New Patterns from Jacqueline de Jonge!

Are you a paper piecing fan?  Have I got news for YOU!  Jacqueline de Jonge, the Dutch quilt artist who is the creative genius behind the pattern at Be Colourful Patterns has just released 5 new patterns, plus released a new format of another.  My jaw is on the floor.  OHMYGOSH--- I only wish you could see these patterns in real life! 

You carry all of Jacqueline de Jonge's patterns and you can see them on my website.

 Brilliant Beauties of Joy is not new, but has been re-formatted.  It was previously available in 5 different patterns, designed to be a block-of-the-month.  Jacqueline has now formatted this to sell in one pattern- at HALF the price of the original set of 5 patterns!!!  WOO HOO!   If you've been drooling over the set- you can now justify the purchase.  :-)  It's a very large quilt and a very large pattern.... enough to keep you busy for a while.

And if you REALLY want to keep busy for a while... check out Catch Me if You Can.  This isn't one of the new ones, but it's pretty recent and I had to show it to you again.  I think this is one of my favorite Be Colourful patterns.  Holy Cow-- this quilt is stunning!

Now for the new ones.  This is Aurora.  How awesome would this look on your bed????  It's like a New York Beauty on steroids.

Black Beauty is actually less complicated than it looks.  It's a creative arrangement of some New York Beauty blocks... and only uses a few fabrics.  really stunning!

Endless....  Well named.  The flying geese travel in an endless path around the stars.  I love this one.  Well... I love them all.  But I super love this one.

This one is named Summer Dream.  As Be Colourful patterns go, it's one of the "less complicated" ones.  It would be a great one to start with.  It's sized right to make a table topper or wall hanging.... or a baby quilt if you're so inclined.  :-)

And last, but not least... Midnight Stars.  Such a stunning quilt!  This is a big one... and it has it all.... spikes, curves, stars, flying geese, and a medallion.  LOVE it!










If you're thinking, "I could never make one of these quilts"... you might give it another though.  I will admit that you do need to know how to paper piece and you really should LIKE to do paper piecing.  After that- all you need is time.  It's just one step after the other... keep on going... and eventually, you'll have an heirloom quilt. They're no different from any other paper pieced quilts.  You piece a lot of sections and stitch the sections together.  Simple.  Right?  OK... there are a lot of sections.  You can do it.

Just a note if you look on the website at all of the Be Colourful patterns.... some have full size printed foundation papers included and some do not.  Her older patterns don't have the printed foundation papers included, but they do have full size pattern pieces that you trace or copy onto foundation papers.  As you might expect, these are less expensive.  Her newer patterns have all full size foundation papers included and ready to use.  Also as you might expect, these are more expensive.  It's a trade-off.  I like to get started right away but I also like to save money.  You're choice. 

One last thing-- I still have a small number of three discontinued Be Colourful patterns.  When they're gone, they're gone.  Twinkle Star has lots of stars and hexis.  Sweet Melody and Sun and Shadows are a lot like Black Beauty, but are different sizes and do not include foundation papers.  You can see them along with all of the other patterns here.

Travel!

Happy Wednesday, everybody!  What a glorious, sunny spring day it is here in the pacific northwest!  After months of dreary, rainy weather, this is... well.... a breath of SPRING!

 May Giveaway

Thanks to all who have entered the May giveaway.  I used to try to reply to everyone who responds to blog posts- including those who enter giveaways- but they have grown so much that I just don't have time.  I DO TRY to reply to everyone who comments (other than entering giveaways or congratulating giveaway winners).  So if you comment and don't hear from me- check to see if you are a "no-reply" blogger.  Most people who are NR bloggers don't realize it.  If you're wondering, post a comment and see if I send you an email reply.  As for the giveaway- if your comment shows up at the end of the giveaway post- you're entered!  If you get extra entries for following, etc, you should have that many comments.  Good luck, all!

