Tag: free pattern

Project Jelly Roll

September 10, 2024

Quilt Love: Exploring the Joy of the “Tiddlywinks” Jelly Roll Pattern

Are you ready for Moda’s Project Jelly Roll Day? 3rd Saturday of September every year.

But first……

I cannot help but dedicate this years Project Jelly Roll to a friend of mine that was part of the inspiration on the development of Moda’s Jelly Rolls, Daniela Stout. Daniela recently passed away from a 4 year battle with Ovarian Cancer. Daniela was the owner of Cozy Quillts, in El Cajon, California. She was the creator of a program and patterns named, The Strip Club. Daniela inspired us with the opportunity to create wonderful quilts using 2 1/2″ strips but also allowed us to poke fun at our craft. Just imagine leaving the house and saying I am headed to the StripClub. Daniela was instrumental in creating the need for strips and Moda took it one step further, Strips that are precut.

Here we go….

This past week the team at Moda Fabrics (thank you Annie and Kelsey) shared a quilt I made in anticipation of National Sew A Jelly Roll Day. I guess just for long term documentation, I wanted to share this on my feed also. I love, love, love Anne Sutton’s fabric lines. For this project, I knew the signature print was perfect for wide sashing so I dove right in.

If you haven’t already, check out this fantastic tutorial video on Tiddlywinks here, where I break down the process step by step. Spoiler alert: you’ll fall in love with how easy and fun it is!

Why the Tiddlywinks Pattern?

The Tiddlywinks pattern is perfect for those days when you want a light-hearted, cheerful quilt but want to try something a little different for a creative challenge. This pattern stand outs in whatever fabric choices you use.

What’s So Special About Jelly Rolls?

For those of you who are newer to the quilting world, Jelly Rolls are collections of pre-cut Moda fabric strips (2.5 inches wide) that take much of the prep work out of the equation. That means less time cutting and more time stitching! There are jillions of ways to cut, slice and dice JellyRolls and tools and gadgets to make this easier.

Key Tips from the Tutorial

Efficient Strip Cutting: Jelly Rolls make strip piecing a breeze, and the Tiddlywinks pattern uses this technique to its full advantage. The video explains how to cut your strips into neat units, ensuring your hexagons will assemble into smooth and precise shapes..
Row Assembly: The tutorial walks you through method for stitching the rows into bite size sections. There are small manageable steps, so it doesn’t feel overwhelming. Plus, with the pre-cut strips, you can focus on the creative process rather than stressing over accuracy.
Pressing for Success: There’s an emphasis on pressing your seams correctly, which is especially important for this design. It’s the little things that make the blocks lie flatter and look sharper, and this video tutorial really drives that home.
Choosing Fabrics: Tiddlywinks quilt uses a playful combination of bright, happy fabrics, but one of the best parts of working with Jelly Rolls is that you can pick any combination that speaks to you. I combined 2 different JellyRolls plus a few scrap strips to add some geometric. I have saved some of the strips as a possibility for binding.

My Experience with Tiddlywinks

As soon as I saw this pattern, I knew it was exactly what I needed. The Tiddlywinks quilt is such a joyous project, and the circles created by the Jelly Roll strips make the pattern feel fresh and modern, while still honoring classic quilting techniques. I chose a Jelly Roll with a mix of vibrant prints and softer tones, and I couldn’t be happier with the way it turned out.

Working on this quilt has been such a refreshing change of pace. The hexagons add a playful touch that makes the quilt feel romantic and full of movement. And honestly, the ease of using pre-cuts gave me more time to just enjoy the process—no stress over cutting everything perfectly!

Are you going to be sewing anything on Jelly Roll day?

Until next time, happy stitching, and may your quilts always be full of joy!

modalissa

Moda Blockheads-Spinning Star

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May 15, 2024

Moda’s Blockheads

Are you following along on Moda’s weekly block series? Blockheads 5? Today is my day to share a quilt block pattern.

I choose a block that was inspired by an antique Americana quilt. I somehow rembered this block in my mind and just jumped in to create it. I made several different versions and finally decided on this one.

Spinning Star

This block is certainly a skill builder. Anything that has eight points all coming together could be problematic. Moda made a video with tips and tricks and here is the link.

