After what felt like an eternity, Fed-Ex FINALLY delivered my button making machine!! Making fabric covered buttons is highly addicting!

picklesandwine sent me a question about my log cabin block dimensions, so I thought I would write up a quick little blurb about the ones that I’ve been making lately!

To make one of my log cabin blocks, you need lots of scraps that are at least 1 3/4” wide and range in length up to 9 1/4” long.

The centers are 1 3/4” squares and the first log that you piece is the same size.  

When you have your two squares together, you should have a short strip that measures 1 3/4” by 3”.  

Rotate your block by 90 degrees and add your next strip - 1 3/4” x 3”.  Again, rotate by 90 degrees and add another strip that is 1 3/4” x 3”.  You should now have a center with 3 sides.  

The last log to complete your mini block should measure 1 3/4” x 4 1/4”.

Keep building your blocks outwards (and stop when you want to - if you want a block larger than 9 1/4” then go for it)!  The length of the logs increases by 1 1/4” every other log, so it should go something like this:

• cut (2) 1 3/4” x 1 3/4”
• cut (2) 1 3/4” x 3”
• cut (2) 1 3/4” x 4 1/4”
• cut (2) 1 3/4” x 5 1/2”
• cut (2) 1 3/4” x 6 3/4”
• cut (2) 1 3/4” x 8”
• cut (1) 1 3/4” x 9 1/4”

The log cabin is a traditional block and there is a lot that you can do with it - I strongly recommend Modern Log Cabin Quilting by Susan Beal - her book is stuffed with knowledge and great projects!!

Please send me questions if you have any!!  Cheers and Happy Quilting!  xo

Look at the beautiful artwork I just made! I bought a 9 inch square shadow frame from Ikea and pieced a log cabin block using 1 3/4 inch scraps. I secured the block to the frame back using double sided tape. Now I just need to figure out how to take a photo of glass without capturing a reflection!! It’s a quick weekend project - use a 1/4 inch seam allowance and message me if you’ve got questions!

My mom and I made this bright & scrappy ‘disappearing nine patch’ quilt at the beach this past weekend!  Quilts go so much quicker when someone helps you!  I finished the hand-sewing yesterday and it’s all ready to be given to Binky Patrol this weekend!!

Click here to make your own!

Finished! I made this zippered pouch for the Vancouver/Portland Modern Quilt Guild swap using the block I made for the Michael Miller Cotton Couture challenge (I had every intention of submitting it, but forgot…).  I slightly modified this tutorial that I found when I searched for patterns.

My Rainbow Baby Quilt is done and ready to be shipped to the Hawaiian Islands!  It was inspired by the ‘Gumdrops’ throw in Sew Scrappy Volume Two by Better Homes & Gardens.  I must admit, I didn’t follow the pattern in the magazine but I think mine turned out very similar, only much smaller (and after browsing the instructions in the magazine, my block construction and sashing were much different).

Some notes for quilters:  I used 2.5 inch squares for my nine patches and separated them by color with a white center square.  I have oodles of scrap fabric (I keep all scraps that are at least an inch wide and a few inches long) and didn’t cut any fresh yardage (except for my backing).  Also, the magazine recommends that you press your seams open - I pressed mine to alternating sides so I could nest them - it’s much easier to match corners that way.

For the batting I actually used Robert Kaufman flannel (in ‘snow’) since the quilt is for an infant in a warm climate.  Let me tell you, I washed the flannel prior to use and after I washed it, it was the softest flannel I’ve ever touched.  I’m sure angels actually invented it - I’ll never buy any other flannel again.  (If you’re in Portland, OR, you can pick some up at cool cottons on SE Hawthorne.)

I free motion quilted a meandering stitch using my BERNINA Stitch Regulator (BSR) and did the binding by hand.  If anyone has any questions on the construction - feel free to ask me :)

A Christmas present revealed!  My best friend and I exchanged presents last night so this isn’t a spoiler alert.  Anyway, my best friend has very classic taste and loves vintage everything - books, paintings, prints, etc.  And most importantly, a stipulation of our gift giving was that we couldn’t spend more than five dollars.  Everything I used to make the pillow was something I already had on hand.  I used mostly scraps of reproduction prints, dismantled a vintage pillow case, and scraps of newer prints that I thought had a vintage feel.  

Construction:  I cut the fabrics to 2.5 inch squares and arranged them in rows of 6 each.  My pillow form (formerly used for a 4th of July themed pillow) was 12x12 and I know that if I use a quarter inch seam allowance that the final squares would be 2x2.  I used foot #57 for my BERNINA 440QE.  It’s a quarter inch seam allowance with a guide and it makes sewing much more accurate (not to mention you can really fly through the squares).  After I had sewn all of the squares together and assembled my rows, I used a scrap of plain white fabric for my backing and a scrap of Warm&Natural batting and quilted the top using wonky straight lines.  I think the wonkyness also attributes to more of a vintage feel.  Then I cut two rectangles for the backing of my pillow - 12.5x7 and 12.5x9.  The larger pieces guarantee I’ll have some overlap after I put the pillow in.  I finished the two edges that could potentially show by folding them under by a quarter inch and then a quarter inch again and sewing near the edge.  To finish the pillow I layered my quilted top right side up and the two backing pieces with right sides down and sewed around the edges using a scant quarter inch seam.  I added the pillow form and voila!  I’m super happy with the results and I know that my bestie is too!

If you want to make this pillow and have any questions on the construction, feel free to ask me :)  Merry Christmas!

It’s finally time for the Cool Cotton’s $10 Quilt Club tonight!  I made name tags for my mom and I using scrabble letters (25 cents each at Collage in Portland, OR) and fabric scraps.  I trimmed down a standard gift tag (15 cents each at Collage) to roughly the size of a business card, then stitched a fabric scrap to it along the outside.  I used a hot glue gun to attach the letters.  The pin on the back is self-adhesive (50 cents each at Collage).  Done in less than 5 minutes (I probably should have taken more time on my own name; the ‘e’ almost didn’t make the cut)!