I recently took a couple of trips.  Those of you who are long time followers have read my warnings before- don't tell people you are leaving before or during a trip- tell them about it when you get back.  Otherwise, you may as well tell the bad guys where the spare keys are.  I'm just sayin'.

A few weeks ago, I went with 3 of my friends to a wonderful condo at the beach.  The Oregon Coast is one of my favorite places on the planet.  Add to that 3 good friends, a beautifully appointed condo, and our sewing machines- and it just doesn't get any better!  I didn't get photos of all of our projects- here are just a few.  I finished 4 quilt tops, a little handbag and a chatelaine.  You'll see them all as I finish the quilting, etc.

I showed you the baby quilt in another post.  This is for my niece and I'm working on quilting it this week.  I'll show it to you when it's completely finished.

This is called Tradewinds.  It's a kit I have on my website.  It's pretty brown and yellow batiks from Robert Kaufman.  I also made 2 other quilt tops that I don't have pics of yet- you'll see them soon when I quilt them.

Julie brought this cute little project for us.  She brought neckties and showed us how to make little handbags.  Each one is made from just one tie, a little lining fabric, and some "bling".  Thanks, Julie!

Jean started a One Block Wonder quilt.  One of these days, I have to make a OBW.  They're sooooo cool!

This is another one of Jean's... a pretty wall hanging with an Asian flair.

Diane made some pretty paper pieced pot holders for a church tea, but I missed getting photos.  Maybe I can talk her into sending me some pics of the tea that include the pot holders.  (Hint, hint, Diane).  This one she was working on is called Funky, Curvy Rail from one of Karla Alexander's books.  I have one of these started, too.  It's a fun project.  I just LOVE the fabrics Diane is using!

This is Julie's- another design by Karla Alexander.  She's donating this to the Quilts of Valor group- donating quilts to members of the armed services with our gratitude for their efforts.

Julie made a bazillion blocks for this one- and got started stripping them together.  Most of the fabrics were from my shop- from the Winters Grace collection.  This is gonna be a HUGE quilt- a wedding gift.

And just to show you that we have a sense of humor- our friend, Shirlene, was unable to join us, which made her very sad.  Shirlene, a retired home ec teacher, is always the one who keeps us neat and tidy.  She is an excellent cook, but also makes beds and cleans up the kitchen before we even realize she did it.  She's so organized and efficient!  Anyway- we did manage to keep things cleaned up, even without Shirlene.  We took turns making meals and cleaning up.  But one day, for a joke, we left the mess pile up in the kitchen on purpose.  Then we took this photo and send it to Shirlene's phone with the caption, "Wish you were here".  She got a good laugh out of that.  Then we had to clean up the kitchen.

No sooner did I get back from the beach,,,,, I left again on a road trip with DH to visit our kids in Utah.  Our oldest son and his wife just bought their first home and we just had to see it!

It's twice the size of our first home!  We're so proud of them for all of their hard work making their dream come true.  I wish them many years of happiness in the home and I hope they make many wonderful memories there.

Our grand-dog, Cooper, LOVES his new back yard!

 While we were there, we visited the Natural History Museum of Utah.  How exciting to see real dinosaur bones!

This is DH and myself (2 more dinosaurs) on the top deck of the museum.  The view of the valley is breath-taking!

Cady and Paul.  Paul is our oldest son and Cady is the love of his life.

We were sad to say, "Goodbye", but we'll be back again, soon!

AND....  since it was a long road trip, I finished up 2 pairs of socks I had started.  This one is called Luna, by Regina Satta.  It was the second installment of the year for the Barking Dog Yarns Sock Club. BDY is owned by my friend, Suzan O'Brien.  She hand dyes all of the yarn she sells and it's gorgeous!  I'd buy it even if she wasn't a good friend..  Her eye for color is a gift.  She's amazing.  Fun knit!

This pattern is called Loyal Friend, by Kerstin Bettig.  I test knit this pattern for Kerstin and it is now published.  Kerstin is a German designer and she asks knitters all over the world to test knit her designs so that she is sure they are translated well.  This is the 3rd test knit I have done for her and I love the opportunity- FUN!

