Lori Holt Patterns and Fabric: A Nostalgic Journey Through Threads and Time

Lori Holt is a well-known fabric designer, author, and quilt Lori Holt has become a cherished name in the quilting community, particularly known for her alluring Lori Holt patterns and vivid Lori Holt fabric designs. Her work, deeply steeped in the nostalgia of pastoral life and agrarian living, has not only become her signature style but has also garnered substantial admiration and popularity among quilters.

Collaborating with Riley Blake Designs, Lori has conceived numerous fabric lines, each encapsulating many patterns and vibrant designs. Among her distinguished fabric collections are:

1. "Farm Girl Vintage"

Farm Girl Vintage

2. "Bee In My Bonnet Basics"

3. "Vintage Happy 2"

Vintage Happy 2

4. "Vintage Christmas"

5. "Flea Market"

Flea Market

6. "Bake Sale 2"

7. "Prim"

8. "Home Town"

Home Town

9. "Calico"

Calico

10. "Prairie"

11. "Bee Dots"

Bee Dots

12. "Stitch"

Stitch

In December 2023, quilters and fabric enthusiasts can anticipate the launch of a fresh line named "Mercantile." With this collection, Lori Holt extends a warm, nostalgic homage to her grandmother Mildred (Millie) and the Herriman Mercantile store that was central to their hometown's heartbeat.

Lori’s journey into quilting began under her grandmother's and five great-aunts' gentle guidance. These memories and teachings not only fostered her skills but intertwined with her fabric and Lori Holt quilt patterns, sewing both heartfelt memories and robust tradition into every stitch.

Lori, along with her siblings and friends, would often pedal their bikes to The Mercantile to pay her grandma a visit and then meticulously select a dime's worth of penny candy. During their visits, they would also relish a bottle of soda from the pop machine nestled in the corner.

Every print within the “Mercantile” collection is meticulously named and brimming with cherished memories, effectively intertwining a playful and richly nostalgic atmosphere into every Lori Holt fabric.

Remaining connected with her community, Lori Holt is active across various social media platforms, sharing her Lori Holt patterns, tutorials, and inspirational thoughts through:

1. Facebook: @beeinmybonnetco

2. Instagram: @beelori1

3. Pinterest: @beelori1

4. YouTube: Bee In My Bonnet

5. Blog/Website: beeinmybonnetco.blogspot.com

In addition to her fabric designs, Lori Holt has authored several Lori Holt books, such as "Farm Girl Vintage" and "Vintage Christmas." These books offer many patterns, instructions, and innovative ideas for various quilting projects, perpetuating both the craft and community of quilting.

Moreover, with every collection, she curates notions like stationary, zipper pulls, ric rac, and aids for quilters, not to mention her “Sew Simple” mylar templates for her Lori Holt quilts.

One sew-along quilt that captures hearts is "Home Town," vividly demonstrating the wholesome and nostalgic aesthetic characteristic of Lori Holt quilts and Lori Holt quilt patterns.

My Favorite sew along quilt is "Home Town" shown below.

Why Hand Quilting?

Hand quilting is a traditional method of sewing the layers of a quilt together by hand, using a needle and thread. It has many advantages for the quilter and the quilt, such as: 

• Hand quilting can relieve stress. It is very relaxing and allows you to do other things. 
• By focusing on your quilting, you can pull together the disparate parts of your life and find a sense of calm. 

So, if you’re feeling overwhelmed or stressed out, consider taking up hand quilting to relax and unwind. You can take your stitching anywhere you go, not restricting you to a machine on a table. You can stitch with friends and family or take the quilt with you when you know you will be sitting around time to work on it. 

Your quilt takes on an heirloom quality when stitched by hand. giving your quilt a personal touch and a unique charm. Heirloom quilts are often considered valuable because of their sentimental and historical significance. They are usually passed down from generation to generation and can be a way of preserving family history and memories. 

You can create customized designs for the quilt for areas that you would like to emphasize. You can also use different threads and even thicker threads such as embroidery threads and Perle cottons. This will give your quilt more color and texture. You can also embellish your quilt with buttons, jewels, or other fabrics and textures. 

Develop a sense of confidence in your quilting as you acquire rhythm and consistency in your stitches. 

If you want to try hand quilting, here are some of the basic supplies and tools you might need: 

• Hand-quilting needles: These are special needles called betweens that are short, sharp, and easy to control. 
• Hand-quilting thread: This is a heavier weight thread that is coated to glide through the layers and prevent fraying. 
• Hand-quilting hoop or frame: This will keep your work taut and make stitching easier. A hoop is portable and can be held in your lap or on a stand. The frame is larger and less mobile but offers more quilting space. 
• Thimble: When it comes to hand quilting, using a thimble is a great way to protect your fingers from the needle and to help you create even stitches. It will also make pushing easier and help create perfect stitches. Thimbles should be worn on your middle finger snugly. This is because when you begin quilting with a thimble, your finger will contract, resulting in the thimble falling off. There are different types of thimbles available on the market, including traditional metal thimbles, open-sided thimbles, leather thimbles, silicone thimbles, and hand-held quilting thimbles. Each type has its own unique features and benefits.

Adding Plants to my Wall Decor

I struggled with the dilemna of what to put on my walls around the television for a long time. It wasn't a large wall and it did not get direct sunlight. I finally decided on some plants in little small glass containers. I fell in love with them and each morning I wake up to see them growing. They make me happy.

These would make wonderful housewarming gifts or hostess gifts for family who love plants. They are very easy to install, almost point and shoot easy. They come with little rocks for the bottom and a custom water bottle to refill the water each week. This is perfect for all my plant starts. In fact I liked them so well I ordered twice that many. I plan to fill the whole wall with greenery. I have had requests from the family on where to find them, so I am including links here. And you know, you could put live flowers in these as well. They would look stunning.Just a win win as far as I am concerned.

Inspiration

Yvette Jones and Marian Gallian

Having our book published this month is not only an honor, it is an homage to the inspiration of mothers.

As we are in the throes of motherhood, little do we know the great influence we can be to those watching and learning from us.

I look at my own mom (whom we dedicated our book to) and her humility, hard work, gentleness and great talent. She was a teacher, but she did not know it. She has inspired me and all of her grandchildren. Mom showed me the joy of hard work and the rewards of patience and the pride of a job well done. Thanks mom.

I also want to say thank you here to my own daughter Yvette who co-authored our book. Without her, this book would not have happened. I do have 7 children and each has their own special talents, but this is about Yvette today. She is an amazing mom, always teaching and sharing with her children and providing enriching activities for them. She is a caring sister, wonderful wife and a loving daughter. Thank you Yvette.

Revisiting a Favorite

What can I say. Sometimes fabrics just inspire me and tell me what quilt they belong in. Such was the case with this great pile of 30's fabrics. I loved them and they made me feel good. I spent some time reviewing my favorite patterns and the one that jumped out at me was Lemonade and Lace from my new book Dresden Carnival. I envisioned these fabrics and that quilt and it was stunning. I decided to go ahead and start that very day. Every day that I  worked on it was a thrill as I enjoyed the fabric and the pattern. Here is my completed quilt.

And the winner is

And the winner is Pam from Springfield Oregon.  She wins a copy of our new book Dresden Carnival.  Her favorite was the Lily Pad quilt.  I love that one too.
Congratulation Pam.

 The Lily Pad quilt is stunning in this color combo, which is the one that gave it it's name.  The fabrics are from Emaily Herrick's "Rustique" line (Michael Miller Fabrics) which I really love.

 We did an alternate version of Lily Pad to show the quilts versatility,  Here it is in Joel Dewberry's fabric Collection Modern Meadow - First Bloom Collection.  It shows off the versatility of the pattern.

This post may contain affiliate links. PinkHippoQuilts.com is a participant in an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to products. Offers may be subject to change without notice. Your cost is the same, but it helps support this site and the fun freebies we share. Offers may be subject to change without notice.

Dresden Carnival Book Review

At last it is my turn to tell you all about our new book, Dresden Carnival.  It is the product of 4 years of hopes, dreams, creativity, hard work and love. And I am very happy to be part of the Stash Family of books.

"So why the Dresden Plate?" you may say. I think it goes back to my childhood. When I was in first grade my dad was serving in the Korean war in 1952. While he was gone my mother made me a quilt of all the left over scraps from making my dresses and hers. That quilt was always with me, but I didn't appreciate it as much then as I do now. I remember her hand stitching each block and then hand quilting the whole quilt. Now the edges are well worn and frayed, but when I need to feel my mother's love surrounding me, I get it out and wrap it around me. Because you CAN feel the love.

The Dresden my Mom made

The Lemonade and Lace is my favorite quilt in the book and I really enjoyed the reverse applique and making the eyelet holes in the border to give it a special and unique touch. I've already made a second variation of the quilt and posted a few pics of my process below:

Now that you've had a chance to see the whole blog hop, tell us which quilt from the book is your favorite for the chance to win your own copy of Dresden Carnival. The winner will be announced on Monday, May 2nd here on the blog. An international winner will receive an ebook, while a US winner will receive a hard copy.

Mon. April 18:

C&T Publishing | http://www.ctpub.com/blog/  

Tues. April 19:

Generation Q Magazine |  http://generationqmagazine.com/

Wed. April 20:

Bryan House Quilts | http://bryanhousequilts.com/

Thurs. April 21:

Michael Miller Fabrics | http://blog.michaelmillerfabrics.com/

Fri. April 22:

Textile Time Travels | http://utahquiltappraiser.blogspot.com/

Mon. April 25:

Andover Fabrics | http://blog.andoverfabrics.com/

Tues. April 26:

Kitchen Table Quilting | http://www.kitchentablequilting.com/

Wed. April 27:

Happy Quilting | http://www.happyquiltingmelissa.com/

Thurs. April 28:

Crazy Old Ladies | http://crazyoldladiesquilts.blogspot.com/

Fri. April 29:

Vetmari | http://www.vetmari.com/blog

Pink Hippo Quilts

This post may contain affiliate links. PinkHippoQuilts.com is a participant in an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to products. Offers may be subject to change without notice. Your cost is the same, but it helps support this site and the fun freebies we share. Offers may be subject to change without notice.

Book Review - Wanderlust quilts

I had the priviledge of meeting the author at Quilt market in Houston last month. Her quilts are beautiful. The cover quilt is very interesting as it can be a cape or a lap quilt and the design fits neatly on your body. I plan on making one myself. Here are some additional pictures I took of her quilts in this book. Enjoy















































This post may contain affiliate links. PinkHippoQuilts.com is a participant in an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to products. Offers may be subject to change without notice. Your cost is the same, but it helps support this site and the fun freebies we share. Offers may be subject to change without notice.

Secret Stuff for 1 out of 20 people

I'm going to start today by sharing what I love most.  I love to quilt and I love to research. I'm not a writer and I don't have a bubbly personality.  Rather I love to create things and I've always wondered if I could start a business making this craft or that.  I used to send my children out canvasing door to door in our neighborhood selling crafts just to see if they were salesworthy projects. ( Is it any  wonder that 4 of my children are now good salespeople. ) 

I was an accountant/CPA  (they come with a dry personality) and I would spend my time costing out my projects.  I wanted to know if there was really any money to be made once I added up my hours to make the project plus all the dollars I spent on craft supplies.

And this is where the research comes in.  I would search for anyone making similar projects and how they made theirs to see how mine compared.  And how much were they selling theirs for!  That was usually the death of my projects.  I wasn't willing to work for 10 cents an hour just to say I sold  something.   

So what is today's research? 

Do you know that 1 out of 20 Americans quilt.   That's 16 million active quilters according to the 2014 research numbers that were released. And they spend $3.76 billion a year on quilting. Whether times are good or bad, quilters quilt.  Quilting is not an optional hobby.

Can you guess how many sewing machines the average quilter owns?  How many do you have?  More on the answer to this later.  

Secret stuff 

I haven't had much to write about for a long time because most of my new quilts were secret.  That is to say, they will be released either when the new fabric comes out or (ring the bells here) when our book is released from C & T Publishers.   Yes, that's right, my daughter, Yvette Marie Jones and I are co-authoring a book thru Stash Quilts.  We are quite excited.  The first draft is almost finished.  

I am working on 2 of the quilts for the book right now.  I can give you a sneak peak at the fabrics I used.  I fell in love with both of them when I saw them.

The first is "Henna" from Makower UK.  

The second is "Modern Folkloric" also by Makower UK.

I also have 3 new patterns being released soon by both Riley Blake Designs and Andover Fabrics - I will show them to you as soon as I can.

I was reading about Indie Pattern Designers on Craftsy today.  I found a great article in Forbes magazine touting the niche that Craftsy is filling for our craft community.  

I do sell patterns on Craftsy as Pink Hippo Quilts and they are doing very well.  I am very happy about that.  Take a look at our Evening Stars pattern.

This post may contain affiliate links. PinkHippoQuilts.com is a participant in an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to products. Offers may be subject to change without notice. Your cost is the same, but it helps support this site and the fun freebies we share. Offers may be subject to change without notice.

Windmills and Wildflowers

The “Field Day” fabric collection by Alison Glass for Andover Fabrics has just hit the stores and we are excited to share our new quilt pattern “Windmills and Wildflowers” featuring Alison’s “Field Day” and “Pearl Bracelets” fabrics. This dynamic quilt has both piecing and appliqué techniques and is suitable for the intermediate quilter. 

Pink Hippo Quilts has been designing quilts for Andover for almost a year, and our quilt “Cadence,” designed with Carol Van Zandt’s “Pop Rox,” has had record sales and will soon be featured in Keepsake Quilting. Our free to use quilt patterns for Andover include “Seaside at Dusk,” “Flower Trail,” “Hey Sugar” and “Cottage Garden.” Please visit PinkHippoQuilts.com www.pinkhippoquilts.com to order “Windmills and Wildflowers” and see our other quilt patterns featuring Andover Fabric collections. We accept both retail and wholesale orders.

This post may contain affiliate links. PinkHippoQuilts.com is a participant in an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to products. Offers may be subject to change without notice. Your cost is the same, but it helps support this site and the fun freebies we share. Offers may be subject to change without notice.

Excited to be featured in Riley Blakes Newsletter today

http://issuu.com/rileyblakedesigns/docs/rbd_mailer_june_2014_consumer

This post may contain affiliate links. PinkHippoQuilts.com is a participant in an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to products. Offers may be subject to change without notice. Your cost is the same, but it helps support this site and the fun freebies we share. Offers may be subject to change without notice.

Cadence featured at Market in the Andover Booth

Thanks to my friend Daryl Cohen of Andover Fabrics for posting a picture of our Cadence Quilt hanging at market (top right).  This is a smaller version of the quilt.  Cadence was made with Pop Rox fabric by Andover Fabrics and Carol Van Zandt.

This post may contain affiliate links. PinkHippoQuilts.com is a participant in an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to products. Offers may be subject to change without notice. Your cost is the same, but it helps support this site and the fun freebies we share. Offers may be subject to change without notice.

New Free Patterns

It was our pleasure to design 2 new free patterns for Andover Designs.

The first pattern is Low Tide with Fabric by Andover Designs and Jane Dixon.  Click on the picture to be taken to the free pattern on the Andover site.

The second pattern is Flower Trail by Andover Fabrics and Lizzy House.  Click on the picture to be taken to the free pattern on the Andover site.

This post may contain affiliate links. PinkHippoQuilts.com is a participant in an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to products. Offers may be subject to change without notice. Your cost is the same, but it helps support this site and the fun freebies we share. Offers may be subject to change without notice.

Posy Patch introduced at Market

Introducting our new quilt Posy Patch designed with Lula Magnolia fabrics by Riley Blake Designs and  Amanda Herring of The Quilted Fish.  You can see it below hanging at market in the Riley Blake Booth.  

 

This post may contain affiliate links. PinkHippoQuilts.com is a participant in an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to products. Offers may be subject to change without notice. Your cost is the same, but it helps support this site and the fun freebies we share. Offers may be subject to change without notice.

Cadence

I received a picture today of our "Cadence" quilt design hanging at a shop in Upstate New York.  I thought i would share the picture here.  I just love this quilt.  I just received my fabric and can't wait to make my own.

The fabric designer of Pop Rox is Carol Van Zandt distributed by Andover Fabrics.  The pattern was designed for Pink Hippo Quilts by by Vetmari.

The pattern is available on our website at http://www.pinkhippoquilts.com/.  Click on the link to be taken there directly.



This post may contain affiliate links. PinkHippoQuilts.com is a participant in an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to products. Offers may be subject to change without notice. Your cost is the same, but it helps support this site and the fun freebies we share. Offers may be subject to change without notice.