New Pattern: Rocky Mountain National Park Quilt

🏞️ We’re beyond excited to start featuring the stunning patterns from Quilting the National Parks by Stephanie Forster of @bookendsquilting — now on QuiltInk!

This beautiful book includes 20 original quilt patterns inspired by some of the most iconic landscapes across the U.S. National Parks — from the Grand Canyon to the Indiana Dunes. With projects for every skill level and space (think pillows, throws, wall hangings, and more), it’s a true celebration of natural beauty through modern quilting. ✨

🌲 And today we’re starting with the Rocky Mountain National Park Quilt — a baby-size quilt (44″ x 44″) that uses Half-Square Triangles and Half-Rectangle Triangles to create a bold, geometric landscape full of movement and texture.

Now live on www.quiltink.com, this pattern is ready for you to color and customize digitally — making it easier than ever to find the perfect palette before you sew.

🎨 Come explore, mock it up, and be part of this tribute to nature and quilting combined.

QuiltInk Challenge Jun25

Welcome to the June QuiltInk Challenge!
This month, we’re celebrating heartfelt creativity with a palette inspired by the new Love Letters fabric collection by Becca Plymale of @becca.plymale.creative — one of the talented designers on QuiltInk! 💌

Soft blush, delicate creams, romantic teals, and elegant golds… this dreamy color story is all about connection, resilience, and quiet strength — a tribute to the emotions stitched into every quilt we make. Whether you love vintage charm or soft modern palettes, this challenge is your invitation to sew something filled with feeling. 💖

 

We can’t wait to see how Love Letters inspires your June mock-ups!

But first, let’s give a big shout-out to the winner of the May QuiltInk Challenge!

With nearly 150 stunning mock-ups created using the vibrant Let’s Ombré! palette, the QuiltInk Wall was absolutely glowing with color last month! Your creativity turned gradients into magic, and we were blown away by every single design. Congratulations to @6boredcats, our randomly selected winner for May! You’ll receive a copy of Quilts in Modern Color by Amber Elliott of @alderwoodstudio — a big thank-you to Amber for sponsoring such an inspiring challenge! And thank YOU to everyone who joined! Your mock-ups make QuiltInk what it is — vibrant, evolving, and full of quilty joy.

 

THE PALETTE

For this month’s QuiltInk Challenge, we’re thrilled to introduce the Love Letters palette, with the Becca Plymale’s enchanting fabric collection for Art Gallery Fabrics. This palette captures the essence of heartfelt connections with its soft blush, creamy neutrals, romantic teals, and warm golds. Each hue reflects the collection’s theme of resilience and enduring love across distances.

Whether you’re drawn to delicate florals or timeless motifs, the Love Letters palette offers a harmonious blend of colors to bring your quilt designs to life. It’s perfect for creating pieces that speak of love, connection, and the beauty of enduring bonds.

 

The winner of the QuiltInk May Challenge will receive a copy of Quilts in Modern Color: Creating Ombré Palettes by Amber Elliott, sent directly to them!

I absolutely loved reading this book!—it’s a wonderful resource for quilters who want to deepen their understanding of color. I had a great time learning new techniques and discovering fresh perspectives on working with color in quilting. It’s definitely one of those books that inspires me to try one of the wonderful projects in it, and I look forward to finding time to make one in the future!

THE DESIGNER

Meet Becca Plymale, the designer behind the beautiful Land of Enchantment collection! Becca is not only the creative force behind these fresh, joyful fabrics — she’s also one of the many talented quilt pattern designers on QuiltInk. Her patterns reflect her love for storytelling and modern aesthetics, often infused with playful details and coastal inspiration.

Becca lives in coastal Virginia with her family, and her background as a stylist and art director brings a unique sense of composition and color to her work. 

She finds inspiration in vintage objects, nature walks, and the little moments of everyday life — all of which weave their way into her illustrations and fabric designs. Her creative world feels both inviting and nostalgic, full of warmth and personality.

