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Wednesday, March 27, 2024

Happy NTT!

Welcome to Needle and Thread Thursday, y'all.  I wasn't kidding when I said last week that I love yard work so much that I even help my friends.  After two exceptionally hard winters, two of my very good friends are doing lots of reevaluating what plants are actually hardy enough for this area, and lots of replanting.  And yep!  You guessed it.  I've been to the nursery and right there digging holes with each of them this week.  

Last week's party had lots to ogle though!  I love this sweet quilt from Susan at Patchwork n Play-


This fun quilt is from Jan at The Colorful Fabriholic-



I love this one from Sew Preeti Quilts-


And finally, check out this cozy beauty from Maggie at Making a Lather-


Okay friends!  Party on!

1You can link finished projects or WIP's , but just keep it about quilting and sewing!
2. Link to your specific post (not to your home page!) to make it easier for others.
3. Please remember to spread the word and post my button or a text link within your 
    post.  
4. Spread the comment love far and wide!
5. Following me is not a requirement to link, but is so very appreciated!

*If you're new to the party, here's a helpful tip for linking up- select "Auto Crop"  when selecting your thumbnail photo.  For some reason, trying to crop your own image results in the dreaded "white question mark box," and we definitely want to see your awesome work!  :)



Wednesday, March 20, 2024

Lots of Landscaping and NTT

Welcome to Needle and Thread Thursday and happy spring, y'all!  I know I've probably mentioned how much I love working in my yard, but in case you don't already know- at my house, I am the grass-cutter, the leaf-raker, and the flower planter.  My husband is wonderful and is almost always working alongside me, especially with jobs that are too big for me to handle alone.  I prefer yard work over the gym, so I insist on doing as much as possible without his help so I can skip my evening workout.  I love yard work so much that I even help my friends with theirs, lol!

The spring weather makes it easy to be outside, and since I returned from North Carolina, we have been hard at work adding a HUGE flower bed along our back fence.



I have two large oak trees in my backyard, and this area only gets sunshine in the morning.  Over the past four years, the sod that was laid there has gotten more and more sparse.  So, I decided to turn the area into a big, beautiful flower bed.  I've planted several types of hydrangeas, some azaleas, and a camellia in the bed, with a few hostas in the deep shade area just under the biggest oak tree.  All of these plants love morning sun and need protection during the hottest part of the day, which the fence and trees will provide perfectly.  The plants are just babies now, but they'll fill up this bed in just a couple of good growing seasons.



And I can't stop staring at my redbud tree in full bloom.  The small pink flowers make the branches look like they're coated in cotton candy (and yes, they smell wonderfully fragrant).  I won't bombard you with photos since you're here for the quilting, but we also added another small flower bed on the side of our house, and had to plant some new things in the front that never quite bounced back from the arctic blast two winters ago.  Needless to say, I've been super busy (and dirty) this week.

Instead of sewing, our days have been filled with tilling, dirt, SO much mulch, and several trips to my favorite nursery.  And in the moments that I haven't been digging in the ground, I've been reading on my back patio, just to be surrounded by all of it.  Quilting will wait.

So, let's check out some of my favorite links from last week.  I love this sweet quilt top from Anne-Marie at Stories From the Sewing Room-


This blue beauty is from Melva Loves Scraps-


And Nancy at Grace and Peace Quilting linked up this lovely quilt-


Alrighty friends!  Let's link up!

1You can link finished projects or WIP's , but just keep it about quilting and sewing!
2. Link to your specific post (not to your home page!) to make it easier for others.
3. Please remember to spread the word and post my button or a text link within your 
    post.  
4. Spread the comment love far and wide!
5. Following me is not a requirement to link, but is so very appreciated!

*If you're new to the party, here's a helpful tip for linking up- select "Auto Crop"  when selecting your thumbnail photo.  For some reason, trying to crop your own image results in the dreaded "white question mark box," and we definitely want to see your awesome work!  :)



Monday, March 18, 2024

March Sponsor News!

Hey there, my friends!  Despite the fact that it is going to be 28 degrees tonight (boo!), I'm going to wish you a happy almost spring!  Here, it has been positively spring-like for the past few weeks.  Some rain for sure, but mostly tons of sunshine and soft, warm breezes.  In fact, after this temperature drop tonight, we'll be right back in the 60's tomorrow.  Spring is such a source of inspiration for me, and I just love ogling all of the gorgeous collections.  So, let's check out the latest spring things from my favorite shops around the web-



LouLou's Fabric Shop has lots of new beauties arriving in the shop, so they're doing some spring cleaning in the shop to make room.  Use the code springcleaning through 3/31 to get an extra 20% off sale items, like this lovely bundle of the Homestead collection by April Rosenthal.


