Tag Archives: Studio 180 Design

OBW Workshop Retreat April 25 – 28, 2024

There is still time to join me for a One Block Wonder Retreat at the fabulous Strong House Inn, Vergennes, Vermont! Not only will you be papmered by the great food and staff at the Strong House Inn, but you will learn:

Identifying and cutting your repeats.
Aligning repeats including difficult fabrics.
Choosing a ruler and understanding the difference between pointed & blunt tip rulers.
Deciding what strip widths to cut.
And of course, cutting all your equilateral triangles.
Designing with the hexagons.
Integrating stars & cubes. What you can make with thr Star 60 Tool.
Designing around a panel.

Make your reservations now at the Strong House Inn.

I have been quilting for 20 years. I have been a Studio 180 Design Certified Instructor for 10 years. Maxine Rosenthal released her book “One Block Wonders” in 2006 – that’s when I made my first OBW. I have been teaching this process for 18 years. So far, I have made 108 OBW’s (my friends tell me there is medication for that). Below is the OBW Supply list for you to download.

obw-supply-list Download

Playing With My Star 60 Tool

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I was at a quilt retreat this weekend with my quilting buddies. I brought plenty of projects to work on, but a local quilt shop had a sale going on so I bought some beautiful fabric.

Shadow Play by Maywood fabrics had a nice light, medium, dark and a great green for a backgound, everyting I needed for Hollow Cube 60’s. I had an idea and wanted to see if it would work.

I love my Star 60 tool by Deb Tucker and I love Hollow Cubes using the Hollow Cube 60 Technique Sheet. I wanted to see if I could fit a circle of 6 – 6″ hollow cubes inside a cirlcle of 6 – 18″ hollow cubes and it worked. I love the look! I bought the fabric on Thursday and made the quilt on Friday! The quilt measures 60″ x 60″.

Next up was a challenge to make a 36″ finished quilt with the main focus using 7 fat quarters of 30’s reproduction fabric.

I decided to use Deb Tucker’s Star 60 Log Cabin Technique Sheet and of course my Star 60 Tool. I chose to add 6 rounds of 1/2″ finished logs for a 27″ finished log cabin star. I added Half Rectangle Triangles using the Star 60 tool instructions to make the hexagon into a rectangle. I added 2″ strips to make it square and added a 2″ border to make it 36″. I love my Star 60 Tool! All together a very productive weekend.

@studio180design @debtucker #studio180design #star60tool

Squiggles, Dots and Lines Blog Hop

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Deb Tucker is introducing her newest fabric collection from Island Batik – Squiggles and Dots. I decided to make a small quilt using Deb Tucker’s “Curved Log Cabin Technique Sheet“.

A Curved Log Cabin Block is really an optical illusion. The block is made up of one center square with a series of narrow and wide logs sewn around the center square. It sounds easy, but if you’ve ever tried to make them, you know that it is tough to get them to come out the way you want them – nice and square. Studio 180 Design’s technique has you strip piece each round of logs, then trim with the Tucker Trimmer® III, which allows you to straighten up those edges before you sew the next round. You will make every block quickly, easily, and accurately.

I had 6 – 1/2 yard pieces of Squiggles, Dots and Lines, plus background fanric. I chose to make 36 – 5.5″ finished blocks with 3 rounds of logs.

What is so interesting about the log cabin block is you have many design options.

I fell in love with this version of a Curved Log Cabin quilt. It measures 40″ by 40″. Below are other options I came with.

Check out what my fellow Certified Instructors created:

Monday, March 11 – Tina – https://quiltingaffection.blogspot.com/

Tuesday, March 12 – Jackie – https://ifthesethreadscouldtalk.com/blog-posts/

Wednesday, March 13 – Phyllis – https://www.tuckeruniversity.net/blog.htm

Thursday, March 14 – Diana – https://murgabooquilts.com/

Friday, March 15 – Toni – https://lovepiecedperfection.com/blog

@studio180design #studio180design #curvedlogcabin

New OBW Panels from QT Fabrics

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I have partnered with QT Fabrics and I wanted to share with you two panels they sent me that are coming to your local Quilt Shops Summer 2024! I will be making One Block Wonders with them. I will be [posting my progress here.

@QTFabrics #QTFabrics @Studio180design #studio180design

The Tree Skirt That Wanted to be a Quilt – OBW #106

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December is so busy, I haven’t had a chance to do much sewing. Last Summer I decided to take Deb Tucker’s pattern Snow Crystal and put it in the middle of a One Block Wonder (OBW). Snow Crystal is made with the Star 60 Tool.

The fabric is Flower Festival by Benartex. The flowers are about 7″ across. I bought it back in 2022. The background is a dark plum color.

When I started to assemble the quilt when I discovered a problem. I had 3″ too much in the length of the hexie rows that were being attached to the Snow Crystal Center. The Snow Crystal Star finished at 36″, I made my hexies to finish at 6″.

