Project Quilting & SAHRR Round 3

Hi and welcome. It's incredibly cold here so I hope that you're keeping warm wherever you are! I'm dreaming of tropical beaches - no plans, just dreaming 😊 Project Quilting's third challenge is the Year of the Horse while SAHRR's round 3 is inspired by the Animal Kingdom. Ready or not, here they are! Here's the link to this week's I Quilted This!

PQ - 17.3: Year of the Horse

This week's theme: "find your inspiration from the turn of the year, in the animal, in our hopes and desires for the near future." In this piece, I have included my hopes for my art for the upcoming year. I wrote these goals in my Plans, Goals, and Dreams for 2026 post.

This project was inspired by a quick picture that I created for that post. I really want  need to remember this, which is why I made the poster and now a quilted version.

PPT creation

Here are the details.

Scrappy

Small

Playful

Experimental

There is a nod to the Year of the Horse. Let's hope that the horse will find lovely pastures to rest at some point, and not just race ahead with blinders on.

SAHRR Round 3: Animal Kingdom

This week's Stay At Home Round Robin (SAHRR) is a block from the animal kingdom. Thanks Emily! I did a quick search and was lucky enough to find the Chicago Geese Quilt Block. It's a lovely block and includes my favourite technique - stitch and flip!

Here is my 9" block.

Chicago Geese Quilt Block

Here they are ....could be a challenge pulling them all together

The instructions I followed were for a 12" Chicago Geese block. I made this one a little smaller but I miscalculated. No surprise there! 😮 If I can't manage to make all of these blocks play nicely, I can always re-make some of them smaller....and use this year's extra blocks as next year's centre 😁

What I learned

• I had a great time stitching up the scrappy background for my 2026 Goals piece. 
• I really wanted to do something different and just before I started FMQ the word "scrappy", I remembered how words can be written from letters cut up from the newspaper (remember those?)
• I'm really happy with how it came out, but I need to be more careful with my super sharp scissors - I'll be repairing the little hole I made 😔
• For my Chicago Geese block, I really should have reviewed my calculations before starting.
• I'm becoming quite proficient at half-square triangles and stitch and flip. It's nice to be playing with simple traditional blocks.

Related links

• Project Quilting - 17.3: Year of the Horse 
• Project Quilting 17.1 Challenge - A Clean Slate, January 09, 2026
• 12" Finished Chicago Geese Quilt Block instructions from fabric 406
• A Quilter's Cove QAL Link-up and SAHRR, January 31, 2026
• SAHRR Round 1 - hour-glass block, January 26, 2026
• Starting Things and I Quilted This!, January 15, 2026

Linking parties

I'll be linking up to many fun linking parties, including SAHRR's Round 3 party with Emily at the Darling Dogwood. TGIFF, Beauties Pageant, Off The Wall Friday, 

Updates and I Quilted This!

Hi and welcome 😎 The 🌞sun is shining here -  what a difference it makes to see it. I've been very busy FMQ the Cowboy panel quilt - I can see the end. Yay!  I've also managed to play with scraps - they are so addictive. They just want to be sewn together 😊. If you're looking for A Quilter's Cover QAL linking party, it's here)

FMQ the Cowboy panel quilt

All the blocks except one have been completely FMQ. I then FMQ the actual panel. I used various cotton and polyester thread to quilt the cowboy and parts of the background. When I was finished, I needed to FMQ the white background but didn't want it to stand out, so I used a beige bottom line thread in the bobbin and a white InvisaFil. It worked really well. 

FMQ Cowboy panel

It was then time to tackle the light brown borders around the blocks. I wanted this to be interesting but not too difficult. I also needed it to not distract from the blocks.

I tried a few designs and chose "Spurs" from the book, Get Addicted to Free-Motion Quilting by Sheila Sinclair Snyder. Here is the back of my practice piece.

Practicing the "Spurs" FMQ design

I did have a few skipped stitches so I changed my needle. I helped a little, but the biggest help was slowing down, which I did when it came to actually FMQ on the quilt. Here are a few pictures. I also added loops in the smaller areas.

FMQ the "Spurs" and loops designs

A close-up of "Spurs"

The FMQ went relatively fast. In two separate sessions I was able to quilt about half of the light brown borders. The design is a lot like one of the flower FMQ designs that I use, so it was a matter of getting used to adding sun type angles around the centre, and then stitching a bit away to then echo the sun angles.  I'm hoping to get a few more hours in today to finish those up. 

For the dark brown inner border, I'm thinking of using my walking foot to add a couple of straight lines but with interesting corners (like a frame). I need to figure those out, but it will be simple!

Sewing up 3½" Scraps

My SIL lives in a community with lots of seniors. One of her neighbour's wife died. She was a quilter and of course had lots of books, scraps, and small UFOs. I told my SIL that I would go through everything, keep some and pass on the rest. It was a big job. 

Here is a scrappy quilt that she had started. The rest of the cut blocks were included in the bag, so I'm slowly sewing them together. She had sewn up the bottom 5 rows, so I'm going to keep adding to it. I'll eventually figure out the size required for a baby or youth charity quilt.

Scrappy quilt so far

What I learned

• I always start FMQ a larger piece with stitch-in-the-ditch to stabilize the quilt. From there, I quilt what ever I feel like.
• Leaving the large panel for last meant that there was more chances of puckering. I worked pretty hard to keep it taut and it mostly worked. I'm hoping that washing the quilt will help, otherwise I can always add a stitching line or two afterwards. 
• It took me a while to find a FMQ design what I could do relatively easily and that wasn't a flower for the border. I really loved FMQ "spurs" and it seemed appropriate for a cowboy and ranch.
• I should have the Cowboy panel quilt finished by next week. I'm looking forward to working on other projects without feeling guilty that this one isn't finished!
• There was some confusion last week since I had two linking parties going. Sorry about that, I'll have to be careful about identifying the different linking parties, 

Related links

• FMQ Blocks and I Quilted This! January 29, 2026
• Get Addicted to Free-Motion Quilting by Sheila Sinclair Snyder

Linking parties

I'll be linking up to many fun linking parties. Consider linking up below and then checking out some of those linked up. Monday Musings, Put your foot down, Needle & Thread Thursday, Sew & Tell, Off The Wall Friday, Finished (Or Not) Friday, Patchwork & Quilts, 

I Quilted This!

Welcome to the I Quilted This! linking party that celebrates quilting on a domestic machine or custom quilting on a long-arm. Feel free to link up and share any recent project, even if you're not quilting it! Here are the posts that included FMQ, ruler work and walking foot quilting last week. Thanks for linking up 😊 and feel free to grab the button. 

Kat at Scrapbox Quilts joined Connie at Freemotion By The River in her Colour of the Month Challenge. Kat made a lovely placemat, in anticipation of the summer (I suspect). 

Placemat Challenge by Kat

Melva at Melva Loves Scraps is starting a new Sew Along - here is her Little House quilt. 

Melva's quilt for the Little House Sew Along

Sally from Crafts, Cavies and Cooking created two lovely mug rugs from left-over blocks. It's a great way to practice FMQ.

Sally's cute mug rugs

It's now your turn 😍

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

A Quilter's Cove QAL Link-up and SAHRR

Hi and welcome to the first month of the Quilter's Cove QAL. Kat is organising it but I volunteered to host the party since I have the service. Who doesn't like a party when there's no cleaning up after company leaves? 😁 Let's get on with it. (If you're looking for the I Quilted This linking party, it's here)

Quilter's Cove QAL

Last November, Cathy at CRAZY BY DESIGN  and Kat at  Scrapbox Quilts decided to organise a QAL - it's very simple. We follow the colours of the month as decided by Angela of SOSCRAPPY of the Rainbow Scraps Challenge (RSC) and we make a house block in that colour. I volunteered to host the party at the end of each month - so below you will find our first linking party.

January's Blue house

When I saw Kat's blue house, I wanted my roof to be scrappy too! The block is pieced except for the appliquéd windows and doors. I was totally winging it and I'm happy with my roof for which I used the flip and stitch technique 😍

I have no idea what I'm doing yet, but I am considering making it an attic window quilt. I've always wanted to try that and it mean that I don't necessarily need to have a cohesive neighbourhood. Anyway, we'll see as we go along. What I do know is that I'm not making 12 identical blocks - you would loose me after the second month!

Blue house block - 7½" x 10"

To link up to A Quilter's Cove QAL, please go to the bottom of the post. 😊 BTW, the February colour is green, medium and dark.

SAHRR Round 2 - Make it a double!

This week's SAHRR round 2 is hosted by Kathleen McMusing. She picked the theme, "Make it a double" and gave us many options and links to find double blocks. Frankly I was tired and they all looked difficult.😕 While I was looking I had a though....yup - it happens! What if I made up my own simple block? Here it is: Double Arrow.

Alternate Double Arrow Block

If it looks familiar, it's probably because you saw the grown up version in Round 1 in Kathleen's post.

Kathleen's Chain and Hour-Glass block from Round 1

I chose three fabrics and went back to the hour-glass tutorial. Using different fabric for only the arrows, they get accentuated. I did a quick sketch and it looked like it would work...and it did!

Sketching a possible double arrow block

It turns out that there are a few double arrow blocks, so I'm calling it the "alternate double arrow block". Here it is with the others. 

Blocks are adding up

I accidentally made extra hour-glass blocks, so I made a couple more and put them together as another block. I thought that this might constitute a double hour-glass block, but it's not at all the same, so it's  just four hour-glass blocks together. 

Centre, hour-glass, and double arrow blocks 

What I learned

• I love playing with scraps and it's really the scraps that helped design the house. I love my scrappy roof - thank Kat for the idea!
• I suspect that it may be difficult to make all of the house blocks the same size. I figure that if I make at least a few in the same size, that I can place them in a row.
• I am going to look into an attic window quilt - that could be really fun and different for me.
• I'm hoping to make each house if a different style. Of course I want to keep in scrappy, small, playful and experimental....and simple! 
• I certainly kept those goals in mind when I made the round 2 block for SAHRR. It was pretty experimental and it came out well. Of course it's a lot bigger than the other blocks, so I'll have to consider that. Worse comes to worse, I'll just make another one using smaller blocks. 
• I can always add the extra, large blocks on the back of the quilt! 

Related links

• A Quilter's Cove QAL, main page on Kat's blog
• 2026 SAHRR Round 2 – Make It A Double with Kathleen McMusing

• 

  2026 SAHRR Round 1 – Hourglass with Kathleen McMusing
• SAHRR Round 1 - hour-glass block, January 26, 2026
• Starting Things and I Quilted This!, January 15, 2026

Linking parties

I'll be linking up to many fun linking parties, including the SAHRR Round 2linking party at Kathleen's. Off The Wall Friday, Monday Musings, Oh Scrap!,  Patchwork & Quilts, 

If you made a house for the Quilter's Cove QAL, please link up below!

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

FMQ Blocks and I Quilted This!

Bonjour and welcome 😀 I hope that you're keeping warm, wherever you are. I've been cozy in my studio - slowly cleaning it up and re-organising what isn't working for me. There's no rush, as long as I have space for my computer and my sewing machine 😊

FMQ Blocks on the Cowboy Panel

I've been busy finishing up the 18 blocks around the cowboy panel. I only have one block that I want to add a few details to. Otherwise, they are done.

SAHRR 2025 - blocks all quilted!

First art block - round 1

Second art block - round 1

Friendship star block - round 2

First nine patch star block - round 3

Second nine patch star block - round 3

First block with insert - round 4

Second block with insert - round 4

Third block with insert - round 4

Fourth block with insert - round 4

Quarter log cabin block - round 5

Log cabin block - round 5

Kite block - round 6

Extra blocks - appliqué, improv, showcasing fabric

Hat and boot appliqué block - more FMQ to come

Horse shoe and friend appliqué block

Cacti appliqué block

Improv block

Pocket block with "Alek" FMQ

Block showcasing beautiful fabric

What I learned

• I enjoy figuring out what to quilt for each block. As much as possible, I followed the fabric. I also used simple loops and lines.
• It was also interesting using different thread. My favourite was a grey thread, boring but effective without being showy. I used a gorgeous pink, yellow and orange thread for the third block with insert. It was wonderful. I used a much darker variegated thread for the first block with insert and didn't like the effect as well.
• I'm glad that the blocks have all been FMQ. I will be adding some details to the boot and hat appliqué but that's all.
• Next to FMQ is the panel. I started but my bobbin thread ran out and it was time to call it quits for the night.
• I'll have to make sure that I stretch the panel out well when I quilt it to avoid puckering. 
• Last week I mentioned that I had accidentally quilted the backing fabric. It took me a while but it all came out well. It's all FMQ again and nothing shows. I did trim the fabric though before going on 😁
• I was fixing a pair of knit pants this week and I thought that I had broken my Jag! 😕I removed the bunched up fabric and when it wasn't sewing properly, I just turned it off. The next day, I cleaned it and it was fine. Phew! It's all good (I keep thinking of the computer techs who always ask you if you turned off your computer and rebooted before they address a problem. There is something to be said for that!)
• This is my January OMG and I don't know if I'll have it finished on time. If it is finished, I'll be including it in my Quilter's Cove linking up post on Saturday!

Related links

• Getting stuff done and I Quilted This!, January 22, 2026

Linking parties

I'll be linking up to many fun linking parties. Why not check some of them out after you've linked up below? Sew & Tell, Monday Musings, Put your foot down, Needle & Thread Thursday, Off The Wall Friday, Finished (Or Not) Friday, Design Wall Monday, 15 Minutes to Stitch 2026, 

I Quilted This!

Welcome to the I Quilted This! linking party that celebrates quilting on a domestic machine or custom quilting on a long-arm. Please link up and share any recent project, even if you're not quilting it! However, to keep the original emphasis, preference will be given to FMQ, ruler work and walking foot quilting when featuring projects from the previous party. Thank you for linking up 😊 and feel free to grab the button. 

Kat from Scrapbox Quilts made her first lil bear hug quilt of the year. 

For this one, she used her walking foot in a diagonal grid. 

Kat's first lil bear hug quilt of the year

Donnalee made a Christmas Runner with the left over fabric from her many placemats. Isn't it cute?

Donnalee's  Christmas Runner 

Deb, a Scrappy Quilter finished her first quilt of the year - and it's a large one! It's the second of three 8 x 10s quilt. 

Deb's finished 8 x 10s quilt

Anne-Marie of Stories from the Sewing Room did some custom quilting on parts of this gorgeous purple owl quilt for a client. She custom quilted the owls and the branches. 

Owls quilt partly quilted free hand by Marie-Anne

Diann of Little Penguin Quilts made these two lovely placemats. The dark blue and light blue placemats have contrast that really make them pop! Diann used her walking foot to quilt them in a variation on Jaquie Gering's Echoed Curves.

Diann's lovely blue placemats

Gwyned Trefethen found a plaid fabric to participate in last week's Project Quilting Challenge with Posies on Parade. She quilted the plaid and then machine appliquéd the posies.

Gwyned's Posies on Parade quilt

Melva, of Melva Loves Scraps made a lovely quilt using vintage roses cross stitch blocks that were given to her. What a wonderful quilt!

Vintage Roses quilt- by Melva

Sandra Walker of mmm quilts finished a gorgeous tree quilt. She quilted the blocks in two different designs. Sandra alternated quilting designs using a "large jigsaw meander" in one block and then lines, "à la ripples in water" in the next block. 

Sandra's gorgeous tree quilt in the snow

The back of Sandra's tree quilt to see the quilting

Sally of Crafts, Cavies and Cooking created a woven plaid postcard for Project Quilting's last challenge. She did the weaving and the sewed on top of it. 

Sally's woven plaid postcard 

It's now your turn! 😍

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter