Tag Archives | architextures

cf Hearts quilt pattern.

By carolyn friedlander on August 2, 2019 in fabric, Featured on Home, my patterns | Comments: 9

My new cf Hearts pattern is finally here!

I love simple shapes, and the heart is lovely one to take on.

While thinking about projects to make to show off my new (old) fabrics, I kept coming back to the idea of using this simple shape. There are many things I love about this fabric collection, but one of the biggest things is how it feels like I’m sewing with old friends. There’s a comfort and excitement with each piece, and I loved the idea of capturing the pieces with an endearing symbol.

On the creative side, I liked how this project can showcase many colors and fabrics. You can play with color and texture in many ways. (I already have more hearts projects planned!)

On the technical side, the appliqué shapes are really fun to sew. You have gentle outside curves, a single point and an outside corner that make it anything but boring to work on. This shape is beginner-friendly, but the creative possibilities can make it exciting no matter who wants to make it.

The downloadable PDF version is now available here, and the printed version will be hitting shops in a few weeks. (If your local shop is interested in purchasing copies, just let me know, and I’ll get them connected to those details.)

There are 3 project sizes included in the pattern, it’s charm-pack friendly (which is what this version is made from) and I have been dreaming up so many ways to work out this project. I think that 1 heart would make a great label on the back of a quilt, or I’ve been thinking about how fun it would be to make a signature quilt made from Hearts…or I’ve even thought about putting some hearts onto a tote bag…OH, and bigger projects with more hearts? I’ve been thinking about that too.

Pattern: Hearts by me

Fabric(s): Collection CF (coming in November 2019) for appliqué, border and binding, Kona Seafoam for the background

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Architextures Sunrise.

By carolyn friedlander on April 30, 2019 in fabric, Featured on Home, my patterns | Comments: 2

My Architextures Sunrise quilt comes with a bit of an admission. I made it back in 2012 when Architextures first came out. It was displayed in the Architextures booth at Quilt Market that fall, but I never got around to taking pictures of it afterwards–classic. When I was planning the PDF conversion for the design, I knew I wanted to unearth this quilt and give it some time to shine.

I can still remember how much I enjoyed making it. It was one of the first times sewing with my own fabric, and that experience is hard to forget. Because the design works well with 2-1/2″ strips, I used strip sets from my Architextures collection as well as the coordinating solids. This made it super easy to get to the fun stuff, which is figuring out your fabric pairings and placements and sewing them together. I love a project where you can explore different color and print combinations as you go, and this project is perfect for that.

The frames are Kona Cactus, one of my favorites at the time. It’s so vibrant. This was before there was Pickle, Wasabi, Acid lime or any of the other greens that I’d grow to love as well. Is it just me, or do you remember your early favorite solids? (For the record – Cactus, Coral and Tangerine were some of those for me.)

There’s not too much to get wrong about this block, which makes it pretty carefree and easy. In some of my other Sunrise projects, I worked the fabrics and colors symmetrically within the blocks. In this sample I didn’t do that, but instead took the placement in a different direction. I like this effect as well.

Once you get them all framed out and sewn together with the sashing and border, it’s a cohesive (and cheerful) look.

fabrics: architextures and the coordinating Kona solids

pattern: Sunrise

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Architextures Wide

By carolyn friedlander on September 21, 2018 in fabric, Featured on Home | Comments: 7

Guess what? I have some new 108″-wide fabrics–Architextures Wide–coming out. In fact, Architextures Wide starts shipping to shops this month–yay!

Architextures Wide features the same text print from Architextures, which is transformed in the fabric width (now 108″ vs 44″) as well as in the scale of the design too. With this type of fabric mostly being used for quilt backs (although certainly not limited to only that), I thought it would be fun to blow it up a bit. Here’s a side by side with the original print on top and the new wideback below.

It’s not that I don’t love a scrappy quilt back–I totally do–but I also love using 108″-wide fabrics to back my quilts. It makes things super easy when you’re eager to finish and also when you want something less fussy for the back.

There are 5 different options in this new set–all of which are super useful and appropriate for a wide range of things. I’m excited about all of them, and many of these guys are making their way into my newest projects–especially the new blue option.

There we have it. I hope you like using these! Architextures Wide is shipping to stores now, so you should be seeing them popping up soon.

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cf Mini QAL: Conclusion. (+ giveaway)

By carolyn friedlander on September 13, 2018 in Featured on Home, my patterns, Quilt Along | Comments: 14

cf Mini QAL: Conclusion. (+ giveaway)

We’ve made it! It’s been a full (and fun) 8 weeks of mini quilt making. How do you feel now that we’re to the end?

As for me, I’m pretty stoked about making quilts, and I hope that’s the case for you too. Like I said in the beginning, making minis is always a great way to explore ideas and churn up some creativity. I hope the challenges each week helped you feel more confident and encouraged to try something new and/or see things in a slightly new way.

The challenge this week proved that point to be true for me. I went Wild with my mix of prints, colors and types of fabrics, and in the end I was having a hard time making myself stop.

It all started with a charm pack that I liked.

To which I added other things that I liked.

And then I got to sewing.

This first batch of Babson blocks is wild both in terms of color and print, and I just loved it. It made me excited to keep going.

Something I love about these blocks is how I was able to incorporate fabrics that I’ve accumulated both recently and not super recently in my travels. Do you get a sense of satisfaction when you’re finally able to work in something you’ve been holding on to? I definitely do.

I especially love the edge of grey that resulted in some of the last blocks I sewed (below, right), and I’d love to explore this idea more.

My favorite thing about a project is when it encourages you to keep going. This one does that for me, and so I’m really tempted to keep making blocks and sew up something larger–maybe a throw.

Doing a little bit of math, there are 224 blocks in the throw size of my Babson pattern. I have 56 this week, plus the 25 from last week that I think would be fun to add to this group. This leaves 143 to go, which breaks down to about 12/week for 12 weeks.

I don’t know if I’ll totally hold myself to this number, but it is helpful to calculate how it could shake out. I’m never good about finishing things if I don’t give myself a deadline.

Fabrics from this week’s wild fest included London Calling 8, Nani Iro, Arroyo by Erin Dollar, Woodland Clearing by Liesl Gibson, UPPERCASE by Janine Vangool, Suzuko Koseki, as well as Friedlander, Friedlander Lawn, Architextures, Gleaned and Polk from me.

Thanks for following along! As promised last week, I’d like to do a celebratory giveaway this week. Up for grabs is a charm pack of Polk, plus a stack of more 5″ squares of fabrics that were used in the original Babson and a pair of my favorite Kai snips. And if you don’t already have a copy of the Babson pattern, I’ll throw that in too!

To enter, leave a comment on this post telling me something about your cf Mini QAL experience. I’ll randomly select a winner Tuesday September 18 at 11am EDT.

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cf Mini QAL #7: Making Friends, Mixing Genres.

By carolyn friedlander on August 30, 2018 in Featured on Home, my patterns, Quilt Along | Comments: 5

cf Mini QAL #7: Making Friends, Mixing Genres.

The fussy-cut/directional challenge from last week made me want to play with directional fabrics and a lot of stripes.

Originally, I’d planned a toned-down palette with plenty of paleness but also a punch of acid lime. In the end, I went even softer than that and didn’t use any acid lime. The punchier bits are from deeper browns and greys.

The directional theme I was going for was to have vertical stripes in most of the sets.

When you’re going fussy, you draw the line on how fussy you want to me. For me, I wasn’t necessarily drawn to complete perfection in all ways, but like in the block above, I wanted the roof stripes to be perfectly vertical and relative to each other. It was a complete surprise and accident when they almost line up at the seam on the left. Yay for accidents!

I like this group of four and went ahead and sewed them together. I’m still tossing around the idea of sewing all of my minis into one bigger quilt, but there’s something about these guys that I might end up leaving them on their own. They’re just so cute together.

This next challenge is another one that I hope you’ll have a lot of fun with. It’s all about making friends and mixing genres. What does that mean?

