Blog - Color Girl Quilts by Sharon McConnell

11 Jan

Announcements, Quilting Interest, Work in progress

Quilting Community Events: Join the Fun!

Posted by Sharon
Art Gallery Fabrics, Quilting social media, sewing challenge
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I am sponsoring prizes for a couple quilting world events that start this month and I thought you might like to join in. I don't know about you, but I love being part of the quilting community on Instagram especially, but also Facebook and interacting with you who comment here on the blog. It's extra fun to get involved when fellow quilters issue challenges or hold sew-alongs and blog hops. We are lucky to have social media to connect with like-minded (okay, fellow quilt-obsessed) people all over the world! So, here's a couple things you might want to check out... Isabelle...

12 Dec

DIY Decorating and Crafts, Favorites, Quilting Interest

Top Picks: Gifts for Quilty People

Posted by Sharon
gifts for fiber artists, gifts for quilters, holiday for crafters
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Christmas is coming and it's coming fast! If you have people on your Christmas list who like to cut fabric into small pieces and sew it back together again, I've got you covered. I've gathered my favorites to give you the ultimate holiday (or anytime!) gift-giving list for the quilters in your life. **NOT affiliate links, just my personal suggestions (-; ** Who wouldn't love a goody bag full of little tools, charm packs, and a cute notebook? One of my favorite parts of gift giving is making the package and imagining the person opening it...like finding a little treasure....

03 Dec

Quilting Interest

New Tutorial! How to Sew Partial Seams

Posted by Sharon
free quilting tutorial, modern sampler quilt, partial seam quilt tutorial, quilting on youtube, sampler quilt
1 comment

Making more Super Simple Sampler Blocks! This all-pink quilt is really growing on me, what do you think? Was hoping to have it done to gift for Christmas, but that's not going to happen (-: It will have to be New Year (as in, later in 2019) gift. How about you? have you been working on your blocks? There is a new video up on Color Girl YouTube this week. It's a detailed tutorial on how to sew block #24, which includes a partial seam sewing technique. This trick is not scary! It's a handy technique to learn so you...

30 Nov

Quilting Interest

Celebrate! A Creative 2018 in Review

Can you believe it's already December, 2018?? This year has flown by, but we have accomplished so much and have many creative projects to celebrate. For the third year in a row, I am doing the My Creative year-in-review celebration on Instagram. #mycreative2018 is all about looking back at a beautiful year of color, crafting, and creativity. I bet you'll be surprised at just how much y0u have done! Each day December 1-14, I will post the theme of the day. This theme is your challenge to evaluate all the creative work you've done this year and share about it....

23 Nov

Work in progress, YouTube Video Links, YouTube Videos

Setting Your Sampler Blocks: Hourglass Tutorial

Posted by Sharon
easy sampler quilt, free quilt block tutorial, modern sampler quilt
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Progress! How are you coming on your Super Simple Sampler blocks? I feel like sewing time has been short lately, but I am determined to get this quilt done in 2018 (-:I have a new video up on Color Girl Quilts YouTube. This tutorial is all about making hourglass blocks that we will alternate with the sampler blocks in the final layout. If you would like to use this layout on your own set of orphan sampler blocks, see bottom of page for cutting measurement adaptation. <<click here to watch video>> In the video I will show you how to cut...

19 Nov

Curved PIecing, Finished Quilts, Quilting Interest, Radiance Quilt

Radiance: Tula Style

Posted by Sharon
Classic Curves Ruler, curved piecing modern quilt, Pinkerville fabrics, Radiance Quilt pattern, Tula pink fabric
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Any Tula Pink fans in the house? I have enjoyed many of her fabric collections, but my favorites are the ones that really show off her talent for clear, vibrant colors in off-beat combinations. She is one designer that shows incredible illustration and design skills with highly detailed fabrics featuring whimsical and intricately drawn creatures, flowers and geometric patterns. So, if these are the things that make Tula so well-loved among sewists, then she has hit a home run with her next collection, Pinkerville. I was super excited (and really surprised) when the marketing person from Free Spirit Fabrics asked...

05 Nov

Quilting Interest, YouTube Video Links, YouTube Videos

Squares with Squares: Simple Block Tutorials

Posted by Sharon
easy quilt blocks tutorial, free sampler quilt blocks, modern sampler quilt
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Progress! This week in the Super Simple Sampler, we have sewn a few more blocks and they are really too cute. So far, we have blocks featuring triangles and flying geese and have quite a collection of 6" sampler blocks stacking up. We are on our way! This week I am showing you an essential trick for making quick work of piecing the blocks with squares. You'll love how easy this makes piecing even the smallest patches and will come in handy in future projects and other quilt blocks as well. This week's blocks feature squares and rectangles, making them...

29 Oct

Classic Curves Ruler, Finished Quilts, Quilt Patterns, Quilting Interest

Radiance Quilt Pattern has Landed!

Posted by Sharon
Classic Curves Ruler, classic curves ruler pattern, curved piecing modern quilt, Radiance Quilt pattern
1 comment

It's here! I am so excited to bring the Radiance pattern to you and see what you all create with it. This design was really fun for me to work on, sew and create the instructions for. I think it's the most impressive-looking quilt yet for the Classic Curves Ruler. The idea for this one came from my love of pieced and interesting borders on quilts. The goal was to create a modern design based on traditional shapes, and add a lot of star power with the scrappy borders combined with the curves. What do you think? I don't usually choose...

23 Oct

Quilting Interest, YouTube Video Links

All About Flying Geese: Cute Sampler Blocks

Posted by Sharon
free quilt pattern, how to sew flying geese, modern sampler quilt, quilting tutorial on flying geese, sampler quilt
3 comments

I took a bit of time off, so I'm slightly behind on what I had planned for my Super Simple Sampler blocks. I hope if you are sewing along you are still working away on these cute blocks! This week, the focus is on flying geese units. These little block units are key to lots of traditional quilt blocks and the technique is a must for your quilting toolkit. (Besides, they are just so cute and versatile!) There are several blocks in the Simple Sampler Series that require you to make flying geese or use the same techniques. I have...

16 Oct

Announcements, Curved PIecing, Finished Quilts, Quilting Interest

Finished! An epically Radiant Quilt

Posted by Sharon
alison glass fabric, Classic Curves Ruler quilt, modern curved piecing quilts
5 comments

You guys know that I am a big Alison Glass fan, right? Her fabrics are so COLORFUL! So you know I am super excited to share a finished quilt (and the next new pattern for the Classic Curves Ruler!) as well as her newest collection of fabrics; they are sooooo yummy. Voila! the Radiance quilt. I am putting the finishing touches on the pattern now, so be on the lookout for an announcement in the next couple weeks. Be sure you're on my email list for first dibs and *maybe* a special price. This quilt was inspired by my Polka Dot...