Monica Curry Quilt Design

. . . the more they stay the same. I bought two irons this month that were manufactured over 100 years apart and was intrigued by how similar they were in design. Both have a double point base, a rounded handle, and need to be placed on a heat source before ironing. The technology for each iron was vastly different, but the concept was the same. I bought the older iron at my favourite antique shop. It's a Mrs. Potts Cold Handle Sad Iron. The "sad" in sad iron is from the Middle English word  sad  which meant solid or heavy.  The second iron I bought was a  Panasonic Cordless 360° Freestyle™ Steam/Dry Iron . This iron is so similar to the Sad Iron I suspect the designers at Panasonic really knew their clothes iron history.  Panasonic Cordless 360° Freestyle™ Steam/Dry Iron circa 2021 Who is Mrs. Potts and  What is a Sad Iron? Mrs. Potts was born Mary Florence Webber in 1850 in Iowa, US. When she was 17 she married Joseph Potts who was a Civil War veteran 17 years her seni

This is the 241 Tote by Noodlehead. I've been meaning to make cute bag for a couple of years and finally finished it this summer. It was a very fun bag to make. The 241 Tote is all over Pinterest so there's no shortage of fabric ideas for it. I would say the pattern is for people with some bag making experience, but it really isn't too difficult. Why is it called the 241 Tote ? Anna Graham (Noodlehead) explains the pattern's name. "It's called the 241 Tote because it's like two patterns in one (two for one)! One version of the bag has two exterior side pockets (great for beginners), the other has two exterior zippered pockets (for those who might want a bit of a challenge)." The fun part was picking out the fabrics. I decided I wanted this bag to be as bright and as cheery as possible. I believe I accomplished that 😊. These bright fabrics were in my scrap bin and I was happy I could finally use them for something. 241 Tote  made by Monica Curry Desi

Wonky Beach House  Quilt Block FREE DOWNLOAD I first saw this technique in RaNae Merrill's book Simply Amazing Spiral Quilts . I modified it slightly by using freezer paper. This is a simple, fool proof method for cutting your FPP fabric pieces. If you use this technique you're less likely to have frustrating surprises i.e. holes, splits, etc. when you go to flip your fabric piece over. It takes a little extra time but it's well worth it. Also, some people think it wastes fabric. It may seem like it, but following this technique always gives you just the right size piece you need. SUPPLIES Foundation piecing template.• 8½" x 11" sheets of freezer paper Scissors Rotary cutter Quilting ruler Fabrics for your block Coloured pencils or markers to match your fabrics. INSTRUCTIONS

I'm so pleased to announce that my pretty mini quilt "I 💗 Quilting" has been published in  " Miniature Quilts: 12 Tiny Projects That  Make a Big Impression "   by Leisure Arts. I 💗 Quilting  by Monica Curry This quilt was created with Tula Pink's gorgeous Pinkerville fabric line. The pattern is a great sampler for beginners. It has five traditional blocks and a simple foundation paper pieced (FPP) heart that would be a good introduction too this FPP. I will be sending an update to all my subscribers when the pattern becomes available in my Pattern Store. BUY BOOK  HERE

After I had been quilting for a while, I discovered there were formulas for making certain quilt blocks faster. I thought this was amazing and proceeded to find all the formulas I could. This was great but they had to be calculated properly to work.  Sometimes I would enter a number wrong or add a number when I was supposed to divide. Then there was the problem with cheat sheets. They could be cumbersome and didn’t include the block assembly instructions. After a while, I tried finding a quilting app that would do the formulas for me but with no luck. I considered making my own app but that would be too expensive. Then, I discovered an online calculator builder where I could create my own calculators. I created calculators for ten quilt block formulas. The formulas could now be calculated instantly and each one included assembly diagrams.  I'm now sharing my Quick Block Calculators with the quilting community free of charge. I hope they help those of you who may have been as frust

I used to do mosaic art years ago and still appreciate this beautiful art form. Moroccan mosaic tilework is my favourite type of mosaic art because it reminds me of elaborate quilts. I've always wanted to replicate this art style in fabric and this year I finally did. The result is my newest pattern, Moroccan Tile Mini Quilt. This pattern may look a bit complicated but it really is simple, even for beginners. All straight cuts and no templates required! Go to my link to learn how to create a flange binding  for the project. BUY NOW  

Precious Bundle Baby Quilt One of the first quilt patterns I ever designed was the Precious Bundle baby quilt. That was five years ago. But, for whatever reason, I didn't design it for precuts. I'll chalk that up to inexperience. For 2020, I redesigned this gorgeous baby quilt for charm packs. I'm hoping this will make it easier for even the most novice quilter. The only fabrics you will now need to make the Precious Bundle quilt top is one print charm pack, one solid white charm pack, and 1¼ yard white. How simple is that?! BUY NOW

I love Mary Ellen's Best Press Spray. It helps my blocks press crisp and there's no starchy residue. The only downside is that it's way too expensive, especially here in Canada. Also, I don't like the smell of most of their scents; the lavender-scented spray smells like cheap men's cologne. I thought of using the scent-free Best Press, but it costs more than the scented. So, I decided to try making the homemade version of Best Press and I was pleased with the results. I wanted my spray to have a nice scent but most of the recipes I found called for lavender essential oil and I didn't care for it. So, I tried the citrus essential oils (i.e. lemon, lemongrass, bergamot, orange, etc.) and loved the fresh citrusy scent. I use bergamot exclusively now. Bergamot is a fresh, uplifting Italian orange oil used for cosmetics and perfumes. Below is the recipe for the DIY Citrus Best Press that works just as well as the real deal.  DIY CITRUS BEST PRESS 1 Liter (1 quart)  

This post is a supplementary tutorial for the Quick Block Calculator . When using the shortcut methods to make Hourglass and Pinwheel blocks, you often have to " square up " the block to the correct size you need. If these blocks are not squared up properly, you will end up with very wonky looking squares that will only be good for the scrap pile. In this post, I'll show you a simple method for squaring up Hourglass, Pinwheel, and Half Square Triangle blocks that doesn't require a special ruler. MATERIALS Square quilt ruler at least 8" x 8". Rotary cutter Masking tape or transparent quilt ruler tape . INSTRUCTIONS Hour Glass Divide the desired block size in half, e.g. 4½"÷ 2 = 2¼" Find this number on the ruler. Place a piece of tape horizontally and vertically on the ruler to mark the center of the block. Line up intersecting point of the tape with the center of the block. Line up the 45º angle with angle of the block. 6.

I've been published!   Check out my modern quilt wall hanging, Coral Gem,  published in the new Leisure Arts Publishing  Quilted Wall Hangings: 11 unique projects for quilt lovers .   "Coral Gem" Wall Quilt by Monica Curry BUY HERE!