My Happy Place Sew Along - Bee Prepared!!

YaY!!

Today is the day for the 

"Bee Prepared" 

post that I do in preparation for my

 appliqué sew alongs using my 

Sew Simple Shapes 

and my latest fabric collection.

This one is the 

MY HAPPY PLACE SEW ALONG

and I'm so excited for it to start!

We will be making the 

My Happy Place Quilt 

which finishes at

 76" x 88"

It has fifteen appliquéd blocks

 which we will be using my 

Sew Simple Shapes to make...

and there are thirteen 

rotary cut and 

sewing machine pieced blocks. 

My Sew Simple Shapes Sew Alongs

 always take place here on my blog

 and they are on Monday's.

This one starts September 13th

How do you join the sew along?

1.You simply grab yourself a

 My Happy Place Quilt Fabric Kit

2. You will need the

 My Happy Place Sew Simple Shapes and

 the Sew Along Guide

3. Gather up supplies needed 

to make the quilt

4. Come here to my blog every Monday 

during the sew along 

(starting August 23rd)

where I will give you the 

free step by step tutorial 

for that weeks block.

Please read ALL of the information 

within this post telling you all that 

you need to know about this sew along.

Once the sew along has begun...

each of my weekly posts will be 

tutorials about actually 

making the blocks and so I am

 telling you here all about the supplies

 and other things necessary to get started.

There is no pattern to purchase...

because basically the

 My Happy Place

Sew Simple Shapes

 are the pattern and the instructions on

 how to use them for each block 

are shown weekly here 

on my blog or YouTube channel 

during the sew along.

Along with the shapes you will 

need to download the handy dandy 

My Happy Place Along 

Sew Along Guide

CLICK HERE

for the free download.

In the guide you will have:

 A print out of the finished quilt...

the schedule of what blocks

 we will be doing each week 

during the sew along...

Also in the guide you will find

 fabric requirements for the quilt...

and notion requirements for the quilt

 as well as suggested notions 

that I use when making mine.

You will also find instructions 

for cutting each and every 

piece of fabric in your kit!

It will tell you what that piece is for...

which Sew Simple Shape it is used with

 and what block it belongs to.

This way you can cut ahead of time

 and make individual block kits for

 your quilt and have them all 

ready to go each week!

As with any sew along...

organization is really the key.

I like to have this information 

ready for you ahead of time 

so that each week we can 

simply make the block!!

You will also find the cutting 

measurements of the Sew-In Interfacing 

that goes with each Sew Simple Shape 

so that you can have that all cut

 and ready to go:)

And as always I have designed a page

 for "My Happy Place Notes" 

so that you can 

jot anything down from my blog posts

or video tutorials 

 during the sew along.

You can print as many

note pages as you would like 

for your own personal use...

just keep in mind that 

they are under copyright 

and they are not for re-sale:)

I put one of my 

Bee Keeper Binder Pocket Inserts

 in there to hold my set of 

Sew Simple Shapes....

for easy access during the sew along!

The two largest circles in the set

 do not fit inside of the pocket

 because I needed to make these circles

 very large for the Cross Stitch Block...

I'll show you where I store these

two shapes as soon as my 

STITCH Crafting Paper Pad gets here...

it's going to be a nifty solution!!

This is the STITCH Beekeeper Binder 

that my Sew Along Guide will live in:)

I love this print because 

of all the vintage ladies...

reminding me of my 

Grandma's, my Aunt's and my Mom:)

I'm happy to say that this binder is 

wider than my Flea Market binder was 

and will house the guide perfectly.

YaY!

Okay...enough about the guide...

let's talk about the fabric!

The collection that we are using 

for the My Happy Place Quilt is of course...

STITCH!!

This is the written introduction 

to STITCH that is written on the back 

of the fabric storyboard 

that goes to quilt market:

"Riley Blake Designs is

 introducing STITCH fabric!

This newest collection

 by Lori Holt of Bee in my Bonnet 

is all about her sweet 

love affair with stitching -

whether it's piecing quilts,

sewing for her home,

doing applique blocks or

embroidery, cross stitch, 

knitting or crochet...

she loves all things 

that have to do with stitching.

Lori's Mom has often been quoted 

as saying that she was practically born

 with a needle in her hand!

Most days you will find Lori 

in her Happy Place -

 just happily stitching away.

Several prints in this collection 

are a nod to all the types 

of stitching that Lori loves to do, 

as well as her endearing love of vintage.

We hope that you will love her new 

STITCH collection and that it will

 inspire you to "stitch all the things!"

STITCH

Fat Quarter Bundle:)

Now about the fabric kit.

Several shops are stocking the kit...

both brick and mortar shops

 as well as online quilt shops.

If you have not already pre-ordered 

your fabric kit and still need one...

 just do a quick google search of

 "My Happy Place Quilt Kit" to find one...

google is your best friend lol...

easy peasy!!

With each collection that I design...

