Merry Little Christmas Stitch-Along — Day 5

It's Day 5 of the Merry Little Christmas Stitch-Along and today we're making gingerbread men!

Between the brushed texture of the flannel/wool, the contrast of the white stitching and the darling peppermint buttons, these little gingerbread men look just like cookies!

And here's the gingerbread man block that I made for my traditional pillow using a slightly darker brown wool:

You may notice that the buttons that I used for this block are a bit smaller.  They're also from JABC, namely the tiny peppermint swirl (sku:  nh1067.T).

Have fun making your own gingerbread men and feel free to embellish them as much as you like.  I've kept mine pretty simple, but if you search online for gingerbread man cookie images, you'll find a lot of great ideas.  I can't wait to see what you come up with!

—jen

Merry Little Christmas Stitch-Along — Day 4

Welcome back for Day 4 of the Merry Little Christmas Stitch-Along!  Thank you for taking a few minutes out of your precious weekend to be here!

Today we're making a little mitten block embellished with a charming snowflake.

Here's a look at the mitten that I stitched for my traditional pillow:

I love how the pattern of the wool resembles knitting!  I wouldn't mind having a pair of mittens that looked just like this!

That's it for today!  Enjoy the rest of your weekend, and I'll see you back here Tuesday for Day 5's block—can't wait!

—jen

Merry Little Christmas Stitch-Along — Day 3

Happy Friday!  It's Day 3 of the Merry Little Christmas Stitch-Along and today we're making Santa's hat!

We'll spruce up the cuff of the hat with an embroidered garland, complete with French knot berries, and then top the hat off with a sweet little snowflake button.  My button is the "small snowflake" (sku 4442.s) from Just Another Button Company—I love, love, love their buttons!

The hat pattern has already been reversed for use with the fusible web.  I've also drawn a sample wavy line on the cuff for the stitched garland.  Use my line as a pattern, draw your own or simply freehand stitch a wavy line—once you add the straight stitches and berries to the garland, the wavy line doesn't show up very much, so don't worry about making it perfect.

Here's the Santa hat that I made with wool for my traditional pillow:

I love the red plaid wool that I used for the hat.  It's subtle, but gives it a bit of extra texture—so much fun!

I'll be back here on Sunday with a new block.  In the meantime, have fun making your Santa hats!

—jen

Merry Little Christmas Stitch-Along — Day 2

We're back for Day 2 of the Merry Little Christmas Stitch-Along and today we're making gift blocks!

This is is simple little block, but it's made extra special by the embroidery in the ribbon and bow top!

If you'd like to mark your embroidery before stitching, I've got a few thoughts for you.  For this project, I experimented with a chalk pencil, chalk transfer paper and a disappearing ink pen.  I found that I liked using the disappearing ink pen on the flannel.  The ink did disappear overnight, but I discovered that I could also speed along the process by spritzing it with water and blotting it dry.  For the wool, I had better luck with the chalk pencil and the chalk transfer paper.

Whichever marking implement you choose, do a test with the actual flannel or wool you're using to be sure that your markings can be removed when you've finished stitching.  And if you're just trying to mark a straight line, like with today's block, thin masking tape is always a great option—just lay it down, stitch along the edge, gently pull it off and voila!

Here's the wool gift block that I made for my traditional version of the pillow.  My favorite part is the red stitching on the white ribbon and bow—it has a kind of peppermint stick vibe that I love!

And that's it for today!  Happy stitching and I'll see you back here Friday for our next block!

—jen

Merry Little Christmas Stitch-Along — Day 1

Welcome to Day 1 of the Merry Little Christmas Stitch-Along!

The holiday season is underway and we have only a few short weeks remaining for holiday preparations.  Yikes!  When I came up with the idea for this stitch-along, I envisioned a fun and easy project that would give us an excuse to slow down for an hour or two every other day, while still being gently productive (and right now, I'm feeling pretty happy about that decision!).

To that end, we'll spend most of the stitch-along hand-appliquéing charming blocks to be assembled into a pillow.  The prep work for each block takes only a few minutes and the stitching should only take a couple of hours, just long enough for a holiday movie.  I plan to do most of my stitching by the tree in the evening, with a fire in the woodstove and the tv tuned to the Hallmark Channel (I know I'm not the only one with that particular habit!).  I hope you'll find this stitch-along restorative—a chance not only to take a break from all the busyness, but also to savor the season and, of course, to make a pillow you love!

Before we get started with today's block, I have just a few housekeeping details:

• Every other day in December, from now until the 22nd, I'll be posting the next stage of our stitch-along here on the blog. 
• Links to downloadable instruction/pattern sheets for each day will be available both here and on the stitch-along page.  
• Here's the link to a general Appliqué/Embroidery Instructions sheet that you'll need to refer to throughout the stitch-along.
• I mention this on the general Appliqué/Embroidery Instructions sheet, but it's worth repeating here:  with all of your blocks, be sure to allow for seam allowances by positioning all flannel/felted wool and embellishments at least ½" from the outer raw edge of your 4½" fabric squares.
• If you haven't yet had a chance to gather your materials, no worries—here's a link to the stitch-along materials page—jump in and join us whenever you can!

