Taking That Step…

Fellow Quilters,

Can you believe it’s been a full month since we’ve chatted (and I mean full!)?  I meant to check in with you mid-month but the days turned into weeks and…that’s how it goes sometimes.  Here’s what I’ve been up to.

Today is the first Tuesday of the month and that mean Quilt Block Mania blog tour day 😊.  The theme this month is graduation.  You can find the links to the blogs and blocks here.

Award Ribbon by Carolina Moore
Graduation Day by Sarah Marcina
Super Grad by Heidi Pridemore
Class of 2021
Wise Owl by Blue Bear Quilts
Dear Mr. Vernon . . .
Graduation scroll by Duck Creek mountain Quilting
Grad Cap by QuiltFabrication
Graduating Steps by Patti’s Patchwork
Butterflies are Free by PhoebeMoon Designs
Lucky graduates from Puppy Academy
Party Banner by Slice of Pi Quilts
Success by Inquiring Quilter
Hooray for Me!
Graduation Cap at Oh Kaye Quilting
Up, Up, & Away by Pretty Piney Quilts
I DID IT by Cotton Street Commons
Owl Graduate by Appliques Quilts and More
Shining Star by Color My World

Most of the 19 participants designed applique blocks however I prefer a pieced block.  But how to incorporate that theme?  The color palette is cream, gray, steel blue and wine.  So I had some (wine, that is) and created my Graduating Steps block.  How do you like it?

Graduating Steps by Patti’s Patchwork

It’s a play on words.  You can graduate up to your next scholarly endeavor or onto your career path.  You can also graduate in color/value from dark to light, which is what I did with the steps in my block.  I chose two complementary Banyan Batik collections – Bouncing Balls ships to quilt shops in December, and Pat Fryer’s new Rose Parade ships in February 2022.

My range of light-to-dark fabrics

Getting the fabrics in the correct dark-to-light order is key.  I pondered whether the 2^nd & 3^rd darkest ones needed to be switched.  Here’s a trick to help determine the correct “value” of our fabrics.  Take a photo with your phone, then view it in grayscale.

My fabric selection viewed in grayscale

Voila!  I had my answer.  I got to cutting the pieces and in no time flat my block was done.

Just for fun I snapped a photo of my block with my scraps and my grad photo from university.  My, how hairstyles have changed!

Graduating Steps and my grad photo circa 1985

My block has a bit of a modern flair so I mocked up a quilt using some blocks combined with some plain blocks.  This edgy 51” x 68” throw-size quilt would make a great quick grad gift for a student heading off to college.  Note that half the Graduating Steps blocks are mirror-image – the steps slope the other way.

A modern throw quilt using my Graduating Steps block pattern

Graduating Steps pattern by Patti’s Patchwork (QBM May 2021)

I have a fun giveaway for you – a packet of cuts (between 1/8yd and 1/4yd) from Banyan’s Bouncing Balls & Rose Parade collections.

The Giveaway packet of fabrics

I’m going to tie it in to a tasty student- or recent graduate-geared budget recipe I tried recently.  Hubby and I cooked up some Better Than Shake-n-Bake chicken drumsticks with the recipe we found here.  We mixed up a ½-batch and it will last for 3-4 batches of chicken.  Super easy and super budget-friendly.

Our winner chicken dinner made with Better Than Shake-n-Bake

So, for a chance to snag my bundle of red/black/gray fabrics please leave a comment below telling me your favorite cooking hack or online recipe (provide the link if you can).  Please post your comment by midnight May 10^th.

Last month’s winner of the packet of teal-colored Toscana fabrics is Debby P – congrats!

I’ve been busy this past month working on a couple of quilt-along projects, including an upcoming Northcott one for 2022 using the Quilts of Valor collections,

For the Brave QAL March – December 2022

my upcoming Cottage Sampler QAL running November 2021 – January 2022 using my Canoe Lake collection,

The throw-size of the Cottage Sampler QAL in the Misty Morning colorway

and of course my current Hexie Crush QAL.  The 4^th installment goes out tomorrow and you can still sign up here.  I’m making a throw-size True Kisses version and a queen-size Kensington Park version.

My Kensington Park queen-size Hexie Crush

The QAL posse is having a great time (as am I!) and learning so much from the weekly emails.  The next one goes out tomorrow so sign up now to join us 😊 – did I mention that there are weekly prizes?!?  We have a Facebook group (Hexie Crush QAL 2021) that you can join to see the photos.

I’ve also been working on several new patterns using shipping-soon Northcott and Banyan collections, and they’ll be up on the website shortly.  Newsletter subscribers usually get an early-bird discount so you might want to subscribe using the link here if you’re not already on the list.

Stay safe, stay healthy and happy quilting!

Cheers,

Patti