Long post!  A giveaway update, travel safety warning, lots of quilts, pics of my grown kids, a house and a dog, 2 trips, dinosaurs, and a couple of socks.  They say it's best to keep blog posts short and sweet and to only cover one subject with lots of pictures.  Hmmmm.... well...,. I have lots of pictures!  :-) 

Atkinson Designs Quilts

For this month's giveaway, I offered an extra entry if readers sent me a photo of a quilt they made from a Terry Atkinson pattern.  I thought I'd share some with you- thanks to all who sent pics!  This runs the whole month, so please send more!

Thanks to all who have entered the giveaway.  I have your entries!

Leah from South Carolina send me this picture of her Slideshow quilt.  CUTE!  I love it in the soft colors.  You can see her other great quilts on her blog, Quilted Delights.  She recently wrote a good post on paper piecing, too.

Cassie from Nebraska sent this photo in.  She calls it Madeline's 100 Good Wishes Quilt.  Cassie used the Slide Show pattern for inspiration and modified it a bit to use the fabrics she had.  You can read about it HERE on her blog.  Nice, Cassie!

Rebecca sent me this picture of a quilt she made for her daughter using the Lucky Stars pattern.  I've made three quilts from this pattern myself- it's one of my favorites!  The stars "float" so the seam matching is minimal.  Rebecca's blog can be found HERE.

Jocelyn, AKA the Happy Cottage Quilter, sent me a photo of her Yellow Brick Road.  I've made a few of these, too.  YBR seems to be a "go to" pattern for a lot of quilters who want a quick, cute, functional quilt.



Julie O. sent photos of 3 Atkinson Designs quilts:

 I love how she used fabric photo transfers to replace some of the blocks in this Yellow Brick Road quilt!

 All About Me is a very popular pattern.  So FUN!

Here is Julie's Tile Tango.  Love it!
Thanks for the picks, Julie.


 Thanks, again, to all who sent pictures.  Your quilts are all treasures!   Keep them coming!  Just a reminder that I have 16 of Atkinson Designs patterns on my website and they are all on sale throughout April.

Henrietta Whiskers- Free Pattern!

Henrietta Whiskers

You're smiling- aren't you?  I generally make quilts with more of a contemporary flair, but this one just has something about it.  I love applique and Henrietta is such an endearing little squirrel-- what can I say?

This pattern is available for FREE on one of my favorite blogs... Bunny Hill Designs.  Its a series of.. I think... 8 or 9 patterns and was a BOM for 2011.  DON'T DELAY!  It will only be available as a FREE download through the end of the month.  Once the calendar turns over to 2012, there will be a charge to purchase it.  I've downloaded Bunny Hill's free BOM's for 3 years now.  If you like embroidery, be sure to follow her blog- the designs are super cute!  You can get there directly via the button on my sidebar over to your right, or just click on her blog link from this post.

Thanks so much to Bunny Hill Designs for such great patterns!

New patterns from Be Colourful

I got a shipment of patterns from Be Colourful today.  The Be Colourful patterns are mostly advanced paper pieced patterns.  Jacqueline de Jong is a Dutch designer with a love of very colorful quilts!  I met her once and she is the most delightful person.  When I met her, it was at a show and her quilts were on display.  I asked her if I could touch one and look at the back (they were all hand quilted!!!).  She replied, "Of course!  They're only quilts!".  Only quilts!  Holy cow!  These are masterpieces!  She's very humble and has the most charming smile.  I felt so fortunate to have been able to chat with her and see her quilts up so close (and TOUCH them!)

(Ignore the colored strip at the top and bottom of the photos- I lifted them from my website and was too lazy to get rid of the background color)

 

 

 

 

I carry all of Jacqueline's patterns (28 right now) and just got her 3 newest in stock.  I'm so excited to have them!

 

 

 

 

 

 

This one is called Fly Away.  It won a ribbon in Houston last month. 

This one is called Sweet Melody.  It's so bright and cheerful in the colors Jacqueline chose!

This one is called Misty Morning.  I'm a sucker for any quilt with a "Mariners Compass" look.  I also love the blue and yellow color combination.

This is my all-time favorite Be Colourful pattern.  It's called Circle of Life.  I really, really, really want to make this quilt someday!  And just think of the delicious stash I'd have to collect  to get the colors right. :-)

Now check this out!  Fabric is magic, I tell you!  This pattern is called Joy.  It's done with lots of really bright, colorful batiks.  (Amazing, huh!?!?)

 

 

 

 

 

Now scroll down to the next picture......

This one is called Joyful.  It's the same quilt!  See what I mean?  Fabric is MAGICAL!

It's been a good day, but a long one.  I think I'll put a movie on and do some knitting.

Greyhound Rescue Fundraiser and some pretty quilts

 

Isn't this a pretty quilt? And the quilting is wonderful.  You can read more about it HERE.  The quilt is being raffled to benefit greyhound rescue.  Don't delay- the raffle ends on June 15th!  These fine folks volunteer their time to find forever homes for these wonderful dogs.  The volunteers do so much, but money still has to be raised to pay for food and vet services.  This photo, and the link, are from my friend, Anne's blog.  While you're there, click at the top on the blog title to read what she's been up to.  Her latest quilt is a kit she got from my website.  She and I are both working on the Celebration Quilt, which is a pattern from Quilt Moments.  She bought the kit from my website, and we exchanged a few emails, then a phone call, and we discovered that we have a lot in common.  I've made SO many friends through my website and through this blog.  I just love it!

Here is Anne's Celebration Quilt.  (Notice the batik geckos-- Anne lives in Arizona).

And here's her Cross Quilt.  I just HAVE to make one of these!!!!  What a great way to use up scraps.

Thanks to everyone who commented on the giveaway posts that they're glad I'm blogging again.  Breaks are good, but I'm very glad to be back.  And your kind words mean a lot.

I'm off to purchase some raffle tickets for the Greyhound Quilt.

Diamonds are a Quilter's Best Friend

Last week, one of the wholesale distributors of fabric and quilting supplies from which I purchase a lot of the products I sell on my website had a trade show/ buyers' market.  They do this twice a year and along with the show, they have a day prior to the show when they hold classes.  The classes are taught by pattern designers and the students are mostly shop owners making shop samples for display. 

I love taking these classes, mostly because I think its fun to meet the people who design the patterns.  One of the classes I took was to make a table runner called Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend.  The designer is Theresa Richards Chickering aka Fabric Tart.  I was so excited that I FINISHED the table runner in the class.  The pattern is very easy to follow and the runner works up very quickly.  I think it took me about 2 1/2 hrs from start to finish.  Theresa is a delightful person and it was a very enjoyable few hours working in her class.

The pattern includes 2 alternate views.  I made the one with the large diamonds called "Big is Good, Too". 

As luck would have it, these fabrics in the kit they provided for us go very well in my kitchen and dining room.  Now to get it quilted.....

I'll be adding this to my website soon.  If you just can't wait- shoot me an email.

Remember me?

I can't believe I haven't blogged in a month.  BAD, Sue!  I have an exciting month planned for all of my friends in blog-land.  I have a HUGE giveaway and I have lots of things to share with you that happened to me over the past month.  I have guild retreat photos to show you, pictures from classes I took from pattern designers at a trade show, pictures from my niece's wedding celebration, pictures of knitting projects, a few new recipes, and pictures of several of my latest quilt and sewing projects.  I even have a few free handbag patterns to share.  I will be working on the wedding quilt for my son and future daughter in law, and in between I'll sprinkle the above mentioned photos.  I'm resolving to be a better blogger this month!

