Monday Mockup 2

Pattern: Lella Boutique's "Snow Blossoms"
Fabric: Stacy Hsu's "Lil Red" for Moda

This is a completely adorable line, if I had little girls I'm pretty sure this is what I'd use to decorate! I added an extra little solid border to the original pattern.

I think this is my favorite quilt pattern of all time, and I've never made it! How sad is that? I bought the pattern so long ago, and I love every version I've ever seen. I plan on making a Christmas one eventually with some Tasha Noel and Lori Holt seasonal lines mixed together.

Rise Quilt- Block 2 Pattern

Hello! Welcome to round 2 of the Rise quilt along. We are now to the balloon with the vertical stripes in the top right. Same basic idea as last time, just adding a little stripey patchwork to the mix.

Block 2 Pattern

 Here's my version for this time around. As you can see, I could stand to be a little more careful on how I attach my basket and ropes to the balloon. I do not claim to be a perfect quilter! Sometimes it bugs me and I go back and fix things, and sometimes I call it good and move on with the day :)

Knowing the dimensions of the balloon block at this point, if you're a more experienced quilter and are itching to make more blocks, please do! I would love to see what blocks you come up with. The sky is the limit!

It has been so fun for me to see your Block 1 balloons, they are darling! If you are just joining us, there is plenty of time to catch up, the following links will help you.

Block 1 Pattern
Pattern Overview

Jumping Jacks Quilt in Red, Pink, and Grey

I finished this pretty lady a while ago, but she's been waiting patiently for her glamour shoot. The pattern is "Jumping Jacks" by Fig Tree and Co.

This is the second one I've made and I already have a third in the works! It's just such a great quilt. Plus I have a British mother, 6 aunts, and a grandma who probably all need one, so I'm not stopping any time soon!

I had such a fun time using alllll the girly colors. I used a mix of Bonnie and Camille prints, a print or two from the Baby Jane line, as well as some basics mixed in. The neutral is Kona Bone, my very favorite cream color. The border is from the Miss Kate line by Bonnie and Camille.

I'm really going to miss this one, but she's going to live with a very special lady who at this point shall remain unnamed :)

I can't wait to show you the next one I'm working on, it's completely different colors and is going to be so good!

I've added this quilt to a fun link party hosted by Sew Fresh Quilts. She makes such cute animal quilts, but my very favorite of hers is "Little Blooms", it's gorgeous!

Arabesque Mini Quilt Pattern

It took me a while to catch on to the magic of mini quilts. When you've never made one, it's hard to understand the point. Why would anyone want a quilt on the wall, that's too tiny to snuggle? Once you start, however, it becomes very clear- because they are fast, fun, and ADORABLE! They can also be turned into pillow covers or doll quilts if wall hangings aren't your jam.

I thought since I was making one for myself, I'd share the pattern for the mini version of my Arabesque quilt. It's a cute little thing! (The pattern for the full quilt can be found in the Moda Bake Shop.)

Fabric Requirements:

(8) 5" squares
1/3 yd background fabric
1 FQ for backing
1 FQ or 6" x WOF for binding

Cut background fabric into:

(8) 5" squares
(8) 3.5" x 2" pieces
(24) 2" squares

Place each print square right sides together with a 5" background square. Mark diagonal lines, as shown in black, and sew 1/4" along each side of both lines, as shown in white, press.

Cut along marked lines, as well as at the halfway point (2.5") horizontally and vertically.

When you open them up your should have 8 HSTs. Press them open and trim to 2" square.

Using the following model, lay out 5 full stars, with 4 surrounding half stars, and corner units. You will have 4 HSTs left over. Place rectangle background pieces on the upper left and lower right of each star. Your stars with interlock with one another. Be sure not to place any rectangles vertically or you won't be able to sew your rows together. Fill in with 2" background squares.

Sew pieces into horizontal rows, press, and sew rows together. Baste, quilt, and bind according to your favorite method. I am loving this little scallop stitch that my Husqvarna Opal does. It works well for me since I am still pretty FMQ challenged.

The quilt comes to 15" square and is such a good way to use up extra charms. Enjoy!

Monday Mockup 1

I'm starting a fun new series with mockups of different quilt patterns in different lines. It's a fun way for me to "make" a quilt that I'm dying to make, but don't really have time or resources for. I'm hoping it's inspirational for you and adds a little fun to your Mondays.

I want to feature patterns from lots of different designers, but since I need to make sure I have permission first, I'm starting with one of my quilt patterns today.

Pattern: Arabesque
Fabric: Lella Boutique's line "Little Miss Sunshine"

I just love it, I so wish I had the real quilt! I'll be filing these on Insta with #MockupMondayQuilt. If there's something you're dying to see, let me know and maybe I'll feature it!

To new and wannabe quilters

 Image via Camille Roskelley at Thimble Blossoms

In 2013, I had fallen in love with the above quilt on Pinterest by Camille Roskelley (I'm sure many of you can relate to this!), and the quilting world was just opening up to me. I fell so hard, I wanted beautiful quilts and I wanted them bad. I had no idea where to begin! I barely knew how to sew. Everything seemed so overwhelming, not to mention expensive. My best friend, a seamstress extraordinaire, tried to explain strip piecing to me and it was like she was speaking a different language.

I wanted to write a post for anyone who may be feeling this way. I don't have any magical answers or resources for you, just some advice and encouragement.

President Heber J. Grant often quoted the following statement, which is sometimes attributed to Ralph Waldo Emerson: “That which we persist in doing becomes easier for us to do—not that the nature of the thing is changed, but that our power to do is increased.”