 

On QuiltInk, you can explore and color her quilt patterns — and now, match them with her very own fabric line. It’s the perfect way to dive into her universe and add your personal twist. Whether you’re planning your next quilt or simply playing with colors, Becca’s work brings a sense of joy and gentle beauty to the process.

HOW TO PARTICIPATE
1. Access to www.quiltink.com, sign in or create your free account.
2. Choose a pattern from the main page.
3. Color the pattern using the challenge palette, it’s the first palette in solid palettes list.
4. Share your mock-up on our #quiltinkwall.
5. Boost your chances creating a post or story on Instagram, mentioning @quilt_ink , @becca.plymale.creative and tagging #QuiltInkChallengeJun25. It counts as 2 entries in the giveaway.
 

PRIZE!
🎁 One lucky winner will receive 11 Fat Quarters from Becca Plymale’s Love Letters collection, sent directly to them!

 

Selection: On July 1st, we will randomly pick1 mock-up chosen between all the mock-ups in the Wall made with the QuiltInk Challenge Jun25 palette (the ones with the gift icon).
 
The more mock-ups you create, the higher your chances of winning! Start coloring now!
 
This giveaway is open internationally. You must be at least 18 years old. This giveaway is not sponsored by Instagram. Participants release Instagram of any responsibility and agree to IG terms of use.
 

Here are some examples of quilt patterns mock-ups using the Love Letters palette in QuiltInk! The possibilities are endless!

Patterns featured are (click to color):

1. Rose des Vents by Namaju Quilt Studio

2. Karnak by Tessellate Textiles

3. Fairy Rings by Due North Handmade

Remember by clicking on the gift icon in the QuitlInk Wall you will be able to see all the mock-ups for the Challenge alive.

Curious about how to find the palette to participate. Follow these steps and start coloring!!

Here you can see a detailed list of the fabrics in the Love Letters! palette by Becca Plymale for Art Gallery Fabrics

We can’t wait to see all your mock-ups! 

Happy coloring and quilting to you all!

Mockupmonday #135

✨ Wow, the creativity doesn’t stop! #QInk_MockupMonday 135 brings together over 150 mock-ups added to the QuiltInk Wall in just the past two weeks — and it’s clear so many of you are already planning your next quilt project. 🧵💫

If you haven’t played with color lately, this is your sign! Head to www.quiltink.com, pick a pattern, color your own version, and share it on the Wall to inspire the rest of us.

New Pattern: Nutcracker Ballet BOM

Do you think a figurative pattern like this one would be hard to color customize?

That was my first thought too… until I started creating mock-ups of the Nutcracker Ballet Block of the Month on QuiltInk! Once I began coloring, I realized how fun it is — and just how many color possibilities this magical design has! 💫🎄

This stunning FPP quilt pattern by @alderwoodstudio brings the Nutcracker story to life, block by block — with charming characters, seasonal scenes, and even optional embroidery to add a festive touch.

🗓️ The BOM runs from June to December and starts tomorrow!
📲 Visit @alderwoodstudio to sign up and get all the info!

And yes — the pattern is already available on QuiltInk, where you can play with colors and visualize every version before you start sewing.

Swipe through my mock-ups and tell me — which one would you love to make?

New Pattern: Fastball 2.0

Title:   FastBall 2.0

Designer Jessica Steele Design

Techniques: Traditional Piecing 

Sizes: 3

⚾ Looking for the perfect quilt project for a sports lover? Whether you’re sewing a gift for a baseball fan or just love bold, modern designs, Fastball 2.0 by @jessicasteeledesign is a must!

Jessica is known for her sports-inspired quilt patterns, and this one hits it out of the park — with three fun colorways to explore, including single-color seams, a bold ombré version, and even a double-ombré softball layout. The mock-ups you can create on QuiltInk show just how versatile it can be!

