Making it my own #mystashmystyle

I'm so excited to share this project with you today - it's part of the #mystashmystyle contest I'm co-hosting with my fellow Martingale author, Jenifer Gaston. We're using each other's projects to re-imagine and re-style with our own stashes.

My inspiration project came from Jeni's book, Primitive Style. On the book cover, the pillow on the left of the bench is her project called "Resting Place". Isn't that sweet?! So perfect for Spring. I loved it and decided to make it over in my style.

My helpful hint for changing up fabric selection on a project: pay attention to value as you make your substitutions. So for example, my background fabric is grey - not beige as in the original - but the value (in this case, lightness) of the fabric is about the same. I did the same when picking the alternate fabrics for the leaves, bird, flowers, etc. This way you'll still end up with the same effect... but in your own color-way.

My fabric pull for my project...of course I have my seam ripper out, just in case!

Since I wasn't using wool like the Primitive Style project, I made three major changes to make the project work for me - yes! you really can do that!:

First, I decided to use fusible applique and top-stitch on my machine.

Fusible applique with top stitching in progress...

Second, because I was using cotton and I wanted to include batting for a nice finish on my pillow, I layered the batting behind my appliqued pillow top and quilted the two layers together before finishing the construction of my pillow. Here's what the quilting looked like from the back side - you can see it a little better than on the finished project.

Quilting shown from the back...

And third, I decided to change out the penny rug curved edges on the original project with nested prairie points so I would still have a similar design element with a nice finished edge. Prairie points let me do that. They are super easy, here's a link to tutorial on prairie points. And just fyi - for my pillow, I kept all of Jeni's original cutting and instruction sizes, I just started my nested prairie points with 5" squares.


And here's my finished project in my style!

Front

Envelope-fold back

I have to share these last pics because I thought it was pretty funny. I didn't realize I was even re-creating the photo from the book until I was all done!

Original book image from Primitive Style...courtesy of Martingale.

My amateur photo shoot image of my project...:)

Well, I hope that gives you some ideas and gets your stash mo-jo rolling about how you can take a project and change it up to make it #mystashmystyle ! This project was so much fun!

It's not too late to jump in on the contest - we're just getting started. Here's the link to the original post with all of the details. You can also follow along on Instagram or Facebook with #mystashmystyle.

Also, be sure to check out Jeni's blog post about her first #mystashmystyle project that she re-made from my book, Stash Lab. I love how her's turned out. It's beautiful. We look forward to seeing yours!

Happy stash quilting,

Tonya

My Stash, My Style contest and giveaway!

Have you ever looked at a project in a book or in a magazine and passed it over because you thought, it's just not your style? If you're anything like me, probably about a thousand times! How about changing it and making it your own?

I recently had the pleasure of meeting the lovely and talented Jenifer Gaston, author of Primitive Style. And while you would think at first glance, our styles are from opposite ends of the spectrum, think again! The truth is, you can take any project and change it up as much as you want to make it uniquely your own. So we set out to make some of each other's projects to reflect our own styles and see what we came up with. The opportunities were endless - and the results were great!

We had so much fun playing, we're hosting the My Stash My Style contest and giveaway along with Martingale/That Patchwork Place to give you a chance to stretch your creative muscles, share your projects, and have a chance to win some awesome prizes to boot! Jeni and I will be sharing our own projects in the next few weeks on our blogs and on Facebook and Instagram.

Here's the skinny:

1. Choose a project from the book Stash Lab by Tonya Alexander OR the book Primitive Style by Jenifer Gaston. (The further a project is from your typical style and stash, the better!)

2. Reimagine, redefine, and remake that project in your own style, using your stash, your point of view, and your creativity. Change the colors, change the dimensions—even change the purpose of the project. It’s entirely up to you!

3. Post your finished project to Facebook or Instagram with the hashtag #mystashmystyle and share how you changed it up. We can’t wait to see what you  come up with! 

Complete steps 1-3 by May 2nd and you’ll be officially entered into the My Stash, My Style contest! So, what prizes are up for grabs?

