Maxie Makes Subscription Sewing Box - August 2018

Want a peek inside the August 2018 Maxie Makes Subscription Sewing Box?  Click the video below! This month features Bonnie Christine's newest fabric line, Gathered, for Art Gallery Fabrics. We brought a project that was requested several times when I polled earlier subscribers: Paper Piecing! Whether you love it or avoid it at all costs, with the help of my friend, Sarah Overton, you'll overcome any hesitations quickly with her expert tips and attention to detail in her original patterns. This month we make the Tony Danza Mini Quilt!

Just to give you a glimpse of the planning that went into this month's box, one of the first steps I usually take is to create a mock up of the project. The one above, left, was made in EQ8, quilt design software. I imported images of Bonnie's fabrics and and had fun creating with Sarah's block design. With a few final changes, the outcome, right, was fairly predictable!

Because Sarah is such a great teacher of paper piecing, I asked her to help with the video tutorial and we had so much fun that day! There were plenty of giggling bloopers, but we ommited them for the sake of respectability.

Join the learning fun! Click here to subscribe! Thanks for stopping by!

Happy sewing and God bless! Maxie

The Alation Quilt Video

Hello! Today I'm writing about another quilt that my daughter, Bonnie Christine, and I designed. This quilt was another brainchild of Bonnie's. Now, I have to tell you how Bonnie and I usually work together when we're designing quilts, or any sewing project, for that matter. First, Bonnie says, "Mom, here's what I have in mind for this fabric!". I respond, "Bonnie, I don't think that's even possible!" Then, with both of us determined to prevail for quilters everywhere, we triumph. Ok, maybe it's not all that glorious, but it sure feels good to work together and see a project come to fruition! Such was the case with Alation, a beautiful butterfly quilt designed for her fabrics, Winged, which centers around things with wings. (You can see more projects made from these fabrics here.) The foolproof technique for making this quilt is super easy and great for beginners. In fact, I encourage you to enlist the help of your children and grandchildren as you begin to build the butterfly wings. As always, you'll find related notions and kits in both colorways for sale on my shopping page. I hope you enjoy this video tutorial! If you like it, please share and leave me a comment!

These are a Few of My Favorite Things...

I know the Christmas Holidays are past, but I'm still in the "Favorite Things" mode, so I thought I'd share some of my very favorite products and why I love them! I've used all of these things in my video tutorials, and (heads up!) next week I will be releasing a new video that will splash a few more nifty notions your way! By the way, I've linked each product description below to my shopping page where you can read more information about each one.

First up...Clover's Straight Awl. An awl is typically used for piercing holes in things like leather, paper, etc., but I use it at the sewing machine to help keep my fabric edges held together and to guide the fabric under the presser foot. The point is so sharp that it acts as well as a pin to hold things together. I keep it in my hand most of the time when I'm stitching!

2. Olfa's 28mm rotary cutter. This is the one to go to for precise trimming and cutting. Great for paper piecing or trimming quilt block units to size.

3. The Frixion's Iron-off Marker! I use this pen for all sewing applications from garments to quilts to accessories (bags, etc.) I even use it at the long arm quilting machine and keep my iron handy to remove the lines after I have quilted them!

4. Fons and Porter's Glue Stick. Keep your fabric where you want it until you stitch it in place. Enough said.

5.  Applique´ Scissors by Havels help so much when I'm trimming the fabric away from applique´ pieces, or any time I need to trim layers.

6. One of my oldest and most useful notions in my sewing room is the Dritz Ezy Hem. See how I use it in the Sentimentalities video! (Posting first week of January.)

7. I can't even begin to tell you how much I love Monopoly thread! This versatile product shows up (well, not really, because it's invisible!) in so many of my quilting projects! I use it for applique´ and quilting. Because it becomes the color of the fabric it's stitched on, it lets your fabric be the star of the show! (Added advantage: mistakes don't show!) My machines love it so much, not like the old nylon threads we used to use.

8. The Point 2 Point turner by Clover is relatively new to the sewing scene, but it's a new love! Touted as the Swiss Army Knife of point turners, I still haven't discovered its many uses!

9. A wonderful addition to my ruler stash, the 9º Wedge Ruler by Marilyn Doheny has so many uses! I have made several quilts with this ruler and, again, I'll show you how easy it is to use in the upcoming Sentimentalities video!

10. Last, (for today) is the beautiful Hexagon Ruler from Marti Michell. Marti is a master of rulers, and this one is no exception.

Thanks for stopping by, and may God bless you in the new year! I'll be posting a new video tutorial for you right after New Year's Day! Don't want to miss a thing?? Sign up for my RSS feeds (email updates) at right and receive notices of each post! If you like this post, please share!

Love,

Maxie