A few finishes...

I finished the binding on the new Circle and Spin to the Moon the other day. I think I have a new favorite! I have spent some time this summer working on others in this series, and have two more tops finished...now to get them quilted. I really enjoy making these not so perfect circles, so I have a few more ideas yet to do. 

 Pat brought in her finished Red, White and True QAL quilt top...it's a beauty!

Christine brought her Garden Window Sampler to show us the other night during class.She embroidered some antennae on the butterflies which really adds to the charm.

I taught two sampler classes this week, but was bad about getting pictures, so I will have to make up for it next time.

I got side tracked yesterday. I was planning on getting a quilt quilted...I have to do it in spurts because if I quilt too long my back starts complaining. So my plan was to quilt, sew, quilt, sew. I started out sewing and then just never stopped til I had all of the blocks finished. I couldn't stop! So I ended up quilting a few passes late in the day, but not as much as I hoped. Since I got all of the blocks finished yesterday, I want to put the quilt together today, but will quilt in between. I really will.

I go back to school tomorrow...

Lots of this and that

Diane H

 I'm not sure where this week went, but it flew by. I sewed with friends a couple of days this week...that's always fun. I started the My Little Pretties Sampler Club Wednesday night. Their first block was A Dandy and it really lived up to its name.  As you can see, they all have interesting fabrics and they all got their blocks finished. That's always nice. I went easy on them...no homework this time!

Laural

Cheryl B

Marta

Billie

 It's so much fun to begin a sampler, touch and see all the new fabrics...there's an excitement there that only compares to finishing a quilt.

 Dianne finished her Simply Posies center block during Tuesday sewing.  It's very colorful and pretty. Her group meets Tuesday night, so we'll see the others then.

 Jo, a friend from Florida, sent me a picture of her finished Red, White and True quilt top. She changed the layout a bit, which I love. If you have been working on this quilt, please share your pictures with me...I love to see them. The free patterns are still available on Craftsy for a limited time if you still want to make it.

 You might remember that I started quilting this Circle and Spin to the Moon before I went on retreat. I have been doing so much other sewing since then that I haven't had time to get back to it, so I spent Friday in my quilting room and it's quilted.

 I really love this quilt and am anxious to get it finished. I used a gray/black thread and the Leafage panto. It's one of my favorite pantos for overall effect.

 I'm using the backing fabric below for the binding and it's ready to go. I will probably wait until I go to the store tomorrow for class to sew it on. I like sewing bindings on these larger quilts there as the tables are bigger than any I have at home.

I got the newest quilt in the Circle and Spin series finished the other day, so spent some time yesterday sewing the backing together and prepping the top for quilting. You will notice that this batik is the same design as the other one, just different colors.I haven't decided what I will bind this one with yet. I am going to get it loaded this morning and hopefully get a start on quilting it. I'm really excited about this quilt and will post some pictures when it's finished.

Just Stuff and giveaway time

I met with some friends to sew yesterday and Jane brought her Red, White and True quilt....it's looking so pretty! She sewed it together in rows, rather than blocks, so she has two rows left at the top to do and then she is ready for the borders. It's a lot of fun to see these quilts progressing! You can still make this quilt even if you missed the QAL...the info is all here.

Don't forget to enter the Red, White and True QAL Big Finish Giveaway of a $50 gift card to the Fat Quarter Shop. I don't know about you, but I can always go fabric shopping and shopping at Fat Quarter Shop at any time day or night is even better!

Diana worked on her Highlights sampler in all reds and blacks. It's stunning! Her blocks are all finished, and she worked on her block borders yesterday. 

She also brought us quilting cookies to share! They were as good as they look!

 I came across a cute pouch tutorial at SewCanShe and decided it would be perfect as a camera case. I have one I made many years ago, but the velcro doesn't hold it closed anymore and it is actually too big for the camera I have now. The tutorial is great and it made up pretty quickly. I used fusible interfacing instead of the fusible fleece but otherwise followed her directions to the letter.

