Rainbow Stairsteps Finished!

The Rainbow Scrap Challenge, hosted by Angela at So Scrappy, has been a big part of my quilting life ever since 2013. I've been trying to focus on finishing some of the many rainbow quilts that I started in those years, and I'm happy to share my finished Rainbow Stairsteps quilt.

This quilt was one of my RSC projects back in 2019. Here's a photo from my first post about this quilt showing a single block in case you were wondering about the piecing. The finished block size is 6".

The quilt top was completed in November of 2019 and has been hanging in the quilt room closet ever since. I'm so pleased with the way it turned out and look forward to displaying it in our home.

The backing fabric seemed like a good match for the top, with a design of lots of black and white plus scattered bright colors. It's much easier to see the print up close.

The backing fabric inspired my choice of a Baptist fan-type quilting design for this quilt, and I love the texture that it adds to the quilt.

I'm  linking up with:

Design Wall Monday at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts

Monday Musings at Songbird Designs

Wednesday Wait Loss at Inquiring Quilter

Finished or Not Friday at Alycia Quilts

Brag About Your Beauties at From Bolt to Beauty

Thank Goodness It's Finished Friday (TGIFF) at Melva Loves Scraps

 Rainbow Scrap Challenge at So Scrappy

Oh Scrap! at Quilting is more fun than Housework

Happy quilting everyone!

Julie in GA

Curves in Quilts = A New Project

The program for last week's guild meeting was "Tackling Curves in Quilts" presented by Mary Ruth Hudson. She shared a great variety of different designs that all featured curves. The next day, she taught a workshop with the Blue Onion pattern by Karla Alexander of Saginaw Street Quilts.

Blue Onion pattern by Karla Alexander of Saginaw Street Quilts

That pattern might look familiar to anyone who has been reading my blog for awhile. I made the Blue Onion pattern back in 2021, renaming my version "Blooming Onion," and it is still a favorite of mine. I really need to get this one quilted and finished!

Blooming Onion quilt top, 60.5" x 80.5"

There were a few reasons that I took the workshop even though I had already made this design before. One was the fun of enjoying a sewing day with guild friends and learning some new tricks from an excellent teacher. Another was the fact that the class fee included the ruler that the Blue Onion pattern was designed to use. (The pattern does include instructions for cutting the pieces without the ruler, and that is how I made my earlier version.

Ovals All Ways ruler by Creative Grids

I didn't choose any fabrics for this project until two days before the class. My plan was to make a smaller version of the pattern, and I knew I could pull enough fabrics from my stash. I started with these three coordinating prints that I've had in my stash since around 1999, then pulled other fabrics to go with them.

We had a great time in class, and most of us got at least six blocks made. As expected, I did learn some new tricks from Mary Ruth, and I continued making more blocks after I got home on Friday and through the weekend. I still have one more set of six blocks to finish piecing. I've started playing with possible layouts. 

This is going to be an extremely bright quilt! My plan is to use 20 blocks for the quilt top, which should finish at 40" x 50". I hope to get the last group of blocks made today, and maybe even get them all joined together into a quilt top too. 

I'm  linking up with:

Design Wall Monday at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts

Monday Musings at Songbird Designs

Wednesday Wait Loss at Inquiring Quilter

Happy quilting everyone!

Julie in GA

Stash Report and Stitching 5/24/2026

The week got off to a great start with a visit to the Southeastern Quilt and Textile Museum in Carrollton, GA. They are exhibiting quilts from the 17th Quilt Nihon, the largest international quilt contest in Japan and one of the most prestigious in the world. This incredible exhibit will be shown at only four venues in the U.S., and it is here in Georgia until June 16th. I highly recommend a visit if you have a chance.

I wanted to share a photo or two of my favorite quilt from the exhibit, but it was extremely difficult to narrow it down. I managed to choose two to share today. This first quilt is "Good Day" by Michiko Oobuchi of Chiba, Japan. According to the card posted with the quilt, it was made from antique silk crepe, and I believe it was pieced and quilted by hand. I love the color variations, and I was intrigued by the block design.

