Black Friday Week

November 26th, 2019

Missouri Star is having a Black Friday week from 11/26-12/1/19 and they are featuring their education academy.  That means that this week, my new Missouri Star ruler work class is 50% off!!!

This class was an incredible deal at its everyday price, but now it’s literally a STEAL!  You’ll be able to finish all kinds of projects in time for holiday gift-giving once you learn how to do ruler work!  If you’re ready to take the plunge, you can get the bargain price by clicking here!

In the meantime, have a great Thanksgiving!

Online Ruler Work Class

November 22nd, 2019

I know…this is the second time I am plugging my new ruler work class with Missouri Star, but it’s REALLY, REALLY good!  You will be surprised by how quickly you’ll be able to pick up the basics and then move on to complex design work using rulers.  The video is so clear, so well lit, and so well shot that I don’t think the instructions could be any clearer than they are.  This class is a bargain at $14.99 and it is money well spent.  I would take it myself if I didn’t already know how to do it!

Even basic straight line ruler work can be transformative to a quilt, and it’s an easy way to highlight a special portion of your quilt and draw the viewer’s eye to exactly where you want it to be!  Don’t even get me started about ruler work curves:

Need I say more?!!  What are you waiting for?!! You can sign up for the class by clicking here.

Latest Quilt I’m Working On

November 17th, 2019

I’m finishing up the quilting for my current hospice donation.  I am madly in love with the background fabric on this quilt.  It’s a shade between blue and purple so I am calling it “blurple.”  It is rich and contrasts really nicely with the vivid colors in the Kaffe Fasset fabrics in the center.  Here’s a shot of it on my machine bed as I’m working on that swirly plumette background:

 

I am a real sucker for having blues and reds/oranges next to one another.  That dramatic contrast just thrills me.  Here is a closer up shot of the background fill design I’m adding to the center section:

 

 

I try to be kind of “light-handed” in adding pebbles between the swirled plumettes.  I do that partly because I don’t like to see large expanses of pebbles and also because this is meant to be a snuggly quilt, not a wall quilt, and pebbles really flatten a quilt.  If you haven’t tried to stitch swirled plumettes yet and want to give it a shot, here’s a video Ern and I made awhile back to show how to do it:

 

 

…and here’s a shot of the wider borders on the outside.  I love quilting these feathers that are tightly curling around in circular formats:

 

 

I’ll post shots of the final quilt once the whole thing is done, but I won’t have a chance to work on this baby again until next weekend.  (Bummer!)

Day #3 of the Fall Craft Fair

November 12th, 2019

It’s day # 3 of the handmade craft fair and Ernie’s handmade items are one of the featured vendor “booths.”  If you aren’t familiar with Ernie or his wares, he’s the hubster and a wonderful woodworker/lathe turner.  He’s made all kinds of sewing/quilting related items for me over the years and here are some examples of items he sells in our online store:

These are beautiful key chains that hold mini- screw driver tips and a stiletto tip inside.  I keep one right by my sewing machine and I can change out my ruler foot lickety-split!  The stiletto tip comes in handy when a finger is just too big to do the job.  Ern can make these in a wide variety of colors and you can find them in our online store by clicking here.

 

Aren’t these ruler holders beautiful?  Ern makes these from a variety of hardwoods and then adds interest by adding some cool inlay designs.  You can have the channels routed for cutting ruler thickness or a little wider to hold 1/4 inch thick machine quilting rulers…just let him know what you’d like!  You can find more about his ruler holders by clicking here.

Next up are these thread racks.  I keep one next to each of my embroidery machines and I use them every day!  I love, love, LOVE the beautiful inlay designs as shown below:

You can find out more about the thread racks by clicking here.

This next item is another acrylic that is turned on the lathe, which means they come in all different kinds of gorgeous colors.  These are seam rippers and/or stilettos:

The picture above shows one that is both a seam ripper and stiletto that is in the “closed position.  This next shot shows the 2-headed instrument with both “business ends” exposed:

(In reality, you would only expose one side at a time so as not to injure yourself!)  You can also get a seam ripper or stiletto all by itself, and here’s a shot of what that might look like:

You can also have him make you a seam ripper on a chain-think how convenient that would be!  Here’s a shot of one of those:

You can find out all about all of these options by clicking here.

Ern also makes items that are great gifts but have nothing to do with sewing.  I love the beautiful colors in his ice cream scoops:

…and you can find out about those by clicking here.  He also makes a wide variety of acrylic turned pen/stylus combos:

…and you can find out about them by clicking here.  He also makes hand turned touch styluses by themselves, like the one below:

…and you can find out about them by clicking here.

I am one lucky woman to be married to this guy, but you can reap the benefit of his woodworking/turning skills as well.  Click here to see all of Ern’s hand made items!

But wait, there’s more!  Ern’s gifts are not the only featured vendor booth today!  Make sure you check out all the other vendors featured today and here is the full line up:

On top of that, Quiltshopgal has lined up sponsors for each day of the fall craft fair, and you ca enter to win some great prizes!  Click here to get to quiltshopgal’s site where you can enter to win some of these wonderful prizes!

Exciting Announcement – New Online Ruler Class!

November 12th, 2019

 

If you’re a quilter, you know that ruler-guided free motion quilting is all the rage!  Creating beautiful curves and straight line designs is fast, easy, and EXACT when you’re able to trace along the edge of a ruler or template.

 

 

 

Ruler work breathed new life into my quilting when I learned how to do it, and now I love teaching others how to do it as well.  If you haven’t been able to travel to take a class with me, fear no more, as Missouri Star Quilt Company is now launching my beginner level ruler work class online!

 

 

 

This means you’ll be able to learn on your schedule, in the comfort and privacy of your own sewing room, and I’ll be right there with you!  You’ll be able to work at your own pace and pause the class so that you can practice in real time, when the information and instruction is fresh in your mind.  On top of that, there is no dress code…come in your jammies!

 

 

 

 

Learn basic ruler work skills and then learn how to transform those basic skills to build even more complex designs.  The sky’s the limit with ruler work!

 

 

 

 

If you’re on the fence and want an idea of what the class is all about, check out this trailer video and you’ll get an idea of what’s to come:

 

 

 

 

Ready to try it out your self?  Click here and you’ll be taken to the class page on the Missouri Star website where you can join in on the fun!