Spinning star is assembled in 4 identical quarters as shown above. The star part is cut the same but it is directional once you sew the outer triangles on it so be careful…. ask me how I know!!

To test the pattern and the blocks I basically have started a completely new quilt, yes it is going to be red white and blue, more on that to come.

Here is my 6″ version of Spinning Star for my color way.

I also wanted to just share some pics here and the progress of my blockheads quilt. I am loving it so much that I will have a hard time waiting to the end to finish. Are you feeling the same?

I am in love how my Blockheads quilt is coming along.

I am so excited and can barely wait to finish this. It is my version of scrappy and has bits and pieces from 4 different collections from Camille Roskelley mixed with some other low volume prints. My setting is from Celebrate with Quilts book, using Susan Ache’s Blueprint design.

Modalissa Blockheads

I don’t know if I can wait all the way until the end of the blockheads series to finish this. I get a little impatient. I will keep at it and continue to share my progress. How are you doing on your version?

-modalissa

I love this quilt so much!

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October 15, 2023

Fall Quilt Magic

There’s a distinct magic in the air that can only mean one thing – fall has arrived or kind of. We are finally experiencing a relief from the extreme heat in Texas. We can’t wait to cozy up, to savor the simple pleasures, and to find warmth in the midst of nature’s gentle descent into winter. What better way to capture the feeling of fall than by pulling out quilts and decorating for the season.

In a world filled with mass-produced items, there’s an undeniable charm in creating something with our own hands. A fall quilt crafted from 12 fat quarters as the lights and Moda jelly roll strips as the chains; it’s a labor of love.
I have said it a million times.. I have the greatest job in the world working for Moda Fabrics and as you may or may not know, Moda is the parent company of Ruby Star Society. I love combining lots of different Moda designers fabrics and now I can add Ruby Star fabrics to the mix. That is exactly what I did for this quilt.

Here are the general specs. Link to pattern below.

CHAINS

Quilt is 74″ x 74″.

Supplies

Blocks (lights): 12 assorted Fat Quarters*

Block (light): 1 yard

Blocks (darks): 35-21/2″ x width of fabric
(a Jelly Roll is a great start! but I cut a couple of strips from as many layer cakes as I possibly could)

Binding: 2/3 yard. Plaids and Stripes are my favorite for bindings. I am always on the hunt for them.

Backing: 43/4 yards
*Fat Quarter=18″ x 22″

Experiment with color placement, combine different fabrics and colors, and let the quilt tell its own story. I am dying to do this in Christmas fabrics with darks in the middle.

Chains

So fun!!

Light fabrics are not normally fabrics that you gravitate to buy. It is so much easier to be attracted to color and print when shopping. Think of lights like milk and bread. You always need them and buy good ones when you see them. They are timeless and don’t expire like milk and bread.

As the days grow shorter and the air turns crisper finally, there’s a profound sense of fulfillment in completing a fall quilt or really any quilt, right? Create a quilt that not only keeps you warm but also fills your heart with the inspiring essence of autumn. This is currently my favorite quilt but just like the seasons, it will quickly change.

To download the pattern, click here.

Be sure and tag me if you make this. I love to see your work. #modalissa @modalissa

Happy quilting!

-Modalissa

Daybreak Quilt Project

6 Comments

October 2, 2020

Oregon Coast

Every February, I join some dear friends for a quilt retreat on the coast of Oregon. With COVID we will not being retreating. I am bummed to miss my friends, the laughter, the stories, the food, drink and the scenery. I will also miss the time to work on future projects. The last retreat I was working on a project using Daybreak by 3 Sisters, which is shipping to stores now. So many projects I work on I can’t really show until the fabric is available, but I can share now.

Daybreak fat quarter bundle

I had all my pieces cut and ready so I could just sew, sew, sew. If you have not been to a retreat there is usually tons of laughing and talking, so not having to concentrate for cutting is usually best.

daybreak scraps

3 sisters fabrics always include romantic florals as the focal pieces and I knew I wanted to highlight the bigger prints in alternate blocks. One of my all time favorite quilt blocks is the sawtooth star and decided to use a couple of variations of that block to create a vintage feel.

Geese in progress

The pop of navy fabrics was something new for a 3 sisters collection and I love the combination of the pinks and blues together.

