Creative Spaces Blog Hop Week 6 – Organizing Rulers

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Can you believe that the Creative Spaces Blog Hop wraps up this week? (I’m posting a couple days late due to my Dot ‘n’ Dash quilt along which just stared on Friday). If you have missed any of the Creative Spaces posts, be sure to click the links of all the designers listed the end of this post, and scroll back through their feeds to catch them all.

Creative Spaces Blog Hop Week 6

Previous Creative Spaces Blog Posts

Here’s a link of the other 5 posts I wrote for the hop if you’d like to check them out:

How I Organize My Rulers

This week, we are chatting about organizing our rulers and tools. I’m not much of a gadget gal, but I do love me some acrylic rulers! I have a lot of them: short ones, long ones, various size squares and specialty shapes. In the past, I used to organize them with small wooden racks that had grooves cut in them like this:

Acrylic ruler holder

This worked for a time, but I found it to be a bit too clunky and it took up too much space. So recently, I’ve switched to storing the smaller rulers in a plastic drawer in my storage closet like this:

Storing small acrylic rulers in a drawer

A bin of plastic drawers works well for my small acrylic rulers.
You can see some of my Aurifil Thread spools peeking out from the other drawers.

I hang my larger rulers using small command hooks attached to the outside of my storage closets. I like the small 1/2 pound size because the silver hooks easily fit in the holes of my rulers. Each hook can hold up to 2 rulers with no problem.

command hooks for organization

Command hooks are an inexpensive and versatile storage solution.

I have two of these storage closets shown below, so it provides lots of space on the outside for my rulers. They are easy to reposition if I need to change my configuration. I also use the command hooks to store some of my show ribbons which bling up my space nicely. 🙂

Storing Acrylic Rulers

I’m in my sewing space 8-10 hours each day so I make use of every nook and cranny for storage!

I routinely purge my rulers and other tools if I find I haven’t used them in awhile. A general rule for decluttering I try to employ is this: if you aren’t sure you want to get rid of something, put it in a box in a closet for 6 months. If you haven’t touched it in that time, you probably never will, so get rid of it!

Be sure to check out the other blog hoppers for tips and tricks on how they store their rulers and other tools. And leave me a comment below letting me know how you control the clutter in your sewing room.

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Dot ‘n’ Dash Quilt Along Week 1 – Schedule and Introductions

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Welcome to Dot ‘n’ Dash Quilt Along where we will make an entire quilt together from start to finish.

Dot n Dash Quilt AlongThis remake showcases Fandangle, my second fabric line from Benartex.

Please note: I have updated this design to be a stand alone pattern called Ticker Tape. Click here to get the Ticker Tape PDF pattern.
The newer version is made from my Dazzle Dots fabric line from Benartex. I’m excited to share my gift of quilting knowledge with you during the quilt along. I don’t just want to teach you how to piece a fun quilt, I also want to help you quilt it, too! So without further ado, here’s the quilt along schedule that we’ll follow over the next 8 weeks. All posts will go live on Fridays which will be a great start to your weekend! Links will go live each week as we quilt along so bookmark this page so you can refer back to it time and again as needed.

Dot ‘n’ Dash Quilt Along Schedule

Week 1 – Schedule, Supply List and Introductions (You are here!) Week 2 – Cutting the Fabric Week 3 – Sewing the Blocks Week 4 – Completing the Quilt Top Week 5 – Backing and Basting Week 6 – Quilting Part 1 – Stitching in the Ditch Week 7 – Quilting Part 2 – Quilting Double Zig-Zags Week 8 – Quilting Part 3 – Free Motion Quilting Double L’s Week 9 – Binding

Dot ‘n’ Dash with light gray background recolored in EQ8

Remember – you can use any fabrics you like to make this quilt. Choose a jelly roll of your favorite prints and pair them up with a contrasting background: light gray, dark grey, black, white, or any other color you like. It will be fun to see all the variety!