                        LouLou’s Fabric Shop









And don't forget about the LouLou Bundles!  I just love these.  Each week, LouLou's curates a collection of eight perfectly coordinated fat quarters.  They are always super cute and seasonally appropriate.  They're great for smaller projects, or a perfect starting point for a larger one.  Or, you can even use them to bulk up colors in your stash that are lacking.  If you see one you love, you'd better grab it- when they're gone, they're gone!  Here are two of the latest-








Spring is in the air at Lady Belle Fabric too!  This bundle of the Sunroom collection by Elizabeth Hartman is so fresh and cheerful, and it's brand new in the shop.




               Lady Belle Fabric









Are you a fabric treasure hunter?  Or a scrap-lover?  Or maybe you like a little mystery with your fabric shopping?  Then you should check out Lady Belle's new scrap packs.  As the name suggests, these bundles contain pieces from a wide variety of Art Gallery fabrics, ranging from 18" width, to no smaller than           3 1/2"x 42".  Each bundle is guaranteed to contain five full yards of fabric for a super-low price.  All of Lady Belle's fabrics are gorgeous, so you can't really go wrong.







Oh, and one more important thing.  Lady Belle is currently running a sale as well- 25% off your entire purchase!  There is no code needed to take advantage of this deal, and the discount will be applied in your shopping cart.  I don't have an end date for this sale, so you might want to jump on it!

Okay friends, I really hope you'll hurry off and show these amazing shops some love.  You'll be so happy you did.  Happy shopping!



Wednesday, March 13, 2024

Needle and Thread Thursday!

Welcome to NTT, y'all!  My trip to Charlotte last week was fantastic!  I loved presenting my trunk show to the Charlotte Quilter's Guild, and we had so much fun in the class.  What was NOT fun was my return trip home.  I was scheduled to leave Charlotte at 8:30 pm following my class, catch a connecting flight to Memphis at 10:30 pm, and make it home a little after midnight Thursday night.  Well, the weather had other plans.  As it turned out, because of weather in Dallas (where my plane was coming from), my flight from Charlotte didn't take off until almost 2:00 am!  Needless to say, I missed my connecting flight back to Memphis and the next available flight from Chicago to Memphis didn't leave until 9:10 am.  I had no choice but to stay awake in the airports, and after teaching all day, that was tough.  I finally made it home and in my own bed at noon Friday, and after being awake for about 31 hours straight, my bed has never felt so good.

I haven't sewn anything since getting back home.  Instead, I've been either catching up on sleep, or outside enjoying the glorious spring weather and working in my yard.

As always, last week's party was amazing, and it certainly gave me some awesome eye candy while I was awake in the airport.  Take a look at this stunner from Karen at Quilts...Etc.


This quilt (and pattern) is from Sew Preeti Quilts.  It's a brand new pattern, and there are several other versions linked up to last week's party as well!


And finally, these two fun quilts are from Nancy at Grace and Peace Quilting-


Okay, friends, let's get our party going!

1You can link finished projects or WIP's , but just keep it about quilting and sewing!
2. Link to your specific post (not to your home page!) to make it easier for others.
3. Please remember to spread the word and post my button or a text link within your 
    post.  
4. Spread the comment love far and wide!
5. Following me is not a requirement to link, but is so very appreciated!

*If you're new to the party, here's a helpful tip for linking up- select "Auto Crop"  when selecting your thumbnail photo.  For some reason, trying to crop your own image results in the dreaded "white question mark box," and we definitely want to see your awesome work!  :)



Wednesday, March 6, 2024

A Finished Class Sample and NTT

Happy Needle and Thread Thursday, friends!  I'm super excited that I get to visit Charlotte, North Carolina this week, and I've been getting all my last minute things finished before I go.  When this post goes live, I'll actually be getting ready for my trunk show!  One of the things I checked off my to-do list this week was to finish this class sample of my Churn, Churn, Churn quilt.


This quilt is by far my most popular class.  It is almost endlessly customizable with improv color choices and background fabric, and I wanted to make another example for quilters to see.  The quilt in the book is quilted with an allover box stipple design, and I wanted to do something different here.  I quilted each churn block with dense lines, radiating out from the center, and then the black background lines are in the opposite direction.  The effect is very neat.  I tried to brighten the picture and add a bit of contrast so you can see the quilting against the black.


My decision to use the cool side of the color wheel was entirely dictated by my scrap jars.  As you all probably know by now, I sort my scraps by color and not by size, and my cool scrap jars always seem to fill up the fastest.  The black background really makes these cool colors stand out.


