Before I ship the books off, I wanted to tell you about them. All three are from Martingale & Company.

S is for Scraps by Gayle Bong

The first title is S is for Scraps: 18 Great Quilts by Gayle Bong. These quilts feature piecing techniques from easy to more challenging, great if you’d like to stretch yourself a bit. The color recipes are varied—it’s nice to have everything from traditional to serene to bright and happy—to help your imagination take flight. It’s also available as an e-book.

Gayle has written other books you might be familiar with. Save the Scraps: Great Quilts from Small Bits has been one of my favorites for a long time. Trouble Free Triangles and Twin Peaks are others.

Patchwork-Play Quilts by Lynn Roddy Brown

Lynn Roddy Brown is a 100 Blocks designer whose new title Patchwork-Play Quilts is a scrap lover’s delight. These are not just blocks set in rows! Lynn’s setting ideas are fun and fresh, and they make each quilt sing. The subtitle of “make the most of scraps, spare parts and leftovers” can’t help but get you excited about scrap quilts! Easy piecing, but the quilts are oh-so-interesting. It’s also available as an e-book, and there’s even freebie desktop wallpaper.

The Big Book of Patchwork by Judy Hopkins

The Big Book of Patchwork: 50 Fabulous Quilts from Judy Hopkins is a treasury of patchwork ideas. It’s a great value (50 quilt patterns for $27.99) you might want to consider owning. Quilts in many sizes plus fast cutting and piecing techniques make it a great addition to your quilting library. Find the e-book option here.

The three winners were comments 158, 190 and 115. These books are on their way shortly, along with some miscellaneous fabrics you can put in your next scrap quilt.

Ruth Wasmuth	Carol Vickers	Kim Brandt	Dionne Gordon
Pat St-Onge	Donna Amos	Linda Ferguson	Forest Jane

This talented group of eight select QM readers has worked really hard all year and produced an amazing array of scrappy quilts to inspire you. They started with Rhapsody in Bloom from #138, March/April ’11. The original quilt looked like this:

Rhapsody in Bloom, a Doug Leko design

Here’s what Dionne Gordon did with it:

Dionne Gordon's version of Rhapsody in Bloom

The next project was Julie Herman’s design, Raspberry Dessert from May/June ’11, #139:

Raspberry Dessert designed and made by Julie Herman of Jaybird Quilts

Look at the serenity created in this version by Ruth Wasmuth:

A calming version of Raspberry Dessert, made by Ruth Wasmuth

Third in line was Spinout, designed by Barbara Cline. Here’s the original quilt as it appeared in #140, July/Aug ’11:

Spinout, designed by Barbara Cline, pieced by Denise Starck and quilted by Donna Smith.

Look what Pat St-Onge did with it!

Pat St-Onge's holiday version of Spinout

After Spinout came Linkin’ Logs, a design by QM’s Editor-in-Chief June Dudley. It was patterned in #141, Sept/Oct ’11 as a back-to-school quilt perfect for a dorm-sized bed.

Linkin' Logs, designed by June Dudley

Donna Amos used vintage feedsacks to create a quilt with a completely different mood, below.

Donna Amos made this version of Linkin' Logs

Kim Brandt did a great job on her Very Hungry Caterpillar version of Linkin’ Logs, below.

Kim Brandt made this version of Linkin' Logs.

And I have to show you the quilting from the back side:

Gorgeous quilting adorns Kim's Linkin' Logs quilt.

Linkin’ Logs lent itself to so many great interpretations. Here’s a feminine beauty by Linda Ferguson:

A Linkin' Logs interpretation by Linda Ferguson

The Nov/Dec ’11 Scrap Squad project was Dream Catcher. The original quilt was part of the Infinite Variety exhibit of 651 red and white quilts in NYC last March.

Courtesy American Folk Art Museum, New York. #76 Daisies Quilt; Artist unidentified; United States 1890-1930. Collection of Joanna S. Rose. Photo by Gavin Ashworth.

