Want to win a FREE seat in one of our Road to California Virtual Classes?

We're getting so close now to the start of Road to California this year, and I can't wait to share more about some of the classes I'll be teaching. We're also giving away a FREE seat in each of our classes this week (12/21/20 to 12/28/20), so make sure you don't skip over how to win one of those spots for yourself!

Road to California is going to look a little different as it will be held virtually, and be called Road @ Home. Though we would have loved to see you in person, there are some perks to gathering virtually. Not only will you save money on travel and hotel costs, but that leaves you with more money for all the fun stuff! You also won’t need to pack up and travel with your studio, or worry about forgetting anything. You’ll get to work comfortably from your own creative space.

All classes will be recorded and posted online so that you can access for a limited time. You’ll get to go at your own pace and don’t have to worry about missing a step or moving through a technique too quickly. You will also get to contact me directly with any questions, concerns or just to share your creations with me.

Let's take a look at what my classes will cover!

Little Succulent Garden Pillows
Wednesday, January 20th. 8am - 4:30pm pst

These are like potato chips - you can't make just one!
Come and join Heidi as she walks you through making a beautiful Dimensional Little Succulent pillow. The pattern includes three sizes and an assortment of petal shapes to select from. For the first half of class, we'll make the petals for the pillow, and in the second half of the class we'll focus on assembling the pillow top.

Rippling Waves Quilt
Saturday, January 23. 8am - 4:30pm PST

How many projects with curves have you passed up only because it involves sewing curves? This class is to help you learn to cut and sew curves quickly and easily! You'll never pass up a curved project again. This project also has cats cradle blocks and can be made with Creative Grids Cats Cradle ruler, that takes the need for bias triangles completely out of the process. Each block is made from rectangles and squares. In this class we will spend the first half cutting out several curved blocks and go over the traditional and ruler method for the Cats Cradle blocks. The second half of the class we will sew our curves and blocks together.

Lecture: The Many Ways to Make HSTs, QSTs, Cats Cradle Flying Geese, and More

Friday, January 22. 8am - 9:30am PST

We will go over the different ways to make these basic units. I will show methods that work with yardages and pre-cuts as well as some of my favorite rulers that make these tasks a breeze. 

We will cover (4) ways to make HST, (4) ways to make Flying Geese, (2) ways to make Cats Cradle blocks, best way to make Square in a Square blocks, Triangle in a Square* blocks and Kitty Corner blocks*. I will also share tips on cutting, pressing and perfecting your ¼” seam allowance. I will also share with you blocks that these units are used in.

Want to win a FREE* seat in one of our classes? To enter, just complete these three quick steps:

1. Follow our blog.

2. Leave us a comment on this post letting us know the topic of a class you'd love to see us offer (Maybe a quilting technique, how to use a certain ruler/tool, themed trunk show, etc).  Make sure to include your email in the comment so we have a way to contact you if you win!

3. Join our Website Email list here. Once you are on our home page, just scroll to halfway down the page to sign-up.

Looking to double or triple your chances at winning? Make sure to check out our Instagram and Facebook profiles for additional ways to enter!

Make sure you enter by December 27th, 2020, as the winner will be selected on December 28th, 2020!

*Disclaimer* Road@Home Registration Fee not included in giveaway. You will need to pay the registration fee to attend the class. Prize is non-transferrable. Only one prize per person. The prize is non-transferable. The class has no cash value. 

Ran out of Gift Tags?? We have got you covered Free Gift Tag Project

 Holiday Fabric Gift Tags

With the holidays right around the corner, these hand-made gift tags are a great quick and easy project to add to your stack of presents! It's also a nice way to use up any of your Christmas fabric that you have laying around and don't want to wait another 10 months to use. 

The pattern for this project is a free download, available from our website here.

I have also posted a Video on how to make these adorable tags, so make sure to check out the video below.

Additionally, if you have a Cricut Maker or another smart cutter, I've created SVG files for you that can be used to cut out the tag shape, as well as the decorative symbols. This is a fun way to make the gift tags even easier to create. The SVG file is only available right now through our Etsy shop. Personally, I love using my Cricut Maker for cutting out shapes and appliqués! 

Now let's jump in to how to make these festive gift tags!

To make a set of 9 tags, you'll need the following: (3) 1/4 yard fabric pieces, 1 1/2 yards of fusible web and 2 yards of cord or ribbon.

If you're using your Cricut Maker, reference the SVG file to cut out the gift tag shapes from your fabric, as well as the tree, stocking and ornament templates. 

If you're following the traditional cutting method, trace out the templates onto the paper side of fusible web. Press to the wrong side of your fabric and cut out the templates. 

Press an assembled applique shape onto the center of a gift tag. Finish the raw edges of each shape with a decorative stitch, such as a button hole or satin stitch.  Add any embellishments at this time if desired.

