Stash Lab Quilts

Have a seat!

July 22, 2019

So not a quilty project but a fun, creative one for my quilting space to share with you. We’ve recently been doing some minor remodeling of the downstairs for my new studio space (more on that later) and I’ve been looking for fun and funky furniture to live in that new space. Nothing sedate, nothing bland. Colorful and bright need only apply!

I found a couple of garage sale chairs that I thought would be good candidates for reupholstering. After looking into professional upholstery, I decided this was definitely going to be an opportunity-to-learn-DIY-project!

YouTube videos I found particularly helpful and encouraging: one from Miss Mustard Seed about how to upholster the back of an open frame chair. Another one great video about how to make the double cord piping was by Broadway Upholstery School.

I found some home dec weight fabric and collected all of my supplies, including a new electric stapler. I was in no rush to get started but then on a recent weekend the power went out and since I couldn’t sew, I figured it was a great day for deconstruction of the chairs!

After I reached the point of no return, I decided they needed the paint freshened up. Power still out, great time to spray paint!

Smurf Blue to Caribbean Blue in one day!

After tearing them apart and repainting, I tackled the backs first, making the piping. I thought the busier print would be a good choice for my first attempt at the piping to hide my first-timer errors. In hindsight, good choice.

On to the chair seats. Much easier than the backs if only because I could use the worktable and didn’t have to be a contortionist with the staple gun.

Now that they’re done, I’m so glad I gave this project a try. Are they perfect? No. Do I love them? YES. Things I learned doing this project:

Upholstery takes more time than you think.
It takes more fabric thank you think.
It takes way more staples than you can imagine!

But I’m pretty sure there are no other identical chairs out there and these are all mine. It makes me chuckle to imagine someone coming across these in a future garage sale years down the road, rolling their eyes and saying “what was this person thinking?!” Ha! Pretty sure I’ll stick to quilting, but I’ll enjoy sitting in my new chairs while I do!

Happy quilting,

Tonya

Simply Stars

May 18, 2019

Sometimes, the simple way is the best way – or at least a little quicker! That’s my thinking with my newest pattern, “Simply Stars”.

This new pattern might look a little familiar – it’s a variation on my string quilt project “Rock Star” featured in the String Theory Lab Manual. A re-boot, if you will! Similar layout, different finished sizes, and no string piecing but using single fabrics instead. Here’s the Rock Star string quilt version…

The new pattern uses different striped fabrics for the star points, giving a similar effect of the string version, but with about 10% of the effort or time! Simply Stars can be made in two sizes, 70 x 90 twin size/large throw or 35 x 45 crib size/small throw, making it a perfect option for a quick baby quilt gift! This project comes together quickly, no matter which size you choose!

This pattern is so versatile and can look great in so many fabric variations. The pattern cover image is the large version done in Kaffe Fassett brights and here’s the crib size version I did in Kaffe pastels (did you know there are pastels? Yes indeed!)….

Choosing a multi-directional neutral print for the background makes this come together in a snap. The wavy echo Quilting was done on my domestic machine using my handy walking foot – love that thing!

Want to see the back?

I’ll spare you and leave out the cute-as-a-button puns for now but pretty hard to resist!

While I’m not at Spring Quilt Market this time around in Kansas City, Simply Stars will be and is currently available to shop owners through Checker Distributors. Or you can get it directly from me here.

That’s it for now! Happy spring quilting!

Tonya

A boulder, a book, and a few other things…

March 3, 2019

Just south of town there’s a giant spray-painted boulder referred to locally as “Blue Rock”, “Graffiti Rock”, or simply “the Rock.” It’s the unofficial billboard for the masses: team cheers, memorials, prom proposals…You name it, this boulder announces it to the world and has been doing it since at least 1966!

So, what does this boulder have to do with quilting? Well, it’s a stretch but it’s a great analogy of life, my life and the boulder of life I’ve been living under for the last 4-5 months. Sometimes you’re on top of the boulder of life, sometimes you feel like you’re underneath it! And I think if I were to connect the boulder with quilting, it would be that sometimes we have a great amount of creative energy and mental space to create, and sometimes we just don’t. And that’s o.k. Some may ask, Tonya, where have you been? What are you working on? Why aren’t you posting three times a day on social media? Your last blog post was in OCTOBER!

