Texas Roadtrip QAL: Big Bend

Just a little PSA to let you know that Cristina over at Pretty Little Quilts is sharing her Big Bend block today on her blog and there is another awesome Aurifil giveaway to enter! Oh, and her blog post puts my writing skills to shame! You must go read it even if you aren't participating!!





That's all I got for you today...carry on!
Melissa

Texas Roadtrip QAL - Midland/Odessa

Hi Everyone! Just wanted to direct your attention over to Donna's blog, Donna's Lavender Nest, to check out the next stop in our QAL: Midland/Odessa! You can also enter to win some awesome Aurifil thread while you are over there!

Pub. by Johnson News Agency, Midland, Texas. "Tichnor Quality Views," Reg. U. S. Pat. Off. Made Only by Tichnor Bros., Inc., Boston, Mass.

 

Be sure to visit Cristina's blog, Pretty Little Quilts, on Monday to see her Big Bend block (which is awesome)! Oh, and looks like we will be closing on the new house next week (fingers crossed!) and here is a sneak peek that I shared on instagram yesterday!

 

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Texas Roadtrip QAL: El Paso at Porch Swing Quilts

Hey everyone! Be sure to head over to Jennie's blog, Porch Swing Quilts, to read all about El Paso, get the El Paso quilt block tutorial, and enter for a chance to win some awesome Aurifil thread!

Melissa

Texas Roadtrip QAL - Quadrant 3 download and some sponsor love!

Wow, this QAL is going so fast and there are so many great looking quilt tops showing up on Flickr and Instagram (#texasroadtripqal)!

Check out these lovelies that I spotted on Instagram (my first time embedding IG pictures so I hope it works)!



(Yes, that is a mini!)






Of course, here are some others on Flickr (click on the pictures to find out more):





This rose is just amazing!




(AMH makes me smile, big!)

And here is mine!




For the next two weeks, we will be traveling through west Texas...yay! I'm going to be honest, I've only been through west Texas maybe once or twice back when my job required me to travel a lot. I am excited about the chance for me to get to know more about the other half of my beloved State!

To download the quadrant 3 pattern, click here and check out lineup for the next two weeks!

June 23 - El Paso - Jennie at Porch Swing Quilts

June 26 - Midland/Odessa - Donna at Donna's Lavender Nest

June 30 - Big Bend - Cristina at Pretty Little Quilts

Also, dont forget that each of these stops there will be some yummy Aurifil thread to give away. In addition, be sure to check out some of our other sponsors if you get a chance! There are some great sales going on and lots of other goodies!

Did you know that Aurfil is Fat Quarter Shop's notion of the month? That means 20% off and there is free shipping right now for their 11th Anniversary!! 

Also, Fort Worth Fabric Studio has all their Scrumptious on sale for 30% off! That includes patterns! 

Donna over at Donna's Lavender Nest has a great assortment of Lecien/Japanese Fabrics and flat rate $5 shipping! 

Lily Rose Quilts is a great place to get some yardage, especially if you are needing some Bella Solids!

Have a great week visiting west Texas!

Melissa

ps - if you would like me to share your progress and you are not on IG or Flickr, please email a picture to me and I would love to give it some love! You can find my email in the "About Me" tab or on the right sidebar!

Aurifil Giveaway: LAST DAY!

Today is the last day to enter to win some awesome Aurifil thread (giveaway closes at 9PM CST)! Go here to find out how to enter! Hint: the details are at the very bottom and be sure to like @blackvelvetstitches!

Melissa

Texas Roadtrip QAL: Lubbock with Jada at BlackVelvetStitches

Hi ya'll! I'm Jada and I am here today representing Lubbock, TX. I was born and raised in Texas, and have lived here most of my life. I spent about 11 years in Houston, and then moved North of Dallas, where I have lived for 13 years. I have a husband and 2 year old son that keep me busy, and I find time to squeeze in quilting when I can! I have many friends who live in Lubbock that assisted me in the "information gathering" portion of this blog post and I cannot thank them enough!

