Lovely Day

Lovely Day, April 2026

Springtime colors of blue and violet with light gray give this wall hanging a peaceful vibe. I love how the curves and contrasts create circular movement.

Winding Ways is one of the first dies that I bought and is still one of my favorites. I did all the piecing on Rockette, my 1962 Model Singer 500-A Slant-O-Matic Rocketeer. Perfect stitches and a fabulous looking machine!

Moving over to the Janome to quilt, I followed the curves with a walking foot using light blue thread, then stitched free motion loops around the borders.

Lovely Day finished at 39” x 47” size, and is currently featured on the wall in my sewing studio where I can enjoy it every day. I adore creating beautiful things with fabric and my collection of new & vintage machines.

Accuquilt dies used:

55069 Winding Ways 8” block
55017 Strips 2½” binding

Katie Loves Flowers

Katie Loves Flowers, July 2026

I just finished this quilt on Saturday and couldn't wait to share with you. I absolutely love these bright colored flowers. It's my current favorite.

This pretty block is a vintage Laura Wheeler pattern from the 1930's and 40's, originally called America's Pride. I sent a request to Norma Grimmer at Blue Wren in Australia to build me a custom die, and it's now in their catalog under the name Oopsy Daisy. 

It sews together beautifully, and I didn't even have to pin those curves! I did the piecing on Bogart (Bogie), a 1942 model Singer 99, a blackside model with the wrinkle finish. Such a smooth running machine with precise stitches, link to read his restoration story.

For quilting I switched to the Janome, using white thread to outline those sweet curves, then serpentine stitches across the block seam lines. 

Katie Loves Flowers was created with fat quarters and remnants, plus fresh white muslin and a black weave print. It's the perfect snuggle size at 48” square.

Dies used:
Blue Wren 6816 Oopsy Daisy 12” block
Accuquilt 55017 Strips 2½” binding

Breezy

Inspiration and ideas have been coming from everywhere for me lately. I had a great time going through remnants and scrap baskets to make this cheerful little quilt. I wanted bright clear colors to contrast with the black weaver print background.

Curved designs are some of my favorites, and this Blue Wren die makes them easy to stitch. I cut all the pieces right side up in order to arrange the four patch blocks in this way. Adding the setting triangles made the block sit on point.

I quilted with white thread using a serpentine stitch and walking foot along the seam lines. The quilt finished out at 45” square. Breezy seemed like a good name because of the fan-like effect. I finished it in January when it was cold, icy, and snowy.

Speaking of precipitation, Tennessee has had plenty of crazy weather this year, especially last week. Last Sunday was a balmy 75° with thunderstorms that brought hail, tornado warnings, and high winds. By early Monday morning it was 21° and snowed most of the day, enough that I made snow cream for lunch. Wednesday it was 72° and sunny. Yesterday's 86° was near a record high, with blue clear skies. 

Whew, Mother Nature is either throwing a hissy fit, or just showing off.  

Dies used:

Blue Wren 6633 Wave Peak 4” block

Accuquilt 55399 Quarter Square Triangles 8”

Rolling Along

What a fun quilt to make! I've seen this die but didn't realize it had been discontinued. I was lucky to find a new one in original packaging on Facebook Marketplace a couple of weeks ago. Thanks Marilyn! 

This block is easy to sew and the curves stitch up beautifully. I started with the black batik, then picked teal, lime, and cream fabric out of my stash to give a clear contrast in the circles.

After adding backing and batting, I quilted with khaki thread across the circles with 3 lines of ruler stitching in waves. Once that was done, I added free motion stitching on the cream sections.

Rolling Along finished at 48” square. I've already designed a few more color combinations in EQ8. It will make an adorable baby quilt.

By the way, how did it get to be September already? 

Accuquilt dies used:
55452 Local Color by Bill Kerr
55017 Strips 2½” binding

 

Color Me Curvy

Color Me Curvy

How's this for a curvy project? There's not a straight seam in this quilt.

Joseph's Coat design has been around for decades, traditionally hand cut, hand stitched and hand quilted. Not me. I cut with Blue Wren's die, pieced with Violet, my Singer 99 and quilted using my Janome MC9450.

I stayed with tradition by using colorful scraps and vintage muslin. I keep thinking the remnant boxes should be decreasing, but they are still full.

I took my time sewing and carefully pressing those curves. Joining the sections was tricky and I used Jack (the seam ripper) a few times. I ended up with a few bumpy intersections but everything lies flat. You can't see imperfections from 3 feet away, so it's good enough for me.

Quilting with a walking foot and off-white thread, I outlined all the circles with the edge of the foot on the seam line. It created a lovely allover pattern. I used a bias binding because of the scalloped edges.

Color Me Curvy measures 46” x 51” finished size. It took longer to sew because you just can't hurry if you want good results. I also spent extra time rearranging the pieces on my design wall to balance colors and separate duplicate fabrics. Even so, I missed a couple.

I'll make this one again later, probably a tablecloth, bed runner, or baby quilt.

Dies used:
Blue Wren 6854 Joseph's Coat 11½”
Accuquilt 55017 Strips 2½” binding