with Rob Appell
In many forms of art, there are no shortcuts. No “marble carving made easy.” No “glass blowing for dummies.” Talent must be honed over years of meticulous practice, and even then, it takes a good dose of natural ability to succeed.
Luckily, quilting is one art that can be enjoyed by just about everyone, no matter your skill level. Today’s Checkered Cross is an intricate design, but the construction is so simple, even a beginner can tackle this quilt! Click HERE to watch the vid!
There are hundreds of bag patterns out there, but when I make a tote, I don’t settle for ordinary. It’s got to look great, and it’s got to be tons of fun to make.
This week, I grabbed a jelly roll, ironed the pieces into narrow, multi-layered strips, and started zig-zagging like a madman. It’s a unique construction, but the result is a cool, durable bag that is unlike anything you’ve seen before!
Click HERE to watch the tutorial!
Crank up the tunes and get comfy, folks, cuz we’re headed for a piecing palooza!
Today I’m stitching together a sea of gray hexagons. Add a punch of rainbow-ordered color, and you’ve got a super-modern color wheel! If you enjoy the piecing process as much as I do, this quilt is going to rock your world! Click HERE to watch the tutorial
The Garden Quilt is a softer, more organic version of one of my favorite patterns, The Gears Quilt.
I use miniature pinwheels as the background, layer on some killer floral applique, and finish it off with my signature free-motion quilting. This garden is bold and modern, and it’s a cinch to put together. Click HERE to watch the vid!
When the sun sets over the ocean, you get a magnificent burst of color – but it only lasts a few moments. Today I’m stitching up an Island Sunset that will remain brilliant for years to come!
This quilt was inspired by Missouri Star’s Disappearing Pinwheel. It’s a project that looks complex, but the truth is, it couldn’t be easier! Click HERE to watch the tutorial!
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is a giant floating island of trash that stretches from Hawaii to Japan. It covers an area larger than the continental United States, and it gets bigger every single year.
You can be part of the solution with my eco-friendly Reusable Grocery Bag. It’s super simple to make and extremely durable. Use it in place of plastic shopping bags – Mother Earth will thank you!
Click HERE to watch the tutorial!
Click HERE for a free downloadable PDF!
Rob demonstrates how to make a mermaid tail blanket out of fleece. He uses Cuddle Embossed Dimple Minky Yardage by Shannon Fabrics and Soft Cuddle Stone Aruba Yardage by Shannon Fabrics. Click HERE to watch the full tutorial and get the supplies!
Click the button to watch the full tutorial!
In 1905, an eleven-year-old boy accidentally invented the popsicle. He had intended to make a batch of flavored soda, but he left the concoction out in the cold all night and it froze solid – stir stick and all. Luckily, the unexpected result was even better than the original plan!
When I first started designing this week’s quilt, I had a pretty clear picture of what I wanted it to look like. My plans took a complete 180, however, and I ended up with the Half Burst Block. Click HERE to see this unexpectedly awesome pattern!
Wow, how quickly this past year has gone by. As I hit this next mile stone, five years without a drink, I look back and really need both hands to count all of the blessings.
In the past few months I have been reunited with my quilt “and the Flag was still there” – a quilt that I have donated to Operation Home Front and now am on the final fund raising drive to finish the Mission. You can read more about that HERE.
Then my dream of inventing the coolest, smallest rotary cutter for appliqué finally came true. I have worked for the past four years to develop The Shark Applicutter and it launched into the market with a huge success. I am very proud to have created a tool that works so well for my style of appliqué cutting. The Man Sewing brand is growing by leaps and bounds and most importantly we are having a blast creating the free tutorials and all of the other fantastic content for all of our fans!
But, you know you can trust me to give it to you straight. So as I approach this anniversary I have also been troubled greatly with an overwhelming rawness to my emotions. It has been explained to me that after years of drowning my emotions, they are growing back and they, like the rest of my body, are becoming stronger. I cannot say that I have been over the top happy this past several months. I found myself feeling on the top of the world during my third and fourth years. First due to the physical and mental improvements in my life, then for the ability to convert my dreams into action due to the newly found strength. Now as I reflect back I find myself plagued by thoughts of lost time and bad decisions from my past.
I am a man of faith, and truly believe that this is all part of God’s big plan. I know that my eyes should stay focused on the future. Looking back just leads to more unanswered questions and fear of what I was really running from when I ended up at the bottom of the bottle. Each day offers new challenges and what I wish to remind myself of is the simple decision that I needed to make. That for me, recovery is a lifetime choice that I must live out one day at a time. If you are on a similar journey I wish you all the strength in the world, keep pushing on I know it is worth it.