 

Most of you guys will have a specific reason for visiting Lubbock, because as you know, there's not a whole lot out there in West Texas, but I promise, Lubbock is a lot more fun than you might expect!

 

First, you can always tour Texas Tech. The campus is beautiful and even if you have no reason to go there for college, you can learn a lot of great history about the city and fun things to do while on these tours.

 

You could try visiting the Buddy Holly Museum or go to the Stars and Stripes Drive-In Theatre. Both of which are super cool :). There is also the First Friday Art Trail, McPhearson Cellars, and the Texas Tech football games.

 

If you're hungry, there are a ton of great places to eat! One of the places I am most excited to try on my next visit is called Cagle Steakhouse. These guys are family owned and they serve beef from their own ranch! How cool is that?? Thanks Erica for the recommendation!

 

Another one that is high on my list of "To Try Restaurants" is One Guy From Italy. Apparently their pizza is incredible, and they have 2 locations to choose from in Lubbock. You could also try West Crust Artisan Pizza if One Guy is too busy, or you could check out some of the other restaurants that many Lubbock locals frequent such as: Triple J's, Caprock Cafe, Harrigans, or Blue Sky Texas.

 

Although Lubbock may get a reputation for being a sleepy West Texas town, there is plenty of nightlife to keep you entertained. Whether you want a club with music for dancing, or a laid back bar that's open late, Lubbock has it. Just to name a few, you should check out Cricketts Bar, Chimys, Mesquites, the Roof, and Cafe J.

 

Don't forget to check out J&B Coffee to stock up on caffeine before checking out the quilt shops!

 

Speaking of Quilt Shops, one of my favorite fabric designers, Vanessa Goertzen, told me about a great little shop called Cottage Fabrics! In addition to carrying a lot of great fabrics, they are also one of the local Janome dealers for that area. Be sure to check them out!

 

If you enjoy a little paper crafting with your quilting, Snippits! is a great place to check out as well. They cater to scrapbookers and quilters, so it's a great place to find some kindred spirits, or if you're like me, where you can find someone to scrapbook all those great pictures while you're busy making quilts!

 

Now, onto what you've all been waiting for, the Texas Road Trip Lubbock Quilt Block!!

 

I decided to incorporate a little "Southwestern Flare" into this block, while still keeping it modern and fun with the fabric choices.

 

 

This block is made entirely of HSTs, which happen to be some of my favorite blocks. They are so versatile and by just turning them or rearranging a tiny bit, you can have an entirely new quilt block. I chose to make mine 4 at a time, so I will be showing you guys a new way to make HSTs, that I actually prefer. And bonus! No marking required!! I know, I was hooked after trying it once.

 

 

For this block, you will need:

(4) 5-inch white squares

(3) 5-inch teal squares

(1) 5-inch pink square

 

This is where it gets strange if you are not familiar with the "4 at a time HST" trick. Place one white square and one teal square RST and stitch all the way around the square, closing it up completely

 

 

Repeat this process with your other 2 teal fabrics, and your 1 pink fabric.

 

Next, line up your ruler diagonally across one of your stitched together blocks and cut, but DO NOT PULL THE PIECES APART FROM EACH OTHER.

 

 

Turn your ruler and cut from the opposite corner diagonally across the block again, and now you should have 4 HSTs. Repeat this process for the rest of your blocks.

 

 

Now you will press your HSTs before you trim them down to be sewn together. I personally would press the seams open since this is such a small block, as this will help reduce bulk at the seams.

 

 

 

Once you have pressed your seams, it is time to trim your HSTs to 2 inches.

 

 

 

Just for reference, you should have 12 white/teal HSTs and 4 white/pink HSTs.

 

 

After all of your pieces are trimmed to 2" it is time to assemble your block! Begin by sewing your rows and refer to the picture above to ensure you have the correct placement.

 

Now that you have all of your rows sewn, go ahead and press your seams open before sewing your rows together. After pressing your seams, you can begin to sew the rows.

 

 

I usually am not a "pinner", but for blocks this small, I make an exception. And bonus points if your pins match your fabrics!!

