Announcing the “Blogger’s Bar Hop Quiltalong”

Last year, a bunch of my bloggy friends got together and we shared our ideas with you during the Quilt-Uberfest Quiltalong—check out those great blocks here and here.  This year, some of those same bloggers and a bunch of new friends have returned for this autumn’s Blue Nickel Quiltalong.  This year we are focusing on using rectangles in our blocks and after much cleverness searching we came up with this title:  the blogger’s Bar Hop Quiltalong.

Now lest we offend some of you along the way with our reference to a Bar Hop, let us all remember that Bars come in all varieties.  Tavern/Pub bars, yes, but also: Candy Bars, Snack Bars, Breakfast Bars, Sand Bars, Tea Bars (okay, that would be a Tea House, I know…..) Ice Cream Bars, Behind Bars, etc.   So pick YOUR favorite Bar and Hop along with us!

The fabric we are featuring has been generously supplied by Clothworks from theirEuropean Taupe VIII collection by Kinkame.  Soft, subtle, and maybe just a little more “traditional” in tone.  We have fourteen bloggers with styles ranging from very modern to the somewhat more traditional side of the quilting street. We believe the “wall” that sometimes comes up between quilters on those lines should be torn down, so that is part of why the collection has been chosen. If you choose to make your blocks out totally modern or totally traditional, they will work just fine.  We love to see the variety of blocks that emerge from these quiltalongs!

Each designer was given four fat quarters from the collection and told they could add one solid and one print of their choice OR two solids and that was it. The other requirement was that they had to use at least one rectangle (bar) in the block  somewhere.  The blocks will all finish to a useful 12” x 12” size.  Feel free to post your blocks here as you hop along with us!

Here’s the line up!

October 1 Amy Ellis

October 2 Lynn Harris   

October 3   Heather Jones    

October 4   Jackie Kunkel    

October 5 Ashley Jones

October 6  Emily Cier 

October 7 Scott Hansen

October 8 Jan Peoples

October 9 April Rosenthal

October 10 Amy Lobsiger

October 11  Cara Quilts

October 12   Konda Luckau

October 13  Alethea Ballard

October 14 Charlie Scott

Hope to see you on the Hop!

Until next time,

Sew Red for Women - Repost from P2

Below you will find the post from Patchwork Squared.  Sorry for any inconvenience this might of caused.

I am very happy to be a part of the Sew Red for Women Blog Hop.  I hope that it will call attention to heart disease and maybe even save a life. 

Heart disease is the leading cause of death of women in the U.S. Almost every minute, a woman in the U.S. dies from heart disease. Nearly five times as many women (200,000) will die from heart attacks alone this year than will die from breast cancer.

Although many people think of heart disease as a man's problem, women can and do get heart disease. In fact, heart disease is the number one killer of women in the United States. It is also a leading cause of disability among women.

The most common cause of heart disease is narrowing or blockage of the coronary arteries, the blood vessels that supply blood to the heart itself. This is called coronary artery disease and happens slowly over time. It's the major reason people have heart attacks. Prevention is important: two-thirds of women who have a heart attack fail to make a full recovery.

The older a woman gets, the more likely she is to get heart disease. But women of all ages should be concerned about heart disease. All women can take steps to prevent it by practicing healthy lifestyle habits.

You can significantly reduce your risk of heart disease if you have the information you need, know the questions to ask your health provider and have the support to make heart-smart changes in your life.

Without further ado, I give you our block entitled:

Woven Strip 

For this block you will need:

• Four 3 ½” squares of strip fabric & white fabric (Chem 37102-13 & Bella 9900-97)
• One 3 ½” x 6 ½” rectangle of pink, light, medium & dark red.  (Bella 9900-140, 9900-27, 9900-199 & 9900-16)

Instructions:

Use a scant ¼” inch seam allowance throughout

• Sew the four 3 ½” squares to the white 3 ½” squares
• Press seams toward the stripe fabric

• Sew the above rectangles to each of the Bella 3 ½” x 6 ½” rectangles.
• Press seams toward sold Bella fabric.

• Lay out the four pieces as shown above.  Flip right vertical row into left vertical row and sew.  
• Turn and sew remaining row together.
• Press seams toward sold Bella fabric forming a small four patch in the center. 
• Trim to 12 ½” 
• Enjoy your new block!

Remember to post your block to the Sew Red for Women Flickr Group

If you have any questions let me know.

Until next time,

Sew Red for Women Blog Hop

We are very happy to be a part of the Sew Red for Women Blog Hop.  We hope that it will call attention to heart disease and maybe even save a life. 

Heart disease is the leading cause of death of women in the U.S. Almost every minute, a woman in the U.S. dies from heart disease. Nearly five times as many women (200,000) will die from heart attacks alone this year than will die from breast cancer.

