Love Story & Indie Folk Friendship Braids Quilt

I'm so excited to share my first quilt finish of 2018 -- A Friendship Braids QAYG Quilt made in my recently released Love Story collection for Art Gallery Fabrics + Pat Bravo's beautiful Indie Folk collection for AGF. These romantic, boho prints and saturated colors speak to me like no other. You may have noticed my affection for them over the past few weeks, I can't stop reaching for them for bags, pillows and this first quilt of the new year!



This quilt started back in November when I came up with this new qayg idea using the Quick Quilt As You Go method that I teach in my Craftsy class. To make this quilt top I used all twenty Indie Folk quilting cottons, several of my Love Story prints cut into strips measuring 3" x WOF, plus forty 8" x 15" cotton batting rectangles.



Once each rectangle cut of batting was covered with fabric edge to edge, I trimmed away the access fabric and batting to measure 7.5" x 14". I stitched the pretty blocks together first in pairs using just slightly larger than a 1/4" seam allowance and then I stitched them all together to finish a quilt top measuring approximately 56" x 68", a wonderful throw size!





I finished the quilt by attaching the backing fabric, my favorite Indie Folk print Khokhloma Burgundia, sewing through each layer a 1/4" from both sides of where my blocks were sewn together. Video instructions for finishing this style of qayg quilts can be found in my Craftsy class. I just love how quickly this style of quilt comes together, with such a beautiful finish each time!







I chose to bind this quilt using Pat's colorful, unique take on a stripe, Indie Folk's Trinket Vivid. I tend to use stripe prints for my binding and this one fits this finish so nicely!



I sold this quilt during my holiday sale back in December, but I've been so tempted to add this quilt as a made to order item in my Etsy shop since I sold this one, that I decided to give it a try!  It's truly one that I would love the chance to make again and again and again...



I tried my best to include details for those of you who are interested in making a Friendship Braids QAYG quilt of your own, but by all means, please feel free to ask any questions you may have in the comments anytime. Sharon Holland and I have been busy preparing our next sampler quilt-along, otherwise I would have loved to share a quick tutorial. I still would love to, if I can find a little extra time this month. In case you missed our announcement, be sure to check it out on my Instagram! We had such a wonderful experience co-hosting last year's Sewcial Bee Sampler together that we decided to do another, with a new pattern and a new name. I'll be back with details soon!

xo Maureen

Skinny Braids : :

Last night I started a new project that I'm really excited about today!



Back when my Love Story and Pat Bravo's Indie Folk collections arrived I cut a half yard bundle of both into narrow strips measuring 1"- 2.5" x wof, filling up a big basket next to my sewing machine. Since, I've been using them to make dozens and dozens of herringbone zipper pouch bags. This week I ordered more bag making supplies after I used up the last of what I had on hand and my basket of strips is still halfway full. I can't believe how many finishes I've made from this basket! I have a just a few bag left that I've added to my Etsy shop here -- Handmade Herringbone Bags



Yesterday I had the idea to use the strips to make a big floor pillow for my studio, using the friendship braid Quick Quilt As You Go that I used to make my recent Love Story & Indie Folk qayg quilt. I'll be sharing that finish on Monday, because first I have to share how much I love this braid pattern using skinny strips!

Can you image how amazing a quilt would look using such skinny braids? I plan to begin one ASAP!

I especially love the addition of the dark navy Aurifil quilting thread. Typically I don't add additional quilting when I qayg because the fabrics are already attached to the cotton quilt batting. Since this is a floor pillow that will get lots of use, I think the extra quilting will add some nice durability!



For my floor pillow top I made two skinny braid panels measuring 14" x 27" that I still have to trim up and sew together for my 26" pillow insert. I can't wait to see this project finished!



I'll be sharing both this pillow and the quilt that I recently finished & photographed using these pretty fabrics next week, so be sure to stop back!  xo Maureen

Friendship Braids QAYG : :

For my Flower Child Quilt Market booth I made four pillow samples, one including a new quick quilt as you go pattern inspired by friendship braids.  Immediately after finishing my Flower Child pillow I knew I wanted to make an entire quilt using this pattern, combining prints from my new Love Story collection with Pat Bravo's newest, Indie Folk!





This is such a beautiful block with these pretty saturated prints, and it’s so fast! This block is assembled in very much the same way that you would construct a qayg log cabin pattern, but for this one I sewed the fabric strips working my way from the top to the bottom of each rectangle cut of batting which gives the illusion of woven strips, just like a braid!



To make this quilt top I used all twenty Indie Folk quilting cotton and several Love Story prints cut into strips measuring 3" x WOF. Once each rectangle cut of batting was covered with fabric edge to edge, I trimmed away the access fabric and added the trimmed block to my pile. I spent all of yesterday morning and afternoon stitching up blocks and this morning I had enough to piece together this new friendship braid qayg quilt top to photograph and share today!









Isn't she pretty? There's no way I'm done with this new quick quilt as you go just yet! I'm waiting on a new can of basting spray to arrive so I can back and bind this one to add to my shop, and I'm tempted to begin another right away with a little twist, using just Love Story this time! This will be such a great quilt pattern for using up those scraps, too!

Let me know what you think of this new qayg pattern, and if you have any questions feel free to ask in the comments! Happy sewing!

xx Maureen

New Love : :

For the past week I’ve been knee deep in Quilt Market prep. Next week I'll travel to Houston to share my next collection due out this coming March, and everything I've been stitching up has to be kept secret until the show. I can't wait for you to see these fabrics! Today, I'm taking a break from sewing to play with crepe paper, a first for me. I ordered a dozen or so rolls of colorful Italian crepe paper to make giant flowers in beautiful reds, bubblegum pink, apricot, peachy creams and white with several shades of green for leaf making...



I have just one practice flower finished and already this craft has stolen my heart! Have any of you given crepe paper flower making a try?



Also to have completely stole my heart is this beautiful bundle of fabrics, Pat Bravo's brand new Indie Folk collection!





The rich saturated colors and eclectic prints are so dreamy, I can't wait to sew with them after Quilt Market! I'm hoping to decide on a plan to have ready to start once I'm back home!





These fabric are the perfect complement to these changing days and the season that's upon us. Now I can't wait for Fall sewing!

I'll be back with soon with some Love Story fabrics to share, I hear they should be arriving any day!
xo Maureen

Etno Herringbone : :

Whenever I'm in need of a quick gift or I just want to make something that I'm certain to finish by the end of an average sewing session, high on my go-to list will always be my Quick Quilt-as-You-Go herringbone pillow covers. There are so many things I love about this particular pattern, but most of all, it's the guarantee they'll turn out beautiful every single time if you simply start with a beautiful stack of fabrics! Yesterday I reached for one of my all time favorite collections, Etno by Pat Bravo for AGF, to make a new set of covers and I love how they turned out!





Some of you might remember when I used Etno to make a HUGE version of the Crisscross Diamond quilt that I teach in my Craftsy class, which remains one of my favorite quilts to date. These colors with the combination of geometric and painterly designs is so dreamy!



For these new covers I cut a single strips measuring 2.5" x WOF from eighteen different Etno prints and it was the perfect amount, yielding just a few scraps, to make two new 18" pillow covers.



I was excited to notice the Garden Dreamer Terra Firma in Sunlit yellow plaid binding that I had leftover from the Garden Dreamer herringbone quilt I recently made for my LookBook would work perfectly for binding up these Etno covers. I had just enough!



Today I'm thrilled to be having a new sectional sofa being delivered! We haven't purchased a brand new sofa since my oldest son, now fourteen, was just a few months old, so I am ridiculously excited. I have plans to share our living room makeover here on the blog, which will surely include even more pillow covers. Stay tuned!