There are many different genres and styles of fabric out there. We have solids, basics, batiks, various reproductions, modern, contemporary, etc, as well as loads of designer prints that have their own look as well. Sticking to one category or designer can make things easy as they can easily work together without too much thinking. But sometimes it’s fun to mix it up, and that’s what the challenge this week is all about!

Like all of the previous challenges, this too can mean a lot of things, but to get you started I’ll show you in an example of my own, and walk you through a mixed-genre fabric pull.

Like any fabric pull, it’s good to start with something that speaks to you. Anna Graham’s latest collection, Forage, for Robert Kaufman is such a fun one and where I wanted to start.

I grabbed one of the floral prints from the collection and added a couple of pieces from my scrap bin–a bright tangerine (from Botanics) and a grey (from Architextures). While these colors do coordinate nicely with colors already in the print, they also pack a little more punch and take it in a slightly new direction. This is a good start and an easy way to stretch what’s already there.

To do something different, you don’t necessarily need to find the most different thing for the sake of being different. Instead you can think of colors that aren’t already used and can bring a new spirit to it.

Acid lime! It didn’t make it in last week, but it might be great in this next group. I’ve also added a pink gingham that plays well too.

Since I like where that’s going, the next step is to explore building it out a bit more. I’ve added more yellows, another grey and the tangerine from earlier.

What’s important–to me at least–is laying them out and grouping them in ways as I pull. This makes it so easy to see how everything is shaping up and how it might work together.

If you feel like you’ve gone too far–or want to zoom in on something nice you’re seeing, you can always pull back. I could decide to take the tangerine bits out and focus more on the yellows and wasabis.

Or, you can clear it away and start again with another idea–for the sake of another push.

I just LOVE these guys together. The print mix is really enticing and there’s something good about the coloring too.

As before, you can start figuring out how to build the idea out more–not forgetting about things you may have already used.

And a little more…

And already I have a lot of options! I may have too many, which means I definitely need to start sewing before I feel too overwhelmed and can’t make a decision. This is such an important step–get sewing!

Tips:

+ What makes good friends? Connect your own dots between genres through similar colors, values or whatever make sense to you.

+ Scrap-pile sewing can be an excellent way to source some surprise combinations. Many of my favorite pairings have been the result of accidental findings. For a challenge like this, I love hitting my scrap bin for ideas.

+ Take pictures along the way. You can often work in good ideas from early in the pull later in your project–or into another project. It’s good to have these ideas on hand.

+ Have fun with the pull, but don’t let it stop you from sewing! Give yourself a time limit and get going.

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cf Mini QAL #5: Gradation.

By carolyn friedlander on August 16, 2018 in Featured on Home, my patterns, Quilt Along | Comments: 3

cf Mini QAL #5: Gradation.

How was last week?

Here’s what I made.

This week, my focus was on Davie. With last week’s challenge being about all colors, I tried not to over think my fabric and color choices, which is easy to do when anything is an option. Instead I went with my gut as I started looking through fabric. I pulled several different things, and laid them out loosely focusing on groupings of 4 since the Davie blocks require that many fabrics for each of the block sections.

Even though my goal was to make 4 blocks, I didn’t pick all 4 groupings at the beginning–although you totally could. Instead, I made the first block with the first 4 fabrics that I liked, which was the bright yellow house with a brown roof in the middle. My subsequent block selections grew from there based on how I was seeing each block shape up.

Also, I’ve been wanting to play a bit with mixing up the background sections in this block, and so I inserted a little accent of something here and there in pretty much all of the blocks. I think it’s kind of fun!

This was a really fun week, and I’m actually looking to build from it in moving forward with the next challenge.

Our next challenge focuses on Gradation. Gradations can be lots of fun to put together and incredibly impactful. Here are some examples to consider.

The Aerial Grove project from my book is a good one for employing a gradation. I love projects with little bits of a lot of different things, and this one captures that idea and uses gradation to organize those colors for maximum impact. Above is the version in the book, and below is a version using only Kona solids.

I’ve made so many versions of this project mostly because I love picking out the colors and figuring out how to arrange them.

