explore.

I wore my work in progress denim jacket while at the show. I think I got more compliments on it then my quilts! :-)

I plan a series of posts about QuiltCon in the next week or so as I have done in the past. For a summary of previous QuiltCon memories, see this post.

Have a wonderful day! Patty

QuiltCon 2025 - All the Quilts

QuiltCon has been over for several weeks yet I am still thinking about the show, meeting new and old friends and all the quilts. Each time I see quilts shared in someone else's QuiltCon recap, I find quilts that I have no memory of seeing ever before yet I am positive I saw every quilt in the show more than once!

(This is part 3 of my series on QuiltCon 2025. For more QuiltCon recap, read about My Quilts and The Workshop. I hope to have one final wrap-up post later this week.)

Dignity by Veruschka Zarate @prideandjoyquilting won Best in Show. I'd seen photos of her progress on IG but to see the quilt and the perfectly aligned back in person was just amazing! I had the opportunity to meet Veruschka in person - she is amazingly welcoming and kind.

I walked the show floor several times. At first, carefully reading each quilt story, sometimes with a friend and sometimes by myself. I then walked back through categories stopping to gaze at what caught my eye.

I captured photos of my favorites. That said, as other people share, I keep getting surprised by quilts that I am certain I saw but have no memory of!

These are shown here in no particular order.

First up is the fabric challenge category. There were so many amazing entries that it was hard to pick a favorite. (My quilt Arcturus was in this category.)

Top row: Unboxed by @paulasteel.quilts, Gegenwind by @alpsandoceanquilts, Chesire by @stephskardal (2nd place winner)

2nd row: Unplugged by @jenngeorgeburt, Arturus by me @elmstreetqults, and Quilts' View by @smallhenstudio

3rd row Compass Star by Debbie Schultz,  Flutterby @betsy.vinegrad, and Urban Equalizer by @sarahruiz

Color! There were so many quilters that dazzled me with their color choices and placements. Here are just a few.

1st row:  Countercurrent by @barbdanzi (2nd Place winner), Serenity by @modernstitchwitch and X Factor by @karin_rabe_vance

2nd row: Another Dance with the Dragon by @modernstitchwitch, Is Neon A Neutral by @jeeasterly and Light Me Up by @peache.and.patchwork (1st place winner)

3rd row Sliced by @dramystitches, Square Bloom by @jowoquilts and Neural Overlap by @jeanne.garcia

And then there are the quilts that make me smile. The first two rows were the playful ones, the bottom row were the map quilts. (I want to make a map quilt someday.)

1st row:    Blobs by @Dre_Luciole_Quilts, Oasis by @cassandra.beaver, and Propagate by @emilywattsquilts

2nd row: Levitation by @salsquilts, Graduation Day by @scaseyquilts and Desperados by @hixsonir

3rd row:   Sidewalk Repair by @studioquilts, Harrison Map by @bimbambuki_blog, and Rock Harbor, Isle Royale by @shea.making.doing

I always enjoy the handwork category. I aspire to enter a handwork quilt into the show one day. These were my favorites.

 In Jordan Year (Quilt of Golden Delights) @laurahartrich hand embroidered a delightful experience each day for a year. (This quilts won People's Choice award.)   The stitching in Moving On by @psbquilts enhanced the color transition between blocks. The Isomeric by @thequiltedhand was made as a gift to her third miscarriage.

This final batch were another amazing group of quilts I went back to see more than once.

1st row: Nurturing the Pod @janemadlyquilting, Figure Study 5 by @kerrimcqueengreen, and CandiLand 2: Carnival by @candipursuits

2nd row: Alecia Beth (aka Pink) by @quiltedpeacock, Exist Out Loud by @exhaustedoctopus, and NYC Fire Escapes by @sewingp

3rd row: Erratic Connotation by @catlucia, Fanciful by Mackenzie Leake, and Orange Blast by @mili.tra

Finally, I was invited to contribute a block to @flourishingpalms potholder quilt. It was a fun project to be a part of. Linda has a bunch of posts with quilts from QuiltCon including a group shot of some of the contributors - read it here.

There were so many amazing quilts in the show. Can't wait for QuiltCon 2026 back in Raleigh!

Have a wonderful day! Patty

Numbers - Bloggers Quilt Festival

 Amy is back with this year's Blogger's Quilt Festival.

Every year Amy hosts a wonderful link-up where quilters can link-up two of their favorite quilts in a virtual quilt show.  It is so much fun to see what everyone is doing and visit new blogs.

My first entry is my quilt Playful which I posted about yesterday.

Today, I wanted to share my wall-hanging quilt called Numbers.

The quilt is a Fibonacci quilt.  The dimensions of the blocks are part of the Fibonacci series (1, 1, 2, 3, 5 ...).    For the quilting, each block is quilted differently in matching thread.  The number of quilting lines crossing the block also maps to a number in the series.

The quilt finishes at 40'' square and the fabrics are all American Made Brand solids. 

My son is a math and computer geek and this quilt was perfect for him.  It hangs on his apartment wall and I get to see it each weekend when we Skype.

If you a new visitor to my blog, welcome!  I hope you'll stick around a bit and visit.  I've some fun things going on right now.

One Monthly Goal is a monthly link-up party where you declare you sewing goal for the month. This could be to create a few blocks, add on a binding - whatever it takes to make progress on your sewing projects.  You can read more about it here - come link up in October!

The 3rd annual Elm Street Quilts Bag It event just began. There will be 3 months of fun including tutorials and designers spotlights on various bags to encourage handmade for the holidays.  

Making a bag - any bag, doesn't have to be from my tutorials - earns you entries to win some absolutely fabulous prizes from sponsors.  Don't miss this event - help me spread the word - tell your friends!

Thanks for stopping by!

Have a wonderful day! Patty