Awhile ago, one of my good quilty friends decided to pare down her stash.  Her quilting studio has been overtaken by her home office since Covid, and she just doesn't quilt as much as she used to.  And I was lucky to get first pick of her destash. This gorgeous print on the back is one that came from her, and I love how it blends so well with the front of the quilt.  I think it's an Alison Glass print, but I'm not completely sure.

I have a busy spring of travel ahead. This little quilt is heading to North Carolina with me this week, to Tulsa, Oklahoma next month, and finally to Bloomington, Indiana in May. If your guild is looking for a teacher in the fall, send me an email!  I just have two available months open in 2024.  Of course, I'm already booking 2025 as well.

Okay friends!  Before we party, let's check out the highlights from last week.  Check out this gorgeous finish from Maggie at Making a Lather-


I love this one by Viridian's Blog-


And even though it's spring now, this autumn quilt from Kim at Purring Cottage is so lovely-


Are you ready to party?  I can't wait to browse through all of your projects while I'm in the airport on the way home!  Let's do it!

1You can link finished projects or WIP's , but just keep it about quilting and sewing!
2. Link to your specific post (not to your home page!) to make it easier for others.
3. Please remember to spread the word and post my button or a text link within your 
    post.  
4. Spread the comment love far and wide!
5. Following me is not a requirement to link, but is so very appreciated!

*If you're new to the party, here's a helpful tip for linking up- select "Auto Crop"  when selecting your thumbnail photo.  For some reason, trying to crop your own image results in the dreaded "white question mark box," and we definitely want to see your awesome work!  :)



Wednesday, February 28, 2024

Churning and NTT

Welcome to Needle and Thread Thursday, friends. I got into my studio this week for the first time since the loss of my dog, and it felt good to sew something, however small.  By far, the Churn, Churn Churn pattern is the most popular class I teach from my book, Scrappy Improv Quilting, and I've been wanting to sew another class sample for awhile now.  

I decided to make this one in a cool color way with purple, blue, and teal, and I think it is so striking against the solid black background.  Here is the original quilt from the book-

I like the single color gradient effect, but it's always nice to show a different option for quilters in my classes.  I'm heading to Charlotte, NC next week to teach this one, and then I'm teaching it again in Tulsa, OK in April.  So, it seemed like the perfect time to get this new sample "churned" out. I'm working to get it quilted and finished before I leave at the crack of dawn on Wednesday (I literally have to be at the airport at 4:30am).  

Even though I'll be in North Carolina at the time of posting next week, don't worry!  NTT is still on.  I'll have the post all ready to go before leaving.  Now, let's get to the highlights from last week.  This EPP finish is from Turid at Den syende himmel.  WOW!  This quilt was ten years in the making!


Quilting Gail shared her method for making a diagonal quilt back, and you know I'm all about pieced quilt backs!


Check out this cute quilt from Maggie at Making a Lather-


And finally, I am in LOVE with scrappy finish from Something Rosemade-


Okay y'all!  let's link up!

1You can link finished projects or WIP's , but just keep it about quilting and sewing!
2. Link to your specific post (not to your home page!) to make it easier for others.
3. Please remember to spread the word and post my button or a text link within your 
    post.  
4. Spread the comment love far and wide!
5. Following me is not a requirement to link, but is so very appreciated!

*If you're new to the party, here's a helpful tip for linking up- select "Auto Crop"  when selecting your thumbnail photo.  For some reason, trying to crop your own image results in the dreaded "white question mark box," and we definitely want to see your awesome work!  :)



Wednesday, February 21, 2024

Spring is in the Air and NTT

Welcome to Needle and Thread Thursday, y'all. It feels like spring here, with temps in the low 70's and sunny, with a warm, light breeze.  As I write this post, I'm out here soaking up the sunshine.

No sewing for me this week, but I did have a lovely visit with my family last weekend, and of course they saw the memory quilts and ornaments in person for the first time.  They loved them as much as I hoped they would.  

So, without delay, let's get right to the highlights from last week's party.  Linda at Kokaquilts linked up this sweet quilt top-

This pretty quilt top is from Gretchen's Little Corner-


And this little baby quilt top is from Kat at Scrapbox Quilts-


Okay friends!  It's time to get our party started.  Show me what's been going on in your studio!

1You can link finished projects or WIP's , but just keep it about quilting and sewing!
2. Link to your specific post (not to your home page!) to make it easier for others.
3. Please remember to spread the word and post my button or a text link within your 
    post.  
4. Spread the comment love far and wide!
5. Following me is not a requirement to link, but is so very appreciated!

*If you're new to the party, here's a helpful tip for linking up- select "Auto Crop"  when selecting your thumbnail photo.  For some reason, trying to crop your own image results in the dreaded "white question mark box," and we definitely want to see your awesome work!  :)



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