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Cross Stitch has become my nightly ritual. The slow stitching and little bits of progress calm me down. It is a meditation of sorts, pulling my mind from whatever thing it is worried/stressed/spinning about into a focus of "stitch, stitch, stitch."  When I had the urge to try some of my designs as a cross over with the fabrics, I had no idea I would fall so completely in love with cross stitch. It has now become something I try to add first thing in the morning, with one strand of floss stitched while I have my morning coffee (can you tell I like that particular green?). And for the last 4 fabric collections I've introduced coordinating cross stitch designs. With Superbloom I am so happy to announce that Moda Fabrics is kitting some of the new designs!!  I was happy to launch these at Quilt Market for the first showing!  There are three sizes of kits-with simple cross stitch only supplies, or with fabric for mounting the cross stitch onto or more to make a project. All kits are made with COSMO flosses from LeCien. They have yummy colors and a lovely silky feel. It is a really nice floss to stitch with. "Queen Bee" is a smaller kit with Natural Aida, floss, needle and pattern.  The next size up has lots of colorful flosses (16 to be exact), a needle, pattern, Natural Aida AND a fat quarter of Indigo Dotty Thatched. I have floated my model in an 11" x 14" frame on top of the fabric. I will be making a youtube video to share how I do this.  Anther idea for the Superbloom Bouquet is to break up the flowers and stitch them individually. I found this tote at Ikea and thought it would match well with the Natural Aida. I used a 1/3 Yard of the Superbloom Ombre in Jewel (ombre runs the 42" width-of-fabric on this print) to add a band of fabric to the tote. Then I stitched my flowers and added them with a running stitch in floss to the top. I slightly frayed the edges to give it a more rustic look, which I felt was appropriate for wild flowers. If you were worried of it fraying more I'd first iron some interfacing like Pellon SF101 to the backside where you want the fraying to stop and this would give it more stability. I love how this tote turned out and think it would be fun to try this with any of your favorite tote patterns.   And the biggest kit is for my Stitch Lovely Floral Sewing Machine. This kit has 13 flosses, needle, pattern, Aida AND 2/3 yard cuts of two fabrics, Dotty Thatched in Crimson and Thatched Blizzard, with instructions to make the sewing machine cover that is on the front. The fabric gives you enough to make the cover top and binding/ties. You will need to add fabric for the inside of the cover and add a batting or foam. I used Pellon Flex Foam 2 Sided Fusible for my sewing machine cover and like the shape it holds.   If you want to extend sides to be wider or make panels to go on the ends to make it a closed cover (vs tied on sides) I'd suggest a colorful patchwork using a mini charm pack of Superbloom fabrics. Another option for the stitch is to finish it as a pillow. I've used the same flying geese units on mine but flipped them to point the opposite direction from the machine cover.  Another kit coming that I didn't get finished in time to show at Market is my Butterfly Blooms. It will be a small kit like the Queen Bee. Hopefully I'll get to share some finishing ideas for this soon!  The kits are available for shops to order from Moda Fabrics for an APRIL 2025 delivery. Please let your local quilt or needlework shop know if you would like them to order some. If you can't find a local shop that will be carrying them, I will set up some preorder listings for consumers on my shop in the next few weeks. I do not have access to the kits till April as well (I order them just like any other shop). I only sell retail for kits, not wholesale. Wholesale goes through Moda. They have set up a "notions only wholesale" account so shops can set up an account with a lower minimum and it allows them to buy notions, the kits, precuts of fabrics, additional Cosmo flosses and other supplies. You can not order bolts of fabric through a notions only account but you can order fat quarter bundles, layer cakes and other precuts. Shops can get more info on the Moda Fabrics website (modafabrics.com) or send an email to [email protected] YES the charts will be available as patterns only too. I hope to have all four of these sent off to the printer next week. That means they should be ready in about another week after that.
Happy stitching!
