New Patterns Now Available!

November 9, 2019 suznquilts

It’s that time of year again,

when I can finally relax a bit because all of the

deadlines for Quilt Market have been met & are now over,

YAY!

I can also smile because I have 5 pretty & new patterns,

thanks to the help of my quilter, Tamara,

my photographer, Scott,

& my editors, Robin, Chris & Janet.

THANK YOU!

I love the way our booth at Fall Quilt Market turned out.

My daughter, Chloe, is now a nurse practitioner with a new job,

& she’s also a newlywed, so she wasn’t able to come along.

Luckily my sister, Lori, was able to help me this time at market instead.

Although she didn’t “speak quilt” before,

she’s pretty good at it now & she was great help!

It was great seeing our quilt market friends

& we met many new ones too.

My first new pattern that I’d like to introduce is

Tiny Dresden Scrap Sensation.

You may remember seeing this earlier,

because I actually made this first version of the quilt a year ago!

It was made with the scraps of my new Jellyroll Joyride quilt.

Aren’t the colors lovely?

This is every scrap that was left of the jelly roll after making this quilt.

If you look closely you’ll see there are 2 of each fabric scrap.

That’s because to make the Jellyroll Joyride quilt

I needed to trim just a bit more than the selvage off each end of each strip.

Call me crazy, but…

I couldn’t resist doing something fun with them!!!

Fortunately, if I was very careful,

I could cut a Tiny Dresden petal from 12 of the scraps.

That worked out perfectly so I sewed them together.

I think I reserved just the right scrap for the center.

Next I made and appliqued that to the plate.

I never get tired of making these adorable little Dresden plates!

Wanting to use more than just 13 of the fabrics,

I decided to make the center block a snowball block

(The triangles were already cut when I pieced the binding strips together.)

and then the tiniest of border was made using more of the scraps.

What you see above is the scraps of the scraps!!! Lol

I’m such a piddler…

I think you can say that I used that entire jelly roll!

For our booth at Spring Quilt Market

I decided to make several of the Jellyroll Joyride

samples from my favorite Moda jelly rolls.

So, of course I had scraps…

I finished all 4 of the Jellyroll Joyride quilts.

Do you see then hanging behind us in the booth?

I also got 2 of the tiny quilts made just for added fun.

This is where I had lots of quilt shop owners looking for their pattern!

What? I know they’re cute, but…

So, I wrote the instructions & made the pattern.

I also finished the 2 other samples.

Notice I saved the fabric collection name from the selvages?

That has come in handy over the years

when someone asks me the name of the collection in a quilt.

My wonderful pattern tester, Chris,

made this awesome version with a mini charm

of Betsy Chutchian’s Sarah’s Story.

It’s a new pre-civil war collection.

Didn’t it turn out pretty too?

When I was looking for a hanger for the quilt

I found Ackfeld’s sewing machine hanger

but it was too big.

Luckily they’re always accommodating,

& they made a smaller version just for my quilt!

Now you can buy one too & make the quilt for your sewing room.

Both the pattern and hanger are now on my website for order.

I know, they’re adorable aren’t they?

FYI, they’re fun to make too!

I hope you’ve enjoyed my stroll down

TD Scrap Sensation’s memory lane.

Stay tuned for the other 4 new quilt patterns.

Just Keep Sewing…

Susan

A Giveaway!, Dresden Plate Quilt, New quilt pattern

New Patterns Spring 2019 Susanna & New Pattern Give-Away!

June 6, 2019June 9, 2019 suznquilts

My next & last new pattern that I want to introduce to you is

Susanna.

I know what you’re thinking,

“Why didn’t she put MORE little Dresden plates on this quilt?”, right? Lol

Susanna started with the “Susanna” collection by Betsy Chutchian for Moda.

I decided to start with 2 of the blues to make Tiny Dresden plates.

Chain piecing is the best!

It’s a great time to let your mind wander

or listen to a good movie that you’ve watched over & over again.

The time passes quickly as I watch the Tiny Dresden plates emerge.

Soon I was auditioning more fabrics to join my TD plates.

If I’m not absolutely sure of all of the fabrics

I will make just one center (not even applique it down)

then make fabric decisions.

Once I narrowed that down,

I went to “work” making the center circles for all of the TD plates.

Not work at all, really.

I love to make the TD centers!

I know, how weird am I???

As a matter of fact,

I offered to make Loraine, one of my pattern testers’,

centers for the TD’s she was making to test my Jellyroll Gemstones pattern.

