Teaching Collage Quilting is Fun!

Recently, I had the opportunity to teach Debi and Anne collage quilting in my home. Super nice ladies! Private lessons are the most fun. Late last year, Anne won a collage quilting class I donated to a silent gala auction.

During our first introduction class into the wacky world of collage art quilting, Debi picked a pattern to make. It was the Halloween version of the gumball machine. Not gonna lie … it is pretty stinking cute. At the end of the first day, the ladies were skeptical they would come out alive with an actual quilt! So much information, they said! It looks hard, they insisted! But I kept reassuring them they were going to be most pleasantly surprised.

By the end of our two-day class, they were delighted. This pattern is so fun to make. I have previously made prototype gumball quilts in three versions: I Spy, Halloween, and Christmas. Future options for this pattern can include just about every major holiday, including Easter! I gotta remember to make an Easter version. Can you see it … giant Easter bunny (from a panel) hanging out in the gumball machine surrounded by all things Easter?

But I digress! Anne and Debi LOVED the glow-in-the-dark spider web binding from my prototype Halloween quilt. Looking through my stash, I noticed there was just enough left for the spooky binding on Debi’s quilt.

Future blog post spoiler alert! I found a Moda marble black fabric for the background. The cut out and fused collage was next glued to the background. After piecing a super cute Halloween backing I found at My Favorite Quilt Store‘s online shop, my go-to fabric shop, all was delivered to Erica at A Needle and Thread in Old Town Spring for her expert longarming! Waiting is going to be hard! Just saying!

Gumball Machines Galore!

I just realized I’ve never posted the three versions of my gumball machine art quilt pattern. It is available for sale in my Etsy shop. The pdf quilt pattern also includes a quilt photo, supply list, detailed instructions and now you have three ways to collage it!

The first art quilt version is a traditional I-Spy quilt in the form of a super fun gumball machine! I call it “I-Spy Gumballs.” It has approximately 50 gumballs and is a great opportunity for little ones to learn language. It would be a great gift for the preschool/kindergarten teacher on your Christmas list.

The second gumball machine quilt used a fraction of my Halloween novelty fabric. Over the years, my eyeballs tended to gravitate toward Halloween fabric. I never knew exactly what to make with it. I call this art quilt “I Spy Spooky.” I love to hang seasonable quilts and was happy to add a whimsical Halloween quilt in my entryway!

Of course, the third gumball machine quilt is a shout-out to Santa Claus. I started with a Santa panel and after a little fusing and cutting placed him in the gumball section of the quilt. I used Christmas fabric that reads “white” for the rest of the gumballs. It was fun to experiment with different shades of red and white for the gumball machine base. I call this art quilt “I Spy Ho-Ho” in honor of Mimi, my special needs daughter, who passed away in 2018. She adored Santa. Due to her limited speech, she called him “Ho-Ho.”

If you are needing to source collage supplies/fabric such as Karen Kay Buckley scissors, pattern ease, Steam-A-Seam 2 Lite, applique pressing sheet, fabric glue, and pretty fabric consider purchasing from my go-to online store: My Favorite Quilt Store.

The adorable model with the completed quilts is my handsome grandson Ben! He’s five.