Although many people think of heart disease as a man's problem, women can and do get heart disease. In fact, heart disease is the number one killer of women in the United States. It is also a leading cause of disability among women.

The most common cause of heart disease is narrowing or blockage of the coronary arteries, the blood vessels that supply blood to the heart itself. This is called coronary artery disease and happens slowly over time. It's the major reason people have heart attacks. Prevention is important: two-thirds of women who have a heart attack fail to make a full recovery.

The older a woman gets, the more likely she is to get heart disease. But women of all ages should be concerned about heart disease. All women can take steps to prevent it by practicing healthy lifestyle habits.

You can significantly reduce your risk of heart disease if you have the information you need, know the questions to ask your health provider and have the support to make heart-smart changes in your life.

Without further ado, we give you our block entitled:

Woven Strip 

For this block you will need:

• Four 3 ½” squares of strip fabric & white fabric (Chem 37102-13 & Bella 9900-97)
• One 3 ½” x 6 ½” rectangle of pink, light, medium & dark red.  (Bella 9900-140, 9900-27, 9900-199 & 9900-16)

Instructions:

Use a scant ¼” inch seam allowance throughout

• Sew the four 3 ½” squares to the white 3 ½” squares
• Press seams toward the stripe fabric

• Sew the above rectangles to each of the Bella 3 ½” x 6 ½” rectangles.
• Press seams toward sold Bella fabric.

• Lay out the four pieces as shown above.  Flip right vertical row into left vertical row and sew.  
• Turn and sew remaining row together.
• Press seams toward sold Bella fabric forming a small four patch in the center. 
• Trim to 12 ½” 
• Enjoy your new block!

Remember to post your block to the Sew Red for Women Flickr Group

Until next time,

Sew Red for Women

Welcome to the Sew Red for Women blog hop.  I'm excited to be apart of this great cause.     


Thanks to Ryan Walsh for coming up with this awesome block.  He has entitled it 

Woven Strip

You may find a tutorial for the block on our joint site Patchwork Squared.

Until next time,

Tying Up Loose Ends.

We here at Qubee Quilts have been busy.  The sun is shining and it seems all signs of that nasty depression is gone for now.  After hearing from many of you, it seems I'm not alone and it's only seasonal.   Thank you for your continued support.  Just knowing someone out there cares and that I am not alone has really helped.

I have gotten my quilting groove back and got my butt in gear.  I'm running on all cylinders as they say.   I hope to have a few more finished goodies to share in the next few days.

Here is the Gum Wrapper Quilt finished with quilting by the talented Thomas.

Backing of Quilt

If you will remember this is the quilt and fabric that you, the readers, chose as the quilt that Qubee Quilts was going to raffle off with all the money going to AIDS Walk Kansas City.

The winner of this great quilt is Jan.

Jan, be on the look out for an E-mail from us.

Thanks to everyone who gave money for AIDS Walk Kansas City.  We could have not have done it without you.

Until next time,

Let The Sun Shine In

I would like to show you a quilt that Thomas made for a good friend of his as a graduation gift.  It's entitled "Let the Sun Shine in" and is 100% made by Thomas himself. He did have me put on the the binding for him, but I'm o.k. with saying that he made this whole quilt himself.

If you are looking for some one to quilt your quilts then Thomas is available to quilt them for you.  Please contact us at QubeeQuiltskc (at) gmail.com with questions or check the link above for more info.  Were here to help your quilt become a masterpiece.

The winner of the Put Some Charm In Your Quilts book by Connie Kauffman is Sunni.  Congratulations!

Until next time,

Curves to Quilt

Remember this quilt that I had published last February in Quilters World Magazine?  

Quilter's World Magazine: February 2011, quilt pattern "Oh Lollipop" on page 69

It has now been republished in a book from Leisure Arts called "Curves to Quilt" and is the cover quilt.

I knew nothing about this book before I saw it in Jo-Ann's as I was perusing the quilt books looking for new ideas.

You might ask, "how could I not know the book was coming out?" You see when I had the pattern published I signed a paper stating that holding company of Quilters World could use the pattern in any way they saw fit and in return I would be credited as the designer.

It's an honor to have my name in yet another book and the cover to boot.

To see my other works that have been published click on the QQ Press page.

See you at Market!!!!!

Until next time,

Feeling Blue

Depression: a mental state characterized by a pessimistic sense of inadequacy and a despondent lack of activity.