Prize pack includes:

 A free one-year subscription to Primitive Quilts and Projects magazine, co-owned by Jeni Gaston, author of Primitive Style

•  A specially curated bundle of fabrics from Tonya Alexander, author of Stash Lab
•  A beautiful bundle of wool from The Woolen Willow
•  A $50 gift certificate from publisher Martingale to spend at their website, ShopMartingale.com

Ready to play? We'll kick off the contest with a giveaway this week of an electronic copy of Jeni Gaston’s book Primitive Style and one of my book Stash Lab.  To be entered for the giveaway, leave a comment below about your stash style or a style you would like to try. We'll draw a winner on Wednesday, March 23rd so you can get started on your projects right away. A winner will also be drawn over on Jeni's blog, so be sure to stop there for a visit for two chances to win!

Follow along anytime on Instagram #mystashmystyle @tonyaalexanderquilts @jenifergaston

We hope you'll join us in MY STASH, MY STYLE! We can't wait to see what you come up with!

Happy Stash quilting,

Tonya

New Year, New Opportunities!

"Time waits for no one, but fabric stash hangs around a little longer...."

                                                                  anonymous

Happy New Year! I love January for the simple reason that I find it is the absolute best month to dive into some fun scrap sewing with no deadlines, no agenda, just good cleaning fun! There is actually some method to my madness. It's a great time to dig into my scrap bins and re-sort, clean out, make new discoveries and just have some fun in my sewing room after the craziness of the holidays.

With storage and organization in mind, I'm sharing this post again - not so coincidentally, from January 2014! - in case you are looking for some fun new storage ideas for your sewing space. I jazzed up some old hat boxes with selvages for a simple storage solution. And also because it's very timely...

You can listen here

Save the date! I'll be a guest on American Patchwork & Quilting Radio hosted by Pat Sloan - LIVE on Monday, January 11th!

Live Show time is

4pm - 5pm Eastern

3pm - 4pm Central

2pm - 3pm Mountain

1pm - 2pm Pacific

I'm excited but a little daunted by the live part...can't there be some lag time for editing in case I blow it?! No such luck. If you miss the live airing, it will linger on in the archives for posterity....forever!

Pat's topic for January and February is BIG IDEA: Solving storage and workspace woes! Every journey begins with a single step. We'll be talking all things Stash Lab, scrap quilts and anything else she throws at me. You can also enjoy all of Pat's past shows at creativetalknetwork.com/ available to download any time. They are great listening, especially while the scraps are flying under your presser foot. Hope you can join us.

Happy stash quilting,
Tonya

Star Shuffle giveaway winners!

O.k....random number generator spit out #2 and #6...

so Bunny and Dena.... congrats! You are the winners of a copy of the Winter 2015 Quilts and More and mini-bundle of flannels from my stash! Please email me at tonyaalexanderdesigns@gmail.com with your mailing address for your goodies.

And thanks to all of you who played along and shared your recent recipients of your quilt gifts. It's great to see where you are all sharing your love and talent.

Happy stash quilting,

Tonya

A Perfect Setting

We interrupt the Stash Lab frenzy for a moment to bring you...A Perfect Setting...

“Used with permission from American Patchwork & Quilting® magazine. ©2015 Meredith Corporation. All rights reserved.”

 While I've been caught up in the excitement of Stash Lab finally hitting the store shelves this past week, another beautiful project got it's moment in the sun. This is my project "A Perfect Setting" and it's featured in the current Dec. 2015 issue of American Patchwork & Quilting. I'm also super excited to share that it will be hanging in the APQ booth next week at Houston International Quilt Market! The beautiful long-arm quilting on this one was done by Tracey Fisher. Cannot wait to see it again - it's been awhile since I shipped it off into the quilting universe.

“Used with permission from American Patchwork & Quilting® magazine. ©2015 Meredith Corporation. All rights reserved.”

APQ, December 2015 issue

One of the things I love about quilting and the creative process is how a single geometric shape can lead you to new places. This quilt is made completely with 60-degree equilateral triangles - traditionally known as a "Thousand Pyramids" quilt. Of course, before it looked like the finished project, it looked more like this on my design wall...

Definitely one of those projects that a design wall or surface is a must to help you keep organized in your piecing. This could have absolutely been a great addition to be included in Stash Lab, but this one wasn't under the presser foot until long into the book process. But it certainly follows the Stash Lab equations! Here's a sample of my collection of background fabrics that I used in this quilt...