I also design 3 wide back prints 

(108" wide)

 to use for the backings on any and all

 of your STITCH projects...

it's so nice when you don't have to 

piece the back!

Here are the 3 STITCH Wide Backs.

You can choose whichever you would like 

for the back of your quilt...

they all match perfectly:)

You will need 10 yards of my

 Large "Riley Red" Vintage Trim. 

It comes on a large spool with 12 yards.

It's to sew into the binding and is so cute:)

You will need 1 yard of my 

Small "Steel" Vintage Trim 

for the Iron Cord.

It comes on a small spool...

also 12 yards are on there as well.

You will need 1 or 2 packages 

of my new STITCH Buttons to use 

throughout the quilt and 

for the Button Jar Block.

You will also need one package 

of my 1/4" Cute Little Buttons.

MY HAPPY PLACE 

Sew Simple Shapes

This is the back of the header 

and you can see that the set includes 38 shapes...

two of them are bonus shapes 

that will not be used in the quilt...

but I will be using them this month

in the August ReMix Block

in my ReMix Series on my YouTube channel

Because I am a visual person...

I thought you might like to see 

a photo of each of the supplies

 and notions that are listed in the guide.

 ***The following photos are some

 of my notions and other of my

 favorite notions that I am using 

to make My Happy Place Quilt.

Some are listed in the guide

 and some are not ...

but I will explain each one!

You will see me using them in the

 tutorials during the sew along...

 so I thought I would tell you about 

each of them here...

 to answer any questions that 

you may have about them.

You can of course use what 

you would like...

these happen to be my favorites:

The Cute Cuts 20 1/2" Trim - It Ruler

is used to not only to 

trim up the large applique block

 in the top left corner of the quilt....

but to lay out the appliques 

and place them where they go 

before basting and applique.

The 8 1/2" Cute Cuts Trim - It Ruler

 is used for centering and trimming up the Pieced Quilt Blocks 1 thru 10

All of them are 8" finished blocks:)

I have several other sizes 

of my Trim-It Rulers

listed in the guide that will 

come in handy for every 

applique block in the quilt.

(Backgrounds are cut larger to allow 

for working the block and 

then trimmed up later)

You will need 1 1/2 packages

 of my Sew-In Interfacing.

Since starting my sew alongs that use

 my easy applique method...

 I have developed what I think is the 

perfect strength and thickness of 

interfacing for shaping the appliqués.

I also use the

 Point to Point Turner by Clover 

to shape each of my pieces...

I could not do without this handy tool!

I pin and then glue baste 

each block for applique prep.

I love love love this glue by Sue Daley

 and affectionately nick named it

 "Sue Glue"

It is water soluble...

dries clear...

keeps my pieces in place for applique

 but can be pulled off if I need to reposition...its a win win!

Here are the 4 sizes of the 

bias tape makers by Clover

that you will need for this quilt.

The green is 1/4" -

purple is 3/8"

red is 3/4"

and the blue is 1"

Here is a photo of my NIFTY NEEDLES...

they come in a card with several of each different kind...

and also come in 

individual needle tubes as well.

There are 6 different kinds 

for all stitching tasks...

shown in the tubes are the ones 

that are relevant for this quilt.

Embroidery...applique and binding.

You can also use the sewing needles

 in one of the smaller sizes 

if the applique needles are 

too small for you.

It's really a personal preference...

they both work just as well and 

there are several sizes 

to choose from within each tube.

Now let's talk thread.

I have a Aurifil thread set

called Bee Happy

and it will work for all of the colors in STITCH. 

The thread is 50 wt. and 80 wt. 

and is used for

 APPLIQUE and NOT embroidery.

You can decide if you would like to 

machine applique or hand applique...

either way you will need to 

have matching thread for each applique.

This thread works for both!

If you are machine appliquéing

 you would use it for the top thread

 but you would not need to change 

your bobbin color as it would 

not show on the top.

There is a little bit of embroidery 

on a few of the blocks 

which uses all the same color.

My Bee Basics Aurifloss set

 is used for the Cross Stitch Block 

and the embroidery that there is

 in some of the blocks.

P.S. Aurifloss is made by Aurifil and 

is a six stranded embroidery floss 

for handstitching...not for the machine.

You do not use Aurifloss for applique...

I use it for embroidery or cross stitch.

The colors I used are listed in the guide.

Any embroidery patterns for the quilt 

are in the sew along guide.

You can tape that page to a window 

on a sunny day to trace directly

 onto the fabric for embroidery 

(I use a .05 mechanical pencil)

 or you can use a light box.

I use my Easy Trace Light Box.

I'm excited to announce that 

it was time to produce them again!...

it is exactly the same amazing quality 

and the only thing I did was

do it in a different color...

and designed new packaging as well.

 It was fun to change it up!

I use my washi tape for 

taping my embroidery pattern and fabric

 onto my light box for tracing.

I don't want my pattern or fabric

 to shift during this process.

