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Diaper sewing marathon – Part one

Me: “I went through 10 yards of Velcro yesterday.” Husband: “That’s a first down.” I had a cloth diaper sewing marathon over the weekend. It was all in preparation for getting as much work done as possible before quilt retreat next weekend so I can get this very essential task done well in advance of […]

After quilt retreat: Batik tree skirt

I spent 25 hours working on the batik tree skirt for the Mississippi Valley Quilters Guild’s tree in the Festival of Trees fundraiser next month. The first seven were spent cutting the fabric. The pattern and templates were all on paper. I had one chance to cut the templates right so I had to take […]

Snowed in with the Winter Blues

I live in the Midwest, which means a big winter storm has blanketed my town. Appropriately, I was working on my king sized Winter Blues quilt when the storm hit. I already finished a lap-sized one for practice and the pattern is available on for download. I’m about halfway done with the quilting. I think […]

July Block of the Month

I hope everyone had a great Fourth of July! Now that you’re all rested and refreshed, it is time to get started on the July Block of the Month pattern. This month and for every month until the end of the year, we will just be making four, 12-inch blocks as we finish the corners […]

‘Sonoma Rose’ packed with suspense

The air is thick with tension as Rosa’s abusive husband John leaves the house, mistrusting of who his wife might entertain in his absence. The guest that does arrives is not Rosa’s childhood sweetheart and former lover, Lars Jorgensen, but his family’s hired hand Elizabeth Nelson, Sylvia’s cousin, who was the main character of “The […]

Quilts of Love spins stories with quilts

Quilters yearning for a good story about their craft have a new series to line their bookshelves with. The Quilts of Love series from Abingdon Press features 25 books, each by a different author and written across multiple genres. The two things they have in common are each story has a quilt is woven through each […]

You won’t want to put ‘The Spymistress’ down

Filled with intrigued, danger and a woman who was far ahead of her time, Elm Creek Quilts author Jennifer Chiaverini does not disappoint with “The Spymistress.” Following the life of Elizabeth Van Lew just before, during and after the Civil War, the historical novel delves into the covert activities the real life Military Intelligence Hall […]

Taking the plunge

Two weeks ago I was laid off. No warning, just called into the boss’ office and told that the social media department I was hired to build just wasn’t large enough to cover my salary and that was that. I probably should be mad. I was only there for seven months, and while at my […]

October Block of the Month

We’re nearing the end of the 2015 Block of the Month. This month we’re starting to work with the blue fabrics. We’ll use them again next month, then finish up with the purples in December. This month we’re making a bunch of, you guessed it, half-square triangles. The individual blocks are not that difficult to […]

Stash too big? Donate to Quilts of Valor

About a month ago I watched a program on Iowa Public Television about the Quilts of Valor Under Our Wings program. The program connects experienced quilters with men and women who have never sewed before to make a quilt for a veteran. I don’t come from a military family, but I just cried throughout the […]