Selection of background neutrals - a fun focus for a shop hop trip!

Most were collected on a single shop hop trip through Washington and Oregon a couple of summers ago. This is one of my go-to fabric shopping tips: pick a focus and let the hunt begin! I focused specifically on low-volume, light background neutrals. White, cream, beige backgrounds were all fair game. I mix them all the time. The brights in the floating diamonds were all scraps from my stash. A great example of old and new coming together to create something special. Hope you are inspired to dive into your own stash and see what you come up with!

Happy stash quilting,

Tonya

Stash Lab - take 2

So, on our countdown to the big book birthday - October 6th! - I'm sharing some of the projects from my upcoming book with Martingale, Stash Lab: Simple Solutions for Scrap Quilts. Moving right along, let's get to some more quilts.

This time, let's look at some of the projects under the Stash Lab equation of "Neutrals + Scraps = Balance". It really is as simple as it sounds. When working with lots of different competing fabrics or scraps in a quilt, it helps a lot to give the eye a place to rest in between. Neutrals can act as a great frame for a variety of fabrics and neutral doesn't just mean white-on-white either. Textured prints, solids, even low-volume patterns are all considered neutrals in my opinion. Here's one that uses a gray/white sheet music print as the neutral. This is "Loose Change"...


"Loose Change", Stash Lab: Simple Solutions for Scrap Quilts

Can you guess it's namesake and the inspiration for this project? If you guessed a traditional Chinese Coin pattern, you were right! This is my version with a bit of a twist, turning the quadrants to add interest and little bit of a modern edge to a very traditional pattern. For this project, I dug into my bin of 1-1/2" strip scraps and put together a variety of strips sets, using sea glass as my color inspiration.

The next quilt is a little (o.k., a lot) bolder, and one of my favorites - not only because of the fabrics! This is "Kaffe's Garden at Night"...

"Kaffe's Garden at Night", Stash Lab: Simple Solutions for Scrap Quilts

This one may look a little familiar :) I just can't let it go! I love this quilt. Black is definitely the ultimate neutral and really brings out the intensity of colors in fabrics that you use with it. Sometimes people shy away from using black in quilt tops, but I don't think black has to be sad or dark. Not when you use it this way!

Now, please forgive the not-so-great photo on this next one, it's the only one I could access at the moment. But, my bad living-room photography doesn't do this one justice in the least. This is "Sunny Side Up"...

"Sunny Side Up", Stash Lab: Simple Solutions for Scrap Quilts

So maybe this is my ploy, you have to see the professional photography of this one in the book! The quilting is beautiful simplicity itself, from the efforts of the very talented, Tracey Fisher. Tracey is not only one of my go-to professional long-arm quilters, she is my friend and one of my biggest cheerleaders (thanks Tracey!) This one does actually use solid white as the neutral, but in a non-traditional way, to bring together a shop-hop collection of different yellow fabrics, all made from 2-1/2" strips. This would be a great project in anyone's favorite color.

Well, we're getting closer! I can't tell you how great it feels to finally be able to share all of this with you. I have said that waiting and working on the book for almost two years has felt like sitting on a chicken egg, waiting for it to hatch - and it's true! This is one big baby chick, I must say. But, I couldn't be more thrilled. I hope you enjoy it, too.

Happy Stash quilting,

Tonya

Stash Lab Countdown!

Home again, home again, jiggity-jig! They're home....crazy for me to look at this little pile of folded loveliness and think that it represents a couple of years worth of fun and fabric, but there it is.  Anyway, the countdown is moving right along and my publication date for Stash Lab is quickly approaching - October 6th! So, I think it's about time I start sharing some of the projects with you.  


Sorry, this seat is taken.



The table of contents gives you a sneak peak at what's to come. I really love the design and concept of the book that the good folks at Martingale came up with. Yes, they're my projects, my writing, my ideas, but the graphic design group at Martingale came up with the overall look and feel of the book itself. I love it - but then again, I'm a little bit biased :) 

Stash Lab - Table of Contents

I thought it would be fitting to start with one of the quilts you see on the cover and in the table of contents, "The Big Spin". The projects follow three different scrap equations that I like to use when  looking at my stash or a bucket of scraps and starting a new project. "The Big Spin" actually falls under Stash Equation #2 that deals with the use of fabric value vs. color. This project fits the equation to a tee. This design really is all about value and placement, regardless of color palette.