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It's been a moment since sharing since life has been so busy! 2024 has been a whirlwind and one of my highlights has been a trip to Paris with my lovely daughter (AMAZING!). Lots of house project too. But I've been having so many happy times lately that I've been soaking them up and not worrying too much about posting to social media and blogging because I sometimes need to be more present in the moments of my life. I bet you understand! However, I am super happy to share more info about SUPERBLOOM! And the fun of Quilt Market. The next post will focus on the new cross stitch with this group. Oh, all the stitchy fun!  A couple years ago I did the Wild Blossoms collection with an ombre print of wildflowers that took up the entire width of the fabric, 42", selvage to selvage. There are so many beautiful wildflowers out there and it seemed time to do a sister collection with some other wild beauties. Meet my sister collection, SUPERBLOOM.  "A superbloom is a rare desert botanical phenomenon in California and Arizona in which an unusually high proportion of wildflowers whose seeds have lain dormant in desert soil germinate and blossom at roughly the same time. The phenomenon is associated with an unusually wet rainy season."- according to the contributors to Wikipedia. All I know is driving through the areas of California at certain times can be an explosion of color, if you time it right. That is quite SUPER! And colorful.  I have a mix of poppies, black-eyed Susans, coneflowers, asters and scruffy little blooms that I have no name for, going across the fabric on the entire 42" width, selvage to selvage. This time we have TWO colorways of the width-of-fabric print. The backgrounds are either the "pastel" version with lighter pinks and peaches and lavender color, or the "jewel" tones of deeper purple, red, and indigo.   My main single flower is the red Poppy. My first collection for Moda Fabrics was Poppy Mae and this brings back those big bright blooms with a scale change and some updates. Coordinating fabrics include a print of makeshift vases like watering cans and pitchers to use as flower display, a posy party watercolor print, coneflowers tossed, scribble stripes, a leafy print, butterflies flitting among the tiny leaves and 8 colors of Dotty Thatched as pretty blenders or backgrounds.  Color families are the creams, pinks, red, purples, blues. It is fun to mix periwinkle and dalia and freesia and indigo or group cream, soft pink of carnation with lively fuchsia.  Also coordinating with the group are the blender prints of 8 colors of Dotty Thatched!   I was excited to create some quilt projects that can utilize the WOF print. I designed 4 new quilt patterns: Gathering Wildflowers, Centerpieced, Fiona's Daisy Chain and Turn Signal. Gathering Wildflowers uses fat quarters or 1/4 yard cuts with the ombre print and a background fabric to make a wall/lap size quilt. A perky row of flowers sits upon the ombre print, in honor of the colorful mix of florals. All the quilts use traditional piecing (not foundation paper pieced). Moda is kitting the dark background version.   Fiona's Daisy Chain looks at what it is like to cut that big ombre print up into squares to be used within a background of an Irish chain quilt. You can still arrange them to get the ombre effect or stagger them for a scrappier look. You can also use squares from a Layer Cake in the spaces that are shown with the ombre print. By selecting corner fabrics in the 9-patch that are closer to the background, a daisy flower emerges for the chain. I had a lot of fun playing with the colors on this one and could not decide which one to make. So why not make them all??   Centerpieced is a table runner of 40", 60", or 80" in length, depending on the size you need for your table. Little 3" blocks run down the center of this runner, letting big borders of wildflowers be a good size and color contrast. I've used a 5" square Charm Pack for the center blocks. I recommend using 1" finished triangle paper for these blocks. That makes the little blocks easier. The backside of these runners is the perfect place for the "Makeshift Vases" print.   And the final quilt is the most modern of the designs: Turn Signal. This is a Jelly Roll quilt using 2 1/2" strips that turn and have strong direction. They are set off with panels of the ombre print on the top left and bottom right. I used the darker prints for the left and lighter prints on the right. I also think this would be striking as only one vertical half as a wall quilt, hanging in a high ceiling area or vaulted ceiling or above a fireplace.   