Stars and Stripes Quilt-along

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Recently Julia Davis of @redrainbootshandmade hosted a
Stars and Stripes Quilt along featuring the
Stars and Stripes pattern from Camille Roskelley of Thimbleblossoms.

I had already made one of these quilts but there is nothing like a quilt-along to encourage you to jump in on another project.
Several people in my family have hinted that they want their own flag quilt and I have a fairly large family!

My daughter (only girl with 4 brothers) got wind that I was making another one
of Camille’s quilts and she decided
she wanted to make one as a gift.
I couldnt believe this and I didnt dare want to pass up the opportunity of JIllian making a quilt.
She hasn’t made a quilt since she was in fourth grade.
She did win a prize at the Dallas Quilt Show for her sunflower nine patch quilt.
She seems to think it was a participation ribbon and all the kids got one.
I dont remember it like that at all!!

Jillian lives about an hour away from me but comes to town often, so we took this project on.
She had a deadline!!
She was on a mission!!

Great photo props in the country!

A little photo op in the country with a lady bug landing on one of the quilts…
GOOD LUCK!!

JIllian showing off the quilt she made that will be gifted this week.

I always joke that it is just as fast to make 2 quilts as it is to make 1,
so while she was sewing away I was cutting and cutting and cutting.

She thought she would never finish which was quite humorous.
What she didnt know was that I was sewing another set of flags after she went home.
I found the perfect shade of green (jillian’s favorite color)
and a yummy green fireside/snuggles fabric for the back.

Sent both quilt tops off to the quilter  (Red Velvet Quilts) in time to finish before the fourth of July.

I have made several flag quilts in my lifetime but I have never made 3 from the same pattern, really 2 and helped with the third.

But I am hooked on this quilt and will probably make many more. Remember that big family I mentioned?

Wishing everyone a wonderful Independence Day!

-Modalissa

June, so it must be time for….

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It is June so it must be time for
PUMPKINS!??!!

If you follow me, you know I love Orange so  the new fabric line ALL HALLOW’S EVE by Fig Tree and Co is possibly my favorite line of 2019. I begged Joanna of Fig Tree and Co. to let me test one of her new patterns. I didn’t really beg.

This could be considered another one of my “secret sewing” projects since I was working on it in February, at a
retreat by the ocean!

Life is rough, but a girl has got to do what a girl has to do!

Too much laughing or too much wine or a combination of both made me make a few different diversions from
the orginal pattern. I love it just the same!

The pattern is Fig Tree, stock #FT1465 and is headed to stores now. Fabric is shipping to stores also.

The quilt is off to the quilter and I can’t wait to show it off completed.
The quilt will then be added to Moda’s trunk show program where it will go on tour to some quilt shops.

I can’t begin to tell you how much I love Antler Quilt Design’s ruler for this project.
This is the mini simple folded corner ruler that makes cutting the corners a breeze.

Here is a representation of the range of fabrics in the line courtesy of Moda Fabrics! 
If you are an orange collector like me you will want to stock up on these prints, Seriously!!

Can you say BOOO-tiful?

And if All Hallow’s Eve was not great enough, I have been hoarding a bundle of Christmas Figs! I have got to try the greens and oranges together! Enough about my Fig Tree crush!!

Do you have an all time favorite fabric line? How about an all time favorite fabric designer?

pieceful quilting,

-modalissa

Secret Sewing

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I love the phrase “secret sewing”. My whole life is based on secret sewing. I get to work ahead on many of the lines that Moda produces. I get to try out new products. I get to use products I thought I would never need like the Shape Cut ruler by June Tailor. While doing some of my secret market sewing, more on that later, I remembered that one of the girls in the office swears by her Shape Cut ruler. I am a pretty fast and accurate cutter so I did not see the need to have to fit my rotary cutter into a little sliver just to make a cut. Never say never! I tried it and I loved it!

Why did I love it? One of my secret sewing projects was to make a quilt to be displayed in the Moda Quilt Market booth. It had lots of strips sets and I do like to layer and cut which can lead to your ruler slipping and sliding.

I laid out the strips right sides together and butted the seams next to each other. Then shifted the strip sets so all the seams were not on top of each other. This is where the Shape Cut ruler came in so handy. The weight and size of the ruler kept all my layers together and I did not have to move the ruler. Yeah!!

