The Boo Crew

Here's a fun new project just in time for Halloween!

The Boo Crew is a 16½" square quilt that's the perfect size to display on a table or wall or to finish as a pillow.

And with simple blocks and stitch & flip corners, The Boo Crew is a treat to put together—perfect for quilters of all levels or for a quick weekend project.

The Boo Crew is also versatile!  Make it your own by changing up the color placement or palette. 

Here's The Boo Crew with a background made of two shades of purple and a black zigzag:

Or here it is with an orange zigzag:

And here's a monochromatic black and white version that I just love!

The pattern for The Boo Crew is now available for immediate download in my Etsy Shop. 

Hope you have fun with it and Happy Halloween!

Giveaway!

The Summer 2018 issue of Primitive Quilts and Projects magazine is now available and it features 16 beautiful projects that are perfect for summer stitching!  And on page 74 you can find the pattern for my scrappy little quilt, My Favorite Things.

I named this quilt My Favorite Things because in incorporates some of my favorite blocks and fabric colors in one tidy little package.  My Favorite Things is a stash-friendly weekend project and a great skill-builder for a beginning quilter.

And if you're wondering what My Favorite Things might look like in a lighter colorway, here it is in a springy palette with cream sashing and robin's egg blue binding...

or with green sashing and binding.

Here it is in a two-color palette...

and in a monochromatic palette (kind of love this one!).

Endless possibilities — my favorite kind of quilt!

If you'd like to give My Favorite Things a try, I'm giving away two copies of the Summer 2018 issue of Primitive Quilts and Projects.  To enter the giveaway, head over to Instagram and tag a friend in the comments section of the contest photo.  I'll pick two winners on Sunday 4/22! Sorry, the Giveaway is now closed.

Good luck!

Spring Candy

Longing for spring?  The weather outside is still frightful here in New England, but here's a fun weekend project that sure to lift your spirits!

It's my Spring Candy mini quilt!

Spring Candy is based on my Christmas Candy Moda Bake Shop tutorial.  This little quilt is made in exactly the same way, but I've substituted a mini charm pack of "Hazelwood" fabric by One Canoe Two and changed up the embroidery for spring. 

I remember my mom teaching me the phrase "March winds, April showers, bring forth May flowers" when I was a child and I thought this project was the perfect opportunity to stitch the rhyme.  I embroidered the lettering, flowers and vines using two strands of embroidery floss and a backstitch and the little buds at the ends of the vines are French knots.  I love how this mini quilt turned out.  The colors of the "Hazelwood" fabrics make me happy just to look at them, and the stitching takes it over the top!

Ready to make your own version of Spring Candy?

Here's the link to my original Christmas Candy Moda Bake Shop tutorial.

And here's the link to a downloadable pdf of the Spring Candy embroidery pattern.

And finally, if you'd prefer to turn your Spring Candy quilt into a pillow, here's a link to my original post for Halloween Candy, the Halloween version of this project, that contains pillow instructions.

Happy Quilting!

Home Tweet Home Take Two

I've had some questions about how to make a larger version of Home Tweet Home, my latest Moda Bake Shop tutorial, using charm squares (5") rather than mini charm squares (2½").  If you're interested, here's some rough math to help you out.

For a 30½" square quilt made with a charm pack:

Birdhouse block size:  4¾" x 4¾" finished
Sashing strips:  1" x 4¾" finished (cut 1½" x 5¼")
Cornerstones:  1" x 1" finished (cut 1½" x 1½")
Inner border:  1" wide finished (cut 2 - 1½" x 22½" and 2 - 1½" x 24½")
HST border:  3" x 3" HSTs finished (make in the same manner described in the tutorial using 4" squares to start - you'll have to trim the charm squares first)
Outer border corner squares:  3" x 3" finished (cut 3½" x 3½")

I plugged this larger design into EQ7 and it's looks like you'd need roughly a yard of background fabric and ½ yard of fabric for the birdhouse roofs.

Here's a link to a foundation pattern that I drafted for the 4¾" birdhouse block.  And here, again, is the link to the original tutorial — the cutting measurements are different for the larger quilt, but the construction is the same.