There are cross stitch projects too but that will wait for the next post. It is hard to express how touching it is to go to Quilt Market, year after year, and see familiar faces and friends from afar. I enjoy my time with Moda Fabrics and we have some meetings and do some goofy things. The other designers are delightful and I consider myself extremely lucky to be a part of this "family."  Time with designer friends is a treat!  I was also very excited to meet Emily Van Hoff since my daughter introduced me to her fabulous sculptural quilted pieces on instagram. I am so glad Moda has partnered with her to make her Groove collection.   Some of my favorite people to see at Market? The women from the mill in Korea who do such an amazing job at bringing our artwork into reality!  My booth! Can you say FLOWERS? That is Superbloom in full bloom!   I had a lot of fun meeting Linsee of The Quilt Spot. She does sewing themed jewelry that is wonderful! I am working on a design for a really cool round cross-stitch friendly medallion she carries that I hope to have at Quiltcon!  The bubbly groups from JK Quilts, Oh Sew Sweet, What the Fabric?    And my own moment of Fan-Girling over the Primrose Cottage ladies! I saw Nettie and ran after her and met everyone else after. They are all so lovely! I am in love with their beautiful cross stitch designs!  The Moda overall booth was a Christmas wonderland theme. Lots of spirit and cheer everywhere. Don't you love those Moda peeps?    An elf even snuck into my booth!!  I was very excited to share some new cross stitch designs and the next post will cover those! I think I am still settling in from the trip and the excitement and all the adrenaline rush of each day. I hope you enjoyed seeing some of my Superbloom group, the quilts, and a little peek into Quilt Market days!  Superbloom will ship in April 2025 to quilt shops. Let your local shop know if you want them to order it (orders go in now for the mill). I'll be getting new patterns up in the shop as soon as possible. Gathering Wildflowers and Centerpieced will be up soon at RobinPickensInc.com or check your local quilt shop. Let the blooming begin!!
I am headed off to Nashville Needlework Market and I'm so excited to be going for the first time! I can't wait to see all those materials and flosses and cross stitch goodies! But before I go, I must post these color studies that I did for the MOONBEAMS quilt that the Fat Quarter Shop is doing as their fundraiser for Make-A-Wish! The sew along starts this Friday, March 1st!!  When I saw the design for this year's charity quilt, I thought it was SO pretty and elegant! I love the birds in the corners and the trees especially. This is designed by the Fat Quarter Shop and I will be sewing along, making my version in my Dandi Duo fabric from Moda Fabrics. The first mockup I did was on white and I must admit, I LOVE how light, springy and fresh it looks with the pinks, corals, yellows and greens on a nice white background. Since Dandi Duo also have soft grays I wanted to try that. Although it is also a soft look, I don't think the gray gives the quilt the energy it deserves.  So how about something more vibrant?? This is Thatched Passion 58. It is not a Thatched color that comes in a bundle of Dandi Duo, but it coordinates really well and is a little darker shade to let those lighter pinks and corals pop out. I am definitely liking the Passion color more than the gray. I think it is lively, fresh and very playful.  The last version I tried is on Shadow, a nice dark charcoal-ish gray. I was inspired by seeing the Fat Quarter Version with Strawberry and Lemonade from Sherri and Chelsea, which has a dark blue for the background. The dark color really lets all the block elements sparkle and stand out. It is dramatic and sophisticated.  Which one to make?? I really came down to the Passion or white and decided on the white since it felt so happy and cheery to me and I think that works really well with this quilt. My quilt will be auctioned off at the end to help raise money for the charity. Stay tuned for sharing some blocks and get ready to sew.  Read more details about the sew along. THere is also a stitch along for a matching cross stitch design that is so lovely! The Jolly Jabber blog from Fat Quarter Shop has all the details on quilt and cross stitch! blog.fatquartershop.com/lets-get-ready-for-moonbeams/  Join in and support a great charity! I'm so excited to make the beautiful quilt! If you post images, use the hashtag #MoonbeamsQAL so we can see your work.
 Another quilt to go with the Dandi Duo group is Sliding Shoji Screens. This quilt is revised from an earlier version. It was one of the first patterns I had created and was released with my first collection for Moda, Poppy Mae. Since then I've learned a lot!   Some revision were in order and I also wanted to give more sizes. I have eliminated the companion piece made with leftover strips and have changed the cutting directions to fit better within 40" width of fabric (vs 42" so allowing for shrinkage of prewashed fabric). There are three sizes. Lap 63 1/2 x 74 1/2", Full/Double 80 1/2 x 90 1/2" and Queen 96 1/2 x 90 1/2". The lap is actually the closest to what the original Sliding Shoji Screens sizing was.  I love the crisp white sashings with the soft grays. For the queen size I've added in the cross stitch stripe and dandelions on green. I enjoyed making this sample in the Full/Double size and for a larger bed, I will place it with the stripes running vertically if I need that wider size.  The pantograph I used when quilting this is Rondelle by Jessica Schick. I got it from Urban Elementz online shop. I placed the ovals perpendicular to the horizontal stripes of the quilt.  The fabrics used on this Gray/White version is listed below, plus another colorway that is a springy palette.  I think the cross stitch stripe would be a very fun sashing to run through the whole quilt.  The original inspiration for Sliding Shoji Screens came from the desire to have larger panels to showcase bigger prints/fabric designs. There is a shifting balance between the larger rows and thinner rows and little moments of sashing separating within the bands.   Sliding Shoji Screens uses HALF YARDS of prints. Lap needs (7) fabrics in half yard cuts plus 2 yards of sashing fabric. Full/Double needs (8) fabrics in half yard cuts plus 3 yards of sashing fabric. Queen needs (10) fabrics in half yard cuts plus 3 1/2 yards of sashing fabric. You can find the pattern at RobinPickensINC.com SLIDING SHOJI SCREENS Still two more patterns to share for Dandi Duo...Partial Eclipse and Posies Table Runner and Placemats!   I revisited my pattern "FRINGE" with Dandi Duo. The original Fringe pattern was released with Dandi Annie for it felt fitting to give it an update with my dandelions, Version 2. Fringe uses a Layer Cake of 10" squares and a background fabric and sashing fabric.  I made minimal changes to the quilt pattern but did eliminate the asymmetrical layout option that was in the first pattern and now included the specs and instructions to make the large square. There is also an option for a smaller 53 1/2" square lap size.  I've made Fringe in two colorways, both using a Layer Cake for the centers and different fabric for thin sashings and borders. The twin size (on wall below) has the Maize Dandi Toile for borders with Thatched Blizzard sashings. The large square size (on wall above) has the Graphite Dandi Toile for borders with Gray Thatched sashing.   You can find the Fringe pattern in both print and pdf versions at RobinPickensINC.com. My etsy shop only has pdfs, so print versions for US and Canada mailing can be found at my online shop powered by shopify (www.robinpickensINC.com). click here: FRINGE PATTERN Other than the main dandelion print, I think the Dandi Toile, in the borders and especially this dark Graphite version) are my favorite print from this group. I love the 2 shades of background and linear drawings of the simplified dandelions.  I also like how the "Cross Stitch Stripe" makes a lovely striped binding, as shown on the yellow version.   This is from the pattern back, showing the dimensions of the three sizes:   Keep reading on to see another "revamp" with Sliding Shoji Screens for Dandi Duo!  Dandi Duo fabrics arrived in December and with all the rush and excitement of the holidays, I didn't share much about it. Wow, how did THAT happen? So this is a little late, but Dandi Duo is still in shops now. I'm sharing some pictures for you to get a closer look.  Dandi Duo is the sister collection to Dandi Annie, one of my favorite groups with big white dandelion seed puffs and lots of childhood memories. The beautiful and dreamy weeds are still growing strong and back for another season of blowing wishes to the wind. The main print in Dandi Duo features the big dancing seed puffs along with golden blooms that have yet to turn to seed, backed by big pink circles and flowing leaves. A simpler illustrated “Dandi Toile” and dandelion paisley coordinate with the group, as well as “Little Bitties” of simply sketched blooms and a “Cross Stitch Stripe” for a linear companion. “Flyaway Seeds” is a delicate print of seedlings in flight.  The existing colors of Thatched create the palette of Dandi Duo: Maize, Gray, Shadow, Greenery, Sugar Rose, Peach and Blizzard. These light and happy colors are balanced with the calm, serene nature of the grays and cool white. Don’t forget to add some Thatched 108” wideback fabric in Gray 85 or Blizzard 150 and Thatched premade Bias Binding in Gray or Soft Black to coordinate for easy finishing of your quilts. Here are some images of the color groupings:      One part of finishing up a collection is finding some fun quote or thoughts you'd like to share on the selvage. For Dandi Duo I just had a simple thought, "Make a wish and blow! Let the seeds of dreams scatter and grow." Isn't that what we all believed as children? I still love the magic of blowing those seeds to the wind!  The Dandi Duo collection has 31 SKUs (which includes the 7 Thatched colors of Maize, Gray, Shadow, Greenery, Sugar Rose, Peach and Blizzard) and has precuts of fat quarter bundles, Jelly Roll 2 1/2" strips, 10" Layer Cake squares, 5" Charm Pack squares and 2 1/2" Mini Charm squares.    Dandi Duo feels happy and free. I hope it makes you as happy as it makes me! Read on to see more of Dandi Duo made up into some new quilts.
