ModBlossom QAL – Week #1 – Gather Your Materials & Your Pattern

Hello!  And welcome to the ‘first week’ of our ninth Colourwerx QAL (quilt along) where we’ll be making these large 18″ bodacious blossom blocks called “ModBlossom”. This is a super fun quilt to make, and it’s a great project to scour your stash for fat quarters and scraps. We’ll also be learning a litlle curved piecing and fine tune our 1/4″ seam piecing along the way!

JOIN THE COLOURWERX FACEBOOK GROUP: First, I want to thank you so much for joining us here.   If you want to meet with other Colourwerx quilty friends and aren’t yet a member of our Facebook group, I  invite you to join our free QAL Facebook group where you can ask questions, share your progress and of course, post pictures of your finished projects so everyone can share in the fun!  Also feel free to share this invite and any other QAL news with quilty buddies and invite them to join along in the fun!

JOIN THE COLOURWERX QUILTALONG FACEBOOK GROUP HERE

COMPANION VIDEOS: Each week of the quiltalong, also look for a companion video to be posted within the blog post like this one below.  If you’d like to receive alerts to when the videos are posted and other neat tutorials and replays of our Fab Friday Live broadcasts, then subscribe to our Colourwerx YouTube channel right here!

If you’d like to view this week’s companion video to Week #1 of the ModBlossom QAL, view it here:

So this is Week#1 of the ModBlossom QAL – 
First let’s review our super easy going 5-week schedule!
• Week 1 (this week) we’ll gather our pattern and our fabrics together…
• Week 2 is all about precutting our fat quarters and background yardage as well as making the template shapes included ion the pattern…
• Week 3 we’ll be piecing the large Leaf Blocks and learn a little about curved piecing….
• Week 4 we’ll be piecing the super fun Flower Blocks and fine tuning our 1/4″ seam piecing…
• …and Week 5, we’ll be putting it all together!

Here’s another picture of both the Leaf & Flower Blocks we’ll be making during the QuiltAlong. Of course, if you want to make more of these blocks, you can!

Week #1 – GATHER YOUR PATTERN & MATERIALS —
Here’s what you’ll need to join in on the stitchin’ fun –
• The ModBlossom Pattern! You can purchase it in either paper or PDF formats buy clicking the links below….

Purchase the ModBlossom Paper Pattern here!

Purchase the ModBlossom PDF Pattern here!

Just a note on the pattern: The pattern is written assuming the sewist will make the large lap quilt on the cover – that would be (6) Leaf Blocks and (6) Flower Blocks. So when you receive the pattern and start to glance through it – you may find the directions just a tad confusing or overwhelming as it speaks to cutting and making (12) blocks total. No worries….if you’re just dipping your toes in and want to make only a few of each block, just look below for yardage requirements and check back in here each week for specifics!

Pattern Insert with Templates: Also, depending upon which format you buy, (whether that be a paper pattern or an electronic PDF download) you’ll want to review the Pattern Insert page. You’ll need to trace and cut out these template shapes to make each of the blocks we will be working on.
• If you bought the pattern pattern, just trace the shapes onto template plastic or heavy card board and cut out.
• If you bought the PDF pattern, print out the last 4 pages of the pattern. Make sure your printer is set to 100%. Check the scale ruler on each pattern page for accuracy and adjust your print settings if needed. Then tape together where indicated the (2) shapes that make Template D. To complete your templates, either cut out each shape or trace the shapes onto template plastic or heavy card board and cut out.

WHAT WILL YOU MAKE DETERMINES HOW MUCH FABRIC YOU WILL NEED
Now you need to decide what you want to make while you join me in stitching up these fun blocks over the next few weeks….here’s two options to choose from:

• I Want to Make The Lap Quilt (as shown on the cover) — I’ll be making this version as we stitch together using Christa Watson’s newest fabric collection called “Stitchy” from Benartex Fabrics. It’s a super fun collection and you can order these fabrics directly from Christa at her website www.christaquilts.com.

The lap quilt (which finishes at 62″ x 80″) is fat quarter friendly so all you need is a fat quarter bundle with at least (18) fat quarters plus background yardage of 3 yards. Here are some pictures of different versions of the Lap Quilt:

• I Want to Make Just a Block or Two – If you’re unsure and just want to ‘dip your toes in’, making just a block or two of each leaf and flower version is a great fun, and you can always turn these large 18″ x 18″ blocks into pillows or a table runner when complete.

For just making a block or two – you’ll need to gather 6 fat quarters plus about 1/2 yard background yardage.

HERE’S HOW TO THINK ABOUT YOUR FABRICS TO START PLANNING FOR WEEK #2
Start thinking about your fat quarters in terms of pairs.
• Each pair of fat quarters will yield the petals for (1) flower block and (1) leaf block. If you glance at the blocks below, notice that the (2) magenta fabrics are in both my Flower and my Leaf block.

• You’ll also need a pair of fat quarters for your Leaf Centers & Flower Centers (these could also be an variety of scraps varying in size from 3″ – 4-3/4″ squares;

• And one more pair of fat quarters for your Flower Blocks Cornerstones (the 2 greens pictured).

** If you’re using a Fat Quarter Bundle with at least (18) fat quarters – you have endless pairings and options.

So go forth, get the ModBlossom pattern, and raid your stash for fat quarters or grab that bundle off the shelf that’s just been yearning to be used!

That’s it for Week #1 – that was fun! And I can’t wait to see all of your fabric selections! Week #2 we’ll cut our fabrics and preapre our template shapes!

Until then, please be sure to email us at colourwerx@yahoo.com if you have any questions.  Or feel free to post questions or progress pictures on our Colourwerx QAL Facebook Group.

Until your next colour fix and next week’s QAL post ~  happy and bright quilting always!   

L&C xxoo

Splendor QAL: Week #4 – Layout and Finish the Quilt Top

Whoop!  Whoop!  We are almost complete with our Splendor Quilt!  This is the final week of our quilt along and I do hope you all have been enjoying making these fab flower blocks!

This week – Week #4 – is all about laying out all the blocks and pieces and stitchin’ up that quilt top.  Relax and enjoy the process – it’s easy stitchin! 🙂

1. But first, just a reminder that all of your petals (large and small) should be appliqued stitched to their individual background blocks at this point. If you need reference, refer back to Week #2 & Week #3 of our Splendor QuiltAlong posts.

Read Splendor QAL Week #2 – Applique the Small Flower Blocks
Read Splendor QAL Week #3 – Applique the Large Flower Block

Also be sure to remove all of that stabilizer from the backside of your blocks.  I like to score mine with a straight pin and carefully tear away the stabilizer using tweezers if needed in the narrower sections between the petals. 

2. Next, following the Splendor Background Diagram on page 2 of the Splendor pattern, lay out all of your pieces on your design board or floor.  Take special note of which way some of the smaller flower blocks are orientated (look at the large petal on the small flower block – is it pointing  up, down to the right or to the left??  – these differences in orientation  give the circle of small flowers movement and rhythm around the large center flower block.

