Sure, squares are interesting and easy. So, why not? If you are considering making a quilt, any one of these would be a great way to begin. How, you ask? 1. Start with a square of fabric and sew it to another square. Keep adding squares to form a row until you are satisfied that the row is long enough. Thirty inches is a good start, but you can certainly make it any length you want. 2. Make several rows. If you have a square quilt in mind (equal length and width) count the squares in the first row and make that many rows. 3. Now you're ready to begin stitching the rows together. Sew two rows together matching up the squares as you go. 4. Keep going till all the rows are in place. Really, it's that simple. One of the great reasons to use simple squares is that you can use a different fabric for each square or just a few fabrics for the entire quilt. Thanks for stopping by. Please say hello. Only Google+ members can leave a comment, BUT you can reply if you're not affiliated with G+.....just click the reply button. Please leave your email address or blog address--I'll shoot back a "hey."
The modern quilt craze has hit Japan ! Here are some spectacular results from Japanese quilt artists. When the Sunset Crowns Mt. Fuji in ...
Quilters, feast your eyes on a gallery of stunning quilts from the 2017 Pacific International Quilt Festival. #PIQF2017, #quiltshow
I know I walked the entire QuiltCon show this year, but even with two more days, I’m not sure I would have been able to take in all of the quilts in the way that they truly deserved. The qual…
Quilts! Sewing! Books! Life!
Quilts came to Japan at the end of 1970 as a new hobby from America. Since then, the Japanese quilters have developed their own style using...
Sweet Surrender by Sue Cody, pieced by Beth and quilted by Judi Madsen
Spotlight at 40 Quilt
We have begun our ambitious crazy quilting class with seven lovely and talented ladies. As we mentioned in a previous post, Crazy Quilting—Start to Finish, we have created a six-month crazy quilting class that teaches our students how to piece their blocks, stitch and embellish them, and finally put them together in the format of their choice. Taking photos of the class models for reference All our ladies had been eagerly awaiting this class and were ready to get started. Each student was instructed to bring at least 24 different fabrics, which could include cottons, silks, satins, or any other fabric they liked. We did have some fancy fabrics for sale to help their collection, but some of our ladies had been collecting fabrics over time, just for a future crazy quilt. A rainbow assortment of silks, satins, and velvets Many of these fabrics were sourced from thrift stores. One student's collection Each lady received four different patterns, as well as a fabric Little Red Riding Hood vintage postcard print to use as a center for one of their blocks. Most of the patterns were put together the same way, by having a center piece and then sewing each section around that center piece. We had the ladies bring in four 9" squares of flannel to be used as a base for the block, and Teri demonstrated how to construct the block with the flannel base. The flannel base provides a great support for the future block embroidery, and it also helps manage some of those slippery fabrics. The first piece is centered on the base. The second piece attached. As each piece is added, the excess underneath is trimmed away. Ready for embroidery After the demonstration, the ladies got to it and began constructing their blocks. Getting ready to choose fabrics Going around the center block with the next piece Checking if this fabric is a good fit This block is ready to be trimmed to its finished size. Such beautiful, bright colors We designed the patterns to be 8.5" finished, so having 9" base allowed for a little wiggle room as we pieced. An 8.5" square ruler was used to bring the pieced blocks down to their finished size. Trimmed and ready to go After the block was finished, the ladies basted around all four sides, and their blocks are ready for next month's embroidery session. Some of our students' finished blocks: The silver fabric in this block is a lacy overlay. Most of these fabrics were found at local thrift stores. As an unexpected treat, one of our students brought in some antique crazy quilt blocks that she had purchased. The blocks were in various stages of completion, absolutely beautiful, and she has more of them to bring to the next session. We can't wait to see them, and we will be sure to share them with you as well. Such lovely embroidery This unfinished, basted block is mostly made of silk. Another block a little further along in regard to the stitching Everyone was able to complete one block and will have the other three ready for our February meeting, where we will be focusing on motif selection, transferring design, and stitching the motifs. Thank you for joining us as we build these crazy quilts, and please come back to see the outcome of our next session.
Explore Old Chum's 2804 photos on Flickr!