Happy sewing! Moda Blockheads Day! Time to catch up on a few things.  First off, color studies for this week's block, Morning Star from Barbara Groves of Me & My Sister Designs. Are you a supergraphic 70's star outline lover? Or prefer a row of flying geese arrows? Blocky sides? Arrow points towards center with different color corners? Such fun to play with this block and the outline that surrounds the star. This is an awesome block to play with. Thanks so much Barbara.  This is my block that I made this week in Winterly fabrics. I decided to make those outlines in the corners the Seafoam color to bring in more of the cool tones in the tree prints in the corners. I liked having a darker green in the center star points in contrast with the Chartreuse sides.  Back in the first group, when I showed my block, I sewed it up in Winterly fabrics and I knew I wanted to make a Christmas quilt, but didn't have a plan. I have numerous Christmas quilts but none done from a sampler or from a sew along. It took awhile to think about it but now I have a plan.  For the past 2 Moda Blockheads quilts, I've made very structured medallion and linear quilts. I wanted a quilt for this one that felt a little more free-flowing but organized. The star blocks seem like the perfect opportunity for a holiday quilt. You can see my first block I made, my "Community Star" block (group 1, block 8) on my previous blog post. Most of my Christmas quilts have a lot of red color so I wanted this to be more green-focused, using more of the tree/landscape/greenery/bird prints from Winterly. The quilt will use a mix of 6" and 12” green blocks, in a flowing arrangement, with a band of red blocks running as a band through the center. I will also intersperse 6" squares of fabrics from Winterly to show off those fabric design, coordinate with the blocks, and fill in any needed spaces. The Thatched colors that I am using along with the Winterly prints are Thatched Cream 36, Crimson 43, Pine 44, Ocean 144 or Dewdrop143, Seafoam 125, Spring 54 and Chartreuse 75. There is a larger group of greens to go with the larger percentage of the quilt and add interest by mixing the warm (Chartreuse) and cool (Seafoam) greens.  Now that I have decided on my plan, I have some catching up to do! According to this layout, I need about 10 of the 12" blocks and I worked on 4 of those. The blocks above are Morning Star, Super Scrappy Star, Bright Star and Shimmer Star. As I do blocks, I keep track of my progress by filling in my layout image. Since I do color studies, I make up these blocks in Adobe Illustrator and can easily swap in my Winterly fabrics for my layout. This helps me see what I am missing and how to keep the balance of color and light and dark.  I was a bit late in figuring out my plan and now have LOTS of catching up to do (and I'm sure no one else is in that predicament, right??). I'll share past color studies that I posted in the facebook group along with blocks as I make them here on the blog. This week I made the 4 blocks. The first color study for this week is at the top for Morning Star. The very first block of group 1 was from Betsy Chutchian, called Bright Star.  Well, I could have played with this block all day long since there are potentially so many things I could try. I loved the little ribbon like corners and honestly, I think this block is a little busy and I should have limited the number of fabrics and colors I was using. But that is okay since I can balance this out with other, simpler blocks or just the Winterly squares around this.  I've also made Super Scrappy Star from Corey Yoder. This was from group 1, block 4. I liked the last of the color studies a lot with the lighter center star and two corners trailing off to darker shades.  On a block like this, I am using Thatched fabric and also flipping it to the back side to get that lighter shade of the color (the more chambray-looking ones). I just noticed in the photo that my lower left seams are not matching up so well. Hmmmm. To fix or not to fix? I'll probably end up fixing it...  This is last week's color study for Shimmer Star from April Rosenthal. Arrows, checkerboards, ribbons and pinwheels! And yes, stars.  My actual block based on the top row, far right, color study image. I like how Thatched Seafoam (backside) and Spring go with that Pine stripe from Winterly.  