My pieces were all ready to go to the machine and sew and sew and sew!

Now that Quilt Market is over and Bonnie & Camille have introduced their next line of fabric, Early Bird, I can show my “not a secret any more sewing.”

Hide & Seek Pattern # TB 234 by Thimbleblossoms

Fabric will arrive in stores October 2019. It will be here before you know it.

Thanks for listening to my secret sewing story and my new love, of the Shape Cut ruler. Yes I did have to give Janet back her ruler but I am now a proud owner of my own!!

On A Roll

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(giveaway closed)

Available now, stock # B1498

Moda Jelly Rolls have been around since 2008 and I can’t believe how many wonderful projects, tools, notions, patterns, and books have been created based on the 2 1/2″ strip. I will never forget the first time I used a jelly roll. After working a full day at the greatest job ever, I went home, opened a jelly roll and started sewing. So theraoutic!

The Moda All-Stars have done it again, each quilt is based on a jelly roll. Some of the quilts have additional fabrics added, some of the quilts are appliqued. There is something for everyone, 16 quilts all in all shapes and sizes sure to inspire.

Row 1, L to R

Not Too Sweet by American Jane
Chain Reaction by Kansas Troubles
What’s the Commotion by Lisa Bongean of Primitive Gatherings

Row 2, L to R
One Roll Wonder by Me and My Sister
Square Dance by SweetWaterCo.
Pineapple Quilt by Zen Chic

Row 3, L to R
Sweet Butterfly by Stacy Iest Hsu
On Flip Side by Linzee McCray
Trifle by Janet Clare

Row 4, L to R
Apricot Jelly by Corey Yoder
Rule Roost by Anne Sutton of Bunny Hill Designs
Mounation Climbing by Betsy Chutchian

Row5
Maisy Daises by Fig Tree and Co.


and last but not least Parfait by Sherri McConnell. Can you believe these projects all started with a Jelly Roll?

The proceeds from the sale of this book are going to Schools on Wheels, an organization that provides academic tutoring to children living in shelters, motels, cars, group foster homes and on the streets in Southern California.

Your purchase of any of the Moda All-Star book helps us make donations to many of the causes that Moda Fabrics, Martingale Publishing and the Moda Designers believe in. Thank you for that!

Leave a comment and let me know what quilt you would want to make….. I have a few books that need to put to use!

enjoy!

-ModaLissa

Winners have been notified.

May 30, 2019 at 11:46 am

Paulette says:

Time to stop admiring jelly rolls and use them! I love the left cover quilt.

May 30, 2019 at 10:59 am

Teri says:

Of course I’d like to make all the quilts but the one that I most want to do now is Sweet Butterfly. I am looking for a special pattern for special girl and this looks perfect.

May 30, 2019 at 1:39 pm

Mary Ann Scanlon says:

It’s a toss up between Apricot Jelly and Not Too Sweet! Actually that’s one of the reasons I like apricot jelly, it’s not too sweet. (I crack myself up) thanks for fun give away Lissa.

May 31, 2019 at 8:24 am

Jane says:

Not Too Sweet really caught my eye! I would LOVE to own this book!

Positively Patriotic

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Used with permission from American Patchwork & Quilting® magazine. ©2019 Meredith Corporation. All rights reserved. 

Here is my latest project featured in the June issue of American Patchwork and Quilting.
Didn’t APQ do a fantastic job photo styling my quilt?

My heart goes pitter patter over anything red white and blue.

Magazines are on the newstands April 5th so in the meantime if you want to gather your fabrics, I used

some of my very favorite Bella Solids

Royal 9900-19,   2 1/4 yds
9900-200,           3 5/8 yds
Cherry 9900-230       2 yds

I am in love and honored to be featured in this issue alongside some other greatness including Susan Ache, Diane Harris, Jessica Dayon, Jo Kramer and Kelli Hanken, Tara Lynn Baisden, Victoria Findlay Wolfe and Heidi Staples. To find out more about this issue, follow American Patchwork & Quilting’s social media.

