Blossom & Grow Blog Hop 2022
I am so excited to be a part of Maurine Fiorellini’s Blog Hop for her fabric line - Blossom & Grow from StudioE Fabrics! To be included in a group of amazing makers to celebrate the collection and inspire you all is just thrilling and such an honor!
Make sure you visit and bookmark Maureen’s Blog Hop page where you will find the list of all participants and schedule for the tour, so you won’t miss anything!
Spring is my favorite season and this line is blossoming with all things spring! Why do I love spring so much? I know, I know, most people think Summer or Fall are the best seasons, but Spring celebrates all things NEW! We are just coming out of the dark and gloom of winter, and suddenly, everything begins to turn green again, and the pops of color that appear with the beginning blooms of the trees and flowers! It just reminds us all that even in our darkest hours, there is always something beautiful waiting to emerge!
I also host Easter for my family at my house every year (being the youngest child and grandchild, I’m lucky I get to host any holiday at all), and I LOVE to decorate for special occasions. When I saw the Blossom & Grow fabric line, I immediately thought of Easter. The mixture of bunnies, flowers and pastels were perfect! I knew I had to make something to decorate with for our Easter celebration. I decided on the FREE Switchback Trail Table Runner by Sharon Holland.
This pattern was such a fun and quick make. I finished the top during my little guy’s nap time one day, (he naps usually 1 1/2 - 2 hours) and quilted it during nap the next day! So, one weekend and it was complete. It is a beginner friendly pattern, and fat quarter friendly (we all know we have fat quarters sitting around that we just HAD to have, but no project in mind yet). And, at 72” long, it is a great size for any dining table!
The pattern starts off with No-Waste flying geese. The blocks are oversized, so there is plenty of room for trimming so that you can obtain those perfect points, even if you are new to flying geese. This is a great way to practice and build your confidence. I will admit, I am a slightly lazy quilter, but I do pin my flying geese blocks. Now, as you will see below, I only place one pin, but it does help tremendously to keep your fabrics from shifting and achieving perfect points with little trimming needed!
I have a Creative Grids 3 1/2 x 12 1/2 ruler that I used to trim my flying geese. The 45 degree lines matched up perfectly with the seams and I was able to trim 3 sides, then turn and trim the last side. I got this ruler when participating in the Suzy Quilts Holiday Party quilt-a-long and it has been the best little ruler!! It was also perfect for Sharon Holland’s Rambler Quilt I made as a table runner.
Next up, 4-at-a-time Half Square Triangles (HST). Now this is where my laziness as a quilter comes back in. I do NOT pin these at all. I match my squares up right sides together (RST), use my diagonal seam tape to extend my 1/4 inch mark, and my Juki foot is a 1/4 inch as well, and sew a straight seam down each side, until all 4 sides are sewn.
I have an Olfa rotating cutting mat and I just use a ruler and line up my corners to cut diagonally each way.
I LOVE the Clearly Perfect Slotted Trimmers for trimming HST!! It allows for all trim cuts to be made at once and then you iron them open. I have both the small set and the large set. Also, Odif makes a product called Grippy, and let me tell you, it is WONDERFUL!! Have you ever had that ruler you love, but have to be really careful because it is a tad on the slippery side. Well, that is the Clearly Perfect Slotted Trimmers for me, but spray a light layer of Grippy on the back, and NO MORE SLIPPING!!! And again, these blocks are slightly oversized to give plenty of room for trimming, even if you are new to HST.
The pattern is great at pointing out what direction to press your seams so that all your seams can nest together for easy assembly and you are still left with perfect points!!!
I have been slowly trying to build my confidence with Free Motion Quilting (I’m slightly a perfectionist so I am really judgmental of myself), but I had a little fun with this project trying out some wishbones on the side borders along with just some outline quilting using my walking foot.
I can’t wait to see what everyone else on the Blog Tour has made!! Make sure to visit Kimberly Baird with @montgomeryquiltcompany tomorrow for more inspiration and fun!!
