A Heart Quilt Sew Along

At the beginning of February my friend and fellow Art Gallery Fabrics designer, Sharon Holland and I announced on our Instagrams that we'd be teaming up to host a fun and quick quilt along using Allison Harris's of Cluck Cluck Sew's Heart Block Patten. I first used Allison's pattern to stitch up a small batch of quilted heart zipper pouch bags and right away I was hooked, I had to make a quilt! After sharing my plans with Sharon, she decided to join me and quickly our quilt along plans were decided!

In hopes to not confuse folks joining us, we decided to have Sharon's blog be the landing page for all the QAL details since Sharon is the author of the instructions for how we stitched Allison's wonderful Heart Blocks into finished 52" x 61" throw size quilts. You can visit Sharon's blog to find ALL the info you'll need to sew a Heart Quilt just like ours anytime! Makers have been tagging Instagram QAL posts with the #agfLOVEquilt, since Sharon and I are both AGF designers making quilts using a combination of our prints, where you can easily follow along to see the beautiful heart quilts being made! Additionally, Sharon created this adorable Heart Quilt maker badge for those joining in to use, as well as an Instagram story highlight reel full of wonderful, helpful videos that make creating this quilt a cinch!



For my Heart Quilts I chose a combination of favorite prints from Amy Sinibaldi's new Mayfair collection + several Foresta Fusion prints that include three new prints by ME! I love this bundle so much that I collaborated with Lady Belle Fabric to carry both a ten-piece fat quarter bundle and Heart Quilt Kit including these same gorgeous prints! For the background of my first Heart Quilt (yup! I made two) I used the AGF Pure Solid in Snow. The crisp white against these saturated, jewel-tones make the colors really pop!





As I worked on sewing my Heart Blocks it was the perfect way to showcase and introduce each of my three new prints in the Foresta Fusion collection! AGF Fusions are a group of ten prints from various Art Gallery Fabric designers that have been recolored and "fused" together to create a new themed collection. I always look forward to adding these newly colored prints to my own stash and the catalog of prints that I've designed for AGF!

First I introduce to you, Mystical Woods Foresta, now available in this gorgeous teal that I originally designed for my Nightfall collection.



Next up is Stay Humble Foresta in my current favorite dusty pink shade, originally designed for my Soulful collection.



And lastly this is Simple Defoliage Foresta, a minty green modern pine trees print that I created for Autumn Vibes.



I hope you love these three new prints as much as I do!

I'm so happy with the fabrics I chose for my quilts! Together these prints created such a romantic looking quilt top, just perfect for Valentine's Day!

This first quilt top is headed to Brooke at Lady Belle Quilting as a gift from me to her, that I'm certain she'll finish with her amazing edge to edge quilting. I can't wait to see her quilt completely finished!



Below is a first peek at both of the quilts I made. Notice I used a different background for the one I quilted myself, a creamy two-tone blender print from Sharon's Spirited collection called, Bright Star Washed that I absolutely adore. It's much warmer than the solid snow, is equally lovely and is extra meaningful to me since it's a print designed by my wonderful quilt along partner!



Below you can see the subtle design on Sharon's beautiful print a bit better, as well as my binding choice, a print deigned by Katarina Rocella for Foresta called Timber that reads as a stripe here and really brings out these amazing Foresta Fusion colors!



For the backing I used my Mystical Woods Foresta print in this pretty new teal that I introduced above. As always Hobbs Tuscany Cotton is my go-to batting, and to finish my quilt I used the built-in wavy stitch on my Janome Memory Craft 15000 set at the highest width and length setting. I don't premark any lines to guide my quilting, I just eyeball to keep the stitch running straight and spaced semi-evenly as I quilt. I love the organic, twisting stitches and the texture it adds to a quilt!



If you're as smitten with my Heart Quilt as I am, be sure to visit Lady Belle Fabric to snag the Quilt Kit or a Foresta Mayfair Mix Up Bundle before they're gone!



I'd also love for you to visit my QAL partner Sharon's blog to see her sugared gum drops and candy inspired Heart Quilt that's super sweet, plus the incredible bonus project she made with her leftover HSTs! Here's a just little peek!