Happy New Year! Despite the long pause in postings, I did actually complete a few more sewing projects in 2014. January 2014 - Drawstring book bags for Allie and Cate's birthdays February 2014 - Robert Hughes baby quilt (I really need to consider taking a "how to photograph your quilts" workshop:) quilted with stars and spirals May 2014 - Amy Becker's HS graduation lap quilt Amy picked out fabrics at Fabric Depot during her Portland visit, Christmas 2013. I supplemented with a few fabrics I found at The Stitching Post and at Kapaia Stitchery during a trip to Kauai (always looking for an excuse to fabric shop). The blue batik with butterflies was the first fabric Amy chose. Other colors were built around that. quilted with vining flowers and leaves Now Amy has this nice warm lap quilt - perfect for her college years at the University of Arizona in Tucson. She assures me that it does get cold there, especially when the air conditioner is running. November 2014 - New curtains and duvet set for the Sisters house After 20 years, Stefanie and I decided it was time for a change in the upstairs bedroom in our Sisters house. We found some curtain fabric at IKEA (seen below in the medium-sized pillows). After a futile search for a coordinating duvet cover I decided we just needed to make our own. Not as cheap, but so much more fun! On the bed in Anna's old room at our house (tempted to keep it here, but...) Had to add a border piece as it was just a bit too small. Found a fun coordinating fabric at The Stitching' Post. Shams and throw pillows. The quilting in the shams mimics the print in the curtain fabric. All set up in its new home. On to 2015... January 2015 - Jeanne's lap quilt This quilt was made for my good friend and fellow swimmer, Jeanne. She will be out of the water for a bit, recuperating from surgery, so of course this called for a quilt! My daughter, Anna, suggested the colors - perfect for a swimmer. Another swimmer friend, Jenn, joined me for a shopping trip to Fabric Depot and also helped with part of the sewing. Sandi and Jeanne The design incorporates over 60 small blocks with names of some of Jeanne's friends. Next Up???? cityscape art quilt based on a photo of Roussillon, France art quilt based on our Croatia travels last September flower/plant themed art quilt for the Hardy Plant Society Hortlandia Plant Sale in April hopefully taking Hilde Morin's Bowl Art class
Check out how I custom quilted Kim Diehl's Hope and Harmony quilt, which is in her new Simple Double-Dipped Quilts book. I share which rulers I used, the batting, thread color, and my quilting process for the background design.
Earlier this year, some of our Tasmanian MQG members got together at one of our sewing days and started putting blocks together for our raff...
I don't know if I've told you before, but I learned how to quilt while I lived in Japan in 2002. Japanese housewife culture, including their approach to quilting, has always fascenated me. I should have been an anthropologist and studied that more intensely, I know, but I got caught up in trying to communicate and became an ESL teacher instead. Anyway.. I discovered flickr in 2006 and the quilts I saw there lead me to start blogging about quilting. Tonight I want to share a handful of my favorite quilt photos from the Tokyo International Quilt festivals held each year in January. One year I'll make it there myself, but until then, I will live vicariously through Jennifer and Jan. Be*mused Tokyo Quilt Fest 2011 Set Be*mused Tokyo Quilt Fest 2010 Set Be*mused Tokyo Quilt Fest 2009 Set Movinghands Tokyo Quilt Fest 2008 Set Movinghands Tokyo Quilt Fest 2007 Set Movinghands Tokyo Quilt Fest 2006 Set (one of my all-time favorites is the 9th quilt in the set-- the blue one) All photos in this post were taken by Jan of Be*mused, used with permission. (*I hate to post quilt photos without information about the makers, but sadly most of these pics don't include any. Apparently the quilter info is only printed in Japanese at the show. If you have any information for any of these quilts, please comment and I will give them proper credit.)
Quilters, feast your eyes on a gallery of stunning quilts from the 2017 Pacific International Quilt Festival. #PIQF2017, #quiltshow
Never make the mistake of forgetting these 4 important things to include when you gift a quilt! You'll be so glad that you did #4!!
