Start a NEW Block of the Month Quilt!

Fall is right around the corner, and quilting season is just getting started. It's the perfect time to sign up for a Block of the Month project, and we have three that we think you'll love!

Hopscotch & Butterflies 

Designed by Quilted Memories featuring the On Your Mark collection by Simone Bradford

Cut and piece this cheery quilt with the bright, modern On Your Mark prints! Quilt measures 67" x 90".

Sign up for this FREE block of the month program here. Contact Quilted Memories for kits. This 12-week BOM begins the week of September 3rd; anyone joining later will receive the links for earlier blocks at that time.

 See the entire On Your Mark collection here. 

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Manzanita Grove Sampler

Designed by Barbara J. Eikmeier featuring her Manzanita Grove collection

This 10-month BOM album quilt sampler features 41 different blocks inspired by antique quilts; the blocks float in cream sashing with a red mini print background. Quilt measures 80" square.

Sign up for the Manzanita Grove Sampler program here.

Read more about the Manzanita Grove Sampler here.

See the entire Manzanita Grove collection here. 

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Freeform

Designed by Jean Nolte featuring the Freeform collection

This 6-month medallion-style BOM is made in cool green and purple prints from our Freeform collection. Quilt measures 90" square. BOM participants have access to free videos showing techniques and tips for making the blocks. 

Sign up for the Freeform BOM program here. 

See the entire Freeform collection here.

Which one do you want to make?

Manzanita Grove BOM and FREE Quilt Pattern

 Reproduction fabric fans, get ready for a fantastic Block of the Month quilt featuring Barbara Eikmeier's Manzanita Grove collection! The Manzanita Grove Sampler Quilt is a 10-month BOM and will be available in quilt shops starting in September. We asked Barb to introduce us to her new quilt: 

Manzanita Grove Sampler designed by Barbara J. Eikmeier;
machine quilted by Theresa Ward

Q. Tell us about the Manzanita Grove Sampler.

BE: This type of sampler was popular during the time period of the fabric. It’s typically called an album quilt. It includes a variety of different styles of blocks, and was often a friendship quilt made by a group of people.

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

BE: There are 41 blocks total. A few of the block designs show up more than once, but with very different color placement. For example, two of the red and white blocks are the same pattern, and two pinwheel blocks—one that is blue and yellow, and another is red, yellow, green and cream. See if you can find them!

Q. How did you come up with the blocks?

BE: Mostly from studying antique quilts. Some of the blocks are very simple; others are more complex. I think it’s good to have a variety of techniques and difficulty in a sampler quilt.

Q. Do you have some favorite blocks in the quilt?

BE: I love the group of five red and white blocks! They’re all made within one month.

Q. There’s so much going on in this quilt! Is it hard to keep the cutting organized?

BE: Because it’s a Block of the Month quilt, I designed it to make cutting easy each month—you’ll cut four blocks at a time, all in the same group of colors. So if you need, for example, flying geese blocks for more than one block that month, you’ll make them all at once. The BOM also comes with three different sets of cutting instructions: traditional rotary cutting, Accu-Quilt Go, and Marti Michell templates.

Q. How did you decide on the layout?

BE: The blocks measure 8” square, and I wanted the quilt to be large; I was able to add to the size by setting the blocks on point. I think it looks prettier, and it was common during that time period. I added sashing to space the blocks out. I originally tried the design with pointed corners on the sashing, but when I tried it with blunted corners, it changed the whole look of the quilt and I really liked it.

Q. Why red for the border?

BE: I love red, so it was an easy choice to use one of the red prints for the border. Just for fun, I tried a few other colors as the border. You can see them below. You could also enlarge the quilt even more by adding an outer border with the focal print.

Barb also designed a FREE quilt pattern for her Manzanita Grove collection, the Manzanita Grove Album Quilt.

Download the quilt here. 

See the entire Manzanita Grove collection here and ask for it at your local quilt shop. 
Read our interview with Barb here. 

A little 30s inspired weekend inspiration

Last fall we shared blocks from Barbara Eikmeier's 30's Sampler Block of the Month featuring the Vintage 30's Ruby's Treasures collection. We have more to show off today, including some of the adorable applique blocks made from the collections embroidery panels. 

The quilt features 81 blocks: 41 pieced blocks and 40 appliqued blocks. 

Barb used a back basting applique method to create the shapes for each block and made the entire quilt from a fat quarter bundle of the Vintage 30's prints plus the coordinating solids.

The pink barn with a fun striped silo:

Delicate florals:

What a neat windmill variation:

Love the green and purple rooster!

The pieced blocks in the BOM include plenty of unique designs such as this one: 

So much detail in this fishing block:

This pig might be our favorite, peeking over the striped fence.

We can't wait to see this quilted!

Read more about the BOM here. 
It's not too late to sew along! Barb's quilt is almost done, but you can purchase the patterns and the kit on her website.

Looking for a BOM?

Barb Eikmeier, designer of the Vintage 30s Ruby's Treasures collection, is hosting a Block of the Month quilt on her blog.

Barb's Month 4 blocks;
the pattern for these is available for FREE during the month of October.
Find the patterns here.

Each month she posts the directions for four pieced blocks made using her Vintage 30s Ruby's Treasures prints. 
The finished quilt will pair the 41 pieced blocks with 40 applique blocks made with the McKim Studios pre-printed embroidery blocks. (Ruby’s Farm Treasures and Ruby’s Flower Garden).

Barb designed the quilt to be made from a fat quarter bundle of the Vintage 30s Ruby's Treasures prints and coordinating solids, plus the two pre-printed embroidery block panels. We're loving following along, and think you will too! 

New blocks are posted at the beginning of each month, and are available for free downloading during that month. After the month ends, they're available for $5 in Barb's online store.

Here's a look at the other blocks she's created so far:

Month 1:

Month 2:

Month 3:

Find the block patterns here.

A little more about her 30s Sampler BOM:
Q. What prompted you to start this BOM quilt?
BE: I wanted to do something that used both the fabric and the panels. I liked the idea of making it entirely from a fat quarter bundle of the 21 prints and 9 solids. To me, that was a fun challenge. 

Q. What resources did you use for the block designs? 
BE: Many of them came from the Electric Quilt software library, but if I found a block I liked in an antique quilt, I'd draw it myself. The embroidery blocks finish at 7-3/4", so I needed to find blocks that finished at 8" that could be trimmed down to 7-3/4" without sacrificing design elements along the edges. 

Q. Tell us about the applique blocks. 
BE: I like to do back basting applique; in fact, I wrote a book about it a few years ago. I realized that with the preprinted embroidery blocks, I could easily use them for applique. You could also embroider the blocks for this quilt if you wanted; some people are even leaving them out and putting in fabric squares instead. 

Q. What was one thing that surprised you as you made the blocks? 
BE: I finished most of the applique blocks before starting the pieced blocks. Because so many of the flower panel blocks have leaves, the applique blocks were looking pretty green. As I chose fabrics for the pieced blocks, I had to be more judicious in where I placed the greens to keep the color balance even.

Q. Can you point out a few of your favorite blocks? 
BE: Yep! I really like the upper left block in Month 2, with the blue four-patch int eh center. It's a neat block that was fun to make. The block next to it--with four V shapes, was also fun to make. It's surprisingly less complicated to make than it looks, and that's something that's true for many of these blocks. I also like the bottom left block in month 4. I really love how the fabric choices work together in that block. 

30s Sampler Quilt details:
The BOM blog posts will run through April 2018; with four blocks per month (plus one month has five). The finished quilt is 80" square. During the month a set of blocks are posted, the pattern will be free to download; after that each month's patterns are available for sale in Barb's online store. 

Follow along with the BOM here.
See the entire Vintage 30s Ruby's Treasures collection here and ask for it at your local quilt shop.

Waddington Road Sampler

Ready for your first big project of 2017? 

Introducing Barbara J. Eikmeier's Waddington Road Sampler Block of the Month!

This gorgeous quilt uses the Magic Triangle ruler (included with the BOM) and comes with two center medallion options. Barb used all but one of her Waddington Road collection fabrics in it.

We asked Barb to share her design process with us.

Waddington Road Sampler by Barbara J. Eikmier;
featuring the Waddington Road collection

Q. This BOM has a medallion style setting, which is very different from your previous Vintage Sampler BOM.  

BE: Yes, I wanted to do something totally different than last time. I liked the idea of doing a medallion, so I started with that and worked out, adding block rows and smaller pieced borders.

Q. This BOM has two center medallion options. Can you tell us about that?

BE: The original center is the broken star, which you see in the main photo. It’s really not that hard to make the way it’s sewn together, but it can look intimidating. I didn’t want the center to be the reason some people chose not to do the BOM, thinking it was too hard, so I designed an optional center using larger pieces that still creates a star effect.  Both center options are included in the BOM.

 

Q. Tell us about the Magic Triangle ruler.

BE: I love this ruler! It was originally designed by Sally Schneider. The BOM pattern comes packaged with the Magic Triangle ruler. The ruler is designed for creating variations on a triangle unit called the shaded square. I created a variety of blocks for the BOM using this ruler.

Q. Do you have a favorite block in the quilt?

BE: I really love the block that almost looks like it has a circle in it. It’s in the quilt four times!  It’s also really fun to make.

 

Q. You chose a beautifully textured tan print for the background.

BE: As soon as I saw that fabric finished (as opposed to digital), I fell in love with it. It’s very mellow and not directional. I thought it would be beautiful in the background. And because it’s a medium value, I chose to use lighter prints in the background of the blocks and the center medallion, which helps them to stand out.

Q. Tell us about the pieced borders.

BE: I really like the smaller pieced borders. The flying geese border framing the center medallion creates a strong focal point. I added the red and blue QST border around the outside because it uses the magic triangle ruler for another method. They come out perfectly using the ruler.

Q. What are the details of this BOM?

BE: It has a medallion center and then sixteen additional blocks (a few are repeated). The quilt measures 90” square. It’s set up as an 8-month BOM, and shops will be starting it as early as February!

Ask for the Sampler BOM at your local quilt shop!

See the entire Waddington Road collection here and ask for it at your local quilt shop.

