Down The Road

If you have been traveling along with The Road Home Row Along, you know today is the reveal of the final designers' rows. All the rows have been spectacular. We've toured quite a few places around the world. Have you gained a new perspective of life outside your own community like I have? 

There has been a little of something for everyone: paper piecing, simple piecing, applique, and more. 



Here are the final rows.Sign up for the giveaways today, too. 

Cheryl LaPlant Featured At Quilt In Piece
Miss Loreen’s SchoolhouseBumbleberry StitchesNeedle in a Hayes StackCloth and Paper Studio 


Next week on October 11 there will be a show and tell. Some of the designers used rows of their choice to make a quilt or quilted project from the rows. 

Show ‘n Tell Day
Will Feature The Following Blogs

Seams To Be Sew
Quilt in Piece
Just Let Me Quilt
Cloth and Paper Studio
Moosestash Quilting
WestEnd Quilter

If you're planning to create one of the rows from any of the designers, there is just 1 week to finish in order to enter the Flickr giveaway. You have until Tuesday at midnight to post to our Flickr page. 

For all the details, visit Marian at Seams To Be Sew.

I hope you have had as much fun as I have on this hop. I take away a new knowledge of each of these fantastic designer who participated. 

I also appreciate all who left comments about my row. I have responded to those who left email contacts. And to you others, thank you for stopping by. I have gained more confidence in designing and plan to do more to share with you in the near future. 

As a final note, I thank all the sponsors who helped make this Row Along exciting for the visitors.

Washington Street Studio
ThermoWeb
The Fat Quarter Shop
Sulky
Robert Kaufman
Red Rooster Fabrics
Quilters Dream
P & B Textiles
Ott Lite
Northcott
Nancy's Notions
Martelli Notions
Kathy McNeil
Electric Quilt
Connect The Blocks
Calibre
Busy Hands Quilts
Batts In The Attic
BDieges Designs
Aurifil
Anita Goodesign

My Road Home Quilt Row

I am happy to be able to reveal my row for The Road Home Row Along. 

What an undertaking! Marian of Seams To Be Sew and Amy of Sew Incredibly Crazy worked for many months organizing and scheduling the designers and then gathering sponsors. 40 designers, from all over the world, creating quilt rows representing HOME to each of them. Thanks and more thanks to both of you. And a big thank you to the many sponsors who have supplied the giveaways for the duration of this Row Along. The giveaways can be found below.

The link to my free row pattern is HERE. Read a little more to learn why I choose these representations for my Road Home.  

I have lived in Michigan my entire life. I was born, raised and attended college on the east side of the state, a very large metropolitan area. I moved to a rural area on the west side of Michigan, about 30 miles from the shores of Lake Michigan, when I began teaching. I have traveled throughout Michigan and have enjoyed making memories of the places I have gone. What I have especially appreciated is the flora and fauna that can be seen around the state. I chose to create appliques that represent some (I had to limit what I chose) of the wildlife I have seen as I travel to and from "home."

My row has appliques of a white-tailed deer, a green darner dragonfly, apple blossoms, a robin and dwarf lake iris--these are just some of the "state symbols" for Michigan. We see deer in our own backyard and are watchful when driving as they can run into or across the roads at any time. (Twice in my driving, I have had cars damaged when a deer jumped in front of me.) 

I live near and travel through The Ridge, the area where all kinds of fruits and vegetables are grown, especially apples (my favorite) so, I included the apple blossom, our state flower. 

Our state bird, the robin, migrates north and announces Spring's arrival as they eat and hop on lawns and build nests. I included the green darner dragonfly because they are found along and near much of Michigan's waterways darting about eating insects. 

The official state wildflower is the dwarf lake iris, which I have seen when traveling during the summer in the Upper Peninsula. It is a small, rare flower, that grows in low wet spots near beaches, not on them. It is "found only on the coastlines of northern Lake Michigan and northern and easter Lake Huron, a small site on the southern shore of Lake Superior, and a few isolated islands of the Great Lakes." 

The state motto is: if you are seeking a pleasant peninsula, look around you. The native Ojibwa people called this area mishigamaa  which means, "large water" or "large lake."The French named it Michigan. Michigan is surrounded by 4 of the 5 Great Lakes: Superior, Michigan, Huron, and Erie. Michigan is two peninsulas; one is shaped like a mitten.  In fact, when we show someone where we live, we point to a place on our hand. 