"The Big Spin" from Stash Lab: Simple Solutions for Scrap Quilts

If you're in my local area, you can currently see this quilt on display at Two Thimbles quilt shop in Bellingham. All of the projects under this equation really work with any color palette or fabric style - it's all about value and placement to create the design. Another project in this category is "Jester".

"Jester" from Stash Lab: Simple Solutions for Scrap Quilts

I enjoyed making this quilt so much because it has so many of my favorite stash fabrics. It's also the only paper-pieced project in the book - and a really easy one if you've never tried paper piecing before. This quilt is currently on display locally at Fabric-Etc. in Bellingham.

I am really fortunate to live so close to great shops that provide beautiful products and inspiration for what I love to do. They have been so supportive of my efforts as a quilter. Most of all, I'm so thankful for their encouragement, friendship and willingness to help me on this crazy journey. Priceless.

More to come, but if you haven't already, run out to your favorite local quilt shop and ask them to order you up a copy of Stash Lab! Maybe you'll find a few other goodies there to add to your stash. In the meantime...

Happy stash quilting,

Tonya



Pressed Leaves and a Giveaway

With summer in full swing, it's hard to believe fall will be here before we know it! I want this beautiful summer in my Pacific Northwest to last forever, but I'm ready for fall for a couple of really good reasons - one of them is the upcoming issue of McCall's Quilting, September/October 2015 that will be hitting your mailbox and store shelves soon. One of my favorite recent projects is being featured - "Pressed Leaves" - and it even has its glamour shot moment on the cover!

It was such a fun project that used some of my favorite scraps framed by a really great neutral newsprint fabric. The one I used is from Collage by Carrie Bloomston for Windham Fabrics. If you can't find this one around, not to worry. Any great print neutral would be perfect for this project. Your favorite quilt shop probably has some already on hand, so check them out.

Pressed Leaves table runner

With so little actual snail mail these days, I'm always excited when something like this lands in my mailbox...advanced copies! So it must be time for a giveaway! Leave a comment below and share your favorite fall leaf color for a chance to win a free copy of the McCalls Quilting September/October 2015 issue. I'll pick a name out of the hat and mail off a signed copy to you!

Time for a giveaway! Leave a comment with your favorite fall leaf color to enter.

The other reason I'm excited for fall, of course, is because of this little beauty that I'm anxiously waiting for....

Just found out the release date has been bumped up from October 15th to October 6th. Nine less sleepless nights of anticipation for this first-time author. I can't wait to share it with you :)

Happy summer quilting,

Tonya

Look, look! A book, MY book!

Wow, I thought this day would never come! I am so excited to share this great news with everyone. If you were wondering what the heck I've been doing with all my free time, this is it!  I have my first book coming out with Martingale Publishing in October 2015. And here it is!



Many of you know that I have been a quilter for quite some time and have had a lot of fun publishing my quilts in various magazines over the last couple of years. I started to look at my projects in a different light and thought, hey! I might have something here! So I took the plunge, wrote up a submission proposal, sent it in and that's it. No, not at all actually! It takes a lot of w-o-r-k! But what they say is true, if you really love what you are doing it shouldn't feel like work at all and I love to quilt. Write, proof, edit, and edit some more, maybe not so much, but I'm ready for the real fun to begin!

 

Truly, I can't believe it myself. It has been such a great learning experience so far. I have been working with a great group of professionals at Martingale and I won't lie, it is really cool! The first time I saw the cover concept they came up with, I could hardly breathe!

 

So, as this project is coming closer and closer to it's official birthday on October 15, 2015, I'm looking forward to giving you some more sneak peeks at all the goodies inside! But for now, join me in a big yippee and let's go sew something!