It took less than an hour

since I had the circles already cut in my little canister.

Pressing then cutting them into strips for easy trimming is key.

With a movie on, the time flies by!

Now before the rest of my pattern testers get in an uproar,

I’m happy to make your centers for you too!

Aren’t these fabulous?

Once my design was ironed out I needed to make a few more TD’s.

Have I told you lately that I actually use my rotary cutter

to cut the string apart & to trim the seam allowance?

Yup!

It’s so much quicker that using my scissors, but you better be careful!

Concentration is key…

And it doesn’t hurt to have some nourishment nearby at times.

The mindless making of the center circles also lets

my mind think of the next upcoming fabric decisions.

Oh but wait, there are more!

I actually took this project to our retreat at Rosemary’s the beginning of February.

No TV watching here,

just good conversation & good food too!

Aren’t they lovely???

In the midst of this project, Clare, our youngest daughter, bought me this cute cart.

She thought it would look nice in our booth.

It’ll be going with us to the Kansas City Regional Quilt Festival next week,

but for now it’s looking cute in my sewing room with what’s left of “Susanna”.

More decisions….

and auditions….

and decisions…

and cutting!

Then some organizing.

What a treat for me to relive the process!

My camera is my best friend while I make lots of decisions.

Once I finally liked all of the blocks,

and sewed them together,

I had to make the border fabric decision.

And that decision led to

more Tiny Dresdens!!!

They’re just what the corners of this quilt needed.

I love the addition of the corner blocks.

They really add a lot don’t you think?

It breaks up all of the blue

and gives your eye something else pretty to see.

After Tamara once again did a lovely job of quilting it for me

Nemo & I set it up to be photographed by Scott.

I love the process more than actually having the finished quilt.

How about you?

What’s your favorite part?

Wanna win one of my 3 new patterns?

Your choices are either Dresden Feathered Stars,

Jellyroll Gemstones,

or Susanna.

Just leave me a comment telling me

1. What’s your favorite part of the quilting process?

2. What’s your favorite of my new patterns?

I’ll give 3 lucky quilters their choice!

I’ll pick the winners Sunday at 6 p.m. CST.

Until then,

Just Keep Sewing…

Susan

Dresden Plate Quilt, New quilt pattern

New Patterns Spring 2019 Jellyroll Gemstones

June 3, 2019 suznquilts

My next new pattern that I want to introduce to you is

Jellyroll Gemstones.

The rainbow of color across this quilt can be made entirely

with 1 jelly roll of 40, 2 1/2″ strips.

This is Flower Garden Gatherings by Primitive Gatherings for Moda.

When I started this quilt I cut all the petals

& sewed them into a long string.

I encharged Betsy to keep them tangle-free.

She did a great job.

You can’t even see her beneath them all!

Next, I sewed & sewed, & sewed some more…

Eventually I had a nice array of plates.

I auditioned many background fabrics to complete my design,

but couldn’t find just the right one so they rested a while.

If you remember, I mentioned

that I picked up this cool Shedd’s Peanut Butter tin in Michigan

while traveling to teach at the Berrien Towne & Country Quilters.

It was the perfect place for the completed plates to hang out

while I did more traveling last fall to teach

& to vend & then attend fall quilt market.

In February at our retreat at Rosemary’s I got them out again

& auditioned more background fabrics & decided on just the right one.

So, I went to work & cut all the pieces for the blocks.

Then I assembled them into little kits for each block

so the color combinations wouldn’t be duplicated.

My new-to-me wooden tray was the perfect holder for the little kits.

& my new-to-me m&m’s (or Dr. Pepper) holder

from my friend & fellow retreater, Chris, now holds my bottle near my machine!

Soon I had a nice stack of blocks ready to have a Tiny Dresden appliqued to the center.

Soon after that I ran out of thread!

I use a lot of Sulky’s Medium Taupe thread!

Fortunately I had more thread, so I was able to finish all of the blocks.

Of course Nemo, my supervisor, was always good at

keeping an eye on me to be sure I kept working!

Laying out the blocks was next

& I soon decided that I had just the right colors in just the right places,

then I added the Tiny Dresden plates at the intersections of the blocks.

I decided a small sashing was necessary

to space the Tiny Dresden plates a bit farther from the blocks.

So another fabric audition was necessary.

I decided on a low contrast between the two fabrics.

Next, I went to work sewing sashing strips between the blocks.

Thanks again to my friend, Chris,

I numbered the rows with the pins that she made for each of our guild members last year.

