Monica Curry Quilt Design

Talk about getting a pattern project finished under the wire. I really wanted to have the pattern launch done for my Holiday Magic wall quilt long before Christmas, but Christmas preparations and our new puppy took up most of my time. I love, love, love this pattern and I think you will too. It's made up of simple foundation piecing and fusible web applique. I think it would be stunning in any Christmas fabric. Anyone with basic applique and foundation piecing skills will have no trouble doing this up quickly. We had our own special "holiday magic" this Christmas. Here is our little Pomeranian-cross puppy, Teddy. We adopted him a few weeks ago, and he's settling in quite well although Sophie can be a little impatient with him. Our new puppy Teddy Teddy in his favourite hiding place under the coffee table.

Like most quilters, my fabric stash often fills up faster than I can store it, ending up with me not knowing what I have or what I don't have. Thankfully, I love organizing and having a place for everything and everything in its place. I normally buy fat quarters and charm packs for my projects, so I needed a storage solution that would keep them nicely organized and in plain sight. After much experimenting, I came up with a box that's perfect for storing fat quarters and charm packs. YOU WILL NEED Download the Fat Quarter Storage Box template HERE Printer [1] 24"x 36" cardboard sheet, cut into two 24" x 18" sheets. (Cardboard sheets can be purchased at any art store). tape (I used masking tape) double-sided tape spray glue or large glue stick pencil utility knife MAKING THE BOX TEMPLATE 1. Print the [4] four template pieces. 2. Cut along the inner edges of the template pieces. 3. Line up the pieces using the dots then tape together. Do not overlap. ...

My newest pattern,  Candy Carousel , was inspired by Christmas peppermint candies. This table runner pattern is simple and modern. It would make an excellent project for the confident beginner. Pattern includes instructions for making quick pinwheel blocks.

HOW TO RAISE YOUR CUTTING TABLE TO REDUCE BACK STRAIN  (Updated July 5, 2018) When I worked as a graphic designer, I sat for long hours at the computer. It was easy to get lost in my work and not pay attention to my body. I paid the price, however, because this caused me to suffer from back pain for years. So, when I started quilting more, it became clear that I needed an ergonomically friendly cutting table. There were several options available to me, but I opted to buy the Linnmon/Finvard table from Ikea. This Ikea table height can be adjusted to several heights with a "peg-in-the-hole system." This table was a great buy, but there are other ways to get a raised table without putting out a lot of cash.   Linnmon/Finvard adjustable worktable from Ikea (Discontinued). FIND THE CORRECT TABLE HEIGHT FOR YOU Measure from the floor to about 6 inches below your elbow. This will give you the proper table height for your height. TYPES OF RAISERS 1.  FOLD-AWAY TABLE AND PVC ...

Anyone who has done foundation paper piecing (FPP) knows how frustrating and tedious it is when struggling with bad piecing paper. I've tried most every FPP on the market. I've also tried various tissue papers, tracing papers, parchment paper, copy papers, phone book paper ... well, you get the picture. After all my research, my favourite FPPs are Fun-dation and Sulky Tear Away Stabilizer. Because I do a lot of FPP for my designs, I was excited to see Fun-dation  brand piecing paper go on sale recently at Amazon.ca  for $5 CDN. I ordered five packages. A package has 25 sheets. I'm glad I ordered when I did because the price went back up to $7.69 CDN (which is still not too bad). Fun-dation  brand FPP is the best I've used. It tears away beautifully, it's translucent enough for fabric placement, and it prints well; I love this stuff. One package of Fun-dation  works out to about 0.31 cents a sheet.  Fun-dation Foundation Piecing Pa...

Quilt patterns can come in many sizes. But what if the size of the pattern isn't the size you want? Maybe you want a throw instead of a mini quilt or a baby quilt instead of a king-size. To resize your pattern or block, you need to know the percentage to reduce or enlarge the pattern templates. Read below to learn three easy ways to get the percentage you need to resize templates. THREE METHODS FOR RESIZING YOUR QUILTS AND BLOCKS 1. DO THE MATH Below is the very simple formula to get the percentage for reducing or enlarging. ENLARGING : Measure the shortest length of the original block size? e.g. 6 inches What size do you want the new block to be? e.g. 8 inches Divide the new size by the original size, e.g. 8 ÷ 6 = 1.33. Move the decimal point two steps to the right to get your percentage = 133%. Enter 133% into the copy machine to enlarge your 6-inch block to an 8-inch block.  REDUCING : Do the opposite of above. Divide the small size (e.g. 6") by the large size (e...

A couple of years ago I posted a  Halloween floral arrangement that I made for my home. This year, I made a Halloween wreath for my front door. I turn 60 this October and I love Halloween, so I'm having a birthday/Halloween party for my big day. I wanted a pretty wreath on the door to greet my guests. I saw some beautiful wreaths on Pinterest with skulls and  ghoulish stuff, but I wanted a floral wreath. Everything I used to make this wreath is from the dollar store. It cost about $15 to make which proves you don't need a lot of money to pretty up your home for Halloween.  Happy Halloween one and all!