Art Gallery Fabrics - The Creative Blog

Hi Quilters,

Welcome to week 6 (and the final week!) of the Summer Jubilee Sew Along.

This is your week!  All the hard work is done, and you should have a finished quilt top.  I know this is such a busy time of year, so please don't worry if you are behind or haven't finished.  You can finish your quilt when it is the right time, or take next week to catch up!

If you are ready to finish your quilt, here are some helpful tips and tutorials to guide you through quilting your quilt top and adding the final touch—binding!

For my cover version, I didn't have time to get it long-armed. But I created a simple "wave" template using an 18" x 4" piece of cardboard.  I simply drew a wavy line with a marker and then cut out the template. 

Agnes is enjoying the quilt marking process and sitting on my template!

The beauty of wavy lines is that you can be as organic or precise as you want.  I've even made quilts where I just quilt as I go, making the waves imperfectly.  That is the best when you want to have a very organic, unique look!

If I'm trying to be precise, I like to use a Hera marker to mark my quilts.  This little piece of plastic creases the fabric and ensures no lines will be left behind.  If you prefer to use an air or heat-erasable pen, I do recommend testing it on scrap fabric first.  I've had instances where residue will stay behind, and it's better to be safe than sorry.

If you are going to be sending in your quilt for long-arming services (and have never done that before), I've linked a blog post on how to best prepare your quilt.  You can read the blog post here.

One of the final steps before quilting your quilt is preparing the backing. For mine, I chose the stunning 'Floral Universe Midnight' print from the True Blue collection by AGF designer Maureen Cracknell.

And if you need help with binding, don't worry---I've got you!  I recommend this binding tutorial by Suzy Williams, one of the talented AGF designers!  It's how I first learned to bind a quilt, and I found it so helpful.  You can watch the video here.

Thank you so much for being part of Art Gallery Fabrics' first sew-along.  I hope you have enjoyed making this quilt and maybe even learned something new along the way.  The best part of quilting is growing in confidence.

**Now for the FINAL PRIZE**

This week we will have TWO prizes and TWO winners!  Yes, that's right!  Two lucky quilters will win a prize.

The first prize is to have your quilt long-armed professionally by Joyce of Eva Mae Custom Quilts.  I send almost all my quilts to Joyce and am never disappointed with her beautiful work.

And another winner will win the grand prize of an Arrow Sewing Chair!  I'm so proud to be an ambassador for Arrow and was so grateful when they agreed to be a sponsor.

You will love this sewing chair and wonder how you ever got along without it!  I'm so excited for one of you to win this amazing prize.

To enter the giveaway:

Sign up to the Summer Jubilee Sew Along: Click Here
If you're on Instagram - Follow me @midlife_quilter & @artgalleryfabrics
If you're on Facebook - Follow me Midlife Quilter & Art Gallery Fabrics

Leave the comment: "Summer Jubilee Sewalong" right here in the comment section of the blog.

I'll be drawing a winner first thing on Monday, June 9th. Entries close at midnight, June 8th.

Come join our public Facebook group! It’s the perfect place to share your fabric pulls, introduce yourself, and ask any questions along the way. Click below to join.

Join the Facebook Group

Don't forget there is still time to order a kit!  You can shop here.

Thank you and Happy Quilting, 

Victoria Newmyer & Art Gallery Fabrics

Hi Quilters!

Welcome to week 5 of the Summer Jubilee Sew Along!

We are almost to the finish line.  By now, you have made all of the blocks, and now it is time to assemble your quilt top!

This will be an easy and fun week.

If you didn't press your blocks as you were making them, now is the time to do that.  Pressed blocks sew together better. 

I recommend pressing the seams open as indicated in the pattern, but if you press your seams to the side, you can get flatter seams by placing the blocks under a heavy book to really set the seams.

Another tip I learned about is to sew your first three rows together, then use a safety pin to mark the top.  Set it aside and then sew your bottom three rows together.  Your final seam will be sewing the two halves together.

Doing this makes sewing the top more manageable.  When I was first learning to quilt, I would just sew row to row until I got to the bottom.  But my quilt top would pull from all the weight on one side and get so wrinkled as I crunched it under the neck of the machine.  

Sewing the top in two halves is so much easier, and your quilt top gets less wrinkled.

Once your top is made, I do recommend cutting any loose threads on the back--especially if you are using a white background and darker colors for your blocks.  This step will help eliminate any rogue threads showing through after it is quilted.

And that's it!  Like I mentioned--an easy week.  And don't worry if you are a little behind, next week is just a chance to catch up and show your work if you did finish.

I would love to see your progress.  If you share photos on Instagram, please be sure to tag me @midlife_quilter and use #SummerJubileeSAL.

***Ready to See This Week’s Prizes?***

This week's prize is batting from Hobbs Batting and an Aurifil thread set that matches the Summer Jubilee Cover Quilt!

I use Hobbs batting in all my quilts and am so happy to share that they donated a Queen Size (90" x 108") Bleached Cotton Batting for one lucky winner.  

The Aurifil Thread set has 5 spools of 28 weight thread that can be used for adding some hand quilting touches to your quilt or for hand binding.

To enter the giveaway:

Sign up to the Summer Jubilee Sew Along: Click Here
If you're on Instagram - Follow me @midlife_quilter & @artgalleryfabrics
If you're on Facebook - Follow me Midlife Quilter & Art Gallery Fabrics

Leave the comment: "Summer Jubilee Sewalong" right here in the comment section of the blog.

I'll be drawing a winner first thing on Monday, May 26th. Entries close at midnight, May 25th.

Come join our public Facebook group! It’s the perfect place to share your fabric pulls, introduce yourself, and ask any questions along the way. Click below to join.

Join the Facebook Group

Don't forget there is still time to order a kit!  You can shop here.

See you next week, 

Victoria Newmyer & Art Gallery Fabrics

Hello Sewing Friends, 

Raise your hand if you enjoy the binding process of a quilt or sewing project? That's so great if your hand is up but I know for me and many others the binding process can get a bit stressful, tricky, and never come out the way you hoped. For years after I started quilting I was terrified of the binding stage and never actually finished a quilting project. Making quilt tops was my jam, starting a new one before finishing the first one and a lot of times working on 4 quilts at a time. What can I say, I like to switch it up and keep it interesting! So it's easy to say I have tons of quilt tops in my closets that need to be turned into quilts and be loved and cherished the way a quilt should be, not sitting unfinished, in a closet collecting dust. Which is why I am so excited to start working with AGF’s 2.5 Edition binding. 

Since having my first child almost 4 years ago, (she will be four in June) I have been out of the quilting/ sewing game. I stopped sewing maybe two months before she was born and never really got back into it. I would force myself to do projects here and there but life always seemed to get in the way. Sewing throughout my life has brought me so much joy and comfort in hard times, so not doing something I loved started to weigh heavily on me. Can any one tell me, why do we stop doing the things we love during stressful times?! I know life doesn’t always make things easy and we can easily be swung off course but I am so excited to be back in a space creating and talking to this amazing community of sewing friends. 

I know AGF’s 2.5 Edition binding is going to be a game changer for everyone. When I heard AGF had came out with this unique product I was thrilled to get my hands on it. I was fortunate enough to be able to visit the AGF headquarters in March and was able to play with all of the 2.5 Edition prints. I got lost for hours cutting and folding the strips in all the different ways to show off all the adorable small scale designs. Before I dive too deep into the amazingness that is AGF’s 2.5 Edition, we have an amazing video playlist on Youtube where you can learn the ins and outs of binding with AGF’s 2.5 Edition. The videos show the process of binding a quilt, gives you an idea of the variety of print options, and will spark creativity for your next sewing project. 

What struck me most about this revolutionary product was how versatile it was. You can choose the prints that show up on the back and front of your projects and I loved that it was 2.5 width, my only and favorite way to bind! Also there are so many different 2.5 prints to choose from at least 40 prints and counting. For many of our new collections we release we come out with a binding curated just for that collection as well as previously designed options that were created to mix and match back perfectly with our previous collections that you may own.

Another thing that fascinated me so much about the 2.5 Edition is it can be used for so much more than binding. When I was going through the 2.5 strips I had cut I saw how you can use it as trim, embellishments, piping, strip piecing projects, wherever you want to add a splash of detail to in any project you are working on to take it to the next level. Check out our 2.5 Edition Fabric Lookbook below for all the inspiring ways to use it in your projects. 

I literally can’t say enough great things about AGF’s 2.5 Edition except that you need to touch it and play with it yourself to really grasp how amazing it is. Below is a list of shops that carry our 2.5 Edition Binding so you can get your hands on some today. I am so delighted to see what you all think, so please comment below or reach out to us with all your thoughts and make sure to show off all your makes using our 2.5 Edition! 

Want to get into some cute fun projects right now using AGF’s 2.5, check out this fun tutorial with tips and tricks for binding curves making this useful potholder to add a pop of homemade into your kitchen. 

As I continue to use AGF’s 2.5 Edition in my upcoming projects I would love to take you on my journey showing clever hacks and techniques in using this product in all your quilting and sewing projects! This fool proof way of binding has got me feeling extremely confident and ready to tackle all those unfinished projects! 

Until Next time, 

Happy Sewing! 

Hi Quilters,

Welcome to Week 3 of the Summer Jubilee Sew Along!

By now, you have made your Starburst blocks, and now we are ready to dive into the Rosette Blocks!

Chain piecing will be your friend this week as we make all the little units that will become the Rosette blocks.

These blocks may feel complicated, but they consist of blocks you are probably already really familiar with:  half square triangles (HSTs) and Flying Geese (FGs).

The HSTs are made 8 at a time, and the FGs are made 4 at a time so you can create the units faster.

This video tutorial by Art Gallery Fabrics is one of the best I've seen on explaining how to make 8 at a time HSTs.  Give it a watch here if you need a refresher or are new to making HSTs with this method.

All the HSTs in this pattern are oversized so you can trim them down to get an accurate HST.  There are many ways to trim HSTs, and I encourage you to share your favorite method for trimming in our Facebook group.

I personally like to press all my HSTs open, then use a square ruler to trim them to the right size.  However, use whichever method you prefer and settle in because there are quite a few to trim.  The extra time will be worth it when all your HSTs are neat and perfect.

There are two types of FGs in this pattern:  a two-color FG and a three-color FG.

The pattern has diagrams to walk you through how to make each, but I have included a video tutorial here on making the three-color FGs, as that is a unique method you may not have tried yet.

Watch the tutorial here.

Don't worry about assembling the Rosette blocks yet.  This week is all about making the units, and next week, we will start the fun of putting our Rosette blocks together.

If you just joined, check out the Week 2 blog post here!

***Now to this week's prize!***

This week's prize is a beautiful tailor's clapper from Modern American Vintage!  I met the owner, Chris, at Quilt Market this year, and he is the nicest man. His whole family helps with his business, and his work is top notch.  He donated this lovely tailor's clapper with a stars & stripes motif for our sew along.  What a great guy!

To enter the giveaway:

Sign up to the Summer Jubilee Sew Along: Click Here
If you're on Instagram - Follow me @midlife_quilter & @artgalleryfabrics
If you're on Facebook - Follow me Midlife Quilter & Art Gallery Fabrics

Leave the comment: "Summer Jubilee Sewalong" right here in the comment section of the blog.

I'll be drawing a winner first thing on Monday, May 19th. Entries close at midnight, May 18th.

And don't forget to join the public Facebook group. It will be a great place to show your fabric pulls, introduce yourself, and ask any questions that may pop up.  Click the link below to join.

Join the Facebook Group

Don't forget there is still time to order a kit!  You can shop here.

See you soon, 

Victoria Newmyer & Art Gallery Fabrics

Hi Quilters,

Welcome to Week 2 of the Summer Jubilee Sew Along!

If you are just joining or haven't chosen fabrics yet, kits are still available HERE.  Grab one while they last!

This week we are cutting our fabrics and will begin assembling the units to make our Starburst blocks.

I love to start with a fresh blade and usually begin with cutting the background first since this usually has the most cuts (and honestly, it keeps me motivated to keep cutting since the prints are the most fun to cut, right?

There are fabric labels provided for you on page 9 of the pattern to keep your cuts organized.  I highly recommend using these labels.  It will make assembling your blocks later so much easier!  I like to use large paperclips or binder clips to keep my pieces together.

Once everything is cut, you can begin sewing your half rectangle triangles and your snowball blocks.

If you are new to making half rectangle triangles (HRTs), I've included a video link below to help guide you through that process.

Watch the Video Tutorial

There are two important things to keep in mind when making HRTs.

1.  You need to be sure to orient the pieces the right way to make the units have the color on the correct side of the block.
2. Make sure to trim them so you have a 1/4" seam allowance.  That's what will get you the sharp points in your Starburst blocks.

The snowball blocks are easy peasy, and the diagrams in the pattern will guide you through those simple blocks.

As always, you can contact me at [email protected] or drop your questions in the Facebook group.

If you just joined, check out the Week 1 blog post here!

***Now to this week's prize!***

This week's sponsor is Omnigrid.  I've been using Omnigrid rulers since I first began quilting.  They have a permanent place on my cutting table.

Omnigrid is providing a 1/4" ruler set and a rotating mat.  This prize will make some of the future sewing so much easier! 

-
To enter the giveaway:

Sign up for the Summer Jubilee Sew Along: Click Here! 

If you're on Instagram - Follow me @midlife_quilter & @artgalleryfabrics

If you're on Facebook - Follow me Midlife Quilter & Art Gallery Fabrics

Comment "Summer Sewalong" in the comments below to be entered.  The winner will be drawn on Monday, May 12th.  Entries close at midnight on May 11th.

Don't forget there is still time to order a kit!  You can shop here.

We can't wait to see you next week!

Victoria Newmyer & Art Gallery Fabrics

Hello Sewing Friends, 

I have officially been a part of the Mom’s club for almost 4 years now and boy it has been a wild ride!  Motherhood completely changes your  life in more ways than anything can prepare for but what I have appreciated the most is how much stronger, patient, and resilient you become. You experience love on a whole new level that I still find hard to describe. Becoming a parent you are given the gift to relive your childhood through your children, finding that childlike joy we end up losing as adults. Unresolved issues from our own childhood end up sneaking their way back to us giving us a great opportunity to resolve it as adults and to provide our kids with better solutions to problems they struggle with. Being a Mom is not easy, it comes with its ups and downs but at the end of the day it's the most rewarding undertaking I have ever done. I have always looked up to my Mom so much and even more to this very day. You definitely can never thank your Mom enough, so this Mother’s Day why not surprise her with something she will truly cherish and actually probably needs!  

Flowers and a sweet card, possibly some chocolates or a candle are not entirely bad gifts to give your Mom on Mother’s day but nothing says I love you more than a handmade gift from the heart. 

I compiled together a list of 10 Free Sewing projects that you can easily put together before Mother’s Day. Let me know which one is your favorite below and what you end up making. 

Ruffle Tote Bag

1.First up, is the Ruffle Tote bag made with our Timeless Prints: Wild Posy Flora by Bonnie Christine. Talk about easy to make, with a fun flirty element and extremely practical to tote around all your Mom essentials. This project is great for beginners or if you need a last minute gift you can pull together fast. Make one for your Mom and a matching one for you! Get inspired and check out the making of this bag by clicking here. 

DIY Coin Purse

2. I am all about keeping things organized as possible as a Mom to make things less stressful. I end up spending so much time looking for things in my day, so making sure I have things to organize my life is important. My bag is the last thing that ends up staying tidy. So this coin purse is a great and cute way to keep order in your purse. This easy DIY Coin Purse comes together so fast. Made with Adobe fabrics by Maureen Cracknell you are able to choose from the most gorgeous floral and geometric designs. 