I'm working on making a new batch of zipper pouch bags from my HST and heart quilt scraps that I'll have for sale later this week. Even after making two quilts, I'm not quite ready to move on from these gorgeous fabrics!



Sharon and I had such a great time making our quilts and hosting this spontaneous QAL! It was just what I needed to get me energized to sew again after the holidays and spending most of January designing my Fall 2020 collection. We send a BIG thanks to those of you sewing along with us! If you weren't able to in real time, you can jump in anytime using #agfLOVEquilt when you share and be sure to tag @sharonhollanddesigns @maureencracknell and @cluckclucksew so we can see your beautiful hearts!

xo Maureen

A Fabric GIVEAWAY with Lady Belle Fabric!

Today a have a special Giveaway to share with you all from Lady Belle Fabric!

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My sponsor Lady Belle Fabric is run by husband and wife team, Rob & Brooke! In their shop you'll find both bundles and single cuts of handpicked fabrics that are fresh, modern, and fun! Designer fabrics include many of our favorites -- Art Gallery Fabrics, Free Spirit, &  Moda, just to name a few! Lady Belle Fabric's goal is to offer the most gorgeous lines of fabric, as quickly as they can! 
   
SHOP  *  Instagram  *  FACEBOOK  *  Pinterest  
 

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We hope you enjoy visiting the Lady Belle Fabric sites! 

For this week's Fabric Giveaway Friday, Lady Belle Fabric is offering the winner their exclusive curated Valentine's Day bundle of TWELVE, beautiful Art Gallery Fabrics perfectly named, Blush! This bundle includes a fat quarter cut of each of the twelve prints designed by Bonnie Christine, Amy Sinibaldi, AGF Studio and ME! You can find this gorgeous Blush bundle available at Lady Belle Fabric as both a FQ and 1/2 Yard bundle option HERE -- Blush

In addition, Lady Belle Fabric is offering 20% OFF all fabric purchases throughout this Giveaway! Be sure to visit Lady Belle for all your fabric shopping right here --  http://www.ladybellefabric.com/

Enter to win!

Here's how,

1. Simply leave a comment here in this post! (one entry)
2. Follow Lady Belle Fabric on Facebook or on Instagram! Just be sure to let me know you do by making a separate comment here for an extra entry! (optional extra entry)
3. My followers get a third entry! Just let me know that you do by making a separate comment here to record that entry. (optional extra entry)

4. Help spread the word!! I know that many of you already do, so I thought it would be nice to add that as another way to enter! Whether by Instagram, tweet, facebook, pin, blog, etc... (optional extra entry) 

That’s 4 possible entries! Enter now through Monday, January 20th! The winner will be picked at random and I will announce their name at the bottom of this post here on the blog!

* Note * This giveaway is open to EVERYONE! If you're a "no reply" or anonymous commenter, please remember to include your email address in your comment! 

A BIG thanks to all who entered our Giveaway! This week's random winning commenter is Emily! Pretty please check your email for a message from me! xo Maureen

A Winter Woods Beacon Quilt!

Last Friday I released my new Beacon quilt pattern in my shop, and it's been such a whirlwind few days that I didn't yet get a chance to blog the different versions of my Beacon quilt that I made while working on the pattern. I've made FIVE already and I love each one so much that I want to share each in their very own post!

I started with the Enchanted Voyage cover quilt when I released the pattern last week and today I want to share this Winter Woods version that I made with the gorgeous custom bundle that Fabric Stork curated and since sold out of in their shop. The Winter Woods bundle included all AGF prints designed by myself and fellow AGF fabric designers. I didn't get to include all of the prints in the bundle, but many of my favorites made it in. It's just so pretty!



It was impossible not to make a beautiful quilt with these fabrics! The combination of blues, gold and low volume print worked perfectly for the Beacon quilt pattern!

You can see in this photo of my Beacon quilt blocks that I swapped the gold floral for Bonnie Christine's Wandering with Doe print from her Open Road collection and I paid careful to the direction of that print when I cut my fabrics to be sure all the adorable little creatures were facing the right way. I love looking at each block made with these gorgeous Winter Woods themed prints and picking out my favorite design details!



Once my blocks are all stitched together one of my favorite things to do is to snap that quilt top swirl pic and I especially love how the Beacon pattern looks when swirled!



