Piece and Quilt with Precuts Quilt 6: Dot ‘n’ Dash

August 24, 2017August 24, 201712 Comments

Are you enjoying seeing the quilts from Piece and Quilt with Precuts so far? I don’t know about you, but I love all of the color options that everyone is sharing! If you are just now joining the hop, click here for the full schedule of bloggers so you don’t miss a thing!

Take a look at Dot ‘n’ Dash, my version of a modern jelly roll quilt!

Dot 'n' Dash by Christa Watson from Piece and Quilt with Precuts

Dot’n’Dash Photography courtesy of Martingale/That Patchwork Place and Brent Kane.

Piece It

This quilt is made from two sets of 2 1/2″ strips and I opted to use one Jelly Roll by Franny and Jane for Moda along with a nice contrasting gray background. Although my designs are a bit more on the modern side, hopefully by seeing them in other colorways you’ll be able to apply the techniques I teach to any quilt, no matter the style!

Quilt It

When quilting the majority of my quilts, I like to quilt two or more two different motifs to add interest to the quilt. I’ll usually try to combine a curvy motif with a linear one to create contrast within the quilting. Like all of the patterns in the book, Dot ‘n’ Dash includes a detailed quilting plan for you to follow so you can work your way across the quilt quickly and efficiently.

Dot 'n Dash quilting detail

Try combining two or more quilting designs for texture and contrast.

For the batting, I chose Hobbs Tuscany Wool. It’s light and soft, yet gives a bit more “poof” to the quilt which really helps the quilting stand out a bit more. Wool is one of my favorite battings for show quilts because it won’t show fold lines when it’s displayed vertically. I love it!

More Dot’N’Dash inspiration

You are in for a treat when you check out my friends’ finishes below. Be sure and visit their blogs for more details on the making of the quilts. And be on the lookout for additional giveaways when you visit!

Laura Piland – Slice of Pi Quilts

Laura Dot 'n Dash

The bold colors pop against the crisp white!

I love Laura’s fabric combo for this quilt. It’s fresh and bold and modern! The quilt calls for two full jelly rolls, but gives the option to use leftover strips in the binding. This means you can pick and choose just in case there are a couple of strips in your bundle that don’t contrast well enough in the background.

The patterns are so versatile and easy to follow that you can substitute other precuts as well. Laura actually made her quilt from a fat quarter bundle that she had on hand, and was able to quickly cut all the pieces she needed.

Pieced backing

Laura used her leftovers to create a beautiful pieced backing – I love it!

Pop on over to Laura’s blog to see gorgeous closeup pics of her quilting. She chose one of the designs in the walking foot section and you’ve got to see how she picked which threads to work with!

Can you believe she made this entire quilt in a weekend?? Be sure to read what she has to say about her quilt- making process. It will give you the confidence to tackle any quilt!

Cheryl Brickey – Meadow Mist Designs

Cheryl Brickey Dot n Dash from Piece and Quilt with Precuts

A simple stipple design can be an effective machine quilting choice!

Cheryl from Meadow Mist Designs was one of the original bloggers back in 2015 when I did a similar blog hop for my first book. (Click here to see those quilts for even more inspiration!) She was also my roomie at QuiltCon in 2015 and we’ve both come a long way since then. I’m sure you’ll be seeing more great things from her in the future!

Cheryl named her version of the quilt “Morse Code” which is awesome because I nearly named it that myself, LOL!! I love how Cheryl made her quilt a bit smaller and the fabric she chose give an improv vibe to the quilt. My hope is that you will take these designs and really make them your own! Visit Cheryl’s blog to see which Aurifil thread she quilted with (hint – it’s NOT white), and how she was able to achieve the improv look from ONE fabric!!

Jen Frost – Faith and Fabric

Dot 'n Dash by Jen Frost

Check out Jen’s version of Dot ‘n Dash using cheerful novelty prints! She chose a jelly roll from Me + My Sister for Moda, along with a jelly roll of white. She’s still contemplating which design and thread to quilt it with so pop on over to her blog to let her know what you think and see more pretty pics of this fabulous “flimsy” – (aka unquilted top)!

Today’s Gift – Win More batting from Hobbs

Since I used Hobb’s batting in two of the quilts from the book, they’ve been generous enough to provide two giveaways for the hop! Click here to enter their first giveaway being hosted on my blog.

Then head over to their blog to enter the second giveaway. It’s double the fun and double your chances to win! People always asking me what my favorite batting is and I have a few. I love Hobbs Tuscany cotton when I want a warm, cuddly, crinkly quilt. It will shrink up a bit when you wash it, giving that soft antique look that’s perfect for hiding any quilting “irregularities!”

Hobbs Wool Batting

For show quilts I love to use Tuscany wool because it will hang well and not show wrinkles. But lately I’ve been using the cotton/wool combo because it’s the best of both worlds!

Piece and Quilt with Precuts by Christa Watson

It’s so exciting to see my book popping up on store shelves. Be sure and drop by your favorite local quilt shop to pick up your copy. Or you can click here to get a signed copy from me!

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Piece and Quilt with Precuts Quilt 5: Starstruck

August 23, 2017August 23, 201714 Comments

In my book, Piece and Quilt with Precuts, I teach how to quilt fun motifs using a walking foot, free-motion, or both! Today’s quilt, Starstruck is the first in the free-motion section. Just as in the previous walking foot section, the quilting designs build in complexity allowing you to gain confidence as you go!

Starstruck by Christa Watson from Piece and Quilt with Precuts

Starstruck Photography courtesy of Martingale/That Patchwork Place and Brent Kane.

Design It

All of the quilts in the book were designed using EQ7 software from The Electric Quilt Company. I’m the type of person who needs to have everything all planned out before I start cutting because I want to know what the final design will look like before I begin. I’ve tried designing on the fly as I create, but my brain just doesn’t work that way, LOL!! So take a look at what I was able to create in EQ7 before I made the quilt:

Starstruck Design in EQ7

Although I didn’t worry about putting the fabrics in the exact same position or rotating the stars the exact same way, I did use the same fabric swatches that were in the quilt. This allows me to really see if the design will work the way I want it to! Of course I could always go back into my EQ7 design and change it to match the finished quilt, but this was good enough for me!

Check out what the same design looks like when I switch out the fabrics for a more colorful palette! I love how easy it is to virtually recolor my quilts in EQ7. You may recognize this as my fabric collection that comes out this fall. Last week on my blog I shared my work in progress, and of course I’ll share the final finish once the fabric is available (in November.)

Starstruck using Modern Marks

The colors for Modern Marks are a little more vibrant on screen than they are in person.

Piece It

Starstruck is made from 24 fat quarters that can be separated into lights and darks like my neutrals version shown below. Or if you want it to be bright and cheerful like the one shown above, you can pair up fat quarters from your favorite colorful bundle to create contrast. Each fat quarter will make one center star, one background of another star, and part of the pieced border, so it’s fun to mix and match the prints!

Quilting Loops on Starstruck from Piece and Quilt with Precuts

An allover edge to edge design is the easiest way to practice free-motion quilting

Quilt It

When you want to learn a new free motion design, the best way to practice is on a real quilt. Start on one side of the quilt and meander your way across the quilt until you’ve covered every inch of it with your free-motion design. You’ll be a pro at that motif by the time you finish!

Machine quilting closeup on Starstruck

I chose Aurifil cotton 50 weight 2326 Sand for the machine quilting. It works well with neutrals.

I quilted a fun loop and star design on Starstruck but you could easily throw in other motifs like hearts, flowers and more. And if your stitches aren’t perfect, that’s ok. The best way to hide imperfect quilting is to surround it with more imperfect quilting, so all you see is the overall texture rather than the individual stitches.

More Starstruck inspiration

Isn’t it great to see the designs presented in different fabrics? Check out these three alternate versions below and be sure and visit each bloggers’ site for more about their process and more giveaways!!

Sherri Noel – Rebecca Mae Designs

Sherri Noel of Rebecca Mae Designs chose to go full color with a sprinkling of gold and gray. She was able to create good contrast with the bold busy fabrics, and her pretty picture makes me want to cuddle up on that comfy porch!!

Head over to Sherri’s blog to see more of her process including some closeups of her awesome quilting.

Lissa LaGreca – Lovingly Lissa

Starstruck by Lissa LaGreca

Here’s a view of Lissa’s gorgeous quilt top. I love the soft tan, brown, and gray neutrals she chose. I once heard that the hallmark of a great quilt design is that it will look good, no matter which fabrics you choose!

Hop on over to her blog at Lovingly Lissa to see how she quilted it. It’s a lovely finish!

Sandra Healy Designs

Sandra Healey Starstruck

Sandra of Sandra Healy Designs is working on two different projects using the Starstruck blocks. She’s working on a table runner using the fabrics with a white background above, and a pillow with a pretty pink background below.

In the book I recommend chain piecing all of the blocks at once and then lay them out into a pleasing arrangement. This allows you to finish your tops faster which leaves you more time for fun machine quilting.

Starstruck Pillow

Didn’t she do a fantastic job with the quilting on her cushion? She was able to get over her “fear of free-motion” with a little practice and I think she did an amazing job! Head over to Sandra’s blog to read more about her progress with the book!

Today’s Gift: EQ7 Education + Win Your Own Copy!

Because I’m so busy traveling and teaching machine quilting, I’m not able to share my knowledge of EQ7 in person as much as I’d like. So here’s the next best thing – click the links below to download two PDF class outlines from my previous live classes.

EQ7

You can also click this link to peruse the EQ site for tons of self-study tutorials. I have to say, the folks at Electric Quilt give the greatest customer support I’ve seen. They’ll help you answer any and all questions you may have.

Then be sure and pop over to the EQ blog for your chance to win your very own copy of EQ7. I have to warn you though – you may spend more time designing than you actually do quilting!

Signed copy of Piece and Quilt with Precuts

If you’ve been inspired so far, don’t forget to grab a signed copy of Piece and Quilt with Precuts.
I’m here to cheer you on in your quilt making journey, every step of the way!

Click here to view the blog hop schedule

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Piece and Quilt with Precuts Quilt 3: Frequency

August 21, 2017August 21, 201711 Comments

I got a really nice comment on Instagram earlier this week saying “I love how you show real life ordinary quilting that doesn’t require a super fancy machine.” That made me happy because my goal in writing and teaching is to empower you to be able to quilt your own quilts, no matter what type of machine you use!

Without further ado, here’s quilt #3 from Piece and Quilt with Precuts. It’s called “Frequency” because it reminds me of those pulsing lines you see on your electronic device while your music is playing. Yes, I’m easily amused…

Frequency by Christa Watson for Piece and Quilt with Precuts

Frequency Photography courtesy of Martingale/That Patchwork Place and Brent Kane.

Piece It

Frequency is made from 2 1/2″ strips of lights and darks. You could either use one bundle if it’s split up evenly, or a smaller 20-strip bundle of each. Or use up leftover strips from other projects! This design is a good one to get your feet wet with improvisational piecing because your strips don’t have to look exactly like mine. There’s a lot of variety in how you can trim the length and join the strips. Part of the fun of making this quilt is arranging the strips, which you can do randomly or with intent.

For a completely different look, rotate the blocks so that the strips are stacked horizontally. Now it kind of looks like stacked books, don’t you think??

Frquenecy Rotated

Quilt It

I used my “divide and conquer” method to easily quilt Frequency with a walking foot (or dual feed). The pattern includes step by step instructions and diagrams, but here’s the simple version: Step 1: Stitch in the ditch between each of the rows to stabilize the quilt. Step 2. Quilt a fun zig-zag design in each of the strips.

I personally prefer to quilt my lines randomly, rather than trying to be too “matchy-matchy.” It’s a LOT easier to do and I think makes for a much more interesting design! Although I quilted them using walking foot techniques in the book, you could totally free-motion quilt them instead!

Frequency Quilting

Thread tip: When quilting with one thread color over a variety of contrasting fabrics, a lighter thread color looks better on darker fabrics, rather than darker thread on lighter fabrics.

More Frequency inspiration

Check out some amazing work in progress using different fabrics and quilting designs. Click on each blogger’s site for their their in-progress photos, awesome giveaways, and more!

Nancy Scott – MasterPiece Quilting

Nancy Scott's Version of Frequency

Isn’t it amazing how different a quilt can look by just changing the fabrics? Nancy from Masterpiece Quilting created a warm, earthy version of Frequency using cheerful red and green Christmas prints. I just love how those pops of gold really add some sparkle to her quilt!

Visit her blog to read more about her process in making this quilt. Nancy was able to easily quilt the same design I did, but she did it on her long arm machine instead of a domestic and it looks just as great!

Martingale/That Patchwork Place

Frequency Progress

Karen Johnson is heading of marketing over at my fabulous publisher, Martingale/That Patchwork Place and she decided to take on the challenge of recreating a mini-Frequency along with a matching pincushion that you just have to see! I love how she chose some of the other quilting designs presented later in the book and applied them to her project. It just goes to show how versatile the quilting motifs are!

Check out this fun blog post all about Karen’s process, with tons of step-by-step photos, plus sneak peeks of some of the quilts coming up later on the hop. Plus, you won’t believe the fabulous giveaway s they are hosting!!

Christa's book, signed by Martingale

A priceless copy of my book, signed the awesome team at Martingale that helped produce it.

I have to tell you, after writing three books with Martingale, they’ve really become like family to me. I’m sure you can imagine how much work it takes to write a book, and I couldn’t have done it without a fantastic team of people! And what’s even better is that most of them are quilters who love making projects from the books they help produce. No wonder their books are so well loved!! 🙂

Lorinda Davis – Laurel Poppy and Pine

Frequency Quilting by Lorinda

Just look at all that yummy texture quilted by Lorinda of Laurel Poppy and Pine!! I love seeing closeup shots where you can really see the quilting. Lorinda chose a modern fall palette for her quilt and it always amazes me how different a quilt can look just by changing up the fabrics. Just remember, you can either use a precut bundle to make this quilt, or you can create your own custom bundle just like Lorinda did!

Head over to her blog to see the entire quilt, and read more about her process. My hope is that by seeing all of these fabulous finishes, you’ll feel inspired that you, too can achieve amazing results with my simple techniques!

Today’s Gift – Win All of My Books

Yes, you read that right, ALL of my books!! Today’s giveaway is being generously sponsored by my friends over at Martingale/That Patchwork Place and they are going to send them to 3 lucky winners!!

Christa Watson Books

Now, here’s the fine print – not only are they giving away a copy of all three books authored by me, they are also throwing in a copy of every book I’ve ever collaborated on with them. If I counted correctly, it’s a total of 7 so far, enough to keep you stocked with plenty of projects on your “have-to-make” list!

And here’s a hint, I’ll be in at least two more books they are curating coming up next year. So be sure to keep an eye on all the fun inspiration Martingale has to offer! Head over to their blog now for your chance to win.

