This project is using some antique’ blocks given to me by friend Kim S. They are from the 1890’s era so to put them into a quilt it would be necessary to find a fabric that would play along with the blocks. I choose William Morris and Co fabrics from Free Spirit. The Morris and […]
How to Make a Quilt Finish at a Certain Size
Problem: I want to make a quilt a certain size. How do I account for shrinkage from quilting? Today’s bed mattresses are thicker than ever. If a relative wants you to make them a quilt “of a certain size” such as from the bottom of one side of the mattress to the bottom of […]
Growing Cotton in North Carolina and Virginia
One of the fun aspects of my job as a fabric sales representative is to do a lot of driving. I realize that not everyone likes to spend hours in the car day after day driving around, but I actually enjoy it. I grew up on a farm and I enjoy seeing the sky as […]
Alpha Fish Project
Several of my grandsons love fish. When the Alpha Fish line from StudioE came out I was very excited to see what I could create for them. There are two free projects available from StudioE Fabrics for the Alpha Fish line. One is using the panel. The other ia also a quilt and it uses […]
Storing New Quilt Binding While the Quilt is being Quilted
I love to make binding and have it ready to go as soon as my quilt is quilted. My latest creation is a whooping 115 x 115 inches so I needed to make a lot of binding! Here is a picture of the binding cut, sewn, pressed and the dog ears removed. This is a […]
New Big Stitch Quilting Basics Book Available!
I have taken a long hiatus from blogging! It is not that I didn’t have anything to say, but rather I was busy working on new things. So my latest new thing is actually a new book I helped to put together for my Daughter-in-love, Julianna Pope. The book is called Big Stitch Quilting Basics. […]
Inspiration From Fabric
As I mentioned in my last blog, inspiration can happen at any time! And sometimes a designer creates a pattern and a fabric designer creates a fabric that goes together without even planning it! Blank Quilting has this really retro cute fabric called, “Rock Around the Clock”. While visiting Thimble Pleasures in Chapel Hill today […]
Selvedges: Cute, Cuter, Cutest!
Inspiration happens at unexpected moments sometimes. Recently I was sewing with some fabric from The Blank Quilting Corp. and was thrilled to find these cute selvedges. The new line, Route 66, which ships in January, will have the US Highway emblem in a variety of colors along the selvedge. If you are one of those […]
Thanksgiving
It is almost Thanksgiving here in the U.S. and I wanted to take this opportunity to say thank you for a few things. I am very thankful to have aged another year, and now am into a new decade! How exciting! I am very thankful to have a new grandson on the way! And it […]
New Notion: Pinion Pins
What is a Pinion Pin? It is a product to keep fabric pieces together and organized! I saw this in action recently and was very impressed. When sewing for a quilt project and you have a stack of cut out pieces, it is easy for them to get knocked down or separated. This little item, […]
New Notion – Clover Wonder Clips
I was with a quilting friend a couple of weeks ago and she gifted me with 3 little clips. Turns out they are the hottest new notion in the quilting industry. There are many uses, but I will highlight a couple in this post. When binding a quilt, either by hand or machine, these clips […]
Quick Quilt for a Baby Boy!
A new grandson (number 5!) is expected in December. I was trying to find a boy fabric and one of my customers (We’re Sew Creative, Concord, NC) had just received the StudioE Safari Drive line by Tim Beaumont. I was able to purchase a panel and some print yardage for a border. For the binding […]
Video for Two Hour Tulip Purse
I have had several requests to post a video about making the Two Hour Tulip Purse. It is now available on my You Tube channel, Anything But Boring, as well as my website. I am writing about it here to let you know that it is available, and to say that although we had excellent […]
Fall Place Mats using Cheeky Pumpkin Panel
Here is an easy tutorial on making cute fall place mats: Supplies: 1. 1 Cheeky Pumpkin panel (prewash these since they will be used and washed a lot) 2. 3/4 yard coordinating fabric 3. 1-1/8 yard fabric for the back of the place mats. This may be fall fabric or may be Thanksgiving fabric, or […]
I suggested she, “Lean in….”
Many self-employed business owners don’t take time for themselves to renew and recharge. And even if they schedule something in an attempt to relax, they are tempted to cancel the appointment! I must say I am like this. But I would like to suggest something to those of us who find ourselves in this place. […]
More Contest Entries!
January through March, 2015, Anything But Boring ran a contest for making a “Blinged” up version of the Two Hour Tulip Purse. Here are some more entries: From Pamela Wynfield we have a beautifully stitched reversible bag. It was made from blocks from the Jane Stickle quilt. Here are some of Pamela’s comments about the […]
Bling Your Purse Contest Winners!
Congratulations to the winners of the “Bling Your Purse” Contest! The First Place winner was Charlene Popson with “Take me to the dance-Midnight Elegance”. It is made from black velvet, lace, pearls and cording for the handles. Pretty fancy, huh? Laura Stanley entered “Sac Blanc”. Because it is white, you may not be […]
The Business Bag made with “Natural Wonders” from StudioE Fabrics
If you love the Zip ‘n Go zippered tote by Anything But Boring, you may also like the Business Bag pattern! Instead of a 22 inch zipper, this new bag uses an 18 inch zipper. The pockets are a little different and it is suggested to use the new “Soft and Stable” type interfacing so […]
