Every quilt has a story, and this one—fittingly called My Happy Place—is especially close to my heart. The fabrics are from Lori Holt with Bee in My Bonnet, “Stitch” and “Bee Backgrounds” collections, and from the very first time I spotted this quilt on Fat Quarter Shop, I knew it was meant for me. I ended up purchasing the fabric from Stitches n’ Giggles, and it turned out to be one of my most joyful quilting journeys.
The sew along began in September 2021 and ran through November of that year. I originally posted my quilt top finish in June 2022 although I had finished the quilt several months prior to that post.
What drew me to My Happy Place was how perfectly it represents me. This quilt has little nods to all the crafts I’ve loved throughout my life—sewing, crocheting, cross-stitching, knitting. Each block holds a piece of my story, stitched into fabric.
Fast forward to August 2025, when I finally loaded the quilt onto Miss Moxie, my longarm machine. Truth be told, this quilt probably deserved custom quilting, but I was too nervous to take that leap. So I settled on an edge-to-edge design. As I watched the machine dance across the fabric, I noticed two appliqué yarn pieces with tiny hearts stitched upside down. At first, I winced—but then I smiled. Every quilt I’ve ever made has little “mistakes,” and I’ve come to realize those quirks make them uniquely mine.
One of the biggest challenges was dealing with the 53 buttons I had lovingly sewn onto the quilt top back in 2022. The buttons helped the quilt blocks tell their stories, but to quilt it, I had to remove every single one—only to reattach them afterward. Reattaching them without the thread showing on the back was an exercise in patience, but in the end, so worth it.
Now that My Happy Place is complete, I can’t help but feel a mix of relief and pride. Each quilt I finish brings me closer to the joy of having all my WIPs completed—and the satisfaction of seeing my “happy places” stitched into fabric is beyond words.
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"Every stitch tells a story!"🧵
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