"Embrace your Journey 1 Stitch @ a Time in 2024!"

 Hey quilter's...hope everyone is enjoying your Holiday season. I wanted to take the time to wish everyone a joyous New Year. We all have our memorable moments and maybe even some that we hope to not encounter again. I know one thing that I've had to realize is to embrace whatever comes my way, whether good or bad.  I'm so thankful for the blessings and I hope the hardships have made me a stronger person. I'm looking forward to a New Year of sharing and inspiring others to fall in love with the quilting. I for one can definitely say..."It's not your grammas quilts anymore". Although I love to put a spin on traditional quilt designs. When you follow along with me on my "Scrap-a-longs" I always state "it's your quilt so get creative and make it your own." I always hope to inspire your creative thinking and honestly that is why I love designing quilts. I'm excited about the designs that I'll be sharing with y'all in 2024. I will be creating with quality products from Missouri Star Quilt Co. and offering a monthly discount on their products as well. I will state on each design and have a link that starts on January 1st for your convenience. So, here's to wishing us all a "Scrap-tacular year full of Joy & to embrace our journey....1 Stitch @ a time!

Blessed Quilting from My Home to Yours,

Cat

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Christmas Blessings to y'all!

 Hey quilter's...wishing everyone a Blessed Christmas or as we quilter's like to say...Merry Quilt-mas. Either way wrap it up with joy and peace for a wonderful day. Chuck and Jazz had an eventful last night together and hoping she comes back next year. :-) I thank you so much for following and looking forward to a year full of Quilt-mas Cheer! Remember keep those Christmas Scraps out! 

Blessed Quilting from My Home to Yours,

Cat

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Cats Christmas "Sneak Peek" for 2024!

 Hey quilter's....it's Friday...and Christmas is right around the corner. I know you're probably going yagh like me cause it's my favorite time of the year. This Christmas is very special because I'm at my daughter's and that' the best present ever! I'm excited to do Christmas cooking and baking with the family. Making memories in the kitchen is so special for this Gege. I'm excited to see everyone's reaction when they receive the "gift card holders" that I made doing the "Charm Pack Challenge." If it's a great reaction, then I will definitely come up with some creative designs for 2024. A charm pack is a great for having choices of the collection and great space saver too. Not everyone has the space or even money to have yards of a collection, so a Charm pack is genius! I also want to give you a "sneak peek" of a Christmas Scrap-a-long that I'll be starting soon on blog. Recently our sweet Elf "Jazz" brought back with her a gift from Santa. Well, I guess he does see you when your sewing/quilting. But that's o.k. too because I love this kit and have been wanting it...win..win! I'll be doing a "twist" with the design and can't wait to share with y'all. The quality of this design "Measure Once...Cuss Twice" is wonderful. The instructions, design of the kit is excellent. The kit even has optional quote sayings as well. Misty Doan w/ Missouri Star Quilt Co. has a great tutorial on a wall hanging too! I love how Santa has "connections" to the Missouri Star Quilt Company. Have a great weekend and prayers for a Magical Season. Talk soon!

Blessed Quilting from My Home to Yours,

Cat

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Lit-up 4 Santa!...Phase 4 & Finishing

 Hey quilter's...hope your week is going great. I've recently realized that I'm a wimp! Oh my gosh...50* in Florida and I could be connected to an electric blanket. It's kind of funny of how your body gets accustomed to warm weather then when it gets cold you or "me" freak, but in my "defense" it's very humid in Florida which makes the cold worse. In my opinion anyway :-) I have some great news to share that I'll be featuring on my posts starting in January the discounts again with Missouri Star Quilt Co. I'm excited to continue the "affiliate program" which allows me to offer a discount to your as well. When I feature my Quilt-mas all year scrap-a-longs in 2024 you'll see the info. I love the quality of items that Missouri Star Quilt Co. offers plus they have great customer service. Win... win in my book! Well, I finally finished this cute baby quilt for my God-niece. I will say that "tacking" was the way to go for me on a domestic machine. I personally have a difficult time sewing with minky fabric on the back. I know a lot of quilters don't have this issue and maybe that's something I can overcome in the future. This design is so versatile as I stated from the beginning. I'll be incorporating those adorable Christmas Light templates in future scrap-a-longs in 2024. Finishing the quilt, I did my border/binding technique so depending on how large you made your quilt then adjust your borders accordingly. I will say for me anyway that sewing the binding by "hand" on the back was great. Minky fabric slides a bit and you have more control with hand sewing. Yes, it's a bit old school but look at is being therapeutic with all the Christmas rush. I know...that didn't work for me either :-) Also. use great quality thread. I preach a lot of Aurifil 50# thread and Missouri Star 50# thread. The quality is amazing and if you're going to spend the time on a handmade quilt then make it a bit easier on you as well. Remember I did "tacking" on my baby lock which made it a bit easier too with the Minky fabric on back. They look like little snowflakes which made it super cute. Also, an extra step...tip to share with you is that I also stitched in the ditch on the front border after hand sewing. Yes, it's an extra step but know it's a baby quilt was worth it. I hope it lasts for many years to come as she grows and enjoys cuddling with this quilt counting down the days until Santa. Remember this is the first of many Quilt-mas Scrap-a-longs so save those Christmas scraps. I'm super exciting of the designs to share with y'all in 20204 and a very special feature too. Hmmm...keep following y'all...we'll have a blast! Talk soon!