Our Kantha stitch quilt upcycles old textiles with vibrant embroidery and rich textures. Learn how to make Kantha quilt and help reduce waste with Gathered
This quilt made its way to me from Arizona. A gal is teaching this pattern (a Jacqueline de Jonge pattern) in a class at a community college and asked me to quilt it after seeing an article I wrote…
In Mexico, and increasingly in the U.S., the Day of the Dead ( Dia de los Muertos ) is celebrated on November 1st and 2nd. The holiday is t...
peggydolane: Carol Taylor, Moonglow
Customer Quilts Quilt by Noelle Powers Quilt by Noelle Powers Quilt by Heather Bostic Quilt by Jenny Redwig Quilt by Jenny Redwig Quilt by Julianna Gasiorowska Quilt by Julianna Gasiorowska Quilt by Michelle @Ilikeorangetoo Quilt by Penny Layman Quilt by Cindy Wiens Quilt by Cindy Wiens Customer Quilt Quilt by Angela Pingel Quilt by Katie Pedersen Quilt by Katie Pedersen Quilt by Krista Fleckenstein Quilt by Krista Fleckenstein Quilt by Sonja Callaghan Quilt by Sonja Callaghan Quilt by Jenny Redwig Quilt by Krista Fleckensten Quilt by Alison Robins Amanda's Value Quilt Personal Quilts
This is a quilt series inspired by tree bark. Each quilt represents a differnt type of tree bark. Click through to see which one you like.
This is Ulrike’s stunning New York Beauty quilt and she said it took her 10 years to complete this top! It is made with all batik fabrics and batik backing. The blocks and border were all paper pieced and I love the blocks put on an angle creating stars in the sashing. The whole quilt is stitched in the ditch which took the most work and then I rolled it back and added the quilting designs. I did the same feather in the outer curve in all the blocks, added pebbles to some of the arcs and loops to others. It took me a while to figure out what to quilt in the sashing but finally came up with the petal curl design the fit in the space nicely. I have lots of pictures to share! The batting is Quilters Dream Blend and the threads are So Fine. When I posted a picture of the quilt top last week I had a lot of questions about stitch in the ditch and what threads so here is what I used. So Fine #456 is the magic gray green that I used on all the blocks, it blended very well with all the colors. I matched thread with the two purples in the sashing for that design element as I wanted the thread to blend in on the sashing. I also used a light beige for SID around the outer border spikes. When I stitch in the ditch I don’t always stitch in the ditch side. Depending on the thread I’m using and the final look I’m going for I sometimes will stitch on the high side of the ditch to keep the thread in the same color fabric as the thread. I did this in the outer border in the light beige fabrics as I wanted the colour spikes to really pop! But in the blocks themselves I just stitched on the low side of the ditch as I was quilting across so many colors it didn’t matter what color of fabric I was stitching in. Here is a better look at the thread I used. There were a few spots on the blocks where I switched to the light beige thread as the blocks had a very light background. And in these blocks I stitch on the high and low side so I stayed in the light fabric like I did in the outer border. So for me there is no hard fast rule about stitching in the ditch, I do what looks right to my eye. Also in this next picture you can see where I strayed from the side I was on and stitched in the darker colour, this happens and I don’t panic about it because when you look at the quilt as a whole you never see that! There were only a few times on this quilt where I was not happy with my stitching and picked out a line or two. So don’t stress too much when your stitching in the ditch, just take your time and don’t be over critical of it.
Preprinted panels are the perfect material for a first quilt, a quick quilt or a quilt that will get a lot of use, like a baby quilt. They are fast to construct and uncomplicated in design.
Combine House, Tree, Sawtooth Star, 54-40 or Fight, and Rising Star blocks with improvisational piecing to make your own Star Rise in the Global Village quilt. Pattern includes cutting and sewing directions for two types of houses, three types of tree, and five types of stars, along with placement diagrams for four quilt sizes: Large (83" x 95"), lap quilt (50" x 60"), wallhanging (30" x 36") and pillow (15" square). The original used 14 fat quarters (FQ) Bali batiks, 16 FQ Japanese prints, 14 FQ African prints, 10 FQ Indian block prints, and 5 FQ American prints to illustrate the idea of a global village. Information on sourcing world fabrics is included, or use your favorite fabrics. This is fun! Make it yourself, or make it as a group! Makes a great fund-raiser!