📣 This is a refreshed re-release of her original Fastball quilt pattern — with updated construction, improved instructions, and now ready for digital color planning in QuiltInk!

🧵 Confident beginner-friendly, Fastball 2.0 uses snowball corners, traditional piecing, and is set on point. Available in Baby, Throw, and Twin sizes — and perfect for yardage or fat quarters depending on your version.

💻 Come explore the pattern and color your own version now on QuiltInk!

QuiltInk Challenge May25 Winner

🌈 The May QuiltInk Challenge is officially wrapped — and what an amazing month of color it’s been! With nearly 150 mock-ups created using the Let’s Ombré! palette, you turned the QuiltInk Wall into a gallery of glowing gradients and vibrant creativity. 💫

This challenge was inspired by Quilts in Modern Color, the beautiful ombré-focused book by Amber Elliott of @alderwoodstudio — and we’re so grateful to her for sponsoring this month’s prize! 💛

🎉 And now… congratulations to @6boredcats, the randomly selected winner of this month’s challenge!
You’ll receive a copy of Quilts in Modern Color — we hope it fills you with inspiration for even more stunning quilt ideas.

Thank you to every single one of you who participated. Your mock-ups made May extra special, and your creative spirit keeps QuiltInk vibrant and growing.

➡️ Stay tuned for June’s challenge — it’s coming soon, and it’s a good one!

A special thank-you to Amber from Alderwood Studio for sponsoring this challenge and sharing her passion for color with our community.

Stay tuned for the next challenge, and keep sharing your amazing mock-ups! ✨

Mockupmonday #134 – May Challenge

Have you already joined the May QuiltInk Challenge?
Just look at what quilters have created — over 100 ombré quilt mock-ups bursting with color, creativity, and gradient magic! 🌈✨

This month’s palette, Let’s Ombré!, is inspired by Amber Elliott’s book Quilts in Modern Color — and yes, the book is the prize! There’s still time to explore color blending and share your own mock-up on the #quiltinkwall.

Meet the Fabric Shops – Sewing Arts

We’re excited to welcome new fabric shops to QuiltInk—each one brings fresh inspiration and creative energy to our community. One of the latest additions is Sewing Arts, and in our sixth Meet the Fabric Shops spotlight, we’re thrilled to feature them.

Based in Los Angeles and led by the passionate mother-daughter duo Julie and Rachel, Sewing Arts is more than a shop—it’s a vibrant hub for makers, modern quilters, and fiber lovers. From their beautifully curated fabric selection to their commitment to building community, Sewing Arts embodies the spirit of QuiltInk.

Let’s get to know them better!

Right now, Sewing Arts is facing an especially intense moment.  As one of the last standing fabric and sewing machine shops in a city of 8 million, they’re welcoming a wave of new customers following recent Joann closures—all while juggling fire recovery efforts in their area and the challenges of staff vacations. Despite it all, they continue to show up for their community with passion, care, and creativity.

Let’s dive in and get to know the people and the story behind Sewing Arts.

Personal Background

Could you tell us a bit about yourself?  (location, age, educational background, …) Who is behind Sewing Arts?

Hey there!


 We are Julie and Rachel, the mother /daughter duo behind Sewing Arts.  

We are both 2nd and 3rd generation born and raised in the sunny city of Los Angeles. 

Back in the 70s, Julie went to USC for film school, and then worked in the TV and New industry in Los Angeles, both at NBC and ABC. After that, she decided to go back to school and earn a four-year degree in Environmental Design, focusing on Commercial Space Planning. Julie took a break from working to raise three amazing kids, and once they went off to college, she realized it was time to do something for herself. 


She bought an existing sewing machine store and had the exciting idea of turning it into a fabric shop. Everyone I know always said I had always wanted to do that! I’m just drawn to the tactile feel of all fiber arts.


In 2018, youngest daughter, Rachel, joined her in the shop after graduating from USC with dual degrees in Business and Cinema. Rachel is the one who built and manages our website and online end of the store. She also runs the front end of the shop, while Julie has become more focused on the business end and pattern testing for designers 

 

Quilting Journey

How did you first get into quilting? When did you decide to turn this passion into a business by opening your shop?

Julie started sewing when she was five, sitting next to her mom who made dresses for her and her sisters. Julie would take scraps of fabric and design and sew dresses for her Barbie dolls. She’s always been sewing, and she was making clothes at the age of 12. When Julie became a mom, she turned my focus on quilting. Except for the occasional garment, she’s never looked back. She was totally obsessed with the TV show Simply Quilts and a huge fan of Alex Anderson. She’d love to meet her someday. Her kids would say they felt comforted to sleep at night by the opening theme to the show, and they’d know Mom was in the room next door sewing. They were always welcome to come into the sewing room and play with the fabrics. Julie’s first sewing teacher was Mary Ellen Hopkins of Crazy Ladies and Friends in Santa Monica. She was an amazing teacher, woman, and character. Julie loved to create art quilts with the children at school, which they would then auction off to raise money for school programs.


Rachel started sewing when she was eight. It was just a fun “hobby” for her, but she didn’t really get back into sewing or quilting until she joined me at the shop. She’s really interested in projects done in miniature as well as EPP / FPP. She teaches our EPP / FPP classes as well as the bag classes. She’s a creative mad genius. Rachel is always a sucker for fabrics with faces that aren’t supposed to have them, like smiles on fruit or animals doing silly things.

 

Shop Story and Style  
What’s the story behind Sewing ArtsWhen did it start, and how would you describe its personality, style, and size?

The original shop opened its doors in 1955 on the 3rd Street Promenade in Santa Monica. Back then, it was called Bay Cities Sewing, and it was owned by Fred and Barbara. They sold and repaired sewing machines. Julie’s first Bernina was bought for her by her mom, who was also a huge supporter of the business and our biggest cheerleader. Fred and Barbara sold it to someone else, who changed the name to Sewing Arts Center. We had known all the previous owners for years, and one day, in 2017, Julie came into the shop and told him she wanted to open a fabric shop. He said he was selling his shop because after 17 years, he was ready to move on.


Over the years, the shop has changed from a small sewing machine shop to one that sells machines and teaches sewing classes. Now, it’s called Sewing Arts, and it’s dropped the name Center. We’ve brought in over 40,000 yards of fabric, expanded our classes, and reduced our sewing machine brand to become the only exclusive Bernina dealer in Los Angeles. We try to carry what we feel are the best of each product available and only carry what we ourselves would use. 


 Our new space is huge (almost 8000 sq ft) with high ceilings and a cool industrial vibe. The building we moved into in 2023 was previously an old Post Office that we carefully renovated. Everything inside was custom-built to our design and vision, mostly that of Rachel, who has a great eye for design. We wanted a space that was airy, spacious, and paid homage to the industrial heritage of the building. 


We also have a wonderful staff, some who have been with the shop through all three owners.  We are truly a team and each of the six of us has our own specialty which makes the business so incredibly unique.  

 

Product Offerings  
What types of fabrics do you focus on? How do you offer them to customers—by the yard, as kits, or with custom options?

We primarily focus on 100% cotton, but we also have a selection of flannel, rayon, canvas, and knits. We sell fabric in-store, starting at 1/4 yard and going up. Online, we sell in full yard increments.


We also have kits, custom orders, and one of the highlights of our day is helping someone find that perfect fabric for their for their projects and we love when they bring back the finished project to show us what they made. 

 

Special Collections and Products  

Are there any collections, brands, or unique products you’re especially proud to carry?