Materials List

Fandangle Strip-pie

Here’s a list of everything you’ll need to make this quilt:
  • The Quilt Pattern – Ticker Tape
  • One jelly roll (or 40 precut 2 1/2″ strips of assorted prints – includes binding)
  • 3 yards of background fabric (or a light colored jelly roll – all one fabric, or a mix is ok)
  • 4 yards of backing fabric
  • 67″ x 79″ piece batting (I recommend natural fiber like cotton, wool, or silk)
  • Rotary cutter with fresh blade and mat
  • Long 24″ acrylic ruler for cutting strips, shorter ruler or square for cutting smaller pieces
  • Thread for piecing (I recommend 50 weight Aurifil cotton in a neutral color)
  • Thread for machine quilting (1-2 large spools depending on the density of your quilting)
  • Sewing machine in good working order with 1/4″ seam allowances
  • Walking foot (or dual feed) and free motion foot to fit your machine
  • Brand new needle to match your thread (size 80/12 for 50 weight thread)
  • Sewing notions: thread snips, pins, dry iron for pressing, etc.
  • Optional: Machingers Gloves and Supreme Slider
  • A “can-do” attitude because this is going to be fun!
Fandangle fabric by Christa Watson for Benartex Contempo

You can either use precut strips, or select yardage to cut your own!

This Week’s Homework – gathering and Sharing

Did I mention there will be homework each week? But don’t worry – it’s the fun kind!! This week, gather your material and supplies, share pictures of the fabrics you’ll be working with, and introduce yourself over in my ChristaQuilts Facebook group, or on instagram using the hashtag #dotndashqal. Part of the fun of any quilt along is getting to know each other and cheering each other on. So feel free to share pictures of your sewing space and be sure to interact with each other as we go. If you want to blog about your process, you can share a link to your blog post in the comments so everyone can check it out! Fandangle fabrics for quilt along

I can’t wait to see the fabrics everyone chooses. Even if you choose the same fabric as me, your quilt will still look totally unique!

And remember, it’s okay to work at your own pace. If you want to work ahead or need more time, that’s perfectly fine. Just remember to share as that’s half the fun! I’ll meet you back here next week where we’ll dive into cutting. I can’t wait!! Dot n Dash quilt by Christa Watson

Dot ‘n’ Dash Finished Size is 60″ x 72″ but can easily be made larger.

Beaded Lanterns Quilt Along Starts Sept 10 with BERNINA

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I know many of you are excited about the Dot ‘n Dash quilt along which starts on Friday!! But you know what? I love quilt alongs so much I’m starting another one a few weeks later!! My Beaded Lanterns Quilt Along will be hosted over on the BERNINA We All Sew Blog and it will run in a similar format: 6 weeks of start to finish tutorials to make an entire quilt!

Beaded Lanterns Quilt Along

Click here to grab a quilt kit to make this quilt using Fandangle fabric.

I’m using my Fandangle fabric to make my version of the quilt shown above, and I’m offering a limited number quilt kits over at shop.christaquilts.com if you want to make one just like it.

All you need to make this quilt are a jelly roll (set of precut 2 1/2″ srips) and 4 yards of background fabric. The pattern for this quilt along is a free pattern I created for with Benartex to help promote the fabric line.  Of course it would look fabulous in any fabrics you choose!

Beaded Lanterns by Christa Watson

Click here to get the free PDF pattern to make Beaded Lanterns.

Now I don’t want to stress you out with the idea of two quilt alongs overlapping for a few weeks at the same time. Both will be available indefinitely so you can do them at any time!

The hashtag for this quilt along on instagram is #beadedlanternsqal so be sure to share your progress so I can see how you are doing. When the QAL launches over on the BERNINA blog, you’ll be able to share over there, too, on their community site.

I can’t wait – it’s going to be fun!! And really, my quilt alongs are just an excuse for me to play with my new Fandangle fabric as much as possibile, LOL!!

Beaded Lanterns Quilt Along

Click here for full quilt along details on the BERNINA blog – we all sew.

Finished Quilts – Surplus Strips in Warm and Cool

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Click here to get the Surplus Strips quilt pattern – print version.
Click here to get the Surplus Strips quilt pattern – PDF version.

Surplus Strips quilts made from Fandangle by Christa WatsonThis pattern is perfect for using up leftover jelly roll strips, or color-coordinated scraps!

I made two versions of Surplus Strips to showcase the warm and cool colorways of Fandangle, but this pattern would look great in any fabrics! The name of the pattern is a play on words. I’ve been enjoying seeing lots of plus quilts with a modern vibe and I wanted to design a pattern that could be easily made with 2 1/2″ precut strips.

Surplus Strips Warm by Christa Watson

Click here to purchase Fandangle fabric to make your own version of Surplus Strips.

You could use all new fabric like I did, or you could use your leftovers or the “surplus” from your scrap bin. The easiest way to pull fabrics is to select a couple of colors you like and pair them with a high-contrast background fabric.

Surplus Strips Cool by Christa WatsonIt only takes 9 different 1/3 yard cuts + background, but you can go as scrappy as you like!
One 2 1/2″ x 40″ strip will be enough for 2 blocks.

The inspiration for Surplus Strips came from some really cool looking hotel carpet I saw during one of my many travels last year. Whenever I see a great textural image or architectural design, I always snap a pic because you never know when inspiration is going to strike!

I love the asymmetrical plus shapes shown below. When I saw that, I immediately knew I wanted to make a quilt based on this design. Of course it took awhile to figure out the math and get the proportions and colors right, but it was a fun challenge to figure out!

Inspiration for my desing - hotel carpet

Some worn hotel carpet was the inspiration behind the design of my Surplus Strips quilts.

I quilted both versions of Surplus Strips with a different allover free-motion design similar to designs in the fabric line. On the warm colorway, I quilted “jagged stipple” which inspired the “Paper Cuts” design in the collection.

Free Motion Quilting on Surplus Strips Warm

My jagged stipple quilting motif inspired the “Paper Cuts” print, above, in orange and yellow.

Because I had a limited amount of fabric while making these quilts, I didn’t have enough of any one fabric for the backing of the warm version, so I created an interesting secondary composition, or “back art” instead!

I sewed a few extra plus blocks and used nice big leftover chunks of coordinating prints. I love making pieced backings when I have enough time, and it’s a great way to add interest to the quilt.

Surplus Strips Warm Pieced backingPieced backings are my favorite!! It’s almost like a two -sided quilt!

When quilting the cool colorway, I used another favorite free-motion motif which inspired another one of the prints in the collection:

Free Motion quilting detail on Surplus strips by Christa WatsonBe sure to click any of the images in this post to enlarge and see more details.

My arrowheads quilting design is a really dense echo triangle shape which is fun to quilt and adds tons of texture. It inspired the “Triangle Trinkets” print which you can see peeking out on the back and in the blue/green print above and below.

free-motion detail by Christa Watson

Don’t you love the refreshing ocean colors of blue and green??

I had so much fun making these quilts and now I want to make them in a rainbow of colors!! The quilt pattern makes it super easy to do and is written for both yardage or precut strips.

Surplus Strips Quilt PatternClick here to view all of my quilt patterns – print versions.
Click here to view all of my quilt patterns – PDF versions.

Surplus Strips Finished Stats

  • Designed and made by Christa Watson
  • Completed May, 2018
  • Finished sizes 67″ x 82″
  • Pieced and quilted on my BERNINA 770 QE
  • Quilt design: free motion jagged stipple (warm) and arrowheads (cool)
  • Fabric is Fandangle by Christa Watson for Benartex Contempo Studio
  • Quilting thread: Aurifil 50 wt #3660 Bubble Gum (warm) and #4662 Creme De Menthe (cool)
  • Batting is Hobbs Tuscany Silk (warm) Tuscany 100% Cotton (cool)

Surplus Strips quilts in warm and cool, made with Fandangle fabric by Christa WatsonClick here to get yardage of Fandangle for a limited time.

More About the Making of Surplus Strips

Creative Spaces Blog Hop Week 5 – Organizing my Thread

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Are you having a fun time getting organized with your creative space? Even if you are only virtually following along, that can be tons of fun, too! Be sure to scroll to the end of this post for links to all 16 creatives on the Creative Spaces Blog Hop. I’m getting inspired, and hope you are, too!

Creative Spaces Blog Hop

This week we are discussing ways to organize our embellishments: buttons, trims, thread, and what have you. Here’s a not-so-secret truth about my work: I’m a minimalist and I don’t really embellish my quilts. (FYI, that’s why I find it hilarious that I named my current fabric line Fandangle  – a real, but silly-sounding word that means excess embellishment or ornamentation, LOL!!)

