Sew Joy

Elephants on Parade Blog Hop

>> Tuesday, March 17, 2026

I'm getting back into my quilting groove by participating in some events. The first one of the year is the Elephants on Parade hosted by Tialynn Design. She designed the elephant and different designers will be contributing 6" blocks to make different blankets for it.

I couldn't resist when I saw the elephant! The colour palette also got my attention. I was working on a quilt for my daughter with a green that matches the background colour and was tickled to see it.

Here's a picture of the quilt: it's a queen size version of my Starlight pattern.

queen size quilt bright fabric churn dashes and stars

I also thought it might be fun to use Alison Glass fabrics for the blanket. My crush on Alison's fabric has grown my collection of her prints in the last two years significantly! And I really want to start using them to make. Here's a peek at some of them all folded in rainbow order :)

Alison Glass fabrics folded in scrapbook storage box

Here's some of the fabrics I'm considering for my elephant blankets:

blue pink and green print fabrics for elephant block

The first elephant blanket design went live on March 1.

If you receive my newsletter I included the links there. If you don't, please consider joining my list. You can sign up my clicking here to join - Sew Joy Creations newsletter signup.

My turn to share a blanket block isn't until April, but I am intending to make 2 blocks and use them as pillows on my new couch - which also happens to be in the same shade of green!

Elephants on Parade home base: go to Tia Lynn Designs to get the elephant block

Designers So Far:

Tille the Elephant designed by Tia Lynn Designs - this link includes the elephant block

Cindy at Hula Hoop Designs

I will post about this hop a few times, sharing my blocks and pillow progress with you.

Even if you just make 1 elephant, it will be a large enough block to use as a wall hanging or a center block for a baby quilt.

Looking forward to more collaborations and fun projects this year!

With Joy,

Sarah V.

Adding Capacity to my Quilting Room in 2026

>> Saturday, January 10, 2026

Happy New Year!

I used my winter break from teaching to start decluttering my quilt room. I have only been in it for a few months but still found that I wasn't spending time in it.

quilt room with items out to sort on cutting table and ironing board

One thing I did this year was let go of fabric - a lot of it! I'm donating a bag of fabric to my quilt guild to make comfort quilts. Other stuff I threw out. I tossed some UFOs that I was just hanging onto and realize now that I won't finish. I got rid of some quilt tops that I just don't want to invest any more time or money on. And that's okay! I've been quilting for almost 30 years so I shouldn't be surprised that some of what I started in the past should be left there :)

I know there are a lot of quilters watching Karen Brown's of Just Get it Done Quilts Declutter Challenge videos. I have done it in the past and decided to use my break time to just start clearing. One thing she mentions often is to decide on the capacity for different items - how much space you want to give them in your room.

I have been struggling with space for paperwork not related to quilting - whether it's taxes and bills, or school related stuff. I've also been wanting space to display things that make me happy in my quilt room. I lucked out and found some cabinets on Market place - old kitchen upper shelf cabinets!

wall space above computer on desk in sewing room

Space above my computer desk before

open corner and open shelf upper kitchen cabinet mounted above computer desk

Cabinets above my computer area

What I have been searching for - and found WITH the upper cabinets - was a storage solution for finished quilts.

wood display cabinet with two doors lower drawer and two upper drawers

Part of my thinking with quilting right now is where am I going to put my finished quilts? So finding a display cabinet has been on my mind for quite some time. The one downfall with this beauty is that it was stored with mothballs in it. We have done a lot of vinegar and water spraying to get the smell out. Too bad it's winter here because it could really use an airing out! It's been a week and it's better, but I won't be putting my quilts in it yet. If you have any tips on removing the smell, leave them in the comments.

Building capacity. Clearing space, finding space, making space. Mental and physical. I feel like I'm coming back to what I love about quilting - creating something new and finding myself.

If you still have some capacity for a new project this year,

consider joining me for my first mystery quilt along!

Click the image below for more details.

With Joy,

Sarah V.

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New quilt Room

>> Thursday, August 21, 2025

This summer we moved my quilting room into a different bedroom. I always thought it was smaller than the room I picked out when we moved into this house, but the layout makes it great. My original room is where the sliding doors are located to go to the backyard deck so it's a high traffic zone when I'm on summer holidays. My new room no one else has to go in!

Right away I started to free motion quilt and get a quilt finished. My desk fit exactly on this wall beside the door.

quilt room free motion quilting pfaff performance icon

I slowly worked at taking down my daughter's decor and am even more slowly putting up new stuff. I am enjoying the blank space above my machine while also thinking about cupboards or shelving.

There was also an irresistible sale on PFAFF machines in July so I decided to buy myself a passport 3.0 machine to take to my guild sew days. I bought this machine for our daughter for Christmas this year.

One more photo of our outdoor plants. Here are the plants I wondered why my husband planted in pots and put on the stairs. Now they are some of my favourites this summer!

My new space feels so good! I will take more photos but for now I've been spending my time quilting!

With Joy,

Sarah V.

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Remaking of Joy

>> Tuesday, August 19, 2025

Ready to share again.

This summer has been very relaxing and focussed on getting back to quilting for joy. In this post I'm sharing what my design wall currently looks like: two quilts in progress.

My cat Bert found that the stool I sit at my computer on works for him.

Being outside this summer has been very relaxing. We are fortunate to have a pool and a large deck to sit on. My husband took on taking care of flowers this summer and they have been wonderful to watch bloom and grow. The geraniums were purchased in one hanging pot! The one on the ground in this photo was transplanted a second time into this large pot. Both with huge flower heads.

Joy is returning here. My husband's diagnosis of Multiple Sclerosis has taken a few years to sink in. We are still acclimating to the new normal but are in it together. I am piecing my quilting life together with more focus and intention. With the new school year arriving in a couple of weeks I decided it was time to start showing up here again.

Glad to be back!

With Joy,

Sarah V.

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Romance Garden Blog Tour - Triangle Pursuit quilt

>> Monday, March 11, 2024

Welcome to my day on the Romance Garden Blog Tour.

The fabric featured is a signature line for Sherry Shish of Powered by Quilting. This was the perfect bright batik fabrics to sew with over the gray days of winter. Take a look at the beautiful prints!

My pattern I'm featuring has small half square triangles. These four bright green and bold pink have medium scale images and work great as a dominant part of the design.

Romance Garden lime green pink prints Sherry Shish

There are four different squares in the quilt top and I went with these 4 smaller scale prints. The rich purples are so beautiful.

Romance Garden 4 prints blue purple pink

There are two large half square triangles that give the quilt top movement. It was these next two large scale prints that helped me decide which of my patterns to showcase with this fabric. Look at the beautiful butterflies and dragonflies.

Romance Garden large allover butterfly print

Romance Garden fabric pink dragonfly print

The design really works in this pattern based on contrast with the background. While I went to an Island batik basic, I did choose one with delicate hints of color. It's called Almond.

Here is my quilt. It's called Triangle Pursuit.

Triangle Pursuit Romance Garden Island Batik Sew Joy Creations

The fabrics just glow! And look at the beautiful quilting I had done by Melissa @lakesidelongarmer. A perfect contrast to the the angles in the piecing.