New project} The Quilted Snowman

Hello quilting friends! Over the past couple years, I’ve particularly admired two intricate and cheerful quilt patterns designed by Lori Holt & It’s Sew Emma:  The Quilted Witch Pattern and The Quilted Scarecrow Pattern. Thanks to social media postings, I’ve watched many of you sew up these darling characters, and I’ve been so tempted to join in the fun.  Now Lori has come out with a third character pattern, The Quilted Snowman, and I couldn’t stand on the sidelines any longer.  I purchased the book and started digging around in my stash. I am already having more fun than should be allowed!

I wouldn’t have had to sew from my stash, as Fat Quarter Shop is offering a fabulous kit with all of the prescribed fabric SKUs from Lori’s Home Town Holiday collection. (I believe they are also hosting a sew-along beginning in January.) But I have so many pretty fabrics left over from previous projects, I decided to throw caution to the wind and do my best to sew up a cute quilt top from the shelves of my sewing room. I’m keeping my fingers crossed it all works out!

Because I’m sewing from my stash and taking my own liberties with color placement, I did go a little rogue by working out of order. I didn’t begin on page one of Lori’s pattern. Instead, I began in the middle by working on the snowman’s face, hat and scarf. That allowed me to make sure I was happy with my main color choices. I will radiate color and print selections from there.

Next, I returned to page one and began cutting and sewing the Snowball Blocks. I have a pretty little assembly line staged on my sewing table, and it makes me mighty happy! You’ll notice that I used a pale blue for my background.  I’m using Robert Kaufman’s Essex Yarn Dyed Linen in the color Chambray (E064-1067). It has a nice, soft texture which reminds me of a gray-blue winter sky.

You may have also noticed that my snowman pieces are hanging up on a design wall. My husband helped me put this up recently, and I am thrilled to have it in place. I purchased a 72” x 90” piece of batting at JoAnn Fabrics:  The Warm Company’s Warm And White Cotton Batting. I hemmed the left and right sides so that it wouldn’t fray or get damaged. Then I sewed a sleeve across the top. We purchased a piece of white prefinished trim at our local home improvement store (Menards) that is 8’ long, ½” thick, and 1 ½”  wide.  We slid the trim board into the sleeve, and then my husband drilled holes on the exposed ends of the board on the left and right sides. We made the holes slightly bigger than the nails we planned to use. We then positioned the board near the ceiling and hammered nails through the holes and into the studs. Because the holes are slightly bigger than the nails, I can easily remove the stick and batting if I want or need to.

I have had my design wall up for about a month and have always had some type of blocks displayed on it. The fabric pieces have continued to stick to the batting, day after day, night after night. Not one piece has fallen down yet.  It’s kind of a miracle. Not only do I have a great visual of the quilt I am working on, but it saves on the knees, as my old design wall was my floor! All told, this project was about $30. I got the batting on sale for $23 and the stick was only $7.

I’m really looking forward to working on The Quilted Snowman this winter.  My husband mounted a TV in my sewing room, and I’ve slowly been working on making my space cute and cozy. I am truly thankful for my humble but happy space where I sew, create and play.  And I’m thankful to all of you for supporting my quilting journey and sharing your quilting joys, projects and ideas with me.

I wish you many blessings during this holiday season! Thanks for stopping by!

~Taunja