But anyway, back to today’s post! I choose to decorate my quilts with quilting and thread rather than bling them up with buttons or beads, so I’ll share a bit about the thread I love to use.


I love being able to get an exact thread match, no matter which fabrics I choose! This is an in-progress shot when I was making my modern Abacus wallhanging – (PDF pattern available here).

My favorite thread is Aurifil 50 weight cotton and I use it for everything: piecing, quilting, binding and machine applique. It comes in every color of the rainbow and I love mixing and matching thread colors to the fabrics I use.

During my last huge quilting cleanup I decided that it was high time to organize my thread stash. I sold or donated anything that wasn’t Aurifil and I keep all of my threads in plastic drawers sorted by color. The drawers are located in a shelving unit with doors so that the threads are kept away from heat and light (just like my fabric).

I have drawers full of Aurifil thread to choose from, sorted mostly into warm and cool hues.

The picture above is actually an older image that shows a small collection of other weights, too. But since then, I’ve gotten rid of those, too. I really only use 50 weight now for everything.

Aurifil Thread Squiggles

I love taking the time to “audition” my threads to see which will work best. Above is an image from a recent quilt along I did to showcase my first fabric line, Modern Marks.
Quilting it was just as much fun as sewing the top!

One of the main reasons I chose to simplify my thread stash is for purely logistical reasons. I didn’t want to have to keep track of all the different types of thread, in all the different sizes, and worry about which bobbin matches which thread!

Once I find something that works, I tend to stick with it and don’t really need to veer outside my comfort zone. Besides, since I piece and quilt with the same thread, I know what to expect performance-wise in each and every quilt that I make.

Aurifil Cotton Thread

If I’m not sure which thread to pick, many times I’ll choose a soft neutral with just a hint of color!
This is a detail shot of Modern Puzzle, one of the free quilt patterns I offer.

The nice thing about being able to piece AND quilt with the same thread is that I can always use up leftover quilting bobbins whenever I piece my next quilt, especially if it’s scrappy.

In fact, I’m so gung-ho on thread being able to do double duty that I curated a collection of my favorite threads with Aurifil – the Piece and Quilt Collection in Colors and Neutrals.

Piece and Quilt Aurifil thread by Christa Watson

My threads with Aurifil have been hot sellers for several years now because they cover all the basics! Want to go wild and colorful? Choose the Colors collection.

Piece and Quilt Neutrals Aurifil Thread from Christa Quilts

If you prefer to tone it down, choose the Neutrals collection. I love storing these in the Aurifil thread boxes, because that helps keep the clutter under control when it comes to thread!

I’ve been quilting with Aurifil exclusively since around 2013. I’ve tried many brands in the past, but none of them gave me satisfactory results. I tried other brands that friends raved about, only to be disappointed with how they performed in my machine. So my biggest piece of advice when figuring out what you like is to get a small spool, quilt it on a real quit and see what you and your machine like best!

How do you like to store YOUR threads, or other embellishments? Leave me a comment and let me know!

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Writing Book 4 – Part 2: Contract Accepted, Work Begins

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If you are new to my blog, I’ve begun documenting my progress as I write a book from start to finish. In my last post, I discussed the book proposal process, so be sure to check that out! I’m currently working on my fourth book, and kinda maybe sorta know more about what I’m doing this time around. Just kidding about the “sorta” part, but it’s always a learning process, for sure!!

Christa Watson Books

I’ve written 3 books on my own and have been featured in numerous collaborations with my publisher Martingale/That Patchwork Place, a few of which are shown here.

So here’s what’s happened so far. After I submitted my proposal back in April of this year, I met with my publisher in person in May at Spring Quilt Market 2018 in Portland, OR. I had an in-depth meeting with the acquisitions editor and content editor to nail down the specifics of what the new book will be about (machine quilting – duh!!)

I had originally wanted to go in one direction with the book, but when they pointed out that some of the content I wanted to include was already covered in my first three books, they helped me narrow down my focus and solidify the overall direction for this new book.