Well, my personal boulder would have several things written on it over the last few months and it would say something like this:

Sell house #1, buy house #2, pack house #1, move to house #2, sell a house #3, pack house #3, move house #3 across 3 states to join house #1 at house #3, break out in shingles, survive the holidays, and sadly say goodbye to puppy #1 after almost 14 years as a member of our family.

Now as complicated and stressful (at least to me!) as all of that sounds, there’s LOTS of good in all of that, with the exception of losing the puppy. It just took a few months of focus, or should I say, distraction, to get there.

Sugar Shack, by Tonya Alexander

I’m happy to say I made it through the muddle, life is returning to a better balance, and we’re in a beautiful home, including a dedicated sewing space! Yeah! While I’ve been under my own personal boulder, a new book came out that included one of my favorite projects, Sugar Shack. (See, I did finally bring it back around to quilting!) And with all of my house-related drama lately, it seems pretty perfect!

Martingale just released a big, beautiful new book of lap quilts and it’s called, you guessed it, The Big Book of Lap Quilts. Sugar Shack is making it’s second appearance, first being featured in another Martingale title called I Love House Blocks as part of their popular Block-buster series.

Sugar Shack is a project perfect for fat quarters and uses some easy half square triangle piecing for the roof line making it a quick and easy project. So if lap quilts are your thing – they are one of mine – then you’ll want to check it out. You can visit my shop page or ask for it at your favorite local quilt shop, they’ll be glad you did!

Other fun things are happening, visiting quilt guilds, teaching workshops and classes, and even finding a little time to sew with friends. More about all of that another time. But for now I think I will close with one more pic of the BEST. DOG. EVER. We miss you, our beautiful Seamus. Thank you for being a such a beloved part of our family. You were a blessing and made our lives full of unconditional doxie-love that is hard to imagine ever replacing…

Until next time, happy scrap quilting my friends – on top of all of the boulders of life!

Tonya

Pressed Leaves…Homeward

October 28, 2018

Making a pattern more than once? A rarity for me – but not this one! I’ve made so many of these table runners from my pattern “Pressed Leaves” I’ve lost count! It features a traditional leaf block in a not-so-traditional setting. It’s pretty quick and easy and looks great in every color combo of fabrics I’ve seen. And the perfect project to get you in the mood for Fall!This time though, I had the pleasure of using a beautiful new fabric line by Natalie Barnes from Beyond the Reef Patterns for Windham Fabrics called Homeward. When I saw the beautiful mix of bold, saturated color and low volume prints, I knew my next “Pressed Leaves ” runner was on its way! The fabric line includes a great range based on a beautiful floral focal print…I chose to mix up several of the low volume white/gray/black prints in the line for my background. The leaf blocks practically made themselves I had so many great combinations of prints to pick from. From the looks of this photo, I need to clean my design wall!I added my go-to favorite quilting on this project – an echo quilted wavy line using the walking foot on my domestic machine. Choosing scrappy binding from all the bits leftover means you don’t have to pick just one! There are so many great choices in this line and it will look great on my dining room table.Thank you Natalie and Windham Fabrics for a beautiful line! Look for Homeward as well as my pattern “Pressed Leaves” at your favorite local quilt shop!Happy fall quilting,

Tonya

Hungarian Picnic

August 30, 2018

Summer, sunshine, picnics in the park – what could be better? Well, I would add happy memories to that list and for me, some of those are showcased in “Hungarian Picnic”, my latest project for Quiltmania’s Simply Vintage magazine. I’m happy to share that it’s featured in the Summer 2018 issue!

HungPicnic79-SV27_TanyaAlexander — Hungarian Picnic, image courtesy of Simply Vintage, Summer 2018

Now, I don’t usually think of my quilting style as “vintage” and this is my first time in this particular edition by Quiltmania, but I guess if I think of vintage like good old Webster does as “of old, recognized, and enduring interest, importance, or quality” I’ll go with it! I think the folks at Quiltmania were spot on yet again with the photography and styling of this project. It evokes warm memories for me – and of a very special time in my life when I lived in Hungary.

I don’t have the honor of actually being Hungarian, I’m more of a voluntary adopted daughter! I was there teaching English for a year after college but really spent most of my time soaking in all of the “gulyas leves” that I could, learning about a beautiful, rich European culture, and loving the spirited and generous people I was surrounded by.

