Preview 44

A fun little set of spinners to span a great theme print.  It takes just 6 Fat Quarters--4 for the Spinners and 2 for Backgrounds.   One yard of the theme is largely left whole to show off the print.  There is enough left from the Spinner fat quarters to make the pieced squares borders.

For this quilt I liked the 2 odd sizes of Theme strips--they are cut 8" and 23".  It gave a more playful feel and gave me more whole elephants.  I couldn't fit the notes on the pattern, but if you like symmetry better, you could cut 2 15" strips instead.  It also looks good with 4 strips cut 8".  In that case, you would have Theme strips top and bottom of the quilt, as well as in between the pieced rows.  It all might depend on the size of your Theme.

Preview 43

Love our little 6 Fat Quarter Quilts.  They show off a group of fabric and make great gifts.  Our GOLD MEDAL here cuts long strips down the 18" length of the fat quarter, so your prints are always right side up, never sideways.  The quilt top finishes 42"x 52" for a baby/lap size and could easily be bordered for a throw size.

There a many options for the Contrast Squares.  With an additional 3/4 yd, they can be all one fabric, nice and bold.  Or they can be 3 fabrics, cut from 3 fat quarters.  Those 3 can be scattered randomly through the quilt, or grouped in sections as in the cover photo.  Or they can be scrappy/blended if you use  27  5" Charm Squares.

Preview 42

Again, does this look familiar?  It's GYPSY--medallion-style.  Instead of the big Four Patch in the middle, it is a Feature fabric, framed--Center Stage, you could say.  And then we keep going with more rounds to make a throw 54"x63".  You could add a border to make it even bigger.

SHOW BIZ uses 13 Fat Quarters or 38  10" squares--or even 20 Fat Sixths or 20 5" strips.  One yard will do the Frame around the Center and Binding.  The center can be anything that you can cut or build to 15 1/2"--for this quilt, I used another Fat Quarter.  I am itching to use a vintage piece in the middle.  The frame does not have to be cut as the pattern states--you can use any piece or any size, so long as it ends up 18 1/2" before you start laying the bricks around it.  The Bulloch Hall Quilt Guild in Roswell GA used GYPSY for a community service sewing project day.  They shared photos with me--one quilter used 4 orphan Fan blocks for the center--fabulous.

Preview 41

Does this one look a little familiar?  How about CLOUD NINE done in strips.  It worked out perfectly to sub the 4 1/2" and 6 1/2" cuts for strips.  The same fun zig-zag pattern emerges with just one simple block.  Add a little pieced border on top and bottom--fun and done.

This 54"x 72" quilt takes 39  2 1/2" strips.  Any of your Jelly Rolls, Bali-Pops, Tonga Strips, etc will work.  Add one yard background and 5/8 binding.

Shabby Lavender SUNSPRITE

A call for a lavender baby quilt prompted this SUNSPRITE from the Rachel Ashwell's Garden Rose Collection for Treasures by Shabby Chic.  The pattern is a traditional style that I thought suited the classic roses.  Plus with the colors all so very soft, using a pattern that places the fabrics in a line makes them stronger.  A more random pattern might just mush all together.  At least that is my theory, and I am sticking to it, because I think it works. 

I added two borders to make this quilt more of a crib size.  Got a bit carried away, but I like the look.  The first border is cut 1 1/2".  The second border is cut 7"--I really wanted that stripe to show.  

OPENING NIGHT Again and Again

OPENING NIGHT is still our go-to pattern when we have a great theme.  The six fat quarters are usually easy to coordinate, and we're off and running for about $40 and 4 hours of sewing (at most!)

Gallery Fiori from P&B Textiles has been our best seller this year, and this kit was no exception.

And then we have another P&B group, Tribute by Pat Sloan.  It's a great throw size for your Service Quilts.

Preview 40

Last one, I think.  I want to use 8 Fat Quarter bundles more, so I geared this quilt for that.  The block is one I have been playing with for months, mostly in a larger 5" size.  For a smaller Fat Quarter bundle, this 3 1/2" x 6 1/2" piece worked out better math-wise.  And for prints that are not super big, this looks better, too. 

The cutting left some remaining strips, so I added a pieced border to use these and add a little zip to the look of the quilt.  With the additional 1 3/8 yd for borders, the quilt finishes 46"x 55".

The cover girl is an Anna Griffin Christmas group.  I loved how the stripe cut up for the center of half of the blocks.  I had people begging for the kits and fabric when they saw it made up.