Martingale Collaboration Books

Two new Martingale titles that debuted at Spring Quilt Market include Fat Quarter Favorites, featuring my quilt on the cover, and Lunch Hour Patchwork which includes my modern mini.

A couple of months after our meeting at market, Martingale offered me the formal contract in writing, which of course I accepted, and I made myself a time line/to do list of all the steps I’ll need to finish on time.

The first section of the book isn’t due until the next February and the final manuscript, instructions, and samples are due by the end of summer 2019. I’m thrilled because this will give me plenty of time to create the book along with other new and exciting projects I have in the works.

The most wonderful part about working with a publisher is that although I create all of the content, including “placeholder” photos and illustrations, Martingale has a team of professionals who photograph and illustrate everything based on my images. I love it when they take what I create and make it look even more beautiful!

Publishing Agreement for my Next Book

Happy mail! Getting the contract in the mail is always an exciting day!

Book 4 (as I will be calling it until the cover art is finalized) is slated to be 96 pages which is the same length as my most recent book Piece and Quilt with Precuts. Of course that can change depending on final editing, and it’s due to be published in September of 2020 (also subject to change). I have a working title for the book, but even that can be tweaked.

As an example, for my first three books, the publisher named the first two while I titled the third. I have a feeling that the title for Book 4 is something we both are in agreement on! (Sorry for all the teases, but I’m giving away only as much as I can at this point.)

I can’t say enough about how excited I am to work on this new book. It’s actually something that many of my students have been asking for, so I love being able to meet their needs. And the best thing about machine quilting is that it’s timeless: the ideas I create now will be just as relevant in two years when the book is available for sale. Even though that seems like a long way off right now, I know that time is going to fly!

Christa at Quilt Market 2015

Doing a demo for my first book at quilt market in 2015

While I can’t discuss the specifics of my contract, I can tell you that royalties are based on the wholesale price of the book, and I will also have the opportunity to purchase them wholesale myself. In fact, most authors who sell their own books make more from direct sales of their books than they do in royalties, so it’s something to keep in mind if you are considering writing a book, or purchasing a book directly from the author.

Now the real work begins. The toughest part for me is balancing out my workdays so that I work on my book a little each week, rather than trying to cram in everything right before the deadline. I’m currently planning in detail everything that needs to be done, and my publisher was fabulous to work with on the timing, since I let them know I wouldn’t really be able to start on it in earnest until after Fall Market later this year.

Machine Quilting Demo

Machine quilting demo to promote my latest fabric and book at Spring Quilt Market 2018. I will be doing lots and lots and lots of quilting over the next few months. I can’t wait!

I have to be honest and say it’s been nice to have a two year break from book writing, since work on my previous book was completed in 2016, a full year before the publish date. But now I feel refreshed, re-energized, and excited to dive into the new work! I’ll be sure to keep you updated on my progress, and will share a few sneak peeks as I can, so stay tuned!

In the meantime, if you have questions about the book writing process, please ask away in the comments below. If there’s enough interest, I’ll be glad to do a separate blog post devoted to answering your questions about anything I haven’t covered so far. I love sharing what I know and inspiring others to reach their goals, no matter how big or small!

Dot ‘n’ Dash Quilt Along Begins August 17

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Are you ready? The Quilt Along for Dot ‘n’ Dash kicks off next week on Friday, August 17th!

Dot 'n Dash quilt by Christa Watson

We had fun photographing the finished quilt at the beach.
Dot ‘n’ Dash Finished Size 60″ x 72″

On that date, I’ll share the complete quilt-along schedule and there will be plenty of time to gather your materials, share the fabrics you’ll be working with and get to know everyone else who’s participating.

Kits Available for a Limited Time

Dot n Dash with Fandangle Light Gray

I’m offering two versions of the Dot ‘n Dash Quilt Kit – with either a light or dark grey background. Both will look fantastic, but I only cut a limited number, so grab one before they’re gone!

And don’t forget to grab a copy of my book, Piece and Quilt with Precuts for the instructions you’ll need to follow along.

Click here to purchase the Dot ‘n’ Dash Quilt Kit while supplies last.

