Pretties!

Here is my newest Hop To It block. All clean and pressed. Remember a few posts back I mentioned using foam board to get the pattern symmetrical? Mandy has taken it one step further and has made a sand paper board on the other side. A sand paper board is a great tool to use when tracing around templates while it is on your fabric. The sand paper keeps the fabric from slipping around. Check out Mandy's tutorial here. Thanks for sharing Mandy.
Another "pretty." A random act of kindness from Stephanie. Some fun Denyse Schmidt fabric and some homemade lemon zest soap. Thanks Stephanie, so much!
Just left Stephanie's blog and she has a sneak peek of her first quilt she designed. Can't wait to see it. I know it will be great because she does such a good job designing bags. She has a new one here.

With Passion,

Carrie P.

Excitement!

There is a lot of excitement at Karen Gray's shop where I teach classes. Her shop is featured in the new Quilt Sampler magazine. I got my copy when I went to teach this morning. I had her autograph the page with her photo. If you would like a chance to win an autographed issue you can go the Free Spirit blog to enter. They are giving 5 copies away. When you go to the blog take a close look at the photos. The last photo shows my towels and the quilt on the back of the left chair. Pretty neat!
Here are some towels that Paula has finished. The photo with the sewing machine has some stripe trim on the outer edges but it got cut off. The other ladies are still working on theirs and have promised to show them as soon as they are done.
With Passion,

Carrie P.

Wash Day!

Yep! wash day for my newest Hop To It block. This one was symetrical so I used some Roxanne glue to hold into place while I appliqued it which I want to wash out before I put the blocks together.
My facilitator, Kathleen, showed the group how to get a nice symmetrical shape. Take a piece of foam board and lay the pattern on top of it. I prepared my pieces using freezer paper underneath. I pinned all the pieces down onto the pattern with the foam board underneath except for the stem and the top part of the flower. Then I used Roxanne glue baste it and put little dots where the stem would lay. Then I added the stem and the flower top and let it dry real well before I unpinned it. Next, I glued all the pieces down to the background fabric and appliquéd away. Repeat 3 more times.

If you are new to applique or not, you should check out Teresa's tutorials for some applique techniques she uses. I learned something new and enjoyed seeing the process she uses. There are 3 posts so be sure to read from the beginning.

With Passion,

Carrie P.

Class Photos

I taught a hand applique class this past Saturday at the Dragonfly Quilt Shop. The class is working on a quilt from Piece O' Cake Designs. The book is called The New Applique Sampler. The blocks shown here are what they worked on during the past month.

Here are blocks made by Debra...

and Flo...
and Patty, who is not quite finished.
I have another student but she was not able to make it to class. Well done ladies.

With Passion,
Carrie P.

Easter Tidings!

Happy Easter to you all. I finished the top of Easter Tidings wall hanging. Remember seeing the bow here? Here is the whole thing. I am planning to hand quilt it. So maybe next Easter it will be ready to hang. The flowers are wool applique and the rest is cotton fabric. I am not sure if you can get this pattern anymore but it is by Verna Mosque for The Vintage Spool.

Rejoice for the Lord Jesus lives! Blessings to you this Easter!

With Passion,

Carrie P.

Kitchen Towels

Remember the kitchen tea towels I made a while back? You can see them here. I have been teaching classes on Wednesdays and one of the students finished two of her towels and brought them back to show the group.
I really like how Paula added the trim all the way around her towels.
Paula said the buttons were from her mom's sewing box. Don't they make a great addition to the towel? Great job Paula. Thanks for bringing them back so we could see your work.

With Passion,

Carrie P.

In Full Bloom

Spring has sprung! This is my newest class sample. The fabric line is called Deliah by Tanya Whelan for Free Spirit. I just fell in love with the paisley like background fabric. So I decided to use the whole line to make the quilt. I even made a bias stripe binding for the first time.

The pattern is just the center of a big quilt from the book called Bloom Creek by Vicki Bellino. There are lots of great patterns in this book I plan to make.

With Passion,

Carrie P.

Fabulous Win!

Bonnie, at Calamity Jane's Cottage, had a spring giveaway in March and I won. The prize was this fabulous bag. I just love the rose fabrics. And check out the fabric flower she added to the bag. So pretty. After I sent Bonnie my address she said she was going to add something extra to the giveaway. A surprise which all came in the mail a couple days ago. And what a neat surprise it is! Bonnie said it was something to hang on your chair when you attend retreats or classes. She machine embroidered the saying to the front which I love. And it is in pink! Then you open it up and inside is a zippered pouch for storing things for class. The black polka dot tube in the center can be used as a pin cushion. The white part with the machine embroidered pins (too cute)

is made from flannel, I think. This would be great for putting fabric block pieces on it to keep from losing them. The most special part is that is has my name on it. When I opened it up and saw that I just got tickled. This photo will now be my blogger "profile" photo. Inside the zippered pouch were these fun scissors fat quarters , a note pad, and some new applique needles.

