Handi Quilter National Educator, Island Batik Ambassador, Certified Superior Thread Threadologist
Supplies donated by Island Batik and their sponsors for our monthly challenges!
Thank you once again, Island Batik, Oliso, Aurifil thread, Schmetz needles, Deb Tucker Studio 180, Funky Friends Factory, and Hobbs batting for supplying us with materials for our monthly challenges!
Our challenge this month was to make something of our choice that has to do with celebrations. Well, every celebration involves food, yes??? And hopefully with shared responsibilities. Whether you call them pitch ins, pot lucks, or something else, a proper carrier is needed, so I decided to make a casserole carrier.
And Pro-Stitcher has a design for that! Actually they have a couple. The one I chose is Happiness is Homemade. There is another one called Buttered Biscuit. I combined the two as I preferred parts of each. Directions are included with the download.
The fabric I used was Island Batik Small Pointed Floral in Turquoise (BE36-D1) for the front and Island Batik Mini Leaves in Brown Ecru (112325051) from the Natural Healing Collection for the lining. I love the combination of blue and yellow. They were my wedding colors!
i quilted this on my Handi Quilter Forte (Amara 24).
Now I am set to bring a dish to our next shared meal in style.
Happy Holidays to those who celebrate the season!
Check out what the other Island Batik Ambassadors did for the challenge this month:
Brenda Alburl ~ Songbird Designs
Renee Atkinson ~ Pink Tulip Quilting
Pamela Boatright ~ PamelaQuilts
Susan Deshensky ~ Lady Blue Quilts
Brittany Fisher ~ Bobbin with Brittany
Preeti Harris ~ Sew Preeti Quilts
Mania Hatziioannidi ~ Mania for quilts
Reed Johnson ~ Blue Bear Quilts
Victoria Johnson ~ Forever Quilting for You
Randi Jones ~ Randi’s Roost
Connie Kauffman ~ Kauffman Designs
Emily Leachman ~ The Darling Dogwood
Denise Looney ~ Quiltery – For The Love Of Geese
Leah Malasky ~ Quilted Delights
Maryellen McAuliffe ~ Mary Mack Made Mine
Anorina Morris ~ sameliasmum.com
Lisa Pickering ~ Lisa’s Quilting Passion
Sarah Pitcher ~ Pitcher’s Boutique
Claudia Porter ~ Create with Claudia
Lana Russel ~ Lana Quilts
Elita Sharpe ~ Busy Needle
Gail Sheppard ~ Quilting Gail
Sandra Starley ~ Textile Time Travels
Jennifer Thomas ~ Curlicue Creations
Suzy Webster ~ Websterquilt
by Accuquilt
Beginning in June 2023, AccuQuilt is partnering up with Island Batik and Baby Lock in a pay-it-forward campaign called “Covering the World: One Quilt at a Time.” As an Island Batik Ambassador, I chose to participate by donating one of my quilts to my local guild to donate locally as needed.
Earlier this year I participated in one of GE Designs Quilt Alongs, Strip Twist. My Island Batik Stash Builders were perfect for this quilt. Stash Builders are 5″ strips by width of fabric that come 4 strips to a roll, 5 rolls per package. That’s nearly 3 yards of fabric and perfect for cutting 5″ squares or 2 1/2″ strips. I whipped this up at my annual quilt retreat using Schmetz needles and Aurifil thread.
I know someone will appreciate this one as it is delivered this month.
Thank you Island Batik for the fabric and GE Designs for the inspiration!
by Annie Blog Hop
Island Batik Ambassadors had the opportunity to choose a ByAnnie bag pattern that we would like to make. We had our choice of any with a supporting video, 29 to be exact. I have made a few ByAnnie patterns and love the results I get from her quality step by step instructions and supporting materials. ByAnnie supplied us with the pattern we selected and all the hardware and supplies to make it! Thank you, ByAnnie!!
We have an Airstream travel trailer and aren’t afraid to use it! We enjoy nature, hiking, biking, kayaking, and the out of doors. It’s always fun to meet and become friends with like minded people we meet during our adventures. I found a bag pattern that will be useful when we are glamping, it’s the I’ll Drink to That bag! We are often toting things to happy hours and pot lucks. This bag will be convenient for carrying our drinks.
The Island Batik collection I was given to work with for this project is Citron Breeze. Citron Breeze is shipping to retailers this month. Ask your favorite quilt store for it. It is a beautiful, very calming collection of greens and blues. Thank you, Island Batik for this beautiful fabric with which to work.
First I quilted the main fabric, foam, and lining on my Handi Quilter Forte (Amara 24). I chose SC Winter Swirls and Pearls design found in PS Patterns. I liked the bubbles and swirls and thought it appropriate for a drink carrier. Then I cut out the pieces from the quilted fabric.
Every project deserves a new needle. I use Schmetz needles, normally an 80/12 Microtex, but for this project, sewing through several layers at a time and through Annie“s Soft and Stable foam, I used a size 90 needle. I enjoyed this project very much! Annie’s patterns, directions, and supplies give such a professional look to your finished projects!
Please take a minute to check out what the other Island Batik Ambassadors did for their challenge this month:
Brenda Alburl ~ Songbird Designs
Renee Atkinson ~ Pink Tulip Quilting
Pamela Boatright ~ PamelaQuilts
Susan Deshensky ~ Lady Blue Quilts
Brittany Fisher ~ Bobbin with Brittany
Preeti Harris ~ Sew Preeti Quilts
Mania Hatziioannidi ~ Mania for quilts
Reed Johnson ~ Blue Bear Quilts
Victoria Johnson ~ Forever Quilting for You
Randi Jones ~ Randi’s Roost
Connie Kauffman ~ Kauffman Designs
Emily Leachman ~ The Darling Dogwood
Denise Looney ~ Quiltery – For The Love Of Geese
Leah Malasky ~ Quilted Delights
Maryellen McAuliffe ~ Mary Mack Made Mine
Anorina Morris ~ sameliasmum.com
Lisa Pickering ~ Lisa’s Quilting Passion
Sarah Pitcher ~ Pitcher’s Boutique
Claudia Porter ~ Create with Claudia
Lana Russel ~ Lana Quilts
Elita Sharpe ~ Busy Needle
Gail Sheppard ~ Quilting Gail
Sandra Starley ~ Textile Time Travels
Jennifer Thomas ~ Curlicue Creations
Suzy Webster ~ Websterquilt
Falling for Accuquilt
Our challenge this month was to use the Accuquilt North Carolina Star block, generously donated to us by Accuquilt. We could use the entire block, just parts to make a totally different design, and/or pair it with companion dies. We could make it into any project we liked, using fall fabrics, if possible.
I thought about what fall decorations I needed, and came up with ideas for placemats. Placemats add a finishing touch to a table setting and we host Thanksgiving. Time to get busy.
First, select fabrics. I selected a variety of fall colored fabrics and wanted to use the larger prints as the focus fabrics. They became the 4 51/2″ squares in each corner of the North Carolina Star blocks. Then it was pure fun to play with the other fabrics to see how placement changed the entire look. The block itself was 12″ square and I wanted the placemats to be about 12″ x 18″ so I added some designs on the sides.
All placemats are backed and bound with Rock – Green Grass.
I quilted all of them at the same time on my Handi Quilter Forte with the Filigree Leaves e2e design from Pro-Stitcher Patterns.
Many of the fabrics I used are from the Sandalwood Collection, which is a Winter ’22 Collection. These were the only fall colored fabrics I had on hand to work with, so if you see some you like, check your local retailer to see if they still have them. Country Charm or Celtic Fields are Summer ’23 Collections with similar colors and look. Otherwise, check out their current Island Batik fabrics, and I’m sure you’ll find something that needs to follow you home! I can always count on Creekside Quilts near me in Oregon to have Island Batik fabrics.
Remember, every project needs a new needle. I use Schmetz needles, normally an 80/12 Microtex. Hobbs 80/20 batting goes into nearly every one of my quilted projects and this one is no exception. Accuquilt makes cutting fabric so much easier and cutting the pieces is my least favorite part of quilting, so I use my Accquilt whenever possible. This time, it was the North Carolina Star BOB. Aurifil 50 weight thread is used for piecing. And a big thank you to Island Batik, who gives us freedom to play with our fabric and projects!
Please take a minute to check out what the other Island Batik Ambassadors did for their challenge this month:
Brenda Alburl ~ Songbird Designs
Renee Atkinson ~ Pink Tulip Quilting
Pamela Boatright ~ PamelaQuilts
Susan Deshensky ~ Lady Blue Quilts
Brittany Fisher ~ Bobbin with Brittany
Preeti Harris ~ Sew Preeti Quilts
Mania Hatziioannidi ~ Mania for quilts
Reed Johnson ~ Blue Bear Quilts
Victoria Johnson ~ Forever Quilting for You
Randi Jones ~ Randi’s Roost
Connie Kauffman ~ Kauffman Designs
Emily Leachman ~ The Darling Dogwood
Denise Looney ~ Quiltery – For The Love Of Geese
Leah Malasky ~ Quilted Delights
Maryellen McAuliffe ~ Mary Mack Made Mine
Anorina Morris ~ sameliasmum.com
Lisa Pickering ~ Lisa’s Quilting Passion
Sarah Pitcher ~ Pitcher’s Boutique
Claudia Porter ~ Create with Claudia
Lana Russel ~ Lana Quilts
Elita Sharpe ~ Busy Needle
Gail Sheppard ~ Quilting Gail
Sandra Starley ~ Textile Time Travels
Jennifer Thomas ~ Curlicue Creations
Suzy Webster ~ Websterquilt
This month features paper piecing, either English paper piecing or foundation paper piecing. Our challenge included using our collection of fabric assigned to us to make a lap sized quilt or larger. This is week 3 in our monthly blog hop.
The Natural Healing collection is the one I was lucky enough to work with this month. Look for it coming soon to your local quilt shop.
I was given this 1/2 yard bundle by Island Batik to use for this challenge. Isn’t it gorgeous?! Natural Healing is a fantastic name for this collection.
I choose to use foundation paper piecing and found some inspiration in this book:
Paper piecing isn’t my normal mode of operation, so I used this book for some help. Since our collections this month are for spring, I went looking for some springy patterns. I thought these designs were super cute, so I used them to make a small, lap sized quilt to hang over my stair railing to decorate for spring.
We were traveling in our RV for 10 weeks, so I brought my Singer Featherweight and all the supplies I would need to make this project on the road.
Allowing 1/4″ seam allowance around the outside.
I was planning on quilting using rulers and straight lines, since I only had my Featherweight to work with, but we decided to make a bee line for home once our Airstream Caravan was over, so I had time to put it on my Handi Quilter Forte 24 longarm and use Pro-Stitcher for the body of the quilt. I still used rulers around the paper piecing.
Love the buttons and hand embroidery on these cute blocks.
This design is Spritzi from Pro-Stitcher Patterns.
Many times I choose to sew my binding onto the back and flip to the front and use a decorative stitch. That is what I did here.
I used the Serpentine stitch and elongated the width and length to fit the binding.
I think I’m gonna like it as a spring decoration!
I used Hobbs Tuscany batting, which is a cotton and wool batting which drapes beautifully. I always use Schmetz needles, a new one for every project. Hobbs and Schmetz supplied me with the batting and needles for this project.
Be sure to check out what the other Island Batik Ambassadors have done or will do for this challenge and check your local quilt shop for Island Batik fabrics.
WEEK 1
September 5
Elita Sharpe, Busy Needle Quilting
Denise Looney, For the Love of Geese
September 6
Sandra Starley, Textile Time Travels
Sarah Pitcher, Pitcher’s Boutique
September 7
Connie Kauffman, Kauffman Designs
Brenda Alburl, Songbird Designs
Preeti Harris, Sew Preeti Quilts
September 8
Blog Hop Round-Up Week 1 and Giveaway
September 11
Brittany Fisher, Bobbin with Brittany
Gail Sheppard, Quilting Gail
September 12
Susan Deshensky, Lady Blue Quilt Studio
Maryellen McAuliffe, Mary Mack Made Mine
September 13
Emily Leachman, The Darling Dogwood
Anorina Morris, Samelia’s Mum
Jennifer Thomas, Curlicue Creations
September 14
Claudia Porter, Create with Claudia
Victoria Johnson, Forever Quilting for You
September 15
Blog Hop Round-Up Week 2 and Giveaway
September 18
Lana Russel, Lana Quilts
Lisa Pickering, Lisa’s Quilting Passion
September 19
Randi Jones, Randi’s Roost
Suzy Webster, Websterquilt
September 20
Mania Hatziioannidi, Mania for Quilts
Pamela Boatright, Pamela Quilts
Leah Malasky, Quilted Delights
September 21
Renee Atkinson, Pink Tulip Quilting
Reed Johnson, Blue Bear Quilts
September 22
End of Blog Hop + Final Round Up
AND NOW for the GIVEAWAY! Win this Island Batik Royal Crown 42 piece 10″ stack just by commenting on this blog. Do you enjoy paper piecing? Random winner will be drawn on September 26 (in honor of my grandson’s bday!).