All set?  Here we go!

Day 1:  Holly

Today's block is a pair of holly leaves with button holly berries.  Couldn't be simpler—or sweeter!

In the interest of keeping the blog posts short, I won't write out each day's block instructions here.  But between the general Appliqué/Embroidery Instructions sheet that I mentioned in the housekeeping details and today's pattern sheet, you should have everything you need to make today's block.

Here's a look at the Holly block that I made for my traditional pillow.  

Instead of flannel, I used felted wool in two different green plaids atop a dark red print fabric.  I love this classic look, but I've got to say, the contrast between the red gingham and the bright green flannels on my bright version makes my heart sing!!

Have fun making today's block!  And don't forget, if you post on IG or Facebook, please tag me @jendalyquilts and use the hashtag #merrylittlechristmassal.  You can also email me jendalyquilts@gmail.com.  I can't wait to see what you're making.

—jen

2019 Merry Little Christmas Stitch-Along Coming Soon!!

I'm so excited to announce that it's almost time for the 5th Annual Jen Daly Quilts Christmas Quilt-Along!

In the past I've kept the quilt-along project a mystery, revealing one step at a time with a big finish, but this year I've decided to change things up a bit.  I'm going to give a sneak peek of the project that we're making before the quilt-along begins.  I'm hopeful that having an idea of where we're headed will help you choose a color palette and materials more successfully so that you'll truly love your finished project.

I've also decided to call this year's quilt-along a "stitch-along."  As the name suggests, this project will require a bit more stitching than quilting—perfect for working on by the fire with a glass of eggnog at your side and a Christmas movie playing on the tv.  I don't know about you, but the thought of a little slow stitching and a break from the holiday hustle and bustle is infinitely appealing to me.

So without further ado, allow me to introduce the...

  Merry Little Christmas Stitch-Along!!

Throughout the month of December, we'll be stitching charming Christmas icons and ultimately assembling them into a throw pillow—perfect for your holiday decor.  I made my traditional sample using a variety of felted wools, but during the stitch-along I'll be making a bright and colorful version using solid flannels in place of the wool.  Choose wool, flannel, even printed quilting cottons—whatever you like!


Here's what I'm planning to use for my bright pillow...

I'm using a variety of fabrics from the Vintage Holiday fabric line by Bonnie & Camille for Moda Fabrics:

I'm pairing them with solid flannels in colors inspired by the Vintage Holiday fabrics:

I've chosen embroidery floss in colors to match the flannels I'm using:

And I've gathered some darling buttons and beads to embellish my flannel appliqués:

And just because I'm so excited about how these materials work together, here's a little more eye candy...

Yum!!!

The Merry Little Christmas Stitch-Along will begin on Monday, December 2nd and continue every other day through the month of December, wrapping up on the 22nd.  There's no sign up required for the stitch-along—as we progress, I'll make each pattern or set of instructions available on the blog and on the stitch-along page.  The patterns will remain on the blog/website throughout the month of December and in January I'll make a complete pattern available in my Etsy shop.  I'll also do regular posts on Instagram and Facebook using the hashtag #merrylittlechristmassal.  If you post pictures of your progress, be sure to tag me @jendalyquilts and use the hashtag #merrylittlechristmassal—I'd LOVE to see what you come up with!

To help you get started, here's a link for a printable materials list for the stitch-along.

Have fun gathering materials for the project and if you have any questions, feel free to email me at jendalyquilts@gmail.com.  I'll see you back here on December 2nd!  Can't wait!!

—jen

New Patterns for Fall and a Giveaway!

The fall weather and scenery is gorgeous in New Hampshire right now and it's making me want to bake, consume vast quantities of apple cider and donuts, and above all, do some fall quilting!

I've got a couple of new patterns for fall to share with you and, even better, a giveaway!

First off is my Monster Mash quilt.  This little quilt first appeared in American Patchwork & Quilting magazine last fall, but the pattern is now available in my Etsy shop.  This quilt is 19½"—a great size to hang on your front door to greet your trick-or-treaters!

Next up is my brand new pattern Pumpkin Patch.  I love the scrappy pumpkin and Shoo Fly blocks on this one.  It's a super simple pattern—perfect for a beginner.  I made mine for fall, but if you change up the color palette by substituting in some black and purple for the tan and brown, it would be great for Halloween.  The pattern for Pumpkin Patch is also available in my Etsy shop.

And now it's time for the giveaway!  My Holiday Twinkle lap quilt is featured in the current issue of McCall's Quilting magazine and to celebrate, I'm going to give away a copy of the magazine and a little something extra.  

Holiday Twinkle is a fun-to-make sampler quilt that finishes at 66" square—a great size for draping over the arm of a chair or couch or for curling up under with a good book.

I've got a little fabric left over from this project, so I'm also going to give away two little charm square bundles.  Each bundle contains 12 - 5" squares of fabric from the "Merry Starts Here" collection by Sweetwater for Moda—clearly not enough to make the quilt, but definitely enough for a bit of fun! 

For a chance to win, simply look for the giveaway posts on either Facebook or Instagram and enter there.  I'll announce a winner on Monday, October 14th.  Good luck!

—jen