Daybreak Quilt

Can you say Paisley? I knew I had to use that for the backing.

Daybreak quilt border

Quilted by Maggi Honeyman, Binding by Susan Stiff

While I will miss the retreat in 2021, I will always have this quilt as a keepsake from 2020.

To download the pattern to make your own Daybreak quilt, click here.

Candy Corn Quilt Pattern

4 Comments

September 24, 2020

I love the quilt and as I was pulling out my Orange quilts for the season, I thought I would share it again. It was originally called Peaks but it reminds me of Candy Corn so for this post it is CANDY CORN.

What’s OLD is NEW!

I love the colors.
I love the pattern.
I love the quilting.

I love, love, love it.

Someone asked me about the pattern and colors so I thought I would share it here. When I went to hunt down
the good pics, I remembered it was featured in the April May 2013 QUILT magazine. So here are their nice styled, color corrected pictures from 2013.

And here are the details if you want to make your own version using Bella solids.

9900-51- Buttercup,
9900-81 Goldenrod,
9900-83 Grey,
9900-125 Betty’s Brown,
9900-147 Coral,
9900-162 Amelia Apricot,
9900-171 Etchings Charcoal,
9900-185 Zen Grey
9900-209 Clementine,
9900-210 Strawberry,
9900-213 Mustard,
9900-244 Harvest Gold.

A fat quarter of each.

The background could be anything but I used 9900-182 Porcelain (4 1/4 yds.)

Pick your favorite 12 colors, add background of your choice.
The possibilities are endless. Choose all shades of greens and browns for trees, blues and greens with a little white on top for snow capped mountains, 30’s prints for a retro quilt or just a combination of all your funky favorite fabrics as a scrap buster!

The quilt looked even better washed and used. I love it when a quilt has been put to good use.

Tag me if you make a version of this quilt. I would love to see it.
Here is the pattern for your use.
Enjoy!!

-modalissa

Schoolhouse Quilt Pattern

9 Comments

September 11, 2020

During the pandemic, several different people on social media starting having outdoor quilt shows by showcasing one of their quilts in their yard or on their front porch, etc. Jenny Doan starting doing this also and I thought I would do the same each weekend.

I dug this schoolhouse quilt out of my stack to symbolize the return to school, even though it was virtual.

Several of you have messaged me wanting this pattern so I decided to do a quick blog post
so I can share it with everyone.

Download the pattern here.

The pattern does have templates for the roof, so be sure and set your printer to actual size.
Choose 6 fat quarters and 3 1/2 yds background of your choice.
I made mine using 6 different Bella Solids.

I also want to make it using denim, blues and greys.

I know my neighbors probably think I am crazy but I have enjoyed my own little quilt show.

My blog post would not be complete without a mock up of a little red schoolhouse quilt.

I hope you enjoy this quilt pattern.

-modalissa

SPLENDID SAMPLER 2

1 Comment

June 14, 2018

Today is the beginning of a beautiful quilting journey. If you did not finish your Splendid Sampler quilt, it is not too late to jump in on the second round. The blocks will be 6″ so any combination of Splendid Sampler blocks will work nicely together.

I am sharing my version of block 1 designed by Alex Veronelli! No better person to start us on our Splendid journey than the king of Aurifil thread.

I must admit I did not finish round 1, so I am combining blocks from both series. I am so inspired by the book
and all the creative settings online that
I have gotten my second wind and will be sewing along.
I hope you will also.

A big shout out to all the designers in the quilting community that have contributed their talent and creativity to share their blocks and their stories.

Book 1 shown above, available now. Book 2 already in the works and will be available later this fall.

Thank you to Pat Sloan, Jane Davidson, and Martingale for making it all happen. Also to Moda Fabrics for supplying the beginning round of fabrics.

My version is going to be scrappy since this will be an ongoing project. I would love to hear what your fabric choices are?

I had to show one more pic of my block mainly so I could show my favorite little tape measure. I am obsessed with plastic animal tape measures.
My grandkids can play with them and not break them!

Enough about me, join the FB group to follow along and get your patterns.
If you are not on FB, then follow the Splendid Sampler blog for all the details and patterns.

You are all splendid,

-modalissa

A big heart

11 Comments

January 17, 2018

My daughter is the middle child. She has two older brothers and two younger brothers.