 

Happy Quilting,

 

Tonya

Selvage storage story

Once upon a time, there was a happy quilter with a possible hording anxiety that had an over-abundance of fabric selvages (and other massive quantities of misshaped scraps.) You know, those lovely little strips of dots and print that are just on the edge of your fabric that are considered to be juvenile delinquents by the quilt police where tension and shrinkage are concerned, but just too good to throw away. The possibilities!

With the new year demanding out with the old and in with the new - she couldn't bear it. So she devised a plan that would (a) hide/store some of her selvages (b) be quick and easy to make and (c) actually use some of the precious beauties in a fun way for her sewing-room-that-is-really-the-guest-room.

One day (about four years ago - but we'll forgive her this) the happy quilter picked up some plain brown stacking hat boxes at a garage sale for a song. With a dream and a vision for what could become of them, but not exactly a lot of determination to get it done, she took them home and there they sat on the shelf, plain, brown and sad, until.....

Armed with some of her precious selvages, some decoupage glue and foam brush she set to work...

Just a little glue on the back of the strips, overlapping and cutting as she saw fit. (A protected work surface is highly recommended. Wax paper does the trick.) Covering the top of the strips with another coat of glue to seal the deal...

The tops were a cinch, now to tackle the sides! Oh, the joy! The selvages were flooding out of the box at an exhilarating pace!...

When the plain, brown, sad boxes were completely covered and transformed by the lovely selvages, she let them sit overnight to dry. In the morning, she awoke to beams of sunshine and the sound of robins on her windowsill (not really, it is winter on the tundra after all!) She proceeded to add some die-cut chalkboard label stickers (she found in the wonderful land of Target) so she could actually look even more organized in her sewing-room-that-is-really-the-guest-room.

 

With her project complete and labels for jelly rolls, fat quarters and charm squares secured, she stuffed them full with a smile on her face and a song in her heart. A place for everything and everything in its place.

Of course, those selvage-lovers among us know what was really inside the little gems, but we'll just let that be our little secret. And she lived happily ever after.

Happy selvage-stitching!

Tonya

 

Sunny Side Up

Here we are at the end of September and the weather the last weekend just confirmed that summer is long gone in my corner of the world. The wind was blowing, the rain was back in full force and summer is just a sweet memory now. To celebrate the beautiful summer that was, earlier this month I decided to dive into all the yellow fabrics I picked up during summer vacation and got to cutting.

All the lovely yellows cut into 2 1/2" strips

I have had this quilt in mind for at least a couple of years. Here's the photo inspiration I've had tacked to my bulletin board for a while. It's an ad for a luxury hotel somewhere but there's something about the tile pattern that I am just really drawn to. What's not to love about a log cabin variation?

Design inspiration - hotel advertisement from a magazine

First, I tried using a solid yellow and solid white just like the tile in the picture but it didn't do anything for me. Disappointed, I put it in the closet and it's been sitting there for a couple of years. Fast forward to this summer and my yellow fabric shopping spree while on vacation. I wasn't ready to give up on this quilt. Like everything else, I figured it just needed to be "scrapped up" for more interest. Now I am loving it! Not content with a little reasonable wall hanging, I went all out and went full bed-size. Big surprise. Going big and going down hard! Here's a sneak peek:


Work in process

Now that the Crock-Pot is back into Fall dinner rotation, I'll have time to get my new summer bed quilt ready! I think I'm going to call it "Sunny Side Up".

Happy end-of-summer stitching,

Tonya

Golden State inspiration

We recently got back from a great vacation in Cali. Lots of sunshine, water, family and fun. I try to sneak in a visit to a couple of quilt shops during vacation and I like to find things that remind me of that trip. There weren't any shops close to where we were but I did talk my hubby into driving to Reno so I could visit at least one shop and I struck California gold! If you get a chance, check out Windy Moon Quilts in Reno. Big store, packed to the rafters with all kinds of goodies and really nice, helpful staff.

I was definitely in the mood for a little golden stash-enhancement!

 

I'm feeling a yellow quilt coming on!

a little Tahoe color inspiration

some garden inspiration?

I think there's some quilt-rule out there that says you should limit the yellow fabric in your quilt top to less than 5 % or some other miniscule amount but I'm not sure about that. Sounds like another rule meant to be broken!

Happy summer stitching,
Tonya