The fabric I chose for this version is called Homage by my friend Fran Gulick of Cotton and Joy for Riley Blake Designs. I LOVE the bright and cheery colors in this collection! It screams spring to me.

I’m so happy to have this second option that’s been floating around in my head finally put into fabric. I hope to have it quilted up soon and will share more photos then as well.

My longarm had a MAJOR malfunction (smoke was coming out of her and everything!!). But thankfully she’s now been fixed and is ready for me to get back to quilting. If only my day job weren’t so busy at the moment as well, I could get my back log quilted up!

Here’s another shot just because this quilt is so pretty.

And here’s a peek into how I organize the fabrics once they are cut and I start planning/piecing my blocks. Such lovely little piles of fabric

If you are a member of Material Girl Sewciety, you can click here to access your PDF pattern for this quilt. If you aren’t a member, click here to learn more.

And don’t forget to check out the video tutorial below where I walk you through every step of the process for piecing these radiant star blocks.

Thanks for stopping by,

Amanda

These cute checkerboard like blocks are made using a quick/efficient piecing method and what’s even better is that the pattern includes FIVE different quilt sizes, so you can easily find one to suit your needs.

The fabric I used in this quilt is Winnie The Pooh by Riley Blake Designs. Pooh is a classic that I think will never go out of style and I love the soft colors in this collection, perfect for a boy or girl. I chose to make the 54” square size quilt which is a great size for babies and toddlers.

Since I made one of the smaller sizes, I had a number of pre-cut 10” squares left over from my layer cake. I decided to piece them into the backing and I think it adds another fun element to the quilt.

The blocks in this quilt finish at 18” so even if you are making the largest size shown in the pattern, you can easily get this quilt top finished in a day.

I just found out that someone in the family is expecting their first bundle of joy, and I think this quilt will be perfect for her.

If you are a member of Material Girl Sewciety, you can click here to access your PDF pattern for this quilt. If you aren’t a member, click here to learn more.

And don’t forget to check out the video tutorial below where I walk you through every step of the process for piecing this sweet quilt.

Thanks for stopping by,

Amanda

If you’ve been quilting for any length of time, you’ve probably seen a version or two of the Scrappy Trip Around the World pattern which was originally shared by Bonnie Hunter of Quiltville. I’ve actually made a couple myself! Well, this pattern uses the same method for strip piecing, but instead of many “trips around the world”, it results in a single straight/diagonal trip across the quilt.

By using two jelly rolls, it gave me a nice large quilt. My quilt finishes at 68” x 78” because I choose to remove one strip from each of the jelly rolls that I didn’t love in the layout. If you use all 40 strips from your jelly rolls, your quilt will measure 68” x 80” (provided your strips have a width of fabric of roughly 42-44”.

The fabric I used is Sunbonnet by My Sew Quilty Life for Moda Fabrics. I love how soft and pretty these shades are and they are helping me dream of spring while I’m currently in the cold of winter here in the midwest!

The quilting pattern is called Cartwheels by Julie Hirt and I think it’s the perfect option to go with this fabric and quilt design.

Doesn’t this quilt just scream SPRING?!?! I’m thinking this pattern would also look great using solid fabrics, maybe in shades of blue or even blacks, whites and grays.

If you are a member of Material Girl Sewciety, you can click here to access your PDF pattern for this quilt. If you aren’t a member, click here to learn more.

And don’t forget to check out the video tutorial below where I walk you through every step of the process for piecing this beautiful quilt.

Thanks for stopping by,

Amanda

Below is a shot of the tree version that I currently have on display (note - you can find a pattern for the Jolly Holiday Wreath wall hanging in my shop).

But I also adore this presents version - so cute and cheery!! The other great thing about this pattern is that it is easily adjustable in length. This particular version finishes at 14” x 34” to fit my needs, but if you’d like a longer table runner, simply change the size of the background fabric between the two block. I think this would look great as a nice long runner with the blocks hanging off the ends of a table.

Here’s a closer look at the tree block. These are perfect for using up scraps and I also love the sweet snowflake fabric I used for the background.

The present block is quick and easy, and there are so many possibilities for fabric selections when picking out the wrapping paper and ribbon fabrics! You can choose colors to match your holiday decor, pick your favorite novelty print or do some fussy cutting.

Now I’m all set for the holidays (at least when it comes to our home decor…the shopping isn’t quite done yet 😉).

If you are a member of Material Girl Sewciety, you can click here to access your PDF pattern for this quilt. If you aren’t a member, click here to learn more.

And don’t forget to check out the video tutorial below where I walk you through every step of the process for piecing these each of these festive blocks.

Thanks for stopping by,

Amanda

I also love the secondary design that is created by adding the sashing. And isn’t this fabric gorgeous? It is called Happy Fall Days by Riley Blake Designs. I’m a summer girl through and through, but the colors of fall are my favorite!

If you’ve been around here for long, you also know that I LOVE a bias stripe binding and the multi colored stripes in this collection are the perfect finishing touch to this beauty. It’s also a great basic stripe that I think would work well with other fabrics.

For the quilting I used the Sashiko edge to edge design from Urban Elementz and love the texture this design creates. I also chose my favorite print from this collection for the backing. It has all of the most beautiful shades of orange in that floral.

Here’s a nice close up shot of the fabrics and quilting…so pretty!!

If you are a member of Material Girl Sewciety, you can click here to access your PDF pattern for this quilt. If you aren’t a member, click here to learn more.

And don’t forget to check out the video tutorial below where I walk you through every step of the process for piecing these radiant star blocks.

Thanks for stopping by,

Amanda

These super cute pincushions come together quickly and are much simpler to make than they may look.

In the tutorial I share a couple of different options for finishing the pincushion, so you can really make these unique. I think they are the perfect item to use with your most cherished fabric scraps. You can turn them into something that you can admire on your sewing table every day!

The pattern includes all of the material requirements for each finishing option. If you are a member of Material Girl Sewciety, you can click here to login and download your PDF pattern. If you aren’t a member, click here to learn more.

And don’t forget to check out the video tutorial below where I walk you through every step of the process for completing this pincushion.

Thanks for stopping by,

Amanda

I really love how this Oxford Blue background and border fabric highlights the beautiful Liberty Fabrics Denim Blues prints.

For the quilting, I chose the no fuss orange peel design by Julie Hirt Quilts and love the beautiful texture it creates.

I chose my favorite of the Liberty prints for the backing fabric. I really love those sweet flowers! It was hard to give this quilt away when it was finished!!

If you’d like to see a tutorial for this quilt pattern, click here for all of the details.

Thanks for stopping by,

Amanda

I bought a bundle of 11 fat quarters from Crimson Tate in downtown Indianapolis (you can also find them online here). Since the fabrics are already a bit “busy” with the checkered pattern, I decided a simple patchwork layout would be cute and accentuate the “checks”.

I love how these fabrics almost make it look like each square is actually a pieced block, especially when you view the quilt overall. It kind of seems like they are tiny pieced squares within each block.

If you are a new quilter, this is the perfect pattern for you to make and get practice with your seam allowances and matching points. Simple square patchwork is a great place to start for anyone wanting to learn how to quilt.

And even though this is simple patchwork and sewing squares together, the Checkmate pattern includes layout instructions to help you balance the fabrics across the quilt (thus avoiding the non-stop moving and adjusting of squares as you attempt to lay them out randomly!).

With these luxurious fabrics, I knew that I didn’t want the quilting to be too dense, so the alternating loops design was a great option and I was able to size them so they fit perfectly within the squares.

It’s really hard to convey the correct color of these fabrics, but they truly are beautiful! They are somehow bright, but muted? I don’t really know how to explain it other than I like them 😉

I chose the Fjord colorway for the backing and binding. The quilt I made finishes at 45” x 58” and is a perfect lap or crib size. The colors in the quilt almost seem neutral to me and I think it would work for either a boy or girl.

The pattern also includes instructions for a 67” x 76” size option. If you are a member of Material Girl Sewciety, you can click here to login and download your PDF pattern. If you aren’t a member, click here to learn more.

And don’t forget to check out the video tutorial below where I walk you through the cutting and block layout process for this quilt.

Thanks for stopping by,

Amanda

The fabric I chose for this quilt was a FQ bundle I’ve had in my stash for a couple of years. It’s Warp & Weft Moonglow by Alexia Abegg and honestly is a lovely light weight for a summer quilt. And the drape is beautiful with these woven fabrics.

I’m not sure how I got lucky enough for a number of my stripes to actually line up within the quilt, but love that they did!! See proof below.

Given the soft texture and drape of these fabrics, I didn’t want to quilt it too densely, so this fun wishbone design worked great.

After making this quilt and seeing so many others during the QAL, I really do believe that this pattern works well with ANY fabric collection. And with the simple patchwork construction, you can get it done in no time.

Even though this fabric is a little older, I was able to find just enough of the beautiful blue on blue design to use for the back and binding. I’m so glad I finally have that bundle off of my shelf and in a quilt!

Thanks to those who sewed along with us, it was fun!

Amanda

Take a look at these sweet floral prints! I love all the different shades of blue mixed with the golds and even though I’m not a fan or pink, I like the pop it gives to the overall quilt.

The Cottage Path quilt is made with two different block designs that are alternated to create a pretty floral “path” if you will. I think these two blocks work so well together. Both are made with half square triangles (my fave!), so that helps to create a secondary design by alternating the blocks.

When the quilt top was hanging off of my ironing table, it was so pretty I had to snap a photo 💙

And who doesn’t love a fun quilt swirl?

I have to be honest though, once I had the quilt top completed (with borders added), I was taking photos and then realized that I had a quilt block turned the wrong direction…then later found a second block! UGH In most quilts I would have pulled out my seam ripper and performed a bit of surgery to get it fixed, but I think with this one I’m going to leave it. Partially because it doesn’t bother me as much and partially because it’s summer and I have the attitude of “finished is better than perfect”!

Tell me your thoughts, what would you do??

I have my backing fabric ready and just received some blue thread that will match my background fabric perfectly, so I’m hoping to get this one quilted over the weekend.

If you love this pattern as much as I do, grab your favorite fat quarter bundle and get to stitching! The pattern instructions also include FIVE different quilt sizes, so you can find a size to work perfectly with your bundle.

If you are a member of Material Girl Sewciety, you can click here to login and download your PDF pattern. If you aren’t a member, click here to learn more.

And don’t forget to check out the video tutorial below where I walk you through creating both blocks for this quilt including the best pressing options so all of your seam will nest!

Thanks for stopping by,

Amanda

Join me and some of your favorite pattern designers as we create a mystery Summer quilt!

Nine pattern designers have come together and each created a unique summer themed quilt block that we will be sewing into an adorable quilt. Unfortunately we can’t all get together to sew, but this is the next best thing!

The Designers

Jen Belnap - Jen Belnap Design House

Amanda Castor - That’s Me!

Amy Chappell - amerooniedesigns

Andy Knowlton - A Bright Corner

Gracey Larson - Burlap and Blossom Patterns

Jennifer Long - Sew A Story

Bev McCullough - Flamingo Toes

Melissa Mortenson - Polka Dot Chair

Amanda Neiderhauser - Jedi Craft Girl

How to Join

**NOTE - THE QAL HAS ENDED - IF DESIGNER’S HAVE LISTED THEIR INDIVIDUAL BLOCKS FOR SALE - THE LINKS WILL BE BELOW**

• Amanda Castor: Sunglasses Block

• Gracey Larson: Beach Finds Block

• Bev McCullough: Flamingo Block

• Jen Belnap: Swimsuit Block

• Andy Knowlton: Ice Cream Block

• Jennifer Long: Turtle Block

• Amy Chappell: Beach Chair Block

Fabric Choices

As designers, we chose a mix of basic fabrics that you can easily swap with your favorite fabric designs. We deliberately chose shades of colors to make it easy for you to decide which fabric you want to use! Once you are signed up, you will receive an email with a pdf of the fabric requirements.

Colors Used (all are Riley Blake Designs)

• Bright Pink: Dainty Daisy - Lipstick

• Medium Pink: POParazzi - Coral

• Light Pink: Confetti Cottons - Frosting

• Gold: Dainty Daisy - Butterscotch

• Medium Yellow: Confetti Cottons - Honey

• Light Yellow: Confetti Cottons - Sunshine

• Dark Green: Dainty Daisy - Holly

• Medium Green: Confetti Cottons - Riley Green

• Light Green: Sparkler - Celery

• Teal: Confetti Cottons - Raindop

• Turquoise: Bee Cross Stitch - Cottage

• Aqua: Confetti Cottons - Songbird

• Tan: Sparkler - Beach

We used Riley White for the background fabric.

FAQs about the Sew Along

• Where Can I Get Fabric?

  I have linked all of the fabrics above, but Riley Blake Designs Basics are sold in many brick and mortar and online shops across the US.

• What Does the Finished Quilt Look Like?

  It’s a surprise! I will tell you all of the blocks are summer-themed.

• Can I Get the Blocks Without Signing Up For Emails?

  No, the simplest way for us to run this and keep it free is to deliver it via email. If you don’t want to stay subscribed afterward, you can easily unsubscribe (there’s an unsubscribe link in each email we send you).

• How Long Does It Run?

  The quilt along runs through August 15th. After that, the blocks will no longer be available. Some of the designers may offer them for sale individually, but that’s up to each designer.

I hope you’ll consider joining us! The fun starts June 23rd!

Have a question? Let me know in the comments section.

Amanda

Say hello to the Jelly Roll Postage Stamp quilt. This beauty is so bright and cheery and perfectly scrappy!!

This quilt was a lot of fun to make and as the weather is getting warmer, it seems like the perfect summer quilt to me.

The jelly rolls that I used are several years old, but I have found some similar options if you’d like to make a quilt like mine. Here is a link to similar low volume jelly rolls and here is a link to similar rainbow jelly rolls.

I love the addition of low volumes as the background because it give is so much more interest and makes it cute and scrappy.

I finished my quilt at 72” square, however if you are not a fan of square quilts, you could lay it out differently and make a 60” x 84” quilt instead.

Here’s a peek at the back of my quilt top - it’s almost as pretty as the front! As you can see, by pressing the seams toward the solid fabrics, it helps to nest the seams together nicely (and allow me to sew the blocks together without using pins!). I did press the seams between the rows open to help the seams lay flat for quilting.

I found the PERFECT rainbow stripe fabric for the binding - here is a link to what I used.

And below you can see the backing that I found that also looks beautiful with the rainbow binding and coordinates perfectly with the quilt top. Here is a link to that fabric.

For the quilting I used a pantograph by Julie Hirt called Cartwheels. It stitches up beautifully!

So, if you’ve had a jelly roll in your stash and didn’t know what to make with it, grab a coordinating low volume or solid color jelly roll and check out the video tutorial below to make your own.

If you are a member of Material Girl Sewciety, you can click here to login and download your PDF pattern. If you aren’t a member, click here to learn more.

Thanks for stopping by,

Amanda

Below is a photo of my fabrics all cut and ready to go. I typically cut all of my fabric before I start sewing. I know that some people cut as they go, but this system works well for me and helps to keep me organized and ready to just sit down and chain piece the day away!

And here’s the finished quilt that I’ve named Twilight 🤩 These Sunsetridge fabrics put together in an ombré layout remind of the colors of a sunset and how the sky looks at twilight, hence the name.

I’ve had this quilt pattern sketched out for a couple of years, but when I saw this fabric, I knew it would the perfect choice for this quilt.

The golden shades of yellow may be my favorite, but honestly I really do love all of the colors in this quilt.

And the floral prints are so sweet.

The quilt finishes at 58” x 78” and as you can see, I’m BARELY tall enough to hold this quilt myself…haha! My tall quilt holders weren’t available at the time, so I had to improvise.

Here is a close up shot of the quilting. It’s a design I hadn’t used yet but I love how it turned out. I believe it is called Dandelions?? and came with ProStitcher when I purchased my HandiQuilter machine.

If you like this pattern and want to make your own, grab 11 of your favorite fat quarters and check out the video tutorial linked below.

If you are a member of Material Girl Sewciety, you can click here to login and download your PDF pattern. If you aren’t a member, click here to learn more.

Thanks for stopping by,

Amanda

The Paparazzi quilt comes together quickly because there is no cutting of background or other fabric and you are only piecing simple half square triangles!

As you can see, by rotating the direction of my half square triangles, I was able to create a pinwheel design across the quilt.

The layout options for this quilt are numerous and I share examples of those in the video tutorial below as well as the PDF pattern.

With this simple HST block design, it also makes the pattern easily adjustable to create a quilt of whatever size you need! I have included FIVE different size options in the tutorial, but you can adjust to whatever size you like in multiples of 9 (the blocks finish at 9” square).

Here is a close up shot of the prints to show that they aren’t actually solid fabrics. I struggled trying to decide on a quilting design, and started to worry once this was on the longarm and began quilting out. But now that it is complete, I’m happy with the overall texture it creates and don’t think it takes away from the quilt design.

Now, if you are thinking that this quilt will only work with solid (or solid-like) fabrics, think again! Check out the below sketch using the pretty new Sunsetridge collection that will be hitting stores this month. For this layout I rotated the darks/lights of the half square triangles to create diagonal stripes.

So, grab that layer cake you have in your stash and haven’t used up yet to create your own Paparazzi quilt!

Below is a link to the video tutorial where I show you how to piece this quilt and share multiple layout options to make the quilt your own.

If you are a member of Material Girl Sewciety, you can click here to login and download your PDF pattern. If you aren’t a member, click here to learn more.

