I'm teaching at Empty Spools Seminars!

I’m so excited to share that I will be teaching at #emptyspoolsseminars in 2026! For Love of Bees is the class in session 4. We will cover my unique techniques for starch basting (prepared edge) applique and EPP using the same technique! Find info at EmptySpoolsSeminars.com and check out the 2026 schedule and look for session 4. The Asilomar Conference Grounds look wonderful and I am looking forward to the beautiful views! Let me know if you have any questions and I hope to see you there! TPQuilts @ gmail.com

  

Springtime Adventures

I have more adventures to share... My last post stopped at the quilt show in Ballwin, MO. I didn't mention that we stopped at my parent's home on the way from Dallas to Ballwin for a quick visit. So great to see both doing so well after some health issues recently! The weather was great and we even spent a little time on the porch. Much different weather than Iowa was experiencing had we been home.

We've spent some time with our daughter and my hubs' family in KC and had a good time at Top Golf (fun!) and shopping at the Plaza. Brought back lots of memories from when we lived in the area way back when.

Doesn't this beautiful tile make you think of William Moris fabric? So pretty!

We were home a few days and then made our way to Augusta, GA for a visit with our kids there. They managed snagging some Masters tickets so we had the pleasure of visiting this lovely event.

 

 

We also took a kayak ride down the Savannah River canal and that was lots of fun. I was surprised I enjoyed both events so much. Two things I'd never done before!

Our daughter and husband were great hosts for us! Here they are just before he had a Volunteer Firefighter meeting. Aren't they a cute couple?! We had a wonderful time visiting them.

All through the traveling I've been stitching on new designs whenever possible. Quilt Market is around the corner and will be here in a matter of days! Lots of stitching was done in the car while driving across the country. This little project is made from Old Cambridge Pike fabrics. The colors are so pretty...just my style with a bit of old mixed in with the traditional. The background is one from the line called Concrete. I don't think it's meant to be a Primitive fabric but I love it for a Primitive look!

And this started out very plain, but when I added some stitchery look how much it improved! Sometimes we have to go with the flow. I thought this little quilt was all done, but turned out it wasn't until I added the stitchery. This would be just as pretty and much quicker if the branch and leaves were wool. Hmmm, I think I need to do that on the next one!

The FB group I mentioned a few months ago for Gardens Of A King is rolling along and I promised I'd show you my blocks I make alon the way. Here are the blocks I've stitched so far. I'm not keeping up with the group but I'm doing my best to prepare and make at least one before each post. It's going much quicker than the first time around for sure. Just as much fun to stitch together the second time around! The picture below shows my progress so far. I've chosen bolder colors for the second quilt. It will have more of a latter 1800's look vs the early 1800's look of the first quilt.

And of course I left the blocks on the floor, so look who promptly found the blocks to lay on! She does this every time...

Here's a tease for another new design I'm working on. It is all Applique except for sewing the background blocks together. Very quick Applique on this quilt. It's been fun to do needleturn again...it's been so long Since I've done Needleturn Applique! These look like men's ties laid out like this but that's not what they are! These are all Moda fabrics and blend together so well. Fabrics from several collections all mixed up together!

And now I'm stitching up the borders for the last step. At least I think it's the last step. Like I mentioned earlier I never know until I'm finished when the end of the quilt is. Sometimes I keep adding parts as I design.

I made a short road trip to teach at a wonderful shop in Pella, IA called The Quilted Windmill. We worked on this little wool Applique pattern called Tulip Time and the group seemed to enjoy it. This is a beginner project with the option of very simple or a bit less simple, but still simple style to stitch.

If you ever pass through central Iowa be sure to stop by this shop. They have a bit of everything and have so many cute samples hanging in the shop! Here's a bit of eye candy for you!

This cute quilt is at their check out counter! The town is Dutch and they have windmill themed attractions all over town. The spring Tulip Festival is in a few days. I hope to find time to run back over for the festival. Full of Dutch clothed folks and tulips galore!

Recently a relative and her friends from NE came through town on a bus trip from the Chicago Show. They stopped at a local shop and I met them up there for a quick visit. Her frien Lynette pulled out a little notebook with some fabric to match up with while shopping. I thought this was a great idea! Small enough to have in her purse. Very organized! Thanks for the tip Lynette!

I'll be speaking and teaching in Keller, TX this week with the Bear Creek Guild. The class will be all about English Paper Piecing and of course the main focus will be the unique method of basting English Paper Piecing with Starch. Is so rewarding to teach my method to ladies who struggle with English Paper Piecing because it makes it so very quick and easy! Thanks for stopping by my blog today. Leave a comment below and visit my online shop if you'd like-

Traditional Primitives

Take care,

Missie

#showmethemoda

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Finished Table Runners!

 

I've been working hard to finish the new Table Runners for the workshops! This one below is called Grannie's Flowers and is for the Garland Guild's Workshop on English Paper Piecing-5 Ways and More. I will teach them all sorts of hints and tidbits about English Paper Piecing, including my favorite way of basting with Starch! The center is English Paper Pieced and the outer flowers are wool and cotton appliqué.

The runner below is the Pennies In My Garden Table Runner to go along with the larger quilt called Pennies In My Garden and it is wool and cotton Appliqué with layered pennies and florals. This class is for the workshop at Happiness Is...Quilting! And they will learn the way I like to build a layered wool quilt. These cotton penny parts have a finished seam allowance.

 

It was nice to make something smaller after making The Gardens Of A King last year. Sometimes it's good to do something simple for an easy, quick project!!

Don't forget you can find me on Pinterest, Yahoo Groups, FB and Here! Pick your favorite social media and follow along and participate as I create new patterns for you!

Take care,

Missie

 

Visit my web store www.TraditionalPrimitives.com

Hexie Table Runner!

 

It's finally time to start a little stitching!! Yippee! I'd say it's been about 5 weeks since I've had time to pick up a needle and thread, so I'm feeling good now that I have a few minutes to stitch a little! Let's see...it is 8pm... That means I have about 30 minutes until my eyes wear out and start watering! Haha!

 

These are a few leftover hexies from my Life In The Midwest Quilt. (You can see it by clicking on the name). I will be teaching my starch basting technique For English Paper Piecing at the Garland, Texas Guild in February, so I thought I'd work up a new class sample to teach. I just love the colors in the granny flowers...they are truely my favorites. The background plaid has been stained with instant coffee and baked to give it that really old look. My favorite quilts are done with these colors and textures. Plaids, florals, small prints...a mixture of Traditional, Primitive and Civil War fabrics...and next I'll add in my other favorite texture to add to a quilt...Wool. Yum Yummy!

What are your favorite colors and textures to make quilts with?

Happy New Year! And of course,

Take Care,

Missie

PS...I'm working on those tabs at the top of the page. Forgive me for a while longer as I can not figure out what is wrong with the links to make them work properly! I'm working on it! If you have any questions on Starch Basting or making The Gardens Of A King, don't hesitate to contact me. ;-)

 

 

 

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Getting Back to Normal !! And...Some Big News!

Well, I have two new graduates as of a few weeks ago! The Middle Daughter has graduated from Iowa State and has already started work. The Youngest Daughter has graduated from high school and is off to volunteer at a YL camp for a month. They are both so happy well adjusted kids and I am so proud!

We are empty nesters for a while. Hubs is traveling for work and I am vending, so we'll miss each other for one of our empty nest weeks! LOL! After such a busy spring, we have vowed to do something fun together, so we'll work on that when we both get home next week!

Since we had the graduation parties in our home, the above picture shows my sewing room...a mess once again, all squished to one end of the room and hidden by a partition during the party. I was happy to rearrange last year for so many good reasons, but I sooooo look forward to putting it together and leaving it that way! I have a good start on the process, but it's all a mess again as I start to pack for my vending trip to The Minnesota Quilters Show in St. Cloud, MN. Will anyone be there? Let me know if you are coming and look me up if so! I hear it's a wonderful show and I can't wait to see it in person! If you are up for a road trip the dates of the event are June 12-14. Please introduce yourself to me if you make it to the show!

I have had to throw another iron away. This will be the third one in about 6 months. They don't make them like they used to! Of course, part of my problem may be that I am using old irons. I am one who likes an iron to stay on while I am doing my thing in the sewing room. I have not been able to find a new one that works as well as my old Rowenta...which was so old, it smelled like an electrical fire waiting to happen. Recently, I was at my local designer big box store and found a $17 iron with no auto shut off picture on the box! I couldn't believe it! It is very small compared to my old faithful, but it gets hot...and does not turn off!!!! I love it! It's the Black and Decker F210 model. It appears there are some with the auto shut off feature, so maybe they only carry this one in the store. I better go get another one to have on hand! That feature is important to me, and I have been looking for months and months. I'm so happy I found one! To make sure it is off as I leave the room, I always use a stip extension cord with a switch. I also leave a light on and plugged into the same strip cord. When I flip the switch off to turn off the light, I am assured the iron is off also. That's my safety system I have used for over 20 years. So far so good!

So, you are probably wondering what the big news is? If you've read my blog for a while, you know I love English Paper Piecing, but you also know that I have a unique way of doing this! I use EPP for hexies and diamonds, traditional shapes, but also for blocks that are not traditionally EPP patterns. I have figured out a way that works for me to shortcut the basting with thread method. I have learned that I love to use starch and thick freezer paper (double layer of special freezer paper) to baste my shapes. One issue with some customers has been that some don't have interest in making the freezer paper shapes. (It's VERY easy though!).
SO, SOME of my big news is that I can now offer my customers my EPP patterns WITH the shapes cut out and ready to go! My patterns are not traditional EPP blocks and they are blocks that I would not want to attempt by machine because they are not easy blocks by machine, and I love handwork. Using the EPP method for these blocks makes them very easy and ENJOYABLE!! These papers can be used over and over when using my method for basting. I have used them up to 20 times or more before. ( It depends on how much lint your fabric has that sticks to the waxy side of the freezer paper.) I offer pin cushion patterns and a few quilt patterns using EPP. You could easily make a bunch of pin cushions, or, make a quilt using these same papers. I'm so excited to be able to offer these to you so that you can get started right away on your EPP projects!

These papers are available in the Pincushion Patterns and the Hexie Candy Mini Quilt currently and I will have them available in the near future for Life In The Midwest and A Warm Welcome. You can also choose to make your own as in the past. You can purchase HERE at my Website, www.TraditionalPrimitives.com if you are interested.
The OTHER big news is that I will now offer ALL of my Punchneedle Patterns WITH the printed weaver's cloth. This has been a work in progress for quite a while. I am so excited to have all of them ready and available for you with the stamped weaver's cloth included in the pattern. Now, when you receive your pattern you can start punching right away! The picture below shows an example of one of the printed designs, Primitive Pineapple Welcome.

You can find these HERE at www.TraditionalPrimitives.com if you are interested! Thanks for looking! (I do have a correction here...all but ONE design is available with the printed cloth temporarily)
With these tasks finalized I am so excited to get back to stitching! I promise I won't be missing in action any longer. My life is my own once again and I'll post more often once again!
Thanks so much for stopping by! I've missed chatting with you all. Please leave a comment to say hello! If your guild or store would like a workshop on my starch method of English Paper Piecing, along with all other methods of EPP, or another class, please write to me. I would be happy to send the information!
Take care,
Missie

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