And for a real change of pace, look at the dreamy version created by Forest Jane below:

Dream Catcher by Forest Jane

The final QM project was Hip to be Square from the current issue, Jan/Feb ’12 (No. 143). The original quilt by Elizabeth Dackson is below.

Hip to be Square appears in the Jan/Feb '12 issue of Quiltmaker.

And next we have the Carol Vickers version, which she says “is the brightest quilt I’ve ever made.”

Carol Vickers made this Hip to be Square quilt.

And if all of that wasn’t enough, many of the Scrap Squad quilts became an exhibit in the gallery at the offices of Creative Crafts Group in Golden, Colorado, where Quiltmaker is based.

Our quilt gallery in Golden, Colorado featured Scrap Squad quilts for several months.

More gorgeous versions of Raspberry Dessert!

Scrap Squad members put their own spin onto Spinout.

As a grand finale, look for a group quilt the 2011 Scrap Squad made using designs from Quiltmaker’s 100 Blocks. That quilt will be featured in the upcoming Quilts from QM’s 100 Blocks issue, which promises to be spectacular when it appears at quilt shops and newsstands by March 6.

Once again, our sincere thanks to each member of the 2011 Scrap Squad. You’ve shone so brightly! What a great year it has been!

Let’s have a giveaway! I have fabric and a book for three lucky winners who leave a comment by midnight Thursday, Jan. 26. No question to answer, just let us know you were here. The winners are comments 158, 190 and 115. Check your email to see if it’s you. As soon as we get shipping info, the prizes will be on their way.

A beauty I’m using for 2012 is Martingale’s Award-Winning Quilts calendar. It features quilts by well known folks like Becky Goldsmith, Pat Holly, Jean Wells Keenan, Sharon Schamber and Lenore Crawford.

For a jam-packed deal of a calendar, go to That Patchwork Place Quilt Calendar 2012. Complete patterns for all 12 of the featured quilts are included! They range from scrappy to floral applique, in fabrics including reproduction prints, batiks, bold brights, neutrals and more. At $16.99, you get a lot of bang for your buck.

Have you heard of Mrs. Bobbins? She’s a hilarious quilter who is never short of a witty comeback. Kansas City Star Quilts presents Iron Maiden, Mrs. Bobbins’ 2012 Calendar. What makes Mrs. Bobbins so enjoyable is that it’s all true! Meet the “real” Mrs. Bobbins, Camille Olcese, who provides some of the inspiration for artist Julia Icenogle. And if you just can’t get enough of Mrs. B, visit Mrs. Bobbins’ General Store.

I have copies of That Patchwork Place Quilt Calendar 2012 and Iron Maiden, Mrs. Bobbins’ 2012 Calendar for giveaway! Leave a comment by midnight Thursday, Dec. 22 and tell us in which month you find the most time for quilting. I’ll pick two lucky winners and announce them here. The winners are Marcia and Leslie. Thanks for playing along!

Best Friends

While I was making this block, I played around with a few ideas for colors and settings. I love the solid white background, so I rotated the blocks and came up with this:

Then, of course, when you think of stars you also think of the night sky. So I tried a darker background with yellow and gold stars:

I really love both of these combinations. I’ve collected fabric for both of them, but can’t decide which to do first!

Since the name of my block is Best Friends, I’ll tell you quick about my best friend. You know how you have friends, and you have friends. And even among your friends, you have a Heart-Friend. I have a Heart-Friend, her name is Mary Ann and she lives in Washington, where I used to live. A few years ago I moved to Arkansas then Colorado, but it felt like I was moving CLEAR across the world from my best friend. I miss her EVERY day. We talk regularly, email lots, and visit each other a few times a year. Even if we haven’t talked for a day or a week, we can pick up where we left off without missing a beat. We often have the same thoughts on the same day and we even signed up for the same block-of-the-month on the very same day without talking to each other first! No matter how many miles are between us, she’ll always be my best friend.