Press fusible web to the wrong side of the gift tag front. Place the Gift tag front with the matching gift tag back, wrong sides together. Press the two pieces together, sandwiching the fusible web between the two labels. Using a small Zig Zag Stitch, sew around the outer edge of the gift tag.  

For the small circle opening, you can either do a zig zag stitch along the edge or use a 1/4" eyelet to finish the hole edge. 

Cut a 7" piece of cord. Fold the cord in half and slide the loop end through the finished hole. Pull the cord tails through the loop to create a slip knot to attach to the gift tag. Use the cord to tie the label to your gift. 

Add "To" and "From" with a permanent pen on the back of the label for a personal touch. 

Repeat the steps to finish all 9 gift tags. 

I hope you enjoyed working on this project. If you make this project make sure to share a photo with us. I love to see how you use our patterns.  Have wonderful and safe holiday season! 

Wish Upon a Star Block Mania Post

We're back with another new block for the Block Mania Blog Hop! 

If you're new to the Blog Hop, each month a group of top designers in the quilting industry create a free 12" block. Everyone uses the same theme and color palette, then posts their patterns on the first Tuesday of the month. You then get to hop from blog to blog, learning more about each designer and collecting an assortment of free block patterns. 

This month’s theme is “Star”, which inspired me to create Wish Upon A Star. The pattern is available for download on our website. 

Our October and November blocks, "We Are Family" and "A Present from Penny", are still available as free downloads for the entire month of December 2020. Our Block Mania Blog Hop blocks are available as free downloads for their debut month, as well as the following two months. Afterwards, they're listed for sale at $5.00 each for a digital download. If you like this block, be sure to download it today!

This month I've made two videos to accompany our Wish Upon a Star block. The first is a behind the scenes look the first step of how I create each month's block. I hope you enjoy watching the creative process as much as I enjoy creating these blocks for you!

This month’s color theme for the block was pink and blue. Feel free to use similar colors to what I used, or just pick colors that make you happy! If you end up making this block, please share a photo with us below; I would love to see it! So let’s get started by gathering our supplies.

Once we all of our pieces are cut, it's time to start assembling. I like to cut my pieces using a specially made SVG file for the Cricut Maker. This file is available for purchase here, if you also have a Cricut and want a slightly less time intensive way to cut out your pieces. Here is our sweet bear under construction.

These guys are a snap to build using an Appli-Fuse Mat. We have them available for you on our website.

Once we have these two built, it's time to add the finishing touches. First, draw the details using a wash out pen. Then embroider along the drawn lines to add the smiles. 

Now that we have our block assembled, pick out your favorite Aurifil threads for the finishing stitch and move to the sewing machine.

We've covered how to finish the edges in a past video so if you need a reminder of those great tips and tricks, be  sure to refer to the video below, We are Family. It also covers machine embroidering the smiles! 

I hope you have enjoyed this month’s free block. Make sure to visit all the other designers on the Blog hop to collect your free Star blocks!

Stargazing Sue

Starburst at Slice of Pi Quilts

Massachusetts Star with blockofthmo.com
Nova Star at Always Expect Moore
Nativity Star
Star Bright - Cotton Street Commons
Five Pointed Star at Duck Creek Mountain Quilting
New Year Star at Stash Bandit
Poinsettia Star
Wish Upon a Star by Heidi Pridemore
Falling Star at Pretty Piney Quilts
Star Splash at QuiltFabrication
Seward Star at Blue Bear Quilts
Moon Star at Perkins Dry Goods
Starburst at Patti's Patchwork
Cherokee Star
Christmas Tree Star
Christmas Star by Oh Kaye Quilting
Starfish by Appliques Quilts and More
Snowy Star by Seams To Be Sew
Combination Star by Devoted Quilter
 Ablaze by True Blue Quilts

Jelly Bean Blast II

Hi there! I had so much fun awhile back creating my Jelly Bean Blast II pattern and sharing photos of it with you Instagram, that I figured why not take you through this project step by step? It's so bright, colorful and fun to make, which is what we really love to do here at The Whimsical Workshop. 

The fabric featured in this design is the Cotton Shot collection from Benartex Fabrics.

This is a pattern for sale on our website, Jelly Bean Blast II, and it comes with two sets of instructions for creating the Pineapple Blocks that make up the entire body of the quilt. One version includes traditional cutting and assembly directions, and the other teaches you how to cut, trim and assemble the blocks using the Pineapple Trim Tool from Creative Grids. 

Personally, I prefer to use the ruler from Creative Grids. This quilt is 65" x 75" and it's made up of 30 pineapple blocks. That can take a long time to complete if you're measuring, marking and trimming everything on your own. However with the ruler method, the blocks come together in a snap and I actually find it very relaxing to work on. The ruler works for 6", 8" or 10" blocks, and we'll be creating 10" blocks for this project.

This quilt also includes a pieced triangle border, which adds a really great shape around the outside of such a textured center. Again, I prefer to use a ruler when creating the border, specifically the 2-Peaks-In-1 ruler, also from Creative Grids. However if you prefer to cut and assemble in a more traditional way, the pattern does includes those instructions for you!

If you don't have these rulers yet but you'd like them, the holidays are coming up and I think they make for great gifts to ask for. We even offer Gift Cards on our website now if someone wants to treat you to a full on shopping spree 😀

I've included our video tutorial for making this quilt below. It covers both the traditional and ruler methods for making the pineapple blocks and pieced border, so I would definitely recommend watching it through before beginning on your quilt. In the video, I use a Martelli Turning Cutting Table, available through Amazon and other online retailers, because it allows you to spin the block around while trimming.

Now, let's get into the block assembly!

1. Sew the borders to the first square. When using this ruler, cut all of your strips 1 3/4" and trim down. Line up the centering square in the ruler with the center square of your beginning block. Using the ruler as a guide, turn your block as you trim off the excess part of your strip.

2. Sew on your next round of strips and line up the ruler following the instructions. Rotate and trim using the ruler as a guide. 

3. After adding your strips, use the Round 3 (45 degree) trim line on the ruler, line up the white line with your sewn seam from Step 2.

Note: One thing that I really love about this ruler are the detailed directions that come with it. There are step by step instructions for each round that include pictures so that you're always sure you're using it properly for that step. Creative Grids also offers digital versions of all their ruler instructions online, so you can always reference the instructions even if you lose track of the original printed set. 

4. Add on your strips and cut using the right angle of the ruler.

5. For round five, add strips and use the 45 degree trim line.

Note: What's really nice about these blocks is that you're always sewing and then trimming, before sewing again. This really helps you to stay accurate between each round and creates a beautiful end result when everything lines up perfectly. 

6. Add the next strips and look for the centering square. Then remove the edges following the 90 degree angle line. Use the dotted line for reference to ensure that your seams and edges from previous steps are all lined up correctly. 

7. Add your next strips and check to make sure all seams are lined up with the ruler. Trim as per usual! 

8. Second to last step. Add the strips, find the centering square, and trim along the edge of the ruler. 

9. Add on the final 2 1/2" x 4 strips that will become the corner units. Line up the ruler on the centering square as you did for step 8. Square up the corners to finish the block at 10". 

Make a total of 30 blocks, in as many different color ways as you would like. In this version, we made 15 blocks of two different color ways each. 

Sew the blocks together into 6 rows of 5 blocks each. Because we used the ruler, the block sides are a bias edge, which works in our favor. 

While sewing the blocks together, I didn't pin anything. I simply lined up the colors as I sewed. I didn't stretch or ease a lot, but I pushed the fabric into position which is a lot easier to do with it being a bias edge.

And now for the outer border:

This quilt features a beautiful a pieced outer border. While you can make this border with the traditional templates that come in the pattern, I do prefer to use the 2-Peaks-In-1 ruler from Creative Grids as mentioned earlier. 

To start, lay out the ruler over the template in the pattern to confirm the measurements and finished size of the triangle you're working on. Cut the fabric into 5 1/2" strips for all three triangle templates. 

Because templates 1 and 3 are cut from the same color fabric and are mirror images of each other, you can keep the fabric folded in half, wrong sides together, and use the ruler to cut through both layers. Line up the base line with the bottom of the triangle and trim off the side patch. You end up with a triangle for each template 1 and 3, with half the cutting. 

For template 2, keep your strip of fabric folded so that you can cut out two triangles at the same time. Flip the ruler over and line up the 5 1/2" line with the bottom of the fabric. 

Sew your triangles together, following the pattern instructions. To piece the border together, take your 48 finished triangle in a square blocks and assemble 11 each for the top and bottom borders, and 13 for each side border. Don't forget to press your seams open to reduce the bulkiness at the triangle points. 

Add your borders onto the quilt center, and there you have it; a finished quilt top! Add your backing and binding, and you're all set. 

If you make this quilt, or even just some of the blocks for fun, I would really love to see pictures. The color combinations you can use are endless and they always make each quilt look totally different. 

Links to the rulers and quilt pattern mentioned in this post:

Jelly Bean Blast II Quilt Pattern: https://www.thewhimsicalworkshop.com/shop/c/p/Jelly-Bean-Blast-II---Digital-Download-Pattern-x48261625.htm

Creative Grids' Pineapple Trim Tool: https://www.thewhimsicalworkshop.com/shop/c/p/Creative-Grids-Pineapple-Trim-Tool-for-6-8-or-10-finished-blocks-x48672495.htm

Creative Grids' 2-Peaks-In-1 Ruler: https://www.thewhimsicalworkshop.com/shop/c/p/Creative-Grids-2-Peaks-in-1-Triangle-Ruler-x24575395.htm