Kaleidoscope Collection for EQ8

 Over the past few weeks I've had the chance to play with a new add-on to the Electric Quilt software (EQ8), called the Kaleidoscope Collection Two. 

It includes over 500 kaleidoscope-style quilt blocks that you can edit, recolor, and customize to your heart's content. 

Here's the first block I made using the block pattern called "K2 Compass 11 Star Corners". 

I made this 14" quilt block and I'm planning on adding a border, quilting it and then hanging it on my wall as a mini quilt. My sewing room walls are SO bare right now!

Little Loves Quilt

Hello friends - today I'm sharing a quick little project I stitched up last week. It's a new free quilt pattern from The Fat Quarter Shop called Little Loves.

It's just four quilt blocks plus a pieced top and bottom border so I was able to get the top sewn up in just one day. 

For the fabrics I chose a few prints from the Laguna Sunrise fabric line. 

Laguna Sunrise was designed by Sherri & Chelsi for Moda Fabrics. The full line includes some other colors - purples, greens, and coral to name a few. But I chose just the reds and this delightful, minty aqua color to use in my quilt. And I love how they look together!

Skipper Quilt Pattern Updated

Lately I've been working on updating one of my older patterns, and I'm happy to be able to share the new Skipper pattern with you today

The Skipper pattern was first released back in 2017 as a fat quarter pattern with a unique star block. 

This fun Skipper star block came to be when I was playing around with my Division pattern and wanted to take some of those elements and apply them to a star block....and Skipper was born.

A New Fast Track quilt in Batik Fabrics

Did you know that Riley Blake Designs now offers batik fabrics? I don't sew a lot with batiks - in fact I think I've only made one quilt so far that included batik fabrics (so this one is now #2!)

But recently the kind folks at Riley Blake Designs sent me a 10" stacker from their Express Yourself Ombre line and I used it to make this throw sized Fast Track quilt.

Fast Track patterns can be purchased here

At first I was a little intimidated about sewing with a new type of fabric but the only change I made was to swap out my regular sewing machine needle for a Schmetz Microtex sharp one (I use these). And I found that I liked that one better for my regular quilting fabrics as well so I left it in and it's now my preferred needle.  

Batik fabrics press so beautifully! I love how crisp the pressed block is. And these jewel toned colors are so vibrant and lovely together.

Juice Pops quilt pattern

Introducing the Juice Pops pattern! Juice Pops is a precut friendly quilt pattern that brings those Summertime vibes with fun and easy popsicle quilt blocks.

The Juice Pops quilt first appeared in Quilter's World magazine and was designed to be a charm pack quilt. But ever since then I've been really wanting to add more size options and more fabric options to the pattern and offer it in my shop.

The pattern now has FIVE sizes and five fabric options, and uses quick strip piecing for the popsicle handles to help speed up block construction.

You can find the Juice Pops quilt pattern in my shop with both PDF (downloadable) and paper pattern options

Runway Quilt Pattern

I'm excited to be able to share the new Runway quilt pattern with you today!

Runway is a quick and easy, precut friendly pattern that includes five fabric options and seven size options - so it's super versatile! And the pattern uses quick piecing techniques to make this quilt sew up fast.

Purchase Runway patterns (both PDF and paper copies available) here

Announcing the Summer Block Party Quilt Along

Who is ready for a fun and low-stress Summer project? Announcing the Summer Block Party quilt along!

WHAT: Join us in creating a breezy Summer quilt with blocks designed by some of your favorite designers! This will be a mystery quilt of sorts, with the blocks and the final layout being revealed along the way. 

WHEN: Starting Monday June 17 through July 31, 2024

• Each day for 9 days we will email you a PDF pattern for a free 12" Summer quilt block.

• On June 26th we will send you finishing instructions to turn your blocks into a 44" x 58" quilt.

• The fun doesn't stop there! Each Friday in July we will send you free BONUS projects to make with your 12" blocks.

• Sew at your own pace through the Summer!

HOW TO JOIN: It's free to join! Sign up to receive the daily email with the PDF patterns...AND the bonus projects. 

• You only need to sign up once with one designer to get the blocks (All designers will be sending out the same patterns each day).

• Following the completion of the Summer Block Party, you will be subscribed to each of the participating designers' newsletters which are free - and you can easily unsubscribe anytime. 

WHO: Here's the list of designers for the QAL. It's a fun group and I can't wait for you to see the blocks and bonus projects that we've designed!

Amanda Niederhauser  Jedi Craft Girl  @jedicraftgirl

Amy Chappell  Ameroonie Designs  @amerooniedesigns

Amy Smart  Diary of A Quilter  @diaryofaquilter

Andy Knowlton  A Bright Corner  @abrightcorner

Bev McCullough  Flamingo Toes  @flamingotoes

Jen Belnap  The Smitten Chicken  @thesmittenchicken 

Jennifer Long  Sew A Story  @sewastory_jenniferlong

Melissa Mortensen  The Polkadot Chair  @polkadotchair

FABRICS:

We will be using the following fabrics for our blocks, but feel free to use whatever you'd like!

All fabrics listed are from Riley Blake Designs and each block pattern will use the following names to identify fabrics (bold names):

• Background fabric (Stars Seasonal Basic or Riley White)
• Dark Blue (Oxford Blue solid)
• Blue (Cadet solid)
• Medium Blue (Cornflower solid)
• Light Blue (Boy Blue solid)
• Dark Red (Barn Red solid)
• Red (Schoolhouse solid)
• Light Red (Tea Rose solid)
• Pink (Frosting solid)

For those that sign up there's a helpful information sheet PDF available that has the schedule, the QAL details, fabric requirements, and a handy planner sheet so you can plan out your own fabrics.

Remember - the free block patterns can only be accessed by signing up for the QAL; the blocks won't be shared here on my blog. Sign up to receive the block patterns and bonus projects, and we'll get started on Monday June 17th!

edited to add: sign ups are now closed and the quilt along for 2024 has ended. Thank you to everyone who participated!