Giveaway: Leave a comment, and tell me who your best friend is by 12 noon MST on Thursday 11/10 for a chance to win a copy of 100 Blocks Volume 4 of your very own.

I loved loved LOVED reading your comments about your best friends – friends, sisters, moms, husbands – you made me all tingly and happy. The randomly selected winner is #22 Kristen Hamilton and just for fun I randomly selected another winner, #155 Marcia Wright, for her comment about how she, her sister and her mother always joke about having “ESPN”. Being a total ESPN football fanatic, that totally cracked me up! Thank you to everyone for all of your great comments!

Happy blog hopping!

Welcome Home by Cheryl Wall has those warm, familiar country colors we’ve grown to love. They’re used in several quilts and other projects all inspired by the idea of “home.” Try using wool as recommended for the “Love at Home” pillow, or embroider details on the “Home Sweet Home” framed picture. You’ll enjoy all of the country warmth within this book.

More warm and homey quilts are found in Sarah Maxwell and Dolores Smith’s Faithful & Devoted: To My Adelaide, A Quilted Love Story. This book is based on a series of letters exchanged during the Civil War between Charles Tenney and Adelaide Case, and the letters are fascinating glimpses into wartime, hardship, courtship and propriety. History buffs will be delighted.

Then we shift gears completely for Quilt Retro by Jenifer Dick. Modern quilt designs using lots of solid fabrics are fun and quirky here. In addition to several quilts, there are potholders, placemats and table runners. All of the samples are beautifully quilted, which is like bonus inspiration!

Leave a comment by midnight Tuesday, Nov. 1 and we’ll randomly pick a winner for each of these books. Winners will be announced here next week. Good luck!

A look at the trade show floor during International Quilt Market in Houston.

We always meet with book publishers to see what’s upcoming for quilters. So how about a few book giveaways? Check back often in the next few days for quick reviews of great new titles I think you’ll love. Each title reviewed will be given away so remember to leave a comment as instructed.

The following books are published by That Patchwork Place/Martingale & Co.

Make Your Bed by Leslee Evans takes a great concept and has fun with it. The subtitle says it best: Quilted bedrunners, pillows and more to suit your style! The idea is to dress up a bed and make it quilty with interesting pillows, shams and crosswise runners that follow a theme.

There’s something for everyone in the themes presented. You can choose anything from “Make Your Bed Sassy” to “Make Your Bed Serene.” Other themes are Charming, Classic Playful, Elegant, Natural, Cheerful and Earthy. So much fun!

Another title with an interesting idea behind it is Pick Four by Sue Abrey. This quilter prefers to make quilts with fewer fabrics, and her book guides others to do the same. “Easy fabric choices for great quilts” sums it up well.

Author Cynthia Tomaszewski puts a new twist on reproductions with Quilting Those Flirty ’30s. These are designs to hold your interest and expand your skills. There are lots of instructional pages—eight on Quiltmaking Basics and four more called Introduction to Applique.

And if all that is not enough, each of the 11 quilt patterns is accompanied by a tried-and-true family favorite cookie recipe from Cynthia. She even shares her best “Tips for Baking Great Cookies”!

You can read an earlier review of Fast, Fusible Flower Quilts. We’ll give this book away too, so you have four chances to win. Leave a comment by midnight Tuesday, Nov. 1 and we’ll pick a winner for each of these great titles from That Patchwork Place/Martingale & Co. Tell us what you’re currently sewing (or what you wish you were sewing!) for a chance to win.

We featured 3 of Dave’s Quiltboxes in Quiltmaker’s November/December ’11 issue. We fell in love with them and asked Dave to share a little more with us:

How did you get interested in woodworking/wood marquetry?

I’ve been a hands-on kind of guy for as long as I can remember. I used to make my own toys out of wood–little cars, space ships and such. Now I have a business with a partner restoring antique pool tables. The tables often have lots of wood inlay flowers and vines. To restore them, I taught myself marquetry. I fell in love with the woods, and I’ve been making boxes for the last 15 years or so.

