Showing posts with label Walking Foot. Show all posts

Sunday, June 7, 2026

Phagun

Welcome to my stop on the Sunflower Spice Blog Hop.

Phagun, 80" by 100"

When Jennifer Thomas of Curlicue Creations asked whether I would like to join the BlogHop, I did not say yes. I had to see the fabrics, first.

OK, YES.

These vibrant hues cover the entire spectrum of the rainbow. The design had to be simple so that the colors could truly shine.

Making Blocks

Ravishing Red

Design Wall

Adding Scrappy Borders

Ta Da - A Queen Size Quilt

Well, yes. I made a queen-size quilt, named Phagun. Phagun is made with two quilt blocks - the Shanvi block using warm colors and the Irish Chain block using cool colors. Both blocks finish at 10".

Borders - Inner Skinny & Outer Scrappy

A skinny inner border and an outer 4" finished scrappy border complete the quilt. The background is Egg Shell and the binding is Fondant.

Egg Shell

Fondant

Close-up

The batting is Tuscany Cotton/Wool Blend generously provided by Hobbs.

Thank you, Hobbs

A queen size quilt is the perfect excuse to splurge on a wide backing. This multicolored layered lava lamps fabric was just perfect.

Wide Backing - Color Matching

I quilted using my walking foot, my favorite squiggly stitching, following the 2" grid. I am the queen of keeping it simple :-p

Quilting in process

Now, pushing a queen size quilt sandwich through a domestic machine is a challenge (ask my neck and shoulders), as is modeling it. The arm span of a tall Paul falls way short of 80".

Solution - I attached a quilt sleeve and inserted an adjustable curtain rod. The still shots became easy and the walking quilt video (check my Instagram) a breeze :-)

Crushing on You!

It was a beautiful sunny Spring day on the banks of the Potomac and I decided to get in front of the camera :-)

Basking in the warmth

Daydreaming

Perfect Spring!

For lunch, because a hardworking (handsome too) model deserves compensation, we went to a restaurant called Wild Himalayan Yak. It is a Nepalese restaurant with some Indo-Chinese dishes. Paul was interested in trying the yak meat. But that is not the point of this story. The napkins are.

Picture from the Restaurant Website

Unlike any other restaurant, they have the most beautiful napkins made from woven authentic Nepali fabrics. You get me, right. When others are looking upward at the monument/castle, us quilters will be admiring the tiles.

Picture from the Restaurant Website

Me: These napkins are so beautiful.
Paul just nodded, amused.

Me: I could just swipe one.
Paul: Don't!!!
Me: Just one. No one will notice. They won't even miss it. Look it is already past its prime.
Paul: Such a bad girl!

Me (changing topic): How is the yak?

Paul: It tastes like bison. How are your momos?

Me: Awesome. Can we come here again?

Paul: Sure.

At this point, Paul excused himself to go to the restroom. He returned with a colorful napkin. My eyes were as large as the momos on my plate.

Me (shocked): Did you steal it for me?

Paul: No, silly. I asked the head waiter.

Me (still in disbelief): And he just handed you one?

Paul: I asked nicely, saying that my wife is interested in fabric and crafting. They change them every so often and this one is at the end of its useful life.

I was still stupefied.

Thank goodness for Paul. I am glad that he keeps me honest. But I am thrilled that he keeps me.

I came home and got to work.

Threadbare edges removed

Beautiful but will need some creative thinking

Later, I covered that hole with a strip of matching Green Solid fabric.

Stabilized with SF-101

Batting

Matching Zippers

I am thrilled with these two zippered pouches - made from a dinner napkin that would have most likely ended up in a landfill.

Happiness is a Quilt!

Paul: What is Phagun?
Me: Phagun is the twelfth and final month of the Hindu lunar calendar, corresponding roughly to February and March. It marks the transition from winter to spring and is widely celebrated as the month of Holi, the vibrant festival of colors.

And that is exactly what Phagun Quilt is - a vibrant festival of colors.

The Sunflower Spice blog hop runs from today through June 10th. Here's the list so you can visit all the blogs during the hop:

June 1: Curlicue Creations

June 2: Freemotion by the River

June 3: Lisa's Quilting Passion

June 5: Textile Time Travels

June 6: Lady Blue Quilt Studio

June 7: Sew Preeti Quilts - You are here

June 8: Quilted Delights

June 9: Sew Cute and Quirky

June 10: The Darling Dogwood

I will be sharing with all my favorite linky parties. See full list on the sidebar.

Friday, February 20, 2026

Forget Me Not

Say hello to Forget Me Not.

Forget Me Not

Forget me Not is a modern interpretation of an Irish Chain Quilt. Designed in EQ8 and made with Island Batik Fabrics, Forget Me Not was published in Quilters World Spring 2026 Issue.

The issue focuses on "Modern Quilts with Classic Roots" and I am thrilled to be a part of it.

Published

Modern Irish Chain

Made using the fabrics from the Original Aurora Collection (by Deb Tucker's Studio 180 Design), Forget Me Not finished at 76" by 100". The background is Glaze (Island Batik Neutral).

Forget Me Not uses one block, strip-pieced that creates a lovely secondary design when the blocks come together.

Basting

I am loving the gentle progression of blues and secondary designs in purple and green.

Fading Blues

The batting is Hobbs Cotton/Polyester Blend. I quilted using my Walking Foot, following the grid in my favorite squiggly stitch. Why do I use it all the time, you ask. Because it is so forgiving. When the seams are not perfectly matched the squiggle brings them together.

Crushing on You

Spring & Picnic Ready

A large quilt, Forget Me Not needed two people to model it.

Two Model Job

Here they are. They are my friend's kids and they were properly compensated for their efforts.