I don't think I'll be getting around the the paper piecing on this block, so I'll post the color study now. This was group 1, block 3 from Brigitte Heitland of Zen Chic, called Stellar Elegance. It sure is elegant! And I love how it can be a split day/night image.  For my next round of blocks, I think I will focus on some of the smaller sizes. This shows the scale change between the 12" and 6" block sizes (and this is one of my Community Star blocks).  Now that I finally have it all planned out, I get to do the fun part and SEW! Well, the color studies are also a fun part for me as well. I am often surprised by what pops out as I play on the computer. But there is such a satisfaction of seeing those happy fabric blocks evolving when sewing and feeling and working with cloth and thread.  Keep up with my progress and share your own projects through my Facebook group "Robin Pickens Sew Happy Community" where you can also ask questions and be in community with other quilters. Hope to see you there! You can also find me on Instagram and Pinterest @robinpickens as well as on youtube. Happy sewing in the new year!    My week for Moda Blockheads! Yay! I am newly back from Quilt Market in Houston (just arrived home late Monday night) and woke up Tuesday morning with the thought of "BLOCKHEADS!!" When I am getting ready for Market, a lot of other things get pushed to the side and making my block became the task of the day. Seriously, I made my block instead of unpacking my quilts and clothes from the trip!  I knew I had to make my star block in my new WINTERLY fabrics that I was just showing at Market! I'm going to be making a holiday quilt to go along with the line and that is why a lot of my color studies have been skewing towards the greens in color...my brain has been piecing Christmas quilts for months. The 12" block I made has a mixture of Crimson Thatched AND Dotty Thatched (which we mix into a line from time to time and reminded me of snowfall for this winter group) and a cheery striped print and some of my whimsical flying birds. I used the Dotty Thatched Cream for the background of the smaller 6" block with greenery and pine stripes for the side stars and a red bird in the center. My concept for "Community Star" is the idea that one star is in the center and the community of others is surrounding, supporting and reaching out to it. There are 4 partial stars that show half their star-bodies and reach out with points to touch the center star. So very often in quilting, we are reaching out and supporting and connecting with each other. It is really an activity that thrives with strong community. And Blockheads is an active and fun community so it seemed fitting.    As I read through the directions for my designed block, I realized I needed to share another version of construction for anyone who uses stripes like I am to allow the stripes to be horizontal and vertical. The way the directions are written would split the H and I squares diagonally and sew them to the G square, but the lines would be going diagonally in my final piece. So I did a variation that does take a little more fabric but uses a simple "stitch and flip" with corner squares to achieve the triangles. Using this method allowed me to position my stripes so they always looked like they were coming straight from the sides of the edge stars. If you would like to use this method, these are my changes:  Instead of 4 squares of H and I, you will need 8 of each. Sew them to the corners and flip open and trim, similar to how you make traditional flying geese. After pressing open the opposite corners, add the other 2 corners. Just make sure to press open first (or am I the only one who has forgotten to press open a flying geese side before adding the other square?) Whichever method you choose, I hope you have fun making these star friends! Of course I had to share some color studies with you for this block too...  Like I mentioned, I'm thinking Christmas, but you can imagine any colors you like in here. Just substitute and think about those light and dark spaces. Stars can be the same colors in the centers as the points or multiple values of light and dark. The top two probably best illustrate the idea of stars reaching out in community to the center best. It is also fun to look at those outer star shapes as bowties or the center blending into a big X. How about a lighter outer border or a suggested churn dash relative in the white background shapes? Emphasize dots or lines...have fun! You can download the pattern here from the blue DOWNLOAD FILE below. Or visit the facebook page or Moda's blog. 