I sent all five of the Beacon quilts that I made to Brooke at Lady Belle Fabric & Quilting to work her long arm quilting magic! For this version we chose an edge to edge design with a four-point star that looked to sparkle to me called Gemma and I think it's perfect for the theme of this quilt!



When I get to have a quilt finished by Brooke it adds another beautiful layer of design and artistry to my quilts, it's so special! Which is why I'm having a Giveaway on my Instagram for those of you who've purchased my Beacon quilt pattern to have a chance to have your Beacon quilted by Brooke, as well! You can enter thru today (12/4) by clicking the image below!



I bound this Winter Woods version in another Bonnie Christine print, a warm and rustic plaid from her Lambkin collection, Wooly Umber, that I love so much!





Up next I plan to share the Merry & Bright Beacon I made, a very cheery & classic Christmas version that I've decided to keep for our family! After all, I have dreamt of making a Christmas quilt for us since I began quilting nearly ten years ago!

Both my Enchanted Voyage Beacon and this Winter Woods Beacon are available for sale in my shop with Free Shipping, where you can find the Beacon PDF pattern to make your own and lots of other newly added handmade goodies, as well!

xo Maureen

It's Beacon Quilt Pattern Release Day!

My Beacon quilt pattern is now available in my shop! AND it's 25% OFF now thru Cyper Monday 12/2!!

First up, a little bit about it's name!

When you look up the definition of Beacon you'll read in it's meaning "a fire or other signal for guidance; a source of light of inspiration." It's this part that made me choose this word to name my new quilt pattern, Beacon. This year has been a very tough one for me with lots of health issues, a couple bad injuries and some personal struggles that I'm still working through, but now that I'm mostly on the other side of all of that, I can look back with gratitude for the solace quilting brought and continues to bring me. For me, quilting is something that I trust, it feels safe and therapeutic, is uplifting and motivating. So, for my very first quilt pattern on this new journey of offering my quilt patterns for sale, Beacon feels like a pretty perfect beginning!



My Beacon Quilt Pattern is a beginner friendly, downloadable PDF pattern including instructions to make a 60" throw size quilt. It's an easy-to-piece quilt made using pinwheel variation blocks with fabric placement of the background colors that creates a secondary pattern. It's chain-piece friendly making it super fast and very fun! I've already made FIVE versions, all of which I'll share in details in the days ahead, but since I chose my most recent fabric collection, Enchanted Voyage, to make my cover quilt, I'm starting with this beauty today!



All five of the Beacon quilts that I made were long arm quilted by Brooke Becker of Lady Belle Fabric & Quilting and she always does such an incredible job! I love that I can pick a digital quilting pattern from her catalog of designs and it adds another layer of design and artistry to my quilts!



I bound this Enchanted Voyage version in my North Star Shine print, a pretty peachy cantaloupe color that I love so much!



To see more variations you can follow me on my Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/maureencracknell/ where I share the most these days, PLUS you can check out #BeaconQuilt to see the Beacon quilts made by my amazing testers!

I'm also so excited to share that I've been collaborating with two different shops to offer a variety of Beacon Quilt Kits!

The cover quilt that features my Enchanted Voyage fabric collection for Art Gallery Fabrics is available as a kit at Lady Belle Fabric, as well as additional kits for versions made using the Merry & Bright Collective by select designers including myself for AGF and the Holiday Magic version that I made for Brooke with the Holiday Magic custom bundle available only in her wonderful shop!

For those of you who snagged the Winter Woods bundle by Fabric Stork, I'll have a Beacon to share using that Winter Woods Bundle and Nuria of Fabric Stork also made her very own Beacon with Sharon Holland's new Spirited collection that is SO stunning and will be available as a quilt kit only at Fabric Stork!

But first, you NEED this pattern! So head to my shop and grab the pattern while it's on sale for 25% OFF!



After the holidays, in early 2020, I have a Beacon quilt-along planned that will be full of fun and prizes, but I wanted to offer this pattern in time for making for the holidays because it's that fast that you could totally get one done in time to gift or use!