If you have read many of my posts you know I am into birth order. Jillian has so many different traits that it is hard to define her into a certain birth order. She is the middle child, she is the only daughter so that is like being a first-born and sometimes the only child comes out in her. So with this being said the main trait she carries is the girl with the biggest heart which has nothing to do with birth order at all.

She worries about all of this motley crew known as her family and makes sure they are all taken care of.

Shopping for her is impossible!
So when it was time to figure out what to do for her for Christmas, it needed to be a gift that she couldn’t take back.

So the answer was a quilt, but just what quilt was the tough part.

I decided the girl with the biggest heart needed a quilt that was just that… a big heart.

The quilt is fun and fast to make with 1 moda layer cake and 3.75 yds of background fabrics.
She loves Lella Boutique’s fabrics so it was easy to choose what fabrics to use.

After the quilt was quilted I decided it needed to add a bit of embroidery which was not the smartest move.
Embroidery through the quilt with Snuggles on the back did not make for the best stitches but she loves it no matter what.

This pic is a better pic for actual color and also to show the snuggles on the back. Once she has used a quilt with snuggles on the back that is all she ever wants to use! Have you tried different textures on the back of your quilts? Flannels, snuggles, lawns, denims, wovens? It is so much fun that there are so many options now. Remember when the only thing quilter’s used for their backings was muslin? How boring!

Another shot of some of the crowd with Jillian always hiding in the back. Love her to pieces!!

The pattern was designed by Holly Hickman and featured a Kate Spain fabric collection but translates into any collection.

If you want to make this quilt for the person with the biggest heart in your family, here is the pattern.
You will need 1 moda layer cake and 3.75 yards of background.

Perfect for a Valentine’s day project!

– Love yall.

-modalissa

what can you make with…?

5 Comments

June 22, 2017

What can you make with a Moda Charm pack, a moda candy and a few yards of bella solids?

I am pulling this blog post out of my draft section because I share a free little pattern download at the bottom of the post but also wanted to share the incredible quilting.

A charm pack (42-5″ squares) and a mini charm pack (42-2 1/2″ squares) So easy. Start sewing with the precuts to make a quick project during balancing all the summer schedules. Plenty of room for autographs for a family reunion project.

WOWSER! Feathers Galore!

Hope everyone is enjoying the beginning of summer.

Here in Texas the heat and humidity has hit us.

If you want the pattern, click here for a free download.

Pattern includes a larger version that uses 2 charm packs and 2 mini charms.

I would love to see what you make. Share your pic on FB or IG and tag me, @modalissa.

Save

Peaks- the quilt

3 Comments

November 18, 2015

I recently posted a picture of this quilt on my Instagram because I love it.
I love the colors.
I love the pattern.
I love the quilting.

I love, love, love it.

Someone asked me about the pattern and colors so I thought I would share it here. When I went to hunt down

the good pics, I remembered it was featured in the April May 2013 QUILT magazine.

So here are their nice styled, color corrected pictures from 2013.

And here are the details if you want to make your own version using Bella solids.

9900-51- Buttercup,

9900-81 Goldenrod,

9900-83 Grey,

9900-125 Betty’s Brown,

9900-147 Coral,

9900-162 Amelia Apricot,

9900-171 Etchings Charcoal,

9900-185 Zen Grey

9900-209 Clementine,

9900-210 Strawberry,

9900-213 Mustard,

9900-244 Harvest Gold.

A fat quarter of each.

The background could be anything but I used 9900-182 Porcelain (4 1/4 yds.)

I refer to this type of quilt as a 12 pack, not a 6- pack that is something completely different. Pick your favorite 12 colors, add background of your choice

and the possibilities are endless.

Choose all shades of greens and browns for trees,

blues and greens with a little white on top for snow capped mountains,

30’s prints for a retro quilt

or just a combination of all your funky favorite fabrics as a scrap buster!

I shot a pic of the quilt with my Iphone as I zipped by the quilt laying on an unmade bed at my sons house.
The quilt looked even better washed and used. I love it when a quilt has been put to good use.

Tag me if you make a version of this quilt. I would love to see it.
Here is the pattern for your use.
Enjoy!!

-modalissa