We can also show the upper and lower peninsulas with both our hands. When I was a kid, the car license plates were green and white and said, "Water Winter Wonderland" on them.

I have learned to appreciate all we have in Michigan and try my best to insure these wondeful flora and fauna are here for future generations. 

Thank you for visiting today. I hope you find a way to incorporate these appliques in one of your next quilting projects. I will respond to comments left (if you leave an email address) as soon as I can. I know there can be many.

Below are the Rafflecopter entries for the giveaways. And below those, the links to the other designers posting today and the following weeks. 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

a Rafflecopter giveaway

September 22

Words & Stitches
Quilt Art
Any Pattern
Patchwork Breeze

September 27

Creatin’ in the Sticks
I Can Quilt 2
Sue Griffiths Featured At Just Let Me Quilt
Seams To Be Sew  and  Batts In The Attic
(Dual Posting)

September 29

Quilted Fabric Art
Westend Quilter
Pamela Quilts
Quilt Fabrication

October 04

Patchouli Moon Studio
Linda Robertus
Elm Street Quilts
Sarah Quinn Featured At Seams To Be Sew

October 06

Cheryl LaPlant Featured At Quilt In Piece
Miss Loreen’s Schoolhouse
Bumbleberry Stitches
Needle in a Hayes Stack
Cloth and Paper Studio 

On October 11, visit Seams To Be Sew to see the Show and Tell of projects the designers have made by combining many of the rows.

Quilt Projects

I have been working on so many things lately, I have had little time to post.

Tomorrow is my reveal day for The Road Home Row Along. I worked on tidying up my free pattern and the post itself. I am ready for tomorrow. I hope you will be, too. There will be other designers with free patterns and giveaways.








I finished the binding on another 1, 2, 3 Sew Easy quilt on Monday evening. Michelle did the longarm quilting in such short order! This was made with some of the Island Batik Coral Reef fabric collection I had in my IB Box. The colors are splendid, although the photo was taken in the evening.
  

I am working on some items for consignment.

Our oldest daughter is visiting. She wanted to make some pouches to store their playing cards. I helped work out a pattern. This is a photo of the prototype. She wants a button or snap closure.

Quilting is powerful. It relaxes, relieves anxiety and improves creative thinking. That's what I'm going for, what about you? Happy sewing.

Quilt Backing Technique

Oh, what to do when you need to back a quilt and you don't seem to have enough fabric for the backing? I ran into this today. I made a quilt with my 1,2, 3 Sew Easy pattern using Island Batik Coral Reef fabrics.

I had the 43" x 43" top sewn. I looked for a fabric on my shelves that would work with the batiks for a backing. The only one I found was this colorful floral, but it was 44" wide and I had only 2 yds! My longarm quilter would need an extra 4" on all side in order to quilt it. I could have cut and sewn and pieced it to fit, but Yuck! That just looks sloppy to me. 

A few times in the past, I used a technique with a mathematical formula. John Flynn presented it on Simply Quilts with Alex Anderson many years ago. He explained his technique (and formula) for making a diagonal seamed backing. I believed I would have enough fabric to do this. But, I had forgotten the formula.

I searched "John Flynn quilt backing" and up came a number of links. The first link actually took me to a calculator for this method (HERE)!  All I had to do was enter the dimensions and the extra fabric for the longarm quilter and I was told how much fabric I needed. I had enough and didn't have to work out an algebra problem! 

The directions for cutting the backing were shown on the site. So this is how I did it. 

I used the entire 2 yards--to be sure I had enough. My hubby is kind enough to let me use the pool table if I have the large cutting mat on it. I layed the fabric on the pool table. I pinned the corners to the tablecover I made for the pool table. I folded the fabric diagonally.

I could have used my scisssors to cut the folded edge, but I decided I would get a straighter cut if I used my ruler and rotary cutter. I cut about 1/16" off the folded edge. 

I had 2 triangles that I moved away from each other like this:

I put the quilt top on it to see if I had enough overhang for the quilter. I had more than enough. 

I was all set. I pinned the cut edges. When I sew the seam, the pins will help keep the bias edges from stretching out of shape. 

I squared up the backing piece and double checked that it was large enough. Yes! It is ready for the quilter!

I found this Signature Purple Ombre varigated thread that looks great with the colors of the top. I will ask the quilter to use this. 

