Appleton Dance

by Linda Theil  Australian Ali Philips of Arabesque Scissors recently updated her "Smart Sofa Station" pattern, and begins a sew-along event to make this convenient couch pocket for craft accessories tomorrow, February 10, 2025. I began preparing for the sew-along before Christmas, and prepared so well that I found myself with a completed project yesterday. My efforts are less elaborate than the extensive pattern provides, but I think my version will be a great convenience for stitching while watching BritBox. My working interior was made using fabrics from the "Peas & Carrots" collection by American Jane Patterns/Sandy Klop for Moda in 2005. The exterior fabric is from "Sewing Mends the Soul" collection by Laura Claire for Henry Glass & Co. The binding is "Scarf Stripe Red" from the "White as Snow" collection by J Wecker Frisch for Riley Blake. The completed project measures 10 x 22-inches and features multiple options for...

by linda Theil I made several adaptations to Noodlehead's "Plover Pouch" for Emerson's birthday present. I had previously given her a medium-sized "Plover Pouch" that she added a cross-body strap to, so thought I'd make her a larger, sturdier bag with the crossbody strap built in. I modified the zip-end detail featured in the pattern to allow me to insert the strap ends into the top of the gusset. The "Plover Pouch" pattern includes three sizes with the largest measuring 12 x 7.5 x 4-inches. For the large bag, I used "Hedgehog Hollow" cottons by In the Beginning fabrics for the front and back exterior panels and the lining. I machine quilted the front and back panels to increase the stiffness of the bag, and I interfaced the lining with iron-on fleece as well. That was actually an accident, but the fleece interfacing in the lining worked out pretty well. The side-panel and bag-base gusset are made of Mora faux leather. I used a #5 dou...

  Velma Swaddle Theil & Stephen A. Theil, Jr. 1945 by Linda Theil When we were married, Steve's mother gave us an ornament from his first Christmas tree in 1944 to adorn our first Christmas tree in 1969. Steve was almost a year old on his first Christmas, but he had never met his father because his dad was in Europe fighting in the Second World War. His father was over thirty-years-old when he had been drafted into service; and he would not meet his son until another year had gone by. His first Christmas tree ornament was a tiny drum made from a tuna can, adorned with decorative paper decals proclaiming "Goodfellows Drum Corp". Two small wooden drumsticks were attached, but only one remains. Since our granddaughter, Emerson, is a percussionist in her middle-school band, I gifted her the drum this Christmas in remembrance of the grandfather and great-grandfather she has never known. Although my husband's father never spoke of his time in the service, recently Alisa...

  by Linda Theil Alisa gave me Girardelli chocolates and pre-cut fabric as tiny gifts in my 2024 Advent calendar celebrating each December day leading up to the holiday celebration. By Christmas I had an entire "jelly-roll" of 2.5-inch-wide strips of fabric from the "Holiday Flourish-Festive Finery" collection from Robert Kaufmann fabrics. I pulled some background and a blender from my stash and started researching block options so that I would be ready to sew once holiday festivities were over. One of the options I explored is a beautiful book, I Love House Blocks: 14 Quilts from an All-time Favorite Block , published by Martingale & Co. in 2017. A house block with a shed-like addition called "Little Country Home" caught my eye. The layout was adaptable to my 2.5-inch-wide strips, so I made a sample block as proof of concept. The block has a barn-like quality that I liked, so in  honor of my snowmobile-builder son, I decided to put a snowmobile in th...

by Linda Theil I think this Hedgehog Hollow ensemble is the most beautiful quilt I have ever made. I bought the "Hedgehog Hollow" collection and printed panel by In the Beginning Fabrics in 2022. I began experimenting with the materials soon after discovering Brigitte Heitland's "Christmas Star" pattern designed for her Zen Chic "White Christmas" collection for Moda in 2018.  I fell completely in love with this elegant and complex pattern combining a cross with a ribbon-star motif.  In the meantime, I became intrigued by a kaleidoscope piecing tutorial I saw on the Missiouri Star YouTube channel. I had seen the kaleidoscope technique before, but this tutorial really caught my eye and made me want to give kaleidoscope piecing a try! The tutorial is titled "Triple Play: How to make three new kaleidoscope quilts". I began experimenting with kaleidoscope piecing as a way to highlight the many unique motifs featured in the "Hedgehog Hollow...

by Linda Theil I started this quilt during the Denyse Schmidt Cog + Wheel Sew Along 2022. I made four huge blocks, sewed them together with some black sashing and put them in my unfinished-projects box. I pulled the quilt out this fall and decided it looked great with a wide turquoise border.  With all the sashing and borders, the finished size was about 54-inches square. I sent it off to the Rockin' Bobbins long-armer, and backed the quilt with the flat sheet from a striped flanel sheet set from Target. We used a stem-punk quilting motif to augment the industrial theme. The quilt turned out so strong I thought my grandson would like it for his new basement apartment in his family home. I bought two new pillows for the cases that came with the sheet set that we used for the backing, and included the queen-sized fitted sheet to complete the ensemble.