Facets Quilt Along Week 3 – Making the Triangle Blocks

February 12, 2016February 10, 20161 Comment

I can’t tell you how much fun it is to watch your Facets progress. So many people are sharing their progress on Instagram and in my Facebook group. It makes me giddy!! If you are just joining us, you can catch up and get started on the Facets Quilt Along here. Be sure to grab a copy of Machine Quilting With Style, if you don’t already have it. We will be following the instructions found on pages 92-94 from the book.

triangles

This week’s assignment is to cut your “made fabric” into triangle shapes using the Triangle Squared Ruler and Perfect Rectangle Ruler from Creative Grids. If you don’t have these rulers, you can cut your shapes from the full-sized templates given on pages 96-97 of the book. You can either make templates from plastic or draw them onto paper and tape the paper to a ruler that’s wide enough to accommodate them.

You need both Creative Grids rulers for this method to work.

How to use the Creative Grids rulers:

step1

First, make sure there is fabric completely underneath the triangle shape you are cutting. Next, align the Triangle Squared Ruler so that the blunted triangle corner is on the top of the strip, and the measurement you need lines up evenly with the bottom of the strip. Trim on both sides of the triangle. There will be a little bit of waste, but you can just throw that in the scrap pile for more improv piecing!

step2

Once you have cut the triangle with the blunted tip at the top, rotate the ruler to cut a triangle with the blunted tip at the bottom.

step3

Don’t forget to cut triangles from you accent fabric, too! Hint: if you are using directional prints, you may need additional fabric to accommodate cutting your triangles in one direction only.

accent

You will need to cut the background triangles using the Perfect Rectangle Ruler. Remember to keep your strip folded so that you get a half rectangle for each side of the triangle in a square.

backgrounds

Don’t forget to cut angled tips indicated by the blunted end of the ruler. These will help line up your units correctly for sewing.

Using the picture below as a guide, line up the background rectangles so that the blunted ends align with the center triangle. The pointed tips will stick out. Trim the tips once the units are sewn.

alignment

I borrowed this image from a previous project using the same method with a smaller sized unit.

Sew the triangle blocks into diamonds where indicated in the book on page 94.

Eye Candy Inspiration

The best part of any quilt along is seeing how others make it their own. Here’s a roundup of blocks being made by followers in my Facebook group: Quilt With Christa and on instagram: #facetsqal. Remember – you can jump in at any time and work at your own pace. Some people have just started and others are nearly finished (which gives me plenty of pics to share for future posts)!

gina

I love the pop of orange that Gina from Gina’s Custom Creations chose to include!

sherri

Sherri (@snugbear2 on IG) is laying out her pretty purple blocks and sewing them together!

paula

I love Paula’s pretty piles!

jocelyn

I know I’m not supposed to have favorites but I really love Jocelyn’s triangles!!

Next week we will sew the blocks together to complete the quilt top.

Click here for the start of Facets Quilt Along

Facets Quilt Along Week 2 – Improv Piecing

February 5, 2016February 3, 20166 Comments

Welcome to week two of Facets Quilt Along. Last week we gathered fabrics and started cutting. This week we will make our own crazy-pieced fabric. The fun thing about this is that even if you are using the same fabric as me (Kona Solids Christa Watson Palette), your quilt will still look different from mine!

kona_improv A piece of improv fabric made from my Kona Cotton Designer Palette

Follow the instructions page 93 of Machine Quilting With Style to make your fabric pieces. Then share your progress and ask questions in my facebook group Quilt With Christa.

Here are a couple more fun examples:

improv_prints

A sample piece I made using a bunch of scrappy prints. It looks great in any fabrics!

g's_chunks

This beautiful piece was made by G from my facebook group. She’s sewing along with her sisters!

jocelyn

Jocelyn from the facebook group chose a more muted, modern palette. I love it!

paula_p

Paula’s festive blue and green combo is so fun – perfect for a Seahawk’s fan!

Seeing everyone’s pictures is half the fun of a quilt along. It’s amazing how the different fabric combinations are coming together to create individual works of art. Be sure to pop over to my facebook group to see more amazing improv in process!

jan

Jan is using lots of leftover scrappy bits – no size is too small!

If you are sharing your progress via social media be sure to hashtag it #facetsqal. Remember, everyone who participates will be entered to win prizes. I just love seeing your progress!

Click here for the complete QAL schedule.

Facets Quilt Along Week 1 – Gather and Share Your Fabrics, Start Cutting

January 29, 2016January 23, 2016Leave a comment

Thanks for joining me on a fun journey while we make the Facets quilt from my book Machine Quilting With Style. This QAL is broken into weekly steps which you can refer to in the introductory post. (If you are new to my blog – jump in at any time!)

FacetsQALbig

Gather and Share

This week’s assignment is to gather your fabrics (detailed materials list in the book on page 90), then share pictures of your fabric pull on instagram (#facetsqal), on your own blogs, or in my facebookgroup at Quilt with Christa.

Here are a few gorgeous bundles that some of my facebook group members have shared so far. It’s so fun to see all of the different variety and really, the sky’s the limit when it comes to fabric selection for the blocks. As long as you have a highly contrasting background fabric, you are good to go!

carol_b

I love Carol’s combo of prints, solids, and tone-on-tones. With the help of my facebook group, she was able to narrow down her choices!

Lind-B Linda is using these gorgeous gradations for her quilt. She gets bonus points for photographing it with the book!! 🙂

Daisy_f Daisy’s quilt will look stunning in batiks and scraps!

Homework – Start Cutting

Start cutting your block fabrics or scraps into random strips and chunks to prepare for improv piecing next week (see what we are working towards on page 93). Don’t be scared – just dive right in and cut. It will be very liberating, I promise!

facets_strips

I cut my pieces into various width strips and chunks with wonky angles.

Yes, you have my permission to make this quilt your way. Although I don’t have the math figured out for any other sizes or alterations, you are welcome to change things up if you like. This is your quilt so the choice is up to you! And yes, you can work ahead if you like, or take a little more time if needed.

sherri_s_scraps

Sherri is cutting her pretty purple pieces into hunks and chunks. It will be fun to sew the scrappy chaos into something pretty!

Questions?

I’m here to help! Be sure to share your progress in my Facebook group Quilt With Christa and ask for any trouble shooting help there. It’s a fun supportive bunch and we are all eager to cheer each other on!

3 Fun Things for You to Check out…pattern writing, finish-a-long, Aurifil BOM

January 20, 2016January 16, 20164 Comments

One of the things I love about the online community (no, blogs are NOT dead!) is all of the community projects that you can be a part of! Last week I introduced my Facets QAL which starts next week, and today I’m here to share a roundup of a few fun things my friends are doing.

#1 – Pattern Writing Series

meadowmist_designs

Cheryl, from Meadow Mist Designs just kicked off her pattern writing series which I know that many of you are interested in. Today, she’s introduced the 6 designers that are going to be part of each weekly roundtable discussion. It was fun putting together my thoughts on various topics, and I love how the series is going to go very in-depth in several areas. Each week will include 2-4 posts from Cheryl and the other designers. It’s going to be a wealth of information, and I’m sure I’ll learn a thing or two!

pattern_writing_series

Click here to keep up with the Pattern Writing Series.

#2 – Finish Along

Next, I’m one of the sponsors for the Finish Along, coordinated by Leanne from She Can Quilt. I’ll be offering a different prize each quarter, so be sure to sign up and link up your finishes! The Finish Along is also on Instagram at – you guessed it – @finishalong.

Click here for the Finish A Long main page.

#3 – Aurifil Designer Block of the Month

Finally, I am proud to be one of the 2016 Aurifil Designers of the month. Pat Sloan and Aurifil have teamed up since 2011 to bring you fun free projects each month, so you can put your collection of Aurifil threads to work!

aurifil-2016-design-team-photo

The theme for 2016 is blue and white blocks, so each month, you’ll get a free block pattern from a different designer. (My month is March.) Heather Valentine kicks of January with her awesome block, Swirl Away, shown below.

heathers_block

Click here to get directions to make the Swirl Away block.

What quilting groups and community projects will you be involved with this year?

Facets Quilt Along – Intro and Fabric Requirements

January 15, 2016April 8, 201619 Comments

I’m ready to start my next quilt along featuring Facets, from my book Machine Quilting With Style. This is the quilt you all voted that was your favorite, and I’m so excited because it’s my favorite, too!

Facets_Kona

Facets by Christa Watson 63″ x 70″

The quilt along is a little bit different than the other quilt alongs I have shared in the past. You will need a copy of my book to participate. But that’s no problem, because I know that many of you have purchased your copies already (or received them as Christmas gifts).

Where to Purchase My Book

Machine Quilting With Style

Those new to my blog can pick up a signed copy of Machine Quilting With Style directly from me, or grab it here on Amazon for a super low price! It’s starting to show up in many local quilt shops, too, so check yours for availability. If you’d like to get a combo e-book + hardcopy, my publisher has a great deal over on the Martingale website.

Materials Requirements

cwpalette_cropped

28 Fat Eighths of your favorite fabrics (or grab a fat quarter bundle of the Christa Watson palette if you want to make yours in the same colors as mine!). Or 3 1/2 yards of scraps.
2 7/8 yards of background fabric (white in my quilt)
1 1/8 yards for accent and binding (red in my quilt)
4 1/2 yards backing
Twin Size Batting
Your favorite thread for machine piecing and quilting (I prefer Aurifil 50 wt.)
Creative Grids Rulers – Triangle Squared and Perfect Rectangle rulers. (Be sure to get this brand as other rulers are not the right size.)

creative_grids The book includes templates if needed, but the rulers are easier to use!

Facets Quilt Along Schedule

Here’s how it will work: each Friday I will post an update with your “homework” here on the blog. You can share your progress anytime, in my Facebook group at Quilt With Christa. If you are not on Facebook but still want to share, you can email me a picture of your progress and I’ll share it in a roundup photo.

Because we are working through the book, no directions will be given here on the blog. However, I will share behind the scenes of the making of Facets and I’ll be your cheerleader to help you out as well as lay out your goals for completion week by week.

All links below will be clickable once that post has been published.

Week 1 – Gather and share your fabrics.
Week 2 – Make your own improv pieced fabric.
Week 3 – Cut the blocks (with tutorial on how to use the Creative Grids specialty rulers).
Week 4 – Sew the quilt top together.
Week 5 – Baste the quilt.
Week 6 – Straight Line Machine Quilting.
Week 7 – Free-Motion Machine Quilting.
Week 8 – Bind to Finish.

There Will be Prizes!

Each week you share your progress in my Fb group (or email pics to me), I’ll enter your name into one of three grand prize drawings at the end. So the more weeks you share, the more chances you have to win!

Three lucky participants will win the Grand Prize Pack – all three prizes per winner!

A signed copy of my next book, The Ultimate Guide to Machine Quilting, which releases April 19th. (And yes, I’ll get my co-author Angela Walters to sign it for you, too!)
A charm pack of my Kona Designer Palette.
A 1300 meter spool of Aurifil 50 weight cotton thread, in the color of your choice!

Ultimate Guide to Machine Quilting

You don’t even have to finish your quilt to be entered into the grand prize. However, everyone who shares a picture of their finished quilt by March 31 will be entered to win the BONUS prize – a jelly roll of their choice from The Precut Store.

working

And because I don’t want to leave anyone out, all participants who share at least one picture will win a PDF pattern of their choice from my pattern shop!

Sharing is Caring

If you’d like, you can save and share this badge on your blog or other social media and spread the word about my quilt along! You can share the image only, or link it back to this post.

Share your work in progress on Instagram with the hashtag #facetsqal

FacetsQALbadge

So who’s ready to join the fun? Grab a copy of my book, your fabrics and start sharing your pics!

The Beehive Quilt Blocks – Update

December 24, 2015December 18, 20153 Comments

I just wanted to give you all a quick update on the Beehive quilt blocks. This is a series started by my good friend Alyce from Blossom Heart Quilts. She invited 12 designer friends to each submit a free block of the month tutorial and she did 12 herself. So over the course of this year, she shared 24 different block patterns, all for free!

Just some of the beautiful blocks. Check instagram #doublestarblock for each maker’s credit.

I was recently skimming instagram #doublestarblock which was the block I shared back in April. I was blown away by the variety of beautiful quilt blocks that have been made! When I see amazing work like this, it validates what I do as a designer.

Here’s my original block design below. Click here for my Double Star Block Tutorial.

I really have a thing for black, white and grey!

My Christmas gift to you is sharing Alyce’s link to all of the blocks so those of you new to my blog can rediscover this amazing series.

Click here for the Beehive Block Tutorials

Why don’t you put this on your agenda to make for next year?

Paper Pieced Quilt Along #12 Machine Quilting Linear Echoes

October 31, 2015November 1, 20151 Comment

New to my site? Be sure to sign up for my email newsletter and get a free PDF pattern!

Today we are back to using the walking foot or integrated dual feed (IDF) to quilt straight lines of texture around the blocks. In my book Machine Quilting With Style, I call this quilting technique “Linear Echoes” because you are basically stitching echoing lines around the patchwork to help outline the piecing design and make it pop.

Start the first linear echo with the foot right next to the seam line. Vary the spacing if desired.

I did not mark the lines, but instead used the edge of my foot as a guideline when quilting each line. I was able to start and end each line of quilting off the edges of the quilt, in the batting, so I didn’t have to worry about burying my threads at either end.

Use the width of your foot as a guideline for spacing. Wider spacing means fewer lines to quilt.

You can quilt one or more lines around the blocks, depending on the type of look you want to achieve. So far I have quilted three lines around each row of blocks, each approximately 1/4″ apart. Rather than using a walking foot, I used my quarter inch foot for spacing, combined with the integrated dual feed on my BERNINA.

I’ll fill in the rest of the negative space with more lines, or a different FMQ design.

Here’s a tip – quilt a couple of stitches on a practice sandwich and measure them so you know how many stitches you are doing per inch. I only need to quilt about 2-3 stitches per quarter inch. That comes in handy when you need to echo quilt beyond the first line.

This is what the backing looks like so far. I love all that texture!!

So far I’m quilting my lines in black thread to match the background fabric on the top. I only want to see a little bit of the texture rather than the stitches so I’m ok if my quilting blends in at this point. I used an invisible thread from Aurifil for the bobbin so that the black thread wouldn’t be so stark on the lighter backing fabric.

For the next tutorial, I plan to add in a little more decorative free-motion quilting, probably with a contrasting thread. I’ll start on that now so I’m ready for the next QAL post!

Share your progress

Be sure to share your version in my Facebook group: Quilt With Christa.

Click here for all of the Paper Pieced Quilt Along Tutorials.

MQWS Blog Hop Day 11 – Facets

September 25, 2015September 25, 2015224 Comments

If you love the fabrics in Facets, be sure to sign up for my weekly email newsletter, and get a free pattern showing them in a different way. (Of course you can choose your own fabrics, too!)

Facets – The Background Story

Facets 63″ x 70″ by Christa Watson. Photo courtesy of Robert Kaufman.

I love coordinated scrappy quilts and improvisational piecing, yet I’m more of a “structured improv” kind of gal. I like to randomly sew together a bunch of scrappy goodness, then create order and structure from the chaos. For Facets, I chose 28 Kona Cottons in warm reds, oranges, and yellows, with some green thrown in for good measure. The palette reminds me of crisp juicy apples!

It was such fun to cut up these fabrics into smaller chunks to play with!

