Want to join me for a FREE Quilt Along?

 My shop is a participating retailer for the Mystery Five-0 program.

I have a private Facebook group that you need to join in order to participate in the FREE mini mysteries.

Join my Alamosa Quilt Company Mystery Five-0 Private Facebook Group

Be sure to answer all three group questions and agree to the group rules so that I can let you into the group!

Our next free mini mystery is this Saturday, September 20, 2025. The clues start dropping into to the group at 9am Mountain Time and continue through 1pm Mountain Time. If you are busy on Saturday, the clues will remain in the files section of the group as long as the group is active. We've already done two previous free mini mysteries and you can get the clues for those too if you join the group.

Below was the first free mini mystery project, Star Bright.

And this was the second free mini mystery project, Starlight.

The next one is called Starry Night. It will finish at 21" by 21" just like the other two. If you want to see what it looks like, join the group! You don't have to participate in any of the sew alongs. You can just watch from the sidelines. 

We are wrapping up our first Quarterly Mystery with Mystery Five-0 right now. It is called Aloha. Here is my Aloha quilt.

The quarterly mysteries are not free. You must purchase either a kit for the mystery project or a $50 ticket that is really a gift certificate for yourself to which ever participating retailer you sign up with. You can spend it on a kit or anything else you want. The quarterly mystery clues are sent via email so you don't have to be local to participate.

You can view the Aloha kits I have left in stock here: All things Aloha from Alamosa Quilt Company 

All the quarterly mystery quilts are lap/throw size. The Aloha quilt is 56" by 72". Mystery Five-0 has committed to insuring that each quarterly mystery quilt will meet the size requirements for Quilts of Valor so if you like making QOV quilts, these patterns will always work for that program. And each quarterly mystery quilt will always include two different ways to layout your units. If you participate in the mystery, then you get both layouts automatically. If you purchase a kit after the fact then you must choose which layout you want included in your kit. If you want them both then you'll need to purchase them both. 

These are the two layouts for Aloha:

You can also just get a copy of the pattern. Each quarter we will being doing a new mystery quilt and kits/tickets for the next one go on sale October 1, 2025. If you would like to read more about Mystery Five-0 click the following link: Mystery Five-0 Information

Jiffy Jelly Roll Quilt :: A New Free Pattern

 This is one of my favorite jelly roll patterns ever! It looks good with any jelly roll and it uses almost every bit of every strip of your jelly roll.

You can get your free copy of the pattern here: Jiffy Jelly Roll Quilt Pattern 

No coupon code is required. It's just plain old FREE.

Shop Samples

 Getting new fabrics into the shop means new shop samples. I have lost all of my sample sewists, so I'm now sewing everything myself. This is another reason why I haven't had time to share things with you. I'm finding it a challenge to sew everything myself and do all the other marketing, buying, managing employees and such that is part of running a business.

This first one is called the Sunkissed Quilt. It's 56" by 72". The pattern is one of my favorite Villa Rosa Designs patterns that calls for a panel called Foxfire. In this kit you get to choose the order in which you add the borders. Whichever fabric you choose for the first border is also your binding fabric.

My husband and I took a drive in the mountains recently and I took this quilt with us hoping for a photo opportunity. My husband is a really good sport and super supportive of my quilting and the shop so he is holding it for me while I took pictures.

This next one is super easy. It's just a panel! No piecing required. The fabric collection is called Dragon Friends. The backing I used is the Blue Geometric print from the Dragon Friends collection. The binding fabric is the Purple Geometric print from the Dragon Friends collection. The panel is 36" by the width of fabric. So this finished at about 36" by 43" - a great size for a quick and easy baby quilt.

The Dragon Friends collection features a second panel and it has a border print. I'm planning a second kit for this collection that features the other panel and the border print. As soon as I get time to sew it up!

This last one features the new Anna Marie Horner fabric collection called Jumpstart. The pattern is another Villa Rosa Designs pattern called Ebb Tide.

The Ebb Tide pattern doesn't have the outer border, but I wanted to add an outer border to this one to show off more of the fabrics in the collection. Our kit includes the outer border and the additional instructions required since the outer border is not part of the Ebb Tide pattern. The kit makes a 57" by 71" finished size quilt and includes the exact fabrics shown here plus the pattern and the binding fabric. The collection includes two wide backs and I used one of them for the back of this quilt. Below I flipped the corner back so you can see the backing fabric I used.

The links included previously in this post take you to the fabric collection or quilt kits I am showing on my website. If you would like to check out my shop website, here is the direct link to the home page.

Alamosa Quilt Company

If you have a local quilt shop in your area I encourage you to please check with them first to see if they might carry anything I'm showing you that you might want. But if you don't have a local quilt shop in your area or your local shop doesn't carry what I'm sharing, I'd love to help you get what you want/need!

Off the Long Arm

 I've been so busy actually quilting things for folks that I haven't had time to share with you how it's going. The short answer is, "It's going great!" I'm still building my long arm quilting business and getting the word out to folks that I'm doing long arm quilting now, but I'm happy with how it's going so far. I'm not swamped with quilts to do for customers, but I am getting a few each week. So it's manageable!

The first quilt I have to share was made by Sherrie L. She is a part-time local resident.

Sherrie chose this fun modern style pattern. It is one of the designs that comes with my Bernina Q24 Q-matic program. I call this one "bubbles" because it's real name is just some letters and numbers.

Another quilt from Sherrie L.

For this one Sherrie chose a floral pattern. It's not quite a poinsettia, but it's close enough.

This quilt was brought to me to quilt by Vicki B. It was made by a relative who has since passed away.

I picked an allover floral design to coordinate with the embroidery blocks. This quilt was huge! And Vicki doesn't sew so I finished the binding for her too. The quilt was a challenge to long arm because the workmanship was not the best. None of the sides were straight. Some of the blocks were larger than others. Puckers were just pieced right in to the seams. Yet, it still turned out really nice!

This last one was made by Duchess R. I've quilted several things for Duchess. She likes geometric quilting designs and bold thread colors.

She picked this lime green thread and a design called Cottontop. It's one of the designs that came with my machine.

Charming Churn Dash PDF Pattern :: Free for a limited time

 My new free pattern is called Charming Churn Dash. I wrote this pattern a few years ago when I had an active scrap group at my shop. 

The pattern is free for the rest of July. You will need to use the coupon code HAR7N16CKW6R at checkout. Here is the direct link to the Charming Churn Dash PDF Pattern. The coupon code expires at 6pm MDT on Thursday, July 31, 2025. 

For the past few years I have been including a free pattern in my weekly shop newsletter. If you would like to subscribe to my newsletter you can sign up at the bottom of any page of my website, Alamosa Quilt Company.

I also sell this pattern in print form. If you would prefer a paper copy be mailed to you then you'll need to pay for that. I'm sorry that I can't afford to send you a paper copy for free. The direct link to the paper copy is Charming Churn Dash Pattern paper copy.

New Family Member :: Meet Maple

 After the passing of our beloved Ms. Spooky Boo the house seemed a little empty with just one cat. So we started looking at the local shelter and after several weeks and multiple visits, we found Maple.

To say that we are smitten with our new kitten is an understatement! She is absolutely adorable and a bundle of energy and love.

She is currently about 11 weeks old. She is already spayed and will be getting the next round of kitten shots later this week.

Our almost 2 year old cat Sheba is currently not a fan. There is a lot of hissing and growling but she is slowly getting used to Maple. It only took a few days for her to remain in the same room as Maple. She just sits up on top of something so Maple can't get to her. Hopefully she will learn to love Maple as much as we do or at least tolerate her presence without comment.

A Very Special Project

 A couple weeks ago our older kitty and supervisor, Ms. Spooky Boo, passed away. She had recently been diagnosed with cancer and then went downhill very quickly. She was 13 years old. 

My son, Parker, was Ms. Boo's person. When he was little she would not allow him to take a bath without her supervision. She would howl outside the bathroom door if she got left out. She supervised his every move (which is why we called her The Supervisor) and he was with her when she passed.

I don't know where this item came from, but Parker had collected a little bit of Ms. Boo's fur and asked me to slit the seam and tuck it inside then stitch up the seam. I had a better idea.

I broke out my hand-dyed silk velvet and got to work.

I made a heart applique from the velvet and placed it on the back side of the stuffy. Before I completed the applique I slipped the little bits of fur underneath the heart.

Her boy was very happy with the result. He is keeping it on his bed in "her spot" which makes me happy.

I'm just glad I got right on this project and didn't let it linger, as I am prone to do. I think Ms. Boo would approve, even though I had to complete this project without The Supervisor.

Free Pattern for June

 I am slowly going through my older tutorials and turning them into downloadable PDF patterns. I am listing them for "sale" on my website although so far the price for them is $0.00 - FREE.

I picked my Wonder Clip Pin Cushion Tutorial for this month. If you want to go to the tutorial then click the link in the previous sentence. The tutorial is not written in a form that is downloadable. 

If you would like a download PDF of the pattern then click this link, Wonder Clip Pin Cushion PDF Pattern. 

If you would like a copy of the pattern please click the link and get it for yourself. If you have friends who would like a copy too, please ask them to go get a copy of the pattern themselves from my website rather than downloading it and sharing it. The pattern is free after all. What I get out of offering it for free is traffic on my website. If you just get one copy of the pattern and then email it to all your friends then I lose all of that traffic on my website I should have gotten. 

You can also get your friends a copy of the pattern by checking out as your friend and giving their email address at checkout so that they will receive the download link email.

It's BlowOut Event Time Again

 If you are looking for some great deals on quilting fabric and such, you can check out what I've got in the clearance section.

Alamosa Quilt Company BlowOut Event

Fabrics are $5.99 per yard. I've got panels at 50% off and books, patterns and such are 25% off.

I made a short video of the fabrics included in the event. It's a Facebook live video so I can't embed the video here. If you click the link below it will take you to the video on my shop's Facebook page. 

Alamosa Quilt Company Facebook Live BlowOut Event Video

I don't think you need to have a Facebook account to watch the video. If you do have a Facebook account and you would like to help out a shop owner for free, you could like & follow my shop Facebook page, if you don't already like or follow my page.

Alamosa Quilt Company Facebook Page

Learning my new Q24

 I recently purchased a BERNINA Q24 long arm with Q-matic (computer program) for my shop. My favorite local long arm quilter recently moved away. I knew I would need to find another way to get my shop samples quilted and so would all of her other customers. So I decided to go into the long arm quilting business myself.

The machine arrived about two weeks ago. I've been watching the video class I purchased from BERNINA as well as reading through the workbooks I received trying to learn as much as I can as fast as I can. I know all about the machine itself. Loading quilts onto a frame is a little different than basting them but the video class about loading a quilt was very good. It only took a couple times and I'm comfortable with loading a quilt on the frames. 

The Q-matic computer program is a bit more daunting. I have used a couple of computerized quilting programs in the past - all of them were not user friendly. I'm happy to say that the Q-matic is pretty user friendly. I only needed to quilt two practice pieces before feeling comfortable enough to try a "real" project. I have a bunch of digital quilt tops I've collected over the years from various fabric companies. I'm starting with those to practice on. I'll bind them and sell them during the month of November when my shop sells finished items (old shop samples) to support local charities. 

Below is a short video I did of my first practice piece.

If the embedded video doesn't work for you, you can watch it on YouTube: Q-matic Practice Video

Below is the first digital sample I quilted.

Here is a close up shot so you can see the quilting design better.

Is the quilting perfect? No. Do I care? No. I'm learning. For this one I intentionally ran out of bobbin thread so that I would have to learn what to do when that happens. Spoiler: the Q-matic makes this super easy! I had to resize the design, flip it over, and shift it around. All of this is pretty easy to do with Q-matic once you learn how. So now I'm just trying to practice these steps so that I can do them without having to refer back to a video or the workbook. 

When I started my second project I decided that I would not allow myself to watch or read for help. I want to try to figure it all out by myself. So far, so good!