This patch of coneflowers is on one our morning walk routes....and I've been watching it progress. I absolutely love that all the stages of the blooms that are on display....there is something about the spindly way these flowers begin that make them look a little cartoony and whimsical. Christine let me know that the inspiration photo for my "swoop of color" project was done by Ellen Lindner. Christine and I took an online fabric collage class from Ellen several years ago...and I've been following her ever since. She's one of my inspiration artists. http://adventurequilter.com/ You can read about my "Sticky Fingers" class project here: http://joyfulputtering.blogspot.com/search/label/glued%20fabric%20collage It makes perfect sense that this is her work. It's called Florida Native #2 and you can read about it here on Ellen's blog. http://adventurequilter.com/quilt-gallery/around-the-neighborhood-gallery-partial/florida-native-2/ Although I'm practicing the skills from Isobel's class....as I look at Ellen's imagine again I love the simplicity of it. I'll go simple next time....I certainly didn't this time. I prepared my background as directed in Isobel's class. I stitched a "stem" line as a reference and fused down some Kaffe Fassett stripes to give me some guidelines for petal placement. Then I started adding fabric pieces.... ...and decorative machine stitches. I was reminded that contrasting colors are better. The purple stitching stands out...but the green under the yellow petal gets lost. This is why I practice. Time for fibers.... ...and hand stitching. This is where I stopped....and probably not in time. There are things I like....and things I would do differently next time. I will likely do another piece inspired by Ellen's organic leaf shape....but keep it WAY more simple....leave more breathing space and do less stitching and embellishing. But It's all a learning curve....and that's how I roll. Practice, practice, practice. It's time to move on. The day was way too bright to take photos....so the coloring is yellowed and off....and I know I say this all the time...but it does look better in person.
knick knacks & ric rac » Blog Archive » crazy quilt stitches
On Saturday, June 2, we attended the Wine Country Quilt Show , sponsored by the local quilt guilds from Petaluma, Sonoma and Santa Rosa, C...
quilting blog
UPDATED JULY 6, 2022 — CLICK HERE TO SEE MY CRUMB PIECING TUTORIAL TO LEARN HOW I SELECT FABRICS AND SEW MY CRUMB BLOCKS. INCLUDES A VIDEO TUTORIAL. A little over a week ago on February 22 I …
Awesome quilting by Michele Turner
Happy St. Patrick's Day (17 March!) The holiday commemorates Saint Patrick , the primary patron saint of Ireland, and celebrates the heritag...
The end of the year is coming fast, so I have been evaluating my Rainbow Scrap Challenge quilts to determine which I want to finish and which I want to carry into next year. One of the RSC quilts I have been working on is the simple color block quilt made with 2.5" squares. For October, I made a couple brown blocks. I knew I needed some red blocks - so I went ahead and finished up three from squares that I had already cut and were in my stash. A couple of yellow blocks were needed too. At this point, I knew I was pretty close to having enough blocks to finish the quilt. When I moved the blocks from my quilting studio to my sewing room, I knew I needed more green blocks so I went ahead and made a few of them. So here is what I have so far. I still need to sew up two more blocks and adjust the layout a bit. I think I need another dark blue and maybe a pink. Hmmm.....What do you think? ********************************************* It is now your turn to share what you are making with scraps. Here are the details for linking up: This linky party is for any scrappy project - It can be in-process or a finished piece. You can link up your blog post (not your homepage please) or Instagram photo from the past week that features your use of scraps. If you are linking to a blog post, I ask that you link back to my blog somewhere in your post. So if you are writing about scraps, just get into the habit of including a link as there will be a linky party available every week! If you are using Instagram, please use the hashtag #ohscrap. This is a party so remember to socialize and comment on the posts of others. Following my blog is not necessary but it sure would be great if you do! You are invited to the Inlinkz link party! Click here to enter Linking Up: Love Laugh Quilt (Monday Making) Em's ScrapBag (Moving it Forward) So Scrappy for RSC19
Neroli Henderson is an Australian textile artist living in St Kilda, Melbourne. Often described as an Artivist she creates feminist, political and other
Learn the art of creating compelling tree quilts with a few techniques and great fabric choices. Rachel Derstine will guide you.
~The winner of the 2013 book, Shots and Stripes: 24 New Projects Made with Shot Cottons and Striped Fabrics is Jan Hutchison , who said: ...
Create impressive geometric quilting patterns with these straight line quilting designs and foolproof walking foot quilting designs.
I went to a quilt show here in NJ with some of the ladies in my quilt class. As always it was inspiring and a just a bit intimidating... These are some of my favorites: (Dad's Plaids by Elsie Campbell)...