It was very liberating to create my own crazy-pieced fabric to work with:

Randomly sewing bits of fabric together is very therapeutic!

I really went to town with the machine quilting on this one. I used both walking-foot quilting and free-motion techniques when quilting Facets. Whenever I quilt, I like to think about the logical sequence of steps I take before starting. That way, it doesn’t seem too overwhelming.

Using my “scrunch and smoosh” method for dealing with the bulk while quilting. There’s an extra table under there which helps hold up the weight of the quilt.

I love quilting swirls, and combining them with switchbacks really creates a lot of movement.

Photography by Brent Kane.

A Bit More – and a Bonus Giveaway!

I was stoked when Robert Kaufman decided to add this grouping to their designer palette series this fall. Coming in October, you’ll be able to get your hands on the Christa Watson Designer Palette in fat quarters, ten squares, charm squares, and roll-ups! You can create a quilt just like mine, but of course it will still be different because of the improv element. 🙂

What makes this quilt modern – offset grid layout, improvisational piecing, geometric design with high contrast and graphic impact, exclusive use of flat solids, bold, bright color palette, design goes all the way to the edges, organically quilted machine quilting.

Time for me to complete – 47 hours from start to finish, including the improv piecing.

How would you like to get your hands on a fat quarter bundle of my designer palette?

The Christa Watson Designer Palette – available at quilts shops everywhere in October!

To enter the giveaway for a 28 piece fat quarter bundle of my favorite Kona colors, just comment letting me know whether you’ve ever tried improv piecing and what you think about it. I’ll draw a winner at the end of the day on Sunday and announce their name on Monday, Sept. 28th.

And remember, don’t forget to vote for your favorite quilt for my QAL in January! Since I know you are dying to ask – yes, Facets is MY favorite quilt from the book. 🙂

Quilting Inspiration from kristy daum

I think my favorite part of this blog hop is seeing all of the amazing quilts from my talented friends! Kristy Daum from St. Louis Victorian and I have been online friends for awhile and finally got to meet up at QuiltCon earlier this year. You may remember Kristy’s amazing pixelated quilts featuring David Tennant as Dr. Who and the lovely Benedict Cumberbatch as Sherlock.

Now Kristy has knocked it out of the park with her version of Facets. I really love it when others really take an idea and make it their own! It was fun watching her instagram sneek peaks, and her final reveal today will take your breath away.

Pop on over to Kristy’s blog to see her version of Facets.

Teri’s Take

The amazing Teri Lucas from Terificreations shared a sneak peak of some Facets blocks on the Generation Q website earlier in the week. She chose to use solid pieces of fabric and did some killer quilting on them! Like me, she prefers to quilt on a home-sewing machine and she is one talented lady!! She’s one of those that I can talk quilting with all day long!

So far we’ve only met in person once, and I can’t wait to see her again at the next event. She’s always so thoughtful and encouraging – just the type of quilty friend you want in your corner. Teri is offering a book giveaway on her site. While you are there, be sure to browse around, and check out her amazing quilting!!

Head over to Teri’s blog to enter her giveaway.

Visit The Quilting Gallery

Michele Foster is the brilliant name and voice behind the highly popular website the Quilting Gallery. We first met online when I was an advertiser on her site, many moons ago. We have turned that business relationship into a really great friendship and I hope someday soon that we can meet up in person. I mean, if you are like me, you can always use another BQF (best quilting friend), right?

Michele blogs and shares so much inspiration about what’s happening in the quilting community, and she’s has written very nice things about my book over on her blog today. She even scored extra points with me by saying that Facets is her favorite quilt, too! In addition to being a prolific quilter, Michele is an amazing designer and hosts lots of fun clubs on her site. As part of her stop, she’s generously including a fun giveaway of her own. 🙂

Visit the Quilting Gallery blog and enter to win a membership to Michele’s mini quilting club!

Click here for the complete blog hop schedule.

Click here purchase your autographed copy of Machine Quilting With Style.