Dot n Dash quilt with Fandangle Dark grey

You’ll notice in my finished version I didn’t include any of the light gray strips in the blocks as shown above. I think it looks great either way. There’s enough fabric that you can customize it however you like!

Materials List

Click here to get coordinating yardage of Fandangle

I can’t wait to cheer you on as we make this quilt from start to finish. I’m going to cover all the basics from cutting, to pressing and piecing to sewing the backing. And then we’re going to baste, quilt and bind it. So if you follow along each week, you’ll have a finished quilt by the end of the quilt along!

Machine Quilting detail on Dot n Dash

I’m excited to teach you two fun new quilting designs based on the designs in my book!
Click here to get your signed copy of Piece and Quit with Precuts, shipped asap.

And not to worry if you join later: you can work at your own pace, and the quilt along posts will stay up indefinitely! To follow along, make sure you are subscribed to my blog so you get an email each time a new post have gone live.

(To subscribe – add your email in the box on the side bar on the right. If you are viewing this from a mobile device, you’ll need to scroll ALLLL the way to the bottom of the screen to find the subscribe box.)

Machine Quilting on Dot n Dash

Be sure to join my Christa Quilts Facebook group to share pictures of your quilt in progress, and use the hashtags #fandanglefabric and #dotndashqal on instagram to share your work!

Creative Spaces Blog Hop Week 4 – Fabric!

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This week on the Creative Spaces Blog hop, 16 of us are discussing how we deal with our fabric stashes. Scroll to the end of this post for links to everyone  on the hop.

For me, the first step in cleaning and organizing my fabric stash was going through it and deciding what I wanted to keep and what I didn’t. I’ve been quilting for nearly 25 years and as you can imagine, that’s a lot of fabric accumulation! My tastes have changed over the years and a few years ago, I finally decided it was ok to let go of things that no longer interested me.

My quilt Stash

This was my stash before my great studio cleanup of 2013-2014.

During my last big studio cleanup and what I called the great destash of 2013, I got rid of over half of my fabric stash. The image above is my “before” picture of my stash that filled two large shelving units.

In the image below, I invited a friend of mine who was just starting her quilting journey to come over and pick out as much fabric as she wanted to jump start her own stash. She took home enough to get her started on several quilts – and it barely made a dent in my stash!

Raiding the Stash

This was during the great destash of 2013

So then I decided it was time to either sell or donate as much fabric as I could. I stuffed big boxes full of prints I no longer wanted by colorway and offered them up for a very low price both on instagram and on my website. There’s a hashtag on instagram that most folks use – #thegreatfabricdestash – when wanting to get rid of unwanted fabric.

Whatever I didn’t sell was donated to a friend of mine who runs a chapter of Project Linus in her area. In fact she’s the mother- in-law of my friend above, and she’s my go-to person whenever my scraps and unwanted fabric accumulate beyond a reasonable amount. I like knowing that my fabric is finding a good home and being made into quilts that help comfort kids in need.

Fabric Destash

Getting rid of fabric I don’t use. My discards are someone else’s treasures!

Selling and donating tons of fabric helped immensely and I was now left with about half of my original stash, and stuff I actually wanted to use. I organized it by color and everything was able to fit into one shelving unit, behind closed doors. The second shelving unit now houses my notions and supplies, books and extra batting scraps.

My Quilting Stash after the big cleanup

My stash organized by color, with works in progress in buckets and bins.
You can definitely see I prefer bright colors, with a healthy dose of neutrals.

Although my stash is now tame and manageable, I’m starting to feel the need to cull it again. Now that I’m designing my own fabric, I’m not as interested in working with fabrics that aren’t mine. At first I kind of felt weird about it, and thought maybe I was losing my creative mojo, then I started noticing that a lot of designers only work exclusively with their own stuff. Whew! That makes me feel better!

When I released my first line of fabric, Modern Marks last fall, I took over one shelf for my own personal collection of the line. Of course I had to consolidate some of my other stash to make room for the new arrivals. I bought some comic book boards to wrap the unwashed yardage on and you can see some of the washed pile of Modern Marks peeking out to the left in the image below.

Christa's Fabric from Benartex Contempo Modern Marks and Fandangle

Modern Marks and Fandangle play very nicely together!