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Piece and Quilt with Precuts Quilt 2: Gridwork

August 19, 2017September 1, 2017181 Comments

The second quilt featured in my book Piece and Quilt with Precuts is called “Gridwork.”

Gridwork by Christa Watson from Piece and Quilt with Precuts

Gridwork Photography courtesy of Martingale/That Patchwork Place and Brent Kane.

Piece It

Gridwork is made from one set of 5″ squares and one set of 10″ squares. In traditional quilting, blocks are usually laid out in a “grid” format. However, modern quilters like to break up the grid or present blocks in an alternate grid layout. In this case, you can see that this quilt is arranged in a 6×7 traditional grid layout (6 blocks across by 7 blocks down). But the blocks themselves are rotated in a haphazard fashion to obscure the grid and make it a bit more interesting.

Gridwork from Piece and Quilt with Precuts

We took this quilt on a recent camping trip to get some pretty shots of it in nature.

The secret is to piece the blocks in a few similar, but slightly different ways and then rotate them to trick the viewer into thinking there’s much more variation in the blocks. In my book, step by step instructions are given on how to create the different blocks. Plus, a full color layout is included with each quilt pattern so there’s no guesswork when it comes time to assemble the quilt!

Machine Quilting on Gridwork

Wavy Grid is one of my go-to machine quilting designs! I quilted this quilt in a light gray-blue thread from my Piece and Quilt collection with Aurifil.

Quilt It

The first four quilts in the book are quilted completely with a walking foot (or in my case, the BERNINA dual feed which performs the exact same function.) Each quilt build skills as you go, so you’ll be a machine quilting pro in no time! Plus, with my “divide and conquer” method, you can quilt a few lines to stabilize the quilt, then decide at any point how densely you want to quilt it, without locking yourself into an overwhelming task!

More Gridwork inspiration

Check out these alternate versions below. Head to each blogger’s site for more about their process, see their finishes, and enter their giveaways!

Sandy Maxfield – Sandy Star Designs

I’ve been hoarding my own bundles of Karen Lewis’ Blueberry Park line and I’m jealous at how easily Sandy from Sandy Star Designs was able to break into her precuts!! Here’s a hint – she actually cut the 10″ and 5″ prints from fat quarters, which is a great example of being able to use what you have on hand for successful results.

Don’t you think Sandy did a fantastic job combining the prints into a pleasing combination? The trick is to make sure there’s contrast in each block so none of them gets lost. You can do that by combing lights with darks, solids with prints or a myriad of other ways!

Gridwork quilting by Sandy

She did a fantastic job quilting wavy grid on her quilt. Don’t you just want to cuddle up with all that yummy texture? Be sure to pop over to Sandy’s blog to read more, and to enter her giveaway!

Joanne Harris – Quilts by Joanne

Gridwork by Joanne Harris

Joanne Harris from Quilts by Joanne really made this design look great with her fabulous yellow and gray color scheme. I once heard that the hallmark of a great quilt design is that it will look good in any fabric combination!

Don’t you just love that elephant print?? Now take a look at her blog to see how she decided to quilt it!

Teresa Mairal-Barreu – Sewn Up

Teresa M Gridwork

Teresa aka Teresa Down Under chose to make a smaller smaller version of Gridwork and I just love it! This goes to show that you don’t always have to use up an entire precut bundle, or make your quilt the exact same size.

Head over to Teresa’s blog to see a video of this “flimsy” (aka unquilted top) flapping beautifully in the breeze. Seriously, it will inspire you to want to make one right away!

Today’s Gift – Win a Bundle of 5″ or 10″ Squares

Christa Watson Designer Palette

My designer palette was originally created for Facets, from Machine Quilting with Style.
I’ve now used it to create several colorful quilts!

Today I’m going to give 2 lucky winners a fun prize! One person will win a layer cake of my Christa Watson designer palette and a second person will win a charm pack of the same fabric. Now the trick will be for both winners to find another layer cake or charm pack to go with them to make their own version of Gridwork! But isn’t a challenge fun?? (And in reality of course the winner can do whatever they’d like to with their fabrics!!)

To enter, leave me a comment letting me know what’s your favorite precut to work with. Me personally – I love fat quarters because I think they are the most versatile. But as a designer, I love coming up with creative ways to use these fun fabric bundles!

The giveaway is open to all (int’l winners just pay shipping) and I’ll choose a winner on Aug 31 which is the last day of the hop. Be sure and check in again tomorrow for the next quilt I’ll share along with more fabulous color options!

Griwork from Piece and Quilt with Precuts

If you make your own version of Gridwork, or any of the quilts from my book, please share your progress in my Facebook Group, Quilt with Christa. I’d love to see!

Click here to see all of the stops on the blog hop tour – you’re sure to be inspired!

Update: Winners Selected and Comments Closed

Congrats to Dian. H. and Hedy H. who have been contacted via email.

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Piece and Quilt with Precuts Quilt 1: Squiggles

August 18, 2017August 22, 20178 Comments

Today I get to share the first quilt presented in my brand new book! Meet “Squiggles” from Piece and Quilt with Precuts.