Yes, it is a fabulous win! I feel so special that Bonnie took the time to make the extra surprise. Thank you so much Bonnie!

When you have a minute go check out her blog. She has a great tutorial for a tooth fairy pillow. She also has web site store where she has all kinds of vintage things for sale.

With Passion,

Carrie P.

Primitive Quilts and Projects Magazine

I just bought this magazine from the Fat Quarter shop. It is the best $10.00 I have spent. I love everything in this magazine and I want to do everything in it. It has quilts, punchneedle, rug hooking and even a pattern for a cute little teddy bear. If you love Primitive projects you will really like this magazine too. I am definitely going to subscribe to this magazine. You can read more about the designers and how to subscibe yourself at http://www.primitivequiltsandprojects.com/

With Passion,

Carrie P.

ps. this is just my personal opinion!

100 blocks

I am sure many of you participated in the blog tour that Quiltmaker Magazine had last year. There was also a contest where you had to name the designer of certain blocks. I did both and completely forgot about the contests because it has been a year. Last month I got an email saying I had won a block which finally arrived. I won the magazine too which I had bought last year and a block made by Barbara Groves and Mary Jacobson of Meandmysisterdesigns.com. The block is done so well and all the points match up. Now I guess I will put it on my design wall and think about how I should use it. Any suggestions?

Volume 3 of 100 blocks is going to be on sale around May 10. The next tour will be May 2-6.

With Passion,

Carrie P.

Applique Group Show and Tell

Here is the show and tell I promised you. Don't you just love the sashing that Paula added to her blocks in the above photo? It looks vintage to me. Check out #3 block from the group. Here is a Bunny Hill BOM that was made by Carol and Lois Jean for Linda who is the proud owner of the quilt. The applique was done in wool. Too cute! Paula made this lovely quilt. Mary Ann had these blocks that her grandmother made. She was able to find some plain blue fabric for the sashing that matched the blocks perfectly. She put the quilt together and hand quilted it too. So pretty. Paula has been busy because she also made this wool project. She added beads to the leaves which is a very nice touch. Virginia has finished these two lovely blocks. Carol is working on an heirloom quilt for her new grandbaby. Look at the detail of these blocks. Hope the show and tell was worth the wait.

With Passion,

Carrie P.

Sweet Treat Bags

Remember this little bag? I made it to teach a class which I did. I had four students. Three of the students are in my first Wednesday applique group. They brought their finished projects to show and tell. I was so proud to see how they each finished their little embroidery. This one was made by Linda. I love the touch of rick rack sewn on with French knots. Here is Paula's decorated with buttons and lace. I wish I had gotten a better picture of the lace because it is so cute. And Kathleen made hers into a little pincushion with rick rack trim. So sweet. Sorry about the blurry picture. And check this out. Karen Gray Design, the shop where I teach, has her own barn block. Too cool. Karen's shop is also going to be featured in the May Quilt Sampler magazine. You can see the quilt she designed for the magazine on her blog.

I will have more show and tell to share which you have to see. I probably won't do another post until the weekend sometime. I will be really busy for the next few days. But be sure to check back. You won't be disappointed with the show and tell.

With Passion,

Carrie P.

Luscious Spring Scarf

Rumi of Lucky Frog blog was having a giveaway for this luscious scarf.

Anyone who made a donation to the Red Cross to help the country of Japan was entered in the drawing. As you can see I was the winner.

The scarf is made from some very soft 100% wool which came all the way from Norway. Look at the lovely knitted design. I have admired Rumi's knitting projects on her blog. I am proud to now own one of her creations.

Thank you so very much Rumi.

With Passion,

Carrie P.

Folk Art Tribute So Far

Since I finished the lamb I thought I would put the blocks together and see how it looks. Pretty good, I think. There is one more long block like the pineapple that has yet to be revealed. Can't wait to see what Dawn has for us next.

With Passion,

Carrie P.

Sheep!

Well, as you can see I finished the little lamb from Linen Closet Quilts. I think she turned out pretty cute. I am all caught up!

And speaking of sheep, as you can see there is the cover of a book I won from Pat Sloan. She was having a giveaway and I was one of the winners. I probably won't ever get to Ireland so I will just read about Pat's trip which looked like a lot of fun. Some really great quilt projects in the book too. Thanks so much Pat.

With Passion,

Carrie P.

Remember this?

It went to this. Another block finished from Linen Closet Quilts. I am now working on a very cute lamb that goes with this block.

With Passion,

Carrie P.