The good, the bad and the ugly from Stash Bandit

Written by Diane Harris on . Posted in Blog, How-tos and Ideas, Open Classes for Everyone, Quilt Lifestyle

It has been quite a summer, friends.

I’ve experienced it all: the good, the bad and the ugly. It can be hard to know how much personal stuff to share. I do want you to know that my family has its ups and downs like everyone else. Lately there have been a lot of downs. Below is a video showing how I get in a little patchwork when things are rough.

If you’d like a bunch more ideas for using bricks, come to Sunday’s event: Beautiful Bricks.

It’s the next in my Scrappy Sundays with Stash Bandit series and I’ll share a bunch of things you can do with a simple rectangle. You won’t believe how versatile they are! Here’s a link to the $12 tickets: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/1997845618024?aff=oddtdtcreator

I had to cancel a guild event in Kansas City this week, something I have never done before. I felt horrible but it was unavoidable. They were gracious and kind. I was really grateful for that.

I hope you are sewing up a storm.

Scrappy Sundays with Stash Bandit: Surround Sound

Written by Diane Harris on . Posted in Classes, How-tos and Ideas, Inspiration, Open Classes for Everyone, Quilt Lifestyle

Today I finished piecing the featured quilt for the next Scrappy Sunday session. It’s called Surround Sound and I hope you like it.

As so often happens with ideas, one thing led to another. There is the featured quilt, which I quite like, but then there are several more interesting designs that were inspired by it. Ticket holders will get them all!

Surround Sound by Diane Harris

I’ll be sharing how I make small, medium and large half-square triangles along with other methods so you can find the one that works best for you.

April’s Scrappy Sundays with Stash Bandit: 4/19

Written by Diane Harris on . Posted in Blog, Classes, How-tos and Ideas, Open Classes for Everyone, Quilt Lifestyle

Please join me for the April edition of Scrappy Sundays with Stash Bandit, Sunday, 4/19 at 1 pm Central on Zoom. Tickets are $12 and the featured quilt is Wild Romp, a new design I’ve had in my back pocket for a while. It is throw size, roughly 55″ x 70″.

Wild Romp by Diane Harris, an EQ rendering

Each Scrappy Sunday session includes a quilt pattern plus my demos and tips for making it work with lots of different fabrics. This quilt is much easier to make than it looks—a real bonus!

Your ticket also includes a bonus scrappy quilt pattern because I want to give you a lot of bang for your buck. The bonus pattern will be a surprise. And there’s time to interact with me and others in attendance if you like.

Wild Romp in blues and golds

Each session is recorded so you can attend live or you can take in the recording for two weeks afterwards.

You can make Wild Romp less scrappy if you like this look better. Here’s another version:

I will have a supply list and yardage for the scrappy version (below)

in an email sometime after you get your ticket.

This quilt does take scraps that are a little bigger. You will need a variety of colored pieces that are about 6″ square. You don’t need to have the fabric or even cut anything before the Sunday session. I would wait to shop until you hear the tips because there are several important things to consider. And you might be able to just shop your stash!

This quilt is throw size, about 55″ x 70″. Throws are my favorite size because they don’t take me a year to make and they are easily quilted on a domestic machine. And they’re useful!

If this sounds good, reserve your seat right here.

And please invite your friends! Word of mouth is an important way of getting this info out. Thank you!

I will look forward to spending time with you on Sunday, April 19. We’ll all be in the comfort of our own homes!

Until then, happy quilting!

Quilters Paradise summit March 9 to 13

Written by Diane Harris on . Posted in Blog, Complimentary, How-tos and Ideas, Open Classes for Everyone, Quilt Lifestyle

Next week I’m giving a talk on bricks during the Quilters Paradise summit and you’re invited.

The Quilters Paradise summit is a complimentary online event from March 9 to 13, in which 26 instructors will share on a variety of topics of interest to quilters. There’s a little something for everyone!

Framework is one of the first brick quilts I made. It started me on a journey and I see no end in sight.

There are so many things you can do with bricks! I’m going to tell you how I define a brick and what makes it special. You’ll get a handout that shows a boatload of brick ideas.

This gorgeous brick quilt by Marcia was part of show and tell when I visited a quilt guild in Houston. She started it during a Stash Bandit online workshop. It makes me so happy when people bring their quilts to share with me and others. It never fails to blow me away!

My Break of Dawn quilt design is based on bricks. There’s no end to the fun!

Let me tell you more about the Quilters Paradise summit.

This is a new style of event in the past several years. A group of instructors present material over a period of days and registrants can watch all of the talks at no charge for a limited time.

If attendees want to upgrade to a paid ticket, they get extended access to watch the talks and a bunch of bonus content. But it’s totally optional and you’ll get a lot out of it whether or not you choose to upgrade.

Sunday, March 8 is the last day to register for your free ticket.
Click right here to get it now! 

I can’t wait to share all the best info about bricks with you!

 

Unify diverse fabrics in scrap quilts

Written by Diane Harris on . Posted in Blog, How-tos and Ideas, Inspiration

One of the tricks to making cohesive scrap quilts is finding a way to unify diverse fabrics.

In my Make Extraordinary Scrap Quilts trunk show, I talk about using “glue”—something to hold all those fabrics together. Today I’m sharing a few types of glue along with examples where they’re used.

Color

Using a single color for a scrap quilt is an easy way to achieve unity. That one color automatically holds everything together quite nicely. It’s such a simple idea but I think it’s true.

Scarlet Spin by Diane Harris for Quiltmaker. Photo by Mellisa Karlin Mahoney. Used with permission.

Scarlet Spin came together easily because “all reds clash well,” according to the late Mary Ellen Hopkins. If you’re brave and you use all the reds together, it will work. You truly can’t mess it up.

Scrappy Sundays on Zoom: Stained Glass Window

Written by Diane Harris on . Posted in Blog, How-tos and Ideas

I’m late to the party because I’ve been sick but I’m starting a new online series and I’m excited to tell you about it! It’s called…

Scrappy Sundays with Stash Bandit

Beginning Sunday, Feb 8 (just six days away) at 1 pm Central, I’ll have a Zoom session one afternoon each month through July.

There will always be one featured quilt,

and I’ll show you exactly how to make that quilt.

 

And then I’ll throw in some more

thoughts, tips, tricks and strategies for making quilts that include many diverse fabrics, including how you can begin to manage your scraps and your stash.

There will  be plenty of quilts, and my goal is always for people to leave with useful info they can apply right away to their own projects.

The featured quilt for this session is my most recent finish, which I’m calling Stained Glass Window. I’m going to talk you through how it’s done and how you can get a similar look with your own fabrics.

Tickets are $12 on Eventbrite and include access to the recording for two weeks after the event on Sunday, Feb 8. Get your tickets now 😊.

In case you are new here, I’ve been making scrappy quilts with lots of different fabrics for a few decades. Here are some of my other quilts:

Star Silhouettes by Diane Harris, quilted by Julie Lechner.

Lingering Effects by Diane Harris, quilted by Julie Lechner.

Rainbodacious by Diane Harris, quilted by Julie Lechner.

Please join me:

Scrappy Sundays with Stash Bandit
Sunday, Feb 8, 1 pm Central
Tickets: $12

I hope to see you soon!

So many scrappy ideas: New book!

Written by Diane Harris on . Posted in Blog, Giveaways, How-tos and Ideas, Inspiration, Quilt Lifestyle

Is there anything more fun than a brand new book that is packed with possibility? I think not.

Scrap Quilts from Crumbs, Strips & Strings by Emily Bailey is hot off the press and let me tell you, it’s a good one!

Click image to pre-order!

Emily has taken traditional patchwork shapes like hexies, Log Cabins, stars, braids and Nine Patches and turned them on their head by using up leftover bits and bobs.

I can’t say I wanted to make a Grandmother’s Flower Garden before…but now I do!! Look at the size of those scrappy hexagons. And the dark scrappy ground is marvelous.

And if I ever make a braid quilt, it’s going to be this one in the coolest colors of all.

How about a little improv to make some flowers? They’re the perfect place for those favorite tiny scraps you couldn’t bear to toss.

Of the 15 patterns inside, the cover quilt called Fireworks is one of my favorites. The dullness of the grays with the brightness of the colored strips makes my heart sing. I’m probably going to make this quilt!

You can preorder the book now right from Emily, or ask for it at your local quilt shop when it arrives mid-October. Official publication date is 10/14. Get a better look at the quilts in the video below.

Let’s have a giveaway! Leave a comment for your chance to win Scrap Quilts from Crumbs, Strips & Strings by Emily Bailey. I’ll choose a winner on Oct 15 and notify by email.

Quilt on,

Tango, StarQuar classes now open to all

Written by Diane Harris on . Posted in Blog, Classes, How-tos and Ideas, Open Classes for Everyone, Quilt Lifestyle

I’ve just listed two upcoming classes and they’re open to everyone, everywhere.

Tango is a popular design that goes together quickly and easily and looks great in lots of fabric combinations. Simple piecing has rarely been this much fun!

Tango: Saturday, Oct 18, 2025, 10 to 2:30 Central
Online class
Tickets: $65
Get your ticket here

Tango by Diane Harris. Quilted by Julie Lechner.
Photo by Kristin Laing Photography.

Find the supply list for Tango right here.

Tango by Stephanie Lockhart.
Started in my online Tango workshop!

StarQuar Scrap Quilts: Saturday, Nov 15, 10 to 2:30 Central
Online class
Tickets: $65
Get your ticket here

StarQuar is a little unit I’ve been playing with for several years. I’ll show you how to make it from just one patch size and then together we’ll discover the myriad things you can do with it. It’s fun and addictive!

Star Silhouettes by Diane Harris.
Quilted by Julie Lechner.

StarQuar supply list

This workshop will help you to let go of using matching fabrics and to embrace a little clash. Your quilts can be unique, beautiful and exciting like never before! Let me show you how to create something brilliant with fabric you already own. StarQuar is the perfect playground!

Spot On by Diane Harris
Kitties in Windows by Diane Harris

I’ll look forward to seeing you in a workshop soon. I can’t wait to meet you!

A scrappy good time at Maine Quilts

Written by Diane Harris on . Posted in Blog, How-tos and Ideas, Inspiration, Quilt Lifestyle

Last week I traveled northeast for Maine Quilts and it did not disappoint.

Mainers remind me of Nebraskans: friendly, down-to-earth, truly good-hearted people. I loved them all.

Today I want to share my favorite quilts from the show, which had both judged and non-judged categories. One quilt that captured my attention was “Magic Pocean’s Salty Dogs.”

Magic Pocean’s Salty Dogs: Jennifer Smith. Quilted by Meliss Swanson. Design: Kinship by Angie Wilson @gnomeangel