I hate to post without a picture.  The above photo is me holding up a quilt top I finished at our guild retreat (more about that to come....).  The center is a panel from the Kingyo collection by Red Rooster.  All of the fabrics are from Kingyo.  It was super easy to put together since the borders were mostly from a border print.  The only thing that was time consuming was the 5 flowers along the right and the 4 circles on the bottom that had to be fussy-cut and appliqued on.... and mitering the corners of the large borders.  I really liked how it turned out.  Now to quilt it!

I see that several new readers signed up to follow this blog during September.  Welcome!  I'm glad to have you reading along.

I'll post my October giveaway tomorrow--- and it's a good one!

Carrie Nelson's Schnibbles

 

 Carrie Nelson is another great designer I met at Quilt Market. She is the creative woman behind the very popular Schnibbles patterns.  Above is a photo of Carrie autographing a copy of her new book to me.  She's a delightful lady and it was a pleasure to chat with her later in her booth.

 

Let's see how well I can do at describing what "Schnibbles" are.

"Schnibbles" are "little bits".  Carrie explained to me that they are little pieces.... little leftovers or little samplings.  Her Schnibbles patters are to make little quilts.  Most of these gems measure about 30 inches square.  They are not to be confused with miniature quilts.  They aren't miniatures with the teensie weensie seams and tiny blocks.  The blocks aren't big, but they're "normal" small blocks.  There's just aren't very many of them.  

Her new book, "Schnibbles Times Two", features a small Schnibbles and a little bit "less small" quilt.  She gives instructions for quilts that are about 30 inches square and then the same quilt measuring about 70 inches square (give or take).

I've had requests from several friends and customers to carry Schnibbles patterns and kits, and even a few requests for a "Schnibbles of the month" kit.  Waddaya think?  Carrie says you can make a 30 inch top in about a day.  There's a pretty darned good chance that you're going to see them on my website soon.  I'm trying to decide if I should just carry the book and patterns or if you would like kits.  I'd love to hear your feedback.

I'm thinking that a new little quilt would look great on my dining room table- instead of the traditional table runner- a new one each month.  I don't know where I would hang all these little quilts, but I could have one dedicated spot for them and rotate them- hanging different ones when the mood strikes.  Have any of you made any Schnibbles, and how do you display them?

As if I needed another reason to like Carrie, her helper is a Golden Retriever named, Rosie.  (see below).  This old girl has seen a lot of quilts in her day!  What a lucky furry friend to have Carrie for a mom.  We're a family of pet-lovers.  If you'd like to see a picture of my Golden or of all my grandpuppies and grandkitties, I have them all in my gallery. Speaking of the gallery- I'm pathetically behind on adding photos to it.  So many thoughtful customers have sent me photos of their quilts and I have been delinquent in getting them loaded onto the gallery.  That's on my short list of things to do.... I'll let you know when I get it updated.

Edyta Sitar and Laundry Basket Quilts

More from Quilt Market.....

 I think my new favorite pattern designer/ book author is Edyta Sitar. She does amazing piecing and applique.  And when I heard her speak at Quilt Market, I was captivated.  She is very personable and it's a pleasure to listen to her speak.  Her accent is charming and she speaks comfortably to her audience, as if she were conversing with a few friends. 

Behind her is the quilt from the cover of "Hop To It".  She learned during this class that the book is now an award winner.  Her publisher surprised her with the honor just moments after this photo was taken.

Here's a closeup of the breath taking quilt.  It's even better in person than on the cover of the book.

And the bunny block.  :-)  The applique on this quilt is all fused/ raw edge.  Her stitching is so clean-- right on the edge of the pieces.  It's hard to tell that it's raw edge without getting very close to it.

The rest of these photos were taken in her booth.  It was hard to photograph them because the booth was so crowded.  She was VERY popular.

These patterns are so amazing.  I think they will be showing up on my website!

This was very pretty in blue and white.  She generally uses more color and I was surprised to see this one.  Very nice!

 A VERY pretty pineapple.

 Beautiful!