Benartex 4th Quarter Fun

 Welcome back for some Benartex fun!

For my 4th quarter project, I have

been playing with the American Spirit 

line by Cheryl Haynes of Prairie Grove Peddler.

These were the fabrics I chose

to work with for this project

but there are many others 

to choose from.

If you saw my Ohio remix

in the Fat Quarterly in October, 

then you may know where this

is going:)

I took that block along with

another arrangement and

combined them with a

sweet and simple border applique'.

In January this new design,

'In Gratitude', will be available 

for purchase through my ETSY shop.

I love that it is simple to assemble

to help those creating quilts for QOVF!

In the meantime there are the holidays to 

enjoy with all my sweeties, more blocks

to finish, a new long arm quilter to find 

since I have moved:)

I hope you find a way to make the 

holidays special for you!

Thank you all for being a part of

my life see you in the new year!

Benartex Christmas in July 2023

 Jackie Robinson has 

done it again!

A Botanical Season is 

a lovely array of 

holiday touchstones from 

holly to Christmas ornaments.

I used techniques from

my Fabric Collaborations class

to adorn this sweet and 

simple table runner

with lovely amaryllis 

flower bouquets.

I am in love with 

these sweet flowers and the 

cute star negative space 

at their centers!

The pattern can be found

in my ETSY shop

HERE.

Fun quilting 

suggestions included.

Come see how I used this

line in another project HERE 

to create a matching set!

Benartex Ambassador Project #3

 Christmas in July is celebrated by 

lots of quilters to get a jump on

their Christmas gift lists, so

I am going to offer 2

Christmas in July patterns

for my Benartex projects!

For project #3 I chose

to work with the new

line, Rhapsody in White,

arriving in shops now.

This line has a lovely

silky feel to it and there

are lots of cute

prints to choose from.

White makes me think of 

snowflakes though and how 

fun are those little

paper cut ones from 

our childhood.

In all honesty, I was never 

much good at getting them 

to look pretty, and I 

have worked very hard

to make the ones

in my Holiday Settings

pattern easy and cute!

The designs can be single

or layered as shown and

explained in the 

pattern instructions

found HERE.

These will become

timeless family gifts,

used every year.

Use them for pillows,

tote bags, candle mats,

mug rugs, Santa's

cookie mat....

The list is endless!

Come see how I used this

line in another project HERE 

to create a matching set!

Twist & Turn Blog Hop

Hello and Welcome to the 
Twist & Turn Blog Hop
featuring a new book
by Cinzia White. 

Twist & Turn Quilts by Cinzia White, 

published by C&T Publishing, is 

landing in stores this month. 

I have joined with a group of exciting 

original designers to bring more 

ideas on how to meld different designs to 

make your own original quilt. 

These innovative designers are showing 

us a variety of their own circle designs 

using the latest fabrics to highlight the 

versatility of Cinzia’s Twist & Turn Quilts. 

First let's take a peek at a couple

of designs directly from the book!

This simple layout

makes a great table runner

and the center can be anything!

You can make it as

simple or difficult as you like...

embroidery or applique' or

fussy cut as in this next

example from Cinzia's book!

Cinzia reached out to me after I 

had posted my Benartex Ambassador

January group project, a tote.

She really liked this 

flower for the center 

of her block & she 

was right!!

Here is her mock up...

HOW Cool is this!!

It is mocked up

in the 

Wave Texture line

by Jackie Robinson

for Benartex.

I have assembled the 

templates in 3 sizes

as a PDF download

in my ETSY shop.

SO many opportunities

for personalized design

with these templates

and Cinzia's book!

