Author: jennifer

Introducing my latest scrap project:  a log cabin style quilt made entirely with bonus half square triangles.  Do you make these?  Maybe there are other names for them, but to me they’ve always been “bonus half square triangles” or “bonus HSTs”.  For years they’ve been collecting in a box.  I can’t tell you how happy this new project has made me!

Every time I make a flying geese or snowball quilt block, I sew two seam lines instead of one.  The first, I sew on the line for the pattern/block I’m making.  The second, I sew 1/2″ away from that line, into the fabric I’ll be cutting off.  Then I press it while closed, and trim off the excess.  Except when I trim, I’m trimming off a smaller half square triangle block instead of two scrap triangles.  This way they’re made as I sew, and then they go in the box – usually subdivided by project to keep like fabrics together.

For this project, I first started by putting a bunch of them together in a 16″ block, and then I gathered all the bonus half square triangles from one of my oldest projects and began.  I sewed like blocks together in a row, and then started wrapping them around my original block, log cabin style.  It’s really fun to see these original Cotton + Steel fabrics again.  While I would never have paired the fabrics in the center block with them, the surprising color patterns that emerged are delightful.

This project is improv.  That means no trimming blocks to square up, no measuring, no worrying.  Just sew them together and smile at what happens.  I’m embracing the cutoff pieces in the corners as part of the fun!

So far I’m sewing one full round each day, and I like that goal.  I’m sure it will become just one strip per day as the quilt gets larger.  I don’t know how big I will make it, or what scraps I’ll move to next when all the bonus HSTs from this one run out.  It’s the most relaxing, fun sewing I’ve done in a while!  And it’s great to have all those bonus half square triangles out of a box and into a project.  I wonder how many I can use?

I’ll be back soon with a progress report on this one.

Happy Sewing, Jennifer

Meet the Arise Quilt !  Arise is the second pattern in my Resolute Collection of quilt patterns, following the Awake Quilt .  I’m so excited to officially introduce you to this design.  I am a thinker – inclined to think about things for too long instead of diving in.  It’s hard, sometimes, to believe that simply doing small things consistently will yield enough .  For the last 18 months I’ve built my personal goals on the premise that diligence in lots of small things will build the life I want to live.  I’m beginning to find great satisfaction in the systems and routines I’m building.  These thoughts led me to design the Arise quilt.


Arise means “to ascent, mount up, or move to a higher place; to emerge from below the horizon; begin to act; to exert power; to move from a state of inaction.”  It describes my goals well.  Thus, in designing the Arise quilt, I used simple quilt blocks, made again and again, as the foundation of the quilt.

This quilt uses square in a square blocks, otherwise known as economy blocks.  But it comes alive through deliberate fabric and color placement.    And fussy cutting!  Arise offers lots of places to fussy cut those treasured fabrics you’ve been saving.  The sashing serves as the hero of the quilt, creating a secondary block design that keeps the eye.  In this quilt, every piece of fabric is small but mighty, and has an important role in the design composition.

In this version of the quilt I used Tula Pink’s Curiouser and Curiouser fabrics, plus her black and white stripe, combined with solids from my personal stash.  I love the fabulous pink painted rose next to rich, dark green.  I intended to bind the quilt in the black and white stripe, but went with green instead because I wanted more of it!

The quilting is a design called Chancel, a design fitting for a tea party with the queen of hearts.  Once again, Melissa at Sew Shabby Quilting did a great job!

The Arise Quilt finishes at approximately 66″ square, and is available in my Etsy shop .  While my girls enjoy snuggling under this beauty, I’m looking forward to the next design.  The Stand Quilt is coming soon!

I’m so grateful God led me to quilting.  Happy sewing to you!

Jennifer

I’m pleased to officially introduce you to a new quilt pattern – my Awake Quilt.  The Awake Quilt is first in a series of quilt patterns, the Resolute Collection.  A simple definition of resolute is “admirably purposeful, determined, unwavering”.  What a great word!  And if you know me well at all, you will know my longtime love for words.  I find myself at an interesting place in life: stages of parenting overlapping one another, requiring more flexibility than ever but also offering unexpected space for personal development.  As I navigate all of it, I’m learning to let go AND hang on.  Resolute is a great word for my striving, so it’s only natural that it merges with my quilting.  And so, the Resolute Collection was born, comprised of quilt patterns whose names are words that are significant to me in my journey.

Therefore, let’s talk about the Awake Quilt.  The stars inside “circles” are the star of the show, but there is no curved piecing in this pattern!  In fact, the Awake Quilt uses the traditional dresden quilt block cleverly to provide both top and bottom borders, as well as the circles around the stars.  You’ll need an 18 degree dresden ruler to make the quilt.  I’m a big fan of sewing from stash (I think most quilters have one) and this came entirely from mine.  I love creating my own personal “collection” for my quilts.

As I was designing the Awake quilt, I kept saying to myself, “Stay awake but keep it simple.”  A few definitions of awake include:  stop sleeping, awake from sleep, bestir, to be invigorated with new life.  My whole goal with this quilt was to stay awake creatively, resist doing the obvious or easy thing, but also avoid over-complicating the design.

The star centers provide fussy-cutting opportunites, and the surrounding blocks allow for bold color play.  This is a fun, dynamic quilt.  You will love making it!

I sent mine to my friend Melissa of Sew Shabby Quilting for edge to edge quilting.  She did a beautiful job.  I also chose this lovely, old Alexander Henry floral for the backing.  The blooms are enormous and make me smile!  The binding is scrappy.

The Awake quilt is approximately 60 x 72 inches, and the pattern is available in my Etsy shop .  Next up in the Resolute Collection is the Arise quilt, I hope you’ll take a look!

Happy sewing!

-Jennifer