Quilting Along with Friends

Sandra at mmm! quilts is hosting a quilt along for her Beothuk Star pattern. So far she’s provided the fabric requirements and cutting instructions. If you’d like to join in, this is a laid-back project with some very fun fabric options. Check them out at Sandra’s quilt along page.

Beothuk Star quilt along fabric pull
These are my nearly-vintage fabric pulls from my stash. I purchased most of them during the 1990s and couldn’t bear to cut into them until I had the perfect project. I’ll use the map fabric for the backing so it can remain one piece.

Today I plan to spray my fabrics with Magic Sizing and press them. Then I’ll be ready to cut them later this week. Now I want to share why I’m joining others in the quilt along and perhaps persuade you to join in.

  • Sandra will be a great hostess.
  • The Beothuk Star pattern is my favorite type of pattern because there are stars and they interweave with each other.
  • It’s a great size for a baby blanket or wall hanging.
  • I need a quilt along so I feel more connected while sewing alone in my loft. I know from past experience that working on the same project with a group of people is fun.

Hands2Help Update

I’m very slowly making a tiny bit of progress on my quilts for Jack’s Basket. I started piecing a quilt back and had to rip out a seam and begin again due to some puckers. My favorite part of making a quilt is piecing the top. Perhaps you’ve guessed that quilting the three layers together is not so fun for me. So I’m dragging my feet. Thankfully, there’s a May 31 deadline, so I will get these quilts done.

I also have the Moda Love Quilt on my design wall. And I keep moving the fabric squares around to improve the layout. Part of my issue is that I used half of the charm squares on a different project, which means I’ll cut the rest of the squares from yardage. If I don’t love what’s on the design wall soon, I have a backup plan for this fabric.

Hands2Help quilt along
I’m using Kate Spain’s Fandango fabric line–another oldie but goodie.

I Need to Be a Cleaner Mama

This winter I really slacked off my chores, especially dusting, vacuuming, and mopping. Last Saturday I found new inspiration to clean when Sherri McConnell of A Quilting Life shared a calendar from Becky at Clean Mama. After checking out Becky’s website, her simple system seemed like the perfect antidote to my lackluster cleaning job. So this week I started a new routine to get my house back into a much cleaner state.

I used to follow along with the FlyLady’s program, so I have basic routines in place. Becky’s system focuses on cleaning, whereas the FlyLady includes a lot of self-care in her daily routines. So that’s why I decided to make the switch. I also like the fresh, simple look of Becky’s website and Instagram account. If you’re looking for a little bit of cleaning inspiration as you begin to think spring, Becky might be just the person to help you out.

All to say, it’s been pretty quiet in my sewing loft, so I hope to have more to show you soon.

Joyfully,

Tracie