Please be sure to pop

over to the other 

designers' sites

during the HOP Dates

of May 25th-31st

for some FAB ideas

and a giveaway or 2:)

Thursday 25th: Monika Henry https://www.pennyspoolquilts.com/blogs/blog/twist-turn-blog-hop 

Friday 26th: Tammy Silvers

https://tamarinis.typepad.com/tamarinis/2023/03/twist-and-turns-blog-hop.html  

https://www.tamarinis.com/ 

Saturday 27th: Swan Sheridan

https://www.swanamity.com/ 

Sunday 28th: Laura Piland https://www.sliceofpiquilts.com/2023/05/twist-turn.html 

Monday 29th: Robin Koehler YOU ARE HERE:) https://nestlingsbyrobin.blogspot.com/ 

Tuesday 30th: Terri Vanden Bosch 

http://www.lizardcreekquilting.com/ 

Wednesday 31st: Cinzia White 

https://www.facebook.com/groups/cinziawhitedesigns

Benartex Project #2- Peacock Petals

 We round up the first quarter of the year

with my second Benartex project....

Peacock Petals using fabrics

from the Peacock Symphony

line by David Galchutt.

It hit store shelves in January so

keep an eye out for it.

Deep rich colors and 

a spring vibe kept niggling at 

the back of my mind.

I thought about 2 particular 

design workshops that I

adore teaching, Scrapplique'

and Fabric Collaborations.

Both concepts along with these

two fabrics inspired

my work for this challenge.

Thankfully the style of the fabric

goes beautifully with my own 

aesthetic of swirls and dots!

Admittedly, I got a bit carried away

with my design work.

It was only supposed to be

one small wall hanging.

THEN, I got excited about working

in lights vs. darks and so only

one of four blocks is done...

Now you will be intrigued enough to 

come back and see how it goes:)

HOW CUTE IS THIS?!!!?

I cannot wait to finish the 

whole quilt now!

My ambition thought I would

do it all by hand-LOLOLOL!!

SO many little circles.

Then I saw the work of 

Kyra Reps at Daytona...WOW!

So, I tried the prepared edge

applique' method using apliquick

bars that my friend,

Susan Marth, has been prodding 

me to try for years.

I am so resistant to change!

It did make my circles a bit

better but I really do loathe 

all that prep work.

So far this piece has 3 applique' 

methods on it:

Needle turn hand applique'

Prepared edge applique'

and fusible raw edge applique'.

Whatever gets it done right?

So, keep stitching in whatever

way makes your heart happy:)

Benartex Ambassador group Totes

Welcome back everyone!  

We invite you to join the 

Ambassadors as we show

off our fun group project...

TOTE BAGS:)

There is some 

adventurous stitching!

Our mission was to 

reinterpret the logo

shown below and 

that was really the 

only rule other than 

making a bag:)

Look at these gorgeous

fabrics we had to play with.

This is the Wave Texture

basics line by 

Jackie Robinson

Based on the logo, I chose

Sky, Fuchsia, and Lime.

I love playing with this

simple petal shape and 

 I knew that I would

do hand applique' 

with embroidery, 

so here is BloomX:)

I also knew that I 

didn't want to do a 

conventional tote bag

but something more 

usable for me.

At guild last month, a

couple of members brought

in these cute project bags

with vinyl fronts and I 

was completely enthralled!

This direction meant many

challenges for me as I 

hadn't done a zipper since

7th grade Home Ec when

I made a slumber bag in

the shape of a roller skate.

I so wish I still had that bag-LOL.

First Challenge:

Learn how to put in a zipper-

CHECK!

I had to go buy a couple and 

they were on sale, buy 3

get 2 free....What was I 

going to do with 5 zippers??

The bag turned out so cute and now

I want/need more zippers-lol!

Of course, how I put that zipper

in was not how I would need

to do the one for my project.

And do you think I go online

and research first?

NO!

I like to make it up 

(and mess it up) as I go along:)

NEXT...Vinyl.

Again, let's make a mistake

first and then ask google.

Best tip for sewing vinyl:

Use tissue paper so that

it doesn't stick to your 

presser foot/feed dogs.

It sewed beautifully and

the paper comes right away.

