Home for the Holidays: Ro Gregg's Peace on Earth fabrics

The Christmas carols have been playing on the radio 24-7 since the day after Thanksgiving...it's officially the holiday season! This week we've been showcasing our holiday collections, and then starting next week we'll be sharing some quick and easy decor tutorials.

Here is Ro Gregg's holiday collection, Peace on Earth:

And the coordinating panel:

The collection also includes an apron panel:

We asked Ro to tell us about the inspiration behind her beautiful Peace on Earth collection.

Q. Tell us about the panel. Why did you choose to feature a reindeer? 

Ro: Reindeers are Santa's helpers too.  They pull the sleigh and deliver the gifts all over the world. Deer are one of my favorite animals; as a child we nursed a baby fawn that lost its Mother.  I designed the deer to be festive with metallic scroll antlers, and I think the filigree in the borders emulates that feeling.

Q. Can you tell us about some of the prints? 

Ro: Festive Christmas balls and Rosewood poinsettias are showcased on a background of Harlequin damask.

Symbols of peace is a signature piece. The doves contain designs from Marblehead prints and other coordinates. 

Miniature metallic reindeer with festive medallions—such a perfect symbol of Santa's helpers. This is my favorite print from the collection. The doves and reindeer are flying around the night sky with the full moon and medallion-like planets. It just feels like Christmas Eve. 

Q. How would you describe the style of this collection? 

Ro: Traditional decorative christmas with an ornamental flair.

Q. Why do you like adding the metallic gold to the holiday collections?

Ro: I think metallic gold goes well with holiday celebrating.  It makes the patterns festive with its shimmer.

Q. How did the collection get its name?

Ro: I first came up with the theme "Peace On Earth" as a reflection of what we all wish for around the globe and how it is affecting all of humanity. Christmas is a peaceful, joyous season. The dove fabric actually has the word "peace" and musical notes inside some of the doves.

Q. What else makes the Peace of Earth collection special?

Ro: It works beautifully with the Glistening Christmas prints, many of which are included here, such as the winter wonderland of metallic trees and the North star shining bright. The colors work flawlessly together for holiday projects.

"Celebrate" by Mara Quilt Designs, the free quilt pattern available on our website, surrounds the panel with pieced ornaments and stars.

Download the free pattern here.

See the entire Peace on Earth collection by Ro Gregg here.

Big Blooms Toss Pillow Free Pattern

If you love Heidi Pridemore's Eggcellent Adventures collection, we know you'll love this sweet applique pillow design she's sharing today!

When Heidi talked to us about her fabric, she mentioned how the non-chicken prints were almost a line within a line--with a focal print (the tossed flowers) and the fun patterned coordinates. Heidi used these prints to make the Big Blooms Toss Pillow--a quick afternoon project to add some spring to your home! You can download her free pdf pattern here.

And if you missed Heidi's Secret Life of Chickens Tell-All, check it out here!

Happy Spring!

A Walk in the Park

We happen to think that the best floral fabric collections have both traditional and contemporary appeal--a little something for everyone, if you will. 

That's probably why we love Ro Gregg's new A Walk in the Park collection so much--it's full of big-bloom florals in varying sizes and soft tonal coordinates with doses of damask. But it also has a stripe with a twist--a pinstripe-type look with vines and flowers "climbing" up it. And don't forget the oh-so-appealing geometric print that looks like it came straight from a retro tile floor!

We asked Ro to talk to us about her new collection.

Q. What inspired A Walk in the Park?

Ro: The best things in life are free, like enjoying nature! There is nothing like sensory pleasure we get from natural beauty—observing flowers, butterflies and birds. Our desire to connect with the Earth and its beautiful elements served as design inspiration for this line.

Q. Tell us about a few of your favorite prints.

Ro: The main floral is a masterpiece of my favorite flowers: roses, poppies, primroses, and hydrangea. You'll also find butterflies and birds among the flowers.

I think the bird floral stripe is very sweet, too.

I love the park with all its architectural elements and the scrolls and bird cages.

And the geometric print emulates the tile-like blocks of the park's path.