Blessed Quilting from My Home to Yours,

Cat

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Lit-up 4 Santa!...Phase 3

 Hey quilter's...hope y'all are having a great Friday. This week flew for me. I love it when I don't have any doc appts. in a week just home PT. I never thought I would admit to that...for sure! Well, I'm embracing for a crazy weather weekend and if you are too my prayers are with you as well. I wanted to go ahead and post phase 3 of the design. You never know how the power will be affected. Plus, it will definitely be a fun step if you are stranded inside due to rain. I love making "bias cut strands." They are so much fun to work with...making curves...etc. If you're not familiar with a bias cut it allows you to "stretch" the fabric to make the curves. You cut a 45* angle which gives you the stretch in your fabric. Because I'm a bit stingy with this stunning fabric by Moda I just cut a square at a time to not waste any. I love how the Platinum Ombre Flurries was perfect for the strands. If you're following my design, then do a square at a time and only fully secure the strands that you won't be carrying over to another square. This is why I fully recommend "layout out" your design to get the feel of how you want your "strands" to connect to the Christmas Bulbs. Due to my design being a baby quilt I did a "X" at the top of the bulb to symbolize a bow. You can always make it look like it "tucked" into the top of bulb then do decorative stitching at the top. You know me it's a fun project so get creative and have fun. I am trying to get this finished for a gift this year, but this is just the first of many projects to come. We'll be having a year of "Quilt-Mas Cheer" in 2024 so save those scraps. If you're like me sewing with Christmas fabric brings me joy and takes my mind of pain for a few minutes. Hey, I'll take a minute or two without pain! :-) Oh, one item that I forgot to mention that helps this design come together is playing your favorite Christmas music. I know sounds weird, but it keeps me calm when I'm sewing. If you get stranded in house due to weather and still have shopping to do see my previous post on making small gifts. You will definitely use up some of those scraps :-) Enjoy!

Blessed Quilting from My Home to Yours,

Cat

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Making the 'Strands"...

* Rotary cut a 13" square from Moda Ombre Flurries Platinum. Press if needed.

* Make a 45* cut...then using your ruler make another cut 3/4" wide using your first 45* cut as your guide. Continue this method to make as many cuts as possible. I did a lot of strands and repeated this method twice. I made my strands look a bit "twisted." Remember it's your quilt so have fun and make as many as you like :-)

* Carefully press each "strand" in half.

Tip...Make as needed to not waste fabric :-)

* Per design layout...layout strands like you are connecting the bulbs from end to end. I started at top and made a curve wrapping around but do what is easy for you. 

* I then did a decorative zig zag stitch using Aurifil 50 weight # 2615 to secure the strands only on the areas that I would not be connecting to another block. This might seem tedious but it's a lot easier maneuvering one block when stitching then a whole pieced quilt on your sewing machine. 

Tip...I made my "strand tails" a bit longer. You can always trim them as you go.

* Once you get the idea of how your strands will flow throughout the quilt & your appliqued parts that you can to each block then you can start sewing your squares together.

* I started with one row at a time being careful not to sew the "strand tails" that are loose.

* Sew blocks with right sides together & using a 1/4" seam allowance.

* Tip...you will have "bulk" from the batting so take your time and adjust your machine if needed. 

* Carefully press each seam open on back.

* Per design I did one row at a time being careful to follow the design layout. See pic below.

Note...I started the layout of blocks on my guest bed...then on the floor by my sewing machine. A design wall would be great to keep the blocks in order...:-) 

Connecting Strands... 

* Once you are happy with your design then you can sew your rows together being careful not to sew the "loose strands" or the "tails."

* You will use a 1/4" inch seam allowance and follow the same method as piecing the blocks.