 I'll be making some of the other blocks and sharing them in Winterly fabrics. Winterly will be shipping in May of 2024. It features Amaryllis lilies, birds flying in swirly breezes, hillside landscapes of trees, dotty Thatched, greenery, stripes and a triangle print with holiday motifs. There is also a panel with 4 square bird blocks and two horizontal treescapes. I'll share more pictures and the quilt projects in the next blog post. I've got new Christmas cross stitch to coordinate and it was very fun to share it all at Quilt Market! If you are new to my world, I hope you will consider joining in on the Oak Grove Square sew along. I delayed October due to Quilt Market but just started in September on a monthly sew along. Want to sew some mushrooms? That is the first month! Check out my Facebook group "Robin Pickens Sew Happy Community" where you can share your projects with my fabrics and patterns or ask questions and be in community with other quilters. Hope to see you there! You can also find me on instagram and pinterest @robinpickens Happy sewing!     Back when I did the Splendid Christmas line I created a wall quilt called Cardinal's Christmas Wreath. It was the first bird quilt I did and started my love of making bird blocks! I've now sized the bird to various different sizes and still have fun making my flying friends. I also started thinking about this bird being for different seasons and not just Christmas. The first ideas for Fall started like this, with the idea of a Fall wreath:  And then I thought about dropping out the bow and also experimented with a black background with a green bird. What if I filled in the wreath so it was more like a pumpkin?  I took this idea (the one on cream) on retreat with me to play with along with some scraps of Thatched fabrics I had. The pattern "Cardinal's Christmas Wreath" has two sizes, a 54 x 60" large and 45 x 47" medium size wall. I have made the larger one for Christmas and decided to do the smaller size for this autumn one.  This really was a fun, smaller sized project to do AND I used all scraps. I did make some other changes as I experimented and made rows. First off, I dropped the borders on the sides. My finished quilt is 30" across and I thought that was a good size for a wall space. I also liked how the pumpkin looked more squat and horizontal so I kept the size height of the rows but just used less of them. And my corners for the pumpkin use one half square triangle at the ends, vs on two rows for a more angled corner. What does this look like as a diagram for better understanding? This is the structure and it follows the bird pieces and construction as written in the pattern.  Again, I'm using the smaller size in the pattern (numbers in red in the pattern). The pumpkin would be filled in all the way across with no opening for a wreath. There are 2 LESS rows of blocks for the pumpkin body. only the top and bottom rows have a half square triangle at the very ends for rounding off the shape (vs two rows). I have still constructed my bird with the 21.5" piece on top as is called for in the pattern. But I'm using an extra one on the bottom and using 30" x 3.5" strips on the sides. This means there are a number of background pieces you would NOT need to cut (if you are not doing this as a fall wreath). This would need 3/4 of a yard of background fabric (vs a full yard). Instead of the list on page 3 for Background, you would cut this list:  Of the (3) 4 x 4" pieces, (2) of them are for corners and one is for the bird's chest. I have taken out the pieces for the bow and wreath insides, wreath bigger corners and adjusted for the new size of surround with the background. On page 1 the green fabrics shown are for the wreath. If you are making a filled in pumpkin that is more squat but made from all squares, cut: (2) 4" x 4" for corner HST (31) 3.5" x 3.5" squares in a mixture of oranges/fall fabrics. Page 2 shows pieces in red fabric and charcoal fabric for cutting the birds. Flip the colors so you are cutting the BIRD BODY from black and the (1) 4 x 4 from bird's mask color (mine is Smoked Paprika). Do not cut the bow pieces unless you are making as a Fall wreath version. It is up to you if you use the borders. If you do not want the border, skip cutting those from bottom half of page 2. I did not use all squares on my pumpkin. I made my quilt with a more improv approach using my scraps. I cut them all around 1", 1.5", 2", 2.5" and 3.5" in width while keeping them all 3.5" high. I made strips and trimmed to the 21.5" length. The Thatched colors I used were Tangerine, Clementine, Apricot, Citrus, Masala Spice, Rose, Pink Grapefruit, and Smoked Paprika.  These notes have not been to an editor and I'm trying to have them be as accurate as possible. I did notice the pattern does not say on page 7 that the background piece between the bird's legs is the 2.5" x 1.25" piece (and that is 2.5" as written in the list and not the 2.75" shown on the diagram). I've got Cardinal's Christmas Wreath on sale currently for half price. I hope you like this Fall version! I think it could be cute to add a green wool leaf to the top of the pumpkin! The pantograph I used for longarming is RICH GIRL (extended width) by Longarm League. I used it in the default size I believe. Happy Fall! Check out the pattern at RobinPickensInc.com!