I sincerely hope you love this pattern as much as I do! I cannot wait to see all the beautiful Beacon quilts to be made, so be sure to tag me and use the hashtag #BeaconQuilt when you share!

xo Maureen

Boho Flower Child & Herringbone Patchwork Zipper Bags!

Ever since I found this amazing deal for a bulk order of colorful 9" zippers I've been on a zipper pouch kick, making the occasional batch whenever I get the urge and time. Now, whenever it comes time to begin making new items to offer in my yearly holiday sales, zipper pouches are #1 on my list!



Inspired by my love of Sharon Holland's brand new collection for AGF, Spirited, I pulled together a pretty boho fabric combination that includes her new prints with a few of my own and whipped up TWO dozen bags over the past week, and I LOVE how they turned out!



The front side of one dozen bags feature one of my Flower Child Flown Crown ladies and the second dozen is the herringbone qayg pattern I teach in my Craftsy class and use so often in a variety of the projects I make from bags to pillows to full size quilts. It will forever be my go-to for pretty much everything! I love sewing using this technique and I love the scrappy style of this pattern, especially when using thin strips of prints the way I did for these new zipper bags!



Each bag has a cushiony layer of Hobbs cotton batting, a colorful zipper, denim side loop to add your own embellishments to the Flower Child bags and the Herringbone Bags come with an amazing Anthropologie Tassel Charm attached, suede zipper pulls and each bag is lined with an AGF cotton denim for a really nice finish!



Each bag reverses to a striping of the same prints used for the bag fronts. I just can't get enough of this fabric combination. I think I'll make a few Spirited fabric pillows next!





Both the Flower Child and Boho Herringbone bags measure a little bigger than 8" x 8" finished and have a boxy bottom making them perfect for makeup, travel, art supplies, knitting & epp project, and more!





I've added all the bags that remain to My Etsy Shop and you can also email me at maureencracknell@hotmail.com if you're interested in ordering directly from me anytime and I'm more than happy to avoid the etsy fees by sending a Paypal invoice! :)

As always,  a BIG thanks to everyone who purchases my handmakes this holiday season! I appreciate your support more than I can ever share!

xo Maureen

My Enchanted Voyage LookBook is out!

I'm so excited to share the LookBook for my brand new collection with Art Gallery Fabrics, Enchanted Voyage and I hope you all love it just as much as I do!



Inside you'll find dozens of inspirational projects from quilts & home decor to lots of beautiful garments & bags made myself, my friends & AGF makers! Today I want to introduce the LookBook here on the blog and showcase the quilt projects I made to get you inspired for beautiful Enchanted Voyage sewing! I especially LOVED making quilts with this collection, BIG quilts and I hope you will, too!



As always, with each collection comes a free companion Quilt Pattern PDF created with just the collection prints in mind and for Enchanted Voyage I designed Polar Compass, a graphic quilt with a center design that looks stunning on a bed and will keep you warm in style this winter! The Polar Compass quilt pattern makes a large throw size measuring 72" x 72" and was such an enjoyable quilt to sew that I'm hoping to make another soon combining a few Enchanted Voyage prints with a few wintry prints from my past collections mixed in. I've seen a few folks who have already finished their own Enchanted Voyage versions and shared them on Instagram, so be sure to let me know if you give it a go, too!

As soon as I finished this quilt top and the Destination quilt top that's in the LookBook (that I'll share more about soon) I sent them both to Brooke Becker of Lady Belle Quilting & Lady Belle Fabric to work her longarm quilting magic and she did such a phenomenal job!

This is an up-close look of the allover quilt design that we chose called Gemma by Karlee Porter. Isn't it perfect? I love it so much!



It added so much wonderful texture to the quilt which I think is so lovely on a simple quilt pattern like this one!



I think what I love most about Polar Compass is the way it showcases the color palette of my Enchanted Voyage collection. It's a collection full of pretty blues paired with some of my favorite soft shades of pink, peach and creams. This is also my first true stripe print in all of my eleven collections. I love a good nautical stripe and creating this print was such a great way to marry all the colors I chose for my palette.



I'll be back soon to share another one of the quilts that I made for the LookBook, along with some maker projects and new projects ideas to get you inspired to sew with this new collection! 

Thank you all for your continued support, encouragement & love!

xo Maureen