So here we are at the end of the year 2020. Wow….that is all I can say. Those of you still hanging in with me, I appreciate you so much. I thought I had really dropped the ball on blog posts in 2020, but just added up blog posts from this year and last year, and in spite of my Dad’s passing and selling his estate and our house and buying a new one and moving to Whidbey Island (which is sublime, BTW), in spite of all that, I still managed almost twice as many posts as in 2019. So we can’t blame the Pandemic for my lack of posts…LOL!
The post The Quilt Show – Finally! appeared first on Blue Nickel Studios.
]]>flew to Texas to be a guest designer on The Quilt Show with Alex Anderson and Ricky Tims, last March (2022). Finally, the episode is up online at The QuiltShow (a membership streaming service)!
My show episode is 3209 and airs today (April 23, 2023). Here is the trailer to wet your whistle and get you excited to watch the show.
And then here are just a few of the still shots that I have been saving for this day!
Sew Much fun just visiting with Alex and Ricky that day!
My quilts have never looked this great. Such professional handling and care.
My Blue Nickel Banner quilt rarely gets seen outside of my studio. Happy to have it shown here on The Quilt Show set!
This was fun to observe! So much goes into ONE episode. It was so cool to have that morning of filming this episode (whittled down to one hour for you) all about the Blue Nickel Studios that I started 15-17 years ago (REALLY??? Has it been That Long??)
Discussing process here for the Bounce quilt with Alex and crew.
Going over something with Justin (One of the Quilt Show owners and he does a very fun intro to the show as well!)
Working on Painted Forest Trees with Ricky.
Actual filming Bounce Blocks with Alex.
And here is the final parting shot where we say Goodbye to the audience.
I just watched the episode in real life with my best mate and brother, Rob Appell. He stayed at our place a little bit longer on his Progressive Quilt Camping Adventure through the pacific northwest just to watch the debut of this episode with me. Check out his Adventure here (It includes some highlights of us on this leg of his trip).
How can you watch the full episode yourself?
The Quilt Show is now offering a free 7-day trial of the entire website. What this means is that you can jump on at any time that is convenient for you.
Here is the link >> https://thequiltshow.
Hope that you enjoy the show!
And Thanks for sticking around the Blog here. I know you may be shocked to see me here again! I am rather pleasantly pleased myself. I know a lot of people aren’t on Instagram where I mainly hang out. And I barely touch Facebook either unless it feeds to there from Instagram or this blog. So this may be the only place that you may see me. I have had a rather rough two years in various little ways. I would like to say that I HOPE That I am back to the blog on a more consistent basis. Really only time will tell. But THANK YOU for today and I hope that you have a fantastic week!
Keep Sewing, Keep Happy,
Scott
The post The Quilt Show – Finally! appeared first on Blue Nickel Studios.
]]>The post Bird Song Fabric Tour! appeared first on Blue Nickel Studios.
]]>Hey there Blog Readers! Remember me??
Yes, it has been over a year since I posted an actual blog post. After the Retina problems of the summer of 2021, I really did get pretty low emotionally. And then the DayJob demanded that we come back 25% of the time, even though we had been working from home effectively for over 20 months. That was hard on my post Covid psyche.
I could only handle the quick posts of Instagram for the last year.
WINNER Has been contacted! Congrats to Dawn L!
BUT I am back on the blogging trail today! And it seems fitting somehow that my last post here for my friend Pat Sloan, and now THIS new post is also for that purpose!
I am here on Pat’s Blog Tour of her newest line of fabric Bird Song from Benartex Fabrics.
There are two panels in the line. Here is the blue one:
There is also a rose colored one as well.
And then here is the lineup of the prints in the range. Bird Song feels like a summer morning at a farmhouse to me. Very Seventies vibe in my head. Or something very coastal feeling. Lakehouse, Beachhouse, take your pick.
I am not really a panel kind of quilter generally, so I rather unceremoniously chopped the panel bits up to fit one of my favorite fast patterns.
And I used these solidish fabrics from Benartex as well to highlight the collection.
So I ended up choosing my United Colors pattern to feature the bits I cut out of the panel yardage. I still want to make my newest pattern Bounce out of this line. I will share that later when I get to it!
My original plan was to do this layout:
But now I think I will compete the top in this manner:
And now for the prize stuff!
I will draw one winner from the comments here on the blog sometime Monday. Not sure when, so get it in EARLY.
And then can go back and check these earlier posts from some of Pat’s fantastic friends on the tour to comment and win from their posts. More winners that way!
July 11 (Mon)
July 12 (Tues)
July 13 (Wed)
July 14 (Thurs)
July 15 (Fri)
July 16 (Sat)
- Wendy Sheppard
- Scott Hansen — You are HERE!
July 18 (Mon)
Here are the prizes! One winner from EACH person’s post! So there are many options for you to win!
- Giveaway is a layer cake for US prize winners. the Aurifil Thread kit for Non US
So start leaving comments here on this post.
We are last on the tour, so you have to do this right away as I will be drawing a winner on Monday when Pat ends the tour on her blog.
Hope you enjoyed the post and are glad to see me back. I will try to show up here more often! But as always, Instagram is still my jam even though their algorithms are deplorable.
Keep Sewing, Keep Happy,
Scott
The post Bird Song Fabric Tour! appeared first on Blue Nickel Studios.
]]>The post Pat Sloan’s Holiday Book Tour! appeared first on Blue Nickel Studios.
]]>I started off with the Spooky Twist project that Pat created for Halloween, but I wanted to do it in Christmas scraps of which I have a TON!
Here is Pat’s Version:
And here is mine:
This went together super easy and super fast… so this made me think I could do another project that really caught my eye.
The Liberty Hill quilt is a little more traditional than my usual fare, but I found the stars Pat designed quite intriguing and I loved the ‘feathered’ border. I was planning on doing it in more Christmas Scraps but then I found the Willow line from Windham Fabrics (which is hitting the stores soon!) and fell in love with the beachy colors, which just happened to be similar to Pat’s original quilt.
So here they both are:
Pat’s version:
And here is my version:
I was super excited to take these pix just down the road from our new home. Aren’t the colors perfect together?
I feel like I should call my version “My Favorite Color is Red” I LOVE that little Red scrap that I added to this basically two color quilt. That bit Definitely makes this MY version, don’t you think?
Now on to the fun part…..
There are Prizes to be had!!
SOOO Many ways to win!
First one of you reading this blog post can win a copy of Holiday Celebrations! To enter, leave a comment below telling me which holiday is your favorite.
- Leave a comment on THIS post to enter
- Giveaway ends on June 14, 2021 at 11:59 PAC
- Winner chosen at random on June 15, 2021
- Open to all – both US and international (US residents will receive a printed copy of the book, E-book (PDF) for international)
- I will notify winner by email so be sure your email address is in your profile or your comment.
And I am just one stop on this AMAZING line up of creatives. Be sure to go see previous posts and follow along to see the upcoming posts as well for their takes on Pat’s designs. Be sure to up your chances of winning by posting comments on all of THEIR posts as well. Each of us is selecting one winner.
Stops on the Tour:
- May 31 – Martingale with a grand prize! martingale.com/
- June 1 – Jacquelynne Steves jacquelynnesteves.com
- June 2 – Andy Knowlton www.abrightcorner.
com/ - June 3 – YOU’RE HERE!! bluenickelstudios.com
- June 4 – Amy Smart www.diaryofaquilter.com/
- June 5 – Bonnie Hunter https://quiltville.com
- June 6 – Fat Quarter Shop fatquartershop.com/
- June 7 – Becky Thompson powertoolswiththread.
com/ - June 8 – The Shibaguyz, Shannon and Jason Mullett-Bowlsby www.designz.
shibaguyz.com - June 9 – Bev McCullough flamingotoes.
com/ - June 10 – Aurifil auribuzz.com/
- June 11 – Maureen Cracknell maureencracknellhand
made.com - June 12 – Melissa Mortenson www.polkadotchair.
com/ - June 14 – wrap up at Pat’s evening video patsloan.com/
- June 16 Grand Prize announced!
But that’s not all folks!
There are ALSO TWO Uber-prize Packs from Martingale and friends happening as well (see the prize packs below). You can enter on their blog here, and over on Instagram here.
Thanks for stopping by on the Tour!
Be sure to leave a comment here for your chance to win a copy of Pat’s book and then hop over to ALL of the other opportunities as well!
Keep Sewing, Keep Happy,
Scott
The post Pat Sloan’s Holiday Book Tour! appeared first on Blue Nickel Studios.
]]>The post May Mashup 2021 appeared first on Blue Nickel Studios.
]]>I can’t even remember what I was really working on in the Studio in April or May. Both Mandalas for those two months are barely started and now it is JUNE! No Posts in May at all and after my eye surgery in mid May ALL of my May plans were derailed too.
SO today is essentially a quick and brief rehash of the last few months.
April Mandala had parts created up to this point:
May Mandala only had one border so far – LOL:
The BIG REASON Why the month of May disappeared on me…
I was supposed to be working on filming videos for my three classes at Quilters Affair Online this year, and just before I was all set to do so, the retina in my GOOD eye decided to tear in three places, so I had a sudden unplanned surgery on my eye on May 19th.
I was beyond terrified. Here is a bedraggled image of me sometime after the surgery.
But I had a great doctor AND I generally try my best to stay on good terms with the GREAT Physician (the Creator of my eyeball to begin with). I am happy to report that the eye seems to be on the mend, but things are definitely not back to normal yet. I am already feeling better than this picture would indicate though! LOL!!
Here are some interesting pictures of the insides of my eyes. I have no idea what I am looking at, but they are cool pics.
I believe this menacingly green mass was the problem.
The healing process has kept me from the computer for the DayJob and cutting and sewing in the studio. Typing this post is a bit tricky even now after two weeks post surgery because my depth perception is off — making screenwork tough.
What WAS I able to work on?
I have been doing a lot of Counted Cross-stitch. Mainly these ornaments that I am adapting from Susan Ache’s Joyeux Noel pattern for Aurifil. I was able to see these with my other eye. I had to keep my face to the floor the whole time, so I could work on these while sitting at a table.
I have been treating each of the 12 Days of Christmas as a single ornament, so each one gets its own take on the holiday. I’ve really been digging the change of pace from quilting and creating various color stories for each ornament, but I am itching to get back to my normal quilting playtime!
Organized a bit too…
Found a box of my mom’s old embroidery floss from various companies and decided it would be fun to wrap some of the floss onto these little plastic chairs from some old game the kids had when they were little. The floss looks kinda cool on the chairs I think.
So as I am getting back into the studio, I need to get those videos filmed for my three classes at Quilters Affair pronto. ALSO tomorrow, June 3rd, is my stop on my friend Pat Sloan‘s new book tour for Holiday Celebrations. Be sure to come by here and leave a comment on the tour post to get yourself a chance to win a copy. You will also get more details about the projects I made from my preview copy of the book and how you can win some other truly grand prizes!!
Sneak peeks at tomorrow’s post:
That’s it for today!
See you tomorrow for the Blog Tour!
Keep Sewing, Keep Happy,
Scott
The post May Mashup 2021 appeared first on Blue Nickel Studios.
]]>The post Goals for 2021 appeared first on Blue Nickel Studios.
]]>No, but it is now past three months since we have landed in the new house, and I am finally beginning to feel a little more at home. I feel like I can start doing things again. Not much beyond just settling in still, but at least I don’t have to think about selling and buying a house. That is a Whole lotta less stress than last year for sure. We are HERE, and we are STAYING.
So what are my goals?
Here is my tentative initial list:
- I really want to get ALL of the quilts I own – both vintage and created by moi – posted in the galleries here on the Blog. That will probably be later in the year, but maybe if I just do a couple every month, I can get through them faster. I don’t even really know how many I own. That sounds so bourgeois, doesn’t it?!
- Get more of the patterns I have been promising for a couple of years now published finally. iForest is ALMOST ready for you. Hoping next week actually!
- Get some classes filmed and also get the film studio/guest quarters finished by Christmas at the latest. Film studio will be first priority but they are kind of conjoined in the way I building out that space.
- As I unpack, I am finding MANY unfinished projects, so hoping to get many of them sorted and finished. The Problem with unpacking though it that I find hundreds of old idea on paper as well as groups of fabrics that make me think…. Oooooh there is a quilt that needs to be made also. I am going to try to stick to the ones I have actually started… and there are quite a few to be sure.
- And of course the ongoing Mandala of the Month is one of the goals. It is April now, so Green is the color and I think I am going to work mostly with hexagons. We will see how that goes! Loving the challenge of a different focus each month, and I love the containment of 30″ square as well.
Those are my goals for 2021 and are of course subject to change at any time!
For pictures today, I thought I would share some fun pix of some fun promo shots I did in my studio for OLFA and some our Easter displays at the house this year.
Studio Pix….
These are mostly to feature OLFA products, pretty obviously, but there are some other tools as well.
These spinning cutting mats begged to have their picture taken this way:
OLFA Cutting devices and Aurifil Thread are definite necessities!
Now onto Easter Pix….
Linda snagged this picture of Jesus with I believe Mary and Martha of Bethany from my Dad’s house after he died. This is probably supposed to depict the story of Mary listening to Jesus while Martha thought she should be working and helping her feed the Disciples and other guests. Good lesson to Listen to the Lord – one I need to hear every day. This is a cheap flimsy print and frame, but it looks decent and Linda always liked it. Now it is over our mantel and is a good daily reminder to listen to God rather than people.
Less spiritual Easter décor follows.
This Crocheted duck cracks us all up!
Yes, I know that frame needs a picture…..
These stuffed bunnies are stitched up in Dot Necessities by Karen Gibbs and Ocean Park by me for Banyan Batiks. Pattern is a free download from Positively Splendid. I have been meaning to make these for years and finally got some done this year. That small quilt underneath them was my mother’s doll quilt. I believe it was made by my great-grandmother Augusta. (More of Karen’s Dot Necessities are in the title photos!)
Here’s a spread of bunnies, lambs and chicks, etc.
Bill the Cat was only caught Sheep Rustling and Rabbit Hunting once so far, which is pretty good I reckon.
We have this super odd little display shelf in the pantry/hall between the kitchen and my studio. For a couple months we had no idea what to do with it. But then I saw that this doll hutch my Mother-in-Law built and painted. And this has now basically become a seasonal display area. Not sure what we will do for summer. Maybe seashells….
And this charming couple are a creation of my mom’s…. Beautifully silly and campy.
That’s it for Easter displays this year.
Looking Ahead…
And you may think it is too early for this next picture, but there is never enough time to get ready for Christmas. Here is a glimpse of a project I am also working on for my friend Pat Sloan‘s book tour in June! (Not really on the goal list, but I snuck it in 
)
And last but NOT least.. be sure to check out the OLFA website next Friday for the beginning of the OLFA- Alfie Mystery Quilt-along >> #OLFAAlfieMysteryQAL. I will be sharing new steps each of the remaining Fridays to make a fun and easy Spring/Summer Wall-hanging from a yard of fabric and FQ’s or Even Fat Eighths. Next week is cutting and 1/2 Square Triangles. And we will have PRIZES….LOL!
So gather some fun Fabric to join me over at OLFA headquarters for a fun quick little sewing Mystery. (I will be using Alfie by Este MacLeod for Windham Fabrics – And good news! This fabric is hitting the shelves now!)
As always,
Keep Sewing, Keep Happy, Keep Safe,
Scott
The post Goals for 2021 appeared first on Blue Nickel Studios.
]]>The post February & March Mandalas appeared first on Blue Nickel Studios.
]]>Spring has officially started, and here in the Pacific Northwest US, it is a typical rainy day. We found some daffodils popping up in the lawn and that made us both very happy because we were already planning on planting 100-200 bulbs every fall until we have a glorious ring of daffodils on the edges of the woods around us. Someone else who lived here had at least a similar concept in mind maybe. That is a cool thing!
I thought today I would talk a little bit about my progress on my crazy Mandala of the Month Project for 2021.
For starters, we are on target still, even though February is LATE, March is done EARLY!
Let’s start with February….
Here are some of the fabrics I started with for the February Mandala. I ended up not using some of these, but this was my initial pull. Better fitting fabrics kept showing up as I was digging through the stash.
I knew that I wanted to start with these hearts – they were a design concept by Sandy Bonsib in her book Folk Art Quilts from many, many moons ago.
These hearts are among my favorite to create, and I fall back to using them all of the time! You can also see I pulled out many of my old “country” fabrics, but also used new ‘modern’ prints and batiks!
And then I had to throw in some random checkerboards, right?
Mandalas by design have a center and radiate out, right? That’s my idea of them at least. I will confess I have not looked it up, I just went on that assumption. Basically a Medallion of sorts, they seem the same to me.
So I defined the center of the February Mandala of the Month to be a bit off-center, much like much of real life can be at times. But I wanted to define the rows (or rings) a little better than the January Mandala ended up.
Here is February almost done next to the beginning of March …. because well, I was LATE on February…LOL….
And here is February all locked in. I really loved all of the little floating hearts and the randomness of the squares. I had an overall plan for this quilt, but also let the blocks change things as they grew. With no preconceived idea of how many floating squares I would need, I just used them from the scraps from creating the hearts. I knew I wanted pieced strips for the ‘hashtag’ like border, but had no idea what they would look like. The little brown rectangle in the upper left corner is particularly pleasing to me for some reason! 
And now onto the March Mandala of the Month
The March Mandala went so fast because I had all of these little 3 1/2″ log cabins from a swap I participated in years ago. I originally wrote that my plan for March would be created from my massive scraps piles, but in a sense these were scraps too because they NEEDED to be put into something. When I found them from unpacking, I decided now was the time. I still have a lot more left as you can see some of the extra off to the side of this photo.
So I sorted the log cabin blocks and loosely arranged the lightest ones closer to the center and the darker ones to the outside. I set them in two different formats as well. It is kind of fun to look at them to see the pattern. I love the versatility of a log cabin block! I decided to make this Mandala more concentric with a much more ‘centered’ center — Not that my life is anymore centered to be sure, but just because this seemed like a good idea as the time.
Then I did a little poll on Instagram for how to arrange the last border. This was not my first choice, but I thought, hhhmmmm, interesting… This arrangement got quite a few votes…..
But this, my original idea, got the most votes, INCLUDING Linda’s, so yeah, it won. This is the finished March Mandala of the Month top. I need to get all three of these (January included) of to one of my long armers, so I can bind them & keep the momentum going!
The April Mandala of the month is scheduled to be ALL greens. I am pretty sure I will be using a lot of hexagon shapes in it. I am also doing a mystery quilt with OLFA over on their website next month. Working on that Next, so watch for it on OLFA and on my Instagram account.
Let me know what you think of this project in the comments. If you have any questions, post them there too and I will try to answer them in the next post. Love y’all!
That’s it for today!
Keep Sewing, Keep Happy, Keep Safe,
Scott
The post February & March Mandalas appeared first on Blue Nickel Studios.
]]>The post Studio Move Update appeared first on Blue Nickel Studios.
]]>I JUST barely made the goal of getting the January Mandala of the Month done in the month…. And that was by calling February 1st January 32nd….. which is totally legit right? LOL
Here is what the first Mandala of the Month looks like if you missed it on Instagram:
Here are some detail views of this quilt.
This was a ‘planned’ improv quilt in that I had a certain layout I was going for that slightly changed from my original sketch, but not much. I just moved a couple of borders around.
I was emphasizing lots of boxes and simple shapes. Things feel a bit chaotic in this piece. I actually did want that to a degree, as this quilt was representative of our selling my Dad’s and our house and then buying this new one. All of that process felt out of control to me, even though in hindsight, things probably went very smoothly. But it didn’t feel that way at the time. The numerous squares in this reminded me of the boxes, boxes, boxes everywhere.
The blue, green, and grey theme were reminders to me of the water, trees, and grey skies of my new island home. The flying geese blocks were for our journey north (just a tad ) And since this piece is titled One Bite at a Time, there are bits of the elephant fabric from Kismet designed by my friend Valori Wells all over the place here.
And now on to the Studio Update…..
For the rest of this post, I am going to show you some bites of the ‘Elephant’ I am slogging through one bite at a time >> The Studio Rebuild (After the Move) {Whatever you want to call it!}
I started this post 13 days ago and just kept getting sidetracked. Part of the problem is that I have enough fabric and fiber out now, so I find myself getting distracted with fun things to play with. Plus I started building some shelf units for the studio in the barn as well battling the winter doldrums. The last two days it has snowed over a foot and I have found myself just sitting in the living room looking at the snow or going out in it to see what is up out there…. I am so easily distracted.
Here is a corner of the studio that will eventually be the bulk of my fabric and possibly quilt storage. (I am still not quite sure where I will be storing my quilts)
Here is the ironing station/design wall as of February 4th. I have already improved this! Had room for a bigger design wall and just got it up last night! Woohoo!
My Computer area and books. Computer is mostly for the Day job right now, but I am slowing getting myself back to that backlog of pattern writing. I expect to get a lot of things you have seen around here patterned up in PDF forms so you can buy them — including quilts that have been in past magazines! Books are still all over the place and not organized. I have so many Kaffe Fassett and Gwen Martson books, but I know they are scattered about.
And Workspace Central – Brother Louie of the Holy Order of Mustachios lives and works here. SOOOOO happy to be back to sewing that is for sure!
This vista is contstantly changing still. I am building a little shelf unit for behind Brother Louie that I am pretty stoked about!
Slow Stitching Corner…..
I am trying to make this my Stitchery and pincushion corner. Still needs quite a bit of curating and fixing. But it is coming along and I love seeing my tchotchkes out. My plan is to leave the base of the dresser that bright yellow and paint the drawers blue with new knobs. (Second drawer has the new knobs for the bottom four drawers. Top drawer gets some fancy ornate blue one I bought on a trip somewhere with Linda) The wing chair I love and saved from my Mother In Law’s burnpile is here too for sitting by the window and slowing down a bit.
Window Dressings….
Not sure if this is staying. I like it, but opening the blinds is kind of a pain with these hanging there.
I love these shelves above the windows. More of my treasures can take residence up there. I had similar shelves in the old studio as you recall. I will need to go back and paint these…MAYBE…. but I was anxious to get stuff out of boxes so I could just not wait.
Mounties and Bees and Bears and a Log Cabin… I started collecting bears after I started collecting Bee stuff. Bees are a big thing with Quilters because of “Quilting Bees” and all. Bees, Honey, Bears… they seemed to go together….. Plus bees are just cool in general….Not Wasps though…. those are pretty evil…. and swarms of bees in a house…those are not cool either…..
I have more bee things but haven’t found them all yet, haven’t found where I want to group them yet either.
Black and White photo is my mom and Aunt Marilyn in front of cabins my Grandpa Joe built in the 40’s. I lived in one of those cabins for about 6 months my senior year of high school. I thought it was SOOO cool!!
That’s your tour for now. I have to get to that February Mandala of the month! And of course more settling and organizing here.
Also here’s a hint of more plans for this year. I have kind of resisted going virtual with classes and lectures, but there are advantages that I can see…..SOOOOO in the barn this year. We are building a film studio/slash guest quarters. Buy this summer… I HOPE, you will be able to take some virtual classes from me. PLEASE pray and wish me luck, for as much as I love teaching and sharing quilting with y’all, filming myself is NOT on my list of exciting adventures…. until now… so as I try to embrace this shift, I hope you will be patient and come along for the trip.
As always,
Keep Sewing, Keep Happy, Keep Safe,
Scott
The post Studio Move Update appeared first on Blue Nickel Studios.
]]>The post Mandala of the Month – 2021 appeared first on Blue Nickel Studios.
]]>After last year, I know well enough to not necessarily over promise anything, because well, most of last year was HUGE eyeopener for most of us in so many ways!
But I also do believe in starting over, planning, reflecting, and moving forward… so that’s what today’s post is about. I am Going To TRY REALLY HARD to be more CONSISTENT this year. That may be my word of the year, it may not, but I wanted to start out with something that I think I can actually accomplish (we will see about this).. can you tell that I am still a bit tentative about this?
Welcome to the Introductory Blog Post for the Blue Nickel Mandala of the Month.
Ground rules I have given myself:
- 30″ square quilt each month – just has to be pieced by the end of the month, I am not going to fret if is it not quilted yet.
- Each quilt will have a mandala or medallion type structure, but not necessarily a centered/symmetrical essence.
- Colors and starting prompts listed below – but I also am giving myself permission to change things as I go.
- No patterns will be published from these small works (at least not that I know of – I AM going to be working diligently on the backlog of other patterns that I have been promising for Far Too Long now….)
- They will be mostly improv – but somewhat planned improv.
- I will do my best to show my process on each piece throughout each month. – these progress pix will be mostly posted via Instagram and Facebook.
- You are welcome to join the theme each month by making your own Mandala.
- I wouldn’t say that I would be meditating on these, but the main starting point may or may not influence me along the way.
- I will be doing other things this year too — mostly quilty, but some that are related to settling into our new home as well.
Those are the only rules I know of yet, I make more along the way.
Here are my initial prompts for each month in the Mandala Of The Month:
January:
- Title – One Bite at a Time
- Colors – Blues, Greens, Greys
- Starting Point – Kismet line by my friend Valori Wells.
Since this is Now officially January, here are some pix of my beginning process stages of One Bite at a Time:
Preliminary sketch:
Fabric from Valori Wells. Mostly Kismet but other lines as well:
Other fabric that may or may not find its way in the mix (fabrics by Karen Gibbs for Banyan Batiks, Tula Pink, Jennifer Paganelli, Kaffe Fassett, and Anna Maria Horner – all for Free Spirit — for a start at least – these may definitely change as I sew it up):
Those are glimpses of January’s Mandala of the Month. I will start on that today sometime and then share pix as I go on Instagram and Facebook with the hashtag #Mandalaofthemonth2021
Here are the prompts I have chosen for the rest of the year –I am excited to see what comes of this project!
February:
- Title – Say Once More
- Colors – Pinks, Reds, Chocolate Browns
- Starting Point – Song Say Once More by Amy Grant.
March:
- Title – TBD
- Colors – Scrap Drawer and One or Two Solids
- Starting Point – Scrap Happy-ness
April:
- Title – TBD
- Colors – Green, Green, Green…
- Starting Point – Springtime at The New House.
May:
- Title – TBD
- Colors – All the Florals
- Starting Point – I expect this one to be very VERY ‘mushy’ LOL!
June:
- Title – Peace
- Colors – Whites and Greys
- Starting Point – One Year since my Dad passed away….. Processing that.
July:
- Title- TBD
- Colors – Blues, Reds, Whites, Golds
- Starting Point – Trite United States Colors, but in spite of ALL of our problems, I am still glad to be a citizen of the U.S.A.
August:
- Title- TBD
- Colors – Yellows, Golds, Pinks
- Starting Point – Pink Lemonade
September:
- Title – TBD
- Colors – Black and White
- Starting Point – Text Prints if I can find them when I get to making this one.
October:
- Title – When Autumn Leaves Begin to Fall
- Colors – Browns, Oranges, Golds
- Starting Point – Leaf and or tree concepts.
November:
- Title – Gratitude
- Colors – French General….. If you know these lines, that qualifies as a color!
- Starting Point – French General fabrics, when we packed, I kept finding lines by Kaari Meng. I have collected a LOT of Kaari’s fabrics of the years.
December:
- Title – Emmanuel
- Colors – Reds and Greens
- Starting Point – The Nativity of Jesus.
=============
Really not sure how this is going to go…. but after last year, I think I could use this plan to help focus my thoughts back here in the studio where my heart resides. Here is the current state of the studio:
So yeah… I need some good small creative projects to keep me motivated in this mess…… LOL! How are you planning to stay motivated this year?
Keep Sewing, Keep Happy, Keep Safe,
Scott
The post Mandala of the Month – 2021 appeared first on Blue Nickel Studios.
]]>The post Natalie Barnes and Norma Rose appeared first on Blue Nickel Studios.
]]>And my last post of the year is a doozy, in my humble opinion….
I interviewed the lovely, creative Natalie Barnes via email – oh late in the summer I think, way before her new line Norma Rose from Windham Fabrics came out. But it is out in the shops now and the interview follows. I think you will enjoy it. I always ask random and sometimes off-the-wall questions, and Natalie answered them all so marvelously. All of the photos (except the title photo and the last photo) in this post are from her and in no particular order. I will tell you a bit about the last photo at the end of the post.
I interviewed the lovely, creative Natalie Barnes via email – oh late in the summer I think, way before her new line Norma Rose from Windham Fabrics came out. But it is out in the shops now and the interview follows. I think you will enjoy it. I always ask random and sometimes off-the-wall questions, and Natalie answered them all so marvelously. All of the photos (except the title photo and the last photo) in this post are from her and in no particular order. I will tell you a bit about the last photo at the end of the post.
Please welcome Natalie Barnes to the Blue Nickel!
Tell us about your mother, Norma Rose.
She’s the inspiration for the fabric line….
Driving in the car and singing at the top of our lungs to the radio was a good day.
Washing dishes and harmonizing to old 1940’s songs was a good day.
Picking peaches off of the tree for peach sundaes was always an end to a good day.
Just like clipping roses for a kitchen bouquet from the rose garden was a good day.
My mother always saw the good in everything she experienced, no matter the adversity she faced.
Hiding Easter eggs hand dyed and decorated – – it didn’t have to be “over the moon”, she could make the every day exceptional.
She always wanted to be a cancer survivor….planned on attending the Luncheon for survivors.
But she never did. She died when I was just in my 30’s.
Her lessons stay with me, even today….as I watch the White Ginger bloom, or as I pick the avocados off of my own tree. The simple moments make for a good day.
What is your favorite memory of your mom?
Watching her singing with Auntie Helena and the band in Hawaii.
She had no problem getting up on the stage and singing with her….muu muu, lei and all.
It was a sweet moment for my mom…
What did your mom get to do that you haven’t yet? And along with that was there anything that she wanted to do that she never got to do?
My mother had the great opportunity to travel to Japan. She LOVED it. My father went for business, and she went along. She was accompanied during the day by a lovely female tour guide. In those days, it was very formal. But she LOVED it. In their later years, my parents and a group of friends toured Australia and New Zealand and Tahiti and I think that might have been her most joyous time. The joy she found in those trips would be the only reason I would want to go, I think – but those are her happy moments. I have to make my own, don’t I?
—-
As for things she wanted to do, that she didn’t get to do – – well, that’s the bittersweet part. When I asked her, in her last days, if there was anything she wanted to do, she replied, “Well, I always wanted to go back to Disneyland…”
So now, that’s my saying, when I have to make a tough decision, and have to change direction in life – I reply, “I’m going to Disneyland.”
Who was your favorite actor while you were growing up? How about now?
Man from Uncle. Dontcha know. For sure! What was his name….and he has a role in NCIS, doesn’t he?
Wait. You mean I’m not still growing up???
John Cusak and Minnie Driver in Grosse Pointe Blank?
Ok, now, my favorite actor might be – – well, gosh, I loved Patrick Dempsey in The Greatest Show. And Lady Gaga in A Star is Born.
Rami Malek in Bohemian Rhapsody.
I really was drawn in by Andy Allo in the new series she did – maybe it’s because she is a singer, and was in Prince’s band, too?
I am probably more drawn to music than film/television, truth be told.
Favorite 80’s band / musician? Favorite song of theirs?
The 80’s? Hmmmmm……ok – music will be much easier than movies for me!!
—————-
Bruce Hornsby – The Way it Is, Mandolin Rain, Look Out Any Window
Wang Chung – To Live and Die in LA, Wake Up Stop Dreaming
Tracy Chapman – Fast Car
Michael Hedges – Aerial Boundaries
Steve Winwood – While You See A Chance
Prince.- Let’s Go Crazy, Purple Rain
Phil Collins. – Against All Odds, You’ll be in my Heart, Take Me Home
U2 – With or Without You – Still haven’t Found What I’m looking For
Michael Jackson – Man in the Mirror
Cyndi Lauper – Time After Time
Bill Medley/Jennifer Barnes – The Time of My Life
George Michael – Freedom (borderline 80’s)
Don Henley – The Boys of Summer, The End of the Innocence
John Waite – Missing You
—————–
I think I better stop here…..
When you sew by machine, do you wear shoes or socks or barefoot?
I seem to always be in tennis shoes…..because of Stitch the dog, and all of the walking we do.
But if it’s at the end of the day, and he has put himself to bed, I will sew barefooted….cozy late night sewing. Just me and Jessica Fletcher. (Murder, She Wrote)
Is there a particular Color that you really don’t like to use? Can you tell us why?
Yellow. Definitely. I have ONE piece of yellow fabric in my stash, the original Denyse Schmidt yellow.
And nothing more.
My high school boyfriend made me a quilt – yellow and lime green polyester. Seriously.
I think that did it for me, with yellow.
Gold, I’m fine with. Yellow, not so much.
It’s a hard color to work with – it’s so shifty, and it’s hard to find a “true” yellow.
You know, not to green, not too bright, not too dull.
Definitely Yellow.
Would you rather go for a walk, ride a bike, or take a drive?
Walk. Always a walk. It’s the pace. And the ability to see the details.
Favorite Vegetable? and how is that served best?
Cocktail cucumbers, thinly sliced, tossed in ponzu sauce with a dash of rice wine vinegar. Served chilled.
Or chilled seaweed salad.
Or freshly picked baby arugula from the raised bed garden with sliced Hass avocados, right from my tree.
If you could spend the day with anyone famous dead or alive, who would it be and why?
I don’t know if they’d have to be famous…..so many I can think of that are not famous, that I’d like to talk a long slow walk with….
But if I have to choose someone famous, I might say,
Melinda Gates (ok, and Bill….)
Queen Elizabeth (ok, and her grandsons)
Dali Lama
Mother Teresa
Condoleezza Rice
Queen Liliokolani
Jacinda Kate Laurell Ardern
Diana Spencer
Favorite jewelry?
Any family piece.
Or my last dog’s dog tag with a little heart charm from when I was a child. It made a lovely necklace….
Tell us about your workspace..
I am fortunate to have an extra bedroom that is my studio. It has wall of books, a day bed for hand stitching, and an antique dining table for the Janome HD-9 workhorse!!
And of course, a small screen for streaming or Murder, She Wrote marathons for piecing marathons!
Oh, and good speakers, for those times when you’ve just got to rock it to the finish.
Favorite sewing hack?
Oh gosh – there are so many.
Great strong fast straight stitch manual machine.
Hot iron. Press, press, press.
Piece larger, then trim to the precise size square.
And my most favorite sewing hack?
Just SEW.
Keep trying things. New things. Difficult things.
Fabrics you wouldn’t usually use.
Fail a lot. Throw out a lot of samples. And then, try again.
Find out what you end up liking and not liking.
Don’t wait until you have the perfect tools, machine, space – if you’re passionate about creating, just start.
Grab some fabric and start.
be.do.create
What other Creative endeavors do you pursue?
I love knitting quick projects – and just as I love fabric, I love yarns.
Does that count?
And gardening. Oh how I love my garden. Right now I’m enjoying the last of the white ginger blossoms.
And I can’t wait to see the fuchsia bloom again that my friend let me take cuttings of, as she moved out of state.
And kayaking in the bay. Is that a creative endeavor?
Favorite Candle Scents?
Votivo – No. 17 Desert (I don’t believe it is available any more)
Second choice – Red Currant
Compagnie de Provence – Bougie Parfumée Extra Pure Figue
Favorite movie?
Why, Lilo and Stitch, of course!
And Up, The Devil Wears Prada, Lost in Translation, Hidden Figures, Bohemian Rhapsody – cried on every flight I ever saw that movie!
The Lake House
Chinatown
Sunset Blvd.
Favorite book?
Right now, because we are at home so much, I would say the cookbook, Food to Live By by Myra Goodman of Earthbound Farms
My other favorite is a gift from a dear friend, Adventures in Yarn Farming – Four Seasons on a New England Fiber Farm by Barbara Parry. You know, living vicariously.
What must every quilt you make have for you to feel it is complete?
For it to be seen.
Whether it’s gifting the quilt, or showing what can be done with someone’s new fabric line….
I like quilts to be seen. Used. Given. Shared.
For me that makes the process complete
What is your favorite part in creating a Quilt?
The potential.
Thinking about what you could do – what you could make.
The pattern, the fabrics, the time to do it and the place you’d make it.
Who you’d make it for —
As a designer – seeing the people that might make that quilt that you designed, and who they might make it for….
I’m always honored.
Who do you admire most in the Quilting World?
You know, there are so many talented people in our Industry. I don’t think I could narrow my list down to even ten.
I admire so many people for so many different reasons!
I always admired Gwen Marston – and am so sorry she is too soon gone.
Nancy Crow is an exceptional artist.
Jean Wells – her daughter Valori – for bringing people together, and of course, their works.
Anna Maria Horner, for making fabric design and owning an exceptional shop just effortless (which I know, is NOT)
Jenny Doan and the whole team at Missouri Star Quilt Co. for making quilting accessible to so many.
The Owners of Robert Kaufman, Moda, Windham/Anthology….
Latifah Saafir, Giuseppe Ribaudo, Jenny Pedigo, Sarah Bond, Amy Ellis, Violet Craft, Tiffany Hayes, Krista Moser, Shayla Wolf, Robin Long….. anyone that has ever been “My Nine” and helped me along the way, sharing freely their knowledge and time….
I could go on, and on, and on….
How did you start designing fabric for Windham?
I was so pleased to be able to make a personal connection with the team, and started designing quilts using other designers’ fabrics.
Relationships were built, and when the time was right, I asked if I could show them a portfolio.
I’m so thankful for our continued good working relationship! They are a great team.
Christmas – Halloween – or Thanksgiving? Which is best and why? which is worse and why?
Thanksgiving. Absolutely. Because it is a time to give thanks. And be surrounded with those you love and those that love you.
Definitely Thanksgiving.
I don’t think I have a “which is worse” – – I like any opportunity to give gifts or give thanks!!
Farthest you have ever traveled? what did you think about that local?
While I was in college, I studied in Heidelberg, Germany.
We would all get together and play frisbee on the castle grounds – and we once tried to break into the Neuschwanstein Castle….
It was a requirement of the studies that we travel three to four days a week.
But I think it would be difficult for me to select just one location out of all of those travels.
I guess that’s the farthest from home (born and raised California girl) I have ever been….
====================
That is it. Wasn’t that a fun visit?
Norma Rose is in shops NOW so look for it locally or online- whichever works best for you!
Places you can find Natalie and her work online:
Website: www.beyondthereefpatterns.com
Facebook: facebook.com/
Instagram: instagram.com/
Pinterest: pinterest.com/beyondthereefca
And since you made it all the way to the end of the post, I will tell you more about the below quilt featuring Natalie’s Norma Rose and Marcia Derse’s The Blue One lines (both from Windham). This quilt is called iForest and I designed this pattern a long time ago using my Tie One On line for Quilty Box. Now reworked in these new colors, the PDF pattern should be ready for you to purchase online here or on my Etsy shop within a month I hope.
That’s a wrap for 2020! Stay tuned for tomorrow’s post (yes TWO in a row!) I have a fun project that I am planning on doing next year, and I hope you will follow along as I go through it in 2021.
As always,
Keep Sewing, Keep Happy, Keep Safe,
Scott
The post Natalie Barnes and Norma Rose appeared first on Blue Nickel Studios.
]]>The post Meet Cheryl Lynch! appeared first on Blue Nickel Studios.
]]>I am so happy to be back to the blogging. It has been a long summer and an even longer autumn here at the Blue Nickel. We emptied and sold my Dad’s house and now our house is sold and we are moving soon. More on that later….
I started the year hoping to have lots of virtual guests here on the blog, and with the Pandemic you would think that would have been EASIER not Harder. But for me, it just hasn’t been. Someday I will write a post about this year’s ‘screen silence‘ …. Maybe…..
For now though I am trying to get this baby started up again. I really love having guest stars stopping by the Blue Nickel and sharing what they are up to creatively in the world of quilting and other fiber arts. I hope you do too!
Today’s Guest Star is Cheryl Lynch – Let’s begin:
============
I met Cheryl via a Facebook Group of other Creative Industry Teachers and Designers, and invited her to join us for this visit back in May or April of this year. She was telling me that she had a new line of fabric coming out this year called Mosaic Masterpiece with Hoffman Fabrics. At the time of the interview, it was still due to come out. NOW it is out in the stores. It came out last month, so hurry up and get some before it is gone….. safely of course…..
Cheryl sent me some scraps of the line and I had some fun with just some basic quilt blocks. (I added some of my Ocean Park and Tie One On lines to a couple of blocks – thought they went well together.)
I was really just messing around with the fabric – it was a fun bit of play.
But let’s get on to the Creator of this line — Here’s Cheryl’s interview from this Spring.
============
How did you get started quilting?
I started taking quilting classes at the local quilt shop when my youngest child started school..
What are your favorite elements of this craft?
That’s a hard question because there are so many aspects that I enjoy. Designing unique quilts with a unique technique gives me great pleasure. And then I love sharing it with other quilters.
You have a new line of fabric! Tell us all about it. How did this come about?
It’s called Mosaic Masterpiece. It’s a digital print inspired by my mosaic quilts. I’m working with Hoffman. I was first intrigued by mosaics on a trip to Israel. My mission was to be able to reproduce the stone mosaics with fabrics. I cut batiks into 3/8” squares and place them on a sticky stabilizer to create mini mosaic quilts. Lots of people love the process of trimming the squares to color a pattern. But it truly limited the size of them. I make large ones, but they are laborious. Chatting with a friend of mine who has been in the industry, the idea came up to create the mosaic fabric, that could be used for applique or piecing.
If you could have two new pets of any species what would you choose?
Sheep and llamas were animals that I’ve wanted. To be able to spin the fleece was a dream of mine, that is, before I discovered Quilting.
How are you dealing with CoVid 19 and all of its ramifications?
I have been working in three major projects that started before the shelter in place. My mini mosaic book using words, Alphabetically Speaking. That was self- published a few weeks ago. I finished one of my major mosaic quilts – a dock scene . And working on patterns for Mosaic Masterpiece. That has kept me pretty busy, but then learning to add to that learning how to do virtual workshops and lectures has really consumed my day. Haha.
What is your favorite Movie and why?
I’m not a big movie watcher. I guess I’m a home body. I enjoy detective series, especially British ones.
What is your least favorite color? Why do you dislike it?
My least favorite color is red. Maybe because I’m a redhead. I never wore it because it clashed with my hair. I also think it screams for attention.
If you could spend a week with any one famous quilter who would you choose and what would you do that week?
I would choose Freddy Moran. I love her bold use of color along with black and white. She definitely does not have an aversion to red. Maybe I could learn from her.
Describe your ideal creative space.
I would love a clean, minimalist work space. Lots of open areas with big, empty design walls with the sound and the smell of either an ocean or lake.
Favorite wildlife creatures and why?
I love watching the fox in my neighborhood. That bushy tail gives me the giggles.
Describe your favorite place for a walk.
My favorite place is a state park not far from my home. There’s a 5 mile multipurpose path. I love seeing the coming of spring with the sound of the peepers, woodpeckers and the coming of the green.
What is your favorite vintage quilt pattern?
I love the drunkards path and all of the modern ways it’s been reinterpreted.
Anything else you want to add?
I have had different chapters in my Quilting life. I started designing in Jewish quilt patterns, thus my name of Oy Vey Quilt Designs. That led to creating Jewish textile art, like the Torah covers. That led to my work with silk dupioni. The quilt with the large flowers and storm at sea are two of them. Them I designed Curvalicious, starting with silk, that simply creates curved looking quilts using raw edge applique. The mosaics came after that. I do have a very robust Etsy shop where I sell lots of mini mosaic quilt patterns and Curvalicious.
I have travelled to teach, but I don’t know where that’s going right now.
=======
Thanks again to Cheryl for her quick little interview with us at the Blue Nickel.
And We have a Giveaway!! WOOHOO!
Go ahead and comment here about this post or whatever the heck you want. This Sunday, November 15th, I will randomly pick a winner and that winner gets to pick a kit ($30 value) from Cheryl’s Etsy shop and she will ship direct. USA shipping only please on this one.
=============
Places you can find Cheryl!
==========
That’s it for now, peeps…..
That’s it for now, peeps…..
Take it easy out there, okay?
Keep Sewing, Keep Happy, Keep Safe,
Scott
The post Meet Cheryl Lynch! appeared first on Blue Nickel Studios.
]]>