Love Boldly Pattern Release / Beauties Pageant 112

I’m thrilled to announce the release of my latest pattern: Love Boldly!

I designed these two-tone hearts back in 2019 for the stripes challenge at QuiltCon 2020. Even once Love Boldly was displayed at the show, however, I couldn’t say goodbye. So I revisited the design and streamlined the construction to make sewing the block faster. (The new-and-improved construction requires less than half of the pieces of the original!) 

Size Options

The pattern provides instructions for three quilt sizes: baby, small throw, and large throw. But if you’re game for a single block—perhaps for use in a pillow or tote bag—there are fabric requirements and instructions for that, too.

Skill Level

Love Boldly is an intermediate pattern. Why? The way I consolidated the construction process is by sewing flying geese blocks, cutting them down, and then resewing them. It’s not rocket science, but it helps to have some good experience under your belt. (If you’re more of a beginner, I recommend my Warm and Cool Coin Quilt or Ridiculously Easy Jelly Roll Quilt as more suitable patterns for you.)

The technique doesn’t require as much precision as you’d think. First of all, there is just one set of points to match in the entire block. And if you make a cutting mistake, I’ve got you covered: The pattern includes a row-by-row breakdown so you can remedy any rotary-blade snafus.

Bonus Block

The pattern also includes an American flag heart block, just for fun. I plan to use the version I posted last week in a pillow.

Love Boldly is available in my Etsy shop. I have a lot more to share with you about this pattern ... My testing crew sewed some beautiful samples, but I will save those for another Friday post. : )

I hope you all are doing well and have been having fun at your sewing machines. Got a finish this week? Please share it with everyone in the linky below. Thanks!

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• Post your finish in the linky tool. (No links to your own giveaway or linky, please!)
• Point your readers back here with a text link or use the button above.
• Visit and comment on other participants’ finishes.

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A Long Time Coming / Beauties Pageant 111

Hello and happy new year! I hope you are doing well and staying healthy and finding some time to create at your sewing machine these days.

I’m starting to plot out my sewing goals for the the next few months, and it feels good to plan. I intend to finish my Gypsy Wife quilt (finally). I am going to design and sew new window treatments for my kitchen (not fun, but necessary). And I will release my Love Boldly pattern (see some pics here). That last one is imminent. After all, a quilt featuring stripey hearts needs to be sent into the world in time for Valentine’s Day sewing!

When I first decided to write and sell patterns, I thought the process would be pretty straightforward. It would probably go something like this: design a quilt, make the quilt, write and design the pattern, release the pattern. That should take just a month or two, right?

Love Boldly’s journey has been much longer. It was more like this:

* Summer 2019: I design and make a quilt for a QuiltCon challenge.

* February 2020: That quilt is shown at QuiltCon Austin.

* March 2020: The world shuts down, and I pretend to have an education degree for my two elementary-age kids. This continues through June. It isn’t pretty.

* July 2020: I start writing the pattern and then stop because I can’t think or write coherently with my children in the house. 

* September 2020: I start writing again and realize I need to learn a vector-graphic program. I teach myself said program.

* October 2020: Life comes to a stop as my family gets sick because even a simple cold isn’t simple during Covid.

* November 2020: I design a bonus block to include with the main Love Boldly pattern. (See the picture at the top of the post.)

* December 2020: I finish the pattern and send it off for editing and testing. (Amen! Alleluia!)

Now, that’s much longer than a month or two, but I think the lengthy timeline will make the pattern release that much sweeter. 

Update: Love Boldly is now available in my Etsy shop! Thanks for all the love for the design and encouragement to wrap up the pattern!

What have you been up to? We would love to see your finishes from the past month. Go ahead, post one, two, three—whatever you’ve squared away in the past month!

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The pageant rules are simple:

• Post your finish in the linky tool. (No links to your own giveaway or linky, please!)
• Point your readers back here with a text link or use the button above.
• Visit and comment on other participants’ finishes.

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Elephant Caravan Quilt / Beauties Pageant 110

 

It’s been such a weird year, quilty friends, and I’ve been celebrating every accomplishment I can. Some days, that could be getting showered and dressed before I walk my son out to the school van. Other days, it’s having the emotional wherewithal to exercise even though I would rather not or to clean my house even though no one but my family will see it to appreciate it (and let’s face it: I live with three boys who will not appreciate it). Today my accomplishment is a finish that I’m calling Elephant Caravan.

 

It’s a simple design with good-size blocks, and I was thankful to find this design in my copy of Fat Quarterly Shape Workshop for Quilters. The pattern, called Cub Crawl, was designed by John Q. Adams, aka Quilt Dad. (BTW: What happened to him? He seemed to fall off the face of the modern-quilting world a few years ago after writing multiple books and being an integral part of the Fat Quarterly team.)

I honestly don’t know what I would have sewn if I hadn’t stumbled upon this pattern. I had a bundle of Birch Organics fabrics to build this quilt around, and I wanted to feature the elephants without chopping them up too much. The long rectangular blocks were the perfect solution, and I easily fleshed out the fabric pull with other bits from the Birch bundle as well as solids and geometrics from my scraps and stash. Discerning eyes will see some of Zen Chic’s Comma collection and Bonnie and Camille’s Miss Kate line, all oldies but goodies. : )

I finished off the project with more Miss Kate on the back, simple diagonal quilting, and a Grunge binding with fabric left over from this project.

Have you finished a project this week? Share your triumphs—quilt related and otherwise!—in the linky and comments below. 

 

Before I sign off, I have a few housekeeping items to address ...

 

Next Beauties Pageant on January 8

 

Because Christmas and New Year’s Day fall on the next two Fridays, I won’t be posting another Beauties Pageant until the first Friday in 2021. But save up those finishes—we will want to hear all about them on January 8!

Follow Me On ...

 

* * *

The pageant rules are simple:

• Post your finish in the linky tool. (No links to your own giveaway or linky, please!)
• Point your readers back here with a text link or use the button above.
• Visit and comment on other participants’ finishes.

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter