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About Becky Goldsmith

I am a quilt designer/teacher/author, a wife/mother/grandmother, and certified yoga instructor who is searching for balance, strength, and happiness in all things.

Countdown to Christmas – DIY Advent Calendar Adventure – Part 2 AND How to Make a DIY Paper Bag

It’s time to get creative and decorate the Advent Calendar bags and tags! Watch the video for a closer look at the supplies you’ll need and tips for decorating with pretty papers, ribbons and trims, sequins, and more.

AND watch the next video to see how to custom make special gift bags from pretty paper for your DIY Advent Calendar! These simple bags are so easy to make—all you need is paper, a ruler, and a glue stick, and an optional bone folder. Measuring instructions are included in the video. Have fun shopping for pretty paper :-).

Need more inspiration? Check out my Pinterest board. And visit me anytime at pieceocake.com.

I’ll be back next week with gift shopping ideas!

Steve’s Birds Show and Tell…

Shoshana Vogel sent me this photo of her finished quilt. She wrote:

I finally finished and photographed my Steve’s Birds quilt and thought you would like to see it. thank you so much, i loved every minute of working on this one. i made it to hang in a specific space in our home so i had to play around with the final layout.

The birds look great and stand out on their blocks. You did a great job of setting them together to fit your space. And I love the texture of the sashing fabric and the way it sets the blocks apart without overpowering them. I don’t know if this quilt will end up in this space, but it does look really good against the dark books. Well done, Shoshana, and thank you for sharing!

Click here if you are interested in the Steve’s Birds patterns.

Countdown to Christmas – DIY Advent Calendar Adventure – Part 1

Advent calendars make the countdown to Christmas so much fun—24 little moments of joy! This year, I’m making six of them, one for each of my favorite people. They’re going to be cute, festive, and filled with small surprises picked just for them. (The photo below shows one of my very recently finished sets of 24 bags with tags.)

Want to make your own? Watch this video for a look at the basic supplies you’ll need to get started.

In upcoming videos, I’ll share ideas for decorating, fun gift fillers, and tips for pulling it all together. Need more inspiration?

Check out my Pinterest board. And visit me anytime at pieceocake.com.

Join me for 4 full days of applique fun!

Doesn’t that sound wonderful? Come spend some time with me in Paducah at the AQS SEAM RETREAT—four relaxing days away from home, all about hand applique. I’ll teach you all the techniques you need (and then some!) to make my brand-new wall quilt, Christmas Cottage Cheer.

This cute quilt has never been published before. It’s made in two layers: the inner globe is appliqued onto a square, and then a floral layer is appliqued on a larger square. Once both layers are complete, we trim them up and stitch the circular center in place. Gold circles make it fancy :-).

This class is great for all skill levels—even if you’re brand new to applique. If you’re interested, click here. And if you have any questions at all, feel free to email me at becky.pieceocake@gmail.com.

Just so you know, my days of in-person teaching are winding down. So if taking a class together in person is on your bucket list, now’s the time to jump in. I’d love to see you there!

For more information on the class, click here.

Steve’s Birds, Show and tell…

Barbara Hotelling sent the photo of her Steve’s Birds quilt top and I want to share it with you all because her birds are just wonderful!

Wanda wrote: I learned a lot while doing this project. I did the smaller version/size of the pattern and many of the pieces were quite small. I really didn’t believe I had the skills to do the appliqué. I don’t think I could have done it without your Appliqué Mastery class and your various u-tube videos. I’ve come to enjoy needle turn appliqué, even though I am extremely slow!  That’s ok – it’s the process, right?  Anyway, while this is far from perfect I am happy with the result.  I just started hand quilting, so it will be a while before the quilt is complete.  I am certainly enjoying the project.  Thanks for everything you do!

Thank you, Wanda, for your kind words and for sharing your quilt! I hope you enjoy hand quilting it and I look forward to seeing it then too. May you have many happy stitches!

Aunt Millie’s Floral Cabins, Show and Tell…

Floral Cabins is the Peace River Quilt Guild 2027 Opportunity Quilt. Learn more about this wonderful quilt below…

This quilt top was donated to our Guild by the husband of former Guild member Connie Deckenbach, after she passed away. Connie had completed the center Log Cabin but the wide borders were unfinished.

Linda Macklin found the perfect pattern for the border & purchased “Aunt Millie’s Garden” by Becky Goldsmith and Linda Jenkins. Once the written permission from Becky Goldsmith, arrived allowing us to use the border pattern Linda, along with JoAnn Burtscher, Pat Moore and Jane Schurr donated all the bright batiks and hand appliquéd the border.

Guild Member Robin Kinley quilted the quilt and Pat Moore did the binding. The label was the finishing touch made by Pam Hunt.

This quilt was entered into the PRQG’s 2025 quilt show and won First Place in the Collaborative Category.

I’m sure Connie is smiling down on her friends and I know whoever wins this opportunity quilt will love and treasure it. Thank you, Linda, for sharing it with us!