Here is BloomX

sewn in between 

some color strips &

I remembered to add

my handle-whew!

Here is the vinyl

side of the bag 

showing some of 

my favorite tools

and a new workshop

sample for

Intro to Hand Applique'.

I do hope you will 

follow the other

Ambassadors as

they too share their 

creative interpretations

for Benartex!

 

Benartex Ambassador project #1

Welcome to my first 

Benartex Ambassador

project for 2023! 

Meet "Heartland" by 

Cheryl Haynes.

I was completely digging

the floral and checks

and the fabric is so soft!

My father is from Kansas,

and my oldest lives in Illinois.

When we drive up there, the 

vast acreage of windmills is 

breathtaking just as the images

from Kansas plains of one small

windmill were in the day.

So, this fabric line immediately 

took me to windmills.

Because I couldn't make 

a decision, you get a 2 for 1 tutorial:)

Any block that gives the 

illusion of a windmill works.

For example, pinwheel

blocks evoke that spinning motion.

I do my pinwheel blocks in 

the traditional manner of drawing

a diagonal line corner to corner

on the wrong side of lightest fabric, 

sewing 1/4" away from the line on

either side (shown above), 

then cutting on drawn line

for 2 half-square triangle blocks.

Press to the darker fabric.

Four half-square triangle blocks, 

rotated, make a pinwheel block.

Perfect pressing for less bulk

where the seams come together is

such an easy and cute look:)

ABOVE: The last seam joining

the 4 blocks is shown 

horizontally below my thumb.

To the right of my thumb, I 

have removed the stitches

in the seam allowance 

from the previous seam.

BELOW: Once you do this, lay block

flat and press open those seams

to reveal a mini pinwheel. 

Note that the seams of green

also rotate around the block.

Easy, flat seams;)

What you need to make 

pinwheels shown below:

Green- 8 squares cut at 9" square

Yellow- 8 squares cut at 9" square.

Make 16 half-square triangle blocks.

Trim all to 8" for 7-1/2" finished squares.

Arrange into 4 pinwheel blocks.

Sew top 2 squares together then

bottom 2 squares together.

Press to create nesting seams.

Make 4 Pinwheel blocks.

Now for the indecision:)

As passionate as I am about

applique', sometimes paper

piecing is my go-to in order

to accomplish a look or the

precision I want.

Because I enjoy enticing people 

over to the world of paper piecing,

this is where my brain switched 

things up a bit.

Paper piecing is so 

methodical and exact

and changes depending on 

the fabrics and the layout.

It completely tickles my brain.

I used my, Blossom Swirl,

template for these windmills

but you could certainly go even

quicker and use the pinwheel block.

Using this block, I will do a 

mini paper piecing tutorial in

case you are new to the technique

or find it overwhelming.

Gather Supplies and 

make fabric decisions.

I always recommend using

one of the template pages as

a fabric guide.

As to supplies, not many are

needed to get moving:

1-Printed Templates for 

as many blocks as you

want to make.

2-Glue stick

3-Add-A-Quarter-Ruler

4-Rotary Cutter/mat.

Optional

-small rotary cutter and board

for trimming near sewing machine

and 

-rotating cutting board 

from trimming sections.

I like to use a second

template page for staging 

all my cut fabrics.

Section A has all my fabrics

laid out on top of it as

does Section B.

I need to lessen my 

chances of getting confused:)

The other reason I like

my fabrics staged this way is

that I paper piece 

factory style.

If I have 24 blocks to make,

I am sewing all my Section A1

to A2 pieces together first.

I will then add A3 to all of them.

Again...Lessen my chances

of getting confused.

This chain piecing process

allows me to not lose

my place on a block

if I get interrupted. 

Section A1 is a lovely 

green check with 

sunflowers and it 

gets glued in place

so we can build our block

from this piece out.

At this point, I have done

A1, 2, and 3. It is time to 

add 4 on the other side

of the green center.

NEXT, 

I like to have my templates

backlit so that I can see the

line to fold back on for trimming.

When you add a fabric, 

fold the template page back

along the line between sections

(here it is the line between 1 

and 4).

Use the Add-A-Quarter ruler

to trim a 1/4" seam allowance.

This ruler has a lip that fits

against the paper fold.

If you don't do this step, 

you won't have a seam allowance.

See my mini trimming station 

next to my machine?

I like getting my steps as much

as the next person but let's 

be real-LOL.

We are ready to sew A4 to 

A1 and we ALWAYS place

fabrics right sides together on

the UNPRINTED side of 

the template, flip it over and 

sew ON the PRINTED side

of the template.

IF you go to this LINK, you will see 

how I get from this pic to the next

without pinning:)

Above, I have aligned A4 to A1 

and below you see it in the machine

ready to sew ON the PRINTED side,

directly on the line.

There are ways to do paper

piecing without stitching 

through the paper, I know.

It has never bothered me to 

remove paper because it 

is down time for me with 

a favorite  movie.

To make it easier though,

reduce your stitch length

so the paper is perforated

and will tear away without 

a problem.

Every machine is different

but I had this set at 1.4, 

about the size of a ball point pen tip.

Keep on stitching until 

all fabrics are added.

Here is where that rotating

cutting mat comes in 

handy....

Trim sections making 

sure you have a 

1/4" seam allowance.

Now all the sections 

are complete and ready

to be sewn togther.

Flip B onto A.

PINNING!

Place a pin perpendicular 

through each end point

as shown above

and below.

Once those pins are

straight, place a second

pin approximately 1/2"

within the end point to

avoid distortion.

Add 2-3 more pins for 

stability then sew seam.

Remove paper from 

seam allowances only 

at this point.

Here is why I love paper

piecing....

Just rotate those blocks

and get a whole new look!

I went with this layout

because it felt more 'windmill'

to me.

As you assemble, remove

paper from each sewn 

seam allowance to 

reduce bulk.

Once a block is assembled, 

you can remove all the 

paper because you will

sew them together

like any other block.

Now it was time for a 

couple of borders with 

some signature, 

Nestlings applique'.

Since I kept this to a 

sunflower theme, time

to make some sunflowers.

Occassionally I do work 

smarter not harder and I 

was in luck.

In my stash of quilt stencils

that I collect from guild

show boutiques, I found 

a wreath that could easily 

resemble a sunflower with 

a little imagination.

Four borders = 4 flowers.

I traced 8 so that I could

layer some color into it.

I did the same with my leaves.

The leaves are made with

my Large Leaves stencil.

One of our 'Welcome' gifts

was a pair of quilting gloves

from Christa Quilts that I said

I probably wouldn't use...

Never say Never:}

When I do fusible applique'

that will eventually be long-

arm quilted, I still have to make 

sure all the raw edges are sewn over.

I like to do this free-motion 

style for speed.

These gloves helped keep my

grip so I didn't stretch my

borders while trying to keep things

moving under my needle.

Some fun over/under loops

and my sunflowers came to life.

This quilt required:

1/2 Yard Each of

 Red Sunflower print

 Green Sunflower print

 Cream Sunflower print

  Navy Check print

 Cow print

 Cream Check print

 Navy Sunflower print

1/4 Yard Each of

Gold Check print

Green Check print

Green floral print

Red Floral print 

I hope this inspired you

to try paper piecing!

I was offered the opportunity

to quilt my own quilt on

a friend's long-arm machine.

Click on my photo to see 

me in action-LOL!

Remember that panels

make great backings!

This almost made me 

want to name this,

Sunday Drive or 

Country Drive.

Here is some of my

quilting close up.

I do love quilting that 

leaf shape with swirls.

Instead, I went with....

Meet Windmill Plains:)

If you have questions about

this technique, please ask.

Thank you for following along:)

~Keep Stitching~