Every year, my mom and I attend the Mountain Quiltfest in Pigeon Forge, always aiming to learn a new technique. Before my kids were born, we often took classes together, but once I had little ones, we started picking a quilting book or block style to focus on each year.

My grandma loved birds, so the year before her 85th birthday  I told my mom I wanted to learn paper-piecing to make a bird quilt for Grandma. I found a book with paper-pieced bird patterns, and my mom and I each made one bird block a month. I used my twelve blocks to create this special quilt for my Grandma.

My sister in law asked if I would make a quilt for her daughters, if she supplied the fabrics. I said yes. She chose the design on the left for the top of the quilt. I used the leftover fabrics for the back of the quilt. Her daughters loved it!

In 2009, I went to the Paducah Quilt Show with my mom and grandma. While there, my grandma purchased the pattern for these beautiful dragonfly quilt blocks. When we returned to my house, I pulled out some scraps of fabric and made this table topper to test the pattern. I chose aqua blue fabrics on cream to make the dragonfly colors pop. I used a magenta fabric in the corners of the blocks for some contrast. I then did free motion quilting around the dragonflies to make them stand out even more. My grandma loves it and uses it on the back of her chair.