* Now you can "connect the strand tails" to the next block. This is the step I'm currently doing. No pic yet...wanted y'all to continue yours without any delays on my part :-) 

Remember...take your time with the decorative stitching on strands...use a tiny stitch length for easy maneuvering. If you pinned like I did just be careful to remove pins before sewing...trust me :-)

Have fun & talk soon,

Cat

Lit-up 4 Santa!...Phase 2

 Hey quilter's...hope your day if off to a great start. I know that I'm hoping for a warm day with no surprises. But who knows in Florida. I've learned to take one "minute" at a time these days. I hope y'all are having fun starting this super sweet Christmas quilt. I've stated in previous posts that it will be a baby quilt and as of now roughly 40 x 40. You can see with design that you can easily enlarge the design to your needs. This is a baby gift  so I'm keeping the size pretty basic, but I love how she can use it as she gets older. That sounds so weird cause she's just a few months old. Time does fly y'all. Anyway, this phase consists of appliqueing your small Christmas lights and snowflakes using the templates by Missouri Star Quilt Co. I'm sure you can make your own designs, but these templates are so much fun to use and a great price as well. Just like with the large Christmas bulbs you'll be doing the same applique technique and accent quilting with coordinating thread. Due to it being a "quilt-a-long" and not fully quilting to the back I did accent snowflakes within the ornaments with Aurifil thread. The same concept as the large Christmas bulbs. Not only are they super cute but it's also a easy way for securing the ornaments as well. This is a fun & easy project so have fun putting your own spin on it! Remember save your scraps because we're going to have a fun year with Quilt-Mas Cheer in 2024 :-) Enjoy!

Blessed Quilting from My Home to Yours,

Cat

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Note: I made 5 Small Snowflakes & 14 small Christmas lights per my design. But have fun & let your creativity shine! 

Lit-up 4 Santa!...Phase 1

 Hey quilter's...hope all is going well and you're having a great start to a non-hectic week. I guess we can all pray for that especially this time of year. My heart goes out to the tornado victims. I can't even imagine going through a tornado, Hurricanes are enough for me. It does make you realize to make everyday count. I saw a sign on a truck yesterday that really moved me. It stated every day is a chance for a new beginning. Absolutely true. I used to tell my daughter what happened yesterday can't today because we're already aware of it...seems so true to this day. Anway don't mean to ger mushy but cherish today and take the time to bring joy into your lives. Holidays are hectic and I to have to remember I can't do all the things that I would like but that's o.k. too. I'm still here driving everyone nuts :-) Well I hope you're as excited as I am with this sweet Christmas quilt. I stated in previous post of the items needed but what I did not state correctly was my quilt will be only 40 x 40. I uploaded the design from EQ8 and you can see the basic design and you can see how easily it would be to enlarge just by adding more borders or even more rows. It's pretty basic but appliqueing the Christmas bulbs & Snowflakes is what brings the design together with that awesome fabric. I wanted a white background to make the fabric pop, but you can definitely change the design to your preference. I did test the dark fabric just to make sure it didn't run but most of the time buying quality fabric that doesn't happen. Also, i changed one of the "bulbs" to a different location from previous pic...see if you can find it :-) My O.C.D. kicked in...yup...that's me! Anyway, with Phase 1 you will be rotary cutting your white fabric & low-loft batting and appliqueing the large Christmas Lights. I did raw-edge applique with a light fusible web on the large bulbs and then heatnbond lite on the small lights and snowflakes. I will give you a hint....definitely check your layout before fusing to make sure you have all going in your desired direction. Also, when appliqueing use a tiny stitch length for easier pivoting. I purchased a soft blanket for the backing due to only "tack quilting" so please allow enough yardage for your backing as well. Remember this is the first of our "Quilt-Mas Cheer all year in 2024!" I'm excited and I thank y'all so much for following.!

Blessed Quilting from My Home to Yours,

Cat

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Design is 40 x 40...easily enlarge if desired.

Here's all you do...

* Rotary cut from your white fabrics ( I alternated my two patterns throughout the design)

*  Rotary cut  (14) squares 9 1/2 x 9 1/2 

* Rotary cut ( 4) squares 4 1/2 x 9 1/2

* Low loft batting the same.

* Lay your squares out per design.

Note:...following squares need to be sewn together if following my layout before you applique Christmas Lights. Sew together using a 1/4" seam allowance and right sides 2gether .Press.

Row 1...squares 3 & 4

Row 2...squares 1 & 2...and 4 &5

Row 4...squares 4 & 5

* Rotary cut from your accent fabric (Moda) 6 x 9 1/2 and low loft fusible web. Fuse to wrong side of fabric following manufacturer's directions. Repeat for all 7 large Lights.

* Using the large Christmas Light template from Missouri Star Quilt Co. trace around the teal and turquoise fabrics on the back side of paper.

Tip...if you want to Precisely position the snowflakes like I did then use a erasable marking pen or pencil and trace on the front.

* Cut online with a small pair of scissors for easy maneuvering.

*  Lay out on squares per design or create your own.

* Fuse to right side of squares following manufactures directions.

Tip... I used my t-Shirt pressing cloth from MSQC to protect my iron, Follow manufacturer's directions.

* Lay low loft batting on back side of each square. Pin or clip to secure.

* Applique around each Christmas light with coordinating thread or your preferred method.

Have fun!

Check back soon for Phase 2,

Cat