 Hello September! It is time for my OAK GROVE SQUARE sew along to start soon! I feel like the weeks have been rushing by so quickly and I'm still trying to catch up. I originally hoped to start Oak Grove in the beginning of September, but due to me being a little delayed getting this info out, I'm starting further into the month. Just like I did for LEAF PRESS, I've played around with some alternative Thatched palettes. My pattern is written to the Forest Frolic fabric and I've made the quilt in Forest Frolic and have both the light and dark version. Because of that, I'll be sewing for the sew along with one of the Thatched versions.  A couple explanations about the quilt first. Finished size is 72 1/2" square. The motifs are of fall leaves and acorns and mushrooms with some leafy stalks and corner stars and patchwork center star. It is a medallion quilt that has a center square and radiating "rings" (or square borders) surrounding it. You can make this quilt with all one background color or make every row/border/ring a different color. On this dark version I've used the new Thatched Mocha for the center and outer row. The Acorns are on a Cinnamon border and the green leaf stalks and some Oak Leaves are on a Copper border.  This light version uses Thatched Buttermilk for three of the backgrounds and Caramel for one of the rows. Because of the options to use different background colors, the sections are cut and written in the pattern according to the rows. If you decided to use 4 different backgrounds, you'd need: Background A..... 3/4 yard (you can use 2/3 yard but it is tight so 3/4 gives you more room for play) Background B..... 1 and 1/3 yard Background C..... 1 and 1/2 yard Background D...... 2 and 1/3 yard The prints needed are 12 Fat Quarters of prints (Fabrics E-P) and a couple additional accent fabrics of greens for leaves (1/2 yard for Fabric R and 3/8 yard for Fabric S) and 1/8 yard or Fat Eighth for Fabric T used for mushroom stalks. The blocks all use construction for half square triangles, flying geese and stitch and flip corners. It is regular piecing and not foundation paper piecing. No applique (although feel free to add any embellishments to your own quilt with an applique addition).  As I worked on the Thatched color studies, I wanted to try versions that felt like they went with the fall season but were not ONLY about fall. I liked this version on Cream Thatched with a Pink Grapefruit border C. This feels light and playful on the crisp cream background, thus the "Lighthearted Fall" name.   And by simply changing the outer Background D to Smoked Paprika and Background B for acorns to Buttermilk, the feeling evolved to a richer color scheme for "Colorful Fall".   Lets go darker and more dramatic! "Dark Drama" uses Thatched Soft Black with a row of Olive. Lively Passion, Honeycomb, Cranberry and Tangerine give a sparkle of warm bright colors.   And one more...using colors that stray more from fall and have "Cheery Brights" to make an Oak Grove Square that is fit for year-round fun.   What about the details of sewing along? Where and when? Where: Share your progress and watch videos through Robin's facebook group. Join the facebook group "Robin Pickens Sew Happy Community" at www.facebook.com/groups/762206228564958 For those of you who don't do facebook, I'll be sending the videos to youtube but there is a delay till my video helper (Mr P) can do it on the weekend. Youtube channel is www.youtube.com/channel/UCNFGL95Mw4YSj98_k5RakqQ Oak Grove Square will be a monthly sew along with a group of blocks each month. This is the schedule and I'll be doing my first video on preparing on Friday, September 22nd at 10am on a facebook live in the facebook group.    The blocks are not difficult to do and there is minimal matching of points. Since it is grouped monthly and by similar types, the blocks are rather efficient. It is quite fun to see your pile of mushrooms, leaves and acorns growing! I hope you will join us.   Maybe you are already joining in with the LEAF PRESS sew along? It is not too late to join in! My blog post about Leaf Press shows color combinations for that as well at:
www.robinpickens.com/blog/fall-sew-alongs-leaf-press-with-forest-frolic-or-thatched Patterns for Leaf Press or Oak Grove Square can be found at RobinPickensINC.com. You will need a pattern for the sew alongs. I hope you will join the facebook group and share your progress and quilts. I am so touched by seeing people post their projects with my fabrics or patterns. Thank you so much! |
About ROBINDesigner of colorful florals for Moda fabrics. Modern to transitional quilt designer. Illustrator, sewist, crafter. I am proud to be a designer for Moda Fabrics!
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