South Paw Quilt

South Paw Quilt

South Paw Quilt_Close 4.JPG

It’s pattern release day and there’s a new quilt pattern in my SHOP called South Paw! I love writing a blog post for a new quilt pattern because it’s one continuous stream of pretty pictures and inspiration that pulls together the weeks of hard work and love that’s gone into making the quilt and pattern—all for you to see and enjoy.

South Paw Quilt_cover sm.jpg

The South Paw pattern name was some word play fun to celebrate all the lefties out there and is what I lovingly refer to as a block baby that would come from joining a Log Cabin and Bear Claw block. The South reference is to the Southwest-vibe of the quilt design and Paw is a nod to the Bear Claw block—South Paw.

South Paw Quilt_block .jpg

This is a fast and easy block to make and a great quilt for beginners as well. The pattern is fat quarter-friendly and plenty of opportunities to use and show off your pretty prints. You’ll find the material list for this over-sized throw quilt in the Shop description image carousel.

South Paw Quilt_Pieces.JPG

For the cover quilt sample I used Art Gallery Fabrics and mixed prints from my upcoming Lilliput, Spirited, and the AGF Decostitch blender collections and used AGF Pure Solids in White Linen for the background. I’m loving the cool spring tones of these color of denim, carrot, pale pink, and violet.

Get the Kit

You won’t have to search around sourcing the fabric I used in my quilt because our friend Brooke Becker of Lady Belle Fabric is kitting this quilt! You can pre-order a kit and as soon as the Lilliput collection starts shipping the beginning of April, you’ll be one of the first ones making a South Paw quilt just like the one I’ve made. Pre-order your kit HERE.

South Paw Quilt_bench .jpg

As soon as I had designed this quilt my granddaughter claimed this one for herself! So, to make it extra snuggly for her I backed this quilt with Shannon Fabrics Cuddle 3 Extra Wide backing in Woodrose. The color was just perfect and it looks and feels like velvet!

South Paw Quilt_Close-1.jpg

The beautiful longarm quilting on my quilt was done by Brooke Becker at Lady Belle Fabric so not only can you buy your quilting cotton from Brooke but you can have your quilt quilted, too! It’s very subtle but we used a pale pink thread with the Bangkok pattern from her huge selection of quilting designs.

For batting I used my favorite Hobbs Batting Tuscany Silk Blend batting for the most luxurious drape and quality.

South Paw Quilt_full.JPG

Spring is just showing it’s signs here in south-western Ohio and even in just the last few days the trees are starting to bud out a bit. Unfortunately, over the last weekend when I needed to snap pictures of the quilt we still looked in the grips of winter dreariness. Above, shot on Wednesday at home and below, shot on the Saturday before at a nearby park.

South Paw Quilt in wild .jpg

I’m fine with the bleak outdoor shots because frankly, this quilt looks good anywhere. It was just nice to take a hike and get outdoors a bit and make my husband hold up the quilt for me, teehee.

The dried grasses in the image below I picked from the park to use as photo props!

South Paw Quilt_Close 3.JPG

Meet the Testers

South Paw quilt by Sharon Holland

South Paw quilt by Sharon Holland

For this quilt release I had some extremely talented quilt testers making their own version of this pattern. All the testers used Art Gallery Fabrics but selected their own fabrics and colors based on their vision of this quilt. I’ve had Meet the Tester highlights for several of my most recent quilts of this year and last and always create a collage showcasing the tester and the quilt they made from my pattern but this time we’re mixing things up a bit. For this quilt we all stepped up our game and incorporated a few images each tester curated from Pinterest to create a South Paw Moodboard collage to show off their quilt make and tell a bigger story.

Above is my mood board that includes a photo I took on our last trip to Arizona where we traipsed around Sedona. Oh, how I wish I was there now, photographing this quilt in those surroundings and can just imagine my husband holding up the quilt amongst the cacti!

