A Mum for a Mum

Jackie Robinson's newest collection, A Mum for a Mum has what you might expect--a beautiful floral stripe, her favorite blue and yellow colorway, and a wide range of tonal coordinate values, perfect for making Log Cabin designs. 

But it also has a bit of the unexpected: a rich, dramatic plum colorway, and huge, gorgeous spider mum blooms, plus a little William Morris influence. We bet you'll have a hard time choosing which colorway you like better! 

Keep reading: Jackie talked to us about her latest line and some of the quilts she has designed with it.

A closer look at the stripe:

Where did this collection begin?

The spider mum started it all. Back in my day, mums were the flower of choice for corsages for homecoming. Gold, blue, sometimes partially dipped. Mums are always so pretty, and I think the spider mums are super cool.

Tell us about the color palette you used.

I was working with a color palette that was a little bit more “autumn”—using a rust color. While tweaking it, we tried plum and said “oh wow!” It changed the whole game. And the blue and yellow, of course—I always love blue. The dark backgrounds are intentional—they allow the punch of the bright, light colors of the mums.

Do you have a favorite print here?

The mega mums are probably the most fun to work with—fussy cutting into 7", 7-1/2” 8” squares, big chunks.

But I really love the allover mum print. There’s a lot of William Morris influence throughout the collection, but especially in this print. It’s a William Morris lookalike. When I was done designing this collection, I looked at the furniture in our living room and realized that the upholstery was very William Morris in style. No wonder I like this stuff—I live with it every day! I picked out the upholstery without being tuned into what it was.

Tell us about the coordinates.

There are four different blender prints. I choose four on purpose for making Log Cabin blocks. Often times you need four values for those, and I do like making Log Cabins, like my Eureka quilt, shown here in the plum, green and cream—gorgeous!

 

Eureka by Jackie Robinson

Blooming Lone Star by Jackie Robinson

Visit Jackie's website to find more quilt patterns featuring A Mum for a Mum, as well as the coordinating embroidery DVD from OESD.

Watch for this free quilt pattern, "Garden Stroll" by Jackie Robinson, on our website soon!

Click here to see the entire A Mum for a Mum collection.

Brush Dance Sneak Peek

Here's a quick look at Susan Rooney's new line, Brush Dance. It features many of her same signature colors in bold, cheery flowers, plus a new array of tonal coordinates: dots, basketweave and scribbles. 

Here's a look at the whole border stripe print--so many possibilities for using this!

And two free patterns, which we'll be posting on our website soon: 

Floral Weave by Janet Page Kessler

 Flower Power by Janet Page Kessler

Watch for this collection in your local quilt shop! 

Click here to see the entire collection.

Fancy Free

These watercolor-style designs are just plain fun! Designed by E. Vive, the Fancy Free collection features daisies, dots, stripes and plaids, all inspired by the focal patchwork print. Soft, summery colors, whimsical looking prints...what's not to love?! 

Here's a closer look at a large section of the patchwork print in both colorways:

Click here to see the entire Fancy Free collection.

New from Susan Rooney: Autumn Breeze

If you're a fan of Susan Rooney's Breezy Blooms collection, you'll be happy to know that she has two new lines out--and we'll be sharing both of them here on the blog this week! 

First up is Autumn Breeze. This collection uses many of the same fun colors from Breezy Blooms, but with a fall feel. Because much of the palette is the same, the scribble and whirl coordinates from Breezy Blooms work beautifully with these prints too! Keep reading below the swatches, as Susan chatted with us about her new collection.

The panel 

We love Autumn Breeze!

Thanks! It uses the bright colors that I love, and people seem to like the option of a fall look in these colors—it’s something a bit different. It’s fun to pull things together between these prints and the coordinating whirls and swirls from Breezy Blooms.

Tell us about the panel.

The panel initially started out as squares but progressed to rectangles with leaves looking like they were falling or twirling. I like being different. The rectangles have so many possibilities! And since I have a pattern company as well, I am designing patterns using these rectangles. They make a beautiful table runner for a fall in general or even a Thanksgiving table.

Which of the prints came first?

The overall stained glass look. I’d used that concept before in some of my licensed products and I liked it. The way in which I colorized the sections creates the pattern in the print.

And how did that translate over to the leaf prints?

I started out by fitting the stained glass look into leaf shapes—almost like using cookie cutters. Then I reworked the lines to fit the leaf shape and give them a bit more dimension. The larger prints have just leaves and swirls, and the smaller prints have leaves with swirls as well as acorns and bittersweet, something else that is also in the panel.

What is your favorite piece in this collection?

The panel. It’s different from typical square block panels. I like how we’ve been able to pull it into a quilt and table collection design. I can’t wait to work with it some more.

Here are three free patterns available on our website featuring the Autumn Breeze collection:

First, Susan's table collection:

Click here to download the free pattern.

 The Falling Leaves quilt by Heidi Pridemore:

Click here to download the free pattern.

The Walk in the Woods quilt by Susan Rooney:

Click here to download the free pattern.

Click here to see the entire Autumn Breeze collection.

Click here to download the free projects featuring the Autumn Breeze collection.

Click here to read more about Susan and see her Breezy Blooms collection.

Click here to see more of Susan's patterns and other work.

We {Love} Dads: That's Jazz

In honor of Father's Day (June 21 if your calendar isn't already marked!), we're showing some of our favorite new masculine-looking fabric collections this week. Just think--plan a project for that special guy in your life and it's an excuse to buy fabric that he can't argue with! Be sure to check out our Facebook page to see Wild Wild West, another guy-friendly collection.

If the outdoors isn't your guy's style, take a look at That's Jazz from Kanvas. A contemporary collection of music-themed prints, this black, white and red collection has a masculine vibe. 

Click here to see the That's Jazz collection

The "Hip to the Jive" free pattern designed by Stitched Together Studios will be available on our website soon!

Wishing a Happy Father's Day to all dads out there!

We {Love} Dads: The Great North

In honor of Father's Day (June 21 if your calendar isn't already marked!), we're showing some of our favorite new masculine-looking fabric collections this week. Just think--plan a project for that special guy in your life and it's an excuse to buy fabric that he can't argue with! 

If your guy's tackle box or camping gear collection rivals your sewing collection, make him a quilt using either The Great North Fishing or The Great North Wilderness collections, both by Maria Kalinowski for Kanvas. 

The Great North Fishing collection: a stripe look from fishing poles, fish and lures, and a canoe print in a cool pattern--imagine fussy cutting it into blocks! 

The Great North Wilderness collection: painterly style North Woods animals prints (love those bears!), snowy forests, and cool geometrics. Choose warm browns and greens or a cool yet subtle gray, beige and white colorway.

Here's a fun and graphic quilt (with a clever name) to make using The Great North Fishing collection: Hook, Line and Sinker by Stitched Together Studios

"Hook, Line and Sinker" by Stitched Together Studios;
download the free pattern here

Click here to see all the prints in The Great North Fishing collection.
Click here to see all the prints in The Great North Wilderness collection.
Click here to download the Hook, Line and Sinker free quilt pattern.
Click here to see a post about another We {Love} Dads collection, Big Sky.

Quilt Market Show and Tell

We're excited to give you a virtual tour of our Spring Quilt Market booth today! Sit back, relax, and enjoy this mini quilt gallery (and then keep an eye out at your local quilt shop for these fun new lines!)

A look at one side of our booth:

Two adorable baby lines from Kanvas: All Aboard and Breezy Baby.