Ebb is similar in that it also is a great way to show many different colors and how they can transition in fun ways.

This recent version of Sessoms also creates a gradation from all of the fabrics in Gleaned.

And here’s a new one that you haven’t seen yet. How about this Lusk mini that I also made in Gleaned?

I had a mini-charm pack of Gleaned that I decided to turn it into a mini. I paired the fabrics in the collection with Olive Essex Yarn Dyed. To make the gradation, I simply worked the blocks in order from the mini-charm pack. That’s a tip–if you have trouble arranging your fabrics, try working from a precut, because they’re usually arranged in a pleasing gradation of some sort.

Creating a gradation doesn’t necessarily mean you have to create a rainbow from red to purple. You can also think of a gradation as a way to tell a story, from light to dark, from blue to yellow–from anything you want! Here’s one more example that I crowdsourced from @bastingbeauty. It’s just too pretty not to share. I love the creativity of not only the design but of also the fabric use and way it transitions! It also gives you a bit of a transparency effect too.

This week, have fun figuring out a gradation–in whatever way you’d like!

Tips:

+ Not good with creating a gradation? Buy a precut and use it in order. OR, stalk a precut that you find attractive and take notes on which colors are being used and which order they are being used in. You can do it.

+ Gradations do not have to be a full spectrum and in rainbow order. If the standard isn’t speaking to you, come up with your own color story and define your own limits.

+ On a technical note, I’m sure you’ve noticed that these little seams can be get a little bulky. This is why I usually try pressing them flat in order to even out the bulk as much as possible. While first working on Davie, I realized that using a seam roller to open out the seam first, made it much easier to iron open and achieve a good press. I’m glad to see some of you noticing this handy trick too!

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cf Mini QAL #4: Many Colors.

By carolyn friedlander on August 9, 2018 in Featured on Home, my patterns, Quilt Along | Comments: 4

cf Mini QAL #4: Many Colors.

Before we get on with the new challenge, here’s an update on where I finished things from last week.

A good portion of these blocks were leftovers from an abandoned sample when developing the pattern (Lusk). I stumbled upon them recently and realized the Quilt Along would be the perfect excuse to finish them up. Don’t you love getting back to something that was previously lost in limbo? So satisfying.

I had a sketch with an idea of where to go, but I ended up sewing together what I had and adding in a few new ones. I liked the serendipity of it, and I definitely enjoy the surprises in what’s possible to accent with this design. How’d the challenge work out for you?

Maybe you’re starting to notice that there’s a bit of a progression with these challenges. We’ve gone from 1 color to 2 colors to using an accent. I know that picking out fabrics and planning projects can be scary, and so I’ve wanted this Quilt Along to allow you to focus on one thing at a time in order to grow some confidence with each of the projects.

This week the challenge is Many Colors, which–like the previous challenges–can be taken in many ways. Mainly, I want you to try breaking a little further outside of your box and grab a few things that you may not have thought to put together. In a challenge like this, all the things we’ve been practicing so far can come in to play. Where can you use like colors to create harmony? How can the value of your choices define (or soften!) your shapes? What are areas/shapes/colors that you’d like to highlight or accent? These are all great things to think about when working on this week’s challenge.

As an example to get you started, I have a previously-unshared project to unearth. This was the first version of Lusk (version A) that I ever made. It uses a mixture of gleaned, the newest architextures coordinates and Kona cotton solids–in many different colors.

Like many of my projects, I started with a pairing that I was most excited about. After sewing those blocks up, I moved on to another set that I liked and continued the process of grabbing fabrics, sewing them into blocks and throwing them up on the design wall. I love this way of working, and it definitely gets more fun, exciting and comfortable with practice.

What do you think? Are you ready to take on many colors? I can’t wait to see what you come up with!

#cfminiQAL #letsmakemanyminis

Tips:

+ Variety is the spice of life! When using lots of things, pay close attention to contrast within each block and overall. I think that it’s fine for some areas to be fuzzy and/or more pronounced. Just make sure to balance it to your own liking.