Squiggles by Christa Watson from Piece and Quilt with Precuts

Squiggles Photography courtesy of Martingale/That Patchwork Place and Brent Kane.

Piece It

I designed Squiggles so that it can be made from either four bundles of 5″ squares, or one bundle of 10″ squares. My favorite tip for working with precuts is to use a super light or super dark background, so that it will contrast with any precut bundle you choose! I love working with precuts because the math always works out nicely. For the background, you can either use 5″ squares or 2 1/2″ strips, giving you tons of versatility based on what you have on hand.

Quilt It

You can see why I named the quilt Squiggles – because of the fun squiggly lines I chose to quilt. This is usually the first quilting design I teach my students to do with a walking foot (or integrated dual feed) because they can achieve instant success from the very first stitch!

Squiggles Quilting Detail

I used my favorite shade of Aurifil gray (Aluminium) because its blends with all the fabrics!

In the book, I include detailed instructions on how to piece this quilt as well as diagrams on how to actually quilt it to achieve a similar look. It’s so much easier than you might think!

More Squiggles inspiration

Now let’s take a look at what 3 of my blogging friends chose to do with this design. Be sure to click on the links to each of their blogs for more pics, an explanation of their process, and to see who’s including a bonus giveaway!

Kate Colleran – Seams Like a Dream

Squiggles quilting by Kate

Here’s a sneak peek of the gorgeous colors and quilting that Kate from Seams Like a Dream chose for her version. Be sure and take a look at the beautiful color gradation she did with her blocks, along with an excellent explanation of her quilting process.

Although Kate usually send her quilts out to be quilted, I’m so proud of her for quilting this one herself. If she can do it – so can you! Pop on over to her blog to see the whole quilt, plus more inspiring “in progress” pics. You’ll love it!

Kathy Bruckman – Kathy’s Kwilts and More

Squiggles Blocks by Kathy B

I love the aqua and green color scheme that Kathy from Kathy’s Kwilts and More chose for her version of squiggles. Here’s a small sneak peek of some of her blocks!

Squiggles Pillow

I’m impressed that she hand pieced her blocks and then turned them into a pretty pillow sham. Then Kathy took some of her leftovers and turned them into a matching pillow cushion. Isn’t it adorable!! Head over to her blog to see more!

Sharon Parcel – Yellow Cat Quilt Designs

Gridwork in Progress

Sharon from Yellow Cat Quilt Designs was able to find the same charm packs I used in my quilt, and I like how she chose to quilt the wavy grid design that appears later in the book. She took my advice to quilt loosely across the quilt and then fill in with more quilting with each pass across the quilt. This allows you to decide at any point how dense you want your quilting to be.

I designed the quilting plans so that they can be interchangeable throughout the book, and they will work on nearly any quilt you can imagine! Stop by Sharon’s blog to read more about her process and see more helpful pics!

Today’s Gift – Free Pattern with book purchase

Christa Quilts Patterns

Today’s “present” is from me, for those who haven’t yet purchased their copy of the book. I’m extending my offer for a free pattern with book purchase through the end of the hop. That is, when you order the book directly from me, I’ll throw in a bonus printed pattern with your order.

You can either specify the pattern you want in the notes at checkout, or I’m happy to surprise you. But hurry – as this offer only lasts until the blog hop ends!

Piece and Quilt with Precuts signed by Christa Watson

Click here to purchase your signed copy of Piece and Quilt with Precuts.

And of course, I’ll sign your book, too! Just leave me a note if you want me to personalize it. Be sure to check back here tomorrow to learn more about the next quilt, see more inspiring pics, and enter the next giveaway!!

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Quilt in Progress – Exploring Ruler Work

August 14, 2017August 15, 201710 Comments

I’m currently remaking one of my quilts from Piece and Quilt with Precuts while trying out something new at the same time. After all, if I’m not constantly pushing myself to try new things, the hobby that I love can get really old, really fast!! I’m creating another version of “Starstruck” from my new fabric so that I can showcase it at quilt market in the fall right before the fabric releases. (FYI – it’s called Modern Marks from Benartex – available in November!)

Christa Watson Machine Quilting - Modern Marks Fabric

To keep a densely quilted quilt soft, I use cotton fabric, thread and batting. I’m using one layer of Hobbs Tuscany cotton and it is the softest ever. I love it!

I’m also trying out free-motion quilting straight lines using rulers rather than marking or using a walking foot. I have to say up front that it’s been a bit of a struggle and a HUGE learning curve! It’s a whole new movement for me, holding onto the quilt while also holding onto the ruler.

It’s also a bit awkward because where you stitch is actually 1/4″ away from the edge of the ruler to account for the width of the ruler toe. Like I teach my students, practice makes progress, so I’m not taking out any wobbles or wiggles in this quilt – it’s all part of the learning process!

Christa Watson Ruler Work Practice

I love combining straight lines with curvy motifs to create contrast in the quilting.

