Shop Hopping

A friend and I went out on Saturday to start the State of Maine Quilt Shop Hop. There is a passport that you download and print from their website. As you travel, each shop stamps their square on the passport. We received a charm square, some other small gifts and a door prize entry at each shop. We did stop at one shop along the way that wasn’t part of the hop. But we were driving by so we had to! We went to a total of five shops. I bought three really cute half yards while thinking about my two nieces.

Splash of Color by Sarah Vedeler

Next, I found the perfect focus fabric for a project that is on my “to do” list. Sarah Vedeler Designs has a series quilt in McCall’s Quilting magazine for 2016. It is called Splash of Color and features embroidered applique blocks that require multi-hooping. This is something I’ve never done but I love this quilt so it’s time to learn. My Bernina 830 has a jumbo hoop with about a 10” x 16” sewing area. So far that’s been big enough for anything I’ve wanted to do. Sarah has offered free webinars for each block as it is released so I've watched the process of multi-hooping several times. Now to try it!

The large circular motifs in the quilt photo are a print from Sarah Vedeler’s newest fabric line, Transformation, by Benartex. I don’t care for the large print, and the embroidered applique has so many details I think solids will be fine for that. I love the colors of a fat quarter bundle (right) I have so that was my starting point.

Here’s what I found:

   

The larger print will be good for the outside border and center square, with the smaller print as inside borders. Both were marked down (yay). Now I’m just waiting to receive my Brother Scan ‘n Cut (backordered three weeks) so I can cut the applique shapes and get started.

There are 36 shops listed on the State of Maine Shop Hop, and they give you the whole month of April to visit. I’m sure we’ll be exploring again soon. It’s snowing today so it’s a good day to stay in.

Happy sewing,

Mary