MY JOURNEY: QUILT # 25

 Another quilt from the Special Exhibit My Joyful Journey, part of the Virtual Quilt Festival, December 3-5, 2020.

QUILT # 25: RUFFLED ROSES  88" x 88".  machine pieced and appliqued,  longarm quilted, 2011-2019 Quilted by Lois Kindley

The Story: designed by Sue Garman as the 2011 Block of the Month quilt, I worked on this quilt sporadically for 8 years. When Sue died in early 2017 I was determined to finish it to honor our close friendship.  It was awarded "Best of Show" at the Fanfare 2019 Quilt Show. For so many reasons this is currently my most favorite quilt of all I have ever made. 

I have written about this quilt many times, including a detailed description of the machine applique process used. Use the Search Box above for "Ruffled Roses" or check out the Tutorials Link above.

This brings us the END of this Special Exhibit. I hope you  have enjoyed seeing my life's work and the journey it has taken me on. Stay tuned for what's to come. 

Let's Quilt.

Barbara

MY JOURNEY: QUILT #24

  Another quilt from the Special Exhibit My Joyful Journey, part of the Virtual Quilt Festival, December 3-5, 2020.

QUILT # 24: SIZZLE HOT: 72" x 72". machine pieced, longarm quilted, 2019 

The Story: This was the 2019 Block of the Month quilt for The Quilt Show.com, designed by Becky Goldsmith. one of two I made. For this one, I selected fabrics from my collection that were more "hot" than I typically use. I was very pleased with  how this came out. I put a lot of thought into the quilting designs and did my best quilting to date on it. It is in a private collection.

Let's quilt.

Barbara

MY JOURNEY: QUILT # 23

  Another quilt from the Special Exhibit My Joyful Journey, part of the Virtual Quilt Festival, December 3-5, 2020.

QUILT # 23: My Lifetime Quilt, 100" x 100". machine pieced, longarm quilted, 2016-2019 

The Story: This original design is based on several antique quilts using the humble half square triangle unit. It contains 12,800 triangles, 1.25" finished. It was machine pieced as a Leader/Ender project over 3 years. I called it My Lifetime Quilt because I expected it would take the rest of my life to finish, I couldn't die until it was done, so I was going to sew it VERY slowly. By early 2019, I knew I was close to finishing so decided to push on. I machine quilted it with a simple diagonal line pattern. It is subtitled "Wow!" because that is the one word I most often hear when people see it for the first time.  

I have written about this quilt several times, showing my construction method. Use the Search Box above for "Lifetime quilt" to find them:

For scale:

Let's quilt. 

Barbara

FACE MASK--Not Too Hard

 I have not been a fan of making face masks for the last year. But it is necessary and I will keep wearing mine in public until the virus is mostly contained. Even though I am fully vaccinated. Since we don't know what that means, or how long these first two shots will last, I'd rather be safe than sorry.

But I had not found a mask pattern I liked--and I tried at least a half dozen of them. It had to be easy to make, fast, but mostly it had to FIT. I recently saw a link to this one on the Kelly Cline Quilting Facebook page. Kelly made hers from old embroidered hankies and feedsack fabrics and it was really pretty. This one fits me, not Teddie, but you get the idea:

The 3D Fitted Face Mask pattern is on YouTube, originated by Maria, the Midnight Baker. She has several videos because she has tweaked the design over the last year. I suggest you start with the one labeled UPDATED, then review the earlier ones.  They provide more info on the adjustable ear ties using beads, or you can use elastic.

 UPDATED 3D Fitted Face Mask Pattern

The only problem I had with the videos was having to pause it or go back to get the measurements--the 8 minute video goes by quickly. So, to help you out, here are the measurements she provides: 

ADULT SIZE:                           CHILD SIZE:                 X-LARGE/BEARDS

2 rectangles 7.5" x 10.5"      2 rectangles 6.5" x 9"           2 rectangles 9" x 11" 

Trim corners 2"                         Trim corners 1.75"          Trim corners 2.25" 

Elastic 7-7.5" (2)                       Elastic 6.5" (2)                  8-8.5" (2) 

OR T shirt loops 9-9.5" (2)         7" (2)                             10.5" t-shirt loops  (2)

And 4 pony beads for the ear loops--the hole has to be large enough to fit two loops or elastic through.

Here are the adult rectangles with the corners trimmed--simply draw a mark 2" in from the corners and cut that triangle off. Have the fabrics right sides together. She recommends making two at a time for speed sewing and I agree. With the corners removed, sew all around the two fabrics with a 1/4" seam allowance, leaving an opening to turn right side out.

Turn right side out and press firmly, poking out all the corner points. Then just topstitch the two long edges, close to the edge. This is where making two at once speeds up the process:

Now it is simply a matter of folding the two long sides in, at the diagonal corners, and again press firmly:

The video shows this next part very well and I really recommend you watch it. It's only a little tricky to get the edges folded back as they need to be, secured with a clip and ready to sew in place. You will insert the elastic or ear loop made from strips cut from an old T-shirt into the opening on the edge as you stitch the entire folded edge in place. It sounds more difficult than it is:

Once both ear loops are sewn into the closed seams your 3D Fitted Face Mask is done. Honestly, it took me longer to write this post than it did to make my first two masks. You can see why this is called 3 D--it is sitting on the cutting mat:

Because of the extra room created by the 3D design, the mask is not resting on your mouth. Maria has additional instructions in her earlier videos on how to insert a pipe cleaner or twist tie across the bridge of the nose, which might help with foggy glasses but that was more work than I wanted to do. When my husband saw this one he said "That's pretty". It does help to use a fabric you like if you have to wear a mask. 

The 

The 3 D feature is created with those folded back edges--the sewing in this updated video she said is much easier to do than in her earliest version and I believe it--this was easy to sew:

So, if you are still seeking a better mouse trap, I mean, Face Mask Pattern, give this one a try.

Now, let's quilt! I will be heading out this week to the Second Annual Joyful Journey Retreat with wonderful women friends, and we will wear masks when close together in the dining line--can't wait!

Barbara

MY JOURNEY: QUILT # 22

  Another quilt from the Special Exhibit My Joyful Journey, part of the Virtual Quilt Festival, December 3-5, 2020.

QUILT # 22: Rajah Revisited: 67" x 67". machine pieced, longarm quilted, 2017  Quilted by Deanna Plotts 

The Story: This quilt was the 2016 Block of the Month quilt for The Quilt Show.com  It replicates a very large quilt made on a slave ship that sailed from England to Australia in the 1840's. I used a reproduction panel for the center to replace the pattern's center. It was fun to use my substantial collection of reproduction fabrics for this quilt.

Let's quilt.

Barbara

MY JOURNEY: QUILT # 21

  Another quilt from the Special Exhibit My Joyful Journey, part of the Virtual Quilt Festival, December 3-5, 2020.

QUILT # 21: Stars in a Time Warp  90" x 90". Orignal design, machine pieced, longarm quilted, 2016 Quilted by Magnolia Longarm Quilting: 

The  Story: The blocks were a 2015 block of the week project from Barbara Brackman. Over 50 weeks she presented a fabric style or color and explained the history of that design. I  made 2 blocks a week. When trying to decide how to assemble 100 blocks, I remembered I had this John Hewson reproduction panel that would do nicely. He was a fabric printer from Colonial Philadelphia, my hometown. Since by now I am known for making Medallion style quilts, it made the perfect center. All the rest of the borders I designed as the quilt grew. It was included in the Special Exhibit "In The American Tradition", Houston, 2017. 

Let's quilt. 

Barbara

COLOR MY WORLD--Month 3

This Block of the Month quilt is available FREE to Star Members of The Quilt Show with Alex Anderson and Ricky Tims. It was designed by Wendy Williams exclusively for The Quilt Show for 2021. It is not too late to start--you will learn a lot.

Month 3 brings us the remaining 16 Small Houses--#3 and #4, eight of each:

RESOURCES:

1. WATCH the MONTH 3 VIDEO--find it with the Patterns under Instructional Videos

2. You might want to review the Video "The Basics of Sewing", shown in Month 1.

3. Watch the LIVE Broadcast I will do Thursday March 4, 2021,  10 am PST, on Facebook and YouTube. I will answer your questions and review this month's process.

IMPORTANT THINGS TO KNOW:

1. Small Houses 3 and 4 are the same size as Small Houses 1 and 2 that were made in Month 1. 
Double check the 1" box on the pattern before beginning--both the file copy you make for your binder AND the paper foundation you print, whether you are using freezer paper or newsprint or some other lightweight paper for your paper patterns. 

2. Small House 3 has 3 sections, instead of 2. Make all 3 sections and join them together.

3. Cutting instructions for each fabric are in the pattern and they will work. I prefer to increase the size of very small pieces. Any piece that was to be cut 1.25" I cut 1.5". You can always cut the fabric larger to provide a bit more ease in placement--it will, of course, mean you waste a tiny bit more. In the photo ABOVE, the top fabrics were cut as the directions say, the bottom fabrics were increased--from 1.25" square for the light green to 1.5" square. The blue window was increased from 2" x 1.25" to 2" x 1.5". 

4. When all 32 Small Houses are complete, join them into 16 pairs. Then STOP! Do not join the pairs to each other until Month 4, after all the trees have been added to each pair.

5. Plan your colors however you like them. Wendy suggests sewing the houses into pairs 1/2 and 3/4, and then placing them as 1/2/3/4, all the way around the circle--remember, they are all joined AFTER the trees are added, in Month 4. It is more important you like how the colors play with each other than it is to have the houses in 1/2/3/4 order--only you will know if you move some to other positions. Here, in  my quilt, the light green treetop is on Small House 2/1, the dark green treetop is on Small House 3/4:

5. Try to sew a very accurate 1/4" seam allowance when joining the pairs of houses. How round your final circle is and how flat your quilt lays depends on this accuracy. I cannot stress this enough.  Press the seam OPEN after sewing two houses into a PAIR. 

6. When joining two houses into a pair, be sure the lower edge is accurately aligned--the top edge will be covered by the tree so if some of your houses are not exactly the same height, that will work out. The lower edge will be pieced to the Inner Road in Month 5--that edge needs to be as accurate as you can make it. 

7. To cut the Backgrounds, you have a choice--follow the pattern cutting directions, they work. OR use my Speed Cutting Instructions that we talked about in Month 1. Find the VIDEO about that HERE.

The Speed Cutting Instructions are the same two pages that were introduced January 1, 2021. The Month 3 instructions are in the lower box--Small House 3 and Small House 4. Find the PDF HERE.

 If you find it too confusing to cut rectangles different sizes for this method, simply cut them ALL from 5.5" x 7.5" rectangles, half face up ad half face down. That generates more waste but less confusion. 

The Month 3 Video, in Instructional Videos on the Pattern page, goes into this method in detail. 

The Large piece Small House 3=o, Small House 4=k

The Smaller piece Small House 3=n, Small House 4=j

Some must be cut Face UP

Some must be cut Face DOWN

Next month we will add the Tree Trunks and Treetops and you will be sewing all 32 Small Houses into a complete circle. Then the fun begins!

Let's quilt.

Barbara