Q. Can you describe your color palette?

Ro: I chose fresh new trend shades directly from Pantone, including antique moss, robin's egg blue, soft café au lait, rock ridge grey that all intertwine with alluring shades of pinks and roses. The two colorways cross over and work well together.

Q. Anything else you'd like to point out about this collection?

Ro: The multi-tonal textured backgrounds of the damask park scene and small foulard adds dimension and continuity to the patterns.

We've even got two different free patterns you can download and make using the A Walk in the Park collection: A quilt and a table setting.

"A Walk in the Park" by Pine Tree Country Quilts

Click here to download the free quilt pattern.

Click here to find these free quilt patterns.

See the entire A Walk in the Park collection here.

Exclusive FREE Quilt Pattern

If there's one thing you can never have too many of, it's quilt patterns. 

We especially like this red and black design from Jessica Toye, using Ro Gregg's Vibe and Marblehead collections. 

The best news? We're sharing this modern design as a free download here on the blog! 

Click here to download the pdf of the FREE Woven pattern by Jessica Toye.
Click here to see all of the Vibe fabrics and find another free pattern using this new collection.

Feel the Vibe!

We're really feeling the vibe of Ro Gregg's new collection, Vibe, and think you will too! The designs are organic with a contemporary feel, and the colorways are oh-so-appealing. Which catches your eye--the red/black/gray, or the blue/yellow combo?

Q. How did the Vibe collection come to be?

Ro: I wanted to put together something that had a very organic look to it. To make a statement with more texture, multi textural surfaces, something that looks organic yet is geometric as well. It' s a mix of abstract and it can also evoke an ethnic vibe. It's somewhat avant garde in nature.

Q. Which print started it all?

Ro: What started it was the stripe. I worked with the it, putting different components in it. From the stripe I pulled out some of the coordinates. For example, if you look at the red patchwork—it has waves, flowers, and leaves, and that's what I wanted to achieve. Much of the collection is pretty much a play on multi-texutral patterns that have backgrounds to them and working towards an organic feeling.

Q. We love the two colorways you used! What can you tell us about them?

Ro: I started with the rich reds, blacks and grays. But indigos are still so strong, so I picked them for the second colorway. I knew that I wanted to add yellow—the blue and yellow combination is trending back into popularity.

What I really love is that you can cross over the colorways (see the link for the free quilt pattern at the bottom of this post!)—because of that contemporary look. These patterns would look good in anything—they sort of breathe life into the different colors.

Q. Do you have a favorite print in the collection?

Ro: The stripe is a favorite, and the patchwork. The stripe is so optical—all that surface and texture.

In addition to being sold as straight yardage, Vibe is available in red/black/gray and blue/yellow fat quarter bundles;

and 5" squares;

and a multicolor snack pack!

Use the snack pack to make this contemporary lap quilt, 

Lucky 13, designed by Jessica Smith.

Find the free pattern for this quilt here.

See the entire collection here.

Saluting the Red, White and Blue (plus a free flag pattern!)

In honor of the 4th of July holiday, we're showcasing the red, white and blue! 

First up, download a free pattern for this classic flag quilt, made from 2-1/2" strips.

The "Old Glory" Snack Pack includes 42 strips--everything you need to make the quilt top and bind it--all tonals from our Tone on Tone collection.

Rich, textured hues from Marblehead and Marblehead Global Brights:

A fun red and blue swirl from Ro Gregg's Marblehead Venetian Glass:

Stars and swirls from Judy Hansen's new Nutcracker Christmas;

Contemporary coordinates from Linda Carlson and Diana Henage's Imagine This:

Juicy reds from Farmer John's Organic:

Modern designs from Ro Gregg's new Vibe collection:

And of course, the entire Bella Casa collection:

Look for this wide variety of red and blue prints at your local quilt shop! 

Have a safe and happy 4th of July!

Bring on the Calypso Colors!

 If you've seen and loved Ro Gregg's first two Calypso lines, Calypso and Calypso Frogs, you're sure to be equally thrilled with the "three-quel," Calypso Goldfish!