Samples featuring (from far left) Breezy Baby, Veronica, Renaissance Man II (all from Kanvas) and Sew Vintage Garden by Bristol Bay Studios for Benartex

Batik heaven! Landscape Balis from Benartex

Pretty florals! (l-r) Fancy Free by E. Vive and Carina by Amanda Murphy for Contempo

Below, quilt samples in rich palettes: At left, Jackie Robinson's A Mum for a Mum; center and right, Balinesia.

Bright colors in two different styles: (l-r) Ann Lauer's Butterfly Forest and Fancy Free by E. Vive

Such a cheery scrappy-looking quilt made using Michele D'Amore's Paintbox prints. 

 Love the rainbow colors of this quilt using Color Weave from Contempo

 A sneak peek at Soul Blossom by Cherry Guidry for Contempo: the middle quilt will be available soon on our website as a free quilt pattern; the quilt at right (shown again below) is a BOM pattern.

What a fun BOM!

One more Soul Blossom design:

Lots of love for Carina by Amanda Murphy for Contempo

And clothing too!

And finally, the Kanvas booth, featuring the Graphix, Art Class and That's Jazz collections

Keep an eye out--we'll be featuring all of these new lines on the blog in the coming months. Which fabric line (or quilt) caught your eye? We want to know!

We {Love} Dads: Big Sky collection

In honor of Father's Day (June 21 if your calendar isn't already marked!), we're showing some of our favorite new masculine-looking fabric collections this week. Just think--plan a project for that special guy in your life and it's an excuse to buy fabric that he can't argue with! 

First up is Big Sky. This handsome tribute to American Indian art has a definite "guy" vibe in deep reds, golds, browns and blues. Geometric prints, a fun zigzag-y stripe, and a new take on argyle round out the collection. 

Plus, there's a free pattern for Big Sky! Remember this one from our March Madness contest?

Round Up by Stitched Together Studios

Click here to see the entire Big Sky collection.
Click here to download the pattern for Round Up.

Shimmer and Shine: Metallics like you've never seen them

Usually when we introduce you to a new fabric line here on the blog, we start by showing the fabric. Today, we're shaking things up a bit, and when you see this quilt, we think you'll understand why. 

Wendy Sheppard's free quilt pattern, Shimmering Constellations, sparkles, shines and glows! The fabric line, Gold Standard/Sterling Silver by Maria Kalinowski for Kanvas, definitely shimmers, with metallic golds and silvers in a huge variety of elegant and contemporary prints. And they absolutely shine in this quilt.

"Shimmering Constellations" by Wendy Sheppard

From stripes to pin dots to dragonflies, feathers, and an animal print, it'll be difficult to decide which print is your favorite. Luckily, "Shimmering Constellations" uses so many of them, you won't have to decide! 

Click here to see the entire Gold Standard/Sterling Silver collection.
Click here to download the free quilt pattern.

The Nostalgic Side of Sewing

Embrace your nostalgic side with the Sew Vintage collection by Bristol Bay Studios! Colored in an understated beige, black, and gray palette, these prints celebrate sewing at the turn of the century. Perfect for accents in a sewing room or a quilt for a friend who loves sewing as much as you do. We love the ruler prints, scissors, and dress forms especially.

If you're also a garden lover, you're in luck! Bristol Bay Studios also created the Sew Vintage Garden collection, which coordinates beautifully with the original prints while focusing on gardening tools and blooms. Use these two lines together or just pick your favorite!

Download this free quilt pattern, "Dressmaker Shop" by Heidi Pridemore using the Sew Vintage collection. It's a fast and easy wall hanging just right for your sewing room!

"Dressmaker Shop" by Heidi Pridemore

Click here to see the entire Sew Vintage collection.
Click here to download the free quilt pattern for Sew Vintage.
Click here to see the entire Sew Vintage Garden collection.

Byzantium

Byzantium is a mosaic-look collection full of intricate details. Named after the ancient Greek city that later became Constantinople (and now Istanbul), these prints have Greek isle flair in two colorways.

Cool Mediterranean colors:

Warm sunset colors:

Click here to see the entire Byzantium collection.