Month: December 2025

Sunday Summary: December 28

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I wish!

Another Finish

My husband has been bugging me to make a quilt for the grand-dog. I had made one a few years ago, but it went home with her mama. I decided to make one, using some dog fabric that I had left over. I kept it a secret and the grand-dog got it for Christmas. It’s 28″ x36″ and has a plush backing. Although it’s difficult to see, there are bones quilted all over it. You might be able to see them better on the backing!

Stitching Stuff

Kate, from Life in Pieces, is hosting “Stitching Stuff” and the goal is to sew for at least 15 minutes a day. I use Kate’s guideline, but my personal goal is to sew for 30 minutes a day. On those “blah” days, it does motivate me to sit at my machine and 30 minutes often turns into several hours. Thank you Kate for the motivation!

  • January – November: 302 / 327
  • December: 25/ 28 days
  • Total: 327/ 361 92%
Design Wall Mondays

Judy, at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts, hosts a linky party for “What’s on your Design Wall” every week.

Piecing projects:

Songbird Designs

Quilting Projects:

  • Arabesque Pattern from mmmquilts 
  • I’m currently quilting a quilt for a friend. I’ll show it to you when it’s finished … I’ve got a ways to go.

Sunday Stash

Donna at Quilt Paint Create hosts a weekly linky party where you can display your stash numbers. This has really kept my stash from growing (somewhat!) Before I buy anything, I am always mindful of the fact that I need to report it on my blog … That sometimes stops me in my tracks!

No purchases this week, but the dog quilt used up 2 yards.

I was hoping to make it to 200 yards used … but I’m 2.5 yards short. Oh well. My stash isn’t going anywhere, so hopefully I can dream and make 200 yards next year.

  • Fabric used since my last report: 2 yards
  • Fabric Used in 2025:     226 yards. {72 yards of non Island Batik fabric}
  • Fabric Added in the last week: 0 yards
  • Fabric Added this year:    28.5 yards 
  • Net Fabric used:             197.5 yards

To Do

Carol from Quilt Schmilt is hosting “To Do” every week.

To Do from last week ago:

  1. Laundry Basket Mystery: Work on Week 7 in progress
  2. Continue to work on a Test quilt for Songbird Designs in progress
  3. Quilt on a Arabesque Quilt for mmmquilts XX not done XX still needs to be sandwiched.
  4. Finish Quilting Friend’s Quilt in progress
  5. Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder! √   DONE.
  6. Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes. √   DONE. 

To Do for this week:

I have my list, but I’m not going to stress about getting it done!

  1. Laundry Basket Mystery: Finish Week 7
  2. Continue to work on a Test quilt for Songbird Designs get the quilt webbed together.
  3. Sandwich and Quilt Arabesque Quilt for mmmquilts
  4. Finish Quilting Friend’s Quilt
  5. Work on Magnificent Mystery: November & December
  6. Work on 2026 SAHRR
  7. Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder! 
  8. Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes.
Don’t Forget

I am now a Silly Moon affiliate! So what does that mean? When you use my affiliate code Quiltinggail2024 at Silly Moon, you will receive 10% off your order and I will receive a small commission.

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail 

Linking to:  

Island Batik projects 2025

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As an Island Batik (Lumin) Ambassador, I receive a LOT of wonderful fabric and quilting supplies from Island Batik and industry partners. This post is a compilation of the projects I created in 2025 using Island Batik fabrics. Thank you Island Batik for a wonderful year!

Here’s a l pictures of everything I received in my first January box. The 2nd box contained all the wonderful  Hobbs Batting and a tool from  Studio 180 Designs. You can see the video and individual pictures on THIS POST.

This was my first finish 2025: Helen Godden’s Christmas Countdown . You can read about it HERE. 

January’s Rainbow Scrap Challenge colour was Pink. This was my first Pink quilt to answer that challenge. See THIS POST for more details.

This was my 2nd quilt to January’s Rainbow Scrap Challenge (Pink). You can read more about it HERE.

This was my runner for February’s Island Batik (Lumin) challenge featuring Studio 180 tool and the Radiant Burst collection. See HERE for more details.

Claudia Porter from Create with Claudia asked me to make something with her feature fabric. Of course, I said “yes.” This quilt used the beautiful Meadow Hues collection. See HERE. for more detail.

This pretty quilt was made with Jennifer Thomas’s (of Curlicue Creations) signature fabric, Sunlit Garden. See THIS POST for more details.

March’s Island Batik challenge was “It’s All Up to You.” We made anything we wanted. The choice was ours. I made this bear’s paw quilt. See THIS POST for more details.

This zipper pouch was easy to make for a quick gift. See HERE for more details.

This was my SAHRR quilt. THIS POST has most of the details, with links to other posts containing details of each round.

The Rainbow Scrap Challenge for February was Blue. This is one of the quilts I completed for February. You can read about it HERE.

April’s Challenge was to make a quilt using a Drunkard’s Path block. You can read more about it HERE.

And, here’s a smaller version!

I reviewed a book called “Picture Patchwork” and this train was one of the quilts in the book. You can read about it HERE.

This quilt was made for the Island Batik Catalogue. You can read about it on THIS POST. (photo credit: Jerry Khiev).

A 12″ mini quilt was made for the Hobbs Batting booth in Houston … It’s likely the only quilt that I’ll have that hung in that quilt show!! LOL!!!

Blue was Rainbow Scrap Challenge for February. These 2 quilts were finally finished in May. This POST has more details.

This quilt was for the March Yellow Rainbow Scrap Challenge . You can read about it HERE.

This quilt was made for a dear relative dealing with cancer. You can read more about it on THIS POST.

This is one of the TWO quilts I made for the Irish Chain Blog Hop. You can read about it on THIS POST.

This is the back of the first quilt.

This is the 2nd quilt:

I made this little zipper pouch (front & back shown) from left-overs from the above quilt. See THIS POST for details.

The June Island Batik challenge was to make a soft toy using a Funky Friends pattern. See HERE for the adventures of these 2 squirrels!

These placemats used more of the left-overs from the Irish Chain quilts … This POST has all the details.

This was a mystery quilt from Canuck Quilter. You can read more about it on THIS POST.

I made this Swan Quilt using a pattern from the “Picture Patchwork” book. You can read about it HERE.

This quilt was made with scraps of purple and solid white. You can read about it HERE.

I used leftover strips to make these donation placemats. See THIS POST for details:

This quilt was made for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge. Orange was the colour for June … but it didn’t get finished until the end of July. See details HERE.

This is my August Island Batik Challenge: to decorate the wool Oliso carrying case. I also made a reversible bag to put my Alpaca/wool mat in. See HERE for more details.

This butterfly quilt was fun to make. See details HERE.

I made this quilt using Embroidery designs by Denise Looney and the fabrics were all from Island Batik. More details HERE.

These quilts were made for the Threaded Chaos Blog Hop, featuring crazy quilts using Aurifil Thread. THIS POST has all the details.

This quilt was made with a strip pack of the Splish Splash collection. You can read more about it HERE, and see lots of close-ups of the quilting!

The October challenge was to make a byAnnie bag. I made ‘Switchback.’ You can read about it HERE.

These were left-overs from the Splish Splash quilt (above) you can read about them on THIS POST.

The November challenge was Timeless Traditions. We were instructed to choose at least 5 traditional blocks and make a quilt. You can read about it on THIS POST.

When I made the Switchback (ByAnnie bag) earlier this fall, I had some left-over quilted fabric … one an incorrect panel. I couldn’t resist using them to make these too Clam Up bags. (See HERE for details)

December’s Island Batik challenge was totally up to us! We could make whatever we wanted. The fall colours were so vibrant this year, that I couldn’t resist making this maple leaf scrappy quilt. See THIS POST for details.

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

WOW!! A total of 46 projects made with Island Batik fabrics!! This wouldn’t have been possible without the generous support of Lumin Fabrics and the industry partners!

So a HUGE THANK YOU to Island Batik (Lumin Fabrics) and Industry partners! They have supplied the products for free as my role as an Island Batik Ambassador! Island Batik, Aurifil Thread, Hobbs Batting, Schmetz Needles, Oliso Iron, Studio 180 Designs, Accuquilt, and Funky Friends. ByAnnie

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail 

Linking to:  

Sunday Summary: December 21

/ quiltinggail / 14 Comments
A Finish

I did finish my Level 2 Tote. This is a pattern by Krista Hennebury of Poppy Print (@poppyprint). The fabric and cork came from Emmaline bags. The lining came from my stash. The pattern is extremely well written and easy to follow! (If you’d like the pattern, contact Krista via Instagram.)

Stitching Stuff

Kate, from Life in Pieces, is hosting “Stitching Stuff” and the goal is to sew for at least 15 minutes a day. I use Kate’s guideline, but my personal goal is to sew for 30 minutes a day. On those “blah” days, it does motivate me to sit at my machine and 30 minutes often turns into several hours. Thank you Kate for the motivation!

  • January – November: 302 / 327
  • December: 19 / 21 days
  • Total: 326 / 354 92%
Design Wall Mondays

Judy, at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts, hosts a linky party for “What’s on your Design Wall” every week.

Piecing projects:

Songbird Designs

Quilting Projects:

  • Arabesque Pattern from mmmquilts 
  • I’m currently quilting a quilt for a friend. I’ll show it to you when it’s finished … I’ve got a ways to go.

Sunday Stash

Donna at Quilt Paint Create hosts a weekly linky party where you can display your stash numbers. This has really kept my stash from growing (somewhat!) Before I buy anything, I am always mindful of the fact that I need to report it on my blog … That sometimes stops me in my tracks!

No purchases this week, but the Maple Leaf Quilt HERE used 7 yards and the Clam up bags HERE. used 1 yard. The 2 Level Tote used 2 yards.

  • Fabric used since my last report: 8 yards
  • Fabric Used in 2025:     224 yards. {72 yards of non Island Batik fabric}
  • Fabric Added in the last week: 0 yards
  • Fabric Added this year:    28.5 yards 
  • Net Fabric used:             195.5 yards

To Do

Carol from Quilt Schmilt is hosting “To Do” every week.

To Do from last week ago:

  1. Laundry Basket Mystery: Work on Week 7 XX not done XX
  2. Continue to work on a Test quilt for Songbird Designs in progress
  3. Quilt on a Arabesque Quilt for mmmquilts XX not done XX
  4. Finish Level 2 Tote √   DONE
  5. Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder! √   DONE.
  6. Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes. √   DONE. 

To Do for this week:

I have my list, but I’m not going to stress about getting it done!

  1. Laundry Basket Mystery: Work on Week 7
  2. Continue to work on a Test quilt for Songbird Designs
  3. Quilt Arabesque Quilt for mmmquilts
  4. Finish Quilting Friend’s Quilt
  5. Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder! 
  6. Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes.
Don’t Forget

I am now a Silly Moon affiliate! So what does that mean? When you use my affiliate code Quiltinggail2024 at Silly Moon, you will receive 10% off your order and I will receive a small commission.

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail 

Linking to:  

Announcing the 2026 SAHRR

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Earlier this year, we had a parade for the 2025 SAHRR (pronounced Stay At Home Round Robin) and said that we would be doing it again in 2026. Here’s the LINK where you can see all the quilts made last year.

This year’s logo was designed by Brenda of Songbird Designs … isn’t it fantastic?

For the past 6 years, I have done a SAHRR and have made different quilts. The first year I did it on my own and then for the next 5 years, I had some fantastic blogging/quilting friends join in the fun!

Here’s my quilts from previous SAHRRs. The last 2 are ones I did on my own. It’s so much MORE fun with others! Here’s the LINK where you can see all the quilts made last year.

SAHRR '25

As you can tell, except for the 2 I did on my own, the rounds are all different. This year promises to be different as well!

All of my SAHRR quilts are made with Island Batik fabrics, Hobbs batting and Aurifil thread.

What is a Round Robin?

This is a common activity in many quilt guilds. A round robin (in quilting terms) is where each person makes a centre block. This block is put in a bag or container, maybe with extra fabric, perhaps with a notebook, and the bag is passed onto another quilter in the group. They are given instructions as to what kind of border (or round) they are to add on to the quilt. Sometimes the next person will make a border for each side, or one side or two sides of the block. It’s then passed on to another quilter and it continues on … when the quilt centre and all the borders are completed, it is returned to the original maker of the centre block.

So, I stay at home?

That’s correct! You and your centre block and the borders all stay home. You have to make the decisions as to what to add when given directions. How big, how many … it’s up to you. We will let you know what each of us does and there may be short tutorials on some of our blogs.

How do I join?

There’s nothing to join, no sign up. All you need to do is follow our blogs (see the links below)

How often does this happen?

Once a week.

On Wednesday, January 14, we will show you our centre blocks.

The SAHRR Team met in the summer and I haven’t seen any of the centre blocks … so it’s going to be a surprise for me as well!

Then on January 21 (and each Wednesday following) we will give you instructions as to what the next border/round is to be. Again, we will all show you our centre blocks with the first border to give you some ideas.

Here are my blogging co-hosts in the order of what we will be doing and the linky parties we will be hosting each week. (There will only be one linky party each week … and we’ll direct you to it …)

  • January 14   Each of the co-leaders will be sharing their centre blocks (you will have to visit each of their blogs to see them). I will host the first linky party where you can show your centre block.
  • January 21:  1st Round:    Brenda @ Songbird Designs
  • January 28:  2nd Round: Kathleen @ Kathleen McMusing
  • February 4: 3rd Round: Emily @ The Darling Dogwood
  • February 11: 4th Round:   Wendy @ Pieceful Thoughts of My Quilting Life
  • February 18: 5th Round:  ME!!! @ Quilting Gail 
  • February 25: 6th Round:  Anja @ Anja Quilts
  • March 25:   Parade: showing all of your finished SAHRRs!
We have Sponsors!

