I can’t believe the weather. Yesterday it was 103º and today it is only 69 º so far. I sure hope it stays this way for a while.

I am still working on my new patterns for market. This is the center of the queen size version of “Shooting Stars”.

No Diamonds and No "Y" Seams"

The fabric is “Heritage” by Howard Marcus for Moda Fabrics. This is a new group. Ask for it at your local quilt shops in September.

The proceeds from this fabric go to Gilda’s Club.

This is Miss Kitty. She loves fabric as much as we all do.

Check out these great fabrics.

I am working on a project ( I can't show or tell you what it is now ) using these fabrics and it is a pleasure to work with such happy designs.

This is a future group by Lila Tueller for Moda Fabrics. Check out Lila's blog. She is holding a great contest. You can win patterns and great bags. Be sure to keep checking back here because we will have a drawing soon.

Several Ladies are having a problem with the little bag from my summer workshop project with Cotton Spice quilting magazine on July 26. The fabric needs to be soft and not real heavy. Another thing that may help is to make the channels for the ribbon wider. About 3/4" to maybe 1". I hope this helps. There will be a small opening at the center but it should not be huge.

I have pictures of tops pieced with two of the my new patterns. The patterns will be on my website soon.

The quilt tops are at the quilter's now. All of these quilt tops are made with future groups of fabric from Moda Fabrics.

The first one is the Post & Beam Pattern done scrappy using Tranquility fabric by Sandy Gervais.  

This is a future line that will ship to your local quilt shops in November 2008.

The second picture is also Post & Beam in Tranquility using a different colorway.

This quilt top is made with Timber Creek Flannels by Holly Taylor.

I made this sample with Tradition fabric by Howard Marcus from the Collections with a Cause. The proceeds form the sale of this fabric will go to UNICEF.

Here is the sneak peek at my new pattern Radiant Stars. This pattern is designed with my No Diamonds/No "Y" Seams technique. It is all half square triangles, squares and rectangles. No bias edges and no messy set in seams. EASY.  

The fabric is the Traditions line from Moda fabrics. It is a new line that will ship to your local quilt shops in December 2008. Check to see if they have placed an order for the fabric. It is beautiful and proceeds go to UNICEF to fight for children's rights. You can not go wrong with this fabric. The border will be the solid black. It is very black. I think the quilting will be gorgeous on it. I am off tomorrow to a retreat in Granbury, Texas at the Quilt House. I will write again in a few days.

It is still very hot in Texas but I have been working with the softest flannel you could imagine. The following picture is of my new for market pattern called Post & Beam. It is made with fabric from Moda Fabrics that will ship to your local quilt shops in November 2008. The line is called Timber Creek Flannels designed by Holly Taylor. The designs in the line will be great for a masculine quilt or anyone who loves the outdoors. The Post & Beam pattern is the perfect pattern to showcase the prints with it's large pieces. This is also what makes it great for flannel.

August 1! Can you believe it? It is definitely summer in Texas. We have had 100º + weather for days. 

I have been working on new patterns to present at Fall Wholesale Quilt Market in Houston. So far I have three.

The first one is called Post & Beam. It is a great component made lap quilt.

The center is one component done in four fabric combinations using 8 Fat Quarters. With two borders it makes a 60” X 60” quilt.

The fabrics I have been working with are new lines from Moda Fabrics  that will be coming to your local quilt shop this fall.

This example is made with “Tranquility” by Sandy Gervais.  It will ship in November.

 

There is a great panel in this line that I cut up to make sections for a scrappy version of the quilt.

The birds just make me happy.  

I am still working on border selections for these. Don't you just love this fabric? 

 I cut the tiny birds to make the centers of the blocks.

Check back tomorrow to see a very manly version for the guy in your life. Hint: it is flannel.

Be sure to check the website Calico Carriage Quilt Designs for all the patterns and books. We have a section called Specials that has some great deals in it.

Needlework or Jewelry Bag

My hostess at a workshop in Angleton, Texas taught me the basics for this little bag.

Please read all directions before starting this project.