Make Up Bag

3. You can never have enough zipper pouches, whether you wear make up or not this Make Up Bag made up of hexies is the sweetest project. It may look complicated but is quite simple to put together. It even comes with an add on tutorial to make your own reusable makeup wipes! This pouch is made with a mixture of Bonnie Christine’s, Amy Sinibaldi’s, Katarina Roccella’s beautiful floral designs and AGF Elements. 

Patchy Tote 

4. Bags are a woman's best friend but once you become a Mom you will never appreciate a cute large bag more, to carry what seems like the most endless amount of supplies. This large roomy Patchy Tote is what will become your work horse to cart around all your things. I love the patch workout detail on the outside and inside pockets but if that wasn’t enough the straps are even made with that same patch work design. Made with prints from Sharon Holland’s collection Kismet, Maureen Cracknell’s collection Homebody, and an AGF Studio collection Terra Kotta mixed and matched back with our AGF Elements. 

Stripe Block Vest

5. Patchwork, quilty garments are all the rage right now so I had to add this to the list. The Strip Block Vest is the perfect go to layer piece to add to your wardrobe. Cool enough to wear all year around and versatile enough to be layered in the colder months for extra warmth and cuteness. I love the strip design made with Bonnie Christine’s Wild Forgotten Fabrics. The earthy nature inspired collection gives such a warm and neutral tone to your garment. Perfect for any Mom to throw on top of a tank top and leggings to elevate any look. Oh and did I mention its reversible! 

Munch Lunch Bag

6. Momma’s, you got to take care of yourself and eat too! Which is why every Mom needs a cute lunch bag to pack all those energizing snacks to fuel you throughout the day. One lesson I learned real quick as a Mom was you have to take care of yourself first otherwise you will fall apart fast and be no good for anyone. The Munch Lunch Bag made with the delicate floral design from Mayfair fabrics by Amy Sinibaldi paired back with AGF Pure Solids will be the cutest and easiest way to make sure you are making yourself a priority and taking care of your physical health. 

DIY Patchy Mug Rug Tutorial 

7. There is nothing more satisfying than making a mug rug. To me they are like a tiny quilt for your tea or coffee and a small snack. Such a rewarding project to whip up in between large quilting projects or to make as a gift in a flash. Make it as basic as you want or get patchy with it and add some fussy cut designs. It's also a fun project to practice your quilting skills on! Try straight lines, wavy lines, free motion, practicing on smaller projects will make you more confident for those bigger projects down the road! The DIY Patchy Mug Rug tutorial made with Tumbleweed fabrics by Sharon Holland brings your projects the most rich desert beauty boho vibes. 

DIY Fabric Plant

8.For all my plant Mama’s out there that can’t keep a plant alive to save their lives! I may have found a great alternative. Try sewing up the DIY Fabric Plant with Evolve Fabrics by Suzy Quilts! A great nature inspired home decor piece that you don’t have to worry about watering but will make any corner of your home bloom and shine all year long!

Love 2 Love Potholders and Kitchen Towel Set

9. Calling all bakers and Momma’s who love to cook or the ones that don't and need a lil boost of motivation to whip up fun dinners and treats for their family. The Love 2 Love Potholders and Kitchen Towel Set might be the ideal gift to give an inspiring chef or someone who loves to create masterpieces in the kitchen. Made with AGF’s Bundle Up Sweetheart Edition, the sweet pinks and pops of red will add the perfect touch to any kitchen. 

My Love Key Chain

10. I saved the quickest and easiest but sweetest project for last! The My Love Key Chain made with AGF’s flannels are the perfect add on to any gift. Add it to your homemade bags for a cute embellishment or just give this and card for a reminder of how much you love them. It will be sure to melt any Mother’s heart! 

What was your favorite project? I know without a doubt I would love to receive any of these gifts and will be making a few for the Momma’s in my life! I want to hear one of your favorite memories or stories about being a Mom. Share below your favorite thing about being a Mom. 

Happy Mother’s Day to all you strong beautiful Mom’s out there! Your children are so lucky to have you. May you stay strong and full of love through all of life's seasons. 

Happy Sewing, 

Melissa