Quilter’s Spray Basting Comparison

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If you’re new to quilting, you might be wondering “What is spray baste?”, “Which spray baste is the best”, “How to baste a quilt?” or maybe even “What is basting?”. hint: I’m not talking about what you do to a turkey at Thanksgiving. I am happy to say I’m here to help you figure out all the basics of quilt basting and help you determine which spray baste product is the best one to use!

First off, basting a quilt is the step after you finish piecing together your quilt top. There are a few different basting methods out there for when you put together your “Quilt Sandwich”. Continue reading →

How to Brighten Your Sewing Space

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Since moving into my new sewing space a little over a year ago, I have been dreaming of having better lighting in my room! I just have one medium size window and a little ceiling light fixture and the lack of light had been making it hard to see what I was doing, and even more difficult to take any decent photos! Luckily, I have been able to partner with Ottlite to brighten up my space and share with you how I went about it!

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Whether you are a quilter, sewist, crafter, or have another amazing hobby, you might also feel that you need to increase your lighting but aren’t sure which products are right for you – so this is how I made my decision. I thought about which areas I needed concentrated lighting in the most, and where I currently had space for a light or could make space for one! After much deliberation, I decided to get the Dual Shade LED Floor Lamp with USB Charging Station and the Extra Wide Area LED Clamp Lamp. I chose the LED lamps on purpose because they are going to last a lot longer and they’re more efficient! Continue reading →

Embroidery Machine Buying Guide: How to pick the right one for you

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For the last few years I have been super enthralled by the amazing work that an Embroidery machine can do! I love how you can personalize literally ANYTHING and I love how they really can add a special touch to any quilt or sewing project. It’s that extra level of pizzazz and it is a heck of a lot of fun!

Maybe you’re like me and you’ve wanted to be able to design and embroider your own things, but just didn’t really know where to start. I want to help you get your feet wet and learn a little more about how to pick a great embroidery machine, and later on, I will show you how to get started with those initial purchases of the essentials. I’ll tell you the best threads, interfacing and scissors to get started like a total embroidery BOSS.

My mom actually introduced me to making my quilt labels on her embroidery machine, and I used it a ton, especially when I was living at home with my parents. Now that I’m “grown up” and have my own place, I’ve been really wanting an embroidery machine of my own. You might already know that I am pretty comfortable using my HUSQVARNA VIKING® sewing machine, so naturally that brand was also my first choice for an embroidery machine.

I want to share with you my own decision making for which model I should get. I know it is overwhelming with SO MANY different models on the market at all kinds of different price points. Continue reading →

Ivy League Quilt // pattern review

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My friend Rachel over at @wren.collective released her very first quilt pattern: Ivy League! I tested the pattern and really love this pattern, and all the different variations I have seen so far from other testers too!

I made the baby size version of this pattern, and it finished at 39″ x 43″, but the pattern also includes a Wall Hanging size, and a Throw Size. To see lots of awesome colorways and the different sizes of this quilt, check out Wren-collective’s Ivy League pattern release blog post.

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Me Made May // Peplum Top

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Have you heard of #MeMadeMay?

It’s the month of the year where sewists dedicate time to make clothing for themselves and to actually wear it, too! Check out #MeMadeMay2019 to see all the cool pieces people are whipping up and modeling for us!

While 99% of my sewing has to do with quilts, I thought I should use the month of May as a reason try something new! I actually grew up sewing garments and didn’t learn to quilt until college. Before quilting, I made shirts, dresses, handbags, and the like. My mom actually taught me some of the basics of garment sewing when I was in middle school, and then in high school (while all my friends were busy taking Physics or Calculus) I took a class called “Fashion Design” which was basically a beginner level sewing class!

I’ll be forever grateful for the sewing opportunities I had in my early years. Cultivating a love for fabric art & design, and getting myself comfortable with a sewing machine, were incredibly influential and pivotal in my life.

For this Me Made May, my challenge for myself was to make a nice summery tank top out of Rayon fabric. This is crazy to me since I have sewn with nothing but 100% cotton for the past 5-ish years! I chose the pattern Peppermint Peplum Top because it looked easy and I found it for free online. (Just google “Peppermint Mag Peplum top” to find the free PDFs!)

Here are 5 reasons YOU should make this peplum top: Continue reading →

Simply Retro // quilt pattern book review

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Last week I shared a blog post showcasing my “Wiggling Quilt” from the book “Modern One-Block Quilts” and it kicked off a quilt pattern book review blog post series! Who doesn’t love a good blog series?! If you want to read about the fun and quirky book “Modern One-Block Quilts” and see cute pictures of an adorable baby girl floral quilt, click here!

Today’s stop on the Quilt Book Review Series is a book that has been around for a little while but will always be a winner in my eyes! My mom got Simply Retro by Camille Roskelley a few years ago and I have been looking through these beautiful patterns ever since! I’ve actually made FOUR baby quilts already from patterns in this amazing book, so you can definitely say I got my money’s worth! (That is a joke since I stole my mom’s book… thanks mom, you’re the best!)

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Modern One-Block Quilts // quilt pattern book review

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Modern One Block Quilts Book Review

If you are a quilter, I am sure you know that there are myriad ways to obtain an awesome quilt pattern, but not all are the same quality!

I have been through phases where I was too thrifty to purchase patterns and chose to only make quilts if I could find a FREE pattern for it. This method actually introduced me to some of my favorite quilt patterns, but it also resulted in a handful of headaches. The thing about free patterns is that there is often far less thought, effort, and testing that goes into those patterns. This is not always the case, but I ran into a couple doozies that required me to waste fabric and do my own quilt math, which did not thrill me.

I want to tell you about a great, thrifty, way to get really awesome quilt patterns: Quilting Books!

This blog post will outline a review of the book “Modern One-Block Quilts” by Natalia Bonner and Kathleen Whiting (published by C&T Publishing). The book comes complete with 22 different patterns in 3 different sizes (baby, twin, and queen) — that’s 66 variations for one low price, costing less than a couple yards of fabric! Continue reading →