We’ve got a fantastic collection of canvases from Japan, and we’ve been stocking the complete Ruby Star Collections since the very beginning. There’s even a whole section of the shop dedicated to Ruby Star, so you’re sure to find something you love!  Like we said, there is over 40,000yards of fabric in the shop, not to mention pattern, notions, embroidery kits and specialty items. 

 

Inspiration and Trends  
What inspires you when choosing fabrics or products for your shop? Do you follow any specific trends or themes?

Julie is lucky to have not only her daughter as my full partner, but we have a very talented staff who are all present when we choose fabrics for the shop.  Since we range in age from late 20’s to late 60’s and everything in between (I’m in between) we have our fingers on the pulse of what customers like.  However, we do pick what we like and try very hard not to follow trends or themes.  I would say our selections tend to lean more towards the modern.

we will always restock solids and basics, but once a print is gone, it’s gone for good.  Our customers know “if you want it, buy it, as it will not be coming back”

 

Additional Services
Do you offer any other quilting-related services, like pattern design, long-arming, or classes?  

We’ve got a packed schedule of classes, from garment and quilting to bags and specialty workshops. You can find all the details on our website. We also offer summer camp for kids and private lessons for ages 9 to 99.


We provide long-arm services on a Bernina Q24 Qmatic and will train customers to use our other Bernina Q20 long arm. They can even rent time to use it themselves.


We’re also the home shop and meeting place for the LA Modern Quilt Guild, the original modern quilt guild that started the modern movement and QuiltCon. We’re also the home shop for the Westside Quilt Guild and the Santa Monica Quilt Guild. On Thursdays, many members come to the classroom to meet, stitch, and hang out.


Our goal was never just to be a retail business; we wanted to build a community of makers.  A place where everyone was welcome and we can all learn from each other. 

 

Online Presence

Where can people find your shop online? (Website, social media handles, online marketplaces). How do you use online platforms to connect with your audience and fellow quilters?

www.sewingarts.com

@sewingarts Facebook, IG, X, Threads

We like to show current merchandise, products, announce class schedules and sometime to show off projects made by our customers.

 

Upcoming News and Projects  
Are there any exciting new projects, events, or collaborations coming up that you’d like to share with the community

We are always collaborating with designers and the LAMQG and will be hosting a workshop with Veruska later this month.  Veruska recently took Best in Show at Quiltcon 2025

We are always looking for new and different events or projects to share with our community.

 

QuiltInk Experience

How has QuiltInk been useful for your shop or customers? Any favorite tools or ways it’s made things easier?

QuiltInk has been helpful as we test for two different pattern designers and it allows us to try out our fabric pulls before we commit.  We have shared this with customers and have used it to help them visual as well.

New Pattern: Summer Hex

Do you sew in the summer? It’s the perfect time to slow down, enjoy the process, and learn something new—like Y-seams!

Say hello to Summer Hex by Kiley Quilts Room , a bold and modern quilt pattern originally featured in Modish Quilter Magazine. Its large, hexagon-inspired blocks come together using the Y-seam method—step-by-step instructions make what seems challenging surprisingly easy!

Summer is the ideal moment to explore new quilting techniques, play with bold prints or soft solids, and bring fresh energy into your projects. Whether you’re sewing a cozy baby quilt or a striking throw, this pattern offers creative freedom and a vibrant, geometric look.

✨Get inspired by the colorful mock-ups on QuiltInk and color your own version today!

New Pattern: Trajectory

Say hello to Trajectory by Kiley Quilts Room — the second pattern she’s re-released from her early designs for Modish Quilter Magazine 🧡

This modern geometric quilt features dynamic, angular blocks that bring a strong sense of movement and energy. With bold negative space and a fresh, contemporary layout, Trajectory is the perfect art piece to show off your favorite color palette.

Ideal for intermediate quilters, this 50” x 60” project requires some templates and precision—but the result is so worth it.

Head over to QuiltInk to explore color possibilities and mock-ups created by the community, and color your own version! There’s no easier or more inspiring way to plan your next quilt.