Once you are satisfied with your layout, stitch the background strips to each background corner block. Refer to the page 2 of the Splendor pattern again.

Next, stitch the single background  strip to its corresponding small flower block.

Not so hard right!?!

3.  And to finish your quilt top, refer to page 5 in the Splendor pattern and begin to stitch blocks together to form a row.  You’ll have a top row, a middle row (which will consist of the larger center flower block we created in Week #3) and a bottom row.

Watch the video below for how easy!!

Once all three rows are stitched together – your Splendor Quilt top is complete!

Great job and bravo! Now you’re ready to machine quilt some awesome designs in all of that negative space in the background or  send the top to your favorite machine quilter to do the same!

I’ll be sending this off to my favorite machine quilter, Teresa of Quilting is my Bliss who also machine quilted the first Splendor quilt! Below  are some up close photos of the fabulous quilting Teresa did on the first Splendor quilt!!  I’ll be sure to post the photos of the second Splendor quilt when she completes it!

This now concludes our Splendor QuiltAlong – send me your pictures so we can see your beautiful quilts!

Thank you so much for following along and for your continued support!  Look for more Colourwerx QuiltAlongs on our Colourwerx Facebook page or on our website under QuiltAlongs!

Until your next colour fix – happy quilting!  Linda & Carl xxoo

Splendor QAL: Week #2 – Appliqué the Small Flower Blocks

Welcome back!   It’s Week #2 of our Splendor QuiltAlong and it’s time to start appliquéing our small flower petal blocks!

But first — If you’re just joining us this week, be sure to review Week #1’s Blog Post to find out how to purchase the pattern and what fabrics and materials you’ll need to gather –

READ THE SPLENDOR QAL WEEK #1 POST BY CLICKING HERE

Also, just a friendly reminder!   If you want to join with other quilty friends and aren’t yet a member of our Facebook group, I invite you to join our free QAL Facebook group where you can ask questions, share your progress and of course, post pictures of your finished projects so everyone can share in the fun!  Also feel free to share this invite and any other QAL news with quilty buddies and invite them to join along in the fun!

You can also subscribe to our Colourwerx You Tube channel right here!

JOIN THE COLOURWERX QAL FACEBOOK GROUP HERE

SUBSCRIBE TO THE COLOURWERX YOU TUBE CHANNEL RIGHT HERE

On to Week #2 of Splendor!
I do love to do fusible machine appliqué – it is so fast and fun and you can use a variety of stitches like the zigzag, buttonhole (or also known as the blanket) or decorative stitches to embellish and texturize your shapes.  Remember there are no quilt police lurking so experiment and have fun!

Also, if you’d like a video – you can view Week #2’s companion video tutorial right here!

View Week #2’s Splendor Companion Video Tutorial

But first things first….
Arrange Your Background Blocks for Value and Pattern Placement —
1. You should have precut your background fabrics in Week #1 – if not, please find the cutting directions in page 1 of the Splendor pattern and do so before proceeding.

2. Assuming you are using (12) 1/3 yard cuts or a variety of scraps for your background, refer to Page 2  in the pattern for the diagram, and arrange the background units on your design board or floor making sure you have evenly balanced the value and pattern placement (if there are patterns in the fabrics) across the quilt top.  Do not stitch the units together yet.

Once satisfied, be sure to snap a photo of your arrangement for future use and then remove from your design board or floor the (12)  background blocks that will have the small flowers on them.  Here’s my background units arranged on my design board.

Prepare your Small Flower Petal Shapes —
You’ll be cutting out (12) sets of the small flower shapes.  (If you are following along and making the Mini Splendor pattern with us, you’ll make (6) sets of small flower shapes).

1.  First, gather the pattern page (included in the Splendor pattern) and following the directions on your adhesive fusible web, trace (12) complete sets of the small flower petal shapes on the smooth side of the fusible web. Use a #2 pencil for tracing.

Rough cut these shapes out at least 1/4″ beyond the drawn line.

Again, I like to use the adhesive fusible web Heat ‘n Bond Lite.

2. Next select your small flower fabrics for your first block, and fuse the shapes onto the wrong side of those fabrics.

Cut the shapes out neatly on the drawn line and be as exact as possible.  Use a sharp pair of scissors for this step.

3. Continue on and create (12) sets of small flower shapes.  (Again, if you are following along and making the Mini Splendor pattern with us, you’ll make (6) small flowers).

As a sidenote, if you own a desktop cutting machine like a Silhouette Cameo or Cricut, you can scan the applique patterns into your machine.  First back each of your fabric pieces with fusible web and then laser cut the shapes.  This will require extra fabric, a tacky cutting mat for your machine,  alot of patience and some time for experimentation to get your machine to work ‘just right’. 

4.  Once you have all (12) sets of small flower shapes cut out, you are ready to appliqué.

What did Linda do?
I want to share what I did on my Splendor quilt for the small flower blocks – I chose to use the new Tula Pink True Colors 10″ stack.

1. First I decided on (12) different colors for each of the smaller flowers and from there, I chose (3) 10″ squares to be grouped together to make each of the (12) colorways to create the flower petals. Here are the 10″ square fabrics I chose to use for my yellow/orange colored flower:

Now I’ll share my little formula below for which flower shapes I cut from each of the three fabrics to create variety and movement across ta single flower block.  I could have used just one fabric for each small flower block but sometimes that can make a quilt stagnate:  so the my motto is more fabrics = more movement and more texture which =’s  way more interesting quilt!

My Formula  — Notice on the master pattern page that each of the petals on the small flower are numbered #1-#8 plus the center so that really makes (9) pieces for each small flower block.  So again since I am using (3) fabrics for each small flower block, I’ll cut three petals from each fabric BUT I want to make sure that the fabrics are alternating from petal to petal so here is my formula – feel free to copy this if you’d like  🙂

Fabric #1 – Cut Small Flower Shapes #1, #4, #7
Fabric #2 – Cut Small Flower Shapes #2, #5, #8
Fabric #3 – Cut Small Flower Shapes #3, #6 & Center

You can really see the texture, value and movement you get across the quilt top by simply combining a few fabrics of the same colorway for each smaller flower block.

Fuse (or Iron) Your Small Flower Petals to Your Background Squares —
1. Before fusing your small flower petals to the background squares, create an overlay sheet to assist you in placing each of the (8) petals plus the center in exactly the right place before finally ironing them to the background block. Trace the small flower exactly as it appears on your pattern page including the numbers.

Although this is an easy pattern shape, without the overlay you might place the petal shapes slightly askew which will throw off the look of this little fab flower!   This can be simply a piece of tracing paper or a nonfusible dressmaking interfacing like Pattern-Ease.

2. Taking your first background block and first set of small flower shapes, peel the release paper off the backside of each shape and iron the shapes into place using your overlay sheet to assist you in the exact placement.

3.  Also place a piece of stitching stabilizer (like Sulky Totally Stable Iron On Tear Away Stabilizer) on the WRONG side of the Small Flower Petal Block.   The stabilizer will help to “stabilize” your stitching especially if you are using a zigzag, satin stitch or decorative titch around each of your shapes.

Any digitized embroidery machine stabilizer will work for this purpose, but my favorite is the Sulky Totally Stable Iron On Tear Away Stabilizer pictured below.

Let the block cool after ironing and then get ready for some fun machine appliqué.

Machine Appliqué Around the Petal Shapes —
1. Set your machine up for appliqué stitching by changing your presser foot to an open toe foot and choosing some fabulous matching thread for your first flower fabrics.

2. Set your machine to your desired appliqué stitch.  I usually like to choose the Zig Zag and set my Bernina to stitch width 2.5-3.0 and stitch length to just below 1.0 .

Test, test, test before you begin.  Once satisfied, applique stitch around each of the petals and the center on your first small flower block. If you need additional reference for setting your machine up for appliqué and appliqué, please view my video from our Wonky Piecing and Easy Appliqué- Week #4 QuiltAlong here.

3. Repeat these steps above until you have created and appliquéd the (12) small flower blocks (you can also save some of these for Week #3  if you run out of time this week).   Once stitching is complete, be sure to tear away the stabilizer from the backside and lightly press each block.

That’s it for Week #2!!  Next week – Week #3: we’ll be appliquéing the Large Flower Shapes onto the Center background blocks – woohoo!

Until then, please be sure to email us at colourwerx@yahoo.com if you have any questions.  Or feel free to post questions or progress pictures on our Colourwerx QAL Facebook Group.

Until your next colour fix and next week’s QAL post ~  happy and bright quilting always!    L&C xxoo

Splendor QAL: Week #1 – Gather the Pattern and Materials plus Precut the Background

Hello!  And welcome to the ‘first week’ of our fifth Colourwerx QAL (quilt along) where we’ll be making our super beautiful and modern, Splendor!

First, I want to thank you so much for joining us here.   If you want to meet with other Colourwerx quilty friends and aren’t yet a member of our Facebook group, I  invite you to join our free QAL Facebook group where you can ask questions, share your progress and of course, post pictures of your finished projects so everyone can share in the fun!  Also feel free to share this invite and any other QAL news with quilty buddies and invite them to join along in the fun!

JOIN THE COLOURWERX QAL FACEBOOK GROUP HERE

Each week of the quiltalong, also look for a companion video to be posted either on the ‘day’ or a few days later.   If you’d like to receive alerts to when the videos are posted and other neat tutorials and replays of our Fab Friday Live broadcasts, then subscribe to our Colourwerx UTube channel right here!

So this is Week#1 of the Splendor QAL –  First let’s review the 4-week schedule!

As you can see it’s an easy going  4-week QAL, perfect for summer stitchin’, but please know that you can take it at your own pace and join in anytime.  All of the videos and blog posts will remain here, as well as be posted on our website and on the social media pages throughout the year. 

GATHER YOUR PATTERN & MATERIALS —
Here’s what you’ll need to join in on the stitchin’ fun –
• The Splendor pattern by Colourwerx
•. You can also choose to use the Mini Splendor Pattern if you’re looking for a smaller project! (see below for Mini Splendor quilts).

And great news? – both the Splendor & Mini Splendor patterns are now 20% off!

Purchase the Splendor Paper Pattern here!
Purchase the Mini Splendor Paper Pattern here!

Purchase the Splendor PDF pattern here!
Purchase the Mini Splendor PDF Pattern here!

Fabrics —
This is a really scrap friendly/10″ stack friendly quilt pattern whether you have chosen to make the Large Splendor or the Mini Splendor version.  Make sure to refer to the back of the pattern for the exact yardage requirements, but since I’ll be stitchin’ along side of you and be making the Larger Splendor pattern – here’s what you will need for that:

For the Large Splendor:
— Neutral Background Fabrics:  (12) 3/8 yard cuts of each fabric or scraps totaling about 4 yards;
— Large & Small Flower Appliqués: (1) Layer Cake (10″ Square Stack) or scraps totaling about 2-1/4 yards;
— (Optional for the quiltalong) Binding – 1/2 yard and Backing 3-1/2 yards;
— 3 yards of Adhesive Fusible Web for the Flower Appliqués  (i.e.:  Heat n Bond Lite, Steam a Seam II Lite or Pellon Wonder Under
— Stitching Stabilizer (i.e.:  Sulky Iron On Totally Stable Tear Away Stabilizer or any type of machine embroidery stabilizer) – This will help stabilize your zigzag or buttonhole stitches when appliqué stitching around the flower shapes;

 

Here’s what I chose for my background fabrics and flower appliqués:  the background fabrics will be cut from these (9) 1/2 yard cuts of dark gray/black fabrics and the flower appliqués will all be cut from this assortment of 10″ squares from the new Tula Pink True Colors collection.   (I just purchased this 10″ square stack from my good friend Deb who owns the Elkhorn Quilt Company – she has a fabulous assosrtment of #colouricious goodness!)

I think its  going to be epic!

Also for Week #1  – Cut your Background Fabrics —
Follow the cutting directions and dimensions on page 1 of the Splendor pattern and cut your background fabrics accordingly.

UPDATE! There is a minor cutting error in the pattern (but you will have plenty of fabric if you gather the recommended materials listed on the back of the pattern cover).  Also be sure to cut the total number of units listed below and also make a note on your pattern for future use:

Page 1 – Cutting:  For the background – You will need a total of:
•  (25) 10-1/2″ x 10-1/2″ squares;
•  (16) 2-1/2″ x 10-1/2″ strips;
•  (4) 2-1/2″ x 12-1/4″ strips (not 12-1/2″ long as the pattern states)

That’s it for Week #1!!  Next week – Week #2: we’ll begin appliquéing the Small Flower Shapes onto the background fabrics – woohoo!

Until then, please be sure to email us at colourwerx@yahoo.com if you have any questions.  Or feel free to post questions or progress pictures on our Colourwerx QAL Facebook Group.

Until your next colour fix and next week’s QAL post ~  happy and bright quilting always!    L&C xxoo

ModTV QAL: Week #4 – Personalize the Screen & Finish

Wowee!  We are almost complete with our ModTV’s!!  This is the final week of our quilt along and I do hope you all have been enjoying making these cute retro TV blocks!

This week – Week #4 – is all about personalizing the TV screen and finishing off your block into a pillow, wallhanging or make even more TV blocks for a fabulous lap quilt!  Here’s one of my customer’s ModTV quilt that she made for her husband.  She printed all of his favorite TV shows on photo fabrics, added a pocket for the remote control in one of the color bar blocks and voila! – he loved it!

Ok – so by now you should have made at least one ModTV block and it should be trimmed to 12-1/2″ x 12-1/2″.  If you need to catch up or need extra help, please refer back to the previous blog posts below.  You can also find a weekly companion tutorial video for each week on our Colourwerx YouTube channel !

READ WEEK 1 – GATHER YOUR PATTERN & MATERIALS

READ WEEK 2 – PIECE THE TV & LEGS

READ WEEK 3 – PIECE THE ANTENNA UNITS & COLOR BAR BLOCKS

SUBSCRIBE TO OUR COLOURWERX YOU TUBE CHANNEL

So let’s get started and finish up those cute ModTV blocks!

Check out this week’s video!!  You can view the companion You Tube video for this week right here!

Personalize the TV Screen —
The very last piece to go on your TV block is the TV screen.  It is not pieced in but rather fused on with an adhesive fusible web (like Heat ‘n Bond Lite or Steam A Seam II Lite) and then appliqued stitched on. 

There are several different ways you can choose to personalize your TV screen and therefore make it truly a unique creation.  First know that whichever method you choose, you will need both a 5″ x7″ piece of the fabric (or photo fabric) and of the adhesive fusible web.

Once you decide what to do, iron the 5″ x 7″ piece of adhesive fusible web onto the WRONG side of the fabric (yes, even the photo fabric), and then trim the piece to 4″ x 6″.  You can even follow along in the pattern on page 5 and use a thread spool to round the corners of the TV  Screen. 

When you are ready, peel the release paper off the backside of the screen, and using a pressing cloth, iron (or fuse) the screen in the center of the TV unit. 

Zig Zag stitch around the edges of the screen to secure it to the block.  

Here’s a few ideas for you to personalize your TV screens!

1. Use the same fabric as the background fabric or a similar fabric.  The easiest and sometimes the most graphic looking!  These blocks are totally fabulous and create the ultimate mid-mod statement!

2. Use a fun stripe or zig zag fabric.  If you want to give the look of  static running across your TV screen , a fun stripe or colorful zigzag will do the trick!  I used this fun colorful wonky zig zag from the Kaffe Fassett Collective!

3. Fussy Cut a Motif from a Licensed Fabric.  This is where I think most of us have a lot of fun – fussy cutting around a motif as if this scene is “playing” on the TV set!  And there are so many great fabrics to choose from these days:  Wizard of Oz!, Star Wars, I Love Lucy!, Star Trek, Cartoons, Cats, Dogs – you name it!

 

4. Use Photo Fabric for the Ultimate Personalization. I love this idea as it instantly creates a super fun memorial pillow.  There are many brands of photo fabric out there – but for me, I find these two brands EQ Printables or June Tailor Computer Printer Fabric to be the most reliable and both are available at your local quilt shop or Joann’s Fabrics.

 

Here’s a block I made as a gift to Jenny Doan at the Missouri Star Quilt Company!

Here are a few tips when working with photo fabric:

— Resize your photo to a 5″ x 7″ – but make sure when you trim the photo to 4″ x 6″ that you have left ample head room to do so and you wont be cutting off someone’s head ! Also color correct it and “sharpen” it if needed with your photo app or photo program on your computer.

— Before printing on the photo fabric, print the image on a paper – waste a lot of paper until you are sure you have the image correctly sized and framed within the final 4″x6″ margins!   Photo Fabric is very expensive and you usually only get 5 or so sheets in a packet.

— When you are ready to print the image on photo fabric, do not print your image using the fine or photo settings on your inkjet printer.  This will lay down way too much ink on the photo fabric and your image will appear very dark and may even smudge as it comes through your printer. Just use the regular settings and the photo should print on the phot fabric just fine!

— To heat set the image so the block can be washed,  follow the photo fabric manufacturer’s directions.  Each company is slightly different!  Full disclosure here – I don’t heat set my photo fabric as I don’t wash my blocks.  Many of the projects I make are samples or for display only. There are ways though to heat set so you may want to print a test photo and try it first before your final photo printing!

Complete Your TV Block into a Wallhanging or Pillow —

To Make Into a Wallhanging – Once the TV screen has been fused and stitched in place, just add some batting and a backing fabric square that is 12-1/2″ x 12-1/2″.  Then quilt the block as desired and bind to create a small wallhanging.

I like to use a straight stitch or even my serpentine stitch (#4 on the Bernina) to stitch lines about a 1/4″ apart.  It looks like radio waves or TV signals!

 

If you did not want to bind your ModTV block, you could frame it using a 12″ x 12″ record album frame from Michael’s Arts & Crafts!

To Make Into a Pillow – As above, once the TV screen has been fused and stitched in place, just add some batting and 2 backing fabric rectangles that measure 9-1/2″ x 12-1/2″.  Also purchase a 12″ x 12″ pillow form from your local shop.   Place the batting on the wrong side of the block and machine quilt the block using a decorative stitch as described above or just stitch around the TV shape to give the block some texture.

For the backing of the pillow – Turn and press only one 9-1/2″ outer edge (not the 12-1/2” edge though) of each backing piece 1/4” over twice to the wrong side to encase the raw edge. Topstitch down the edge to secure.

Place the two backing fabric units RIGHT SIDES TOGETHER over the MODTV block and stitch around all sides. Turn the unit right side out and poke out the corners. Stuff with a 12” x 12” travel pillow form through the slit on the backside.

This now concludes our ModTV QuiltAlong – send me your pictures so we can see your cute and fun retro TV sets!

Thank you so much for following along and for your continued support!  Look for more Colourwerx QuiltAlongs on our Colourwerx Facebook page or on our website under QuiltAlongs!

Until your next colour fix – happy quilting!  Linda & Carl xxoo

 

 

 

 

 

 

ModTV QAL: Week #3 – Piece the Antenna & Color Bar Blocks

We are back again!   I hope you’re enjoying our series of free quilt alongs!  Again, if you are new here, I invite you to join or subscribe to either our Colourwerx QuiltAlong Facebook page or our Colourwerx YouTube channel so you don’t miss out on any of the fun! I always post a weekly companion video to each quilt along  blog post and other tutorials on You Tube!

JOIN THE COLOURWERX QAL FACEBOOK GROUP HERE
SUBSCRIBE TO THE COLOURWERX YOU TUBE CHANNEL

It’s Week #3 of our ModTV QuiltAlong! !  This week we’ll be ‘slashin’ and sewin’ the TV Antenna Units together, and if you are making the Lap Size Quilt, piecing the Color Bar Blocks together.

Let’s get started….

 

Stitch the Antenna Unit  —
Turn to page 4 in the ModTV pattern and gather all of the pieces needed to make your TV Antenna unit.   First, as stated at the top of page 4, be sure to cut in half diagonally the (2) larger squares to make (4) triangles, and cut in half diagonally one of the smaller squares to create (2) triangles.

BIG HINT! I like to lay all of the pieces out on my cutting board like so.  As I stitch these Antenna units together I do not disturb what is on my cutting board.  When I take 2 pieces and stitch them together, I return them to their exact positions on the cutting board so as not to confuse myself about which pieces go where.

First fold the antenna strips  in half lengthwise to create a center crease. Return to position.

Starting with the right antenna, flip the B/G triangle on the right side over and angle it from the bottom right corner to the center top edge of the antenna unit like so (the center crease on the antenna unit will guide you). See Fig 10 on page 4 of the pattern.

Stitch down the edge of the angled B/G triangle and trim the any excess fabric away to reduce the bulk  leaving a 1/4″ seam allowance. Press the B/G triangle outward.

Return the right antenna unit back in position and flip the B/G triangle on the left side over and angle it from the bottom left corner to the center top edge of the antenna unit like so.  Make sure that top edges of the B/G triangles are overlapping each other by about 1″ at the top and that there is at least an 1″ overhang of the B/G triangles on the bottom edge (see Fig 11 on page 4).  Again, stitch down the edge of the angled B/G triangle and trim any excess fabric away to reduce the bulk  leaving at least a 1/4″ seam allowance. Press the B/G triangle outward. Your antenna unit should somewhat resemble the below photo.

Next. rotate the unit 180 degrees, lay your ruler across the top slightly angling it and slash off the top edge of the Antenna unit .

Take the smaller triangle and place the long diagonal edge right sides together along the top edge of the Antenna unit and stitch it in place (see Fig 12-13 on page 4).

The antenna unit will now need to be trimmed and squared down.  Before trimming the unit, place your square ruler on the Antenna unit and double check that you are leaving a 1/4″ seam allowance near the bottom  tip  of the unit.  Trim the unit to a 4″ square (see Fig 14 in the pattern).  Be sure to return the unit back in position on your cutting board!

Repeat the above to create a second Antenna unit.

Next referring to Fig 15 and adding the B/G Top Filler strip in place,  stitch the (5) pieces together to create the Antenna Unit Strip. Press the seams according to Fig 15 in the ModTV Pattern.

Next gather your TV Set with Legs (created in Week #2) , place the Antenna Unit skewing it across the the top edge of the TV set at a wonky angle – you can tilt it from right to left or left to right.  Stitch the two units Right Sides Together across the top edge.   And if you are making several ModTV blocks, remind yourself from block to block to alternate the direction you skew the Antenna, so you create a delightful variety of different wonky ModTV blocks.

Square your ModTV block to 12-1/2″ square.  If for some reason, your ModTV block is not large enough to fit inside the 12-1/2″ square boundaries, simply stitch a thin strip of the background fabric onto the side (or sides) that need enlarging – no one will ever know that you added these strips to enlarge your block to the 12-1/2″ measurement and it will look fabulous when complete!

Stitch the Color Bar Blocks  —
These fun little color blocks are only needed if you are planning on making the Lap Size Quilt or perhaps you might like to use them as end caps blocks if you are making a wallhanging or table runner.

You can make these from either cutting strips from the extra TV fabric or from scraps from your stash.

It’s simple straight forward patchwork piecing and alas – I am afraid that you will need to use you a 1/4″ seam, when piecing these together so the block comes out correctly.

Referring to the directions on page 6 of the pattern, arrange the pieces on your cutting table or near your sewing machine.

Yup – you got it! – stitch those pieces together with a 1/4″ seam following the directions on page 6.  Voila!

That’s it for Week #3!!  Next week – Week #4: we’ll talk about personalizing your TV screen with a photo or licensed fabric and finish off the project into a pillow, little wallhanging or the quilt!

Until then, please be sure to email us at colourwerx@yahoo.com if you have any questions.  Or feel free to post questions or progress pictures on our Colourwerx QAL Facebook Group.

Until your next colour fix and next week’s QAL post ~  happy and bright quilting always!    L&C xxoo

ModTV QAL: Week #1 – Gather the Pattern and Materials plus Precut for One Block

Hello!  And welcome to the ‘first week’ of our fourth Colourwerx QAL (quilt along) where we’ll be making our super fun ModTV block (and or quilt)!

First, I want to thank you so much for joining us here and on our Facebook Colourwerx QuiltAlong Page.  Whether you’ll be sewing up the pattern along side us or just observing from afar, we welcome you and are overwhelmed by your enthusiasm so far – so thank you, thank you, thank you!

Also, if you want to meet with other Colourwerx quilty friends and aren’t yet a member of our Facebook group, I  invite you to join our free QAL Facebook group where you can ask questions, share your progress and of course, post pictures of your finished projects so everyone can share in the fun!  Also feel free to share this invite and any other QAL news with quilty buddies and invite them to join along in the fun!

JOIN THE COLOURWERX QAL FACEBOOK GROUP HERE

Look for a companion video to be posted in a few days!  If you’d like to receive alerts to when the videos are posted and other neat tutorials, then subscribe to our Colourwerx UTube channel right here!

You can watch our ModTV Intro Video by clicking here!

So this is Week#1 of the ModTV QAL –  First let’s review the schedule!

As you can see it’s a 4-week QAL this time, but please know that you can take it at your own pace and join in anytime.  All of the videos and blog posts will remain here, as well as be posted on our website and social media pages throughout the year.  My quilt alongs are always  free to join and I’ll be making a 12″ TV block along with you over the next 4 weeks.  I’ll also show you other ModTV quilts I have made and ways you can personalize your ModTV block by changing out the TV screen shape to a licensed fabric or a fabric photo.  But first things first….

GATHER YOUR PATTERN & MATERIALS —
Here’s what you’ll need to join in on the stitchin’ fun –
• The ModTV pattern by Colourwerx – and great news? – the ModTV pattern is now 20% off until May 31st!  Yippee!

PURCHASE THE MODTV PATTERN – PAPER VERSION
PURCHASE THE MODTV PATTERN – PDF VERSION

Fabrics —
•  To Make just (1) ModTV block –
— (2) Fat Quarters;
— 3″ x 6″ scrap for the TV Antenna;
— 5″ x 7″ Piece of Fusible Web to Fuse the TV screen in place (i.e.:  Heat n Bond Lite, Steam a Seam II Lite or Pellon Wonder Under;
**For each additional TV block you’d like to make just add a another pair of fat quarters and a fabric scrap for the TV Antenna.

•  To Make the Larger 48″ x 54″ Quilt (16 TV’s plus (4) Color Bar Blocks) – refer to the cover of the pattern –
— (16) Coordinating Fabrics – 3/8 yard each fabric;
— Dark Grey (or Black) plus a White (for color bars) – 1/6 yard each;
— (Optional for the quiltalong) Binding – 1/2 yard and Backing 3-1/2 yards;
— 1-1/2 yards of Fusible Web to Iron the TV screen in place (i.e.:  Heat n Bond Lite, Steam a Seam II Lite or Pellon Wonder Under

Also begin to think about whether you might like to personalize the TV screen with a piece of licensed fabric (like ‘I Love Lucy’ or ‘Star Wars’), or perhaps a fun zigzag print that looks like static, or a photo of a favorite person or family pet (photo should be sized to 4″ x 6″).

If you do want to use a photo, be sure to purchase some photo fabric from your local quilt shop or at a Joann’s Fabrics or Walmart.  I prefer the brands EQ Printables or June Tailor Computer Printer Fabric.  Make sure you select the type for your printer at home:  InkJet or Laser.

 

Precut to be ready for Week #2 —
First off, before cutting – I really, really, really  like to starch my fabric.  Mary Ellen’s Best Press is terrific stuff but it it’s too pricey to use on larger pieces…so when I need to starch several yards or a larger piece, I use the Faultless Gold Top Firm Finish Spray Starch. First you can’t beat the price at like $1.99 a can – available at Target, Walmart, the supermarket, etc….  Secondly, I just happen to love the way it makes my fabric feel.  It gives the fabric a firm hand but not too stiff and makes my cutting and piecing more precise.  Use a hot dry iron (no steam) and definitely starch the fabric before you make that first cut as the fabric may shrink ever so slightly after the starch is ironed dry.

Next,  precut your fabrics to make (1) TV block –
•  If just making a single TV block:  gather your (2) fat quarters, or;
•  If making the pattern cover Lap Size Quilt, select (2) fabrics – 3/8 yard each fabric.

Follow all of the cutting directions and dimensions in the ModTV  pattern on pages 1 & 2.  In the pattern there is also a handy insert page which details and diagrams how to cut your pieces from the 3/8 yard cut or the fat quarter to ensure that you get all of your pieces from the yardage.

And with all of these pieces, it can really get confusing so here’s my BIG TIP for the week!  –  be sure to label each of your pieces to keep them organized.  Each ModTV block is made from three sub units:  the TV unit,  the legs unit  & the antenna unit.  All three units come together on the final step to create one 12″ finished ModTV block.  The TV screen is ironed on after the TV block is together.

If I’m making just one block, I might just use post it notes or scrap pieces of paper to label each of my pieces.

But, if I’m making several blocks, I open up my word processing program (like MS Word) and choose the address label template …I type in all of my unit names and then copy those descriptions (X) however many blocks I am making.

I then peel these labels off and apply them to each unit.  This little tip keeps you super organized and ready to to start piecing for next week!

That’s it for Week #1!!  Next week – Week #2: we’ll begin slashing and sewing our TV sets together – woohoo!

Until then, please be sure to email us at colourwerx@yahoo.com if you have any questions.  Or feel free to post questions or progress pictures on our Colourwerx QAL Facebook Group.

Until your next colour fix and next week’s QAL post ~  happy and bright quilting always!    L&C xxoo

Wonky Piecing & Easy Applique QAL – Week 3 – Machine Quilt the Background

Welcome back!   It’s Week #3 of our Wonky Piecing & Easy Appliqué QuiltAlong !  This week we’ll be machine quilting the background fabric.

There are so many different ways you can machine quilt the background fabric and anything goes so don’t be afraid to use this little quilt along project to experiment:

•  you could practice your free motion quilting and simply stipple the background;

•  you could practice ‘matchstick quilting’ – this is simply stitching straight lines about 1/4″ apart up and down over the background fabric; or,

•  you could mark diagonal lines about 3″ apart, set your machine to a decorative stitch and stitch a crosshatch pattern.

Really – anything goes, so have fun ….

But I’d like to share with you three of my favorite machine quilting patterns that look “artsy”, are pretty easy to do and imho, make a great quilted background for smaller quilts like these.  I’ll do my best to explain how to do these patterns here in the blog but if you are more of a visual learner than I would encourage you to check out my companion video to this week’s quilt along which will be posted on our Colourwerx website and Colourwerx UTube channel in a few days.

These are the three patterns I use most often:
•  The Wonky Slanted Line pattern – you see this most often in my Mini ModDog pillows and quilts, and if you have the Mini ModDog pattern, you’ll find instructions on how to do this pattern on page 2;

•  The Curvaceous Quilting Pattern – easy to do and very relaxing!

•  The Wonky Chevron Pattern – this is fun and  is wonderfully forgiving.

Create the Quilting Sandwich —
First you’ll need to gather your Background Fabric (a fat quarter or a piece about 18″ x 21″) , and a scrap piece of batting or fusible batting of the same size.  If you’ve already decided to make your animal into a wallhanging, then you should also gather a fat quarter size of fabric to use as your backing fabric too. (If you are making a pillow, you don’t need to add a backing fabric unless of course you think you might wash the pillow in the future).

Place the batting on the WRONG side of the Background Fabric and secure.  You can do this by safety pinning the two layers together or using a fusible adhesive spray like 505 Temporary Spray Adhesive.  If you are making a wallhanging, go ahead and fuse (or safety pin)  your backing fabric to the other side of the batting as well.    You now have your quilting sandwich ready for machine quilting.

Let’s get started with the first quilting pattern –

#1 – The Wonky Slanted Line Pattern —
When I quilt this pattern, I like to use a chunky thread – like the Aurifil 12 weight – and a variety of different thread colors – usually I choose 5-6 different colors.  But this method also looks very nice with any variegated thread or even just a lovely solid thread.

Also just a tip – if you are using a a chunkier thread, make sure you change your sewing machine needle to a larger size.  I prefer to use the Schmetz 90/14 Quilting Needle.  This size accommodates a variety of different weight threads with no problems.

The first step is to draw a few wonky lines on your background fabric.  With a iron off marker (or water soluble pen), just drop your ruler at a slant and draw a line.  Slant the ruler in opposite direction and draw another line.  You can also use a Hera marker to make these lines as well.  Hera Markers are sold at all quilt shops and actually just crease your fabric with the rounded edge – so no fear of a marker staining the fabric or never coming off.

Start with about 3-4 lines and with your first thread color.  Set your machine to a straight stitch, leave the feed dogs up and put your walking foot on (or engage your even feed system).  Also set your stitch length to about 3.0 so the stitches are a bit longer.   Stitch directly across those drawn lines.

Mark another 3-4 lines.  Switch threads if you’d like, and stitch on those lines.

Continue adding wonky slanted lines and stitching until you have filled the background fabric.

Voila!  Done And it looks super especially behind your dog, cat or fish!

#2 – The Curvaceous Quilting Pattern —
I really love doing curvy quilting – it looks very artsy and I love the movement it provides to the background fabric.  I use this pattern alot when making the ModFish as it gives the feeling that the fish are swimming with the movement the curved lines create.

To start, again set your machine to a straight stitch, leave the feed dogs up and put your walking foot on (or engage your even feed system).  Also set your stitch length to about 3.0 so the stitches are a bit longer.  Start in the middle of the fat quarter and just stitch straight stitches from the top to the bottom, gently ‘ungulating’ from right to left creating a curved stitched line.  Think of driving down a country road – no sharp turns.

Move over about 2-3″ and stitch another curvy line.  Again move over another 2-3″ and stitch another curvy line.  Keep filling the background with curved stitched lines about 2-3″ apart.

To fill in the background, next begin to stitch in between the stitched lines with more curvy quilting.  How dense you make the curvy quilting is entirely up to you.  I find that it really depends upon my mood – some curvaceous quilting is quilted quite dense and some not so much…again, anything goes and stop when it looks good to you!

That’s it – doesn’t that look great!?!?

#3 – The Wonky Chevron Pattern —
This is a fun pattern, looks great with a variegated thread and one that I use alot on my little ModCat wallhangings .  Once again, set your machine to a straight stitch leave the feed dogs up and put your walking foot on (or engage your even feed system).

The first step is to draw a few chevron-like lines across the center portion of your background fabric.  With a iron off marker (or water soluable pen),  just drop your ruler slanting it right and left and draw wonky angles or chevrons. Don’t worry about making the chevrons too even or regimented – in fact the more uneven they are the better!

Stitch directly on the drawn line  (it’s ok if you are not directly on the drawn line – it’s more of a guide for you to start from…)  Now move down about an inch and “echo” the same chevron pattern but don’t try to be too perfect – in fact, adding little changes or additional little chevrons to “mix it up” as you stitch along makes it look more artsy.

Keep echoing and stitching  out from the middle drawn first chevron until you reach the edge.  Turn the background fabric around and start to do the same chevron echo stitching from the middle drawn line out to the other edge filling up the background fabric with wonky chevron lines.   Check that out!

What fun!  🙂  I can’t wait to see what you guys come up with!  be sure to chedk out the companion video to this week’s blog coming out in a few days on the Colourwerx website and Colourwerx UTube channel .

That’s it for Week #3!!  Next week – our final week – Week #4: we’ll be machine applique stitching our animal shapes onto the background fabric and I’ll be sharing some tips and tricks with you!

Until then, please be sure to email us at colourwerx@yahoo.com if you have any questions.  Or feel free to post progress pictures on our Colourwerx QAL Facebook Group.

Until your next colour fix and next week’s QAL post ~  happy and bright quilting always!    L&C xxoo

Stay at Home and Hop – Let’s Hop To It! – Post #4

Hello friends!  Welcome back to our last post for the Stay at Home and Hop Virtual Designer Shop Hop!

I have one last list of designer links to share with you!  When you need a break from sewing or from the news this week, hop on to your Ipad or computer and visit my fellow friends and colleagues below.  In case you’ve missed my previous posts or lost the links, I’ve also listed ALL the shop links from my previous posts at the end of this blog post!

I hope you’ll take a moment from your day and pop in to see some of my friends!  The hop runs until Tuesday, March 31st!

And speaking of hopping – be sure to download my free pattern – the Easter Hip Chicks Table Runner!  This pattern will only be available as a free download for a limited time!   To download the  Easter Hip Chicks Table Runner, just click here to download the pattern for free!!

OK – LET’S GET HOPPIN”!!  Here’s the last list of links for you to visit from our Stay at Home and Hop with Us Virtual designer Shop Hop! Click on the links below to take you to that designer’s shop!

DaySpring Quilt Company
https://www.dayspringquiltcompany.com

Ms P Designs, USA
https://www.mspdesignsusa.com

Stitchin’ at Home
http://www.stitchinathome.com

Sew Joy Creations
https://www.sewjoycreations.com

Ships & Violins
https://www.shipsandviolins.com

Patti’s Patchwork
https://www.pattispatchwork.com

Your Sewing Friend
https://www.etsy.com/shop/yoursewingfriend

The Geeky Bobbin
https://www.geekybobbin.com

Colourwerx Designs (that’s me!!)
https://www.colourwerx.com

Kate Colleran Designs
https://www.seamslikeadream.com

Thank you for hopping with us, friends!  We all really appreciate your support at this time!  Happy quilting! xxoo L&C

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And if you missed my Stay at Home & Hop previous posts this last week – here are those Designer shop links again for you to explore or share with your quilty friends:

Lone Star Pattern Works
https://www.lonestarpatternworks.com

Powered by Quilting
https://www.poweredbyquilting.com

Cottage Rose Quilt Patterns
https://www.cottagerosequiltshop.com

The Cloth Parcel
https://www.theclothparcel.com

Faith and Fabric
https://www.faithandfabricdesign.com

Linen Closet Designs
http://www.linenclosetdesigns.com

Designs by Sarah J
https://www.designsbysarahj.com

Rona the Ribbiter Quilts
https://www.ronatheribbiter.com

Quilt Fox Designs
https://www.quiltfox-design.com

Seam to Be Sew
https://www.seamstobesew.com

Studio R Quilts
https://www.studiorquilts.com

Toadally Quilts
https://www.toadallyquilts.com

From Blank Pages
https://www.fromblankpages.com

Cotton Street Commons
http://www.cottonstreetcommons.com

Puppy Girl Designs
http://www.puppygirldesigns.com

Phoebe Moon Quilt Designs
https://www.facebook.com/phoebemoondesgins

The Devoted Quilter
https://www.devotedquilter.com

Christa Quilts
https://www.christaquilts.com

Stitched by Susan
http://www.stitchedbysusan.com

Tamarinis
https://www.tamarinis.com

Bequilter   
https://www.beaquilter.com/shop

Presto Avenue Designs
https://www.prestoavenuedesigns.com

Cheryl Lynch Quilts
https://www.cheryllynchquilts.com

Love to Color My World
https://www.lovetocolormyworld.blogspot.com

Hissyfitz Designs
https://www.hissyfitzdesigns.com

Canton Village Quilt Works
https://www.cvquiltworks.com

Anjeanette Klinder Designs
http://www.anjeanettek.com

Pat Sloan – The Voice of Quilting
https://www.blog.patsloan.com

Said With Love
https://www.saidwithlove.com.au

Orange Blossom Quilt Design
https://www.orangeblossomquilt.com

 

PaintBox QAL – Week #6 -Machine Quilting Your Top

Welcome back !!  It’s the final week of our PaintBox QuiltAlong and this is the week to finish off your quilt top.

Last week we pieced the triangles and also stitched the rows together to complete your quilt top.  You can review Week 5’s post right here!

This week, I’m going to share some insights, successes and some fails (at least for me) into machine quilting your Paint Box quilt top on your domestic sewing machine.

Full disclosure now! – I am “the world’s worst free motion machine quilter” (at least that’s what I think) and because of that – I own a longarm machine and 100% prefer my quilt tops machine quilted on my longarm with an overall pattern or for something fancier, sent to a professional machine quilter like  Teresa Silva of Quilting is my Bliss for some of her gorgeous free hand long arm machine quilting – however, I know that not everyone can afford long arm services or a long arm machine or may just prefer their tops not to be longarmed, so hence this week’s blog subject about quilting your top on your domestic home machine!

However before moving on and in case you are taking your PaintBox quilt to your favorite longarm machine quilter,  pictured below is the pantograph all over quilt design I use on most of my PaintBox samples – it’s called Monsoon and I love it!

On the other hand though sometimes a nice straight stitch will do the trick.

One of my favorite books out there for ideas on using your walking foot and  straight stitch machine quilting is Jacquie Gering’s “Walk” – I highly recommend this book as it’s a terrific reference on straight stitch machine quilting and is chocked full of different ideas and designs that you can quilt on your tops using just the walking foot and your straight stitch on your domestic machine.

The designs she offers range from very simple to very complex but all are accomplished with just a straight stitch and your walking foot (or even feed foot), and best of all no lowering of feed dogs or feeling totally out of control (my problem with the process).  Also the sequel to this best selling book, “Walk 2.0”will be released in May, so both books together would be a terrific reference pairing for your quilting library!

When I do choose to quilt my tops on my domestic machine, I prefer the control and regimented pace I feel when using my walking foot/dual feed foot, keeping the feed dogs up and just using my straight stitch across the top.  That doesn’t mean I don’t make a design though.  Here’s some “curvacious” quilting I just completed on this single ModCat wallhanging.  My feed dogs were up, I set my machine to the straight stitch and used my dual feed foot (which is similar to a walking foot).  I then gently moved the quilt top from side to side to create the gentle curves.

And some more quilting I did on a ModTiki – again nothing fancy – just straight stitch quilting and making a wonky chevron look.  Beautiful and looks fancier than it really is!

First things first – Get a plan!
You should have an idea of what pattern or stitch you might like to machine quilt on your quilt top before beginning.  I like to have a plan before I begin quilting.  Instead of marking your top and then erasing and marking and erasing, why not take a picture of your quilt top and print out the picture on your printer.??

Now you can draw on the printout your ideas for patterns or lines across the quilt top and see how you might like to quilt your top.  You can do this just once or print more copies and try out a whole bunch of different ideas.  Penciling in your quilting ideas before beginning will give you an idea of what the design will look like on your quilt top and also provide you with at the very least a starting point – a good thing!  Here’s a few examples of the quilting ideas and plans I drew before starting to quilt my PaintBox quilt top.  The first one is just some simple straight up and down gridding…..

….and the second drawing plan had simple diagonal cross hatching plus a squarish design within the blocks…

Basting Your Quilt Top with the Batting & Backing Fabric
Next get ready to make your quilting sandwich – meaning baste your quilt top with the batting and backing.  For this project, I spray basted my batting to my backing fabric and then again, spray basted the top to the batting.  This was my first time spray basting a larger quilt like this and I  used the 505 Temporary Adhesive Spray .  It worked great – no safety pins needed.

It did take quite a bit of patience though and I had to roll the batting (and then the quilt top) accordian style and work on only basting about 1 foot at a time.   I just kept smoothing and smoothing the fabric or batting across the surfaces and then gave it a really good pressing before starting to quilt the top.

If you like using fusible spray to baste your quilt – please check out Christa Watson’s tutorial on basting your top.  She actually spray bastes small to queen size quilts with her method, and machine quilts all of her tops on her domestic machine with no problems!

WATCH CHRISTA’S BASTING YOUR QUILT TOP TUTORIAL HERE!

Marking and the First Stitches to Stabilize
I chose to diagonally cross hatch my quilt top referring to my 2nd plan above.  I wanted to stitch a 1/4″ to either side of the seam lines so that it would be like a double stitch line, but I needed to mark in some of these lines first.  I did use my Frixion pen to make the markings BUT BUT BUT – I am fully aware that my pen markings may reappear sometime in the future  as this is the chance I take when marking my lines with the Frixion pen.  If you are not ok with this, please do use a washable marker or water soluble pen. 

I also threaded my machine with a 90/14 Microtex Needle and King Tut 40 weight thread in the color of Alabaster.  This particular thread color is a wonderful variegated neutral and works marvelous with almost any fabric collection.

Since I don’t like to ‘fight’ with my quilt when I machine quilt I rolled up the sides of the quilt diagonally toward my first center seam lines to be machine stitched.  The first lines I stitched were what I call the “main veins” of the quilt.  Since I was cross hatching on a diagonal, the first seams I stitched were the long diagonal lines from top left to bottom right and vice versa thus stitching what you might call a large “X” across the quilt.

The main “veins” of the quilt have now been stabilized and I can now cross hatch and stitch my diagonal lines working always out from the center “main veins” of the quilt to the outer edges.

And I kept stitching and stitching……

…and stitching and stitching……

…and then I decided to stitch 1/4″ to either side of the vertical and the horizontal seam lines….

And I kept stitching and stitching……as you can guess, although simple to do, this process can take a long, long, long time.  Just cross hatching 1/4″ to either side of the seam lines on this 48″ square top took me almost 7 hours of straight stitching with just a few short breaks to stretch here and there.

Next I thought I would try my idea to machine quilt the ‘square within the square design’  I had drawn on my quilt top photo (see below) —

I marked a center square in the middle and tried out my idea…..

Well – time again for another full disclosure!  I hated it!  It just didn’t ‘sing’ to me and frankly I was having a hard time keeping the stitched squares even with the sewn squares –  it just looked sloppy!  😦    So out came the seam ripper and time to reconsider what to do next.

Eager to finish the quilting as I was now in hour 8 of machine quilting, I decided to carry on with the diagonal and straight seam quilting and halved the distance between those lines I already stitched.

The results as you see was a nice effect even though some of my stitching was a bit wobbly due to the evening wearing on and I was getting tired!

Life Lesson 101!  Which reminds me to remind you of one big life lesson – be kind to yourself – I have to remind myself of this all the time!  We are our own worst critics!  But let’s face it – we are not perfect and guess what – your machine quilting will likely not be either….its only fabric and it is a handmade item.  Also believe me on this one – your quilt top always looks 200% better after you remove all of your drawn lines (that you may or may not have stitched on when quilting your top) and after the quilt is squared down and trimmed.

Once I was completed with my machine quilting, I trimmed the batting/backing edges square to the quilt top and cut the binding from my remaining sashing fabric and sewed it on.

Viola!  All done and ready to grace our dining room table…

…or be taken on a nice picnic outside on this beautiful Spring day in our desert oasis!!

 

This now concludes our PaintBox QuiltAlong – send me your pictures so we can see your gorgeous PaintBox quilts!

Thank you so much for following along and for your continued support!  Look for more Colourwerx QuiltAlongs on our Colourwerx Facebook page or on our website under QuiltAlongs!

Until your next colour fix – happy quilting!  Linda & Carl xxoo