My quilt models

Love you both!

And one last look, with my favorite model. He is speaking! Seriously, this is a silent role. My quilts do the talking.

Thank you, Paul!

But wait, there is more. Some scraps left over from strip-piecing were too large to throw away. They were promptly made into a small baby quilt. I have named him Sky.

Sky, 33" by 36"

At 33" by 36", Sky will most likely go to Premie Baby Quilts donation for the Inova Hospital in Fairfax.

No Scrap Left Behind

Cute and bright giraffes on the back should fascinate some little guy!

Cute Backing

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In other news, I have completed my Green Blocks for February's Rainbow Scrap Challenge.

All scraps are Island Batik.

Sharing with Angela's Linky Party and all the others. See full list on the sidebar.

These are strange times. I can't believe I have been saying that since 2020 or even longer. Each other is all we have. I am grateful for and to this community. Lots of Love & Squishy Hugs.

Thursday, May 9, 2024

Island Batik May Challenge and Blog Hop

Whoever said "Happiness is to be found along the way, not at the end of the road" wasn't making this pattern.

But let's start at the beginning.

For Island Batik's May Challenge and Blog Hop, we were required to use our assigned Winter 2024 collection, transforming fabric into a visual ode to joy and festivity.

I received Fire and Ice. This is an original collection designed by Claudia Pfeil. It should be available in fabric stores now.

With my favorite pinks and oranges, this is a beautiful collection and I created about six paper-pieced designs in EQ8 that would be perfect for celebration/festive quilts.

As I struggled to pick one, I came across an email from my quilt guild, announcing an Ultraviolet Radial workshop with Audrey Esarey of Cotton and Bourbon. Of Quiltcon fame, I have admired her work and seen it in person in Austin (2020) and Raleigh (2024).

Easily seduced, I bought the pattern and signed up for the workshop. I downloaded the pattern and went to the Print Shop to get the templates printed on 24" by 36" paper to avoid taping the paper together. I promise I did everything to ensure accuracy.

And yet, it was a struggle.

The paper-pieced wedges were simple enough to make. My Oliso Iron was a huge help. But 22 pieces per arc made it stretchy and prone to distortion.

The trickiest part was the outermost concave piece. It was so skinny (1/2") at the two ends that instead of maintaining the curvature, it just straightened as I tried to align and stitch the two pieces.

Distortion at the Skinny Ends

Half inch width means that the two seams will completely eat the skinny edge so that the fabric tapers into nothingness. It has extraordinary visual appeal, but from the construction viewpoint, it is a nightmare.

Very Slightly Off

Prior to piecing the quarter circle block, I measured and noted that it was very slightly off, but there is no room for error. The circle would get cut off if I straightened it.

Unstitched

Trimmed and Marked seam line

Corrected!

I had to redo almost every block. It was an agonizing two weeks. The skill level associated with this pattern is "Confident Beginner".

Either I am a complete novice, or this pattern is for advanced/experienced quilters.

First Circle - Will it fit?

Once all blocks were made and four circles completed, it was time to decide the layout.

Black Center

Yellow Center

I decided to go with the bright center. The original pattern is 60" square. I reduced the border widths so that I could use the Hobbs Tuscany Cotton Wool Blend Batting in Throw Size.

Throw Size 60" by 60"

I used 14 of the 20 fabrics in the Fire and Ice collection.

I used two background fabrics - Solid Black and Bumblebee (Opulent Oranges).

I used Aurifil 50wt thread for piecing. I used 80/12 Microtex Needle by Schmetz.

I marked the entire quilt top with a 2" grid and used my trusted walking foot and squiggly stitch.

The backing is Valentino (Precious Pinks).

Valentino Backing, Black Binding

I used Aurifil 40wt thread and 90/14 Microtex Schmetz Needle for quilting.

The Binding is Solid Black.

Wagon by Ikea, 56" square

Me: What do you think?

Paul: Impressive!

Me: What would you name it?

Paul: Hmmm...

Me: I was thinking Wheelin' and Dealin'. It sure took a lot of coaxing and fudging.

Paul: Wagon from Ikea?

Me: Some Assembly Required?

Then we both had a hearty laugh.

I am beyond thrilled that this quilt is complete. PHEW!!!

Wagon by Ikea finished at 56" square.

Quilting Detail

Almost Matched!

Transparency Effect :-)

With the transparency effect, it gives the impression of a Giant Ferris Wheel, reminiscent of a County Fair. My fellow ambassador Brenda (also posting today) said that it reminded her of Halloween Hayrides.

Hayrides and Ferris Wheels - that sounds like a celebration!

For a chance to win a scrap pack of Island Batik fabrics, please leave a comment on this post, letting me know your favorite memory of a county/state fair or a hayride.

~~I will pick two winners on May 17, 2024. If you show up as Anonymous/No-Reply, please include your email so that I can reach you.~~

Giveaway Update - The lucky winners are Pamela (#33) and Diptee (#49). Emails have been sent.

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In other news, all Island Batik Ambassadors were invited to become partners with the Missouri Star Quilt Company. And I’m so excited to tell you that I’ve been accepted!

This means that when YOU order over $50 from Missouri Star Quilt and you use my Affiliate link: https://glnk.io/mzmmj/sewpreetiquilts you will get 20% off your order and I will receive a small commission.

Enjoy receiving 20% off all of your orders! You can use my link over and over and over!!! It’s permanently on the sidebar of my blog so you won’t need to always search for it!

Happy Shopping!

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The BlogHop Continues. Make sure to visit the Island Batik Blog for exciting prizes every week.

Below is the complete list of Ambassadors, the collections they’ll feature in their projects, and their scheduled post dates: