Are you signed up for our FREE bi-weekly eNewsletter, McQ News? If so, then you likely entered our latest eNewsletter-exclusive contest for 1 of 3 huge Scrappy Grab Bags of Fabric, each containing over 8 yards of assorted famous-manufacturer prints!

Congratulations to our 3 winners: Carol Pahl of St. Ansgar, Iowa, Phyllis Laurion of Bonner Springs, Kansas, and Mary Ferreter of Racine, Minnesota.

If you’re not already signed up, then click here to sign up for our FREE bi-weekly eNewsletter, McQ News. It’s fast and easy – just type in your email address, that’s it! You’ll also instantly receive access to 5 FREE eBooks of exclusive McCall’s Quilting and McCall’s Quick Quilts quilt patterns:

• Dressed to the Nines – Nine Patch Quilting Patterns
• Patriotic Quilts & Bonus Projects – Patriotic Quilting Patterns
• Fast, Easy Bed-Size Quilts – Easy Quilting Patterns
• Wedding Quilts
• One Block Wonders – One Block Quilting Patterns

Every McQ News eNewsletter features tips, project ideas, special offers, and links to enter eNewsletter-exclusive contests. Don’t miss out on the fun!

Don’t miss out – today (January 2) is the last day to enter our Quilt Happier Giveaway!

Hopefully, you did not miss the Quilt Happier in 2012 article featured in McCall’s Quilting January/February 2012 issue for terrific tips on how to quilt happier in 2012. But even if you did, there’s still time to enter the contest!

Three quilters will each win a McCall’s Quilting blank journal, plus 2 different packs of 6 Troy Riverwoods Modern Textures fat quarters in a rainbow of colors. Winners will be randomly selected from entries and notified tomorrow (January 3).

Congratulations to our 3 winners: Ruth Reynolds of Lawrence, Michigan, Jenny Sloan of Apex, North Carolina, and Crystal Smith of North Port, Florida.

Taking a look at this cover, it’s hard to believe that today is officially the first day of winter! Nonetheless, many of us will soon be looking forward to spring and planning our quilting and sewing projects for that “gentler season”.

This issue is full of fast and fun projects that any quilter can make, helping to get 2012 off to a great start. Take a look at the bright, colorful corduroy quilt below.

Deliciously Mod

Here’s a peek at a fresh, easy baby quilt. (Tip: we’ve got a FREE web bonus pattern for this quilt in an alternate gray/turquoise version!)

Baby on the Go

Maybe your taste is more traditional…

Nesting Boxes

Starlit Garden

Or you’re looking for a super-fast home decór accent for a few of your favorite prints…

Frosty Morning

We’re starting a new series of fast, seasonal banners.

Through the Seasons - Winter

Click here for a whimsical Easter-preview bunny banner, or here if you’re a cat-lover!

We’ll teach you slick tricks for rickrack accents, matching stripes (including a web bonus video demonstration), and no-fail appliqué.  Don’t miss this issue with 14 easy, original quilt projects! Click here to preview every quilt featured in McCall’s Quick Quilts February/March 2012.

I had quite a baking adventure last weekend. I went searching online for a new cookie recipe, hoping to find something quilter-appropriate since the point was to make gift boxes for a couple of my coworkers. I found instructions for Checkerboard Cookies on the Americas Test Kitchen website.

I’d never made anything like them before, but decided to get even fancier and make Nine-Patch Cookies.

Making the vanilla and chocolate doughs went well, and slicing the dough logs up and realigning them was totally fun…no seam allowances to worry about with cookies! Here’s my cookie log, being sliced for baking:

Next, on to the parchment-paper-covered cookie sheet:

They looked cute even before they were baked!

Here they are, fresh from the oven. Not bad for my first attempt!

So here’s my question for you: What holiday cookies are you baking up this year? Happy snacking, and a Merry Christmas to all.

Isn’t this just the sweetest vintage quilt? I think it looks surprisingly modern, with its bright cheery colors and simple lines. Chevron blocks finish at 8″ square, and the finished quilt is 72½″ x 80½″. Click here for the FREE Forties Chevron quilt pattern.