South Paw quilt by maker Victoria Newmyer

South Paw quilt by maker Victoria Newmyer

Victoria Newmyer of Midlife Quilter shop used various Art Gallery Fabrics prints that include some of my Kismet collection. I am in love with her color palette of olive green, harvest gold, pink, berry, and black. This will eventually be a kit available at her shop once Kismet prints are back in stock. Be sure to sign up for her newsletters so you don’t miss a thing!

South Paw quilt by maker Tracey Taber-Perry

South Paw quilt by maker Tracey Taber-Perry

Tracey Taber-Perry does amazing quilts and you can follow her feed @ttabes80 on Instagram. The spruce and pinks color palette of her quilt is stunning and I love how she photographed this elegant quilt in front of the rustic white barn! In her quilt I now see the quilt block design as spring tulips!

South Paw quilt by maker Megan Eckroth

South Paw quilt by maker Megan Eckroth

Megan Eckroth of @cartellastudio on Instagram is a new member to my tester group and this is her second test quilt for me. Megan is amazing and her work is exceptional and creativity is boundless! The South Paw quilt made from Art Gallery Fabrics Serenity prints with the smokey-blue background has captured her inspiration images to a Tee. Follow Megan on Instagram, FB, and her Etsy Shop and see more of what this gifted maker has to share.

South Paw quilt by maker Joyce Ulm

South Paw quilt by maker Joyce Ulm

Joyce Ulm is a quilting powerhouse! This exciting South Paw version was made with Art Gallery Fabric Terra Kotta prints and AGF Pure Solids background. I love the bold print backing and how the quilt relates to her inspiration images of shapes and colors. See more of Joyce’s work on Instagram @evamaecustomquilts, Etsy shop, and on her Facebook blog HERE, and does long arm quilting as well!

South Paw quilt by maker Marija Vujcic

South Paw quilt by maker Marija Vujcic

The instant Marija Vujcic saw my South Paw quilt pattern it reminded her of her Serbian heritage and particularly Pirot kilim rugs. Marija’s mood board tells the story of her color inspiration, heritage, and color palette for this most amazing quilt. Follow this talented lady on Instagram Marija Vujcic and on her blog at Mara Quilt Designs. Her passion for sewing and life has no bounds and it’s wonderful to have her testing my patterns!

South Paw quilt by maker Mary Gove

South Paw quilt by maker Mary Gove

Mary Gove amazes me with every quilt she makes. She has an eye for design that translates into quilts you want to use in every room in your house. For her South Paw make she chose to use only Art Gallery Fabrics solids, four plus the background for five total colors that is inspired by her turquoise earrings—stunning! See more of Mary’s work on her Instagram account @thecurlyquilter.

South Paw quilt by maker Amanda Bagin

South Paw quilt by maker Amanda Bagin

This is the first quilt Amanda Bagin has tested for me as she just joined our group at the beginning of the year. It was a no-brainer to bring Amanda into our testers fold and you can see yourself from her Instagram feed @quiltsbycritter why I fell instantly in love with her work. Amanda has a clean, fresh style and you can see that in her crisp and graphic South Paw quilt in turquoise and terracotta. Along with AGF Pure Solids she also used prints from the AGF Studio Luna and Laurel collection.

South Paw quilt by maker Jennifer Cannon

South Paw quilt by maker Jennifer Cannon

Jennifer Cannon is owner of Piper Autumn Designs shop and the face behind this stunning all solids South Paw quilt. Jen used Art Gallery Fabrics Pure Solids in tropical sherbet colors that she’ll have available as bundles in her shop. The quilt design pops off the Nocturnal blue background—what a fun quilt! Visit Jen’s Etsy shop Piper Autumn Designs and see all her Quilty doings on Instagram at @piperautumndesigns.

South Paw quilt by maker Christine Trotta

South Paw quilt by maker Christine Trotta

Christine Trotta used AGF Smooth Denim Afternoon Sail for the background in her South Paw quilt as a nod to Ina Garten’s signature denim blouse then mixed in feminine AGF florals of spring-fresh colors adds a bit of boho flare to classic chambray. Visit Christines Etsy Shop and Blog as well as her Instagram account @serendipityinlovecreations.

South Paw Quilt _ladder.JPG

Wasn’t that fun? Now, go grab your pattern from my SHOP and start planning your South Paw quilt today! If you are posting your South Paw quilt make to Instagram, be sure to tag me @sharonhollanddesigns and use the hashtag #SouthPawQuilt so I don’t miss seeing your inspired make!

And, for links to the products I used to make my quilt, see the affiliate Amazon links below.

Happy sewing!

I am an Amazon Associate site and earn from qualifying purchases on the products I’ve linked below. The helpful products selected are the same or similar to materials used to make the project(s) in this blog post or related items I think you may enjoy.

Firelight Quilt

Firelight Quilt

Firelight quilt by Sharon Holland

Firelight quilt by Sharon Holland

Hello, and welcome to my first blog post of 2021 where I introduce my first new quilt pattern of 2021!

I know it’s been two months since my last post—sorry about the gap but I’ve been busy creating new quilt designs and doing some secret sewing. I’ve got plenty to show and tell with you very soon and there’ll be new blog posts showing up in your inbox on a regular basis—you can count on that!

Firelight Quilt on Ladder.JPG

Right before Christmas I’d received a bundle of Little Forester Fusions from AGF and knew instantly this is the collection I’d use to make my grandson a quilt for his upcoming third birthday. The Little Forester collection is a fusion of beloved prints from several AGF designer, recolored and grouped into a new collection under the Fusions division of AGF offerings. FUSIONS are bite size collections featuring prints from AGF designers arranged in conceptual themes and as the name suggest, this is a playful, nature-themed collection.

Little Forester Fusions

Little Forester Fusions

Above is the entire Little Forester Fusions collection. I did not use every print from the collection but instead selected five of the prints and paired them with AGF Pure Solids and a couple prints from my Spirited collection below.

Firelight Quilt AGF Fabric Pull.JPG

The Firelight quilt pattern comes with three quilt sizes: Crib, throw, and twin. The pattern cover quilt is the throw size. Quilt kits, just like my sample quilt, are available at Midlife Quilter and include the fabrics listed below. See the PDF pattern listing on my SHOP page for material requirements for all three sizes.

Firelight kit.jpg
Photo courtesy of Midlife Quilter

Photo courtesy of Midlife Quilter

Photo courtesy of Midlife Quilter

Photo courtesy of Midlife Quilter

I’ve labeled this pattern an intermediate level pattern because there are a lot of pieces per block and the need for accurate cutting, sewing, and trimming will be necessary for maintaining all those points. There are also many pieces to keep track of for orientation as well but the end results are really worth slowing down a bit and taking a little extra care.

Firelight Quilt HST trimming.JPG

The pattern has step by step instruction for making Half-Square Triangle (HST) units and Flying Geese units with no-waste piecing techniques. Units are purposely made oversized to allow for trimming and squaring so your blocks go together effortlessly.

For tips on trimming and squaring these types of units, read my tutorial HERE.

Firelight Quilt Pieces.JPG

I love that this pattern is fat quarter-friendly and encourages mix and match, scrappy blocks. I preplanned my fabric pairing before I started sewing block so I could distribute the fabrics and make each block different.

Firelight Quilt Blocks.JPG

My grandson really loves the quilts his Mimi (that’s me) makes and he’s a snuggle bug! So, to make this quilt extra special for him I added Shannon Minky in Cappuccino to the back of the quilt and quilted it myself on a diagonal grid by stitching in the ditch. It was a breeze to quilt on my domestic machine and oh, so snuggly!

Firelight Quilt Sneak Peek 2.JPG

I used Hobbs Heirloom 100% Cotton Batting inside and it was the perfect thickness with a thick Minky backing but still quilted like a dream. The quilt has some heft to it but still has a lovely, traditional drape and feel to it.

Firelight Quilt Flat.jpg
Firelight Quilt Styled 1.JPG
Firelight Quilt 1.JPG

But wait, there’s more!

I wasn't the only one making a Firelight quilt these last two months. My amazing pattern testers have been stitching away on their own version of this pattern and I can’t wait for you to see these quilts!

Meet the Testers

Pattern tester Brittany Tunison

Pattern tester Brittany Tunison

Brittany Tunison is a talented quilt designer in her own right and an amazing maker. Brittany curated Art Gallery Fabrics from several different designers and included AGF Denim in her quilt and the result is this stunning denim, blush, and gold throw quilt. See more of Brittany’s own work as a quilt pattern designer and blogger at White Plains Quilts . You can also find Brittany on Instagram @brittanytunison

Pattern tester Elaine Satterfield

Pattern tester Elaine Satterfield

Elaine Satterfield chose to make a crib size Firelight quilt and it’s incredible! Elaine also backed her quilt with Minky but rounded the corners which is brilliant idea since the corners of the quilt are created from large background triangle and don’t interfere with any blocks. I love the soft shades of mint, gold, gray, and peach in these assorted Art Gallery Fabrics used in her quilt. You can follow Elaine’s quilt adventures on Instagram @elaines14 .

Pattern tester Joyce Ulm

Pattern tester Joyce Ulm

I’m crazy over Joyce Ulm’s Firelight make! Joyce stitched the twin version of this quilt and used AGF Pure Solids and my Kismet prints—a feast for the eyes! See more of Joyce’s work on Instagram @evamaecustomquilts, Etsy shop, and on her Facebook blog HERE, she’s are real dynamo and does her own quilting as well!

Pattern tester Megan Eckroth

Pattern tester Megan Eckroth

Megan Eckroth of @cartellastudio on Instagram is a new member to my tester group. I was instantly smitten with Megan’s work and have enjoyed getting to know her and know you’ll love her, too! Megan made the throw size Firelight and it’s a beauty. The dark background is inspired and sets off the sage, clay, putty, and peach solids and spring-colored prints from Art Gallery Fabrics. Follow Megan on Instagram, FB, and her Etsy Shop.

Pattern tester Mary Gove

Pattern tester Mary Gove

I wait with anticipation to see what Mary Gove will create next. Her Firelight throw quilt version is stunning and is only rivaled by the equally glorious landscape settings she uses as backdrops to her quilts. This beautiful fabric pull of Pure Solids, Homebody prints and Kismet prints is delicious and feels so fresh. Follow Mary’s quilting adventures from her Instagram account @thecurlyquilter.

Pattern tester Terri Neil

Pattern tester Terri Neil

I was real excited when I heard Terri Neil say she was going to make an all AGF Pure solids Firelight throw quilt and beyond thrill when she sent me the reveal photos! Have you ever seen a prettier color palette? The juxtaposition of bright, muted, and jewel tone colors blow away all color theory conventions yet it utterly works and reminds me of museum-worthy antique Amish quilts. Terri on Instagram @quiltingrubies and you’ll be in awe of all the beautiful quilts she makes and quilts for others from her long arm business called Quilting Rubies.

Pattern tester Tracey Taber-Perry

Pattern tester Tracey Taber-Perry

This gorgeous jewel-toned Firelight throw quilt was made by Tracey Taber-Perry. Tracey used the AGF Marrakesh Fusions collection for the blocks and background and I love the big, bold geometric print background to add even more energy to the quilt design. This quilt looks like a beautiful spring bulb poking out of the snow. To see more of Tracey’s beautiful work and you can follow her feed @ttabes80 on Instagram.

Pattern tester Victoria Newmyer

Pattern tester Victoria Newmyer

Victoria Newmyer is the genius behind the Midlife Quilter shop where you can find beautiful AGF fabrics and get personal help curating your next bundle for a quilt project. I love this spring-fresh bundle Victoria pulled for her crib size Firelight quilt. The addition of Chenille-It Just Peachy faux chenille binding is the perfect finish and a product she stocks in her shop as well.

Don’t forget that Victoria is stocking kits for the Firelight cover quilt and you can find all the details on her online quilt shop Midlife Quilter and beautiful Instagram account @midlife_quilter.

Firelight Quilt Styled 2.JPG

I hope you’ve enjoyed this virtual quilt show and have been inspired to discover new Art Gallery Fabrics you may not have seen yet or new color combinations to spice up your life and energize your creativity. Be sure to stop by my testers social pages and say “Hi” and tell them how amazing they are!

Find the PDF pattern for the Firelight quilt in my SHOP and happy sewing!

I am an Amazon Associate site and earn from qualifying purchases on the products I’ve linked below. The helpful products selected are the same or similar to materials used to make the project(s) in this blog post or related items I think you may enjoy.

Vista Quilt Pattern

Vista Quilt Pattern

Vista quilt flat lay-2.jpg

Life’s been pretty exciting around here with the fall collection reveals at the beginning of the month, the Sweet Home quilt along in full swing, and a brand new quilt pattern release today! Of course, all these things have been planned for some time and created well in advance but everything’s coming due all at once and really has me hopping!

Vista quilt pattern by Sharon Holland with feather quilting and photo by Lady Belle Fabric

Vista quilt pattern by Sharon Holland with feather quilting and photo by Lady Belle Fabric

I’m thrilled to announce Vista as the newest PDF quilt pattern in my SHOP. Vista is a medallion-style, over-sized throw quilt. It looks complicated but is really very straightforward. Even though I have it labeled as an intermediate quilt that’s only because of the large background pieces are a little awkward to cut and handle but that’s the only reason I have it labeled that way. A confident beginner will have no troubles making this design.

The Vista quilt, like my recent Phoenix quilt use a lot of half-square triangles (HSTs) in their constructions. If you haven’t invested in Bloc_Loc rulers yet and find yourself making HSTs and Flying Geese most of the time you’ll really thank yourself for purchasing these wonderful rulers. I’ll have an Amazon affiliate link at the bottom of this post for recommended Bloc_Loc ruler sizes.

Vista quilt outdoors-3.jpg

The graphic quality of a medallion quilt makes a real statement in home decor. This would look right at home draped on your favorite chair or hung on the wall like art. It uses only 6 different fabrics which makes it easy to coordinate with your homes color scheme and easy to plan a fabric pull.

Vista quilt flat lay-1.jpg

For the sample quilt I used Art Gallery Fabrics from a few of my fabric collections: Spirited, Signature, and the baby blue print is a recolored Spirited print released in the AGF Rosewood Fusion collection. I love this mix of prints and colors because they have a end-of-summer feeling and boho-nature vibe.

Vista quilt flat lay-3.jpg

The exquisite feather quilting on my quilt was done by Brooke Becker of Lady Belle Fabric. Not only does Brooke have an awesome shop with Art Gallery Fabrics, she also has a long arm service. I’ve been getting quite a lot of quilts quilted by her lately and she’s so wonderful to work with.

Vista quilt outdoors-6.jpg

For my batting I went with Hobbs Tuscany Silk batting inside. I love how silk batting is more crease resistant than traditional cotton and the wonderful stitch definition to show off that beautiful feather design.

Vista quilt styled-02 copy.jpg

In August I’d release my Phoenix quilt and for the first time, used quilt testers for a quilt release and have done so again for the Vista quilt. It’s been a wonderful experience working with these talented ladies and with three more quilt releases coming between now and November I’m really appreciating their help even more!

In case you’re wondering how to become a tester for me I’m not taking on any new makers at this time. There could be a new call for testers next year so best advice is to follow along on my Instagram feed as I would put a call for testers out via that social media platform.

Meet the Testers

The following six ladies (in alphabetical order) have done an amazing job making their Vista quilt samples. I asked that they work exclusively with Art Gallery Fabrics but to select prints or collections of their choosing— just like if they were making a fabric pull for any other quilt.

I’ve made collages of their quilt makes to bring you a virtual quilt show of Vista quilts. I highly encourage you to visit each one of their Instagram feeds or use the links I’ll provide in each of their write ups.

Enjoy the show!

Vista quilt make by Jennifer Cannon

Vista quilt make by Jennifer Cannon

Jennifer Cannon is the owner of Piper Autumn Designs, an online ETSY quilt shop. Jennifer has used a mix of AGF prints from designers Pat Bravo, Bonnie Christine, and AGF Studios and we’ve collaborated to bring you a kit based off Jennifers gorgeous quilt!

Vista Sunrise quilt kit from Piper Autumn Designs

Vista Sunrise quilt kit from Piper Autumn Designs

The beautiful Vista Sunrise quilt kit is available at Piper Autumn Designs. Hurry, these kits don’t last long! The quilt pattern is sold separately and can be found in my SHOP here on the blog.

Vista quilt maker Jennifer Monroe

Vista quilt maker Jennifer Monroe

Meet Jennifer Monroe, and Ohioan who lives very close to me but because of covid we never got to meet up. Jennifer is packing up and moving any day now but still managed to complete her Vista quilt make and snap some Ohio landscape photos before she leaves. This ethereal quilt is made with Art Gallery Fabrics designed by Bonnie Christine. I love the golden color palette. Read more about Jennifer and all her sewing adventures on her blog Sunshine Selvage.

Vista quilt maker Joyce Ulm

Vista quilt maker Joyce Ulm

Joyce Ulm is a life-long sewist and quilter and Etsy shop owner at Eva Mae Custom Quilts. Joyce had her Vista quilt done in no time flat so she could take it with her on a trip out west. She was able to snap some incredible photos so if you want to see more of her Vista quilt in the wild, be sure to visit her on Instagram to see it all! I adore her maroon, gold, and teal color palette and how she mixed AGF prints from Maureen Cracknell , Amy Sinibaldi, and Decostitch to make the perfect fall-inspired quilt.

Vista quilt maker Lindsey Fuessley

Vista quilt maker Lindsey Fuessley

Lindsey Fuessley of @lindseyleemakes on Instagram, lives in Iowa fairly close to where I grew up. I get homesick every time I see photos of her holding a quilt near corn fields! I love how soft and vintage Lindsey’s quilt looks in these AGF spring-fresh prints by Bonnie Christine, and Pat Bravo, mixed with Pure Solids. Her Instagram feed is an inspiration you won’t want to miss!

Vista quilt maker Renata Auld

Vista quilt maker Renata Auld

Renata Auld of @ciaomamaquilts on Instagram is an Aussie quilt maker who creates bold, beautiful quilts and isn’t shy to use color. I love the wow power of her Vista quilt and her photo locations! Renata deviated a bit from pattern and used only five prints, made placement changes, and didn’t add the end borders so as to keep her quilt a square. These changes are what makes quilting fun and customizable to your tastes. I love seeing how the same quilt can look completely different. The fabrics in Renata’s quilt are a mix of AGF Pure Solids, my Signature prints, and a print from Alexandra Bordallo’s Dew and Moss.

Vista quilt maker Tracey Taber-Perry

Vista quilt maker Tracey Taber-Perry

Last, but not least, is Tracey Taber_Perry of @ttabes80 on Instagram. Tracey is a relative newcomer to quilting but that doesn’t slow her down one bit! I’m in love with her fall-vibes quilt of honey and plum! Tracy used prints by Maureen Cracknell and AGF Floral Elements to create a stunner of a Vista quilt. Be sure to follow Tracey’s quilting adventures on Instagram!

Vista quilt make by Sharon Holland

Vista quilt make by Sharon Holland

I took a lot of photo of this quilt because it’s just so darn photogenic! Here’s a couple for Vista views for you…

Vista quilt.jpg

Vista quilt styled-10.jpg

Vista quilt styled-09.jpg

The backing for my Vista quilt is from my AGF Signature collection.

Vista quilt styled-06.jpg

You have to admit that was a spectacular quilt show! Are you inspired???

Coming late October-early November time, this lovely quilt pattern will be gracing the virtual pages of the Art Gallery Fabrics Kismet Look Book. Kismet is my new fabric collection due out in October. The fabulous Nuria Elkins of Fabric Stork will be making a Kismet version of Vista AND have quilt kits available as well,—yay!!! Keep watching for that announcement.

So, grab your pattern from my SHOP and add Vista to your list of quilt makes!

I am an Amazon Associate site and earn from qualifying purchases on the products I’ve linked below. The helpful products selected are the same or similar to materials used to make the project(s) in this blog post or related items I think you may enjoy.