Right now I’m trying out two different rulers – one has handles on it to help better grip the quilt but the posts can get caught up on the back of the foot when I move it, causing tiny stitches to occur. I find that I get much better results if I keep the ruler on the front or side of the toe while I stitch.

Leah Day Ruler work template

Don’t you love how Leah’s template matches my fabric??? Serendipity at it’s best!!

The other rulers I’m trying out are from Leah Day’s set of Dresden Plate acrylic templates. She gave me a set to try out when we met for lunch at QuiltCon earlier this year, and I love how she so cleverly designed them to double as rulers for ruler work! I seem to get smoother lines without the handles. The smaller size is also ideally suited for a domestic machine since there’s not a lot of room on the bed of the machine.

Working on this quilt gives me renewed appreciation for any of my beginning students as they try free-motion quilting for the first time! Just as I teach my students that they will get better with practice, quilting on “real quilts” is the best way to learn and improve!

Christa Watson ruler work practice I’m having fun trying out lots of different quilting motifs in the stars!

In this quilt, I’m outlining each of the starts by first stitching in the ditch. Then I quilt the middle of each star, then quilt two lines around each star. To make the quilting continuous I’m traveling over a small line after I complete each pass around the star, rather than starting and stopping.

Then I’m quilting a different free-motion design on the outside of each star to add more texture. Most of the quilting motifs I’m stitching come from my books, and a few are new ideas I’m trying out.

Christa Watson free motion quilting Starstruck from Piece and Quilt with Precuts

I love the “pattern on pattern effect!”

To keep it somewhat organized, I’m alternating with a pairing of curvy and geometric free-motion designs in each block. I chose to use a shade of yellow 50 weight cotton Aurifil thread from my Piece and Quilt Collection. It blends in nicely with most of the fabrics and adds a fun layer of pattern on pattern in some of the contrasting areas.

There are definitely some areas of the quilt that look better than others, but I love being a “perfectly imperfect quilter!” (I’m also a perfectly imperfect photographer, but I’d rather show real in-progress pics than nothing at all!)

I’ve learned by trial and error that the best way to hide imperfect stitches is to surround them with more imperfect stitches. 🙂

Yummy Texture created with free motion quiltign by Christa Watson

Can we say “yummy texture?!”

Because I have a longer time frame in which to complete this quilt, I’m really enjoying the process of quilting just a couple of stars each day, without feeling rushed.

I’m liking how this block below is turning out, using the ruler to free-motion quilt my “wonky square spiral” design that I usually teach using a walking foot. I definitely prefer quilting straight lines when they don’t have to line up perfectly!

Ruler work practice

(If you want to improve your ruler work skills check out Amy Johnson’s Craftsy classes on the subject: Quilting with Rulers on a Home Machine, and Creative Quilting with Rulers.)

I’ll be sure and share the final reveal later in the fall, so stay tuned!! Now I just have a few more blocks to finish and then I can relax and enjoy one of my favorite steps beside machine quilting – the hand binding….

What’s your favorite part of the quilt-making process? I’d love to know!

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Last Chance to Get a Free Pattern with Book Purchase

August 7, 2017August 1, 20171 Comment

First of all, thanks so much to those of you who have supported me in this fun quilting journey!! Many of you pre-ordered my book Piece and Quilt with Precuts sight unseen and I’ve now been getting lots of fun notes and comments about how much you all are enjoying it. That gives me the warm fuzzies!!

Because of your tremendous support, the number of sales of my third book from my own site have already surpassed the other two and I couldn’t be more thrilled!!

I’m also realizing how heavy it can be to load up a box of packaged books to take to the post office every couple of days, LOL!!

Shipping Books

Just a reminder that from now through the start of my book blog hop next week, I’m throwing in a bonus pattern when you get your signed copy from me. It’s my way of saying thanks for purchasing direct!

Currently I have six stand alone patterns in print, and each one includes instructions for 4 sizes. Just like my books, I want to help you finish your quilts, so each individual pattern includes machine quilting suggestions, photos or diagrams to help you finish the job! When you place your order for the book simply comment in the notes letting me know which of the 6 patterns you’d like to receive. If you don’t leave a note, I’ll pick one at random for a fun surprise!

I released the first four patterns shown above before I wrote Piece and Quilt with Precuts. Then I released two more shown below, once the bulk of the manuscript was complete. Now that I’m not in the middle of a huge deadline and have a little more breathing room, I’m looking forward to releasing the next batch of patterns this fall. There are so many ideas!!

Christa Quilts Patterns

I’m super excited about the blog hop which starts on my birthday, August 17th! During the hop, I’ll be sharing images of each of the quilts in the book along with friends who have remade them in their own colors and fabric choices. It will be so fun to see all of the variety!! Plus, there will be plenty of gifts (aka giveaways) to celebrate!

Piece and Quilt with Precuts Blog Hop

Now it’s time to go sign and ship another stack of books!! And start dreaming up possibilities for the next round of fun ideas….

Piece and Quilt with Precuts by Christa Watson

Click here to browse my books and patterns

Scrap Happy Quilt on the Cover of American Patchwork and Quilting

July 31, 2017July 23, 201715 Comments

It’s time to share another fun finish! This is Scrap Happy, patterned in the October issue of American Patchwork and Quilting (available now) and I’m pleased that it happened to make the cover!