+ Go with your gut and start grabbing fabrics that are speaking to you. As you grab, lay them out in a way that you can see all of them as you go. Start moving them around and thinking about pairs, groupings and/or general locations of colors that are appealing to you. The trick is that you don’t need to have the whole thing planned out at the onset. You just need a starting point and some options. You can reflect on your choices and how it’s shaping up as you go.

+ Don’t force yourself to use colors you don’t like. I never see a point in that–go with what you’re in to! I think that color growth can naturally stem from comfort and practice.

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cf Mini QAL #1: Monochromatic.

By carolyn friedlander on July 19, 2018 in Featured on Home, my patterns, Quilt Along | Comments: 6

cf Mini QAL #1: Monochromatic.

Welcome to the Quilt Along and to Week #1! I’m so glad that you’re tuning in.

I’ve deliberately set this project up so that you can customize it to your own situation, interests and/or goals. My main goal is to encourage you along with creative ideas and challenges that you can use in your compositions each week.

Compositions are the perfect way to think about your work each week. Mini quilts are just little compositions of ideas, and for that reason they’re perfect for exploring your own creativity. Taking on something small is much more manageable and less stressful, freeing you up to have fun and to take risks. That’s a big reason why I love them so much. They don’t take too much time, effort or supplies, but the results can be freeing and inspiring.

Each week we’ll have a theme, and the theme this week is a great place to start–monochromatic or using just one color. The colors and patterns in fabric are maybe the biggest reasons we’re sucked into sewing–at least for me, but I also know that picking out what to use and how to use it can be overwhelming. By focusing on just one, we’re removing a little bit of that overwhelm.

Using just one color is definitely not boring! There are many options to consider. How dark or light is it? What are the different shades? How about the texture?

While pulling fabrics for my own project, I started to notice a growing pile of blue. Without even trying, I had a heap of blue that I knew was the way I wanted to go for this first week. In the picture above, you’ll notice that while gathering fabrics, I’m starting to organize them by color and value. It’s definitely a habit, but it’s also a helpful way for me to assess what I have going on. And coincidentally (/usually this happens), I’m discovering relationships between the fabrics that I want to explore. Like this one.

These fabrics (from Euclid and Friedlander Lawn) ended up together, and I became obsessed. They are close in that they are both darkish, but there’s an interesting difference not only in texture but also in shade that I really like. So I sewed up a few blocks to get started.

This week I’m working it out using Version A of my Lusk pattern. But with this week and all weeks to follow feel free to work from any of my recent patterns (Lusk, Davie and Babson). Each of them has a mini or wall-sized option that will be perfect for getting you started.

My coloring page and templates are printed out, and my design wall is up with my blocks being added as I make them. I always love seeing where something is going and reacting to it as I go. Depending on your own style and way of working you may want more or less specifics spelled out from the onset.

Whatever your way of working might be, grab a color–any color–and get playing with it. I can’t wait to see what you do! Share your projects on Instagram using #cfminiQAL so I can see what you’re up to.

Bonus sidenote: Make sure to subscribe to my newsletter, as I’ll not only be recapping the cf Mini QAL there weekly, but I’ll also sometimes include bonus visuals and sources of inspiration. Sign up using the subscription box in the top right corner of the site.

Tips:

+ Pick a favorite color OR a color that you have a lot of (often the same thing…) and go for it! No need to get hung up on this first decision.

+ Pay attention to value contrast (how light/dark it is next to its neighbors) and the shade. Even within one color, you have TONS to play with.

+ Use the design wall (or your floor)! Try not to worry too much about the different variables at play. Dive in to your first few blocks with a few of the fabrics in your stack, and then throw them up on the design wall. What do you think? Pick your next pair based on what you learned/love/don’t love/are excited about after seeing what you just made.

+ And just because you’re working on something small each week, don’t underestimate where this can take you in 8 weeks. Not to skip to the end–but rather to give you something to think about from the onset–you might decide to turn your projects each week into finished mini quilts that can be a beautiful gallery all together on a wall, OR you could also think of sewing the challenges each week together at the end into a sampler showcasing all of the different ideas that we’re about to explore together. I say this not to say you need to do one or the other, but instead to offer up an idea at the onset that I have been considering myself. There’s no need to decide right now, but if a bug in your ear is helpful, there it is.