Calypso Goldfish by Ro Gregg

Q. Why did you choose to focus on goldfish for this collection?

Ro: When I was growing up, we had goldfish and tropical fish—the goldfish just seemed like the perfect thing. The previous two Calypso lines were really well received, so I wanted to design more—quilters loved the whole feeling of the Calypso look.

Q. Do you have a favorite print?

Ro: Probably the main print with the goldfish and lily pad and dragonflies with the turquoise background. I wanted it to be playful—a visual feast with everything going on. For coordinates, my favorite is the tie-dye looking medallion. It's fun and summery, and the centers have a lily pad look.

Q. Did you use photos of fish to create the motifs in the prints?

Ro: No, it came mostly from my head—I wanted it to be playful looking rather than extremely realistic. I worked to add a little modern twist, with geometrics here and there.

Q. We noticed a few frogs snuck in!

Ro: Yes, the frogs are a nod back to the previous collection, Calypso Frogs. They go well with the lily pads.

Q. Tell us about the colors.

Ro: I used what are to me the Caribbean colors—the blue turquoise, the sunny hibiscus. The palette has that crisp feeling from the Caribbean. I think the collection has an artsy, contemporary look to it. It also plays in with current trends—you're seeing a lot of sea motifs right now—even though it might not be realistic—the fish, waves, frogs, a little nature going on.

See the entire Calypso Goldfish collection here and be sure to ask for it at your local quilt shop!

Download the free Calypso Goldfish pattern designed by The Quilting Hen here.

Owl Love

Judy Hansen has created three different designs using her adorable Nite Owls fabric. If you're a frequent blog follower, you've likely seen the free pattern available on our website, but we'll include it again in this post for easy access. 

Baby Owls

She designed "Baby Owls" for Fons & Porter's Love of Quilting magazine, a quilt that was also featured in the Love of Quilting tv series. (Watch the show for tips on how to make these blocks more accurate through the use of oversized blocks.)

"Baby Owls" by Judy Hansen;
featured in Love of Quilting May/June 2014

About the quilt design: 

She says, "I had my new grandson in mind when I designed this. I definitely wanted it to be a baby quilt. Four-patches are one of my favorite designs, and I love putting them on point. It makes the quilt more interesting, and makes it look more complicated than it really is."

About her design philosophy:

"After I've initially designed a quilt, I always try to look at it and say to myself, 'don't stop there—you can make it better.' Have I done all I can do to make it better? What would make it more interesting? This quilt is a great example. I took an easy quilt and made it more interesting, first with the on-point setting, and then by adding the inner border of green around the owl sashing strips. I also fussy-cut the outer border--the tree print--and then appliqued fussy-cut owls onto it."

About the owls:

Aren't they cute?!?! "I put fusible on the back of the owl print and cut them out--I like using Heat n Bond Lite. Then I fused them in place on the border of the quilt top and used invisible thread and my free motion foot to zigzag stitch them in place." 

Find the kit for this project here.

Find the magazine here.

Owls' Playtime

Judy has had babies on the mind with the arrival of her new grandson last year! She designed another baby quilt using Nite Owls that was featured in The Quilter magazine.

"Owls' Playtime" by Judy Hansen;
featured in The Quilter December 2013/January 2014

About the chevron design: 

"I have found that I like the chevron better in a design than in a fabric. A lot of people struggle with how to use a chevron print, but we like the design. And it's so simple--just half square triangles!"

On the scrappy look:
"Since rows of half-square triangles use a lot of pieces, you can use many different fabrics and create a scrappy look, even when all the fabrics are from the same collection, like in my quilt."

On the black and white background:
"Black and white with brights--you can't beat it! The colors really stand out against the white and black eyeball print. Plus, with my background in education, I know that research has shown that the stark contrast of black and white is really great in baby things, as its what the baby can see first."

Find the kit for Owls' Playtime here.Find The Quilter magazine here.The pattern in The Quilter also included the templates for making the coordinating owl pillows. Find the templates for the owls here.

See the entire Nite Owls collection here.

Learn more about Judy here.

Download the Peekaboo Nite Owl free pattern for Nite Owls, also designed by Judy, here.

"Peekaboo Nite Owl" by Judy Hansen