What a great trick to keep track of the rows.

Nothing is worse than laying everything out & getting it just right,

then getting the rows mixed up & sewing a green block next to another green block!

My numbered pins now hang out in this clip-on pincushion on Betsy’s shoulder.

I don’t have to wonder where I put them!!!

Next, I appliqued the Tiny Dresden plates to the sashing as I assembled the rows.

Notice how the Medium Taupe thread blends well with lots of colors?

This saves a lot of time not having to change thread color for each plate.

Finally the quilt top was complete & beautifully quilted by Tamara,

then photographed by Scott, all being overseen by our late friend, Nemo.

I still have a string of petals hanging out on Betsy

just as they’ve been doing since September 4th as you can see by the calendar!

Eventually I’ll find a use for them too.

For now I just love them hanging out with me in my sewing atelier :)

Jellyroll Gemstones is now available on my website.

One more new pattern to go.

Until then,

Just Keep Sewing…

Susan

Dresden Quilt Workshop Quilt-Along

Dresden Quilt Workshop Quilt-Along Week #3

August 22, 2018August 20, 2018 suznquilts

Week #

Thanks for more posting & sending me pics of your first blocks!

If you’re not part of my Facebook group, Dresden Quilt Workshop,

head over there & sign up so you too can share & see all the progress.

This week we will refer to

A Blooming Day quilt, page 27.

You’ll be making 4 blocks that are adjacent to our “Quilts” block from Week 1.

This is why I thought it was important to start with that block.

Do you see that now?

Between the 4 blocks,

there could be up to a dozen fabrics bumping into that block’s fabric.

The designer in me doesn’t want the same fabric bumping into itself!

This week you’ll make:

4 Dresden Filler Blocks, assembly on page 30.

Each block has a Tiny Dresden plate in the corner.

Lots of fabric selections this week, yay!

& more Tiny Dresden blocks too, double yay!

All I can say is Mary Ellen’s Best Press is one of my best friends

because it helps to keep the bias edges of these blocks stable

so my blocks will be the right size

(& the shape of a triangle, Lol!!)

when they’re finished.

My blocks & I aren’t perfect,

just precise, because of the nice tools available.

I hope you’re able to find them, but if not, I have them on my website SuznQuilts.com.

BTW, I still have kits available on my website too.

FYI, you might notice that I didn’t applique the plates to the background squares

until I was ready to assemble the blocks unlike how I made A Blooming Day in the book.

The reason is because of all the different fabrics that I used in each block.

I wanted to be able to audition the fabrics again before the final assembly.

Sometimes things don’t turn out the way I picture them in my head!

Here are the 4 complete Dresden Filler Blocks.

Spoiler alert… we may be making the other half of these blocks next week.

Come back next week & see for sure.

Just Keep Sewing…

Susan

Applique quilt projects, My Life, New quilt pattern, Tiny Dresden quilts

International Spring Quilt Market 2018 & New Patterns

June 18, 2018June 18, 2018 suznquilts

I ALWAYS come back from market with a million & one things to get done.

Top that off with the stuff that was ignored because of market prep (perhaps months worth of stuff) and before you know it I can’t even remember going to market so I forget to post any market photos or tell you of my new patterns.

Good Grief! I miss my brain!

So, our booth…

The best part of market was getting to spend time with both of our daughters!

Chloe has helped me lots of times, but this time Clare was able to go with us.

I have 14, yes, 14 new patterns!

I have been busy.

So, let me show you the first one, Baker’s Dozen.

It all started almost 2 years ago when I bought this American Jane, Bread ‘n Butter charm pack & coordinating piece of fabric…

I made fabric decisions; background squares vs. Tiny Dresden petal squares.

Taking pics like this helps me remember what I had decided.

Thank goodness for artificial intelligence!

Then I set to cutting.

I can cut 6 petals from each 5″ charm square.

In my pattern I show you how to do that.

14 Tiny Dresden plate blocks in the making.

Again, thanks to my phone for capturing and helping me to remember all of this!

I did all this the summer of 2016. At least that’s what my pics say.

And now I regret to inform you… I just found a bunch more images that I forgot I’d even taken.

You may want to get a snack or take a nap…

They are pretty however…

I started sewing petals… It was so interesting that even Dori (RIP) had to stop what she was doing to watch me!

Before long I had this beautiful pile ‘o petals.

Blake & I had recently gone to an estate sale where I found this adorable little iron.

I cut the string apart.