"Good Day" by Michiko Oobuchi

My other pick to share is "Flight of the Phoenix" by Keiko Tajitsu of Miyazaki, Japan. From a distance, I thought that all of the circles were appliqued and stuffed or trapuntoed to give them dimension. On closer inspection, I believe each circle has a metal form inside like you use to make covered buttons. It was hard to get a photo that shows the dimension, but you can get an idea in the last shot.

"Flight of the Phoenix" by Keiko Tajitsu

This week's stash report doesn't show any changes, either in or out. I did finish one quilt this week, but I'll wait to count the yardage used for backing and binding after I can get some photos of it and write up a blog post.

2026 STASH TOTALS

Used last week:                     0.0 yards

Used year to date:            46.625 yards

Added last week:                    0.0 yards

Added year to date:            66.25 yards

Net added in 2026:       19.625 yards

Kate's 15 Minutes to Stitch Challenge at Life in Pieces has us tracking how many days each week we get in at least 15 minutes of quilting time. Along with finishing one quilt, I started a new quilt in a class held by our quilt guild. There was definitely more than 15 minutes of quilting happening every day.

15 Minute Challenge 2026

5/17 - 5/23             7 of 7 days

2026 Total        142 of 143 days

Success rate               99.3 %   

Check out more stash reports at quiltpaintcreate and join the 15 Minutes to Stitch Challenge at Life in Pieces. Thanks so much to Donna and Kate for continuing to host these link-ups. 

Happy quilting everyone!

Julie in GA

Stash Report & Stitching 5/17/2026

My stash usage for the past week was very small, but at least there wasn't any yardage added to the stash. I used 1/4 yard for the binding of the reversible mini Storm at Sea quilt. You can read more about it in this post.

Mini Storm at Sea, 22.5" square

2026 STASH TOTALS

Used last week:                     .25 yards

Used year to date:            46.625 yards

Added last week:                    0.0 yards

Added year to date:            66.25 yards

Net added in 2026:       19.625 yards

Kate's 15 Minutes to Stitch Challenge at Life in Pieces has us tracking how many days each week we get in at least 15 minutes of quilting time. I've been finishing the binding on another quilt, plus I appliqued some tiny little diamonds on a block for my Jane Stickle sampler. Just one more diamond to stitch down!

15 Minute Challenge 2026

5/10 - 5/16             7 of 7 days

2026 Total        135 of 136 days

Success rate               99.3 %   

Check out more stash reports at quiltpaintcreate and join the 15 Minutes to Stitch Challenge at Life in Pieces. Thanks so much to Donna and Kate for continuing to host these link-ups. 

Happy quilting everyone!

Julie in GA

Mini Storm at Sea is Finished!

This month's assignment for the guild UFO challenge was #9. On my list, that meant my reversible mini Storm at Sea quilt, which was one of my very oldest projects. It just needed a binding, and now it is finished!

Mini Storm at Sea, dark side

 22.5" square

Mini Storm at Sea, light side

I've been quilting since 1995, and I've always been fascinated by designs that look like curves but are made from straight lines. In 1998, I felt ready to attempt a Storm at Sea quilt. I had been collecting fabrics in a variety of turquoise and teal prints, but I wasn't sure whether I wanted to combine them with a dark background or a light one. To help me make up my mind, I made samples of both, which ended up becoming this reversible quilt.

Making the two different versions definitely helped me decide to go with a light background. The main thing I see on the side with the black is the stars, but on the light side, I can see the diagonal wavy movement of the Storm at Sea pattern more clearly.

The mini Storm at Sea quilt was quilted in the ditch from the dark side. You can get a closer look at some of the fabrics in this shot.

I did end up making a bed-sized Storm at Sea quilt, but it wasn't started until 2001 when I found the perfect background fabric with sea anemones on it.

 That quilt was finished in 2012.

Storm at Sea quilt top, 87" x 96"

May, 2012

Storm at Sea, quilted and bound

October, 2012

I'm  linking up with:

Design Wall Monday at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts

Monday Musings at Songbird Designs

Wednesday Wait Loss at Inquiring Quilter

Finished or Not Friday at Alycia Quilts

Brag About Your Beauties at From Bolt to Beauty

Thank Goodness It's Finished Friday (TGIFF) at Slightly Biased Quilts

Oh Scrap! at Quilting is more fun than Housework

Happy quilting everyone!

Julie in GA

Sunday Stash and Stitching 5/10/2026

Happy Mother's Day to all the mothers out there, especially my wonderful mother who taught me to sew. Thanks, Mom!

Finishing a quilt can really make a big difference in the stash report numbers. My finish for the week was my 2025 Temperature Quilt. You can read more about the making of this quilt HERE.

2025 Temperature Quilt

I thought I had already counted the fabric used to make the blocks for this quilt in last year's totals, but it turned out that only half the blocks were included in the 2025 usage. I used 3.5 yards for the rest of the blocks, July through December, plus 1.25 yards for the setting triangles and border. The backing with the legend panel took 6 yards total, and the final touches were the binding and hanging sleeve for 7/8 yard. Total used: 11.375 yards. No new fabric was added to the stash this week.

2026 STASH TOTALS

Used last week:               11.375 yards

Used year to date:            46.375 yards

Added last week:                    0.0 yards

Added year to date:            66.25 yards

Net added in 2026:       19.875 yards

Kate's 15 Minutes to Stitch Challenge at Life in Pieces has us tracking how many days each week we get in at least 15 minutes of quilting time. After completing the last steps on the temperature quilt, I finished the binding on a very old UFO (photos coming soon.) 

15 Minute Challenge 2026

5/3 - 5/9                 7 of 7 days

2026 Total        128 of 129 days

Success rate               99.2 %   

Check out more stash reports at quiltpaintcreate and join the 15 Minutes to Stitch Challenge at Life in Pieces. Thanks so much to Donna and Kate for continuing to host these link-ups. 

Happy quilting everyone!

Julie in GA

2025 Temperature Quilt Finished!

It has been about a year and a half since I started planning my first temperature quilt, and as of today, it is finished! That's not a bad turn-around time for me, but I've been very excited (and therefore motivated) about completing this quilt. This is my finished 2025 Temperature Quilt for College Park, GA.

2025 Temperature Quilt

57.5" x 76"

It all started in November, 2024, with a presentation by Jo Avery of the UK about temperature quilts. She inspired several members of our guild, the Common Threads Quilters Guild of Newnan, GA, to begin our own versions of temperature quilts. 

For my quilt, I came up with an easy-to-piece block design and selected a group of fabrics from the Glaze and Glaze II lines by Libs Elliott for Andover. The photo above shows my fabric palette, and below is a close-up of some blocks. The finished blocks measure 3".

I tracked the high and low temperatures all through 2025 and tried to stay caught up on making my blocks. There were a couple times that I fell behind by a month or more, but I was fairly close most of the year. The color of the diamond in each block represents the high temperature for that day, and the background color is the low temp. The dates run from left to right in horizontal rows. Even though we did a good bit of traveling in 2025, I used the temperatures for College Park in all of my blocks.

It isn't easy to come up with a layout that uses 365 blocks. When I decided to set my blocks on point, I realized that it would work out if I added just a few extra blocks. There are three blocks with hand appliqued circles on them. They represent the temperatures for my husband's birthdate, our wedding day, and my birthdate.

I had originally planned to include the legend for the colors and their temperature ranges in the border of the quilt, but decided to keep the focus of the quilt front on the piecing and the flow of colors. I made a panel for the back of the quilt with that information.

My temperature quilt was quilted by Kris Townsend Davis in a feather meander pattern with Brassy Yellow Variegated Thread. I love the movement of the quilting design, and the variegated thread worked out beautifully.

