Riley Blake Designs "Little Engine That Could" Blog Tour

This new fabric release by Riley Blake Designs, "Little Engine That Could", brought back a lot of memories of my elementary school days and reading the book to my children. Even my five year old grandson knew the story!

The prints are vibrant, 100 per cent cotton, and look amazing in my quilt, "I Know I Can!" which measures 45" x 45" when finished.

I Know I Can! 

Riley Blake has captured the whole book in its fabric line and I think you'l love it as much as I do. The book "The Little Engine That Could" was published in 1930 by Watty Piper. The book encourages us to not give up and to keep on trying, which is still great advice 90 years later.

The fabric line includes a panel to make a book, but I fussy cut the blocks and used them in the quilt.

Look at all the fun fabrics you can choose from! 

I love that argyle design and thought it was perfect for the binding.

Applique is kind of my thing, so I added a train and clown to the center. He's a happy train, isn't he!

I love using EZ Print Lite Sheets by ThermOWeb for my applique...no tracing! Just print in your inkjet printer and your designs are ready.

The back of the quilt is pieced with leftover fabric, which makes it even more sweet.

You can find my pattern for "I Know I Can" HERE.

Thank you for stopping by! Be sure to check out Riley Blake Designs to see more beautiful and fun projects to sew. Check HERE to see the book panel sewn into a book...so cute!

Halloween Cackling Stitches Group On Facebook

Halloween is one of my favorite times of years and it's Joan's at Moosestashing quilting, too. So, we put our wickedly crazy heads together and created a Facebook group, Cackling Stitches, that's just about Halloween sewing. 

We'll have random projects and a block of the month with, of course, Halloween designs. We'd love to have you join us!

CACKLING STITCHES GROUP LINK

Getting Comments From Your Blogger To Your Email

This is a blogger help announcement: There's always something that throws us for a loop when Google changes up our blogger format, right? The new format isn't really hard EXCEPT for getting comments to our email. It's not the same way of doing it...UGH!

I did a little searching and found a "cure" at "Life and Linda". She instantly became one of my favorite bloggers for this fix because it really works. Thank you, Linda at Life and Linda!

CLICK HERE FOR COMMENT TO EMAIL FIX INFO

So if you're frustrated that those comments from your blog aren't making it to your email, give Linda's advice a try.

If it works for you, you are welcome!

Crafter's Edge Cute Fox In A PIllow

Using Crafter's Edge to cut shapes and designs from fabric is so fun. The "Cute Fox" is exactly that...CUTE! The fox would be adorable on a quilt, door hanger, or even as a pincushion. I used it to make a pillow for a quick birthday present. 

To get started on my pillow I grabbed a few fat quarters from my stash, my Crafter's Edge Crossover II machine and dies, and some of my favorite iron-on adhesive, Heat n Bond Lite Iron-on Adhesive. With all my supplies ready, this pillow went together in a flash!

To make your own pillow, you'll need a few things:

 

Heat n Bond Lite Iron-on Adhesive

Thread

Batting

18” x 18” Pillow Form

Crafter’s Edge Cute Fox Die

Crafter’s Edge Equilateral Triangles, 6 ½” and 5 ½” (it comes in four sizes)

Crafter’s Edge Letters, F – O – X

Crafter’s Edge Crossover II

Fabric needed:

6-8 fat quarters

1/4 yard - Binding

 

Cutting instructions for each pillow:

 

Cut 1 – 12 ½” x 12 ½” white, Center Block

Cut 4 – 3 ½” x 12 ½” orange, Border A

Cut 4 – 3 ½” x 3 ½” turquoise, Border A Corner

Cut 3 – 2 ½” x 42” black, Binding

Cut 1 – 18 ½” x 18 ½” white, lining

Cut 2 – 11 ½” x 18 ½” orange, pillow back

Cut 1 – 18 ½” x 18 ½” batting

Cut 1 – Crafter’s Edge Cute Fox following directions in Step 1.

Cut 2 – Crafter’s Edge Equilateral Triangles (6 ½” and 5 ½”) following directions in Step 1.

Cut 1 – Crafter’s Edge F-O-X letters following directions in Step 1.

 

Sewing/Applique Instructions: Seams are sewn 1/4” wide

 

Step 1: Applique – Iron adhesive to wrong side of fabrics; let cool. Following Crafter’s Edge instructions, place paper side of adhesive facing up on platform.* Cover as directed. Run die and fabric through machine. *To reverse the direction of design, place fabric side up before cutting. 