Unfortunately the iron is just a toy, but cute! I pressed with my un cute iron.

Then turned them all right-side-out.

Now you’re starting to see why this quilt, a mere 17″ x 21″,

took me two years to make, Lol!

Petals were sorted.

Then sewn together into pairs.

Then strung up over my cute little cutlery box (OH, GOOD GRIEF!).

Pressed & then sewn to another pair.

Pressed again.

Finally the complete plates were completely sewn.

But they still needed to be pressed ;)

This is where they get more Mary Ellen’s Best Press.

Next to make and applique the center circles, wet them to remove center templates & let dry.

And press again with more Mary Ellen’s Best Press.

Then what to do with the blocks once they’re finished…

For a minute I thought they may look nice around this beautifully stitched picture, but no.

Set with this cute sashing, but no.

Maybe with black cornerstones, no.

This is where my brain took a hiatus from this madness.

No more pics until Augusts, 2017!

I found this adorable metal box at Litchfield’s Picker’s Market and it inspired me to get the blocks out & finish a quilt!

I decided that I liked them set next to each other best.

Then I dreamed up these incredibly cute cornerstones.

That required a few more petals & circles.

But then what?

I needed a border.

The original pink polka dot that was part of the collections wasn’t “it”.

The black really set off the blocks.

Next, I pin basted & quilted it myself.

Than chose a binding fabric.

Those poor pink dots… I wonder whatever happened to them.

The perfect binding fabric I think.

Meet Baker’s Dozen.

12 Tiny Dresden blocks, with one more (in 4 pieces) on the corners.

Thanks for taking that trip back in time with me.

They’re now available on my website.

Just Keep Sewing…

Susan

My Life, New Moda Fabric Collection

New Fabric Line – Morris Earthly Paradise

July 18, 2016 suznquilts

Several months ago I received the new Moda line by Barbara Brackman,

Morris Earthly Paradise.

Suzn+Quilts+Morris+Group+2

It is truly lovely!

Suzn+Quilts+Morris+Group+close+2

I ordered one print along with the fat quarters.

Suzn+Quilts+Morris+Group+black+print+close

A charming black.

Suzn+Quilts+Morris+Group+close

Beautifully reproduced William Morris floral prints

in gorgeous colors and black!

Suzn+Quilts+Morris+Group+thanks+Barbara+close

While William Morris is probably better know for his textiles & literary works,

I first learned of the famous William Morris while in college through

his involvement in the Arts & Crafts movement

and the extremely popular Morris chair.

More than a century later, it’s still sought after and being reproduced today!

A Morris Chair

It would be fun to draft this!

My grandparents had an antique version of the reclining chair & I actually have an Arts & Crafts style rocking chair in my living room that I acquired from a friend of the family’s estate.

Why am I attracted to old things?

Notice my new-to-me old mini chest of drawers?

Don’t be jealous.

Get out and go to some estate sales & flea markets!

Suzn+Quilts+Morris+Group+backgrounds

I’ve added some background fabrics from my stash for my quilt.

I need to get cutting!

Will it surprise you to learn that I’m going to be cutting little Dresden petals???

This collection is available in quilt shops now and Barbara has a quilt-along

Morris Hexathon

going on with her fabrics.

You can learn more about the collection by joining her on her blog, Material Culture.

Just keep sewing…

Susan

New Moda Fabric Collection

New Fabric- Preservation

June 23, 2016June 23, 2016 suznquilts

The 4th and final collection that I have to show you is Moda’s new “Quilt for a Cause” collection,

Preservation. Suzn+Quilts+Perservation Preservation is 19th in their “Quilt for a Cause” series.

The collection was inspired by a quilt from England dating to 1830.

Suzn+Quilts+Perservation+quilt+for+a+cause+light

It will benefit the

International Quilt Study Center & Museum in Lincoln, Nebraska

which is a learning center.

They have a collection of quilts,

Fabric, Fabric & More Fabric

June 20, 2016 suznquilts

It’s ALWAYS fun to get new fabric, right?

It’s especially fun when I already have designs in mind to make with it.

Rest assured there will be Dresden petals involved; Tiny & Mini!

Last week I received two boxes from Moda because I have a lot of sewing to do!

Fall market will be here before I know it.

I’m in the middle of writing pattern instructions so I would not allow myself to do anything but put the boxes in my sewing room and walk around them…

…my little plan devised to keep me on task.

Suzn+Quilts+Moda+boxes

I may have mentioned before that I love fabric???

Once? Twice? Maybe 3 million times?

You thought I loved to quilt, but really I only quilt so that my family does not die in a fabric avalanche around here.

Today I finally opened the boxes and took a peek

because ~~I have nothing better to do~~ I’m taking a break and I don’t want to start back to writing instructions…

This it LOTS MORE FUN! Suzn+Quilts+Pumpkin+Pie This is Pumpkin Pie

by Laundry Basket quilts for Moda.

Pumpkin+Pie

They’ll be available in quilts shops this fall.

Suzn+Quilts+Pumpkin+Pie+yardage

Look, there’s black & pink & aqua

Suzn+Quilts+Pumpkin+Pie+quarters

& pretty floral prints…

Suzn+Quilts+Pumpkin+Pie+thanks+layout

I’m looking forward to sewing with these.

The small prints will make great Tiny & Mini Dresden petals.

Suzn+Quilts+Pumpkin+Pie+thanks

Notice my “new” letter squares?

I may have mentioned in a post not too long ago that I also have a thing for estate sales…

I found them recently.

They came in this cool ~~old~~ vintage Famous Barr box.

Suzn+Quilts+Letters+Fabous+Barr++boxe The box is extremely sturdy, but…

I was at Goodwill last week and found this treasure.

Suzn+Quilts+Jar+Goodwill

It’s the perfect size to hold them all.

And it was just a dollar!

It’s the little things…

I know, crazy aren’t I?

Aren’t you glad you don’t have MY brain???

Now that I’ve shown you part of my new fabric I must get back to work.

More to come later, after I’ve done some more real work.

I hope you’re enjoying this hot summer weather like I am.

I’ll take 100 degrees over 0 any day!

Just keep sewing…

Susan

Dresden Plates, My Life, New Quilt pattern sample

Sewing with my Sunglasses again…

May 18, 2016May 23, 2016 suznquilts

Suan+Quilts+Sunny+Sewing+Room

When my sewing room is engulfed in sunshine,

I just can’t bear to stay away, ahhhhhhhhhh.

This morning I’m stitching centers.

Suzn+Quilts+stitching+red+Dresden

Recognize the OLD Thimbleberries red???

When I decided on these beautiful new Moda reds from

Barbara Brackman, Betsy Chuchian, & Kathy Schmitz,

I needed one more & I happened to notice

my most favorite fabric ever matched perfectly!

Suzn+Quilts+Reds

It’s from Lynette’s Buttermilk Collection.

20+ years old & still beautiful!

I guess we can now call it vintage.

I picked it off my Thimbleberries cart.

Suzn+Quilts+Cart+of+Thimbleberries

I’m stitching a field of poppies.

Suzn+Quilts+Field+of+red+flowers

Doesn’t get much better than this

unless you add a few friends,

but face it, no one I know (besides me) sews before 6 a.m.!

Just keep sewing!

Susan

Dresden Plates, fabric shopping, My Life, Quilt Retreats, Quilt Shops

Rosemary’s 2016

January 26, 2016 suznquilts

It’s another January

which mean’s another quilt retreat to Rosemary’s!

Suzn+Quilts+Rosemarys+Quilt+Shop

In case you don’t remember, Rosemary’s is a quilt shop in Highland, IL.

Rosemary has a retreat center that consists of sleeping quarters & a sewing room with lots of authentic restaurants within a couple blocks; Chinese, Italian & Mexican to name our favorites, but there are many more.

A great weekend spent with good friends

(at least the ones that didn’t have family obligations to tend to)

& no cooking or cleaning.

Suzn+Quilts+Rosemarys+2016+group

Loraine must have been shopping during this one…

Suzn+Quilts+Rosemarys+2016+sewing

My “spot” for the weekend.

Suzn+Quilts+Rosemarys+2016+sewing+station

Spending valuable time with some of my other best friends

(Moda & Roxanne)

Suzn+Quilts+Rosemarys+2016+busy+pieces

Making new friends

Suzn+Quilts+Rosemarys+2016+new+fabric

only after they promised to get along with my other friends.

Suzn+Quilts+Rosemarys+2016+friendly+fabric

It may appear that I bought the same polka dot fabric twice, but Rosemary & I were a bit chatty & weren’t paying attention to her measuring; a side affect of being in good company!

It’s OK, I’m going to cut it into little pieces just to sew it back together anyway.

(crazy!?!?!?)

(short) Overnight drying time…

Suzn+Quilts+Rosemarys+2016+dry+Dresdens