Happy Monday morning! Let’s talk about quilting & sewing for the Emerald Challenge. Because it is Monday & I think that is an excellent way to start the week.

1. There are 45 days until the challenge deadline (October 1st). That is plenty of time for a non-quilt project (purse, table runner, skirt, overnight bag, sewing machine cover).

2. We want to encourage you to think of a project for the online division! If you submit your project to the online division, you don’t have to take it to the store for viewing/voting because that will all take place right here – online & on this blog! Most importantly, the “people’s choice” winner of the online division is a $25 gift card to Material Girl.

In case you need a refresher, here is a link to the Rules & the Entry Form! You can download and print them from here.

How do I submit an entry online? 

It’s easy. Just email me (sierra@sierrashea.com) with the following information:

• 2 photos of your project
• Who was your project pieced by? (that would be you!)
• Who was your project quilted by? (that could be anyone!)
• What was the name of the pattern? (if you made it up, tells us. That’s awesome!)
• Additional comments on your projects (up to 75 words).

If you have any questions, please comment below or ask Meredith at the Material Girl Quilt Shop. She has several ideas for quick projects. If you need help coming up with an idea, stop by the store! Or, view my Pinterest board, it has small sewing projects and tutorials.

How will the online contest work?

On October 1st (the deadline) Meredith will be busy setting up her shop to display emerald quilts & projects (and maybe even wine!) for in-store viewing and voting. Meanwhile, I’ll be up here in South Dakota making up a post for the online division on my computer. The post will include the photos & information on the projects. I will not include the name of the contestants. Each project will instead be given a number. Then, from October 2nd until October 4th ANYONE can “stop by” the blog and vote for their favorite project by commenting. For example, it will be very similar to earlier this spring when I held the photo contest on the blog to choose Schyler’s best photo for the fair. Click here or here to see examples.

Here’s some emerald inspiration for you. This came out of Martha Stuart’s Real Simple magazine! 

Thanks for reading! This is our first time around with the contest, so it’s all very new for everyone. Please let me know if you have any questions!

Sierra