Rainy Day

This is our latest Quilt design, Rainy Day. I just love it! I am going to try to steal it for myself to hang on the wall in my daughters room. It is mostly applique, with only pieced borders to add a little scrappy fun. The finished quilt is 48″ X 60″, perfect for a little ones bed or to hang as I want to do. We used the Apliquick tools and machine applique for this quilt, check out our tutorial if you would like to give them a try. Remember April showers bring May flowers!

Click this link to order a pattern or kit.

Apliquick Tools Tutorial

Isn’t this block fabulous!? We made it using a few new tools that we are carrying & loving! We think you will like them too! So we have created a quick tutorial on how to use the Apliquick products. These tools will help you turn the edges over,with ease,for fabulous applique on even the tiniest of shapes. Whether your are doing Applique by machine or hand, when the edges are turned under accurately, it looks just beautiful, and your Quilts will last long enough to become heirlooms. And who doesn’t want beautiful applique results!? Follow the link below to download out tutorial:

Apliquick Tutorial

With a little bit of practice, tiny applique images like the ones we made above from the Story Quilt Books will be simple for you. We are making a Winter Theme applique quilt that incorporates this little girl & dog. Stay tuned! We think its going to be fabulous!

We sell the Apliquick products online, they are less expensive in a set that includes everything you need to get started or we also sell everything separately. Click here to order.

Story Quilts

If you love hand applique like we do , you will love these Story Quilts books from Yukari Takahara. Each book is absolutely stuffed with amazing images to applique and amazing quilt ideas. Children, babies, animals. holidays and seasons are the subjects in both books. We are currently obsessed! We think you will be too. We sold out of our first order in one class, the next order will be here next week. Click the link below to order one or both for your self.

Story Quilts Books

Perfect Applique Circles

We are going to share with you our favorite method to get perfect circles when you applique. The ones above, look pretty perfect, don’t they?! This is the method we use, to prepare the circles to be stitched down, whether it is by hand or machine. We like methods that have some sort of helper, we call them “training wheel” methods, they give you a GREAT result, with some help. For this method our helper is going to be vellum. Vellum is a see through, paper, but it actually isn’t a paper, its made from a different substance. You will need a sheet of vellum, a hole punch, some fabric, a glue stick, hand quilting thread, a straw needle and some scissors to do this.

Here we go!

You will need to get a hole punch that is the exact size, that you want your circle to be. Punch a circle from your vellum and adhere the circle to the wrong (back) side of your fabric with a fabric glue stick.

Thread the needle with your quilting thread. Stitch a tiny running stitch around your circle a scant 1/8” from the edge of the vellum circle with the wrong side facing you.

When you have gone all around, bring your needle to the right side. Trim the excess fabric to 1/8” from stitching line.

Pull the thread tight and do a little back stitch to hold your hand stitching in place.

That’s it! Now you can glue your circle into place on your background and either hand stitch with an applique stitch or use a machine applique stitch. You will just leave the velum in, it helps to keep your circle looking perfect and as the quilt is used and washed it will just soften and you won’t even notice it’s there.

See with “Training Wheels” Applique is not so scary! We LOVE Applique and want you to as well!

Sneak Peek of The Piper’s Girls Row by Row

This is a Sneak Peek Introduction to our very first Piper’s Girls Row by Row quilt. We have been working on this quilt and all of it’s designs for a while so it is really exciting to finally share it with you. We designed this quilt to be a work in progress, hopefully you can keep up with us and make a row every month. At the end of the year you will have a stunning quilt that you will cherish forever and will be on another level of quilting expertise. Each row is designed to teach you a new quilting skill, so row by row you will become a better quilter. This quilt will be fit a Twin Size bed when completed.

So what do you think? Would you like to quilt along with us Row by Row?

We hope you will join along with us on this quilting adventure!

Sleepytime is here!

This is Sleepytime! I think it is my very favorite baby quilt, EVER! And that is saying a lot! This quilt combines simple patchwork with adorable little sleepy animals that are appliqued into their beds. The border is a beautiful scallop that is also the binding as it comes around from the back. We used a beautiful Irish Linen that is included in our kits. Jeanette also hand quilted this little lovely to make it extra special. You can purchase just the pattern or a kit through the links below. So, what do you think?

Sleepytime Pattern

** Sleepytime is also now available in a Instant Download PDF Pattern!!

Sleepytime Kit with Irish Linen and Pre-cut squares!