For those of you who may not know

 what washi tape is...

it was developed for paper crafting and packaging but I also use it 

for sewing and quilting!

Just think of it as cute 

miniature painters tape.

It has a low adhesive so that it 

can hold temporarily and can be 

peeled off without leaving 

a residue on fabric.

Perfect for taping paper 

and fabric to the light box!

I do a set of washi tape designs 

with each fabric collection 

and these are from my STITCH set:)

I have several different sets of 

Pretty Pins and these are the two

 that I use when making this quilt.

The Double Pins are used when 

piecing blocks and I will 

show you during that tutorial.

The Applique Pins are used for 

pin basting into the design boards 

and are essential to me!

These are just the right length 

for this task...

which is why I call them appliqué.

I also have "mini applique" Pretty Pins 

that are short and tiny and are 

used for hand applique 

when I don't glue baste.

And again...speaking of pins...

of course you need a pincushion 

for this sew along! 

I made this one from a

 pretty little vintage aqua apple 

dish that I thrifted for

 just a few dollars.

For making this one...

I simply glued a good 

strong magnet onto the bottom 

making it a magnetic pin bowl.

I also did a tutorial on my 

YouTube channel on how I make my 

pincushions from vintage finds.

CLICK HERE 

to go on over for a visit!

I use Bee in my Bonnet Design Boards 

when cutting and for pinning and

 glue basting each applique block.

The new STITCH ones come in

 four sizes...7" - 10" - 14" and 18"

There are 2 prints for each size.

I use my Seams Sew Easy Guide 

to piece all of the blocks in the quilt.

It's used as an accurate

 1/4" seam allowance and also when 

piecing all of the easy corner triangles 

in the sewing machine block 

and the Quilt Blocks.

I'll show you how to use it 

during those block tutorials:)

You will need sewing scissors 

as well as embroidery scissors.

I use both...these are my

 9" Sewing Scissors 

 and my Stork Scissors.

Besides my Trim-It Rulers 

for laying out and trimming blocks...

You will need all sizes of 

cutting rulers and of course a cutting mat...

I have a variety of Cute Cuts Rulers 

in 4 different colors and shapes and sizes.

These are the ones that I use

 to cut all of my fabrics for everything...

including all of my pieced quilt blocks.

When I am cutting I use my 

Sew Handy Stickers for labeling 

my cut pieces and blocks etc.

They come in 5 different colors 

and are letters and a few

 number pages as well:)

These stickers adhere well...

can be ironed over...sewn over too...

but then they easily peel off 

without leaving any residue.

LOVELY!!

And speaking of sewing...

you do not need a 

fancy shmancy sewing machine

 to make the applique pieces from the 

Sew Simple Shapes 

or to piece the quilt blocks.

Just a good straight stitching 

machine is all you need...

at just a regular

 stitch length or just a bit shorter.

As usual...

I am using one of my vintage

 Singer Featherweight machines

 for making this quilt.

You can see my 

Seams Sew Easy Guide

 taped to my machine...

(I use washi tape for that too)

Also...a note about ironing.

I do not use steam in my iron 

and you want to make sure not to

 after you have sewn your shapes

 and are pressing them.

Just a good and dry hot iron works well

 and I have found that a 

seam roller works fabulous for

 pressing my shapes after shaping as well.

I don't like to "smoosh" them down

 and iron them too flat.

I like a little poof in my shapes 

because it gives my applique a nice finish.

CLICK HERE

to watch my video about why and how 

I use vintage irons and where to

 find them and what to look for!

So here are my Week One fabrics 

already cut and ready to sew! 

I just need to trace the shapes onto the interfacing first.

For Week One we are doing the 

Tomato Pincushion Blocks.

During the first week I always do

 a video tutorial for that block 

and I'll be doing that on my 

YouTube Channel.

I'll of course also be posting 

all about week one here on my blog 

and will have a link to my 

YouTube video here for you 

on my week one blog post.

If you are new to my 

Sew Simple Shapes Sew Alongs...

I suggest that you watch a few 

of my previous week one video tutorials

 because I know that 

they will help a you a lot!!

CLICK HERE 

to watch my week one tutorial for my

 PRIM Sew Along and 

Click HERE 

to watch week one tutorial for my 

Flea Market Flowers Sew Along.

Here's a little peek at my

 Week One in progress.

I have been working ahead so that I 

can prepare the tutorials for you...

I am a few blocks ahead right now 

and let me tell you...

I am sew excited for this adventure to start!!

I will meet you right back here 

on Monday September 13th for the 

step by step tutorial for 

the Tomato Pincushions:)

Relax and have fun while 

preparing your block kits 

using the guide instructions.

It's not a race...take your time!

When I have a lot of cutting to do 

I like to listen to an audio book 

or binge watch something.

While I cut all of the pieces

 for My Happy Place Quilt 

I binge watched one of my 

favorite series again called...

"A Place to Call Home" 

Sew with you soon...

xx

Lori