Quilt As You Go, Simply Done

Simply Done

Crazy Shortcut Quilts Book

Sarah’s Quilty Bit

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When I teach my quilt classes, and write a new quilt-as-you-go book, I start with a little helper that I call a “Quilty Bit”. I make them from several 5″ squares of fabric and batting. I make two “crazy cuts” similar to those in our book Crazy Shortcut Quilts, and then layer those squares with batting and backing, and quilt them with decorative stitches and pretty rayon threads. Then I join two squares, leaving out only the last seam, so that my students can see how the squares are joined. In my books I suggest making one of these Quilty Bits if a reader feels unsure of how to do the joining and wants to have a small sample to play with before starting a big quilt.

My friend Sarah (Sadie_J on YouTube) sent me pics of her “Quilty Bit” and I wanted to share them with you. The purples are her squares and the center pink strip is the joining strip of fabric. Doesn’t the gold thread look gorgeous against her fabrics? Thank you Sarah!

QB1

Ricki’s Finished Quilts

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Check out these cuties by Ricki Cohn! Here’s the note she so generously sent, along with pics of her quilts:

Just finished my 6th quilt using your quilt as you go method, along with other quilt as you go techniques, including making a reversible quilt. Thanks! You were the inspiration for getting me started on this relatively new hobby.

Here are some of my latest endeavors:

Owl quilt
I quilted the squares first with wavy lines, then learned how to applique using freezer paper and starch for the pieces of the owls. The back does have the outline of the owl and wings, but I used Sulky thread in the color of the backing, and it looks fine.

My 2-sided quilt…

Below is a baby quilt for my niece’s baby. I added the yellow borders that I quilted first to the 4 squares that were extras from a larger crazy quilt that ended up too big for a crib. The yellow and brown quilts are the back and front of the same quilt!

Ricki

Owls

Yellow

Brown

CSQ

A New Quilt From Cyndi in Texas

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Cyndi sent me her quilt photos with these notes – aren’t they both gorgeous!

GiGi-2

Using the book Shortcuts Crazy Quilts I made this quilt for my mother in law for her birthday.



A year ago she sent me this note along with the photos below. Her color choices are just beautiful and I really like her cut designs in both quilts. Thank you Cyndi for sharing your quilts with me!







This is my first try at making a crazy quilt. I love this technique. I made this for my son for christmas last year. He loved it. I’m currently working on one for my mother in law. I have made several and everyone loves them.

Front-sm

Back-sm

Lori’s Quilt for Her Sister

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I posted Lori’s sister’s video in this post, but I wanted to show you pics of the quilt too! Here’s the story Lori sent me

I just wanted to drop a quick note to include some photos of the quilt I just finished for my sister’s 40th birthday using your quilt as you go method!. She loves tie dyed….so I got the idea to do it in a quilt. Took on a pretty huge bite…..don’t know what I was thinking…..no pattern, no real vision….just started cutting, then I started sewing!! In the end, I quilted each block with words that had meaning from her life and then put it all together in the nick of time! Her birthday is today. The first photo is the individual squares (or should say rectangles) laid out on the table. The second one is the finished product. Kinda proud of myself!! Thanks for being the voice on my computer that convinced me I could do it!!

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Meet Susan Wilcox Ingersoll

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We live at opposite ends of the North American continent. She’s from New Brunswick, Canada and she’s an organic soapmaker and entrepreneur.

We’ve emailed a few times, starting with this conversation about the decorative stitch quilting process:

I received Crazy Shortcut Quilts for Christmas and am enjoying the book greatly so far. I am working on my first quilt with this technique. At the first when you start to do the quilting and it tells you on page 93 to bring up the bobbin thread I understand and can do. What I am asking about is what do you do with the two threads afterwards. Do you have to know them together or do you just clip them off.

I love the technique very much and can see become addicted very quickly.

I replied to her that if I am using the decorative stitches, usually that will secure the threads enough that they don’t need to be knotted. Two cotton threads rarely need to be knotted, just clipped but, if I am using a rayon or slick polyester on top AND in the bobbin, I’ll check the line of stitching first (after all the quilting is done to the block) and see if they look like they are going to stay secure. Sometimes if I’ve used a simple stitch then I’ll knot the threads before clipping. I hope that makes sense. I just leave the long tails hanging while doing all the stitching because if you sew over the ends of one line of stitching with another line, that also secures the ends. After all the stitching on the blocks is done, then I go back and clip thread ends. I have a lot of videos on YouTube if you want to check some of them out – especially the one on using a “fat quarter inch seam” when joining/sashing your blocks together.

She also asked about using heavier than cotton fabrics, and we chatted about those options, with each of us deciding that a quilt made out of ANY fabric is better than no quilt at all. We are both frugal experimenters at heart. Then she told me about herself a little more

I live on a small island off of New Brunswick , only 2500 people live here, and no fabric store. So all my trips away to the mainland are usually used up taking family to doctor visits and not much time left to shop for fabric. I have lots of other interests as well as sewing, card making, jewelry making and soap making and stay at home mother, so when I get a hankering to sew I will use what I have on hand and lately that is not much.

We both love writing and quilting! Here are two of Susan’s quilts with her note

I would like to show you my first two quilts using your method. I love it!!!!!!! Thank you.

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Rosie’s Quilts

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Another quilt show!! I LOVE getting photos of finished quilts and Rosie sent me this message, along with pics of her quilts …

I’ve just looked at your web site and would like to say how much I’ve enjoyed your book. I’ve attached a couple of photos of quilts I’ve made. The pastel coloured one is a suduko themed pattern and the other was made for a cat lover – all the fabrics are cat themed.

Cats



Back


Pastel

Cutting Fabric for a New Quilt

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Hi Quilters, I was giving a trunk show a couple of weeks ago and the topic of fabric cutting came up. So, when I started cutting my fabric for a new quilt I thought I’d video it and share the process that I use for cutting my binding and all of my joining-sashing strips from the same length of fabric and, most importantly, why I do it this way. It’s a little on the long side but I hope it has a few tips that might help you.





Four Gorgeous Quilts!

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Marion (from Toronto) sent me pics of her quilt (she used our “Easy to Go Crazy” pattern from Crazy Shorcut Quilts) and her fabric colors are so warm and beautiful! Here’s the note she sent – and I love the ending

I have been quilting for about a year and a half and have made about 50 quilts. Not as big a deal as it sounds. I am retired and I only make small quilts for babies and wheel chair lap quilts. My mother has been a quilter for over 50 years and I never had any interest. Now I am addicted.

I saw a video of yours on youtube and thought this was the answer to my problems with quilting as I would like to make larger quilts.

Attached are photos of my first try (not perfect).

I’ll take gorgeous over ‘not perfect’ any day 🙂

Marion’s Quilt

A peek at the back







Barbara send me a pic of her Jelly Roll Quilt, from the video and the new book – Quilt As You Go {reimagined}, along with this note

Hello Marguerita!

I just wanted you to know that I FINALLY finished my jelly roll quilt. ..(from) last year… lol! Anyway, I wanted to send you the pics of my quilt. I wanted to send a pic of me holding it up, but I’m too *shy* 🙂 Thanks for your time and your book! I have a Kindle Fire now, like you, and want to get your next book as soon as I can!

Take care!

Barbara R

Barbara’s Jelly Roll Quilt

Her own unique design!


















Now, for some bright and bold – Elaine sent pics of her and Jess’s quilts – in stunning colors

Elaine’s Black-White-Red Beauty

Jess’s – with a hint of pink and great border












My thanks to Barbara, Marion, Elaine and Jess for sharing their quilt photos.

Quilt As You Go Quilt Retreat!

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If you are in (or coming to) Alaska and want to take an exclusive class with me, here’s your chance! Only 10 people will be able to sign up for this weekend retreat, which is a fundraiser for a friend. I’ll be bringing quilts from my first 2 books plus quilts I have made for the next two books – a little exclusive sneak peek!

We’ll spend the weekend making a Shortcake Quilt – 36″ x 45″ – and covering the basics of quilt-as-you-go and then jump into adapting the QAYG techniques to work for other quilt blocks – not just the Crazy Shortcut Quilt style.

It will be a little bit of everything 🙂 June 8, 9, 10th, 2012 in Palmer, Alaska — $100 per person — email me to sign up — MMQuilts @ gmail.com

If you are (or know of) a quilt shop owner in the area of Anchorage to Palmer, and you want to host the Trunk Show, please let me know. I am looking for either Thursday June 7th or Friday, June 8th, from about 7-9pm.

Crazy Shortcut Quilt Retreat