+ New to paper piecing? You can check out my paper piecing projects on Creative Bug. There I’ll walk you right through the process.

#cfminiQAL

#letsmakemanyminis

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Polk Pouches and Bags.

By carolyn friedlander on June 26, 2018 in fabric, Featured on Home, patterns, sewing, weekend projects | Comments: 3

Bag making can be really fun and very practical. Here are some Polk pouches and bags that I made using the new fabric.

Noodlehead makes some of my favorite bag and pouch patterns, and I’ve made several of them out of Polk.

First up are some pencil pouches, which are from a free tutorial of hers. These guys are great and not just for pencils. I’ve used mine for toiletries, hand sewing and several other things.

What’s fun is that you can come up with different fabric combinations for the outside panels.

Pattern: Pencil Pouch Tutorial by Noodlehead

Fabric(s): Polk, Architextures and Essex Yarn Dyed in Aqua

Next up are some Petal Pouches (pattern by Noodlehead).

There are 2 sizes included in the pattern–small and large. I’ve made both. I use the smaller size to hold ear buds, chargers and other travel essentials. The bigger one holds more, and I’ve even used mine as a clutch when attending an event.

It’s such an attractive shape, and if you’re worried about sewing curves–don’t be! This one is pretty gentle.

Pattern: Petal Pouch by Noodlehead

Fabric(s): Polk, Gleaned and Essex Classic Wovens

I finally made a Traverse bag (pattern also by Noodlehead).

I love this bag so much, and it’s been on my to-sew list forever. Since making it (like immediately upon making it) I’ve been carrying it around daily, and it’s been perfect. The pattern includes 2 size options, and this is the smallest size.

I love the small size because it means I’m not overloading myself and carrying more than what I need. I find that this size holds all of the essentials.

Also handy, I used one of Anna’s hardware kits. It included the zippers, d-rings, slider, cording and little leather accents. I love that she has these available in her shop.

Pattern: Traverse Bag by Noodlehead

Fabric(s): Polk and Essex Classic Wovens, hardware kit from Noodlehead

It’s worth mentioning that I also recently updated my wallet situation. I’m now using Noodlehead’s minimalist wallet (the smaller size), and it works perfectly with the Traverse. If you’ve ever wanted to make a wallet, this one is a fun and smart sew. I love how easily it comes together.

Pattern: Minimalist Wallet by Noodlehead

Fabric(s): Polk and Liberty

Last up is not from Noodlehead, but instead from Grainline. It’s the Dopp kit from the Portside Travel Set. Someone made me one of these, and I use it ALL the time. It’s such a perfect size for many things, but I’m often using it to tote around sewing supplies like my rotary cutter, scissors and other stuff.

Plus, the flat, zippered pocket on the front (there’s a flap hiding the zipper) is perfect for holding your seam gauge and other flat stuff.

Pattern: Dopp kit from the Portside Travel Set by Grainline

Fabric(s): Polk, Architextures and Essex Classic Wovens

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WainwrightAL #2: Tool Updates and Travel.

By carolyn friedlander on February 22, 2018 in fabric, Featured on Home, my patterns, tools | Comments: 1

WainwrightAL #2: Tool Updates and Travel.

We’re moving along with week two! I’m seeing some great starts from many of you on instagram, and I’m moving along (quite literally) at QuiltCon in Pasadena. Since this is a traveling week for me and because handwork is super portable, I thought it’d be fun to put a slight travel twist on things. In addition to going over some of my favorite appliqué supplies, I’ll be making note of some of my favorite travel-friendly tips as well!

It’s been a little while since I’ve updated my appliqué tools-of-the-trade post, and really, not much has changed. Those are all still my favorite things, but I do have some updates to add in to the mix.

First, clover clips! With many of my appliqué designs being folded and cut multiple layers at a time, these little clips are super handy for holding everything together. There’s even a new set with a thinner profile, which is just perfect.