More goodies to play with!
This month was a free month for us to determine what to make and which fabrics to use. I had been wanting to try the ProStitcher Fabric Bins, so that was my choice. The Pro-Stitcher Fabric Bins come in sizes, but you can adjust the size and make them any size you want. I like to keep my Island Batik fabrics separate from the rest of my stash, so these will be perfect for that.
I used 2 layers of Hobbs 80/20 batting on the blue one and quilted with denser stitching to help make it stand upright. I used Bosal foam on the yellow/green one, which is a heavier batting/stabilizer/foam usually used for tote bags. Then I didn’t feel like I needed to quilt with as heavy quilting because it stands upright easier on its own.
Many thanks to Island Batik for supplying the fabric and Hobbs Batting for supplying the batting for this project! Check your local quilt shop for Round Petal Floral, Lime solid, Sprout, Cheerio Bermuda, and Mocha by Island Batik!
Check out what other creative projects my fellow Ambassadors did for their challenge this month!
Brenda Alburl ~ Songbird Designs
Renee Atkinson ~ Pink Tulip Quilting
Pamela Boatright ~ PamelaQuilts
Susan Deshensky ~ Lady Blue Quilts
Brittany Fisher ~ Bobbin with Brittany
Preeti Harris ~ Sew Preeti Quilts
Mania Hatziioannidi ~ Mania for quilts
Reed Johnson ~ Blue Bear Quilts
Victoria Johnson ~ Forever Quilting for You
Randi Jones ~ Randi’s Roost
Connie Kauffman ~ Kauffman Designs
Emily Leachman ~ The Darling Dogwood
Denise Looney ~ Quiltery – For The Love Of Geese
Leah Malasky ~ Quilted Delights
Maryellen McAuliffe ~ Mary Mack Made Mine
Anorina Morris ~ sameliasmum.com
Lisa Pickering ~ Lisa’s Quilting Passion
Sarah Pitcher ~ Pitcher’s Boutique
Claudia Porter ~ Create with Claudia
Lana Russel ~ Lana Quilts
Elita Sharpe ~ Busy Needle
Gail Sheppard ~ Quilting Gail
Sandra Starley ~ Textile Time Travels
Jennifer Thomas ~ Curlicue Creations
Suzy Webster ~
Flying Geese
Our challenge this month was to make a quilt or table runner using Flying Geese blocks with the Fall or Winter 2022 bundle we received. I had been looking forward to using the Winter 2022 pre cut bundle I received, Holiday at Home, because I love how the peach (Conch) companion fabric brings out the subdued peach in the background of the fabrics. I was also given the Hunter fabric, but didn’t end up using that fabric for this project.
It was back to The Trendy Table for inspiration for my table runner. I’m a sucker for what I call Film Strip sashings or borders, the small squares repeated in a row, as in the runner in the top right of the front cover. So, that was my choice for this month.
I made this at a quilt retreat in April and was so busy chatting with my friends, that I forgot to take progress pictures! I used Aurifil thread and a fresh Schmetz 80/20 needle in my machine. Every project deserves a new needle!
I quilted it using double batting, one layer of Hobbs 80/20 and one layer of Hobbs wool on the top to provide the loft I wanted. Hobbs has many varieties of batting for every need. The digital quilt design is used is Hollies and Berries from Pro-Stitcher Patterns quilted on my Handi Quilter Forte 24 (Handi Quilter Amara 24).
