Vicki has won a copy of my Peekaboo pattern. Based on the traditional Peekaboo block from the 1930s, this intricate-looking quilt is deceptively easy to piece. Just two basic units make up the entire design!

Peekaboo

Enjoy!

If you register you can be eligible for the monthly prize drawings too. See the left-hand sidebar.

Until next time,
Kay
Quilt Puppy Publications & Designs

Visit my Etsy shop.

If you haven’t seen Etsy yet, hold on to your hats! You’re in for a handmade treat.

Until next time,
Kay
Quilt Puppy Publications & Designs

African Animals quilt by Mary Fran Archer

Here’s the story behind the quilt, from Mary Fran. “This is the second quilt made from Dog Cabin. It was made for a high school friend’s grandchild. Sheila thought her daughter would never have children and then, at 40, she had Cole! So this is one special baby.

“Sheila sent me some fabrics that fit her ideas for the baby — they were home dec fabrics and too stiff for the quilt but I was able to find zebra print and other prints that featured turquoise, lime green, and brown and white, similar to those Sheila liked. I had to cut the featured squares about 6 1/4 inches to accommodate the baby African animals and I added an outer border (not pieced) that was a little bigger so the quilt is about the same size as those in the book.

Amazingly, there are lots of African animal prints out there. I used 3 different ones for the focus fabrics, fussy cutting the black background fabrics around specific animals. This was a joy to make, with its happy colors and cute little animals.”

Mary Fran Archer

This story just goes to show how flexible the Dog Cabin road map is. You can start with any size square or rectangle, whatever suits your print, and build the blocks from there.

Thanks Mary Fran, for sharing your quilt and its special story. So glad you enjoyed it!

Until next time,
Kay
Quilt Puppy Publications & Designs

Here’s Mary Fran’s story:

“My husband’s colleague in the sociology department at the University of California at Santa Cruz hosted his retirement party earlier this month. It was a significant event and lots of time went into it. To thank her, I made the quilt. She has two dogs, Borzoi, and I felt that a dog quilt for the dogs themselves might be a good gift. I enjoyed making this so much.”

Here’s the quilt for the lucky Borzoi.

Here’s another shot, which as Mary Fran puts it “is more artistic and includes a cat tail.” There’s also one block of cats in the bottom row. I love including a little tweaky surprise in a quilt.

So I have to tell you that this is a really cool thing for me, because the Borzoi is my husband’s favorite kind of dog. Another name for them is the Russian Wolfhound. They’re really greyhounds with long hair. Borzoi are beautiful dogs with gentle temperaments, and make wonderful additions to the family if the climate is not too hot and they can get enough running in.

Mary Fran, how did they like the quilt?

Until next time,
Kay
Quilt Puppy Publications & Designs

Janet started with a striking Kaffe Fassett print and pulled the other colors from there. Not only do we have some hot colors going on here, Janet reversed the values… she made the light areas dark and the dark areas light.

Tracey Brookshier of Brookshier Design Studio, who publishes this pattern, loves Janet’s wild colors so much that she’s thinking about putting it on the cover!

Here’s my version, in comparison.

Whichever way you like it, this is a great beginner quilt. It may look intricate, but there’s only two sewn units, the square-in-square and the rail fence. Then it’s all in how you set them!

Janet’s class is on February 18 at Cabrillo Sewing Center in Capitola, California.

Until next time,
Kay

“I found this adorable sable and white collie fabric years ago while on vacation in Colorado,” says Vicki. “I was waiting for just the right pattern to come along to show it off. I came across the Quilt Puppy patterns while searching the web for more Collie Fabrics. The Dog Cabin was perfect to show off my collie fabric. I made the quilt for Collie Rescue of Greater IL’s fund raiser ‘The Collie Follies’ live auction.”

Here’s Vicki’s “Sable and White Collie Quilt.” I love what she’s done with with the Dog Cabin blocks, adding her own border treatment of flying geese and additional plain and pieced borders.

Here’s a closeup of the blocks. I recognize that dog-bone fabric! You’ll see it in a number of my Dog Cabin quilts too.

Thank you, Vicki, for sending your show & tell, and for helping dogs.

Until next time,
Happy holidays,
Kay

Round Robin is a fabulous quilt shop located not far from where I live. The fabrics there are something different from your usual fare… they’re unusual and eclectic plus ethnic, with a bent for the tropical and beachy. When you visit the Santa Cruz area, make sure to stop in!

Until next time,
Kay

Well, she wasn’t kidding. In February, she wrote again. “If you recall,” she began, “I was terribly excited about starting it. I have finished the top, and was considering waiting until it was quilted and finished with the binding before sending a picture to you, but I was too excited.”

Here’s Angie’s Peekaboo. I was terribly excited to see her fantastic version! Her fabrics really pop the tile effect.

The design is based on the traditional Peekaboo block from the 1930s. This shot shows the block, in the corner.

Here’s a closeup of the alternate square.
This quilt may be intricate-looking, but in fact it’s so easy to piece. There are just two units in the entire quilt, the square-in-square and rail-fence. Then it’s all in how you set them, in coordination with unpieced rectangles, that makes the overall pattern.

The square-in-square units are made oversized, then trimmed. Angie and I agree that this trimming step is not the most fun part after awhile. Still, it makes them come out just right, and greatly aids the construction process. So… sew a little, trim a little, sew a little, trim a little… that helps!

Thanks, Angie, for letting me show your quilt. I love it, and your enthusiasm! Can’t wait to see that patriotic version.

The quilt, Cherry Smash, came out so cute — cheerful and picnicky. It just goes to show how totally different these quilts can look, depending on the theme you choose and the fabrics you use. I made this one in a smaller size, 3 blocks by 4 blocks, so that it would be more portable. The road map to the quilt is very flexible; you can keep the squares and strips the same size and add more rows and columns, or you can make the squares and strips bigger to increase the size of the quilt. It all depends on what your vision is for the finished quilt, and what size square best shows off your chosen theme fabric.

I love taking this one whenever I have a booth in a merchant mall. It’s wonderful for showing the versatility of Dog Cabin.

Did it ever! I was wonderful to hear that the gals enjoyed the process and that the instructions conveyed well. The lollipops are machine appliquéd using the fusible-interface method introduced to quilters by Eleanor Burns. The pops are turned-edge and come out round and flat with no skill required. The candy bars are rail-fence blocks, and the jujubes are nine-patches. A simple pattern and a tasty confection of a quilt.

But you may be wondering, why on earth did they undertake to make three?? The answer is, because Guin has twin granddaughters!

This is one of the twin quilts that Guin made. She used 30’s reproduction fabrics. The inclusion of the black is great and makes me think of licorice all-sorts. Guin’s granddaughters are five years old now, and Guin says that the quilts were well used. I like that. When I make a baby quilt for a friend, I want it to be used, not hung on a wall!

Here’s Debra’s LCBJ. Look at those luscious citrus colors! This quilt hung in a shop as a sample for a long time, and was universally admired. Debra now reports that “The quilt was given to my nephew’s new baby girl. I was so happy to send her one of the special ones from my collection.” How nice! Thank you, Debra.

Guin and Debra were a huge help in getting LCBJ ready to publish. They asked very good questions and suggested several improvements. Thanks gals! See you at the Pinnacle Quilters show later this month!

Springtime in the Pinnacles April 28-29, 2007, downtown Hollister.