Now that my second collection – Fandangle – is out there in the world, I’m taking up nearly two shelves of my fabric storage area.

What I will probably do is keep most of my regular stash until the volume of fabric I designed takes over. I was really tempted to just buy a full bolt of each to keep, but I know that would quickly take over the house once I’ve got a few more collections under my belt, LOL!!

I’m curious – how do you manage YOUR stash? Leave me a comment and let me know!

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Creative Spaces Blog Hop Week 4

EQ Design Challenge: Design a Quilt with Fandangle – Win the Fabric to Make It!

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For all of my Electric Quilt loving friends out there, I’ve teamed up with Benartex and EQ to bring you a fun challenge this month! Use any of the fabrics from my latest collection Fandangle to design a quilt you’d like to make using EQ7, EQ8, EQ Stitch, or EQ Mini.

Click here for complete contest details and entry.

Fandangle Fabric by Christa Watson for Benartex Contempo Studio

Fandangle collection by Christa Watson for Benartex Contempo Studio

Three winners will each win the fabric they need to make the quilt! Complete details along with the link to download the Fandangle fabric swatches are over on the EQ blog today, so check it out! The contest will run through the end of the month.

Electric Quilt 8

I personally love using EQ8 to design all of my quilts because I usually have to design and write all of my quilt patterns for any new fabric collection months before I get the fabric. EQ makes it easy for me to see exactly how my finished quilt will look before I even make the first cut!

Fandangle by Christa Watson

If you are on instagram, be sure to also share your designs using the hashtags #fandanglefabric and #eq8. I can’t wait to see what you create!

EQ design challenge

Finished Quilt – Sparkling Stars

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I’m excited to finally share “glamour” shots of my finished quilt Sparkling Stars which  was made to showcase my latest fabric line – Fandangle – from Benartex Contempo Studio.

Click here to purchase the kit to make this quilt.

Sparkling Stars Quilt by Christa Watson

I design all of my quilts in Electric Quilt so that I know exactly how they are going to look with the chosen fabrics. The EQ design is shown above left. The finished quilt is above right.

My favorite thing about this quilt (besides the fabric of course) is the quilting design I chose. I quilted it with a large continuous spiral. This is one of my favorite designs to quilt with a walking foot or dual feed.

Spiral quilting detail

I teach how to quilt the continuous spiral design in my book Machine Quilting with Style, and also in my Craftsy class, The Quilter’s Path.

This quilting design is super fun and fast to quilt and it’s hard to go wrong! I used a variegated Aurifil 50 weight thread to add a little something “extra” to the quilt.

Walking foot quilting large spiral

In these extreme closeups the slight wobbles give the quilt interest and when you step back to admire the quilt, all you see is amazing texture!

Spiral Quilting on Sparkling Stars

Below are some more pictures we took while on a recent family vacation at the beach. We love taking long walks and exploring our surroundings to scout out scenic locations.

Sparkling Stars Quilt by Christa Watson

It was Jason’s job to climb to the edge of this rocky cliff and style the quilt. All the while I was holding my breath, hoping the wind wouldn’t catch the quilt and toss it into the sea!!

Sparkling Stars quit photography

Just imagine how peaceful this was, the waves breaking on the rocks, and us enjoying mother nature at it’s best! Every now and then a wave would splash on the rocks., but fortunately we were high enough up  that the quilt didn’t get wet.

Sparkling Stars Quilt by Christa Watson

I love how the wind blew the quilt so that it naturally folded on itself.

The bright colors really stand out against the gray ocean, charcoal colored rocks, and even the sandy beach.

Sparkling Stars Quilt by Christa Watson

One of our favorite vacation spots is Hermosa Beach, California, and I think I need to go on lots more adventures just so we can take more pics of my quilts in scenic locations!

Sparkling Stars Quilt by Christa Watson

Click here to get the Sparkling Stars quilt kit – (only a few left!)

Sparkling Stars Finished Stats

Sparkling Stars Quilt Pattern

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Sparkling Stars Quilt by Christa Watson

Links to additional information about this quilt

Click here for the making of Sparkling Stars part 1
Click here for the making of Sparkling Stars part 2
Click here for the making of Sparkling Stars part 3