Right now I am only using the designs that came with my computer system. Once I get better with it I'll probably need to purchase a few more designs. There were several that my previous long arm quilter used that I would really like to own too. But for now, I've got plenty to play with.

The Circle Wallet :: A Free Pattern with Video Tutorial

 I've got another fun, easy and fast project for you. I'm calling it the Circle Wallet because it's made from two circles of fabric and some snaps.

The video tutorial from my shop's YouTube channel is embedded above but if you want to watch it on YouTube instead then here is the direct link to the video: Circle Wallet Video

I also wrote some basic instructions that you can download. The instructions are free - no discount code required, just free. This is the link to the pattern: Circle Wallet Pattern

You don't need the pattern as the video contains all of the instructions you'll need. But I know lots of folks like to have something you can print out or save to your device to read so that you don't have to go find a video.

Binding by Machine Video Tutorial

 I had a chance to film and edit the second "class" in my binding series. In this video I show how to sew the binding on a project completely by machine. First sewing the binding to the front of the quilt and then stitching in the ditch along the edge of the binding on the front to catch the binding on the back side of the project.

As I mentioned in the video, this is just ONE way to attach binding completely by machine. There are several other methods and in time I plan to film them all.

If you are looking for an excellent book about binding The Quilt Binding Bible is fabulous! The book covers 25 ways to bind something. Some of the methods involve hand sewing others are done completely by machine. It's full of great information with good written instructions and lots of full color photographs. Want to learn how to bind with prairie points? It's in the book. Want to add a ruffle as binding? It's in the book. Want to do a facing, this technically isn't binding but, it's covered in the book. Got something with weird angles along the outside edge? The book goes over several ways to finish those edges. Want to just wrap the backing fabric around to the front and have it look nice? Those corners can be tricky but it's in the book. Do you need to cut your binding on the bias or will straight grain be fine? All that is covered in the book. Can you tell I really like this book?

I ordered quite a few copies of this book but they are selling rapidly. I've already ordered more so if you click the link and it says "sold out" - I've got more ordered. You can contact me and I'll hold a copy for you then let you know when your copy is here.

Star Bright Pattern Free for 48 Hours Only

 Did you sew along with my shop or one of the other Mystery Five-0 retailers on March 29th to make a Star Bright quilt? If yes or no, keep reading!

Below is the version of Star Bright that I made.

If you would like to get a FREE copy of the pattern you need act quickly. I am only allowed to offer it for FREE for 48 hours - April 5, 2025 at 8am through April 7, 2025 at 8am Mountain Time USA. Use the coupon code W4RTV5VAQYVW at checkout. You will receive an email after you place your order with a download link. If you miss the deadline to get a copy of the pattern for free, you can purchase a copy for $5.99 using the same link below. 

But, if you join my private Mystery Five-0 Facebook group, the pattern will remain free in the group as long as the group is active, which will be years. Just look in the FILES section of the Facebook group.

Get the Star Bright PDF Pattern

There is another Free mini mystery coming up on May 31, 2025. Join my private Facebook group so you can get in on the fun! Be sure to answer all three questions and agree to the group rules so that I can let you into the group.

Join Mystery50 Alamosa Quilt Company Facebook Group

You could also like/follow my business Facebook page to keep up with all the fun things we have going in the shop. Information about programs, clubs, customer show and tell and new products are shared daily on the business Facebook page.

Alamosa Quilt Company Facebook page

Strip and Flip Quilt Pattern is Free for a limited time

 My next free pattern is available! It's called Strip and Flip Jelly Roll Quilt and it's a digital download.

The following link will take you directly to the pattern: Strip and Flip Quilt Pattern

When you check out you will need to add the coupon code FreePatternStrip&Flip2025 to get it for free. The code will work from now through April 10, 2025 at 6pm US Mountain Time.

This is a great pattern for that random jelly roll you purchased without a plan. One jelly roll will make the whole thing, including binding. Or you'll need 27 2 1/2" strips, 1/4 yard of contrast fabric (the two white vertical strips in the photo above) and 1/2 yard for binding.