Chain + Link Quilt

This is Vicki's Chain + Link quilt and the pattern is by Don't Call Me Betsy, you can purchase the pattern here.  These blocks are over-sized so I chose Popcorn for the pantograph as it works well on large blocks and is perfect for kids quilts.

I used white So Fine thread and Quilters Dream Blend batting.

Broken Dishes Quilt

This is Patty's Broken Dishes quilt which is a pattern by Julie Hendrickson.  Patty took a class with her on a quilting cruise and put this project onto her UFO list to finish this year.  She said she loves the simple designs, reproduction quilts and traditional patterns.  

Patty asked for straight line quilting on this one to give it a hand stitched feel.  That is easy to do on my longarm as I just load the quilt sideways and use my channel locks to create the straight lines.  I eyeball the spacing to just over 1/2". I only had to rip out one line as my channel lock didn't engage and I didn't notice until I was half way across the quilt.  I was wondering why the spacing was getting larger on that row! :)

The thread is a beige So Fine and batting is Quilters Dream Blend.

 

Monster Quilt

This is Irene's fun Applique Monsters Quilt and the pattern is by Wendi Gratz.   Irene asked for pebbles in the background of this wall hanging and I think that was a great choice.  

I used a light blue So Fine thread and Irene brought a poly batting.

Irene also brought a sweet baby panel quilt and I really like the piecing she did in the border, really added to the panel. She said it was a kit she bought years ago at a local shop that is now closed.

I used Bora Bora for the pantograph design, yellow So Fine thread and she brought a cotton batting.

Minnesota Stars - Highway 10 Designs Pattern #13

Now that the Minnesota Shop Hop has been over for a month we decided to publish the pattern we wrote for the Northwest Region as we had a few requests to purchase the pattern.  It is now available in paper and PDF on our Etsy shop.

We wrote the pattern so the 1/2 yard bundles shop hoppers received after visiting all 4 shops in the region could be used for this pattern.  So it is a great stash buster pattern too.  It finished in a lap size of 60" x 74".

Here is a picture of a sample hanging at Anderson Fabrics in Blackduck, MN.

On The Bright Side Quilt

This is Gail's stunning 'On The Bright Side' Quilt which she did as a Quilt Along with All People Quilt.  The pattern can be found in February 2018 issue of American Patchwork and Quilting Magazine. I also found a link to purchases it here.

I have been watching Gail make those 256 tiny 3" stars at our Tuesday Sewing Group for quite awhile now.  I was very excited to hear she finished the quilt this summer and it was coming my way to get quilted.  I love the red and white scrappy fabric she chose to make this quilt, very different from the fabrics shown on the pattern.

Gail asked that it be lightly custom quilted so I suggested CC the red squares and have free hand flowing feathers in the white areas flowing out from the center. How to quilt the tiny stars was tricky as I couldn't think of a way to quilt these continuously.  So I ended up CC in the center so that was a lot of stops and starts but so worth it.

I quilted a feather wreath in the center and then added a still extra diamond motif to fill in that space in the center.  It was too large to leave unquilted.

  This is a very large quilt,  97" x 97" and will be the last large quilt I custom quilt for a while.  I have been have a few back/shoulder issues which seem to flare up during and after I have custom quilted a quilt. So I have been turning down custom work for now as it is this time to take it a bit easier and take care of myself.  I can still do pantographs for any size quilt and will still do some custom quilting just have to be more selective as to which ones I take on.

Metro Rings

This is Diane's Metro Rings quilt, the pattern is by Sew Kind of Wonderful. ( Edited to add - The fabric line is called Gloaming by Shelley Cavanna.)  I quilted it with a pantograph called Flourish, used white So Fine thread and Quilters Dream Blend batting.

Maple Leaf Quilt

This is Vicki's King sized Maple Leaf quilt.  The pattern is called Frosted Candy by Gerri Robinson, you can find the pattern if you click here. Vicki increased the quilt pattern size from 84"x 96" to 108" x 108".  She used a lovely selection of maple leaf fabrics to create her quilt.  I used Fascination for the panto design, medium green So Fine thread and Quilters Dream Blend batting.

I was hoping to get some outdoor shots of this quilt with the changing leaves but it has been quite rainy here.  In the last 48 hours we received 65mm of rain!  The next couple of days are forecast for a brief return of some summer like weather so will enjoy that before the cool falls days are here to stay.

Winter Quilt and Garden Sighting!

This is Barb's Winter Quilt and it is made with the sweetest winter themed panels .  She framed each panel in red and used a 4 patch in a 9 patch for setting blocks.  I used Bora Bora for the pantograph design and used light grey So Fine thread.

I have been having fun taking picture in my garden, more specifically the insects in the garden.  My first discovery was a Luna Moth Caterpillar which I had never seen before. I have seen a Luna Moth before but not the caterpillar stage.

Here is the caterpillar, which is about the size of my thumb, and I've added my moth pictures from 2017 to show you it moth transformation.

Caterpillar looking right at me!

Luna Moth from 2017. Look how fuzzy and fat they are!  I have read that Luna Moth sighting are getting rarer. I am really hoping to see the final moth stage so have my eye out for it now.

Then a few days ago I had just returned home from a bike ride and  noticed a Hummingbird Moth flying around my petunias. I got out my phone and took a few pictures and videos, you can see the videos on my Instagram page. I was surprised after posting these on IG how many people had never seen one!  Yes they are a moth, but the size of a hummingbird and fly like a hummingbird.  I have never seen one this colourful before so looked it up and found out it is a White-lines Sphinx moth which is part of the Hummingbird Moth family. They are usually seen at dusk which was when I saw this one.