Autumn Twist Stich-a-long and Christmas Sneak Peeks...

There are so many things to LOVE about fall-- 

the crickets chirping at sunset, a red carpet of leaves to walk on, pumpkin spice flavored everything-- but one of the BEST things is that it's time to start sewing again!

Truthfully, it's not like we ever stop sewing, 

but fall always signals a new start, going back to school days, with fresh pencils, new notebooks, and fall colors!

...and yes, it's time for a new free stitch-a-long!

This year, we're going to stitch a bitty Baltimore Album quilt-- there will be four 4x4 blocks featuring all of our feathered and furry fall friends! Fabulous!

Visit the webpage today for more details, and the next three Fridays to download your free design... stitch, then be sure to upload to our
Facebook photo group or Instagram using hashtag #autumntwist.

(Anything in red you can click-- it's a link)

Each design will feature these six Superior Threads TWIST colors.- They are two colors twisted together, and make the perfect fall tweed look-- AND it terms of fur and feathers-- WOW! You will get a look that is not even possible to digitize.

In the interests of full disclosure, other than receiving free spools of Twist, we do not receive a commission on sales of this thread, and you're more than welcome to just use you own favorite colors.

If you'd like to try Twist, Superior Threads has made them into a set especially for us-- here.

What else is there to love about fall?

Well-- it's the gateway to the holiday season! 

We're so pleased to say that the elves have been very busy this summer, sketching and planning...

"Dash Away All Quilt Block"

"Nutcracker & Co. Ornaments"

There WILL be a Santa's Helper Christmas Club this year with twelve brand new weekly project starting in October... stay tuned!

"Christmas Welcome Bench Pillow"

"Charm Pack Village"

Thanks for listening, and we're so hoping
to see what YOU stitch this year!

xox
Carol

"Quilty Pleasures"-- FRIVOL 4

In between thread changes of embroidery designs, I sometimes resort to stitching up someone else’s pattern for relaxation—I do feel guilty about NOT working on my own original art, but in this case, it’s even worse—I pieced a KIT, so even the fabric choices were made for me!

You may remember the "Frivol" tins from Moda were in the shops about a year and a half ago. I once had one in my hands at the checkout line—it was $45 which was a bit steep, but the tin was so cute. Before I checked out, I noticed this:

Extra fabric was needed—MUCH MORE, and so I felt really put off and put it down before I ever got to the cash register. I’m not sure how I thought they would fit a 50” x 50” quilt in that little tin, but my Frivol story almost ended there.

Until…

I am a fan of Elizabeth from OPQuilts.com blog. She has such a great sense of humor, and is always working on something fabulous. Apparently, she purchased all twelve Frivol kits as a subscription when they first were offered—a retirement gift for herself. She’s making this her “Year of Frivols,”-- finally stitching one a month. There's no lack of creativity there-- this is her original pattern in the latest Keepsake Quilting catalog.

So if Frivol-making is good enough for Elizabeth, it's good enough for me.  I really don’t have a lot of quilts around the house which may surprise you. So I thought I could use them for a little decoration here and there, and especially a little mental down time. 

These aren’t available in stores anymore, so the hunt was on! The first one I found at a quilt show, Frivol #5, for 50% off. From then on, I spent the next few weeks Googling , Ebaying and Etsying until I had them all. I did get most for 50% off but #1 and #12 were RARE and I ended up overpaying. Plus, by the time I paid shipping, well you know. It was all about the thrill of the hunt at that point. Mine, all mine!

Unlike Elizabeth, I don’t feel the need to make them in order, and certainly won’t be making one a month, so I started with #4 Windermere—it looked so crisp, WHITE, and spa like.

 I pictured it here on the far wall of my master bathroom.

Included in the tin was a layer cake of Brenda Riddle fabric, quilt instructions, a cute saying, and a couple of flosses. I had to make 156 flying geese. 

I LOVE piecing, but much prefer sampler quilts to repetitive block making. To prevent boredom, I sorted the fabrics into pink, blue, green, yellow and warm gray, then only stitched enough geese for each row—first two, then three and four, and finally eight and nine geese, drawing evenly from the colors to make sure I was left with a good mix. It was a great strategy--all four interior blocks were the same, and that actually was much easier than trying to randomly layout 156 geese at the end as the pattern suggested.

I goosed my way through July and August. Actually I was more like a snail. 

Finally, finished it Labor Day—here's the artists rendering again: 

This is what I ended up with. LOL 

Looks like a tape measure could have saved me some geese, but still, it fits, and I am pretty pleased! 

The pattern is called Lakeland.... part of the enjoyment of sewing is musing on names for my quilts while sewing them together. This one had me stumped—until Eureka!—or maybe more like “DUH!”...  the lake I live on is called "Triangle Pond"... I kid you not.

And so "Geese on Triangle Pond" was born...

There are more snapping turtles, frogs, and sunfish down there than geese, so it's a bit of a creative license. But I love it. For quilting, I am just going to do some straight lines in a rippled pattern, like water droplets on my little lake. 

So let's all liberate our Frivols kits from the closet, folks! Next, I’m thinking #8 would make 6 placemats and a nice table runner. I wish I could sew as fast as I can Photoshop!

Happy stitching!

xox

Carol