 

Once your rows are sewn together, press your final seams...

 

 

and get ready to reveal your adorable Lubbock block!

 

 

And there you have it! I hope you have enjoyed making this block as much as I did and that your next trip to Lubbock exciting and fun. Thanks for joining me on this journey and I cannot wait to see what you guys create.

 

Of course there is a great giveaway with this Quilt Along (see picture below)! To enter, go to my Instagram (BlackVelvetStitches) and follow me for one entry (or let me know if you are already a follower), and comment on the picture of my Lubbock block telling me your favorite book for a second entry! That easy! If you are not an Instagrammer, leave a comment on this blog telling me your favorite book for one entry. The giveaway will be closed Saturday, June 21st at 9 p.m. CST and a winner will be announced Sunday, June 22nd on the blog and my Instagram!! -Jada

GIVEAWAY CLOSED - congrats to @chelengeorge over on Instagram!

 

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Texas Roadtrip QAL: Amarillo

Happy Monday! We are in Amarillo this morning with Aoife over at thREDhead! Make sure you head over there to read all about the "helium capital of the world" and a chance to win some awesome Aurifil thread!

If you still need to download Quadrant 2 pattern, you can do so here.

Come back here on Thursday where I will have a guest blogger, Jada, sharing all about Lubbock!

Melissa

Texas Roadtrip QAL: Quadrant 2 Pattern

It has been so exciting seeing everyone's first quadrant come together! We are so humble by all the participants riding along!

Here is my first quadrant! Eeek! I just love it in April Showers!

Now it's time to travel to west Texas and you can go here to download the second quadrants pattern printout!

We will continue our trip tomorrow in Amarillo with Aoife at thREDhead and then Lubbock with Jada guest blogging here on my fabric relish on Thursday!

See you tomorrow!

Melissa

 

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Texas Roadtrip QAL: Fort Worth

Hi Y'all! We are cruising over to historic Fort Worth today with Jodie and Lindsey at Fort Worth Fabric Studios! Make sure to head on over to check out their Fort Worth block and some fun touristy facts about cowtown!

Also, be sure to come visit on Sunday to get the pattern for the second quadrant!

 

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Texas Roadtrip QAL: Tyler

Our next stop on the QAL is Tyler, Texas! You can head over to Cristina's blog, Pretty Little Quilts, where the talented Colleen Long (IG @sewthreadink) is guest blogging! She has some fantastic tid bits about Tyler and her block is just genius! Be sure to check out the awesome Aurifil giveaway, too!

We just love how generous our sponsers have been! Aurifil gave us enough thread for each of our bloggers/guest bloggers to giveaway on their blog during the QAL. We were just expecting the designer box but also received a sample thread package (with six different thread weights) and a fabulous thread color chart!! Designer boxes and color packs will vary but I promise they are ALL fantastic!!! Now you will know the exact color of thread you need and the correct weight for your project! We love you, Aurifil (and @AlexVeronelli)!

Also, some have you might have noticed, but I finally joined the world of Instagram. I know, I'm pretty lame. But if you would like to follow me, I'm @myfabricrelish. I would love to return the Instagram love! See you there and again next week for Ft. Worth with Fort Worth Fabric Studio! Now go visit Cristina and Colleen!

Melissa

 

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Texas Roadtrip QAL: Dallas

Howdy from Dallas! Head on over to the Urban Spool's blog to get the low down on Dallas and check out Ashley's awesome ferris wheel, Texas Star, block! Ashley is the head "fabric maven" at Urban Spools and does just about everything from quilting samples to keeping the shop super organized! She is such a sweet person and it has been a privilege to get to know her. So if you are ever in Dallas or the neighborhood, be sure to stop by and say hi!

 I'm so excited about this block and I might have to make mine tonight!!

Thanks so much, Ashley! If you want to see more of what Ashley is up to, check her out on instagram (@amagmom).

Melissa

Update 6/2/14 - On Ashley's pattern, be sure to add a line on the A piece between A4 & A5. :)