What creative choice of fabrics might you use?  Enjoy your weekend!

One of my daughters just returned from a winter class in Vienna, Austria. Here are a few photos you might enjoy.

Courtyard at University of Vienna

Streets of Vienna decorated for Christmas

Colorful candles at an outdoor Christmas Market

Quilt shop window

Quilt Shop window

And last, but not least, an interesting peek into a candy shop window decorated for Christmas.

Chocolate Krampaus

Krampaus, I learned, is the evil sidekick of Santa Claus, popular in Vienna, and this representation is made of chocolate. I’m thinking charcoal in the stocking is looking pretty good compared to this guy. (Kinda gives a whole new meaning to thinking of chocolate as being “evil”!)

Those of you who followed our 2010 McCall’s Quilt Design Star™ contest may remember John Kubiniec. We are featuring one of John’s vibrant wall quilt designs, Amish Glow, in our McCall’s Quilting January/February 2012 issue.

You can learn more about John and see some additional detail photos of this striking quilt on his blog, Big Rig Quilting. Click on over to John’s blog & say hello!

We’re also offering an exclusive kit for this quilt, featuring all the Robert Kaufman Kona solids for the top and binding. Backing fabric is available, as well. In addition, we’re offering a FREE lap-size version of the Amish Glow quilt pattern as a Web Bonus on our website!

Click here or on image above to visit our McCall’s Quilting Facebook page, and enter to win one of these Moda fat-quarter packs of bright Christmas fabrics! (Only one entry per person is allowed. Please also note that all Facebook features are not available within mobile apps or on mobile websites – the full Facebook website must be accesssed to enter contests.)

Don’t miss out, as this is the last day to enter our Facebook-exclusive contest! Contest is open through midnight tonight, December 12, 2011. 4 winners will be selected and notified by email tomorrow.

Here’s how to enter:

Go to the McCall’s Quilting Facebook page and Log In to your Facebook account.Click the  McCall’s Quilting “Like” button on our Facebook page. (Button will only appear if you do not “Like” us already! If you are already one of our Facebook fans, skip to the next step.)

Click the “Contests” button on the left side of the page to enter the contest.Thanks for playing along, and I hope you are enjoying your holiday season!

Contest is over – congratulations to the 4 winners: Jane Underwood of Dallas, Texas, Dawn Hollingsworth of Caldwell, Idaho, Chastity Burton of Adel, Georgia, and Jenelle Boxberger of Russell, Kansas. Thanks for playing, everyone!

Today I’m highlighting just one of the fabulous scrap-quilt patterns from our newest Special Issue, America Loves Scrap Quilts 2011. As you may know, this Special Issue is only available from quilt shops, newsstands, or from our online Quilt and Sew Shop.

Susan Purney Mark designed this lovely table runner (above) and set of place mats (below) titled Sunday Brunch. (The complete patterns for both are included in America Loves Scrap Quilts 2011.)

Susan is the author of the book Accent on Angles – Easy Strip Set Quilts, published by Martingale & Co./That Patchwork Place. She shared a few thoughts with us about her technique:

“My basic technique for a Shattered Angles quilt is what I call “stack, slash, shuffle and sew”. It’s easy to work through the steps: cut fabric is stacked, slashed or cut at intervals; the stacks are shuffled so that the fabric order in each stack is changed and the fabrics are sewn back together with narrow strips added for contrast.
I’ve never met a fabric that didn’t work for this technique! It’s perfect for fat quarters, jelly rolls, pre printed panels and scraps. Shattered Angles is a perfect Stash Buster!”

Featured in Accent on Angles - Easy Strip Set Quilts book

Featured in Accent on Angles - Easy Strip Set Quilts book

If you’d like to learn more about Susan and her quilt designs, please hop on over to her blog by clicking here. Susan is also offering a 10% discount on her Accent on Angles – Easy Strip Set Quilts book for our readers when you enter the code QC11 during checkout at FabricImagery.com. Coupon expires December 31, 2011.