A Woodland Herringbone Quilt : :

During the Fleet & Flourish Blog Tour I finished and sold two different quilts, something I really want/need to do more often! Both of these quilts were sadly made, completed, and picked up during a stretch of nasty weather days preventing me from taking the kind of photos I love to share of my quilts here. One of those quilts was a baby boy themed quilt that was ordered to match a green & gray nursery. As I pulled fabrics from my stash I couldn't resist adding in some cool blues, aqua, navy, & cream. The fabric prints, right away, took on a woodland theme that was just perfect for this expecting couple. While I don't have photos of the full quilt to share today, these colors & prints together were so lovely and inspiring that I want to share what photos I do have, for those of you looking to make something for baby boy and because I would love to make this quilt again myself!



The hefty stack above includes Art Gallery Pure Element solids + Round Elements with prints from Bonnie's Hello, Bear + Forest Floor, April's Bound fabrics, and a few from Indian Summer by Sarah Watson. These fabrics together tell a sweet story of the woodland creatures & landscape unique to the whimsical forest world. I love the way it turned out!



Once again I used the Herringbone QAYG pattern I teach in my Craftsy class, Quick Quilt As You Go! I love making this quilt and changing it up just a little each time I make a new one. For this quilt I made eight panels running vertical, instead of horizontal. It came together so super quick, this pattern is just perfect for last minute quilt-gift-giving! To add my quilt backing, I used an Aurifil 50wt in Dark Navy from my Bohemian Garden thread collection. I love using a visible thread color here!



For both the binding and backing, I used my most favorite Hello, Bear print ~ Summit in Twilight. I see rolling hills of modern geometric shapes and I love it! I even made an extra large roll of this binding to finish the pillows I hope to make with the scraps leftover from this quilt project!





I hope you like this quilt as much as I do! Hopefully I'll find the time to make a second one to photograph & offer in my Etsy shop soon. I'm considering making this one a made-to-order quilt for my Etsy, it's so perfect for a baby boy!

I wish you all a great start to your week! In case you missed it, be sure to check out the first peek of my upcoming Spring 2016 collection, Nightfall, on the AGF Instagram page!

♡ Maureen 

A Summer Harlequin Quilt : :

Happy Monday! Today I have another newly finished quilt as you go quilt to share, my Summer Harlequin Quilt! This one started back at the end of July, when my friend April Rhodes sent me a gorgeous bundle of her newest collection, Bound for Art Gallery Fabrics. The addition of Pure Element solids made this collection so perfect for late Summer sewing. Just look how pretty!



I wasted no time turning my bundle into a quick QAYG quilt top, a simple pattern of Windmill and Four-patch blocks. These traditional quilt blocks became modern, combining my quilt as you go using batting as foundation with these beautiful fabrics, turned on point!





The bold diamond design had me thinking of a Harlequin pattern with a twist, and so, I named this one my Summer Harlequin Quilt!





To finish I chose Bound Survey Ochre as my backing, a warm sunset yellow, using the qayg quilt backing technique I share in my Craftsy class!





For the quilting and binding I kept it all April Rhodes' using coordinating threads from her Aurifil thread collection and more Bound, Homebody stripe.









I love how this quilt turned out! The pattern is one I will absolutely be making again!

I wish you all a wonderful start to your week! ♡ Maureen

QAYG & Potter County : :

Before moving onto the new things, I had to photograph all the QAYG quilts I've recently made for my Craftsy class & magazines myself. They all do such a beautiful job, of course, but for me a quilt isn't finished when the binding is done or once it's been published. It's not until after we venture out to some nearby farm, field, bridge, forest, stream, or old wooden fence post, right here in Potter County, with that quilt and my camera in-hand until I feel contented and happy. I really hope you get that and don't mind seeing some of these one more time! It was worth it, for me at least, to take the time to do so. It's been awhile since my husband & kids helped me photograph a quilt. With this particular one, my Herringbone Lap Quilt in Bound, I was reminded what fun we have when we do, how special it feels, and how beautifully these quilts I make couple with home.



For those of you seeing this quilt for the first time, it's made using the Herringbone quilt as you go pattern I teach in my brand new Craftsy class, Quick Quilt As You, on sale here for the remainder of this month. This is my very favorite quilt to make, it's incredibly fast and so much fun!



I used April Rhodes' Bound collection for Art Gallery Fabrics with a mix of Pure Element solids and Prisma Element blenders. April's fabric designs match the landscape here so perfectly, it really is stunning!



Even the backing fabric, her Macrame Cave print, with it's unique shade of green and brushstroke details, coordinate with the Autumn surroundings. So pretty!



For the final, very minimal quilting I kept it all April Rhodes' using a navy Aurifil 50wt from her Arizona thread collection.



For the binding I used the top print shown below, my personal favorite print from this collection, Bound Humanity.





More and more I get asked about my particular method for machine quilt binding. I talk about it in my class, describing what I do, but since I don't demonstrate it completely I continue to receive questions. Before I put together a machine binding tutorial to share here, I thought I'd ask if any of you have or have seen a tutorial that already exists in blogland? I'm looking to reference a how-to where the binding is attached to the front of the quilt first, folded (pressed) over, and to finish you stitch in the ditch from the front side catching the back edge of the binding? Let me know!

This quilt finishes at a 48" x 56." While I don't typically make quilts this size, I usually go to a 60" square at the very least, in making this I realized what a perfect single person quilt this is. It really is all you need! Making it a perfect quick pattern for gift-giving and donating!



Tomorrow I'll be back with another QAYG quilt photoshoot to share, be sure to stop back!

♡ Maureen

Craftsy Class : Herringbone QAYG!

My Herringbone QAYG Quilt is by far my most favorite quilt to make! With each new collection that comes out at some point I think to myself, "oooh, that would make a pretty Herringbone QAYG." It's such a great pattern and is an absolute joy to make, it's just FUN! Of all the things I've made & shared throughout my sewing/blogging years, my very first Herringbone QAYG, along with the original tutorial, has remained my most popular quilt finish, the most viewed posts here on my blog, and I continue to receive question & comments almost daily in regards to it. Now I finally get the opportunity to make one right with you! I've learned a lot since that first one, little changes that make a big difference in how it all comes together. In this class I get to talk about each of those things and other tips & tricks I use with each new one I make!







My Herringbone class quilt is made in April Rhodes' Bound fabrics, a collection I've been crazy about these past few months. I wanted to show that all you have to do to make a beautiful quilt is simply pick up a Jelly Roll or Fat Quarter bundle of a collection you really love, add in a few solids, and faster than you can imagine you'll have a gorgeous, amazing new quilt. I was also careful in choosing what size we'd make in class. One of the many things I love about this pattern is how easily you can adapt the size, so feel free to go as small or large as you like. Since I really hope & believe this quilt is just perfect for you first-time quilters, I decided on a single lap size measuring 48" x 56," a perfect curl-up-on-the-couch quilt or to have at the bottom of the bed for when you need an extra layer. I can't wait to have this one back at home!!



Most of all, I really can't wait to make this quilt with YOU!! With Craftsy I get to interact with those of you who take my class. That means I'm there for you -- to answer questions, for advice, and best of all -- to celebrate you & all the awesome things you're going to make!!

Be sure to stop back tomorrow for a look at the final class quilt we'll be making! ♡ Maureen

Aurifil ♡ : :

It's no secret that I love to use Aurifil thread in my projects. Recently I received the most beautiful collection of their threads to use in some big projects I'll be working on behind the scenes, but I just couldn't resist showing you these colors right away! It's as if this Arizona Thread Box by April Rhodes was made just for me! These colors are so lovely and of course they coordinate perfectly with all of April's fabric collections, which you may have noticed, I've been using quite a bit in recent weeks. These threads are all 40wt cotton, which is a favorite of mine for quilting and binding!





Since I had a newly pieced quilt top in April's new Bound fabrics waiting in the balance to be backed & bound, I decided to dig right into these gorgeous threads to finish it up!



First I picked up the Mustard yellow to match the Survey in Ochre print I chose for my quilt back. I usually choose a thread that will blend right into my quilt backing fabric and this was a pretty perfect match!



For the binding I first considered this Stainless Steel grey thread, it looks so nice with the Bound Homebody stripe print I chose!