This has been my mantra. Three years ago, piecing my first simple patchwork square quilt top felt so overwhelming and difficult. And frankly, it was not a very attractive quilt. I didn't know that you could buy fabric anywhere else besides the big chain craft store. The fabric I used looked and felt cheap. The seams didn't line up, and the binding looked terrible. There were puckers in the quilting and the lines were anything but straight.

Fast forward three years, and I could make a simple square patchwork quilt in a half day (if I didn't have little ones to take care of), it would be much more attractive, and it really wouldn't stress me out at all. I would love it! This is only because of practice. Practice, practice, practice! It doesn't have to be perfect to be loved. I gave many imperfect quilts as gifts that I'm sure serve their purpose just fine.

• If there's a term you're not sure about, look it up! Google and YouTube are your best friends. Ask me! I certainly don't know it all, but I know some things and I love to talk about quilts! Ask someone on Instagram. I have found that the quilting community on IG is full of kind, helpful, talented and inspirational quilters who are more than willing to answer questions.  I have learned so much from them.  Also, never underestimate the power of library books. I think I checked out every book in the whole city that was even remotely related to quilting and pored over them. Give it a try, you'll learn a lot!
• If you are just starting out, quilting tools can be very overwhelming. There are so, so many gadgets. Really, all you need to start out is a rotary cutter, ruler, cutting mat, and sewing machine. Quilting is not a cheap hobby as I'm sure you've already discovered. But those 4 things are a necessity. Scissors won't cut it! Ha :)
• Don't stress about the "right way". I learned through trial and error, and have found that there are many different ways to accomplish the same task with quilting. Each to his own. Find out what works for you and don't feel bad about it. 

I hope this information is helpful to someone, and that if you're wanting to start but don't know where to begin, that you just dive right in and give it a try! You've nothing to lose. It won't be perfect at first, but the process of learning is a wonderful journey. You can do it. Anyone can do it! Relish the process and celebrate the small victories along the way.

Are you a new quilter? What questions do you have?

Have you been quilting for a while? How and when did you learn to quilt? I would love to hear about it.

Rise Quilt- Block 1 Pattern

Happy Monday morning to you! I am excited to be releasing the first block pattern for the "Rise" quilt today. It's the simplest one- the yellow balloon in the center on the demo quilt.

Before we get to that, I want to thank all of you who subscribed and were so excited to sew along. The giveaway winner is Sheri Salatin! Sheri, please send me your address and I will get your prize to you. I think you will really like it :)

Here is the first block pattern:

Block 1 Pattern

Since I'm sewing along too, here's my Block 1 for the scrappy version I'm making. I haven't ever kept a baby girl quilt, but I think I may have to keep this one in the end . You know- "in case I ever have a girl". 

 

I can't wait to see your balloon blocks! If you're just joining us, you can find details on the sew along here.

Countdown time!

The quilt along begins one week from today! If you received this post to your email box you are signed up, and entered in the giveaway. Hooray!

If you still haven't joined, the details and link to subscribe can be found here.

I will be sewing along too, I'm so excited to make another one. I was going to do a boy version, but I just couldn't resist doing pretty little girl colors. With all boys at my house, fabric is how I get my girly fix. So here is my fabric pull. These are mostly quarter yard cuts and will be way more than enough.

See you back here next week for Block 1 Pattern!

Rise Quilt Along Kickoff!

It's time to begin! Who's excited!!? Here are the details of the sew along-

Time frame (updated):

The block patterns will be published every other Friday, here on the blog, beginning with the simplest and progressing to the most complex. Don't worry, there isn't anything too tricky!

May 2- Kickoff and Giveaway
May 16- Block 1
May 28- Block 2
June 10- Block 3
June 24- Block 4
July 8- Block 5
July 22- Block 6
August 5- Block 7
August 19- Block 8
September 2- Block 9
September 16- Prairie Points/Borders and Final Giveaway 

UPDATE: A convenient condensed version of all the Rise pattern together can be found in my Pattern Shop.

Materials: 

Balloons: I used 16 fat eights of Backyard Roses by Ellis and Higgs for Riley Blake, which covered the balloons and prairie points with a good amount left over. You could also use scraps, jelly strips, or layer cake squares. You will need about 6 fat quarters' worth of fabric, though a little more variety than 6 prints would be optimal. 

1 yd background fabric
1/2 yd border fabric
1/2 yd binding fabric
2 yds backing

Now for the fun part- a giveaway! I'll pick a winner from the list of subscribers the night before the first block release. The prize will be a surprise, but it will involve fabric of course :) There will be another giveaway at the end chosen from those who participated. You can subscribe at the link below by adding this blog to your existing reader, or clicking "get Woodberry Way delivered by email". Following by Bloglovin' or some other format is also fine.

Subscribe to Woodberry Way

I just have to mention how excited I was to use this as a backing. The Seed Catalog print combined with the hot air balloons and summery prints remind of me of an old timey state fair, and I just love it!

The final quilt measures 42" by 54", a generous baby size. It would be the most perfect new baby quilt, in my humble opinion :)

If you are quilting along and are on Instagram, don't forget to tag with #risequilt so I can see. I'm @woodberry_way, and I love to share quilts there too! 

When the sew along is over, I'll have the entire pattern available for purchase for those who prefer that. 

Also, I've added a tab on the top right of the blog with quick links to the patterns- "Rise Quilt Along". Enjoy!