Don't forget today is another day of FREE patterns for The Road Home Row Along. 

Here are the designers posting today. Be sure to visit and enter for the great giveaways.

If you missed any of the prior 3 days of patterns click HERE for the line up.

September 15
bdieges design
Elizabeth Coughlin Designs
Cloth and Paper Studio
Patti's Patchwork
Seacoast Quilter

The Road Home Row Along Day 2

The Row Along designs on September 6 were wonderful. Each a different style and the stories behind the designs really added to their appeal. 

Here is today's line up of designers. 

September 8
Sew Incredibly Crazy
Just Let Me Quilt
Quilt in Piece
3 Patch Crafts

And what do you think of all the great giveaways? Amazing.

For all the details about this Row Along, visit
Seams To Be Sew.

Quilt Week Classes

The 4 days I spent at AQS Quilt Week in Grand Rapids were great. 

I pre-registered in May for classes each day. 

I wanted to take advantage of having such a wealth of quilt teachers in one place at one time.

I enjoyed each class, learning something new from every instructor. 

I was able to take time between classes and from 4-6PM 

to view the quilts on display and see what types of things the vendors had to sell (another post, another day).

I didn't think there were as many quilt entries as in the first few years. 

After reading a few articles lately about the changes occurring in the quilting industry I wondered if this was reflective of that change.

Each day began with an 8:30 AM class which ended at 11:30AM. 

I left Nancy Clark McNally's class, Compass Fire Star, 

having sewn up one of the 9 blocks for the quilt using Island Batik fabrics.

I find that it is not unusual to finish only one block when in an instructional class like these. 

Nancy has developed templates that made the construction of the block very simple. 

I look forward to making the rest of the blocks very soon. 

After lunch and a quick trip to the vendors, 

my next class was Triangles and Strip Piecing with Linda J. Hahn.

We used Triangles on a Roll paper to make HST (half square triangles)

to use with 4 patches we made with ruler and strips. 

I have used various methods including other papers to make HST. 

These papers worked well. I would say it is just individual preference as to method.

What I did learn was how to look at quilt blocks, patterns or designs 

and break them down into units. 

Most can be triangles and squares, sometimes rectangles are included. 

I have learned to do this over the years, but it was good to have 

the perspective of another quilter to remind me. 

The next day I began with a painting class by Esterita Austin. 

We learned her technique of painting on silicon parchment paper, 

fusing with Misty Fuse to organza and discussing the many ways to 

incorporate this into our quilting as well as other art. 

I was happy with my first project attempt of this Luminous Painted Illusions technique.

My afternoon class was Whimsical Applique with Nancy Clark McNally.

Nancy and I found we both save fabric scraps for making quilts. 

After sewing scrap strips together and adding fusing on the back, 

we used the many Accuquilt dies she brought. 

We could cut anything for any projects. 

I cut these letters for a banner in the mudroom.

I think a decorative stitch in dark blue thread 

on the edges of the letters will show them off. 

The following day I again joined Esterita Austin for another class using her painting technique. 

A few of us were in the previous class and she said 

we were going to do something a bit different from the rest of the class. 

Taking a photo of a flower, we traced it to make a pattern.

I think my second attempt turned out very well. 

With 20 minutes left in class I whipped up this mum-like flower and was off to lunch. 

That afternoon Charlotte Angotti had us ripping fabrics and passing along pieces to create a fabric stash. Let me say we were a wild bunch of fabric rippers. (It gave me an idea for a guild meeting!)

She displayed a number of her quilts, showing us how light and dark values played the biggest part in their simple construction. She showed how some basic shapes cut with some simple templates can be used to create stunning quilts all based on placement using lights and darks.  

Quilt Week classes ended on Saturday with Kathleen Andrews 

showing us how to build cubes for an easy optical illusion. 

It definitely was easier than I imagined. 

A design wall is a must, cut triangles from 3 shades of a color and a background! 

Our HST blocks had to be precise or the cubes would not appear defined. 

The progress I made that morning was a start. (Square cube units are not sewn together.)

This was a busy week. I left refreshed and ready to start some projects-- right after I complete the quilt projects for 

the Mid-Century Modern Bee swap for August

and

with my post date August 30, 2016

and

with my post date September 27, 2016.

I will post more about the Quilt Show and some other quilting topics in the coming days. 

Please stop by again.