Peel off paper liner from the backs of applique pieces. Place applique, adhesive side down, on right side of fabric. Press according to package directions until entire piece is bonded. Let cool. Sew around edges of applique using a straight, zig-zag, or blanket stitch. 

Step 2: Border A – With right sides together, sew 3 ½” x 12 ½” orange strips to left and right sides of Center Block. Press seams towards borders.

Step 3: Border A - With right sides together sew 3 ½” x 3 ½” turquoise squares to the ends of 3 ½” x 12 ½” orange strip. Press seams towards center. With right sides together, sew strips to top and bottom of Center Block, matching seams. Press seams down.

Step 4: Pillow front/lining/batting– Place pillow lining wrong side up on a flat surface. Lay batting on top of pillow lining. Lay pillow front, right side up on top of batting. Pin or clip with all edges meeting together. Baste around edges. Quilt if desired.

Step 5: Pillow Back - Fold under 1/4” on one long side of each 11½” x 18½” rectangles. Press. Fold over again 1/4” and press. Top stitch close to edge of fold.

Overlap the two back sections with right sides up and turned under edges towards the middle to make an 18 ½” x 18 ½” square. Pin/clip to hold in place at overlapped sections and baste in place.

Step 6: Pillow assembly - On a flat surface, layer pillow sections on top of each other in the following order: Pillow back, wrong side up; Pillow front with lining, wrong side down. Baste around edges. Add binding using your favorite method. Place 18” x 18” pillow form inside through the flap.

This pillow was a full one and made it quite puffy...the better to snuggle on!

There's so many ways to use Crafter's Edge fabric dies. Give them a try...I think you'll love them as much as I do!

Riley Blake Designs "Nature's Finest" Blog Tour

Riley Blake Designs just released some new panels called "Nature's Finest" which showcase some gorgeous animals in their natural habitats. They are amazingly brilliant in colors and designs!

Nature's Finest Dream Catcher Wolf Panel is the one I chose for my project. I've always loved the beauty of wolves and respected their place in nature. Adding two dream catchers to the sides of the quilt panel was an easy choice because of the panel's name.

The golden eyes of this wolf are captivating, but of course, there is some danger behind them. I'm sure a wolf's dreams would be to run free, safe from harm, and to always have food to eat.

Their are other panels in the "Nature's Finest" collection and some pillow panels. Aren't they gorgeous!

I used four different fabrics with this panel to make the quilt: RBD White, RBD Black, RBD Butterscotch, and RBD Medium Blue. The butterscotch fabric was used for the border, too. 

Quilting was by Ginger from Sew Sassy Longarm. We both felt this design worked to keep it a bit more masculine and not take away from those awesome wolves.

I love this guy the most!

The Nevada desert was a great backdrop for this quilt, though the temperature was 100 degrees at 7:45 a.m. My husband was a trooper for helping me that morning. It was windy and hot!

The quilt pattern for "Dream Catcher Wolves" can be found HERE.

The finished quilt measures 54" x 60".

For more "Nature's Finest" and other Riley Blake Designs fabric projects, check out their blog HERE.

Thanks for stopping by to check out my "Dream Catcher Wolves" quilt!

Crafter's Edge Bird #5 In A Pincushion

I have to admit that I'm crazy about my Crafter's Edge fabric dies and this sweet bird from the "Bird Dance Collection" is one of my favorites. It's a bit crazy like me, so that might be why it rings my bell!

There are other birds just as cute, like these two, and I'll definitely be adding them to my stash as soon as I can. I think a quilt would be adorable with all of them.

The Crafter's Edge fabric dies work perfectly with the Crossover II, cutting up to six layers of cotton fabric. When using felt, I found two or three layers to be best. The dies are flat so it makes it convenient to store them.

The directions are always easy to follow using their diagrams and/or instructions.

You can adjust the pressure on the Crossover II if needed.

I love using ThermOWeb's Fabric Fuse Adhesive in different ways, including applying felt on felt. It holds it in place without shifting. Just add a few drops to the back (you don't need a lot) and place it where it needs to be. You can stitch over it, so no worries there!

Cut two 6" x 6" squares for behind the bird and for the back of the pincushion. Sew around all the edges, but leave a 2" opening to fill the pincushion with walnut shells or stuffing (whichever is your preference.) Use the Fabric Fuse to close the opening, let it dry, and then sew it closed. Going around the edges will help strengthen the edges.

This is a fast and easy pincushion that can be gifted or kept for yourself. Either way, it's a sweet project!