Supplies:

Fabric ~ 2 coordinating fat quarters

2 yards of ¼ inch ribbon or cord

Disappearing marking pen or chalk

Sewing machine

Basic sewing supplies

Yarn needle or safety pin

Cut a 14” and 7” square from each fat quarter. Place the two 14” squares right sides together. Sew ¼” from outside edge on both leaving about 3” open on one side.

Clip corners and turn right side out. Turn the open edge in ¼” and press all edges flat. Stitch close to the edges around the whole block. If you have an edge stitch foot it helps to keep the stitching straight.

The top stitching will close the openings. Repeat for the 7” squares. Use a chalk wheel or disappearing marking pen to mark a line corner to corner in both directions on the top side of the small square. Fold the large square in half and finger press in both directions to find the center. Place the small square in the center of the large square. The fabric that will be the inside of the bag should be facing up with the contrasting side of the small square facing up.

Sew on the marked lines in both directions, backstitching at the corners. Turn the squares over and measure 5” in from each corner. Fold the corners back.

Mark a line ½” from the corner edges and stitch on the lines backstitching at the beginning and ending.

Cut the ribbon into two pieces. Thread ribbon into yarn needle or safety pin and weave it through the channels created by the stitching.

 Leave tails of ribbon on one side and tie the ends together with a knot. Run the other ribbon through leaving tails on the opposite side.

 Pull the knots on both sides to draw up the square to form a small bag. The square inside will make small pockets to organize contents.

The little pouch looks like a flower when viewed from the top.

Karen Gass from Cotton Spice Quilting Magazine is hosting a Summer Blog Workshop for 14 days, July 21 to August 3. Each day is a different project, each with a different skill level. The projects are different crafts; not all quilting. My project will be posted on July 26. It is a small needlework or jewelry bag that can be made in one afternoon. Be sure to check www.cottonspice.com/CSblog each day for that day's project. Check here on my blog to get the instructions for the needlework bag.

This was a busy Spring as I did a lecture and workshops in Cape May, NJ, a workshop for South Shore Stitchers, NJ, a lecture and two workshops in Tallahassee, FL, attended classes at Empty Spools in Asilomar Conference Center in Pacific Grove, CA, had a booth at the wholesale quilt market in Portland OR and took a little vacation to Charleston, SC.  Here's a couple of pictures from the classes. More later.

Week of June 27, 2008

This is my initial foray into blogging and I hope everyone will find it educational and interesting. My passion is quilting and I love to design, teach and travel. My business is now 6 years old and has provided me with opportunities and experiences I never dreamed of, as well as challenges and deadlines I had never had to deal with. I hope that by sharing some of these experiences, you will learn along with me and be entertained at the same time. I also love to cook, entertain and do needlework and these topics will come up at times in the future. I also plan on passing along quilting tips, information on great shops and shows I visit and provide links to sites that I think you might find interesting.

I refer to my trip to Spring Quilt Market in Portland this year as the good, the bad and the ugly. The good was I had time to visit with shop owners, fabric designers, fabric reps, and guild representatives about teaching and lecture opportunities. The bad was I did not feel the traffic was as heavy as in past markets. The ugly was I had no brochures or books for the first two days due to my printer not following through with their commitments. I believed their promises and wound up missing the normal sales opportunities. It was frustrating, but we slogged through. I was pleased with the way the booth turned out and shops loved the fabrics I used in the quilts I displayed. I am including pictures of the booth. I am spending the summer mailing brochures to shops and working on new quilts in new fabrics for shops to display for the various events they are hosting this summer and in the fall. I also use the new quilts for my lecture/trunk show for guilds. I will be teaching classes in some great areas of the country in the next year. Be sure to check my itinerary on the website to see if I will be in your area. New designs are rolling around in my head and comments on this process will appear in future writings.

There is always the need to spend some time away from the business and June was perfect for cleaning up my flower beds and herb garden and getting new plants set before our typical 100+ degree days set in. I started Yoga classes and find that has helped control stress and free my mind’s creative flows. I think I have a touch of A.D.D. and find myself starting on one project and then wandering off onto another before the first is finished. I do my best thinking in the middle of the night or while driving and decided I need a portable tape recorder to keep track of my “great” ideas before I forget them (safer to use in the car at 70 mph rather than trying to write notes).

Come back to visit. Plans call for weekly updates and photos.

Debbie