Introducing JUBILEE!!!

Posted on July 25, 2018July 25, 2018 by Amanda Murphy — Leave a comment

Some secrets are really hard to keep! And professionally I don’t think I have ever had a bigger one than what I have been working on this past year. As many of you now know, it was my honor to design Jubilee, a fabric collection and set of projects designed to commemorate BERNINA’s 125th Anniversary. And now everything is back from the printer so I can share the information with you. But first let me say, “HAPPY ANNIVERSARY, BERNINA!”

When BERNINA approached me last summer to do creative work for their 125th campaign I honestly couldn’t believe it. I’m still pinching myself and words cannot adequately describe how honored I was (and am) to be involved with all this. Thank you, BERNINA! It was my goal to design fabric, embroidery, and projects that reflect the elegance, beauty, and innovation of the BERNINA brand. All of the projects debuted just a few weeks ago at BERNINA University and now I get to share them with you here!

The feature print fo the collection was built the BERNINA paisley motif from their 125 Anniversary campaign. Of course, I drew many more motifs to round out the the print.

4 of the 6 paisley prints in the Jubilee collection printed by Benartex. The others are a cream tonal and a black tonal.

The metallics are beautifully printed by Benartex and they are set off by some eye-catching pearl prints as well.

Jubilee features an elegant palette of black, gold, and cream, with a touch of sparkle!

I really strove to feature a modern aesthetic, but with a firm grounding in tradition – just like BERNINA itself.

Of course we had to include the BERNINA red!

The red and creams of Jubilee also make a dynamic palette on their own!

The first quilt I designed with this collection was the 125th Anniversary quilt itself. We’ll be doing this as a quilt-along this fall on their blog We All Sew and kits will be available at your local BERNINA dealer. I’ll have more information on this as time goes on, but wanted to give you a peek!

I really hope you all love it! Have you heard? The new 125th Anniversary machines are coming with a special bundle that includes the kit for this quilt! You’ll also be able to purchase kits from your local BERNINA dealer.

Since we kept the palette to gold and cream, I wanted to explore other variations in my pattern line. All of the following patterns can be ordered at your local shop. I do have links included in this post as well for those of you who don’t have local shops, but if you are lucky enough to have one please support them!

First up is Diamond Jubilee. After the 125th Anniversary Quilt, this one might be my favorite this time. Normally I am not into paper piecing but this was definitely worth it! (Plus it is an easy pattern by paper-piecing standards since there are just two templates.) The pearlized background fabric is really spectacular. I wish that you could see it in person!

A close-up of the quilting on Diamond Jubilee.

Next up is Platinum Jubilee. This is a pieced quilt, but the piecing is in the sashing rather than the blocks. This pattern is 10”-square friendly, but I chose to use yardage instead because I just wanted to use the golds and creams for the blocks. SKU info is in the pattern, as always.

Detail of Platinum Jubilee – can you see how the print glow?

And of course I needed to do a take-off on a traditional red and white quilt. So Ruby Jubilee HAD to happen.

Detail of Ruby Jubilee. The gold gives it an unexpected twist.

Some of you may have heard the rulers that I have quilting rulers. I DO and they are with Brewer Sewing and are branded as Good Measure! They will be shipping at the end of summer so more on that in a later post but I wanted to tell you the surprise hit of the show for me was my Hanging Ruler Organizer. This is a really simple pattern – I can’t stress that enough. This is a pattern for people like me who are intimidated by bags and want to basically quilt flat piece of fabric, attach zippers by sewing them right on the fabric, and then just bind. Nothing fancy here but the neat thing is that you can hang it in your studio and you can also fold it up for easy transport to class!

My Hanging Ruler Organizer in Jubilee fabric. (You can see a peek of the rulers if you look closely!)

I also have a set of three rulers with BERNINA (dealers – you order these from BERNINA). They are for the 125th Anniversary quilt but I also designed a ruler panel to go with the collection. There is a Jubilee Ruler Panel Guide available to learn how to use the rulers on the panel, and how to use them on your own quilts in the process. The panel makes a great set of pillows, or a runner or bag. There is also a free pattern called Star Jubilee that features a block from the panel in its center.

The Jubilee Ruler Panel Guide. Even a practice panel should be pretty!

BERNINA Jubilee Ruler Set used in the 125th Anniversary Quilt and the BERNINA Ruler Panel.

Ok… on finding the fabrics. Most of you know but I don’t stock fabric so as to not to compete with quilt shops. This fabric is exclusive to BERNINA shops through the summer and into the fall, but many SKUs were sold out at BU, and everything is backordered and being reprinted right now. So check with your shop to be sure it is on order, but be patient with them because it might be September before they get it in. But it is coming if it isn’t there already. Everyone is working in overdrive to make that happen!

There is also a Jubilee BERNINA embroidery collection that is beautifully digitized by OESD, so check that out too. I did a free bolster pillow pattern that is included!

If you made it to the bottom of this post congratulations! I hope you love the Jubilee projects. BERNINA wanted this anniversary to be about you all – so thank you!

Happy sewing, piecing, embroidery, AND quilting!

Amanda

Introducing Free-Motion Fantasy!

Posted on June 10, 2018June 10, 2018 by Amanda Murphy — Leave a comment

Happy summer everyone! It has been awhile since I’ve posted and I have some excited new things that I wanted to share – including my Free-Motion Fantasy line for Contempo of Benartex and patterns that debuted at Spring Quilt Market just a few weeks ago.

Free-Motion Fantasy at Spring 2018 Quilt Market!

Of course, all of these pieces were pieced on the BERNINA 7 Series and quilted on the amazing BERNINA Q24. Even though I’m hard at work on some BERNINA University projects (that have me so excited I can barely breath), I’ve been wanting to share my new work with you and hope that you love it and that it will help you learn to free-motion quilt!

Some of you might remember that awhile back I did some quilting panels for BERNINA where you could follow the lines to quilt some common free-motion motifs. Well, in my Free-Motion Fantasy line I’ve expanded upon that concept to present an entire line of free-motion prints. The feature print comes in four color stories that are inspired by the seasons and features feathers, swirls, cross-hatching, leaves – you name it!

Then there is a supporting cast of a rainbow of prints in a full spectrum of colors, enabling you to create a unique palette no matter what feature print catches your fancy. All of these prints are inspired by free-motion motifs that I like to use, so they are great for practicing shapes commonly used when quilting.

There are also four shades of grey in the collection to serve as a backdrop for these exuberant hues.

The fabric can be ordered by shops from Contempo of Benartex now and will ship in July/August.

I’ve developed four patterns to go with this collection. (They are beautifully printed – the printer really outdid themselves this time!) And guess what? They are ready to ship NOW!

First up is Make It 8. This is a really simple two block design that is perfect for showcasing a feature print. It uses 8 fat quarters (hence the name) plus a little bit of accent fabric and of course a background. I designed it in four color stories. The first is autumn, which is shown on the front of the pattern.

Spring is shown on the inside – the colors are just so clear and vivid. I wish you could see it in person! Benartex/Contempo did an excellent job with the printing.

I designed two more color stories for the other feature prints. I didn’t make samples of them but the SKU information for all is included in the pattern.

Next up is Technicolor. It was my “showcase quilt” this time round. It is a really a simple wedge quilt that is cut from strip sets. The best part is that when you make this quilt you end up with a second set of strips in opposite colors that can be used for a second quilt! I can’t wait to piece this one up in my fabric that will debut at BERNINA University as well. It will be completely different and I’m excited about it.

Then we have Waterfall. I think that this might be my favorite in terms of the way it showcases the colors of this collection. It is a two-block quilt again that looks more complex due to the way it is laid out. The cool version of Waterfall is shown on the cover.

Waterfall in the cool colors of Free-Motion Fantasy

I also did a warm version of Waterfall, which I quilted by “following the lines on the fabric”. I hope this fabric makes you want to quilt like it did me!

Waterfall in the warm colors of Free-Motion Fantasy; note the quilting on this one is following the designs in the fabric!

Last but not least is Swirls. This pattern is a fun 5”-square friendly pattern that is very quick to cut out. It actually is a reprise from a Craftsy class on applique. I’ve had so many requests from people who have wanted to purchase this pattern separately that I went ahead and released it that way – Swirls just seemed right for this collection.

So, that’s a wrap! If you are inspired please ask your local shops to order Free-Motion Fantasy and the patterns. This is the perfect time for orders to be placed – while the line is still available in full I don’t stock fabric so as not to compete with shops (please if you can support your shop!), but if you don’t have a local shop you can find the patterns in my online store. The links in this post are to printed patterns but you will find PDFs up there as well for those in far-away locations.

Later in the summer once the fabric releases I’ll do a giveaway and also post the list of shops that have ordered the collection from Benartex.

Have a happy start to your summer and your summer projects too!

Amanda

APQ Podcast Interview

Posted on February 26, 2018 by Amanda Murphy — Leave a comment

Hey guys! My APQ Podcast interview with Pat Sloan is now live if you’d like to listen. You can find episode 370 here. Can you even believe Pat Sloan has done 370 podcast episodes, BTW? She is AMAZING!

Also, if you haven’t heard, my new book is out – the Rulerwork Quilting Idea Book. It is in the same format as my Free-Motion Quilting Idea Book and teaches you tons of designs you can make with just basic ruler shapes! Check out your local quilt shop to order. If you don’t have a local shop you can find signed copies here.