I also have an update with the thread conditioner. I’ve always liked it, but I’ve recently decided that it makes a bigger difference than I was maybe willing to admit. Full disclosure, I’d mostly gotten lazy and wasn’t using it as much in recent years. I always would have it with me, and I’d use it occasionally, but I’d generally just fallen out of the habit of using it. It’s an extra step–not a hard step, at all–but definitely a step that is easy to skip when you’re wanting to cruise through a project. When I was making my first Wainwright, I was having issues and decided to give it a try. Immediately I noticed a huge difference. It’s not that I didn’t notice a difference before, but I think that because I basically made Wainwright in a straight-shot marathon, it was much more noticeable how much of a difference it made. It makes it glide through the fabric much more easily. Without it, the thread feels like it’s dragging, not in a super obvious way, but definitely in an obvious way if you’re really in tune to the process.

Another big update is thread! Since my last appliqué supply post, some magical thread things have happened. Aurifil released their 80wt cotton thread, and it is my FAVORITE thread to use for hand appliqué. I still use their 50wt cotton to baste, but 80wt is the only thing I use for the appliqué itself.

And, I’m delighted to have my own appliqué thread set which I put together to cover pretty much all of the major colors you’ll need–or that was my goal anyway. (And I have some in the shop now too.)

One more new discovery that isn’t pictured is my new Daylight Slimline light. I’ll have to take some good pics once I get my handwork set-up back in order. I started seeing these lights at QuiltCon last year, and I was very intrigued. Unlike most of the sewing lights, they look really sleek. Plus they offer a wide bar of light that you can adjust in all kinds of ways. Eventually, I picked one up, and it sat in the box while I was making my first Wainwright. About halfway in, I realized that I wasn’t seeing things well, and so I opened the box and was immediately kicking myself for not having done so sooner. It is a game changer. It perfectly lit up my project and was easy to orient so that there were no shadows on my work–which was the issue I’d been having with my other lights. Now, I’m a massive convert. It’s worth the investment.

To recap, you can read this post about my favorite appliqué supplies here while keeping in mind the updates mentioned above.

+ Thread for project (such as Aurifil Cotton 50wt for basting and Aurifil Cotton 80wt for appliqué)

+ Appliqué needles (such as Clover Gold Eye Appliqué Needles No. 10)

+ Appliqué pins (such as Clover Appliqué Size 12)

+ Large fabric scissors (such as Kai 7230 9″ tailoring shears, or these other favorites)

+ Small fabric scissors (such as Kai N5100 4″ scissors)

+ Removable marking tool (such as Pilot Frixion pen–always test on fabric before using)

+ Seam gauge (such as Dritz Measuring Gauge)

+ Iron

+ Heavy paper or template plastic (for copying template)

+ Thread Conditioner (such as Thread Heaven or beeswax)

Optional supplies: Thimble (I like the adhesive leather pads), needle threader

Finally, here’s a look at the fabrics that I’ve pulled…

I’m wanting to go grey…so we’ll see! I think I’ll probably add in some solids too. Maybe.

Tips:

+ Fabric tip – Solids vs Prints in appliqué: In general, solids hide less and prints hide more. If you’re new to appliqué, using a print–even a subtle one–can be a little more forgiving than a solid. Of course, if you’re most excited about solids and you’re a newbie, don’t let me stop you!

+ I always travel with my Nest Egg tote, the very first one I made in fact. It’s still going strong, and I really like how I can zip it up and throw it into my backpack. While on the plane, I take it out, and open it up on my tray table and work away.

+ Also handy when traveling is a fold-up thread catcher. The one I use was a gift, but I put together a quick tutorial for you that will be coming out tomorrow. Stay tuned…

+ The Aurifil smaller spools are my preferred travel-handwork thread, and the smaller version of the Petal Pouch by Noodlehead fits them perfectly.