The Holiday at Home collection can be found at these shops:
| Compass Point Quilts | NH |
| Cotton Cupboard-ME | ME |
| Creekside Quilts-OR | OR |
| Hancocks of Paducah | KY |
| Missouri Star | MO |
| Nine Patch Fabrics | VA |
| Quilters Headquarters | SD |
| Sew What Fabrics/Batiks Etc. | VA |
Check out all the other Ambassadors to see how they handled the challenge:
Brenda Alburl ~ Songbird Designs
Renee Atkinson ~ Pink Tulip Quilting
Pamela Boatright ~ PamelaQuilts
Susan Deshensky ~ Lady Blue Quilts
Brittany Fisher ~ Bobbin with Brittany
Preeti Harris ~ Sew Preeti Quilts
Mania Hatziioannidi ~ Mania for quilts
Reed Johnson ~ Blue Bear Quilts
Victoria Johnson ~ Forever Quilting for You
Randi Jones ~ Randi’s Roost
Connie Kauffman ~ Kauffman Designs
Emily Leachman ~ The Darling Dogwood
Denise Looney ~ Quiltery – For The Love Of Geese
Leah Malasky ~ Quilted Delights
Maryellen McAuliffe ~ Mary Mack Made Mine
Anorina Morris ~ sameliasmum.com
Lisa Pickering ~ Lisa’s Quilting Passion
Sarah Pitcher ~ Pitcher’s Boutique
Claudia Porter ~ Create with Claudia
Lana Russel ~ Lana Quilts
Elita Sharpe ~ Busy Needle
Gail Sheppard ~ Quilting Gail
Sandra Starley ~ Textile Time Travels
Jennifer Thomas ~ Curlicue Creations
Suzy Webster ~ Websterquilt
Featuring Deb Tucker’s Studio 180 tools
This month Island Batik challenged each its 25 ambassadors to use a Studio 180 tool that they had received, but not used previously, to make a quilt or a runner with the surprise bundle of the Winter 22 collection each of us received. (Remember the wrapped fabric bundle I couldn’t show you in my unboxing video? ) It is revealed below.
The tools I received were the Wing Clipper Tool and the Quilters Magic Wand. You can find details and directions for how to use the Wing Clipper tool from Deb Tucker herself here and the Magic Wand here.
To use the Wing Clipper Tool, first position your block with the long edge of the center triangle at the top, as shown above. Line up the diagonal lines on the ruler with your seam. So, in the sample above, I moved the tool down so the diagonal lines on the tool matched up with the diagonal lines on my pieced rectangle block. Then trimmed the right side and top of the block.
Then turn the block upside down, line it up with the desired size of your block ( in this case, 2 1/2″ x 1 1/2″ and trim the right side and the top of the block.
This is the Quilter’s Magic Wand. It is used to mark the lines on either side of this tool to indicate sewing lines. I lined it up on the center line where I want to cut the block in two after sewing 1/4″on either side . I found this to be a helpful tool, because I can’t tell you how many times I have sewn right down the middle instead of 1/4″ on either side of the middle of the block.
I used the Magic Wand here to mark these sewing lines. I used a new Schmetz 80/ 12 microtex needle for piecing, supplied by Schmetz. Pieced with Aurifil 50 wt. thread.
And this is Sandalwood, my winter ’22 surprise bundle that was wrapped and tied with bows when I received my box of fabrics and supplies from Island Batik. It’s so beautiful, I had a hard time cutting into it! Sandalwood is shipping soon, so check these shops or ask your LQS.
A Quilter’s Place, Oakdale, CA
Cotton and Chocolate, Simi Valley, CA
Creative Union Fabric, Port Townsend, WA
Creekside Quilts, Gales Creek, OR
KIKI’s Quilt Shack, Fresno, CA
Ocean Wave Quilts, Eureka, CA
Quilt Passions, Mission Viejo, CA
Sew Smart Supply, Los Molinos, CA
Village Sewing Center, Santa Rosa, CA
Will n Beez, Salem, OR
This is the Star Shadows pattern from Studio 180 that was provided to me to make this challenge quilt. Once I decided this is what I wanted to make with the Sandalwood fabric and the Wing Clipper and Quilter’s Magic Wand tools I received, I reached out to Studio 180 and they graciously supplied it to me for this challenge.
This is Island Batik Yellow Amber I used for the back of my quilt and Island Batik solid grey was used for the star shadows. Did you know Island Batik has solids? We were provided with white, grey, and black solids and the grey was perfect for this.
Here is the quilt on my Handi Quilter Forte (now named Amara 24) longarm. I used Hobbs 80/20 batting provided by Hobbs.
Here is the digital quilting pattern I used to quilt it. It’s Mod Petals by Quiltable.
Check out all the other Ambassadors to see how they handled the challenge:
Brenda Alburl ~ Songbird Designs
Renee Atkinson ~ Pink Tulip Quilting
Pamela Boatright ~ PamelaQuilts
Susan Deshensky ~ Lady Blue Quilts
Brittany Fisher ~ Bobbin with Brittany
Preeti Harris ~ Sew Preeti Quilts
Mania Hatziioannidi ~ Mania for quilts
Reed Johnson ~ Blue Bear Quilts
Victoria Johnson ~ Forever Quilting for You
Randi Jones ~ Randi’s Roost
Connie Kauffman ~ Kauffman Designs
Emily Leachman ~ The Darling Dogwood
Denise Looney ~ Quiltery – For The Love Of Geese
Leah Malasky ~ Quilted Delights
Maryellen McAuliffe ~ Mary Mack Made Mine
Anorina Morris ~ sameliasmum.com
Lisa Pickering ~ Lisa’s Quilting Passion
Sarah Pitcher ~ Pitcher’s Boutique
Claudia Porter ~ Create with Claudia
Lana Russel ~ Lana Quilts
Elita Sharpe ~ Busy Needle
Gail Sheppard ~ Quilting Gail
Sandra Starley ~ Textile Time Travels
Jennifer Thomas ~ Curlicue Creations
Suzy Webster ~ Websterquilt
Our challenge for April was to make a crazy quilt with the Aurifil thread provided by Aurifil and any Island Batik fabric provided previously.
The Aurifil thread I was gifted was a three pack collection named Rubber Tree. One spool was a light medium tan and two of them were variegated, one light and one darker.
The Island Batik fabric collection that I was gifted that would show off this thread collection the best was River Walk. And I love this collection, so I had no problem using it again for April.
I had some additional Aurifil threads in my stash that worked well in combination with the Rubber Tree collection, so here is the line up I used to create my crazy quilt.
This pattern came to mind as I thought about making a crazy quilt because I had made it previously. It uses machine embroidery and is fun to make.
I love making decisions about which thread color to use next and sitting back and watching my machine embroider it out for me.
The Aurifil variegated threads seemed to change colors in just the right place. I enjoyed using them.
Here is my finished crazy quilt wall hanging. I really love how it turned out.
I used Hobbs 80/20 batting and a new Schmetz needle for this project and appreciate these sponsors for providing these materials for me to use for these challenges.
Check out these Quilt shops for the Island Batik River Walk collection;
A and A Sewing
Bird in Hand Fabric
Boutique 4 Quilters
Creekside Quilts, OR
Portage Quilt House
Quilting by the Hearth
Sew Creative, OR
Stitch, CO
Check out the other Island Batik Ambassador’s blogs to see what they did for their April Island Batik / Aurifil Crazy Quilt Challenge.
Brenda Alburl ~ Songbird Designs
Renee Atkinson ~ Pink Tulip Quilting
Pamela Boatright ~ PamelaQuilts
Susan Deshensky ~ Lady Blue Quilts
Brittany Fisher ~ Bobbin with Brittany
Preeti Harris ~ Sew Preeti Quilts
Mania Hatziioannidi ~ Mania for quilts
Reed Johnson ~ Blue Bear Quilts
Victoria Johnson ~ Forever Quilting for You
Randi Jones ~ Randi’s Roost
Connie Kauffman ~ Kauffman Designs
Emily Leachman ~ The Darling Dogwood
Denise Looney ~ Quiltery – For The Love Of Geese
Leah Malasky ~ Quilted Delights
Maryellen McAuliffe ~ Mary Mack Made Mine
Anorina Morris ~ sameliasmum.com
Lisa Pickering ~ Lisa’s Quilting Passion
Sarah Pitcher ~ Pitcher’s Boutique
Claudia Porter ~ Create with Claudia
Lana Russel ~ Lana Quilts
Elita Sharpe ~ Busy Needle
Gail Sheppard ~ Quilting Gail
Sandra Starley ~ Textile Time Travels
Jennifer Thomas ~ Curlicue Creations
Suzy Webster ~ Websterquilt