2024 Sew Along

Announcing my 2024 Sew Along

So what do birds, flower baskets, and love of friends and family have in common?  They all show up as part of my latest quilt pattern. This pattern has been in the works for awhile and was actually completed last year.  I've kept it on hold waiting to get my quilting mojo back.  I'm so happy to announce that Heart's Delight will be my newest BOM project.  There will be some changes to my usual pattern offering, the main one being you will need to purchase a membership in order to receive the thoroughly tested monthly pattern and any videos that go along with this quilt project.  I struggled with this decision, but to be honest it costs me quite a bit of money to do what I do.  I have to pay pretty hefty subscription fees for the program I use to write my patterns, there is also the cost of hosting my website, and of course there is my time and talent-which my economist son tells me is extremely valuable.  All of these have led me to the decision to require a small membership fee to help cover my costs. 

So on to more of the details about this Sew Along.  It will kick off in January and run for ten months.  Each month on the 15th the next part of the pattern will be released.  The quilt shown above is the queen size version which measures 84" x 96".  Included in the pattern is an option to do a smaller lap quilt measuring 72" x 72".

This really is a perfect quilt for using up your stash as it can be quite scrappy and look really lovely.  In my sample I used a group of fat quarters I had sitting on a shelf waiting for just the right quilt, and where needed, I got some coordinating larger amounts of fabric to work for the various borders.  I also added some stash fabrics for the birds and repeated those fabrics in the piano key border to pull it all together.

I still need to choose a backing fabric and quilt this top.

I hope to sew another one during the months of the Sew Along, and I am leaning towards this blue and red idea, I like this coloration for as it's not Christmasy but will work as a winter quilt on our bed.  I really want something that will emit a cozy feel for the dark days of winter here in Oregon where the sun rises about 7:30 and sets around 4:30.  LED candles are my bright spot around the house in winter.  Also, have I ever mentioned that my husband is colorblind and can only really see the color blue. 

Or do I go with this one, which has colors representing my Swedish heritage by popping some yellow with the blue...This seems more summery to me.  It may come down to what fabric I have in my closet, HA.

I have played with a few color variations and love how no matter what I do, this pattern just looks good.  Here are a few more variations  that I came up with yesterday.
This one was inspired by the sea glass I find on our trips to the beach. What a soft, muted look.

Here I just traded the peachy colors of the hearts and birds for grays and I like how it evokes calm for me. The more I look at this one, the more I get the beachy vibe I was hoping for.

I wondered what would happen if I popped in some purples... I've a daughter-in-love who goes for anything purple.

And then I tried a dramatic color theme.

And of course this is similar to my sample...slight variation from colors I had in my stash, but pretty close....

Do you have a favorite color combination you would like to try? Choosing fabrics is often the hardest part of the whole process!

I do hope that you are inspired to join me.  Registration for membership into the Heart's Delight BOM will open on Friday with a discount running through the rest of the month of December.  The regular membership cost will be $20, but December registrations get a 50% discount by using the code DEC2023.  This code will only be good until December 31 at midnight Pacific Time. 
As you know I am pretty free with my copyright, there is no limitation placed on what you can do with your finished quilts.  But I do need to insist that you honor me by not sharing the files for this quilt with anyone.  When you join you have permission for your own use and nothing more.  Each person needs to purchase their own membership to get the pattern.  At the end of the quilt along the entire pattern will be available for purchase as a stand-alone pattern, but you really get the best bang for your buck by purchasing a membership.   You can read all the details about the benefits of membership on my shop page:

HEART'S DELIGHT BOM

If you are not already a part of my private Facebook group be sure and join my us at www.facebook.com/groups/tuningmyheartsewalong
This is a great group of quilters who enjoy sharing and encouraging one another and is the best way for us all to enjoy the quilts we are making together. So I do hope you will be a part of the show and tell that happens there.

Remember to use code: DEC2023 for 50% off your membership through the end of this month!

Happy Quilting my friends!
Debra