 ♡ Maureen

A Nightland Quilt Top : :

I had every intention of making four more Nightfall & Heartland fabric star blocks before finishing up this Nightland quilt top. I was sure I'd need additional yellow-heavy blocks to create a balanced, harmonious quilt design. When compared with the sweeter, peachy-pink, aqua, and blue star blocks, the bright yellows really popped, overshadowing the softer colors that seemed to fade away. For a minute I even questioned if the blocks I had already finished could even work together. Before deciding what might bring it altogether and which new color to pair with the yellows, I placed the dozen finished stars I had onto the floor to begin playing with layout options. The large 18.5" unfinished blocks quickly filled up the entire working floor space of my sewing room, the familiar signal to me that this work in progress is plenty big enough - time to stop!









After moving blocks around for a bit, I decided a sashing was the perfect remedy to unify the mixture of blocks, keeping the flashy yellows at the four corners, while opting for a new twist on a traditional cornerstone -- friendship stars!



This idea was so perfect in keeping with the star theme of this quilt design!



With the added 2.5 sashing and friendship stars, combined with the dozen large star blocks, this pieced together quilt top measures 60" x 80", a wonderful throw size! For picture taking sake alone, I'm perfectly pleased with deciding to modify my original plan for this quilt. I'm sure my husband/quilt holder thanks me, as well!



This September moody morning, with the rising fog was the perfect, dreamy setting for this star filled quilt design! The best Monday morning I've had in a while!

Wishing you all a wonderful start to the week! ♡ Maureen  

Fall Stars : :

This week it's finally starting to feel like Fall, I've been busy cooking all our Fall favorites and stitching up a pile of star blocks combining my Nightfall fabrics with Pat's new Heartland collection. These scrappy stars are so addictive! What a pleasure it is to sew with my own fabrics and my dear friend's beautiful designs, I'm really enjoying this project!

This quilt, which I've already named my Nightland quilt, uses a selection of fabrics divided into two color grouping at a time, made into HSTs to create four large 18.5" unfinished blocks. I shared my pretty, peachy-pink stars on Tuesday, and today I wanted to pop in to share how those yellow & blue stars turned out, along with what colors I'm working with now!



Once I sent this photo to my friend Sharon, I noticed my mistake. The center diamond that forms should be the blue prints, rather than the yellow. As well as the four corners, oops! I was playing around with color placement so much before I stitched my block units together that I must have flipped those around without noticing. I've decided I'm okay with it, and will just have to make it part of the design. It happens, right?



I continued on, finishing up the four stars in Yellow & Blue, using the same HST placement for each, and now I've moved onto two new colors -- Peach & Aqua!



For this new block I was careful to copy my first star block layout, but if I decide I need to make four more I'll follow the yellow & blue stars to make an even amount of both block patterns. I think these new stars are my favorites so far, such sweet color & print combinations!



I'm still unsure of how I want my quilt top to look, it's going to be fun coming up with a final layout! I hope to be back Monday with it all finished and photographed to share!

Be sure to stop back tomorrow for a new Fabric Giveaway!!  ♡ Maureen  

Nightfall & Heartland Stars : :

My favorite thing about Half-Square Triangles is the possibilities they provide! When Heartland, Pat Bravo's newest fabric collection for AGF arrived last week, I knew right away I wanted to combine these colors and designs with my new Nightfall fabrics. Look how pretty!



I pulled a healthy stack of prints, adding in a little Fleet & Flourish, Tapestry, and randoms from my stash to create a colorful bundle of the peachy-pinks, bright & warm yellows, and various shade of blue I'm loving these days. Such a beautiful beginning needed an equally pretty plan, and so I started making HSTs, again!



I divided the assortment into two groupings -- yellows with blues, pinks with the rest, and I got to work! An assembly line of cutting, stitching, pressing, and trimming...









Once I had a good amount of HSTs all finished, I started auditioning quilt block options. There really are so many, but it didn't take too long for me to settle on this pretty star block. I'm unsure of it name? So if you happen to know, please share! I think a pretty star is the perfect match to the theme of these fabrics!



These scrappy blocks sew up to a large 18.5" square -- fun! I'm going to enjoy working on this one! I'll be back soon to show you how the yellows & blues sew up!

XX Maureen