Posts Tagged ‘scrap quilts’

Sunday Sew-In Coming Up

Written by Diane Harris on June 1, 2021. Posted in Blog, Complimentary, How-tos and Ideas, Inspiration, Quilt Lifestyle

Today I decided to stop analyzing and just get some events scheduled. The first one is coming up on Sunday, June 6. We had so much fun learning together during Scrap Quilt Secrets so I created a Sunday Sew-In. We’ll hang out and sew on Zoom, and I’ll share a block pattern plus some scrappy tips.

I’ll share a few quilts that are not in any of my trunk shows and you’ll get to see what I’m currently working on. If you want to, you can share what you’re working on, too!

You’ll need a ticket and they’re priced right at just $5. Get your ticket on Eventbrite now!

Quilts by Accident

Written by Diane Harris on May 18, 2021. Posted in Blog, How-tos and Ideas, Inspiration, Quilt Lifestyle

A lot of the quilts I make start off by accident. That’s what happened with the Daydream sampler from Quilter’s World.

Daydream sampler from Quilter’s World,
designed and made by Carolyn Beam; quilted by Donna Smith.

I do a monthly Facebook Live for Quilter’s World.** I brainstorm a few topic ideas for each one, and together we settle on that month’s focus. A few months back, I thought it would be fun to show how I would make the Daydream sampler with lots and lots of different fabrics.

Mother’s Day Baggage

Written by Diane Harris on May 9, 2021. Posted in Blog, Inspiration, Quilt Lifestyle

I have Mother’s Day baggage. It’s not that I had a bad mother. On the contrary, I had a great one. She was amazing in so many ways. Her name was Doris.

I miss her and I think of her fondly today, so that isn’t the problem at all.

My baggage stems from many years in ultra-conservative fundamentalist or evangelical churches and their practices surrounding this holiday (which I think Hallmark invented as a way to make money, but that’s another issue).

Scrappy Backgrounds: What I’ve Learned

Written by Diane Harris on May 6, 2021. Posted in Blog, How-tos and Ideas, Inspiration, Quilt Lifestyle

When I started making scrap quilts, that is, quilts with lots and lots of different fabrics, I thought that I still needed one big chunk of background fabric. I’d see the materials list and it would look something like this:

Sometimes it would require even more background fabric. Think 3 or 4 or 5 yards. I’d scurry off to the quilt store (which in my case means driving almost an hour) to buy the background.

Plus and X Block Instructions

Written by Diane Harris on March 18, 2021. Posted in Blog, Complimentary, How-tos and Ideas, Inspiration

One thing we’ve talked about in Scrap Quilt Secrets is the Plus and X Block. It became popular a few years back when a Japanese quilter named Setsuko Inagawa entered a quilt with this block into the Tokyo show, and a quilter named Jan Burgwinkle took photos and posted them on flickr. People went wild and soon there were Plus and X quilts popping up everywhere.

I made mine in the first few years of the frenzy and I didn’t pay any attention to value. Here’s what I mean.

Day 2 Giveaway: Fabric!

Written by Diane Harris on February 22, 2021. Posted in Blog, Complimentary, Giveaways, How-tos and Ideas, Inspiration

Stash Bandit is celebrating with 10 days of giveaways and this is Day 2!

I recently finished piecing a throw-size version of a quilt called Maisy Daisy, which I ran across in a back issue of McCall’s Quilting. Its scrappy deliciousness called to me.

Maisy Daisy, designed by Maho Schwartz, made by Diane Harris

Then I made the exciting discovery that McCall’s put the pattern online at no charge, so if you like it, be sure to grab it here.

The quilt was designed by Maho Schwartz. I made just 12 blocks but the original has more. Totally up to you!

Day 1 Giveaway

Written by Diane Harris on February 16, 2021. Posted in Blog, Complimentary, Giveaways, How-tos and Ideas, Inspiration, Quilt Lifestyle

Stash Bandit is celebrating with 10 days of giveaways and this is Day 1!

I have two great books on quilts made from 2-1/2″ strips and a specially-curated bundle of those strips in blues and neutrals.

I have been doing a monthly Facebook Live with Annie’s so it is fitting that I feature one of my favorite books of theirs: Time-Saving Quilts with 2-1/2″ Strips.

In case you’re wondering, I’m not being paid for this and I don’t get a commission on the books. I really just like this title and want to share it with you. 😊

And if you’re a scrap quilt lover like I am, I hope that you’ve discovered Susan Ache.

Stash Bandit is Celebrating!

Written by Diane Harris on February 16, 2021. Posted in Blog, Giveaways, How-tos and Ideas, Inspiration, Quilt Lifestyle, Trunk Shows

I hope you’ll join me to celebrate a milestone! Stash Bandit reached 10,000 Instagram followers on Sunday, Feb 14 and that calls for a party!

10 days of giveaways
“Scrap Quilt Secrets” Class Launch (it’s complimentary!)
A new pattern that’s fun and easy (and free!)
Sneak peeks of what’s ahead
Booking specials on Stash Bandit trunk shows

Father & Farmer by Diane Harris, quilted by Julie Lechner

Let’s first talk about the launch of my complimentary series of classes: Scrap Quilt Secrets. Why am I giving away six hours of instruction on fabric, color and making dynamite scrap quilts? Here’s why:

I want to visit your quilt guild!

I’m doing this series to give people a sense of my style and a taste of what I share during my trunk shows. And there’s another reason:

I love to talk about scrap quilts!

People are hungry to know how to use the fabric they already own to make beautiful scrap quilts. They want projects with cohesion rather than a messy jumble of chaos—and that’s what I will teach you.

You can sign up for one, any or all of the six one-hour sessions. I will give a presentation on a scrap quilt topic and then we’ll have discussion where you can ask questions or show me your fabric and get help.

The first session is Sunday, Feb 21 from 2 to 3 pm CST. It will happen on six consecutive Sundays: Feb 28, March 7, 14, 21 and 28. Sign up for one, any or all. Missing one won’t put you behind. Each one stands alone.

Subscribe to the blog.

I’ll also publish a new complimentary pattern this week for my easy, simple, modern design called Nights in White Satin.

Nights in White Satin, EQ rendition, by Diane Harris

I designed this quilt in EQ8 and I’ll start piecing it this week. Join with me if you want to! It would be a good time to get EQ8 for yourself or to learn how to use it. Lots of great info at The Electric Quilt Company.

Pattern coming later this week!

But wait! There’s more! 🤣

For quilt guilds, I’m running booking specials this week.

Discounts plus a quilt!

I am giving a 15% discount on virtual lectures booked for any time in 2021 or 2022. And for the first three guilds that book a virtual lecture, I will send you a quilt which you can award to a member, donate or use as a fundraiser. This offer only applies to new contracts not already in place or in progress.

Offer ends March 31, 2021.

See my trunk shows here.

Thank you for your support over the first four years of my business adventure. I so appreciate it!

Need to get in touch? Click here.

Introducing Father & Farmer

Written by Diane Harris on January 20, 2021. Posted in How-tos and Ideas

My latest design for Fons & Porter’s Quick + Easy Quilts was inspired by two things.

Father & Farmer, designed and made by Diane Harris, quilted by Julie Lechner.
Appears in Fons & Porter’s Quick + Easy Quilts Feb/March 2021

The first was a vintage quilt I saw on the auction site eBay. Tiny red triangles sparkled against dusty old tones, and I was smitten.

The second inspiration was my father.

His name was John Volk and he was a farmer here in Nebraska. He loved agriculture and he loved us. I could write a book about him, but for now let me tell you about his everyday attire.

My dad with two of his great-granddaughters

My dad wore denim overalls and a blue chambray shirt. And he carried a bandana-patterned handkerchief in either bright red or navy blue. For all or our lives, day in and day out, we could count on this one thing. (Unless it was Sunday, but that’s another post.)

John Volk with one of his great-grandsons

He died in 2011 at age 91, but I still have a pair of his overalls. I’d like to make something from them, but in the meantime, there is this quilt:

Father & Farmer

All of the blues and creams are from my stash, and they echo the colors I associate with Dad. And sewing from what I already have? That’s significant too, because my father was a child of the Depression. Born in 1920, he lived through some very lean times in the ’30s.

There’s a story about one of my brothers chiding him for saving what seemed like an excess of scrap wood behind a small building on the farm. And Dad went on a little rant about that, declaring that until we had lived through a time when you could not get the things you needed, we’d better zip it.

My parents and my four brothers several years before I was born.
Same overalls and blue shirt. 😍

So I like to think that he’d approve of me pulling fabrics from my stash to make a quilt in his honor.

I made the quilt for a king-size bed, which is why it has a wider border at the bottom. Another row of blocks would have made it too large; this border brought it to just the size I wanted.

This issue is on newsstands now so I hope you’ll pick it up when you see it. I love the cover quilt by Nancy Mahoney called Weaving Stars. There’s an easy veteran-appropriate Quilt of Valor pattern, a nice baby quilt, a fabulous modern design called Tweens by Dodi Poulsen and much more.

If you prefer a digital issue (save the trees!) you can order it from Quilting Daily for $7.99. I’m always amazed by what a great value a magazine is. When a pattern costs at least $10 or $12, less than eight for a dozen projects is a steal.

Thank you for letting me think happy thoughts about my father today. He was a keeper.

Quilt on,

Scrap Busting Fun in 2021

Written by Diane Harris on November 24, 2020. Posted in How-tos and Ideas

I’ve been playing with some scrap quilt ideas and there’s nothing I love more. The only problem is that one idea leads to another, and then to another and so on. I have started five new quilts in the past two weeks (ridiculous, I know).

All of this is in preparation for a new class I’m teaching on January 2 from 10 am to 1 pm CST:

Stash Busting Fun in 2021

This class is open to anyone, anywhere and will take place on Zoom. I’ve learned the ropes, had some successes and feel confident enough to do it now! Prepare for inspiration!

Included with the class will be a number of easy AMAZING quilt patterns suitable for scraps. You will want to have some fat quarters or yardage available as well, but the idea is that you’ll have many options for using up leftovers and making dynamic scrap quilts from the fabric you already own!

But wait! There’s more!

I will also share a bunch of my best tips, tricks and secrets to making a scrap quilt work. We will cover the ideas of value, contrast, scale, vibrance, mood, genre and more.

We’ll look at some quilts that do NOT work so that we can begin to understand what DOES work.

If you wish to be seen during class, you can turn your video on. But if you wish not to be seen, that is fine, too! My experience has been that people chat and laugh and enjoy being together during a virtual sewing session in much the same way they would in a live class. Turns out this is really enjoyable and FUN! Who knew?!

I’m using the new Zoom Beta platform called OnZoom, which I am really excited about. One of its limitations is that an OnZoom session can only be created 30 days before the event. This means that registration for Stash Busting Fun in 2021 will open around Dec. 3. I will publicize it on my social media and in my newsletter. Here are links to those:

Check out my Instagram @stashbanditquilting

See my Facebook biz page

We’re going to have a great time and you’re going to leave inspired to sew up a ton of the fabric, kits and supplies you already paid for!

What’s not to love?!

Keep on stitchin’,