Welcome to Pretty & Prickly Quilts and Crafts!

Please take some time to explore my website. I am currently not putting up weekly blogpost. If you would like to see what I am working on please check out my Instagram account at @mbroberts12!

Why is your business called Pretty & Prickly ?

I get asked this a lot. I named my business after cactus flowers. To me cactus flowers are some of the most beautiful and underrated blossoms out there. I live in Southwest and always inspired by how much beauty can come from a seemingly harsh plant. Quilting isn't always easy. There are many times where it becomes quite the adventure! I chose my business name to represent my quilting journey. The harder moments are the prickly side and the finished quilt is the pretty. 

What do you make?

I do both custom quilts and quilting. For more information on my services please click on the Custom T-Shirt Quilt or the ShopPrettyandPrickly tabs above. 

How can we get ahold of you?

My contact information is listed on the ShopPrettyandPrickly page. My email is mbroberts12@gmail.com

Working Away Wednesday

I have always wondered how quilters always talk of how many projects they have going at once. I'm usually a one project at a time person...until now! Oh my lanta, I feel like I am swimming in projects! Shall we count them? Preston's quilt binding needs to be hand stitched, two quilts with fabric all cut up, one baby quilt needing to be cut, and one quilt to be quilted for a customer!

Here is Preston's custom memory quilt already for hand stitching! I a very happy with how this quilt turned out. Yay! for my second commissioned quilt!

I have been having trouble recently with sewing on bindings. I keep getting too narrow. I never used to do this and was getting very frustrated. I finally asked one of the ladies at my LQS about it. She said to just re-stitch those parts wider. WELL DUH! I felt like an idiot! Of course, just go back over it wider. As you can see from the photo below, that is exactly what I did. 

I even embroidered her name into a border on the quilt. Did you know that to iron embroidery you should do it from the back?

It works wonderfully! 

Here is half of my cut fabric! I have been on a big Kona Solids kick lately. I don't see an end in sight either! I cannot wait to stitch this up :)

Linking up with WIP Wednesday and Let's Bee Social!

Finish it up Friday

I got back from Quiltcon hoping to lock myself in my sewing room and just quilt and quilt. Alas, that did not happen. I have managed to finally photograph and share my most recent finish! Here is my To the Point Quilt by V and Co!

I am still so excited about how nice my triangles turned out! I am definitely going to be making many more triangle quilts. 

At Quiltcon I took a wonderful lecture on Quilt Photography. I wouldn't say that I learned any new ground breaking ideas. Mostly it was a huge kick in the pants to step up my photography game. So I finally set up a clothes line! It really is the simple things in life that are the most exciting. 

I love quilt backs. Enough said. 

I also love the cute little labels that I had printed from Spoonflower.com.

If you all haven't checked out their website yet, go do it!! I was able to get my buisness logo printed on them easily! Now my buisness cards adn quilt labels match!

Linking up to Finish it Up Friday, TGIFF, and Woop Woop! over at Confession's of a Fabric Addict!

I loved QuiltCon!

I know many of you went to Quiltcon, and those of you who didn't are probably really sick of seeing photo after photo that the rest of us took. I promise that I will not photo bomb you! Quiltcon was my first quilting conference or any large quilting event of any kind. I was a little afraid that I would go and feel very inadequate. I was so excited that the complete opposite happened. I have never been so excited and encouraged to be a quilter!!

My mom and sister decided to join me for the conference. They had a blast! 

I did come away with some nice fabric. I was two blocks short on this mini and was so excited to find a matchingtiny polka dot fabric to finish it off! I love it! Although, after I put it on my wall I realized that I have half of a chevron at the bottom and it looks stupid....oh well! Mini's are always a great way to learn!

Here is the rest of my fabric loot. So purrty!

If any of you are hesitant about joining any part of the quilting community I highly suggest you just do it! I have never met a more welcoming and genuine group of people. I hope to see you all at the next Quiltcon and somewhere in blogland!

WIP Wednesday

I have a problem, its called quilting. I can't stop! I don't even write on my blog anymore because I am just doing so much quilting! I really do not know how some of you spend so much time blogging! All my time spend working has not been for nothing. I am excited to share my WIP with you all today.

Ta-da! This is a commissioned T-shirt quilt for my friend Jesse! It always seems daunting to pic fabrics for guy quilts, but I actually found some I like. I just hope my quilting goes as well as the piecing. 

I pieced the back with extra T-shirts and fabric. I wasn't originally going to put in the sashing along the T-shirts, but I realized I needed a few extra inches. The charcoal fabric is going to be the binding. Lucky me that I bought extra. Side note, I am really in love with charcoal these days.  

I even incorporated my logo into the piecing. This is the first time that I have tried this. I am in love!

I was really nervous about lining up my quilt back and top correctly when basting. I busted out a technique that was shown to me a few years ago. Place pins halfway down all four sides of both the back and the top. Then line those up when you lay out your quilt to baste. So far it looks like it worked!

I decided to also quilt in grey. These were the options that I had on hand.

So far I am liking the quilting! Let's hope I don't mess it up too badly. Sure is nice quilting with my big desk and Juki!

Linking up with WIP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced and Let's Bee Social at Sew Fresh Quilts!

WIP Wednesday

I think I have more WIP's going on now than I ever have before. Some of you may be overwhelmed by this prospect, but I am excited. It feels like I am really doing it. I am actually quilting for fun and for work! I may be only on my first commission, but I hope it is the first of many.

My main WIP is my V and Co To The Point Quilt. This is my first triangle quilt and I am just over the moon with the end result!

This is the second quilt that I have quilted on my new machine. My new Juki and I have had a very slow bonding experience. I think we are finally now friends, because this quilt quilted up beautifully!

Part way through the project I purchase Machingers Quilting Gloves. OH MY GOSH! I am in love with them. They allow you so much more control of your quilt. 

Here is a close up of the quilting on the front. 

And the back. Do you ever finish quilting and almost love the back more than the quilting on the front? I do, basically every time!

I wasn't even expecting this cute little star to show up in my quilting! 

Does anyone have a better way to trim their quilts than my McGivered taped ruler system? It works for me, but every time I do it I always wonder. 

Linking up to WIP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced and Let's Bee Social at Sew Fresh Quilts!

My First Commissioned T-Shirt Quilt

I am both excited and slightly terrified to start working on my first commissioned T-Shirt Quilt. It is my first commissioned quilt ever! I am super excited about reaching this milestone. Yes, I realize that it may seem like a small milestone, but to me it is huge! I would love to be able to sell quilts. I know that there are some women who are very successful at this, but I think to the rest of us in quilt-land this seems impossible. I have never let the impossible or the word 'No' get in my way so here we go!

Now I just have to cut into Jesse's precious T-Shirts. Eeek, and I thought it was hard to cut into my own! This quilt is being made for one of my dear friend's boyfriends. I have a feeling he will like whatever I make him, but it is still a little nerve-racking! Here's to going for it! What have you all decided to go for this week?

I have only made one other T-shirt quilt and that one was for me. (Shown above) It is the only quilt that I have kept. Isn't it funny how we spend so much time and rarely keep our quilts?

Last but not least a slap on the back for me, because I actually managed to machine bind a project!! Cute little table runner that I get to keep!

Linking up to Sew Darn Crafty!

Flying Geese for Days

I feel like I have been sewing my flying geese blocks together for days. Oh wait, I have been! I did all the coral FG first and finished those a couple of days ago. Today I sat down to sew the red FG into rows and was astounded by how much quicker they went together. What took me 5 hours last time only took me an hour and a half today.

I even managed not to cut any points off. I realized that I should sew my FG together so that I can see the point. Then just make sure you sew to the outside of where your previous stitches cross. 

I love chain piecing, even for bigger pieces. I think it changed my life.

Here are all my pretty FG! So many of them. I realized that I may have drawn out my design incorrectly. I wanted my FG to go horizontally across the quilt. I think I accidently designed it so that they would go vertically. Oh well, it is the first quilt that I have designed myself. 

Sashing is up next!

Linking up to Needle and Thread Thursday at My Quilt Infatuation and Can I Get a Woop Woop at Confessions of a Fabric Addict. 

Looking Back, Flying Foward

Last night I finished piecing all the of the flying geese for my next quilt. For me these pieces are special. They are the first flying geese that I have ever made. I am so happy and proud of myself. Four years ago I never imagined that I would actually be the quilter that I am today. I am self taught and the early stages of my quilting were filled with many meltdowns and having absolutely no idea what I was doing. Then I only ever dreamed of being able to make something like flying geese. Now not only did I make them, but I knew what I was doing!

I think that I may really like flying geese! I know that they are time consuming, but I love the simple classic elegance of them. I foresee a lot of flying geese quilts in my future!

Especially since I have the Bloc-Loc flying geese ruler! I don't know about you guys, but I absolutely love my Bloc-Loc rulers! I have a flying geese and a HST ruler and they are amazing. Now if only the rulers would trim all 168 flying geese blocks for me....

I will need to come up with something for all of my tiny triangle scraps? What do you all do with your triangle scraps?

Last but not least, Happy Hanukah everyone! It has been such a treat to sew with my menorah in front of me. So far no wax has dripped on my project, but there are more nights to go!

Snow Day Sewing

It has been a very warm December here in sunny Flagstaff, Arizona. I know most of you are probably envious of the Arizona sunshine this time of year, but I love snow! I used to live in Montana and absolutely loved winter! Needless to say, I was so excited when we finally got snow this week! 

Even better was that I was able to quilt all day long! It was one of the best snow days. Last year I found this awesome piece of fabric at Goodwill. It was just calling me to make a table runner out of it. I have never made a table nor used one. I guess this little guy was dying to be my first one!

I had cut and basted it last year, but never quilted it. I was confused on how I should do the quilting. Now for experienced quilters this might seem silly, but for me it took me a year to figure out. I pulled it out the other day and just said, "Duh!" All of a sudden it just seemed obvious. It has tons of straight lines, so I just paralleled some of them.

In retrospect I probably should have figured this out sooner. Do you guys like it? Simple, but I think it will become a nice country table runner!

WIP Wednesday: V & Co To The Point

I am very excited to share with you my WIP this evening. It is my first attempt at 60 degree triangles.  After I finished cutting today, I jumped right into piecing. In a very Maggie fashion I got a little ahead of myself and realized that the pattern instructions did not give detailed advice on pinning the triangles in place. So my first row looked like poop! So I did what I do best, and went into my LQS for help. Boy did they help! Turns out of was on the right path and just needed a tiny bit of help.

After 6 rows I think I can say that I have got the hang of it! I actually think my last row was quite good! Two more rows to go!

I'm a little surprised that I am getting everything to line up so well. If I can keep up like this, I may actually have nice points on my quilt!

The pattern had no instruction on which direction to press the seams. Does anyone else hate when patterns assume you know the small things? I looked up a tutorial online for help, and the directions for pressing the seams didn't make sense until row 6. For one row press all seams to the right, then the next row all seams to the left. Wow that should have been easy!

Nice pressed seams, finally!

The other thing I struggled with for most of the quilt is that lining up your triangles is going to depend on the direction that you pressed your seams. I do not have good photos of this. Im sorry I tried, but it is too dark in my quilting room for good photos at night. If you need help try, this tutorial. 

The nice lady at Odegaard's Sewing Center showed me this. If you pin parallel to your seam sewing the bias edge is easy. If you a lazy like me, you can place the pin just right so you don't need to remove it while sewing! I call this a win! 

Linking up with Freshly Pieced for WIP Wednesday!

My First Craft Show

It seems to be a great task to actually sit down at my laptop and write a blog post these days. I have been so focused on the craft show that I haven't gotten in to a normal quilting routine. Although, does anyone have a normal quilting routine? It may be a far fetched idea, but I am still going to strive for it! On top of the craft fair, Christmas activities seem to be the main distraction right now. Especially sewing presents, at least this year I decided not to sew for everyone! But now the craft fair is over and I am almost done with presents!!

I am very proud to say that I have not only participated in my first Craft Show, but actually sold some items! I even sold my first blanket. This cute little minky blanket pictured below.

I was primarily trying to market custom T-Shirt Quilts. A handful of people were very interested, but so far no one has committed. Sigh...at least handing out more cards is progress. 

Here was my little table! A small beginning, but it feels good to start somewhere.

And then because I just couldn't resist, I bought my first handmade quilt! My little cat Riley is very kindly modeling the quilts comfort. It is beautifully made and I am so happy to have a Christmas quilt for the holidays! 

Has anyone else bought quilts that they love?

Piece by Piece

Slowly, but surly my new quilt room is coming together! I just put up a bulletin board. Now, you all may be saying, "Why is she so excited over a bulletin board?" I will tell you! I painted it turquoise!!! I absolutely love anything turquoise! Ta Da!!!

As usual the simple project of painting it did not turn out to be as easy and I hoped it would be. The paint would not stick to the wood because it had a shinny finish. Ladies, please please just sand the edges before you paint them. I though that I could skip this task and I was wrong. I even bought some of that "No sanding required primer". It DID NOT work! Once I sanded it, everything went great! It did take three coats to get the color to my liking.

I am super proud of myself because I hung the bulletin board all by myself! Now, this may seem like a silly thing to be proud of. But I am horrible at hanging everything! This time I hung it correctly (and level) the first try! Wahoo! Big girl in the house!

Don't fret, I have been doing some sewing too! I am preparing for a small craft show at my local gym. This will be my first craft show, so I have no idea what I'm doing! I decided to sew up a hand full of things and see what people like. Chevron burp cloths!

And some cute kids christmas aprons!!