Finding a New Home

My youngest daughter, Heidi, has a 13 year old daughter, Cymia, who recently went on a week long holiday with a friend and her family. Before leaving Cymia was worried about what her parents would do without her for a whole week. They said, "you'll see". What they did was redecorate their apartment living spaces and master bedroom. Heidi came shopping at my lace to find a new quilt for her living room accent wall. She selected the quilt that is on the cover of the  Quilting A Circle of Nine book. 

Close view of the newly quilt display.

Long shot of the living room with quilt positioned over the couch.

You can order the book for $14.50 from jeanannquilts.com

The book has 12 quilts designed by me and by my sister, Janet Houts. Complete directions are included for each of the quilts. There are only 15 copies left, so make haste before they are gone. (In Bridgerton, 1st episode) Eloise yelled "MAKE HASTE" to Daphne, shocking the family. I loved it!)

Neat and Tidy? NOT

I would like to share my quilt studio area with you. It is not very neat but it is very creative for my personal style of working and quilting. In fact, messy might be the best description. It seems messy is a life-long condition and obviously incurable.

Sewing Station

Ironing Station

Cutting Station

Last week I found my second grade report card. Look on the left side and you will see the teacher was supposed to check for "good citizenship attitudes". At the bottom of the list is "Keeps desk and work in order". This area is not checked. Many years have passed since second grade, and I have not yet mastered keeping my "work in order".My studio is creative and productive. It may be too late for keeps work in order, but not for creativity. 

Spring, at Last

How many of you feel like you have been in a cave for months? I have! Between being in lock-down for a year and the short dreary days of winter cold and snow, I have been in a gray funk. I have been saved by longer days, daylight savings time, and 2 Covid vaccine shots. For the past month I have been looking forward to going to Target to buy a  30" tension rod to hang a curtain my mother crocheted for me in my kitchen window. It's old-fashioned, I know, but It reminds me of my mother who passed in 2000. Enough of memories and expectations. 

I am ready to start sewing again. I have designed a new ruler...it will remain a very secret until we release it next fall. There is so much testing to do when designing and developing a new trim tool and I just love the process. 

In the meantime, I have been digging through my finished quilt stash and I found two little applique pieces that I am selling. Just go to Etsy and search for Jean Ann Quilts. You will be there with the click of a mouse. They are so, so Spring! I don't think they will last long. The actual colors are brighter. Yellow never photographs well. 

Spring Tulips is $48.50. Spring Bouquet is $60.00. Both have free shipping.

Happy Valentine's Day - It's a Deal

How about a sweet quilting deal for Valentine's Day? I have decided to offer my self-published book as a free bonus gift for everyone who orders both Log Cabin Trim Tools needed to make the projects in the book. The book offers 12 quilt projects to make. The rulers make traditional log cabin blocks, half log cabin blocks and courthouse steps blocks. That's 3 blocks from one ruler. Purchase both rulers...get the book as an "I love quilting" Valentines gift. Here are images of two of the quilt projects in the book, the book cover, yet another of the 12 projects you can make using the instructions in the book.           jeanannquilts.com

       

                    Mountain Sunset - 6" ruler       Party Lanterns - 4" ruler      Little Log Quilts Cover   

Here are images of the rulers. Remember ORDER BOTH RULERS. Do NOT Order the book. If you add the book to the order you will be charged for the book. If you order both rulers, the book will be included automatically, you don't have to order the book. This deal ENDS at midnight, February 14. The deal lasts only one week so don't delay. jeanannquilts.com

Woven Ribbons - Make Me!

 Here are the instructions for the Woven Ribbon quilts shown in the previous post. The quilt is made from scraps so there are no yardage amounts except for the inside and outside borders. For the outside border you will need 1/2 yard and for the wider outside border you will need 1-1/2 yards. 

The top block diagram gives the size to cut the strips to the exact size. This drives me crazy. It takes hours and hours to cut every strip to the exact size and I don't have the patience. I just want to sit down and sew. Therefore...

I made my blocks using my original 8" Log Cabin Trim Tool. When you use the tool cut your strips for the blocks at least 1-3/4" wide (they can be wider) and use any length scrap you have as each round of strips around the center square are trimmed to exact using the Log Cabin Trim Tool after they are sewn in place. There are 3 rounds of strips around the square to make each block. Trim each round as it is completed and before you proceed to the next round. If you don't have the tool you can order it from my website jeanannquilts.com or order from my Etsy shop.

I sew the borders in place and trim to size, taking care to make the side borders are the same width and then the top and borders are the same length as well. For the side borders cut 8 strips 1-1/2" x WOF. Sew together end to end, sew side borders first and trim, then the top and bottom borders. Cut the wide borders 6-1/2" x WOF and add to quilt in the same manner as the narrow borders.

Today I made a pillowcase

It has been some time since I posted and honestly, some time since I have done any sewing. Being in double lockdown has had me feeling "down" due to the virus and a city almost under siege. I live in Washington DC. Today I have decided it is time to be "up" again. So, I started sewing with something simple...making a pillowcase for my bed in a bright chevron print fabric. The small toss pillow is made using the Creative Grids mini-pineapple ruler with a pattern and the ruler available on my website - jeanannquilts.com

The quilt was in my first book on  log cabin quilting. It's not the first time I made this setting. 

Here is the original Woven Ribbons quilt, made about 10 years ago. I am searching found the files for this setting but they need to be updated. I will post them next week, I promise. This quilt uses my original 8" Log Cabin Trim Tool by Creative Grids.Watch This Space.

Stepping Out

On Saturday, November 7, I will redoing a facebook LIVE program demonstrating my new 10" Log Cabin Trim Tool Duo at a local shop in Virginia named Artistic Artisans. The facebook page is Artistic Artisans. Simply go to facebook and enter the name and you can easily find it. The live program starts at 9:30. See you there!

For a demo that lasts about 30 minutes, I needed to make "step outs" showing how to trim a Log Cabin blocking using the new trim tool. It took almost all day, but here are the step outs that I will be trimming tomorrow.

Starting at the bottom left:

1. Cut a precise 2-1/2" center square. Then cut 1-3/4" wide strips in white and green and 1-1/4" wide strips in beige and yellow. 

2. Sew (2) 1-3/4" white and (2) 1-3/4" green strips around the center square. I always add strips in a clockwise rotation. You can choose to add in a counter-clockwise direction if your prefer. Just be consistent and always go in the same direction as you add each round. Press and trim each round when it is finished using the 10" Log Cabin Trim Tool Duo.

3. Sew (2) 1-1/4" beige and (2) 1-1/4" yellow strips to the trimmed unit. Press and trim.

4. Continue alternating wide strips an then narrow strips in each round until the block finishes at 10". There are (3) rounds of wide strips and (2) rounds of narrow strips.  

It is easy and fun and you end up with a perfect block every time even if one of the strips is a smidge off when sewn in place. The great thing about the tool is this...if there is a small irregularity in the width of one of the stitched strips the trimming makes a correction so it is the perfect size before you advance to sewing the next round of strips. Without this small "as you go" correction the block can be very much out of whack when you finish the last round. The trim tool prevents this looming disaster.