Double Irish Chain - A Great March Quilt Idea
"I'm not crazy, I just make crazy quilts."
Greetings Quilter - This is going to be a fabulous week! With St. Patrick's Day in the middle, how could it be any different? But, really, this week will be great. Yesterday I did a video about how to sew an Irish Chain Patch Quilt block - you'll see it below. As I was sewing I was able to include more detailed instructions for strip sewing 9 patches (either patches or blocks). In addition, I did a little piece on how to add the corner triangles onto the strip-pieced 9 patches. Although I couldn't include those clips in the block video (due to the length of the video), I will be adding them to my listing at graspr.com as well as on this page. That should happen tomorrow or Wednesday. In addition, all of the Quick Star Quilts books and templates are in the mail, and once my 3 Kings project is complete, I get to start cutting out diamonds for a Quick Star Quilt. I can hardly wait to start that! Quilters are asking questions about how to use the templates, so I will be posting a video demonstration about that, too. If you don't have a copy of the book, I ordered a couple of extras, and have some extra templates, too. If you are one of the first few to order, yours will be in the mail immediately, If I run out, I'll place a re-order on Wednesday with the Crazy Quilt book below, and yours will be shipped in about a week.
Either way, this is a wildly popular book. To reserve your copy, click on Quick Star Quilts One last thing - I am discontinuing the Diamond set of The Machine Quilting Adventure once I run out, and I think there may be only 1 or 2 remaining. They are yours to claim at a reduced price!
Keep a look out for updates this week. m. mouse has been busy writing, and he's anxious to tell you what's up.
Happy Quilting!
Eavesdrop on a Telephone Conversation
Mark your calendar for March 21 - that's a Saturday - beginning at 9am Pacific Time. Pepper Cory will join us for our Eavesdrop on a Telephone Conversation and will talk about how to be more creative in your quilting and so much more! Pepper is a long-time quilter who wrote a book years ago that taught me how to sew curves and provided a ton of inspiration about colors in quilts. This will be a fabulous call, and you'll get more information about it during the week. A Quilt Idea – A Simple Double Irish Chain Quilt
March seems to be a good time to work on an Irish Chain quilt. but why not a Double Irish Chain?
The quilt is made from only 2 basic blocks.
You can easily change the size of the quilt by changing the size of the square patches or by adding or subtracting blocks. The blocks simply alternate A then B then A then B then A on the first row (using an example of 5 blocks on each row. The second row begins with block B then comes A then B then A then B. Each row begins with the alternate block from the row before. Add borders, quilt and bind - and you're done! Just in time for St. Patty's day. This is also a fun quilt as a friendship gift. Your friends can sign in the large squares, either before or after it is presented to the recipient.
Maybe it's too late for this St. Patrick's Day - but there's next year - - - If You Love Quilt as You Go Projects,
I've always been a traditional patchwork quilter. Give me a block that is divided up into squares and triangles any day, and I'll be happy. During the process of discovering how to do a Quilt as You Go project, I ran across crazy quilts, and began looking at them in a little different way. Maybe it's because I'm getting a little older and as I read more about crazy quilts, I realized that they were generally made as a collection of memorabilia, carrying family history or even general history from the time period they were made. Or, possibly I'm seeing how fun it is to work on one block at a time, finish it and then have a whole quilt done without worrying about whether to quilt it by hand or on my machine. I was just looking for some guidance for my project, and I got really lucky. My friend, Rosie, at Rosie's Calico Cupboard, had only one book about Crazy Quilts, and it just happens to be the "bible" for crazy quilters. Starting out with a vest made from silk ties, Judith experimented for five years, discovering what works and what doesn't, developing shortcut techniques, and transforming simple embroidery stitches into beautiful embellishments for her crazy quilts. Her Crazy Quilt "bible" includes:
Judith walks you through the process of putting together a crazy quilt using her unique method, showing you how to choose fabrics and lay the foundation, how to add decorative details, and how to solve any problems that might come up as you sew your crazy quilt. The more I look through this book, the more I love it, and can't wait to start my very first crazy quilt project. If you want to join me in the project, reserve your copy of this unbeatable resource for crazy quilting before Wednesday, March 18 at midnight Pacific Time. The order goes in first thing Thursday morning. Find out more and reserve your copy - - - Tools – Freezer Paper for Quilting
Whatever the brand, if you are planning to do any appliqué, freezer paper can come in handy. Top use freezer paper for appliqué, cut out the freezer paper in the shapes you want for your quilt. Trace your pattern on the buff side of the freezer paper (not the waxy side) right side facing you. Do not include a seam allowance as you trace - this will be the finished size of your piece. Cut out the freezer paper pattern and pin it onto the fabric you will use. Pin it so the waxy side faces away from the fabric. Cut out the fabric 1/4" away around the freezer paper pattern. Now, carry the freezer paper and fabric to your ironing table or board. Fold the seam allowance down around the sides of the freezer paper pattern, and iron the seam allowance to the freezer paper. This takes a fairly hot iron, and I even use steam. You want the wax to melt slightly so the fabric sticks to the freezer paper. Now you can take the prepared shape and place it on your quilt top or background. Again, using a hot iron, press the piece where you will sew it. I usually will also put one pin in the center of the piece to be sure it stays put. Your shape is now ready to be appliquéd. Once that sewing is complete, turn the quilt top over to the wrong side, cut a slice in the background fabric and then remove the freezer paper. Or, you can cut the background fabric to a 1/4" seam allowance.
Postcard Quilts for the Troops July 4th Roundup Next - Deadline MAY 20!
Penny's Postcard Posse has sent more than 15,000 fabric postcards to our troops in Iraq, Afghanistan and the hospital in Germany. As quilters, we know what those postcards mean to the men and women who recieve them. Some who get them receive no other mail from home. And for all of them, it's a reminder of the wonderful freedoms they are fighting for and the comforts they will enjoy when they return home. The Spring Roundup is coming to a close - the deadline is March 8! It's not too early to start making patriotic cards for our 4th of July Roundup. This will mark our 4th Year! Check out the postcard patterns on www.QuiltBlockLibrary.com I will continue to add designs, and patterns for the fabric postcards are always free. Every once in a while, we get messages from over there. Here's the latest from the Valentine's Day Roundup: This just in from Diane: Special request from the soldiers over there - Air Fresheners - like the ones you hang in your car! Because of the heat and stuffiness of the tents, as you can imagine, the air inside can get pretty stuffy. The next time you are in a grocery, drug, or auto store, pick up one or two and include them with your postcard - or just send them along separately to Diane.
Let's keep the cards going over there. These are really important to the troops as they are over there getting shot at and missing their families. And, for some, a fabric postcard from us is the only mail they get! To make the Spring deadline, get your cards to Diane by March 8. Please send your cards to: Diane is doing a fabulous job keeping the pictures updated, and if you have sent cards in, let your friends and family know that they can see pictures of them here: www.Fabric-Postcards.com Remember you can get FREE postcard patterns at: www.QuiltBlockLibrary.com
Special Note - we are in the process of changing the Picture Gallery on the Fabric-Postcards.com site. It may take a few days, so bear with us. Not to worry - We have all of the pictures and will get everything squared away soon.
Featured Block in Video - Irish Chain Patch St. Patrick's Day is finally here! And to round out our exploration into the world of Irish Quilt Blocks, this week brings the Irish Chain Patch quilt block. This one is a little more time consuming, since there are lots of patches. To shortcut the time, I've used a strip piecing method for the 9 patches in the block, and then added half-square triangles onto the corners. It's all quite interesting, and you could decide to use that method - or stick with cutting and sewing the individual patches. That way is much less confusing. I will be adding individual videos showing how to strip piece and a thing I learned about adding the triangles in the corners. (The video got too long to put all of that in one!) Get a free download of this pattern at www.QuiltBlockLibrary.com While you're there, invest in Pattern Credits (minimum $54) and get a FREE DVD showing 6 different ways to sew Half-Square Triangles together. We've only got 17 of these left, so get yours quick. Enjoy!
Download the Irish Chain Patch Quilt Block Pattern
March Quilt Block Patterns The March selection of free quilt block patterns includes some especially for celebrating St. Patrick's Day as well as some great quilt patterns for any time of the year. Click here to download your March FREE quilt block patterns
Click here to download your March FREE quilt block patterns |
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