Facebook: www.facebook.com/allpeoplequilt

Pinterest: www.pinterest.com/allpeoplequilt

Twitter: @allpeoplequilt

Instagram: @allpeoplequilt

My only problem is I wonder if they will let me borrow that truck for my summer picnic.

Enjoy!

-modalissa

 

Shirting quilt top

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I am crazy over stripes, denim, blues, and blacks so when I came across this quilt top, I knew it had to come home with me. The price was right and I had no idea what I would do with it but it was going to have a good home.

The quilt top was pretty threadbare, I auditioned it for a curtain thinking I would be so Ralph Lauren circa 1980. I loved it but was outvoted on the charm factor I thought I had created.

A couple of weeks ago, Anna Dineen of A Wandering Path taught a class to make the Ultimate Travel Bag from By Annies Pattern Company.

I could not make up my mind what fabric to use, so there sat this lonely quilt top in all its beauty, wanting to be showcased and taken out on the town. The quilt top almost jumped off the shelf screaming pick me, pick me.

I used a knit fuse interfacing to protect the threadbare areas, sent it off to be quilted and it arrived back in time for our first bag class.

Bag making was new to me, mainly because it requires supplies I do not usually have on hand such as interfacing, zippers, mesh linings etc.

Most of the time I may dive into a project late at night and with quilting, I have all the fabric and supplies I could possibly need. I learned that I could actually do this and I loved it. and I also learned I needed to stock up on supplies for when the next late night bag making bug bite me.

I am not in the habit of cutting up a quilt top, but this one was in bad shape. Now I can carry it proudly as it has gained a new life as my patchworked travel bag!

Pattern # PBA251 byannie.com
Back view of my bag

Here is a video clip from Annie. If you are not a bag maker, dive in. It is lots of fun and Annie had all the supplies I need to make it happen. Enjoy!

I love Quirky

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I love the word Quirky and I love little quilts, which is why I am taking part in Quirky Little Quilts quiltalong. I have choosen some of my favorite Minick and Simpson Christmas scraps.

Book and fabrics- Ready to go!
photo from https://temeculaquiltco.blogspot.com/

How super cool would it be to have a jar big enough to hold mini quilts or enough mini quilts to even fit into the jar! That is what I am going for.

Sheryl shared many tips on finishing the mini quilts and I can’t wait to get finished to try some of them out.

The Quiltalong starts on March 25th and all you have to do is make 4 mini blocks a week. To find out more details, click here.

Be sure to use the hashtag #QuirkyLittleQuiltsQAL when you post about your progress on Facebook and Instagram. I can’t wait to see what you create!

The Happiness Project

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Do you journal? I always have the best intentions but that does not get me very far. I have grand dreams of leaving elloquent books filled with wisdom and insight on life. There would be pages full of funny stories, copies of family recipes and historic happenings of the day.
WAKE UP! My abridged version of this is the Happiness Project journal. It is a small 5 year journal with about 3 lines per day. Just enough to jot a sentence or two of gratitude, major family events, a quote that caught my eye or a few words of happiness.
I am on to my second 5 year journal and will be finishing it up in the year 2020. Between these journals and my hot mess of pictures stored on google my family can enjoy a zany look into my mind!

I wanted to share some of the tips from Gretchen Rubin as great reflection and daily inspiration.  Enjoy!!

 

Twelve Personal Commandments

Be Gretchen.

Let it go.

Act the way I want to feel.

Do it now.

Be polite and be fair.

Enjoy the process.

Spend out.

Identify the problem.

Lighten up.

Do what ought to be done.

No calculation.

There is only love.

A Happiness Manifesto

To be happy, you need to consider feeling good, feeling bad, and feeling right, in an atmosphere of growth.

One of the best ways to make yourself happy is to make other people happy; One of the best ways to make other people happy is to be happy yourself.

The days are long, but the years are short.

You’re not happy unless you think you’re happy.

Your body matters.

Happiness is other people.

Think about yourself so you can forget yourself.

“It is easy to be heavy: hard to be light.”—G. K. Chesterton

What’s fun for other people may not be fun for you, and vice versa.

Best is good, better is best.

Outer order contributes to inner calm.

Happiness comes not from having more, not from having less, but from wanting what you have.

You can choose what you do, but you can’t choose what you like to do.