Once I began adding my final quilting to the top, I loved the pop of color the Mustard added to the patchwork, how it mixed right into my backing fabric, and I decided it would work just as well for attaching the binding. No need to wind additional bobbins, hooray! I'm so happy with how it all turned out!



Using both April's fabrics and this thread collection of hers certainly makes for a beautiful quilt! Now it's off to my friends at Love, Patchwork, & Quilting Magazine to be shared in an upcoming issue, yay!!



How about you, have you tried Aurifil threads?

♡ Maureen


Thread Notes : : This Arizona Thread Box is designed by April Rhodes for Aurifil, it contains 12 large spools (1094 yards each) of 40 weight thread. Colors include Very Dark Navy(2785), Stainless Steel(2620), Grey Blue(5007), Medium Blue Grey(1310), Medium Juniper(2850), Plawnum(2912), Flesh(2205), Light Salmon(2220), Mustard(5022), Gold Yellow(5015), Light Beige(2310), and Medium Orange(5009).

A Summer Harlequin Quilt Top : :

It must have been a great Summer for harvesting and baling hay. Large round hay bales are scattered across nearly every field around, it's so beautiful! I couldn't let such a perfect quilt photo shoot opportunity pass me by. So, Sunday night, after a busy weekend away, I finished up a new quilt top to take to the fields. These Bound fabric colors & prints are such a perfect pairing to the landscape and warmth of these Summer days!





My quilt pattern is just a combination of Windmill and Four-patch blocks turned on point. Since I've been wanting to experiment with traditional quilt block patterns and quilt-as-you-go using batting as my foundation, I took the time to do so with these blocks. It worked perfectly!





To add a little twist to my simple patchwork plan, I added in a mix of solids to form a band of stacked diamonds down the center of my quilt. Inspiring this quilts' new name, my Summer Harlequin Quilt!



I haven't yet decided on how I'm going to quilt finish this one, but I'm leaning towards hand quilting using Aurifil's new AuriFloss at the moment. I have some time to think it over, since I turned my one and only quilting hoop into a dream catcher last year, HA!



I'd love to hear your ideas, if you care to share?

I wish you all a beautiful day! ♡ Maureen

A New Plan : :

Is anyone else having trouble with Flickr lately? It took hours of trying to upload photos again this morning, but I finally just gave up. It's very strange and frustrating and I'm wondering if it's just me or something every user is experiencing?

Well, this week my Bound fabric sewing was off to a good start! Aren't these colors pretty?!



I began to work on my idea, the one I had shared last week, but after finishing the first block I had a very blah response. Still I continued on, making another to see if my feelings improved. Nope!





I couldn't imagine this idea working out at all like I had hoped, and so, I let it go. And, right away I put a new plan into action that I'm much more excited about!



I think these pinwheel blocks are a first for me, I can't recall ever making them before. They're fun to make, and fast! I'm using my go-to "make four HST's at a time" method that I always use when making half square triangle units. These will be just one style of block pattern in my new idea. I'll be back soon to share more! ♡ Maureen

Bound : :

This week a beautiful bundle of Bound, April Rhodes' newest collection for Art Gallery Fabrics, arrived at my door! Without planning it April's gorgeous fabrics have certainly become a feature this week on my blog! Having just finished the Arizona Herringbone Quilt that I shared on Monday, made using April's debut Limited Edition Arizona collection for AGF, and today's sewing time has been dedicated to making new quilt plans for Bound!



With the Morning Palette colorway still neatly tied with a strand of wool yarn and my sketchbook before me, I first sketched out a quick and simple idea of improv squares and rectangles, inspired by the idea of random stamped blocks. I love this idea, but imagine my bricks of patchwork to be framed in very light neutrals. Since several of the prints are very light, low volumes, I'm thinking this idea might work best for a fabric collection more saturated with color.





My next idea is something still very geometric, still very inspired by this idea of stamped shapes, but this time I started sketching out random broken hexagon shapes. I loved it immediately!



After taking a closer look at my favorite Bound prints, I'm even more inspired to give this idea a try! I especially love this two-tone section of the Bound in Homebody stripe!



And, the beautiful colors of this Painting Celebration print will surely influence which solids I'll use!



I can't wait to begin! ♡ Maureen