We reached out to several companies that we all LOVE and many of them agreed to sponsor the SAHRR 2026!!! (That means prizes for YOU!!!). We will keep track of all of the participants that link to our Linky parties each week. We will make a list and use a random number generator to choose the winners for each prize! So, if you link up to 3 Linky parties, you will have 3 opportunities to win! If you don’t have a blog or Instagram account, contact me, or one of the other co-hosts, and we will post your SAHRR on our blog. This way you still have an opportunity to win!

Frequently Asked Questions

What if I don’t want to make that round? It’s your quilt – you can leave it out.

What size do I make it? That’s up to you … you are sort-of the designer here.

Are the rounds hard? No … each round is pretty simple … squares, rectangles, half-square triangles with perhaps a surprise.

What colours do I use? That’s up to you … you can follow what one of the SAHRR leader uses or have your own colour scheme. You can use scraps or fabric from a specific fabric collection.

What if I miss a round? You can leave it out, or go back to the blog where the directions are given.

Will you cut my fabric for me? No!

How often will the quilt police check on me and my progress? There are NO quilt police!! None!!

What do I do now?

Make sure that you follow each of the SAHRR leaders so that you don’t miss their posts.

Start thinking about what you might do for a centre block. Do you have an orphan block you’d like to use? Or do you want to try a new block … now is the time!

Relax … this is easy … and it’s only one round each week!

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail 

Linking to:  

It’s All Up to You!

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The final challenge of the year allowed the ambassadors to do whatever we wanted! Sometimes, this can be very difficult and at other times it’s super easy! This time, it was easy!

I knew that I wanted to do something scrappy.

This fall, I was very inspired by the fall colours of the trees and the leaves. They seemed more vibrant than other years. The following pictures were taken by my friend, Stella MacDonald. (And, she’s hoping that me posting them will make her famous!!). Aren’t the colours rich?

I used the Accuquilt die “Maple Leaf” to cut everything out. (See HERE). This die has the blocks finishing at 8″. I used the free Accuquilt Table Runner pattern as a guide, but I doubled the size and made it scrappier!

Here is the finished quilt:

The “Oh Canada” quilting ruler (from Silly Moon) was ideal for doing an “all-over” pattern on the quilt! Aurifil Thread #4650 was the perfect variegated thread to use on this quilt. It has lots of greens, red, and yellow! I actually laughed out loud when I read that the name of the thread was “Leaves!” Hobbs 80/20 batting is in the middle.

The Janome M7 has a maple leaf stitch and I used it on the binding!

Quilt Stats:

Thank you!

Thank you to the generosity of Island Batik (Lumin Fabrics) and Industry partners! They have supplied the products for free as my role as an Island Batik Ambassador! Island Batik, Aurifil Thread, Hobbs Batting, Schmetz Needles, Oliso Iron, Accuquilt

Island Batik Ambassadors

Visit the other Island Batik Ambassadors to see what they made this month:

Don’t Forget!

I am now a Silly Moon affiliate! So what does that mean? When you use my affiliate code Quiltinggail2024 at Silly Moon, you will receive 10% off your order and I will receive a small commission.

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail 

Linking to:  

TGIFF and a Matching Finish!

/ quiltinggail / 11 Comments

TGIFF is an acronym for Thank Goodness It’s FINISHED Friday. It is hosted by a variety of different bloggers that show their finished quilt or project for that week. You can visit THIS LINK to see who is hosting each week. This week, I am the host!

I made 2 of the Small Clam Up byAnnie bags. You can get the pattern HERE. When I made the Switchback bag in October (see THIS POST), there was some quilted fabric left over. I couldn’t just throw it out. These bags used the perfect amount of quilted fabric! I had used fabric from the “Frosted Folliage” collection by Tiffany Hayes of Needle in a Hay Stack and Whip Cream (an Island Batik foundational fabric).

I know that I’m biased, but I think they turned out so very cute! I will likely use one with my Switchback and will give the other as a gift in the future.

Here they are with my Switchback bag:

It’s YOUR Turn

Link up your finished project!

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party! Click here to enter

Don’t Forget!

I am now a Silly Moon affiliate! So what does that mean? When you use my affiliate code Quiltinggail2024 at Silly Moon, you will receive 10% off your order and I will receive a small commission.

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail 

Sunday Summary: December 7

/ quiltinggail / 13 Comments

A Winner!

