Wednesday, March 22, 2023

Midweek Makers #376

Welcome to Midweek Makers!



I'm certainly keeping busy with client quilts, quilting up these two adorable heart quilts, one for a wall hanging and the other for a lucky little girl.


Even though it's a bit early for patriotic decorations, I'm a sucker for anything red, white, and blue which means I can't resist featuring these!

From Julie's Quilts and Costumes, her finished SAHRR, which looks like a bursting firework! 



From Making a Lather, a patriotic Ohio star block,



and from Alicia Quilts, Big Star Country, a mystery quilt she designed and this one made by her friend Donna.



Now on to this week's party!

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Have fun!

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Wednesday, March 15, 2023

Midweek Makers #375

Welcome to Midweek Makers and Happy early St Patrick's Day to you!



I have another client quilt to share, this gorgeous Homebody Vintage Lace quilt. Cathy chose the pantograph Chantilly in Glide's Peach thread to further the lace theme - both perfect!



There were a ton of finishes seen at last week and so hard to choose my favorites, but here goes. 

From Scrapbox Quilts, shared her Train Wreck,


Melva Loves Scraps created this beautiful mini full of vacation memories,


and Quilting Gail shared her batik Baby Stars quilt.


Now it's your turn to share!

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Have fun!



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Wednesday, March 8, 2023

Midweek Makers #374

Welcome to Midweek Makers!


I have another client quilt to share, though the picture is just of the border. Somehow, I completely forgot to take a picture of the entire quilt! Guess all my brain power went into the quilting, leaving me little after the finish. Or maybe it was a senior moment.

Anyway, my client, Denise, wanted a wavy-vine theme quilted in the border. After quilting the Daydream pantograph in the main body of the quilt, stopping and starting at the border, I redrew a portion of the pantograph to use as a motif in the border, adjusting the spacing to fit the top/bottom and side borders. She was very happy with the results!


Moving on, let's see the shares from last week, specifically, blocks. Making a Lather showed off these three pretties,

Gretchen's Little Corner shared this blue cutie,


and Not Afraid of Color shared an adorable bird block.


Time to share at this week's party!

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Tuesday, March 7, 2023

Rose of Sharon for the March Quilt Block Mania

It's March, and how better to celebrate spring than with Quilt Block Mania's 'floral' theme! And I've got the quilter's favorite, a Rose of Sharon block.

four appliqued pink roses around a center circle

Our 'quilting' garden is bursting with flowers - just look at all the pretty floral themed blocks this month!

Have fun visiting each designer for their block, and please, thank them for creating such beauty!

Chubby Daisy Quilt block by Carolina Moore
Violet by Inquiring Quilter
Dahlia by Inflorescence Designs
Poppy by Boberry Design Co
Summer Poppies
Coronation Bloomd
Rose of Sharon by QuiltFabrication
Irises by Paleofish Designs
Lavender by Palm Creations
Crocuses at Patti's Patchwork
Tulip by Penny Spool Quilts
Improv Pansy at Lovingly, Lissa
Daisy by Appliques Quilts and More
Cone Flower
Summer Flower by Crafty Staci
Mother Nature's Memos
Kaye Collins- Big Blossom
Flower Shop
Star Flower Quilt Block
FPP Flower at The (not so) Dramatic Life
Spring Tulip by Around the Bobbin
Pretty Pot
Happy Sunflowers by Blue Bear Quilts
Poppy by Sallys' Sewing Circle
Reversible Flower Block | Happy Hippie Studio
Primrose Pinwheels by A Piece of Quiet Quilts
Flower power


So, here's the story of my Rose of Sharon block. Many years ago, I entered a block designing contest, sponsored by Electric Quilt, for a future book by Sharon Pederson. I submitted several block designs, and though I didn't have a winning block design in the final quilt, I do have one or two that are in the book, The Rose of Sharon Block Book (affiliate link). Unfortunately, I don't own the book, so I really don't know for sure!


So when the QBM floral theme came up, I searched through my original rose designs and found this one, updating it here and there. As usual for my blocks, fat quarters are all that's needed to make one 12" x 12" finished block.

four pink roses in a circle

For fun, here's how several of these would look in a simple quilt.


My Rose of Sharon block is free until April 3 - just click on the button below to access the file. In downloading the pattern, you agree not to share the file with others, but direct them to the QuiltFabrication.com/Rose of Sharon post - thank you!



Feel free to tell others about QuiltFabrication and become a follower yourself through any or all of the following:
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Happy Quilting!



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Wednesday, March 1, 2023

Midweek Makers #373

Welcome to Midweek Makers - nice to see you!


I have another client share this week, a giant queen size quilt called On Eagles Wings.


This quilt was so big, it was hard to get a decent picture. The pantograph Fresco Feathers, in Glide's Cleopatra, was perfect for this quilt. Mary is so happy to have it finished, as it's been several years in the making. And in case your wondering, these blocks were not foundation pieced - she did a great job stitching!

This week I'm featuring anything red from last week's party. Vicki's Crafts and Quilting created this adorable Sweet On You wall hanging,


Alycia Quilts shared an RSC2023 block, which looks great though it's probably more red than the February pink,


and Not Afraid of Color sent me down memory lane with her Fun with Dick and Jane book.


Thank you for linking up - now on to this week's party!

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Have fun!



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Wednesday, February 22, 2023

Midweek Makers #372

Welcome to Midweek Makers!


This time I'm sharing a client's baby quilt, so sweet and adorable with pastel dots and a pink dot backing too!


And for added sweetness, I quilted Daisy Play in a salmon pink thread, Glide's Tango. Just too adorable!

Now on to the party. This week, the focus is on blocks. Making a Lather shared these blocks which are being retired to the UFO closet,


My Bijou Life has more Bear Claw blocks made,


and Eagle's Wings Quilts is done making scrappy blocks.


Let's get down to this week's party!

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Friday, February 17, 2023

T-Shirt Quilt Hints and Tips #2

I just finished up another client t-shirt quilt, this time from soccer jerseys. Certainly not the traditional 't-shirt', as these jerseys are polyester, requiring a bit more attention. So I thought I'd share some new hints and tips when making a t-shirt quilt.



If you notice, this is T-Shirt Quilts Hints and Tips #2. I've covered a lot of ground in a previous post, T-Shirt Hints and Tips, on how to fuse and design with t-shirts. This tutorial covers additional hints and tips when the t-shirts are polyester or have raglan sleeves.

#1: be aware of fiber content

Soccer jerseys are made from polyester, which makes them durable, stretchy, and virtually wrinkle free. Being a man-made fiber, polyester can melt under high heat. Cotton, on the other hand, loves heat!

As with any knitted fabric for a quilt, stabilization is a must! But if the fabric is polyester, it means turning down the iron heat to fuse the stabilizer. It may take a bit longer, or several passes, but it will fuse. Just be patient!


#2: use a lightweight or sheerweight fusible interfacing

Using a lightweight fusible stabilizer, such as Pellon 906F Sheerweight, is a great choice. It keeps the jersey from stretching without adding a lot of additional weight. T-shirts are already heavy enough, so no need to add more!


#3: use a teflon or silicone pressing sheet

This is super important! Applying heat to a design printed on the t-shirt can cause the design to stick to the ironing board or iron, and even peal off. To avoid that, place a teflon or silicone pressing sheet under the t-shirt, with the printed/painted side of the shirt against the pressing sheet. Then fuse away with the lightweight interfacing on top.

I've always used a teflon pressing sheet, like this one, (affiliate link)


and have discovered a new silicone version to try out (affiliate link). This one has an additional pressing sheet for the top, to make a sandwich. That's not necessary here as a damp press cloth on top of the lightweight interfacing is required for proper fusing.


Of course, these pressing sheets are not just for t-shirt quilts - they're main use is for creating a complete fusible applique, from all the parts, ready for fusing to a quilt block.


#4: it's okay to include parts of sleeves and necklines

Sleeves and necklines are usually not included in a t-shirt block. Typically, it's just the printed image on the t-shirt that's used in a quilt. But sometimes, especially if no additional sashing is used to increase the size of the quilt, it's necessary to include sleeves and necklines to bring the block up to size.

I decided to use as much of the t-shirts/jerseys as possible, cutting 15.5" x 15.5" blocks. That meant I had to use portions of the raglan sleeves and necklines. Neither was an issue, and both added interest to the blocks.



Here's the trick for dealing with the neckline opening. Before cutting the t-shirt/jersey to size, I filled the open neck area with cut-to-fit pieces (meaning with a curve or a V) from the remaining sleeves or shirt bottoms. These pieces where put into position at the neckline, with a portion extending just past the ribbing seam. 


Then the lightweight fusible interfacing is applied over all.


To secure everything, a bit of stitching in the ribbing seam holds all parts together. And if desired, a bit of stitching at the top of the ribbing (original neckline opening), to hold down the neckline. Once all that's done, then the t-shirt/jersey can be cut to the block size needed.


#5: pin blocks together

When all the fusing, cutting, and designing is done, it's time to assemble the blocks into rows. With cotton t-shirts, a couple pins are all that's needed to hold things together. But polyester can be slippery, so use plenty of pins!

Also, change your needle to one that can sew knits. A ballpoint or stretch needle is a necessity to eliminate skipped stitches.

Fortunately, all the sewing machine has to deal with is the not-so-slippery stabilizer up against the feed dogs and the sewing foot. And with the right needle, plenty of pins, and the stabilizer, there should be very little slippage, and very little stretch. Row assembly becomes easy-peasy!


#6: use a lightweight cotton batting

Knits of any fiber content are thicker and heavier than quilting cotton. Add in the stabilizer, though lightweight, which contributes even more weight. Unless the goal is to have a heavy quilt to protect against freezing weather, a thin or lightweight cotton batting works beautifully in a t-shirt/jersey quilt. 

 

#7: use a more open quilting design

For t-shirt quilts that are made entirely of t-shirts and no other cotton fabric, a simple, open quilting design is all that's necessary. Quilt densely enough to hold the three layers together, making for a soft, love-to-snuggle-under quilt!



Happy Quilting!



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Wednesday, February 15, 2023

Midweek Makers #371

Welcome to another week of Midweek Makers!


My share is the finished t-shirt quilt made from soccer jerseys. 


Now, I'll admit, when my client, Denise, handed over the jerseys, my first thought was that this might be a boring quilt because all the jerseys were essentially the same. Same team, same number. And a lot of black and white.

Since the shirts had raglan sleeves, I was able to pull that into the design, along with using portions of the necklines, usually a no-no. But both of those additions added nicely to to make this a more interesting quilt. And a t-shirt tut for dealing with polyester, necklines, and raglan sleeves, is coming this Friday - don't miss it!


Moving on, how about these quilts from last week's party?

Karen's Quilting shared with us this interesting Snail's Trail top,


Not Afraid of Color shared her progress on the 2023 SAHRR, adding some stars,


and Bell Creek Quilts showed off a patriotic signature quilt.



Now it's your turn - come share what you're working on!
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Have fun!



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