A Rock 'n Romance Skull Quilt : :

I am so very excited to share this finished quilt with all of you today! A little more than a year ago I was so proud to share it here as just a finished quilt top, created for Pat Bravo, completely inspired by her then brand new Rock 'n Romance fabric collection for Art Gallery Fabrics!



Designing this quilt was so much fun for me! I knew from the beginning that this skull pattern would be a bit taste specific, but I think it works so well with the sweet and dark, feminine and bold, girly-girl meets rocker vision of this collection.

The pretty florals combined with the modern & damask prints in shades of gray, black, pinks, purples, with little touches of yellow keep this quilt beautiful, regardless of the quilt pattern!



It wasn't until after I had sent it off to Pat that I found out Angela Walters, fabric designer and machine quilter extraordinaire, would be completing the quilting. WOW!! With the most amazing free motion swirls & feather quilting I've ever seen, Angela took this quilt to the next level!





It's finished with one big patched together piece of Ashen Rose in Smoke for the backing and is bound in Stardust in Twilight, two of my most favorite prints!



We had a lot of fun taking these photos last night! We started out at the Old Hickory where we had taken the finished quilt top photos. Could this house be any more perfect for this quilt?!



Then we moved onto the most beautiful cemetery, where the giant, aged stone staircases and weather worn monuments made the perfect backdrop!





A year ago when Pat had asked me if I were interested in designing this quilt I honestly didn't feel confident I could do it. With her gentle & generous encouragement I accepted the offer and believe that was a real turning point for me, my work, and my blog. I've grown so much as a quilter and in countless other ways since then, because of Pat and so many of you who stop each day to cheer me on. This quilt being delivered back to me was such a surprise and is such a gift!

And, it came just in time! I think this pattern makes a most perfect Halloween quilt. What you think? I'm really hoping you agree!! I plan to create a pattern to offer asap if the interest is there, so please do let me know!

Thank you for stopping by, for all the comments and kind words. From the very bottom of my heart, Thank you!!  ♥   Maureen

Baby Quilt Planning : :

Just a few days after I shared my last fabric stash post I received these adorable new bundles in the mail -- this Reminisce Inspired Pure Element Solids bundle from Stash Fabrics and this super cute & cozy FQ bundle of FanFare flannel by Rae Hoekstra for Cloud9 Fabrics.



Since I love the way these two bundles look together, I decided to begin a new baby quilt-as-you-go with these as my starting point.  I've always wanted to incorporate my fox applique pillow design into a quilt somehow and this is the perfect opportunity!



While thinking up additional applique blocks for this quilt, I remembered these elephant applique pillows I made back in 2011, and thought this design might make a cute block to add in, too!





After making my Stitched Typography Quilt and my recent Butterfly Quilt, I'm really excited for this chance to experiment with applique & quilt-as-you-go once again! Here's a little peek at the progress I made last night.



And now I've decided my fox needs a crown!

I'm thinking of adding in an owl applique block, because I love owls, and maybe a tree block or two, as well. What else do you think would be cute? I always love reading your ideas!

♥  Maureen

A Fabric GIVEAWAY : :

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It's Fabric Giveaway Friday!  

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My sponsor Stash Fabrics is an online store full of fresh, modern fabric. They carry many of our favorite designer fabrics, including Art Gallery, Riley Blake, Free Spirit, Cloud9, Moda, and many more! They offer FREE shipping on all orders over $50 in the US!!

We invite you to visit Stash at their --

 SHOP  *  BLOG  *  FACEBOOK  *  TWITTER  *  INSTAGRAM
 

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We hope you enjoy visiting the Stash Fabrics sites!! 

For this week's Fabric Giveaway, Stash Fabrics & I decided to try something fun! Since we couldn't decide on which bundle to give away today, this time it's up to you! Yes, the winner of this week's Giveaway gets to choose any TEN FQ's from any bundle in the Stash Modern Fabric Shop! Choose TEN from one bundle or put together a custom bundle of your very own favorite fabrics. It's totally up to YOU!!

I put together this mosaic including just a sample of my favorites, but be sure to look! Stash Fabrics carries so many beautiful fabrics, including many of the collections I've used in my recent finished quilts -- Rock 'n Romance (quilt here), Indie (quilt here), Tule (quilt top here), Nordika (quilt here), Tsuru (quilt top here), and Hand Drawn Garden (quilt & tutorial here). I could actually keep going! I guess Beth & I have the same taste!



In addition, you're all invited to enjoy 10% off ALL BUNDLES in the shop starting now! Remember to use Stash Fabric's coupon code SHIPFREE50, to receive that free US shipping on any order over $50!! 

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Enter to win!

Here's how,   

1. Simply leave a comment here in this post! We'd love to know which bundle is your favorite?! You can find them all right HERE! (one entry)
2. Follow Stash Fabrics on Instagram or Facebook! Just let me know that you did by making a separate comment here to record that entry. (optional extra entry)
3. My followers get a third entry! Whether you follow me here, on Facebook, or on Instagram, 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 tweet, instagram, facebook, pin, blog, etc... (optional extra entry) 

That’s 4 possible entries! Enter now through Monday, October 7th. The winner will be chosen by 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!

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Thank you to all who entered the Giveaway!!
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  From 1,619 entries, Mr. Random says the lucky winner is... 
Comment #631 --   *  Heartsdesire  *   

Congratulations! I will be in touch shortly!   

A Tule Patchwork Bag : :

In time to bring along on our Saturday day-trip, I stitched up this quick & easy tote bag making use of the Tule patchwork strips I had leftover from my Sunset quilt top. The outside and straps are made up of my scrappy strips and pieced together using the same Herringbone Quilt method that I just shared this past Monday. This time I sewed my rectangle panels together off-set just enough so this scrappy pattern looks more like a braid rather than the "V" herringbone design. I like it!



I used all but just a few of my scraps, so even though my bag construction is about as simple as it gets, I'm happy! I do enjoy making bags, but for me -- simple is very good!

It's lined with a pretty AGF Pure Element in Sweet Mint, with a nice layer of cotton batting to give it weight, boxed out sides, and finished with simple, densely quilted, throw-over-the-shoulder length straps.







I tossed in just a few supplies to work on quilting it during the drive and if there was a moment for handwork throughout the day. I love my thrifted stork scissors!



There ended up being several opportunities for this project on Saturday. It was so wonderful to just sit and add my hand-quilting stitches while watching Kevin & the kids fish!







I'm especially glad I brought it along to get these pretty pictures!



I'll be adding many, many more stitches as I find the time. I'll be sure to share what it looks like finished with all that lovely hand-quilting!

Happy Sewing!!  ♥  Maureen 

Making Rows : :

Well, it certainly feels like I'm on a roll with these quilts and that feels so good! Late Friday night I spent about an hour beginning this new quilt project. I've changed directions with these particular fabric pulls several times already -- see here, here, and now here!



But, I've happily decided to settle on making rows. This is something I've wanted to do for awhile and I'm loving what I have so far!

A few pluses, some geese, and lots of 2.5" strips waiting to become something!





I'm using Denyse Schmidt's new Florence collection in the Carnelian colorway that I recently stashed from the Knotted Thread, combined with a few more Denyse & some Julianna Horner prints I picked up on a recent trip to JoAnn Fabrics, a Text Me Maybe Bundle from Stash Fabrics, and that lovely Kona Cotton Wine Cellar Colorstory Bundle. It's very Fall-ish don't you think?





I began this new quilt project with such a strong row of deep reds, blacks, & white, that it might be a little tricky to transition into all these oranges, but I think I can make it work. They're so beautiful!



Saturday we spent the day unplugging at one of our most favorite places -- Allegany State Park. We hiked, played in the creek, and fished. It was wonderful! I brought along a new handwork project, which I plan to share tomorrow, and my sketchbook!



While Kevin fished and the kids jumped from rock to rock, I planned out my next few more rows.



Today, with this gorgeous image fixed in mind as inspiration, I'm super excited to continue this new quilt work-in-progress!



♥  Maureen

A Herringbone Quilt in PDF : :

Happy Tuesday! I spent my blog time this morning, and then some, turning my Herringbone Quilt Tutorial into a print-friendly PDF! Not the easiest task with my very limited computer knowledge & abilities.

Just click on the photo below or on this link HERE and you should be directed...hopefully!



Thank you so much for all the wonderful comments, likes, & shares you sent my way yesterday! I'll be back tomorrow with something new!

Have a great day!!  ♥  Maureen