Thanks for stopping by,

Amanda

Here is my completed quilt. For the QAL I chose a Ruby Star Society jelly roll, called Animal Animal. I love how bright and cheery this collection is! It was also great for this quilt pattern in particular because it had a good balance of light and dark prints which allowed me to evenly disperse them throughout the quilt.

I chose a simple loop design for the quilting that fit well within the quilt blocks.

Aren’t these animal prints just so cute? Who wouldn’t want a quilt with goats, sloths, snails, fish and more! I think my favorite block is the blue and white one shown below. Those fish happy fish faces are adorable!

I’m already looking forward to the next quilt along. Let me know if you have any suggestions for patterns that we should use.

Thanks for stopping by,

Amanda

I have a pretty large stash of red and white scraps leftover from when I made my Farmer’s Wife Quilt and I knew they would be perfect for these blocks. I even decided to go scrappy with the background fabrics and use some low volume prints that all contained a bit of red.

The scrappy nature of the blocks just creates so much interest in an overall quilt. I decided to make four blocks (they finish at 12”) and piece them together into a table topper (while adding a scrappy pieced border).

By rotating the direction of the blocks, it creates a fun and unexpected secondary design in the quilt.

I also found this sweet heart quilting design that worked perfectly for this scrappy hearts quilt!

I don’t normally do machine binding, but for small projects and to get this done quickly, it was the best option. I love those tiny little dots on the binding.

Below is a video tutorial where I show you how to piece the scrappy heart block as well as multiple block layout options to create anything from a table topper/table runner to a full sized quilt.

If you are a member of Material Girl Sewciety, you can click here to login and download your PDF pattern. If you aren’t a member, click here to learn more.

Thanks for stopping by,

Amanda

I don’t know why sometimes things will just sit and not get completed, but I guess life gets in the way! I’m so glad to finally have this one done though so we can use it and snuggle under it’s beauty on the couch this winter. It certainly helps to brighten up the gloomy gray days.

I just love the texture on this one. And take a peek at the backing fabric in the below photo…it’s PERFECT!

Thanks for stopping by,

Amanda

I love that this quilt was made using just one layer cake (10” pre-cut squares) and some background fabric. I also love that the blocks are a large 16” size, so it comes together pretty quickly.

There are two size options with this pattern, the 64” square throw size shown or a 64” x 80” size. The number of 10” squares you need for each size is included in the pattern instructions. You will also learn my favorite way to piece HSTs.

Seriously, aren’t these fabrics so pretty?!?!

Below is a video tutorial where I show you how to piece 8 HSTs at once and how to lay out these gorgeous blocks.

If you are a member of Material Girl Sewciety, you can click here to login and download your PDF pattern. If you aren’t a member, click here to learn more. UPDATE - you can now purchase a PDF pattern for Tango in my shop.

Thanks for stopping by!

Amanda

Say hello to the Hexie Tree Skirt!

This pattern uses fat quarters, is beginner friendly and comes together very quickly! You will need a half hexagon template or ruler (I prefer this one by Bev from Flamingo Toes), but there are other options available as well. By sewing these together as half hexagons, it saves us from having to sew Y-seams between each of the full size hexagons!

The pattern also includes two size options (40” or 56”). My tree skirt is the 56” size and as you can see, it fits perfectly under our fat Christmas tree.

For the quilting, I decided to do individual snowflakes inside each hexagon and love the way it turned out. When it comes to binding your tree skirt, I highly recommend using bias binding (versus binding cut straight on the grain). It is very helpful to have some stretch in the binding, especially when sewing it to the tight circle in the center of the tree skirt. I find this video tutorial to be helpful if you’ve never created bias binding before.

In the video tutorial below, I share how to cut your half hexagons from the fat quarters, how to piece them all together into the tree skirt and finally, how to be brave and cut a hole in the center of your beautiful, just completed quilt! 😉

If you are a member of Material Girl Sewciety, you can click here to login and download your PDF pattern. If you aren’t a member, click here to learn more.

Thanks for stopping by,

Amanda

The colors I chose for this quilt are Shadow, Boy Blue, Green, Teal, Oxford Blue and Denim (this color was also used on the back and binding) along with the Gray on White for the background.

This quilt will be perfect for any small boy OR girl (because if I’m being honest, I much prefer these shades over pinks and purples!!!).

For the quilting design, I chose the Soho pattern found at Urban Elementz. I think the swirls give a nice contrast to the sharp edges of the stars in the quilt.

If you’d like to make a Seeing Stars quilt of your own - you can purchase this pattern in my shop. The pattern includes instructions for four different quilt sizes (crib up to queen).

Thanks for stopping by!

Amanda