MQWS Blog Hop Day 8 – Static

September 22, 2015September 22, 20153 Comments

On yesterday’s giveaway post I asked everyone which was their favorite quilt so far. It was so fun to read the responses! I was a little worried when I wrote the book, that not everyone would resonate with each pattern from Machine Quilting With Style. But I have been overwhelmed by the positive responses. There truly is something for everyone in this book, as evidenced by your answers – so thanks for your input!

Static – The Background Story

Pixelated quilts (those forming an image from tons of tiny squares) have been all the rage in modern quilting circles the last couple of years. Static is my tongue-in-cheek attempt to get in on this trend. Being the non-artist that I am, and not being able to come up with an amazingly complex design – I attempted to recreate “static” – a repeating block pattern that looks like nothing but chaos. I even posed the question – do you see an image in the static? 🙂

Static 56″ x 64″ by Christa Watson. Photography by Brent Kane.

I really did enjoy picking out the fabrics for this quilt, happy shades of pink, purple and yellow from the True Colors collection by Free Spirit. The quilt contains lots of small squares, but strip piecing made the blocks go together fairly quickly. Although the individual blocks look random, there’s actually a method to my madness when I pieced the quilt!

Some of my Static strips. I chose 16 different fabrics – such fun!

For the machine quilting, I really had to fight hard to overcome the urge to quilt this one to death! I wanted to have at least one quilt that a very beginner quilter could have immediate success with. It’s quilted completely with a walking foot and I use my favorite method of stitching “near the ditch” rather than in it. The job goes much quicker and is a lot more forgiving this way. I also like the wavy effect that the quilting gives to some of the blocks, even though they are all pieced totally straight.

Quilting “near” the ditch is so much easier than stitching “in” the ditch!

A Bit More

What makes this quilt modern: Although Static is a pretty traditional design, I still chose to incorporate a few modern elements: bold, geometric prints, sharp angles with hard edges, minimal design, walking foot quilting, no borders.

Time to complete: 26 hours from start to finish (mostly piecing and pressing).

A Fresh Quilt from Freshly Pieced

My friend Lee Heinrich from Freshly Pieced can put together fabulous color combinations like no one else! I adore the fabrics she chose for her version of Static, which makes a seemingly simple design come to life. Lee has an eye for color and she’s an amazing pattern designer, too!

I was so happy when Lee, Katie and Faith released their first book, Vintage Quilt Revival, with much success. Lee wrote me the kindest note ever after I participated in her blog hop. She said she’d return the favor when it was my turn for a book, and true to her word, she’s knocked it out of the park! I love the extra touch she added to the quilt, to truly make it her own!

Head on over to Freshly Pieced for tons of eye candy and quilty inspiration!

Eye Candy from Esch House Quilts and Gen Q Magazine

Another fabulous designer friend of mine is Debbie Grifka from Esch House Quilts. She’s been super involved in the modern movement almost from the beginning, was an instructor at the inaugural QuiltCon and is a prolific pattern designer, too!

Pop on over to Debbie’s blog for her thoughts on the book (we really do have similar tastes), and while you are there, you may want to look around for awhile. I mean just look at the sleek, modern quilts pictured in her website header above. Every time I see a quilt of Debbie’s, I’m so inspired to make more!

Generation Q is one of my favorite modern quilting magazines! It’s a bit edgy and fun and the designs they share in each issue always resonate with me. Plus, the magazine has tons of well-written articles, so there’s more to read and look at than just pretty pictures. I was honored when they chose me to represent “I am Gen Q” in their latest issue. Be sure to grab a subscription to Generation Q magazine and check it out!

I Am Gen Q is written by Scott Hansen, who was an earlier stop on the hop.

Scott (who was an earier stop on the hop) and Teri (who’s coming up later this week) both chose to remake some blocks from one of the quilts in the book. Be sure to pop on over to the Gen Q website to see which quilt they chose. You will be blown away by their versions – so completely different yet amazing in their own way. I love it when designs look great in any fabrics!

Be sure to enter the Generation Q giveaway!