Scrap Happy by Christa Watson in American Patchwork and Quilting

One of the things I love best about American Patchwork and quilting is the photography. Even those this quilt is about the piecing, I love how well you can see the quilting on the cover shot and in the pattern directions themselves.

The quilting on Scrap Happy is a good example of my “divide and conquer” method I teach in my quilting classes. First I stitched in the ditch around each row of blocks (vertically on each side). Then I outlined the ditch using the edge of my walking foot/dual feed as a guide for spacing. Once the straight line quilting was done, I moved onto the free motion motifs.

Here’s a closeup shot of my own camera-phone photo that I took while making the quilt:

Free Motion quilting detail

I love combining walking foot quilting with free motion in the same quilt! Fabric selection tip: flip over the back of many medium prints to get more variety of lights.

In the scrappy blocks I quilted “woven switchbacks”, which is basically rounded back and forth lines that go in alternate directions in each square. Finally, I quilted “swirls and pearls” in the light backgrounds, combining elongated swirls with pebbles for an interesting design.

Here’s another beauty shot of the whole quilt as photographed in the magazine:

Scrap Happy American Patchwork and Quilting

As you can see – this is a BIG quilt, and yes I actually quilted it on my regular home sewing machine. The key is to “scrunch and smoosh” the bulk of the quilt out of the way as you go, rather than trying to fold it or roll it. Just remember that you are only working with a small part of the machine at any time and if you can keep that area nice and flat, you won’t have any problems.

The design for this quilt is based on a traditional block called “Mock Log Cabin” because of it’s half light/dark coloring. Just like a log cabin, you can set the block a million different ways. I originally designed and made a quilt from similar (but larger) blocks back in the 90’s when I was going through my dusty pink and blue phase, but I prefer the newer version with updated scrappy bright prints. It’s also perfect for using up precut scraps! (In fact, I actually threw in many of the leftovers from my latest book when making this quilt!)

Mock Log Cabin Alternate Layout

An alternate layout for the blocks (not included in the pattern).

Thanks to EQ7, I was able to play around with many different settings before I chose the final layout. Here’s another tip: when working in EQ7, I don’t always have to color the quilt exactly how it will appear. If I’m making a scrappy quilt, I might just mock it up in one colorway as shown in these two examples, knowing it will look great in any color scheme.

Alternate Layout for Mock Log Cabin Blocks

Another alternate block layout – it’s so fun to play!

When working on this design I thought I would make it smaller – but when I realized how many scraps I had, I ended up making it much larger! I really like quilt designs that are easy to size up or down, simply based on the number of blocks that can be made.

The best tip I can give when making this quilt is to just make a few blocks at a time as your scraps accumulate. It’s quite a lot of pieces and you’ll go a little stir crazy trying to make all of the blocks at once. Plus if you use your scraps as you go, you’ll get a really fun scrappy look that will add to its charm.

Click here to see more patterns in the October issue of American Patchwork and Quilting and pick up your copy if you don’t already have a magazine subscription. If you end up making this quilt, do let me know!

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The Books Are Here! Piece and Quilt with Precuts Ships Ahead of Schedule

July 24, 2017July 23, 20177 Comments

I have some exciting news to share today! My third book, Piece and Quilt with Precuts has arrived ahead of schedule! That means that all of you who have pre-ordered my book directly from me should be getting it in the mail over the next few days.

Piece and Quilt with Precuts by Christa Watson

Click here to order Piece and Quilt with Precuts – and get a free bonus pattern!

Needless to say, I plan to spend all day signing and shipping them off. This is always such an exciting day!! Huge thanks to those of you who pre-ordered directly from me. Not only will you get your book ahead of schedule, you are helping me to break a record for pre-sales compared to my other two books. Wowza and thanks!!

Squiggles Quilt from Piece and Quilt with Precuts by Christa Watson

Sneak peek of Squiggles, the first quilt shown in the book. I start off with super simple walking foot quilting like gentle wavy lines. They are such a fun and easy design to quilt!
Photo credit Brent Kane for Martingale/That Patchwork Place.

Now, if you ordered the book from somewhere else, that’s totally fine. I just can’t guarantee when it will arrive since that’s out of my control. But I’m grateful for your support wherever it comes from!

If you haven’t yet ordered Piece and Quilt with Precuts, now is your chance to get your hands on a signed copy ASAP, plus a special bonus. For each book you order directly from me, I’ll throw in one of my printed patterns for all orders placed through my birthday August, 17th! You all have given me the best gift by being my loyal friends and fans – now it’s my turn to give something back. 🙂

Now is a great time to announce that August 17th also kicks off my epic blog hop for the book. I can’t think of a better way to celebrate and party with you all!! The blog hop will run through the end of August, featuring 30 different talented bloggers I met through the Quilt Pattern Designers Facebook group.

You’ll be able to check out each of the quilts I made, plus you’ll be able to see how 30 other “real quilters” were able to easily follow my tips and techniques for piecing and quilting success!