It was one year ago at the end of March that I was in the hospital with pneumonia and that along with other things have been weighing on my mind as of late.  It has gotten to the point to where I just want to come home and sleep for hours on end.  12 plus hours to be exact.  Plus, I have given up on my art of quilting.  I just don't seem to care any longer. I felt like no matter what I do I am not good enough or that no one seems to even care what happens.  When I think I have done my best people just tell me that was good, but you can do better or we need more.    It like pulling on a rubber band and seeing how long you can stretch it before it breaks.   They don't seem to realize that we all have a breaking point and I have hit mine. I have receded into myself and want to give up on the things in life that mean the most to me.  

Good thing that I have a loving person in my life that has seen the signs in my life and had the forethought to get me medical attention.  The doctor has put me on medication.  I guess I really should say upped the medication that I was already on.  My doctor also wanted me to go and see a therapist, but I am the type person that will tell them just what they want to hear and they will think that I have gotten better, when in reality I am just as bad, if not worse than I was before.  

Today I have made a breakthrough in my eyes that is.  It might just be a small one, but it is a step in the right direction.  I have taken the Salt Air by Cosmo Cricket for Moda Fabrics layer cake I've had laying around and decided that I would cut it up in hopes of making a quilt.  I still have a few more pieces that I need to cut, before I can begin sewing it into Reveille by Carrie Nelson of Miss Rosie's Quilts.  I love her patterns and I have a soft spot in my heart for her. I am glad that she is able to help me get out of my funk.

Just writing this post has also been a step in the right direction, but I guess that could go without saying.  Guess I had better get off this computer get another cup of coffee and get back to cutting out my quilt pieces while I still have the desire to do so.  Thomas told me once I have every thing cut out he would help me piece it  together.  He really does love me.

I hope that each and every one of you have a blessed and Happy Easter!!

Until next time,

Cutwork The Easy Way!

Many of you asked how my Diamond DeLuxe was able to cut out my applique leaves in my last post.  You thought it was just a sewing and embroidery machine, but it's so much more than that.  

Cutwork Needles from Inspira.

One of the newer innovations in home embroidery is cutwork needles. These specialty cutting needles along with specifically digitized designs make it possible to create beautiful cutwork or applique projects on your embroidery machine while your machine does all the fabric cutting. No scissors needed- what a treat! 

We used the  5D embroidery software to create the leave pattern then let the Diamond DeLuxe do all the cutting for us.  

If you would like to learn more about the cutwork needles from Husqvarna Viking then here is a great you tube video.  

Cutwork samples made on the embroidery machine

You may still enter the St. Patrick's Day Giveaway  until Sunday, March 25th.

Until next time,

St. Patrick's Day Giveaway

Welcome blog hop party people!!!

What do 144 fabric leaves look like, you ask?

This is 144 leaves.

I cut them out with my Diamond DeLuxe last night and it only took me 15 mins.  Think how long it would have been if I did not have this machine.  I love her. Now I need to work them up into a quilt.  I think I have enough for a few quilts.  

Is everyone getting ready for St. Patrick's day and green beer?   This house hold is ready.  Kansas City has one of the largest St. Patrick's parades in the Midwest.  We even are having a few friends come spend the night just so they might go to the Parade.     

One of us has to work and the other will be out enjoying the fun while having green beer.  I hope everyone has a great St. Patrick's day.  

I thought in honor of the day I would post a little giveaway of a book that I was asked to review.  It is entitled Put Some Charm in your Quilts by Connie Kauffman.

Pre-cuts are all the rage and Connie Kauffman brings you her own style for using them. Put Some Charm in Your Quilts has options for traditional and paper-piecing. A book totally dedicated to the use of charms and to a wide variety of project sizes, it will be the book quilters use again and again. If a gift is needed in a hurry, this is where to find it. These patterns lend themselves to any fabric or style. And best of all, quilters will likely have the fabric on hand when needed. Includes 9 charm projects with options for traditional and for paper piecing.

Jack - in - the Box 

Mystic Garden

These are two of my favorite quilts from the book and Connie makes them  super easy with detailed step by step instructions.  I might just have to make a bed runner for myself as they are becoming the rage.  Anyone else notice the awesome Moda fabric used in both the quilts?  Maybe that is why I love them so much.


If you would like to order a book for yourself you may do so over at Clotilde.


One lucky reader will win a copy of this fun book.  To enter just leave me a comment letting me know what charm pack you have laying around just waiting to be used and you could win this super cute book by Connie Kauffman.


We will randomly choose a winner here on Sunday, March 25 .  (duplicate comments will be deleted)

Click the party badge for a list of participating bloggers.  

Don't forget to join the site and sign up to have new blog post sent to your e-mail.  You may also found us on Facebook  and Twitter. Links maybe found on the right hand side.  Be on the look out for a Facebook/Twitter giveaway coming soon.  

May the luck of the Irish be with you.

Until next time,