 I made one for a friend too! I like the handy clip on the side, easy to clip on and go!

 I am heading to Stitchin' Tree Cottage in Woodbine tomorrow for a quilting retreat with my friends....we go twice a year and I think this is our 11th retreat together. I have some serious packing to do today!

Red, White and True Quilt Along Sewing #6 and the Big Finish Giveaway

Sewing machine engines running? Get ready to finish the Red, White and True quilt by adding some borders. As always, you can download the free PDF at my Craftsy store.

"WOF = Width of Fabric

"Throw/Twin amounts will be listed with Twin in parentheses like this: Throw (Twin).

"Measure your quilt top to determine the correct size to cut each border before you

    cut and sew it on.

Bkgd: Cut  five (seven) 1 ½” WOF strips.

Sew them together lengthwise. Cut two 1 ½” x 36 ½” (1 ½” x 48 ½”) side borders.  Align, pin and sew these to the sides of the quilt. Press towards the border.

Now cut two 1 ½” x 50 ½” (1 ½” x 74 ½”) borders. Align, pin and sew these to the top and bottom of the quilt. Press towards the border.

2^nd Border (Color One Red): Cut  five (seven) 1” WOF strips.

Sew them together lengthwise. Cut two 1” x 38 ½” (1” x 50 ½”) side borders.  Align, pin and sew these to the sides of the quilt. Press towards the border.

Now cut two 1” x 51 ½” (1” x 76 ½”) borders. Align, pin and sew these to the top and bottom of the quilt. Press towards the border.

Red, White and True -used border fabric for the binding

"The width of the final border is different on the throw and twin, so the directions are listed separately below.

Throw Final Border: Cut  five 4” WOF strips.

Sew them together lengthwise. Cut two 4”x 39 ½” side borders.  Align, pin and sew these to the sides of the quilt. Press towards the border.

Now cut two 4” x 58 ½” borders. Align, pin and sew these to the top and bottom of the quilt. Press towards the border.

Twin Final Border: Cut  nine 6” WOF strips.

Sew them together lengthwise. Cut two 6” x 76 ½” side borders.  Align, pin and sew these to the sides of the quilt. Press towards the border.

Now cut two 6” x 87 ½” borders. Align, pin and sew these to the top and bottom of the quilt. Press towards the border.

Get ready, get set....SEW!

Red, White and True Flyboys

As you know, I've been working on the baby quilt version of this quilt, using the same amount of blocks, but changing the coloring on three of them.It is finished as well. I love how it turned out and am excited to see a baby on it!

Red, White and True Flyboys

 I love taking pictures outside, the color always seems so much better in natural lighting.

Red, White and True Flyboys

 I named this version Red, White and True Flyboys...since there are planes, helicopters and rockets on the border fabric. 

The backing fabric has the same coloring as the front, but lots and lots of cars. I made the quilt label out of leftover block parts and pieced it into the backing. I sort of wish I would've used backing fabric in the four corners, but it still looks good...and finished! Finished is good.

The binding on the baby quilt is a stripe I had in my stash...you know how much I love striped bindings. 

As we end this QAL, a few reminders:

All info and links for this QAL are on the Red, White and True page, available through the pages link at the top of my blog. 

Please add pictures of your finished quilts to the Flickr page. That group will stay open, so even if you aren't making it now, you can still add your pictures. Let me know if you do.

Post about your quilt if you blog...even if it's months from now. Let me know if you do.

Get all the free PDFs at my Craftsy Store while they are available!

Are you ready to hear about the really Big Finish Giveaway! I've saved a great prize to end the QAL....a $50 gift card to Fat Quarter Shop! I think most of us can always use a little more fabric, and Fat Quarter shop has the best selection! Visit them to see their great selection and decide what you will get if you win! Good Luck!

                                                         

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Red, White and True progress and other pretties

Pat F

 I had Sampler Clubs Monday and Tuesday nights, and got to see the progress on a few of the local  Red, White and True quilts.Aren't they gorgeous?

Karen

Karen has been posting about hers on her blog, Hazel Dell Quilts. It's even prettier in person.

Gretchen

Gretchen chose more muted reds and blues which gives it an antique look. I can't wait to see more! The final sewing directions will be posted on Monday, along with an really big giveaway...you won't want to miss it.

Rachel S and Jo M. downloaded  pictures of their Red, White and True quilts to the Flickr page...stop over and take a look!

Susan at Hanging by a Needle and Thread changed the layout a bit and it's so cute! Variations make life interesting.

 I finished quilting my daughter's duvet turned quilt Monday, so I took it with me to the store on Tuesday so that I could square the edges on their large table. I hadn't really squared it before I quilted it, as it was pretty straight after cutting it apart. She thought she wanted a neutral binding, but I had this blue striped fabric from my mom's stash (circa 1994) that I liked with it and my daughter agreed.

 I got the binding sewed on one side, still need to finish it.

 It really is pretty, I can see why she wants to keep using it as a quilt.

 Dianne brought her Highlights Sampler 20 to show off. She has one more border to add and the top will be finished.

 Betty brought the Lone Star quilt she started in class last spring. She had our friend, Cindy, do some custom quilting on it and it is gorgeous!

 Laura has the center block finished on her Simply Posies Sampler 21. It's always so much fun to see everyone's progress on my class projects.

I loaded the black/gray Circle and Spin quilt yesterday and quilted one pass. I'm using a black/gray variegated thread and the Leafage panto. I had plans to cut out a new design, but I started tweaking it and ended up on the computer most of the day fiddling with it and another design. So I never did get any cutting done, except for mowing the grass. Maybe today I will get it figured out...

Red, White and True Quilt Along Sewing #5

Are you ready to sew this quilt together? Gather your colorful Axel blocks and let's get started!

 Throw Assembly

Line up your 12 Axel blocks as shown, paying attention to the direction of the Color One and Two stripsets. If you are careful, you should be able to turn your blocks so that the pressed rows within the blocks are already going in opposite directions. If you have a few that don’t, you can repress them."The red stripe is always horizontal in my layout.

Sew the blocks in rows. Press each row in the opposite direction so that the seams will dovetail when you sew the rows together. That's it! You are ready for the borders next week. 

Twin Assembly

Line up your 24 Axel blocks as shown, paying attention to the direction of the Color One and Two stripsets. If you are careful, you should be able to turn your blocks so that the pressed rows within the blocks are already going in opposite directions. If you have a few that don’t, you can repress them. "The red stripe is always horizontal in my layout.

Continue making rows to make the twin size as shown below. 

Sew the blocks in rows. Press each row in the opposite direction so that the seams will dovetail when you sew the rows together.

Ta Da! You are finished! 

Read on for some alternate layouts.  You can get easy to print free PDFs of all the directions on my Craftsy page. Check out the pictures in the Flickr group and add your own! 

I love this as a patriotic quilt, but I knew I would want to make it using different fabrics too. So while I had the blocks on the design wall, I played around with a few other settings for the twelve blocks using just what I had made for the Red White and True quilt.

Throw Alternate #1

There are other layouts possible, so before you sew yours together, play with the blocks a bit in case you want to make it again using different fabrics.

Throw Alternate #2

I'm making a baby quilt with the same amount of blocks, and a fourth coloring of the block. I wanted to use some of the airplane border fabric in my blocks, so substituted the border fabric in the corners of three of my background Axel blocks. Same amount of blocks, but different look. You could also switch the orientation of the red/blue stripes to change the look. There are many possibilities.

My baby quilt version

Twin Alternate #1

There are many more possibilities for the twin since there are many more blocks. What do you see? I've added a coloring page for each size to the PDF, so print it out and see what you can come up with!

Twin Alternate #2