Friends helped me figure out I had to take out a diagonal row. Sometimes it takes a village! I hadn’t had a chance to get back to it. Yesterday, December 23rd I decided to tackle the problem. I fixed the rows and was able to stitch the quilt together. I hate leaving a quilt with a problem to start the new year. This quilt was on my list to get done in 2023! Although it is not quilted yet, at least it is stitched together.

Flower Festival came out larger than I thought it would, it measures 74″ x 80″. Now I need to get back to baking, there is a peppermint cake waiting to be frosted and rolls to make. Mery Christmas, Happy Holidays everyone.

@studio180design #studio180design @Snowcrystal #snowcrystal @star60tool #star60tool @OBWs #OBWs

Merry Christmas to All – OBW #105

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I don’t know about you, but in our house Christmas decorating begins after dinner on Thanksgiving! My house is full of Santa’s & Christmas trees.

I love Santa’s. I had this panel for over a year, but got a chance to work on it before Thanksgiving.

This panel is called “Merry Christmas to All” by Marshall Dry Goods. The inside of the panel measured 29.5″ x 37″. I cut 3.25″ strip for 5″ finished hexies.

The odd width of 29.5″ left me with a 1″ wide red strip I would have to hide later.

I attached the top portion, then I decided to attach the left section first instead of the right. That left me with a 1″ red strip I had to hide. I did that with 3″ finished Hollow Cube 60 units made with my Star 60 Tool by Deb Tucker. I added 5″ Stars in gold to give Santa a destination and to follow the curve of the Reindeer.

I love the colors in this quilt. It reminds of me of going out after dinner to play in the snow and go ice skating at the rink behind my Grandparents house. This quilt measures 70″ x 75″.

Give yourself a gift and join me for a One Block Wonder Retreat at Strong House Inn, Vergennes, Vermont April 25 – 28, 2024.

Besides being pampered by our hosts you will learn about:

Identifying and cutting your repeats.
Aligning repeats including difficult fabrics.
Choosing a ruler and understanding the difference between pointed & blunt tip rulers.
Deciding what strip widths to cut
And of course, cutting all your equilateral triangles.
Designing with the hexagons,
Integrating stars & cubes
Designing around a panel

Happy Holidays!

Houston Quilt Market 2023

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I didn’t get to go Quilt Market but my quilt did! Thank you QT Fabrics. The Creepin it real fabric line will be in shops March 2024. Ask your favorite quilt shop to order your panels now!

This quilt is made entirely from 7 panels by QT Fabrics except for the teal border and the 8 black stars. The stars were made using Studio180 Design’s Star 60 tool.

“Creepin It Real” – OBW #104

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A great One Block Wonder begins with great fabric! Be sure to ask your favorite quilt shop to carry this collection, “Creepin It Real” ships in March 2024.

This fabulous panel “Creepin It Real” was provided to me by QT Fabrics. The panel measures 37″ x 43″. I did not include the frames in my finished quilt. The inside of the panel measured 32″ x 39″.

“Creepin It Real” has such vibrant colors. I cut 3.75″ strips which yielded 6″ finished hexies.

This collage shows some of my design process ending with the hexies stitched into rows. I added 6″ finished stars on two sides made with the Star 60 Tool.

My rows have been stitched together.

I added 3″ finished borders, making “Creepin It Real” measure 93″ wide by 72″ tall before being quilted. I’m thrilled to say that “Creepin It Real” will hang in the QT Fabrics booth at Market 2023 in Houston. Thank you QT Fabrics.

This coordinating fabric by QT will be on the back of the quilt. I better get it loaded on the quilt frame and get her done!

Weekend Work

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What are you working on this weekend?

I’m working on a One Block Wonder, using “Creepin it Real” by QT Fabrics.

Abra-Cat-Dabra – OBW # 103

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I fell in love with this panel from QT Fabrics as soon as I saw it! The colors are so rich!

The panel by Gina Jane for QT Fabrics, measures 36″ x 42″ including the frames. I cut my strips 3.25″ to yield 5″ finished hexies. The 6 panels yielded 165 hexies.

This block was created by fellow Certified Instructor, Sonny Dewitt. He is so creative. He used Deb Tuckers Geese on the Edge Technique Sheet and Wing Clipper Tool to make the Geese on the Edge units & then trim the square units using the Star 60 Tool to create a hexagon shaped block. I thought it looked like a spider web, so I embroidered a cool looking spider in the center. It added so much to my OBW.

After designing with my hexies. I sitched them into 4 sections around the panel.

I centered and laid the the top section on the panel to show me how much to trim off each side to make the panel the same size as the top and bottom sections.

I remove a few stitches from valley’s of the top section and pressed under the 1/4″.

I pin the top section to the panel and top stitched using MonoPoly thread.

Match up the dog ears of the left section with the dog ears of the top and stitch using a partial seam stopping about 8″ from the bottom.

By matching the dog ears it allows me to know where the bottom section will attach to the panel. Remove a few stitches from the valleys and press under attaching it to the panel as with the top section.