Learn more about the Waddington Road collection here. 

Introducing Waddington Road

If you loved Barbara J. Eikmeier's first two fabrics lines, you're in for a treat! Her latest collection, Waddington Road, was introduced at Fall Quilt Market and is now appearing in quilt shops. 

Sit back, relax, and enjoy this up close and personal look at the primitive prints of Waddington Road and Barb's story behind them. 

Q. How did this line come about?
BE: Paintbrush Studio asked if I would be interested in doing a primitive line. I said yes! But I didn't want it to be really dark--I wanted it to have brighter pops of color. The palette is a combination of warm reds and golds, with greens and blues mixed in. 

Q. Where did the name Waddington Road come from?
BE: Waddington Road is where my dad grew up, and it's where I would go and visit my grandma. I thought it would make a great name for a fabric collection. The color palette gives me that warm feeling of "going to grandma's house." One of the fabric designs was based on an apron my grandma had, and my grandma was a professional seamstress, so the buttons on another print are a nod to that. But it's as much about the warm and cozy feeling of the memories of going to visit grandma.

The actual Waddington Road where Barb's Grandma lived

Q. Let's talk about the scale of the prints.

BE: It's mostly smaller prints with a few medium scale prints worked in. And of course the plaids. I believe that primitive collections need to have a few plaids! 

Q. What excites you about these fabrics?

BE: I'm just tickled with the variety of possibilities in the color palette. You could make a red, tan and blue quilt and have it look patriotic. Or pair red and green with a little gold for a Christmas-y feel. To me, it's very versatile that way. I've been pondering making a pumpkin quilt using the oranges and tans and greens for fall. I haven't gotten tired of playing around with the fabrics--there is so much opportunity for different combinations!

Q. You also have a coordinating thread line, right?

BE: Yes! It's 50 wt thread in ten colors that correspond beautifully with the fabric line. I love the threads! They're so warm. I created an applique quilt pattern specifically for using the threads. 

On Thursday, we'll share quilts that Barb has made using Waddington Road, including a brand new medallion-style Block of the Month! 

See the entire Waddington Road collection here and ask for it at your local quilt shop.

Vintage Shirting Giveaway Winner!

Congratulations to Rhonda D., our giveaway winner!

Rhonda, you'll be receiving a 1/2 yard cut of the Vintage Shirtings collection. We hope you enjoy it and can't wait to see what you do with it! 

Missed our Vintage Shirting giveaway? Find the fabrics in a shop near you! 
Click here to find more information the upcoming Vintage Sampler BOM quilt and the participating shops.

Vintage Sampler BOM by Barbara J. Eikmeier

Vintage Sampler BOM quilt

Is there a Block of the Month quilt on your to-do list for 2016?

Barbara Eikmeier's Vintage Sampler has it all: classic piecing favorites, just enough applique, and a unique block layout. 

The BOM quilt features Barb's Vintage Shirtings & Dress Prints collection, new from Paintbrush Studio. This beautiful reproduction-inspired design is made in the USA.

See the fabrics here.

Learn more about the brand-new, Made-in-the-USA Vintage Shirtings and Dress Prints collection here.

Learn more about Barb's BOM pattern (including close-up photos of the various sections and Barb's behind-the-scenes descriptions of her design decisions) here.

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Ask for the Vintage Sampler BOM at your local quilt shop or find one of the shops on our BOM list and sign up today!

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Giveaway Alert!

For a chance to win a 1/2 yard bundle of the Vintage Shirtings collection, leave a comment telling us which fabric in the line you like the best. Make sure we have a way to contact you if you are selected as the winner. Giveaway closes October 16th at 11:59 pm EST. 

Vintage Shirting Bonus Project Ideas

What else can you make with the Vintage Shirting & Dress Prints collection?

Here's a little inspiration: Barb Eikmeier designed these bonus projects to accompany the Vintage Sampler BOM quilt. These patterns will be available from shops participating in the BOM program.

Featherweight sewing cover

 Barb says: I got my first featherweight about six months ago and have realized how much love quilters have for them. After I decided to design a sewing machine cover, I then narrowed it to a featherweight cover. The feathered wreath motif comes from a quilting stencil. The pattern also includes a separate bag for the foot, made from the same quilted fabric as the cover.

American Flag (44" x 31")

Barb says: With all the U.S. ties to this fabric line--the fabric being printed in the U.S., the history of the fabrics, and the colors--a flag seemed like a good choice. I wanted to do a realistic-looking flab, but that would have required a lot of really little stars. Instead, there are sixteen stars on my flag, which means absolutely nothing except that it comes out to a square. That's the fun of folk art designs! The stars will come with three different sets of instructions--applique, English paper piecing, and hand piecing with set-in seams.

Table runner (12" x 58")

Barb says: People seem to like table runners because they are fast to make and great decor for homes. I liked how the black and the blue looked together. Lots of flying geese to make!

Runner center close-up

Read more about Barb's Vintage Shirting & Dress Print collection here.
See the entire collection here.
Find out more about Barb, her fabric collection, and her quilts here.
Learn more about the BOM Vintage Sampler here.