HP_2 — Hungarian Picnic, by Tonya Alexander/Quilted by Tracey Fisher

One of the simplest things that reminds me of that time of my life are the beautiful motifs found in Hungarian embroidery and pottery. My luggage was full of both when I made my way home and I always find the colors and forms inspiring. This project seemed like the perfect way to feature some of those.

Each region in Hungary is represented by it’s own unique style of embroidery. This design is inspired by and is reminiscent of iconic motifs notably from the area of Kalocsa. See the little red pepper in the border? That’s the tell-tale sign of Kalocsa embroidery and it’s symbolic of Hungary’s probably most famous export – paprika! HP_1

Project construction features quick and easy, scrappy nine-patch blocks set with a single “solid-ish” background fabric. I chose to do wool felt applique for a rustic but bright and colorful applique border – stitched by hand during the summer on my front porch, no less! You could, of course, substitute any favorite applique technique, switch out for cotton fabrics, fuse, needle-turn, take your pick!

HPcloseup

I am an absolute convert to free-form feather motif quilting featured on this project by Tracey Fisher. I think she was a little skeptical when I said I wanted feathers all over this since she knows traditional feathers aren’t my norm, but fortunately she obliged and added her amazing talent and free-form styling. Now I can’t imagine it any other way! I think the feathered quilting echoes the embroidery forms across the field of grid nine patch blocks in a particularly pleasing way for me.

So, if you already subscribe to the always beautiful and inspiring Quiltmania publications, you’re in luck, you hopefully already have your copy. Or, look for Simply Vintage at your favorite local quilt shop before they sell out – they’d love to see your smiling face 🙂

SV27-Couv Rotimpress-GB.indd

Happy summer stash quilting,

Tonya

A visit with Pat Sloan on the AP&Q Podcast!

August 13, 2018

Got scraps? Great! Let’s talk about them, shall we? I just had the chance to visit with the lovely Pat Sloan on her American Patchwork & Quilting Podcast. We chat about our mutual love of scrap quilts, working with scrap fabric strings, and one of my favorite topics – low volume fabrics 🙂

Come and join us! You can check it out here on Pat’s site….or here on American Patchwork & Quilting!

American Patchwork Quilting Pocast episode 389 Tonya Alexander

Happy scrap quilting!

Tonya

Time for a little String Theory!

June 23, 2018

And yes, we’re talking science – SCRAP SCIENCE that is! One of my favorite subjects to be sure. The longer I quilt one thing has proven to be true – the scraps keep multiplying and they keep getting smaller! I have been on a solid year full of string quilts – strings for me being skinny 1 1/2″ cut strips of fabrics. The result is my latest project – the String Theory Lab Manual and I’m thrilled to share it with you!

String Theory includes patterns for 6 different projects, all featuring these skinny strips of fabric. It’s amazing what you can do with all of these lovely little bits. We also talk a lot about low volume fabrics, storage ideas, and general construction tips and tricks. For me, it all started with this project, Rock Star…

This one also includes the optional project for the Big String Star that I teach in workshops and has been so much fun. On to the next project, Calliope!

Calliope is my version of a traditional plus quilt on scrappy string steroids! What makes this quilt work visually with all the different fabric scraps is the technique of color-blocking and I talk a lot more about that in the book. Next up, Domino, a curvy log cabin table runner. There are actually two version in String Theory but here’s version #1…

And Ombré Loco, for serious scrap enthusiasts with a bucket of favorite color scraps over-flowing. The best thing about this project is how it can be adapted for ANY favorite color out there!

Next up, Exit Stage Left!

And last but certainly not least, Simple Gifts, a quick and easy table topper that can be personalized for any favorite holiday colors.

One more for good measure, is this Simple Gifts alternative, these cute little throw pillows. I couldn’t resist! How can you ever have too many throw pillows? Especially when they’re this cute!

Simple Gifts alternate project – pillows!

O.k., here are the details…look for String Theory at your favorite local quilt shop or ask them to get it! They can order wholesale directly from me or through the following awesome distributors: Checker, EESchenck, Brewer Sewing, and Petersen Arne.

Or, you can order directly from my new shop page ! You can also check out my other latest patterns available now too. More about those later. I think that’s as much scrap happiness as we can handle in one post for now!

Happy string quilting,

Tonya

Family Tree

June 19, 2018

Family trees come in all shapes, forms, and sizes and so does this “Family Tree”, my latest project for Quiltmania’s Simply Moderne magazine. I’m happy to share that it’s featured in the new Summer 2018 issue!

: Family Tree, image courtesy of Simply Moderne Summer 2018

Now, I know typically family trees aren’t this bright or bold, but when I think of all of the colorful characters and fun family memories that make up my own family tree – this doesn’t seem so far off! Really, it’s about the vibrant colors of life that it represents.

I dove deep into the scrap bucket for this one using an assortment of bright prints as well as solids for the leaves and nested them in a mix of black/white print fabrics. The stack of black/white fabrics on my stash shelf was the result of a fun shop-hop fabric hunt. I love a mission – especially when there’s fabric shopping involved! Mixing brights with black/white prints is a go-to combo that will always look great, no matter which colors you choose.

For carefree summer quilting, I opted for fusible applique and finished with a machine blanket stitch in matching threads for the leaves. The bright pop of hot pink of the flange binding adds another layer of interest to this project and keeps the black print fabrics from feeling too heavy or serious. It’s a surprisingly simple technique and a fun one to try if you haven’t before.

The quilting was a bit of a lark on this one. I echo quilted around all of the leaves and then changed up the quilting motifs in each of the squares. Black and white fabrics are very forgiving so give yourself permission to mix them up and try something new – remember, this is supposed to be fun!

So, if you already subscribe to the always beautiful and inspiring Quiltmania publications, you’re in luck – check your mailbox and it should be there any day. Or, look for Simply Moderne at your favorite local quilt shop on shelves soon – they’d love to see you’re smiling face 🙂

Happy summer scrap quilting,

Tonya

Spring Market – Portland recap

May 27, 2018

Wohoo! I’m celebrating! I attended Spring Quilt Market in Portland last week (industry trade show) and had my own vendor booth for the first time and WOW! So much work, such a big learning curve, but so much FUN!

First of all, no one does this kind of thing alone and I had all kinds of great help – from product production, graphic design, long-arm quilting, hauling, set-up, booth coverage, experienced neighboring vendors, tear-down, and even pizza and ice cream consumption. Most importantly amazingly encouraging friends and family – I had all kinds of help along the way and I’m so grateful.

I hardly had a chance to leave my own booth and walk the show floor. But I’ll share what I can! Picture heavy but here are some glimpses of my week…

the view down my aisle before the show floor opened…

click on any of the images for a closer look…

and then there was a fun open-house shopping event at EE Schenck (an industry distributor) at their facility in Portland…and look what was on their shelves!

I met so many great shop owners, industry professionals, quilt lovers all. There’s probably no better way to summarize my week than with this display from RJR Fabrics. This is what it’s all about…

Happy stash quilting,

Tonya

Trying something new – silk!

May 7, 2018

One of the things I love about quilting is the variety and creativity in the medium. While I love my scrap quilts, it’s also fun to try new things, stretch and grow, too. I had the opportunity recently to take a silk fabric painting class with Janet Lehwalder and it was so fun! So different than anything I had tried or imagined either – and sometimes that’s the best part of taking a class!

So, if pressed to describe painting on silk fabric, I’d say it’s kind of like watercolor painting crossed with Easter egg dying. The process is so easy Janet even teaches elementary school students the technique – so I knew there was hope for me!

Janet’s knowledge and experience is so deep. She’s such a great example of someone finding the art form that speaks to them and making it a lifelong passion. Not only was it a class on a new technique and medium but also a great exercise in color mixing and using the true primaries – yellow, magenta, and cyan – to make all the colors we used.

There’re a lot of steps and I wouldn’t begin to attempt a tutorial here – more like an exploratory look 🙂 so here are some pics of the process…

Here’re some of my classmates’ works in progress and one of Janet’s completed projects with beautiful bead embellishments.

I tried a traced design with a resist medium and then adding the paint and then one free-hand all-over design on a silk fat quarter. Supposedly, you can even cut it up and quilt with it when you are done, but I can tell you I love it too much already to ever cut into this baby!

So, check out Janet’s work, take her classes if you have the opportunity and try something new! You will enjoy the process, add a new skill to your arsenal, and leave with a beautiful piece of hand-painted silk.

Happy stash quilting,

Tonya

Make what you love and love what you make.