I'd love to see what a bigger version of this quilt looks like and I may even try one myself!  One reader suggested appliquéing a black circle to the larger birdhouses rather than using buttons — great idea Cheryl!  Don't forget to tag me @JenDalyQuilts if you share your quilts on Instagram or Facebook!

Happy Quilting!

— Jen

Home Tweet Home

I know we still have two months of winter left, but somehow I can't help looking ahead to spring.  And in honor of the sweetest season, here's what I've been working on:

It's Home Tweet Home, my latest Moda Bake Shop tutorial.  This sweet quilt finishes at 15½" square.  You'll need a mini charm pack, a bit of yardage and 16 little buttons to make Home Tweet Home and you can find detailed instructions as well as plenty of how-to photos free at the Moda Bake Shop.

I made my little quilt with "Lilac Ridge" by Jan Patek Quilts.  Her shades of lavender, green, brown and cream are perfect for spring—soft, lovely and warm. 

But if you're wondering what Home Tweet Home would look like in a different color palette, here are a couple of ideas that I think are equally cute.  Each is inspired by a current or upcoming Moda fabric collection.

Mama's Cottage by April Rosenthal available now

Provencal by American Jane available in February

Whichever you choose, I hope you have fun making Home Tweet Home.  And if you share your little quilts on Instagram or Facebook, please tag me @JenDalyQuilts—I'd love to see what you're up to!

Easter Mini

Lately, I can't seem to get enough of all things miniature!  So with Easter right around the corner, I thought it was high time that I made an Easter mini.

I designed this simple little 6" project around the Easter egg buttons.  Aren't they darling?!

They're Just Another Button Company buttons, specifically the "small blue," "small pink," and "small lavender egg(s)."  I've had these buttons for a while now, waiting for the perfect opportunity to use them, and I'm thrilled with how they look tucked into a wool appliqué basket.

I thought about framing my project, but decided instead to layer it with batting and backing fabric, and to bind it with a wide binding that does double duty as an outer border.  I'm so happy I did, because I just love the look of the wide binding!  This is my first time using single fold binding as a wide binding and it turns out that it was super easy!  For the half-inch wide binding, I cut my fabric strip 2¼" wide.

To display my little project, I decided to attach a length of the gingham ribbon to the back of the mini so I can hang it wherever I like—preferably directly in front of me!  

Here's a link to the pattern for the Easter basket. And if you don't happen to have gorgeous Easter egg buttons in your stash yet, don't despair!  I think this project would also be cute with little wool eggs, maybe even embellished with a bit of embroidery.  Hmm... now my wheels are turning again!

Happy Easter and Happy Stitching!

Bloom Where You Are Planted

We're supposed to have a snowstorm here in New Hampshire tomorrow, and with a potential accumulation of 14-18 inches of snow, I can't think of a better time for a little spring stitching!!

These wooden buttons were the inspiration for this sweet project:

I saw them online when I was ordering some homespun fabric from Jubilee Fabric (jubileefabric.com) and I couldn't resist.  They're tiny—only 3/8"—but perfect for scattering across a background.

Back to the project!  First off, you can find the pattern for this little stitchery here.  The finished project measures about 5" square, but start with a larger background square (8" or so) so you can comfortably use an embroidery hoop.  You can trim the background square later if you like.

After tracing the pattern onto the background square using a light box and a water-soluble marking pen, I used size 8 perle cotton and a wrapped backstitch to stitch the "Bloom" and the big flower stem.  For the rest of the lettering and the little flower stems, I used two strands of embroidery floss and a backstitch—lazy daisies for the little flower leaves.  I appliquéd the felted wool flower and leaves using a single strand of embroidery floss and a whipstitch.  And finally, I used six strands of floss to stitch down the little buttons, making an "x" pattern in their centers.

I went back and forth about how to finish this project.  I thought about making it a little quilt with a loop that could be hung on a door knob or hook, kind of like this project that I made last November :

Give Thanks Mini Quilt

I also thought about adding a patchwork border and finishing it as a small pillow, but ultimately I decided to frame it.  To do so, I layered it with a thin piece of batting (flannel would also work), wrapped it around the glass that came with the frame, and inserted it into the frame.  Fast and finished!!

Happy Stitching!!