“There is no duty we so much underrate as the duty of being happy.” —Robert Louis Stevenson

You manage what you measure.

 

I would love to hear what is some of your favorite books.

-modalissa

Red and white quilt book winner

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Friday was a 12 hour whirlwind of a day at Quilt Festival. Several of the Moda team hopped on the first flight out of Dallas for the 50 minute flight to Houston. While we had all been in Houston for Market the week before, it was time to go and see all the festival shops.
Our first stop was to rush to Lisa Bongean at Primitive Gatherings. I had to get some of her new rulers that are designed to cut stems.

Have you seen Lisa’s rugs made using mini charm packs? Perfect Christmas presents!

Pattern available at your favorite store or from Primitive Gatherings.


I snapped a quick pic of Erin Smith and Tammy Vonderschmitt. They had smiles on their faces with no sign of exhaustion even though this was the 9th day or 11 days straight living in hotel rooms and working in convention center settings. (Amy Matheny not pictured)

These gals were manning the Moda booth. They demoed cake mix papers and showcased all the many things that can be done with Vanessa Christenson’s ombre line of fabrics.

Vanessa Christenson and her sweet daughter, Katie were in attendance. Look at the cute skirt Vanessa is wearing that is made from her pink ombre fabric. Vanessa has an entire Pinterest board devoted to inspiration and patterns for her Ombre fabrics. Click here to follow the pinterest board.

Another stop was to visit Karen at Home A la Mode. She is the queen of demo’s and I always have to stop by to see what she is working on.

27 aisles of quilt goodness and almost 4 miles of steps, then rush to  the airport in time to find our plane delayed. A little bit more time spent with good friends and then home. Can’t wait until next year to do it all over again.

Winner of the Red and White quilt book giveaway is:

October 28, 2018 at 12:58 pm
Mary Durham says:
My favorite quilt show has been the Outdoors show in Sisters, Oregon. There were so many beautiful quilts, but it was also such a fun atmosphere. Someday I hope to go to the shows in Paducah and Houston.

Please send me an email or DM with your shipping information.
Enjoy!,

Lissa

WINNER, WINNER

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Thank you so much to everyone that stopped by on the Splendid Sampler Block hop.
I just returned from Market and seeing the finished Splendid Sampler quilts, I am inspired to put some of my blocks together and work towards finishing my quilt. As of now it sits in the pile of UFO projects!!
WINNERS LISTED BELOW
Have all been contacted and look forward to getting your prizes to you.
Kathy Aho says:

A couple of years ago I would have said a 12 inch block is my favorite size. And then I joined the Splendid Sampler 1 last year and even though it was challenging some of the time, I grew to love the 6 inch blocks. I learned how to bring my sewing super-speedy-ness down and my quilting techniques up. This is a good thing for a lead foot like me. Thank you Lissa, Pat, Jane, and all the designers each for all you do for the Splendid Sampler fans. We appreciate you.

Karen Seitz says:

I’ve never really thought about this until now, but I think pattern aside, I would say 8″ finished. 6″ is more practical (will divide and multiply more different ways), but A little bit larger block makes it easier for my intermediate skills to be successful.

Leslie Fitzgerald says:

I love 8″ blocks. They are easily managed and I don’t need Jack the Ripper companionship very often for them. 6″ blocks…Jack and I are really good friends sharing the work on these SS2 blocks. 😉

On Friday I am headed back down to Quilt Festival for the day. The show floor completely transforms from wholesale companies to retail stores. I have my shopping list ready and want to take pics of more of the quilts on exhibit including the Red and White exhibit. Read more about this here. Giveaway for this book announced on the 10th! Some of the other exhibits that I need to visit are Antique Quilts of the British Isles by Chrisopher Wilson Tate.

This is just one of the quilts on exhibit, It is also the quilt that inspired his newest fabric collection, Regency Sussex which will be in stores April 2019.

For more information, here.

 

I am a big fan of Janet Clare. In this exhibit, My Story so Far, she shares her entire creative process.

Truly inspiring.

She will be at the exhibit so stop by and say hello!

For more information about the Janet Clare exhibit, visit the moda cutting table.

 

Me too!

I will be back here on the 10th to announce the winners of the Red and White books. So many excting things happening!!

I love being a quilter.