+ This tip skips ahead a little bit, but I know that many of you have already started your appliquéing, and so I hope it will be helpful. Inner points in appliqué can be tricky to turn when you’re just starting out. This is easily the step/shape I demonstrate most in workshops, and while it is helpful to see it in action, it’s also a case of practice really being the key to making it easier. I promise! This is also why I like designs like this, because they can give you great practice in tackling such shapes. After doing several of these, you’ll no doubt see improvement. It is helpful to see this step in action, and so I’ll highlight my Appliqué Quilt Top class on Creative Bug–which you can find here. This block has many tricky inner points, which makes it a great one to watch for seeing how to do it. Hope that helps!

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Wainwright Quilt Along Announcement.

By carolyn friedlander on February 8, 2018 in events, fabric, Featured on Home, my patterns, weekend projects | Comments: 20

Hi, hi! Are you in the mood for some handwork? I am, or maybe it’s safe to say that I pretty much am always in the mood. It’s relaxing…and fun…and portable.

While I love handwork, I know that many of you love handwork too. I also know that many of you are curious about handwork, and so I’ve been thinking that a Wainwright Quilt Along could help get us all going. After doing the Eads QAL last year, I knew that I wanted to plan more QAL adventures for this year. I’m happy to announce that the Wainwright Quilt Along will be up first!

My new pattern Wainwright was a lot of fun to put together. It’s about playing with color, shape and all kinds of possibilities. Each of the appliqué shapes can be shared and mixed between blocks. Plus, there are two different block sizes, which means you can pick one or the other (big or small) OR you can mix and match them both, because I deliberately sized them to work together. I always think that the more possibilities in a project, the better. No worries if any of that sounds daunting! We’ll cover it in the coming weeks, for sure.

Next week (February 15) will be the start of the Wainwright Quilt Along, and I have 6 weeks planned, with a wrap up on March 22. My plan isn’t necessarily to have a finished top by the end of 6 weeks–although that could totally be your goal!–but instead, I’m thinking of using 6 weeks to get some blocks rolling, talk about handwork, and just generally participate with you in some hand sewing. Whether you’re in the midst of winter (my fellow Northern Hemisphere folks!) and trapped indoors, or if summer is upon you (hi, Southern Hemisphere-ies!) and you’re looking for projects to travel around with, handwork is always handy, and I hope that this will be a delight to add into your schedule.

You can grab a copy of the pattern here, or at stores (that’s just a link to a google search, but you could also ask your local shop!).

You in?

Let’s go!

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Sessoms Quilt In Gleaned Fabrics.

By carolyn friedlander on December 19, 2017 in fabric, Featured on Home, my patterns | Comments: 3

My Sessoms quilt was one of my very first patterns. It’s a design that I’ve enjoyed making through the years, as well as one that I’ve enjoyed seeing others make. For many reasons, it’s been a long time coming to make a new one, update the printed version and translate the pattern into a digital format.

First, I have to credit two people for making this quilt happen. Ellen Rushman pieced the quilt, and Gina Pina quilted it. I’m so appreciative of these super talented ladies for bringing this project to life.

When I first opened the box from Gina after she quilted it, I actually gasped. Of course I’d seen pictures during the process, but there’s nothing like seeing a project for the first time in real life. The colors, piecing and quilting felt so bright and cheerful, which at the time was very welcome. I was still in hurricane-Irma-recovery mode, and seeing this quilt totally made me forget about everything that had happened.

The design was inspired by some lattice-work on Sessoms Avenue in my hometown–a street where my Dad grew up. I love bringing a change in color and fabrics to a repeated block. There’s something special about seeing the changes across the surface of the quilt.

The fabrics are all from my newest collection, Gleaned, and the background is one of the new Architextures crosshatch colors. I’ve been using this particular color a lot! It’s a pale grey-ish green that I’ve found to match just about everything.

The pattern is kind of neat because it works with a 2 1/2″ roll-up and/or 5″-square pack, so it’s pretty easy to attain a colorful gradient–you could just work the fabrics in order off the roll.

The quilting motif was inspired by ripples in a pool. I’ve been totally obsessed with the motif ever since Gina posted a picture showing it. Sometimes I really like how democratic an overall quilting pattern can function in a project, and this a great example. The quilting adds an evenness to the quilt that doesn’t compete with the piecing, but it also lends a relevant texture. I just really like it.