Spools from Piece and Quilt with Precuts by Christa Watson

Spools, is the final quilt shown in the book. It utilizes both improv piecing AND quilting – my favorite combo! Photo credit Brent Kane for Martingale/That Patchwork Place.

And you can’t have a party without presents, so I’ve rounded up some special giveaways throughout the event, plus an extra freebie for everyone who participates!! So save the date and plan to join the fun! It all starts here on August 17th!

Box of Books - Piece and Quilt with Precuts by Christa Watson

It was so exciting to get back from vacation and find several boxes of my books waiting!!

Click here to get your copy of Piece and Quilt with Precuts, signed by yours truly.

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A Crazy Sewing Weekend (and a Bit of a Back Story)

July 18, 2017July 18, 201717 Comments

I was a little MIA last week due to a crazy sewing weekend a few days before. Crazy, but fun!! So it all has to do with my latest big project which will officially be revealed later this year: I designed a line of fabric for Benartex!! Say what???

So here’s a (not-so) quick back story and then onto my latest sewing adventures….

Sew Pro 2016

Discussing the value of joining professional associations at Sew Pro in 2016

Last fall I attended Sew Pro, an industry event for those wanting to make quilting their business. Although it was mainly geared toward those that are just getting their feet wet in the industry, I thought I would attend in order to decide whether or not I wanted to add fabric design to the list of things I do. Tula Pink was one of the keynote speakers along with other fabric designers like Alison Glass and Pat Sloan. After listening to them share more about their process (and seeing their joy in loving what they do), I decided that yes, I wanted to give fabric design a try – so I set about trying to learn how to make that happen, thinking it would likely take a long time to break into that area of the industry.

But then – literally two days after I arrived home from Sew Pro – I got a call from Benartex asking if I wanted to design fabric for their Contempo division. (“What the what??” was my initial response, LOL!!) I’ve never had such a case of the universe listening to me and acting so quickly. For those that don’t know, BERNINA owns Benartex, and since I’m a BERNINA ambassador I guess I was already on their radar. But getting that phone call so soon after I decided I wanted to design fabric was really uncanny. Had they contacted me a week before, it very well could have been a different answer…

So to make a long story even longer… I’ve spent the time from then until now (in between other projects) working with Benartex on my debut line which will be in stores this November.

Designing and producing fabric is such a huge process that revolves around creating the images, translating them into digital printable files, finalizing them on paper, and then getting samples from the overseas mill to make sure it all looks good. The timing is always tricky and it’s hard to plan long term until you are on a regular designing schedule. (In anything new I do, there’s always stuff I don’t know that I don’t know, LOL!!) So that brings us to my crazy sewing weekend.

Modern Marks Swatches

Finalizing fabric swatches on paper before they go to the mill for printing…

While images were being sent to the printer and strikeoffs (small samples from the mill) were sent to me, I was also coordinating with BERNINA to teach a couple of machine quilting classes at their annual flagship event for dealers, BERNINA University. This year it was happening right in my backyard here in Las Vegas (again – thanks, Universe!!)

As luck would have it, my sample yardage arrived 4 days before the start of BU. Benartex told me that if there was anyway I could get a few sample quilt tops made in time, they’d be happy to hang them up in their booth at the event, and allow shop owners to order early.

Modern Marks by Christa Watson

Sample yardage for me to work with…

Now, I usually do all my own “stunts” – priding myself in creating every stitch of my quilts myself. But with just a 4 day lead time, I knew I’d need to call in the reinforcements. Thank goodness for a mom who sews and was willing to drive the 3 1/2 hour drive to my house on a moment’s notice. Between the two of us, we were also able to wrangle a few more sewing friends who took shifts throughout the weekend sewing, pinning, pressing, and helping us keep our sanity.

Sample Sewing Sweatshop!

With the help of 8 friends over 4 days, we were able to sew up 5 quilt tops!!

All in all, we were able to complete 5 tops just in the nick of time, and the feedback I received from attendees at the event made all the craziness worth it! Needless to say, I’ll have a bit more time to quilt them in time for fall quilt market, thank goodness.

Now, I know I run the risk of spoiling the surprise by sharing so much so early, but I just can’t help it – I hate keeping secrets!! If you happen to run your own shop, or you want to recommend my collection to your favorite local shop, please let them know they can contact Benartex directly for more info about Modern Marks by Christa Watson. The collection images won’t be up on Benartex’ website for a few more months, but shops “in the know” can pre-order now (wink…. wink…)

Modern Marks at BERNINA University

I enjoyed sharing sneak peeks of my fabric with attendees at BERNINA University.

Click here see the promotional flyer showing off digital images of the 5 quilt tops I made. I was in such a rush that I didn’t even photograph them when they were done, but I’m sure I’ll share a few more sneak peeks as I finish quilting them over the next few months. So stay tuned!

And now… I’m off to enjoy a much-anticipated family vacation at the beach. After the crazy busy (but fun) year I’m having, I’m looking forward to unplugging for a few days…

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