My last post was about the Arabesque Pattern from mmmquilts that I tested. The winner from commenting on my blog is Joyce Carter! Sandra will be sending her a free pattern.

Stitching Stuff

Kate, from Life in Pieces, is hosting “Stitching Stuff” and the goal is to sew for at least 15 minutes a day. I use Kate’s guideline, but my personal goal is to sew for 30 minutes a day. On those “blah” days, it does motivate me to sit at my machine and 30 minutes often turns into several hours. Thank you Kate for the motivation!

Almost back to normal!

  • January – November: 302 / 327
  • December: 6 / 7days
  • Total: 308 / 334 92%
Design Wall Mondays

Judy, at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts, hosts a linky party for “What’s on your Design Wall” every week.

Piecing projects:

Songbird Designs

Quilting Projects:

Sunday Stash

Donna at Quilt Paint Create hosts a weekly linky party where you can display your stash numbers. This has really kept my stash from growing (somewhat!) Before I buy anything, I am always mindful of the fact that I need to report it on my blog … That sometimes stops me in my tracks!

Nothing finished this week.

  • Fabric used since my last report: 0 yards
  • Fabric Used in 2025:     214 yards. {72 yards of non Island Batik fabric}
  • Fabric Added in the last week: 0 yards
  • Fabric Added this year:    28.5 yards 
  • Net Fabric used:             185.5 yards

To Do

Carol from Quilt Schmilt is hosting “To Do” every week.

To Do from last week ago:

  1. Laundry Basket Mystery: 7, 8 & 9. maybe …. XX not done XX
  2. Finish Island Batik December Challenge √   DONE. post coming soon!
  3. Continue to work on a Test quilt for Songbird Designs in progress
  4. Work on a Test Quilt for mmmquilts in progress
  5. Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder! √   DONE.
  6. Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes. √   DONE. 

To Do for this week:

I have my list, but I’m not going to stress about getting it done!

  1. Laundry Basket Mystery: Work on Week 7
  2. Continue to work on a Test quilt for Songbird Designs
  3. Quilt on a Arabesque Quilt for mmmquilts
  4. Finish Level 2 Tote
  5. Work on left-overs from Switchback bag
  6. Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder! 
  7. Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes.
Don’t Forget

I am now a Silly Moon affiliate! So what does that mean? When you use my affiliate code Quiltinggail2024 at Silly Moon, you will receive 10% off your order and I will receive a small commission.

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail 

Linking to:  

I tested the Arabesque pattern

/ quiltinggail / 16 Comments

I know you’re wondering what the Arabesque pattern is!

Sandra Walker of mmmquilts asked me to test the pattern. If you haven’t figured it out yet, I love to test patterns. Sandra said that this quilt was her SAHRR (Stay at Home Round Robin) from this year. However, it looks totally different than mine! (You can see it HERE). It’s really hard to believe that it was the same round robin!

Now, Sandra’s finished quilt is quite dramatic and beautiful. Don’t you agree?

When Sandra asked, she suggested that the first 5 rounds would make a nice baby quilt, so that’s what I did!

I went to my stash and picked out the fabrics for the centre block and cut each round as I needed. This allowed me to use my stash and move fabrics around as I saw fit (or had sufficient fabric for). I have the first 5 rounds of the quilt done and am in the process of deciding on the backing. The binding will be the purple that I used for the centre square.

With the colours I chose, my quilt is not as dramatic as Sandra’s, but I think it’s quite pretty and will make a lovely baby quilt!

Carol, from Quilt Schmilt, also tested the pattern. She plans to make all the rounds, but first has to have a date with Jack the Ripper before she finishes it. Isn’t she brave to post a quilt that has a mistake in it? Visit Quilt Schmilt to see her version!

Where can you get the pattern?

You can go to Sandra’s Etsy shop and purchase it HERE. It will be on sale for $10 until Monday, December 8.

OR …. you post a comment here on my blog by midnight Sunday (Pacific time) and I will do a random draw on Monday and Sandra will send you the pattern for free. That gives you just over 24 hours to post a comment!

Other news

Usually, in the spring, Sandra offers a free sew-a-long!! I have done several and LOVE each one!! She is planning on doing another, so I suggest you go to her blog and follow her so that you don’t miss out! It will run from  April 3 through June 15, 2026. And there is a rumour that this year it might be a mystery quilt.

Don’t Forget!

I am now a Silly Moon affiliate! So what does that mean? When you use my affiliate code Quiltinggail2024 at Silly Moon, you will receive 10% off your order and I will receive a small commission.

One who sleeps under a quilt is covered by LOVE!

Happy Quilting!    
Gail 

Linking to: