Saturday, July 2, 2016

Happy Independence Day!!!!!

Happy Independence Day!!!! 

OK, so I am a couple of days early?!?!
Isn't that a nice change from me for once???? LOL

I truly am thankful for many things this 4th of July holiday here in the U.S.A.!
My family, my new home, and especially all of you, my  friends and allies in promoting the art of

QUILTING!!!!!!


I thought it might be nice to celebrate this Independence Day with a reveal, AND a giveaway?
More about the giveaway in a moment.



"I pledge allegiance, to the flag, of the United States of America........"
I know all computer monitors and phone and other digital devices are different, 
but, this is "The Pledge of Allegiance" quilted in a portion of the work I am about to reveal.

Before I moved out of my home last fall, I had completed this quilt top with intentions of
it becoming a Quilt of Valor.  With many recent speaking engagements, I have had the pleasure
of  sharing my philosophy of using any and all forms of scraps, and this is just one of the ways I do it.

Crumb piecing!!!

 It is so relaxing for me.  And hopefully you will be able to tell, the results are sometimes
very unexpected.

I approached my extremely talented quilting friend, Susan, of Farm Quilter,
and asked if she would be interested in quilting this top for me.
I was so pleased when she said yes!
Again, this quilt will eventually be a awarded to a U.S. Veteran
when I complete my speaking engagements.

Without further adieu.......

I would like to present to you.......

"Red, White, and Blue"

No, this is not stained glass, but, it sure looks like it to me?
Does it you?

The red, white, and blue panel sections are completely pieced from crumbs.
No foundation was used, just piece by piece, straight edge to straight edge of fabric.
The gold borders are various widths, but, trimmed to size, as are the silver corner stones.

(This photo is minus the binding, as it is on it's way to me. During my move,
I thought I had more of the dark brown, but,.....SURPRISE, I didn't.)

Let's take a closer look at some of Susan's quilting, shall we?


Such texture in those sashings!


Very dense quilting gives a quilt the body and heft I love.


Truly, just like stained glass!


A U.S. Veteran is sure to enjoy this one..........I hope!

I can't thank Susan enough for the beautiful job she did quilting "Red, White, and Blue."
She has a blog post about her end of the quilting 


Please go visit to see her insights into quilting this beauty.

So, how about a giveaway to celebrate our freedoms?

I met Travis of "The Barr Spool" from the Quilting Men Facebook Page.
He does some really wonderful work, and has been a cheerleader for me.
It is time for me to be his cheerleader as he is becoming an entrepreneur.

Here is a little about Travis......

"I started The Barr Spool in March 2013, after I discovered how much I love quilting and everything that comes along with it. I try to find fabrics that are interesting to a wide range of quilters tastes and that can be used in many different projects. I currently carry Robert Kaufman Fabrics, Quilting Treasures, and Clothworks and I constantly try to increase my inventory."

What are we giving away here?


Travis has generously offered a Fat Quarter Bundle of Santoro Mirabelle.
This bundle offers 12 fat quarters.

Who wouldn't love a free fat quarter bundle?  Right????

What do you need to do to win?

First, I would like for you to leave a comment about your favorite thing about the 4th of July
here on my blog.
The Second thing you need to do in order to win is to follow
The Barr Spool's Facebook page at:


Travis offers discounts all of the time, and he has a GREAT selection of fabrics at
very reasonable prices!  You can check out what he offers in his online store at:


Once again, please comment on my blog, and start following The Barr Spool on Facebook in order to win.  Please help spread the word!
(My apologies to my international quilting friends, but,
this giveaway is for U.S. residents only.)

We will leave the give away open until July 9, 2016.



However you celebrate this Independence Day, make it a great one!
I sure do appreciate each and every one of you out there in blogland!
Perhaps I have inspired you to do some crumb piecing of your own?
Thanks for all of the encouragement!
Keep on QUILTING!
Kevin the Quilter



36 comments:

  1. That's very generous from Travis but reading your post, I knew that I couldn't participate because i'm not on FB....yes ! Do you think i'm a Martian from Mars Kevin ? :)))
    Your quilt is awesome ! Bravo !

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  2. Your crumb quilt is gorgeous! The quilting is amazing!!! Thanks, Travis, for the generous bundle giveaway. I found him on fb. My favorite thing to do on the 4th of July is C A M P I N G!!! We're not extravagant. We are camping in a tent in our backyard. Our nine year old loves it. We do go one county west to see the fireworks. It's a big deal for Ohio stuff. Food, family, and fun. :) Happy 4th to you.

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  3. Gorgeous quilt!! I think I will try to do something like that. what a great quilt idea!
    I love the 4th of July because of remembering all this country has gone through to become free! Same reason I love QOV! Remembering our veterans and respecting our country is very important to me! I am also very happy to be off work this year! I usually have to work on the 4th, but not this year! (I'm a nurse).

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  4. This is a stunning quilt sure to enhance your speaking engagements and yes, someone is going to be truly specially gifted with that quilt.

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  5. "Our" quilt certainly looks nice hanging over your railing!!! It was fun planning the quilting around the letters "USA" in each color...I love modern quilting and framing it between your sashing was fun! I do love how the sashing looks, so glad you like it to! I "liked" The Barr Spool on FB - love the fabics - thanks, Travis!!! I love the 4th of July...honoring my two daughters who are serving in the Army and Air Force, my dad who served in the Navy in WWII, and my cousin who served for 31 years in the Navy (and just found out he has Parkinsons from exposure to Agent Orange in Vietnam) and it is the only two days off in a row that my husband gets during the summer (yeah, he's working today)! We also have a tradition of reading the Constitution and Bill of Rights on the 4th, reminding us of what all those who gave their lives have protected for us.

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  6. My favorite part of the 4th is gathering together with friends and remembering those who didn't make it back. Thanking those that did and honoring those who are serving now.
    Love the quilting on your Red white and blue! Barr Spool here I come!

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  7. My favorite part of the 4th is the food-watermelon, potato salad, and grilled pork fingers!

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  8. I agree that crumb piecing is very relaxing -- and I adore the saturated look that happens when working with a single color family. I am not entering the drawing . . . but I am going to go check out Barr Spool!

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  9. Awesome quilt! Favorite things for the 4th are the parades, family,freedom and love of country.

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  10. Thank you so much for the giveaway, and for all that you do, Kevin! (and thanks Travis!! I first read it as "The Bar Stool".... ;)
    I love being with family on the 4th of July....and I will be this year!

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  11. Wonderful Quilt... I love it. Favorite thing about the forth is family gatherings.. I have been a follower of Travis's FB page for avery long time.. maybe even its inception.

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  12. Fun, Family, Friends and Fireworks. Remembering our Independence.

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  13. Your quilt is gorgeous, really like the stained glass look that it gives, it is almost like a flag on a pole but then its not, or that is just my odd way of looking at things hahahaahahah How impressive you have been super organised ;)

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  14. I love the patriotism of Independence Day. It warms my heart.

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  15. I love the family gatherings during this time!

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  16. I love everything about the Fourth! Fireworks, food, family, patriotism. Happy birthday, USA! And I liked Barr Spool's facebook page.

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  17. I love the family cookouts, get-togethers, and believe this is the spirit of the Independence Day holiday......families enjoying all the blessings of living in the USA. The fireworks are another fun element I enjoy, though our dog does not.
    Jonnie in SC
    dbrit89828 at aol dot com

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  18. Thank you for the opportunity of a give away! Your quilt is fabulous! I am also glad to now have been introduced to Travis of Bar Spool. Another tool in my quilting arsenal! My favorite thing about the Fourth is snuggling under a quilt with my family, and watching our hometown fireworks.

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  19. Kevin, your crumb quilt turned out great! The quilting is awesome too. Hope you have a wonderful 4th and be safe if you are handling fireworks. I usually enjoy the 4th with family,good food and fireworks; but this year it will be a bit quieter. Probably more sewing or quilting tasks to occupy my time.

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  20. I love your Red White and Blue Quilt. Makes me want to do something similar. For the 4th of July holiday I have quilted 2 quilts for our Veterans here in Dent County Mo. I have a my father was a veteran of world war 11, my son went into the army and finished and got his orders tom go to Korea just as Dessert Storm started and my husband is a Viet Nam veteran so I am all about making quilts for the vets. Our guild here in Salem Mo. has given quilts to hurt soldiers at Ft. Lenard Wood until that unit closed up. We are now in the process of donating to all the WW11 veterans left living in Dent County which is 27 right now.

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  21. Kevin, I just lOVE what you did with the scraps!! You are just so inspiring!!! The quilt is fabulous! The quilting is also amazing. I love that she sewed the words into it!
    Thank YOU for your blog and such inspiring words!
    What do I do on July 4th? I love fireworks and love going to see them, if possible. I also love doing a barbecue. When our kids were young, we always took them camping up near Lake Tahoe (Donner Lake, to be exact, with its wonderful history). Now that they have their own lives, we try to get them together nevertheless. Most perfect would be to have them with us at our cabin up in Oregon. Not this year, though. ;-(
    Hope you have a great holiday!
    PS: did you read on my blog that there is a special exhibit at the Sisters show devoted to quilts by men?? You're going to have to put something into their exhibit in the future!

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  22. I really like this quilt--yes I think it looks like stained glass. I also really like the way Susan quilted it. My favorite thing about the 4th of July is getting together when possible with my siblings and their families. Unfortunately, this year that won't be possible. I also enjoy fireworks--the professional kind, not the neighborhood ones. My cat doesn't like them at all. I know I can't win as I don't do FB, but I did check out his website.

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  23. What a beauty!!!! And I absolutely LOVE that it comes from crumbs - you know how I love crumbs! This quilt sparkles and shines - it knows how beautiful it is :*). It's amazing how the movement of all the different colors and textures of the individual pieces gives it that lovely stained glass look. And the QUILTING!!!! Susan did such gorgeous stitching on this quilt! The veteran receiving this quilt will be thrilled I know :*)

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  24. What a great quilt. Yes, it looks like stained glass. One day, I'll try crumb piecing.

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  25. Definitely looks like stained glass, it has a really nice shimmer to it. Great way to use up all those spare parts (as I've heard them called recently). We spend time with family on the 4th. Mainly eating and talking (we do both really, really well). I tried to set up a Facebook account last week and they told me my name was not allowed. I'm still pondering how to get around that. Hope you had a wonderful 4th of July.

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  26. Your RWB quilt is awesome. Enjoy the 4th of July by being with friends and family celebrating our freedom and love of the USA!! Also, thanks for such a great giveaway. Very generous of Travis!!
    lbcookie1@gmail.com

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  27. Your quilt is beautiful and I'm with you on the crumb sewing....it's the most therapeutic sewing there is! Your crumbs have inspired me....our guild challenge includes 4" of water....I'm thinking blue crumbs will give it life :) I like the big show of patriotism by large numbers of Americans on the 4th of July. It makes me hopeful and optimistic for the future.

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  28. I love the time spent with family and friends on the 4th of July. we get together and bar b que, watch fireworks, and for my husband and his brothers they were working on our 46 ford that they are restoring. Luckily this year we have our traeger grill and I did the queing this year while they toiled away working on the car.

    Love the red white and blue quilt!!!!

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  29. I love your Red White and Blue crumb quilt. Thank you for all you do to honor the men and women who answer the call to be heroes. And of course Thank you for the offer of a giveaway. Air Force, Army and Marine Mom. feilen@cox.net

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  30. The 4th of July is a time to reflect on what our country means to us, and that makes me very emotional. I have traveled to several other countries, and I am always proud to say I am from the United States! The crumb quilt is very pretty and does indeed look like stained glass!

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  31. Your quilt is beautiful and so inspiring ~ I love the quilting!
    My favorite part of the 4th is BBQing with friends and the fireworks. I have fond memories as a girl watching fireworks at the lake and honking the boat horn for the ones we liked. The more honks the better - LOL!
    Found the Barr Spool! Already see some fabric I like...

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  32. Great quilt, Kev!
    My favorite thing about the 4th of July is the outpouring of patriotism. We were really at our best as a nation the year following September 11th - there was such solidarity and peacefulness in grief and determination.

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  33. Just caught up on my blog reading, you would think that being retired this would be no problem. I love your Red, White and Blue Quilt. I may need to do this with my scraps, great idea, Kevin. My favorite thing about the 4th of July was having the family together, including the granddaughter that is not thrilled with Phoenix weather. Food, family fireworks all the way.

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  34. Oh My Stars!!!! THAT Quilt is GORGEOUS!!! and I think you need some more crumbs now don't you!! It will truly be loved - and the quilting - Oh my!! To drool!!!!

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  35. My favorite thing about the 4th of July is the pause it provides in the "busy being lazy" or just plain busy days of summer to stop and reflect on how fortunate we are, even in these challenging times, and on what responsibilities that good fortune places on us.

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