There were over a dozen members of the guild who worked on their temperature quilts together throughout 2025. We all shared our progress at the April, 2026 guild meeting. Several quilts were completely finished and others are still in progress. Our group coordinator, Sharon Hendrix, kept us all inspired and motivated. A couple weeks after showing the quilts at the guild meeting, Sharon shared the very exciting news that our quilts are going to be displayed at the Southeastern Quilt and Textile Museum in Carrollton, GA, from November, 2027 until February, 2028. It will be such an honor to have our quilts exhibited there!

I've already started a new temperature quilt for 2026. This time I'm using Jo Avery's Sea Urchin design, which is included in her online Supernova class at The Thread House Academy. My sister Karen is also making the same pattern with temperatures for Madison, WI. Below is my February block for that quilt, and you can read more about the new project HERE. I'm enjoying continuing to track our daily temps in fabric.

I'm  linking up with:

Design Wall Monday at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts

Monday Musings at Songbird Designs

Wednesday Wait Loss at Inquiring Quilter

Finished or Not Friday at Alycia Quilts

Brag About Your Beauties at From Bolt to Beauty

Thank Goodness It's Finished Friday (TGIFF) at Slice of Pi Quilts

Oh Scrap! at Quilting is more fun than Housework

Happy quilting everyone!

Julie in GA

Sunday Stash and Stitching 5/3/2026

Just when it seems that my stash report might be getting close to even on the yardage used vs. yardage added tally, something happens to throw it off balance again. This time it started with a fabric sale held by our quilt guild. The guild had received an enormous fabric donation from a quilter's estate several months ago. A large amount of the donated fabric went to the guild's community service projects, but there was still a great deal more, and the board decided to hold a fabric sale. 

A preview sale/trial run was held for board members recently, with fabric being sold for $4/yard. I bought a total of 12.5 yards At that price, I could have easily bought much more, but my fabric shelves are very full already. Besides, I will have another chance to shop when we hold the sale for the full guild in June. Maybe I can figure out some quilt backing plans before that sale.

Just days after the guild fabric sale, we went to Paducah for the AQS show, one of my favorite quilting events of the year. Naturally, a visit to Hancock's of Paducah was included and some fabric was purchased. One new fabric is this wide back that will be perfect for one of my rainbow quilt tops.

A couple of the quilts at the AQS show that really intrigued me were variations on One-Block Wonder quilts which were made from panels. Here are two of them from the show.

"On the Lily Pond" by Christine Gillespie

"In the Woods" by Annie Boschert

Hancock's has many different panels in stock, and I chose this one for my future version of the OBW panel quilt. I bought 7 copies of the panel--one will be used whole in the quilt, and the other 6 will be used for the surrounding kaleidoscope-style blocks.

At least I can report a little bit of fabric used too. My most recent UFO finish, the Pinwheels Christmas Tree, used 2 yards for the backing and binding.

Pinwheels Christmas Tree, 39" x 46"

2026 STASH TOTALS

Used last week:                     2.0 yards

Used year to date:               35.0 yards

Added last week:                 22.5 yards

Added year to date:            66.25 yards

Net added in 2026:         31.25 yards

Kate's 15 Minutes to Stitch Challenge at Life in Pieces has us tracking how many days each week we get in at least 15 minutes of quilting time. Between having guests recently followed immediately by the trip to Paducah and other stops, there hasn't been a lot of time for quilting in the last two weeks. Having a hand stitching project ready to go is the only thing that kept me on track with getting in my 15 minutes every day.

15 Minute Challenge 2026

4/19 - 4/25             7 of 7 days

4/26 - 5/2               7 of 7 days

2026 Total        121 of 122 days

Success rate               99.2 %   

Check out more stash reports at quiltpaintcreate and join the 15 Minutes to Stitch Challenge at Life in Pieces. Thanks so much to Donna and Kate for continuing to host these link-ups. 

Happy quilting everyone!

Julie in GA