Preview 52

Simply quick from 10 Fat Quarters.  Pick 5 for the upright slices, 5 for the crosswise rails.  Squares for the border are cut from the leftovers.  All used up and done for this 45"x 54" quilt.

This pattern is a great way to quickly make up a pretty new collection or a bundle you have and really should use.  It has also been a real workhorse for Community Service quilting.  A friend cut up tons of my old scraps into the two sizes needed and made up kits for this pattern.  Most of the time for these scrappy quilts, we just did a quick plain border.  With precut pieces, we are talking maybe an hour to piece this top.

Preview 51

With nearly all of the Fall patterns at press and a week before hitting the road to Market in Houston, it is time for previews.  This season is heavy on 2 1/2" strip patterns, as I get more of those designs ready for the a shop hop in Michigan.

This first pattern is a charmer.  It uses the 40 5" squares from your Charm pack.  Plus an additional 1/2 yard each for the 4-Patches.  In the cover model, the 4-Patches are intentionally a little blendy so they act like a background to the Charm squares.  If you make a higher contrast 4-Patch, the darks will probably connect with the charm squares, creating a little different shape. 

This little baby finishes 36"x 45" and can always be bordered for something bigger.

Another GOLD MEDAL

Dear Stella's IT'S A SHORE THING was perfect for our little GOLD MEDAL.  There were 6 crisp blues and 3 navy blues.  I love how Dorothy chose to use the navy squares--one print across each row.

PERFECT MOMENT Ooh La La

Jessica pulls a great combo from the Ooh La La collection by Pillow Maxfield for Michael Miller fabrics.  The clean graphics of the prints simply shine.  The horizontal sashing strips are fussy cut to march along in a clean line.  We have a few kits left--at a great sale price, too.

Day Off = 2 Quilts

Took the day off yesterday--no orders to fill, no quilting for hire, no starting the car, nobody home but me.  With that kind of time--I made 2 new RoseCard models, start to finish--cutting to binding.  They are that easy.

First, a little INTRIGUE with Amy Butler's Cameo.  Love all of her new patterns and color.  It is more than a bit busy, but I like busy.  And I admit, that if I had not wanted to stay true to the pattern to make it a good model, I would have added some white solid lattice. Kits are ready.

Quilt 2 is Tula Pink's The Birds & the Bees in GOLD MEDAL.  There are so many luscious colorways in this collection, it was almost hard to choose.  I went for one that worked with the pattern and allowed me to use 6 different prints for the Fat Quarter strips.  And I thought the optical stripes would make great squares--and it did.  The Lazy Stripes design is solid enough to make a good contrast punch, but it cut up interestingly enough to give a little different taste in each square.
The kit is listed on our website now.
In piecing, I placed the fabrics in the same order as the cover quilt, so I did not have to lay it all out and pick it up.  It was like doing a code puzzle.

Even though it is not gold, I just might have to sub this model on the next printing.

CLOUD NINE Carthage

On our last little detour to Texas, on the way home from Minnesota, I was able to stop at Block by Block in Carthage MO.  We followed Amy's instructions on her highway billboards--"Scream till your husband stops the car!".  Amy has been a fan since my first season, especially with OPENING NIGHT, which she called her 4 hour $40 quilt.  I got to meet some of her sewers getting things done in the cool classroom.  And see more of the RoseCards made up...always a thrill for me. 

I loved this cheery CLOUD NINE. 

LILLIAN Batik

LILLIAN is a must-do in batiks.  In fact, I must re-do the cover in batiks.  I knew my cover quilt, much as I love it, would be too busy to show off LILLIAN's style.  But I was in a hurry to publish, and knew I would replace the cover quilt--someday, if not sooner. 

Idena's quilt top here shows LILLIAN at her best in Hoffman's Bali Pops.