What inspired you to use quilt block designs for your boxes?

My girlfriend Beth told me that I should be using quilt block designs. I said, “What are quilt blocks?” But once I saw all the great designs, I was hooked. As I read more about them, something from my art training (MFA) told me that these are great folk art abstractions. Take the log cabin block, for example. Beth told me the little red square in the center represents the fire in the chimney. That’s a great abstraction!

The woods are stunning. Do you have favorites?

I’ll use any wood that has real character. I like the tropical woods with striking grain as well as the beautiful domestic walnut, maple and cherry. My favorite light colored wood is Tamo, Japanese ash. My favorite dark wood changes a lot. Right now it’s redwood burl. I use no stains. I choose the woods for their color and character. My favorite box is always the one I’m making now.

We see 4″, 6″ and recipe box sizes. Do you have plans for other box sizes?

Right now I’m experimenting on a 5″ cube that will have the quilt block design on all 5 sides with the design running right across the opening. I’ll probably do a 7″ box a little deeper than the 6″ for a good dresser top box that will be ideal for men’s watches, keys, cell phones and such. Boxes for stationary are also on the drawing board.

To see more of Dave’s Quiltboxes, visit his blog at quiltboxes.com where you’ll also find the link to his online shop. While you’re there, sign up for his newsletter, get behind the scenes glimpses into Quiltboxes, and look for coupons and giveaways.

Speaking of giveaways, here’s your opportunity to win a Quiltbox. Leave a comment by 12 noon MST on Monday, December 5, 2011 and tell us what traditional quilt block you think would look great in wood. We’ll draw three winners at random. Each winner will receive one of the featured Quiltboxes shown above.

So many wonderful block suggestions. Congratulations to our winners! The random number generator picked #189 NancyD., #238 Karen O and #127 Jennifer. Quiltboxes are on the way to your homes.

We’ve wrapped up all but one thing in Quiltmaker‘s Back to School Party—the great big giveaway! As a thank you for participating whether by reading, commenting or sewing along, we have for one lucky winner fabric bundles from all seven fabric company sponsors along with batting from The Warm Company and thread from Sulky.

Please leave a comment here by midnight Sunday, Sept 25. Tell us what quilty things you’d like to learn if you went “back to school.”  We’ll pick a winner and announce it here. Thanks so much for joining us. I hope you’ll come back often!

Update: Congratulations to all the winners. Sherry Denton is the grand prize winner. The following people each won a daily prize: Amy Bouchard, Kathy Ellzey, Liz Arbaugh, Angie Costa, Claudia Rollins, Lee Ann Lenfest, Rita Goshorn, Shelley Nelson, Caralyn Turner, Debi Montgomery, Sheri Gleichauf, Charlotte Dudley, Mary Spencer, Barbara Schiller, Donna Smith, Kelly Blanchard, Jennifer Stevens, Jan LaBeause, Sheila Holloway, Donna Joy Cutting, Gill Watson and Kerri Jack.

Did you miss the Back to School Party? Find the free pattern for Dozens of Daisies.

We’re down to the very last step of Dozens of Daisies, the free quilt pattern we’ve been releasing in tidbits during Quiltmaker‘s Back to School Party. Today we have a fun little freebie for you! It’s a quilt label you can print and add to your quilt—one finishing flourish.

Dozens of Daisies Part 7

It’s pretty simple really! Part 7 is just this: Bind the quilt.

*     *     *     *     *

QM Graphic Designer Denise Starck designed a custom label for your Dozens of Daisies quilt. It’s yours to use with our compliments. Download and print the label.

Today’s featured fabric sponsor is Robert Kaufman.

They provided fabrics from A La Maison by Terri Conrad Designs for the quilt shown below.

The quilt was made by Terri Costa, a member of the Back to School Sewing Team.

Dozens of Daisies in A La Maison fabrics by Terri Conrad Designs for Robert Kaufman. Quilt made by Terri Costa.

If you’d like to use these Robert Kaufman fabrics in your quilt, they are in quilt shops now. Here’s how we named them. Also see the preparations post.

fabric #1        5/8 yard       blue print
fabric #2       5/8 yard       pink print
fabric #3       5/8 yard       dark red print
fabric #4       1/2 yard        cream print
fabric #5       5/8 yard       dark blue solid
fabric #6       1/2 yard        black stripe
fabric #7       1 yard            red print
fabric #8       5/8 yard       black solid

And now to the giveaway. First, a reminder: please come back next week when we’ll have one final giveaway to include a bundle of fabric from each fabric company plus batting from The Warm Company and thread from Sulky. It will be like Christmas for the person who wins!

To be entered in today’s giveaway for a bundle of Robert Kaufman fabric, please leave a comment here by midnight Sunday, Sept. 18. We have The Warm Company batting and Sulky thread for some winners, too. In your comment, estimate how many quilts you have completed in your quilting “career.”  We’ll choose three random winners and announce them here next week.

Anita Grossman Solomon at The City Quilter - "Cut It, Sew It, Love It" Class

I love her simplified techniques for making blocks. I’ve made all 3 of her patterns that we’ve published in the last few years, Super-Sized Nine Patch in May/June ’06, Anita’s Arrowhead in Nov/Dec ’10 (digital issue available)

Anita's Arrowhead

and most recently Super-Sized Square-on-Point in Sept/Oct ’11.

Super-Sized Square-on-Point

I thought it might be fun to ask Anita a few questions about her techniques and “stuff” in general.

You have such a knack for simplifying traditional patterns. How did that come to be? When I taught quiltmaking at New York State’s Riverbank Park Cultural Center, I created techniques to make quilt block construction more manageable for students with limited eyesight or hand coordination.

How do you determine which blocks can be simplified? They all have been classic pieced blocks that have held my interest for years. Some ideas, such as Make It Simpler Paper Piecing, were instantaneous while others took years. Anita’s Arrowhead is an example of one that took years! I had to eliminate the paper-pieced version from my Perfect Blocks in Minutes book due to space. I kept that block in view for years. One day I looked at it, did a double-take and Anita’s Arrowhead came into being.

What is your process? Sometimes ideas just seem to happen. Twice I did deliberately set out to simplify blocks—the Square-on-Point and Pineapple are 2 such blocks. Other blocks evolve over time. I had collected over one thousand 6″ charm squares from online swaps and wanted to make a Square-on-Point without wasting any parts of the charm squares. I worked with paper samples I generated from Electric Quilt software to finally come up with the formula.

I like the fact that quilts constructed using my methods don’t look like “Anita” quilts. I only supply a tool, not the “look.”

Have you tried to simplify any blocks that just didn’t work? There is a triangle thing that I worked on years ago that continues to haunt me. It lives in a box in my studio. Its outside is all bias. It’s fun to sew, but I can’t accept the bias. I hope the day will come when I’ll look at it and resolve it to my satisfaction.

What do you like best about living in New York City? It pulsates; I feed off its energy. I’m inspired with every step I take. I don’t find inspiration; it just hits me over the head!

What’s next on your quilting horizon? While I have no expectation of ever using up all of my fabric, I do want to put a dent into the ideas and projects I’ve stored away. So, I’m unearthing them between teaching jobs.

What else would you like to share with our readers? I have a new product I’d love for them to try—Make It Simpler Fusible Interfacing. It will remedy stretchy edges of a quilt as well as stabilize blocks, such as a Super-Sized Square-on-Point, for off-grain cuts. It’s handy to store because it comes on a roll.

Leave a comment by noon mountain time on Friday, 8/26. I’ll randomly select one person to receive a giveaway of leftover blocks and fabric squares from one of my color options for Anita’s Super-Sized Square-on-Point.

Congratulations to Heather for her comment. An email has been sent to her for her address.