Rainbow Starstrip Quilt {Bloggers Quilt Festival}

 It's that time again.

 This will be the sixth time I have participated and always enjoy the festival so much!

My first entry is the November's Imagine Circle@ Do.Good Stitches Bee quilt I coordinated!!

I asked the lovely ladies if it was all right if this one time we could give to another good cause, an auction!  The luncheon is for Special People In Catholic Education (SPICE) and being a mother of two dyselexic sons, I can't thank them enough for saying yes!

I love this quilt so much and I KNOW I will do another in the future....maybe for our regular charity!!

Now to the quilt stuff.

The blocks are using the Starstrip Block Tutorial that I worked up.  Each bee member was assigned a color.

I asked them to use coordinating low volume centers for the "stars".

They pieced together easily since the blocks were a nice size.

When it came time to do a border I really debated. Just white or a lot of color. I think the postage stamp border was the best of both worlds!

I knew I needed a quilt pattern that meanders but was interesting just the same. I decided to try my hand at "ribbon" quilting.

Definitely fun!  I basically travelled a path one direction and the traveled closely back. Letting it get wide to thin and even crossing.

 

For the backing, a simple black and white crosshatch. Binding small black and white dots. 

Quilt stats

Measures: 60"x60"

Pattern: Starstrip blocks 

Fabric: scraps, scraps, scraps

Backing: crosshatch from Joann's.

Binding: dots from Whindam fabrics

Quilted: by myself on Avante 18" 

All set up for the auction!  With a quilt card to the winner so they know who worked so hard on it!

 I'm not sure of the final bid, but I know it was doing well when I checked on it midway through the luncheon!! My one regret was not bidding on it myself.  I was busy talking to some prospective parents that were looking into joining the program.  Thanks my dear do.goodstitches friends!!!

If you stopped by from the festival...welcome!!!!!!

Off to check out other entries.

 P.S.  My other entry for the Festival is an Hand Applique Quilt HERE

Starstrip Block {Tutorial}

It's my turn again for Imagine @ Do. Good Stitches Bee!

 This is large block based off of a jelly roll block, however, I've adapted it to use up some of those strips and leftover jelly rolls you have in your scrap stash!

However, if you don't have a stash that you can pull from, you can easily cut some strips off from any of your WOF pieces or fat quarter pieces!

STARSTRIP BLOCK TUTORIAL

FINISHED SIZE: 16.5"

Supplies:

Strips/jelly roll cuts at least 36" long. However, 18" long pieces would work also.

Center star fabric measuring 6.5" x 8"

Ruler with 30 degree measurement or Template A 

Template B (both downloadable templates HERE)

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Gather enough strips to stack up to 8.5 inches after piecing with 1/4" seam allowance.   

Stack and piece so that you have a rectangle that is at least 8.5" high by 36" 

or TWO rectangles measuring 8.5" by 18".  You can stack higher and trim the height back if you are one of those quilters that like a little breathing room.

 

Cut four 8.5 x 8.5 blocks from the rectangle (s).

Cut a 6.5" x 8" rectangle from low volume stash.  I chose one with dark and light blues in it.

 

Cut into four triangles that measure approx 3.75" wide and 6.5" high.

Using your ruler or triangle template A.

.pdf HERE

 Cut a 30 degree angle to create the first triangle, then 90 degree cut to cut the second. Another 30 degree cut for the third, and then a 90 degree to complete the set of 4. 

You will have a bit of strip leftover. 

Cut the bottom right block using the 30 degree ruler.  Line up the 30 degree mark along the bottom and have it cross at the 3.5" point from the bottom left.  

You can also use the template triangle B (.pdf here) as a guide.

Line up your low volume triangle along the cut edge. 

Be sure you have some overhang on both ends.

Piece and press and trim any excess so the block is 8.5" square.

Repeat three more times.  The corner will always be the right bottom.

Flip and arrange using the photo above to get the "star" in the middle.  

I think this will be a lot of fun! 

 I have a few mock ups of what this could potentially look like if you do ROYGBIV colors.

 

or use a ton of low volume and have the centers as colors! 

  Full scrappy could be a lot of fun too!

A LARGE block at 16.5" that can make up a full quilt pretty quickly!

Busy Bee

 I've been a busy bee this weekend.  It has been a do.good stitches kind of weekend around here!

August Bee Blocks

Super cute blocks that Lindsay from Craft Buds assigned us!

September Bee Blocks

I love these blocks from the tutorial that Amanda at My Sewcial Hour posted.

So fun.  I don't want to let them go.......

May Bee Quilt

Last Friday, I had attached about 3/4 of the binding on the quilt when it started to act up by birdnesting.  I fussed over it here and there last week, but Saturday it seemed happy after I cleaned it and rethreaded the upper and bobbin.

I am one side away from finishing the binding!!!!

I also really need to complete the quilt tutorial I have in the works.  I think I will be a busy bee the rest of the week!

Imagination {Blogger's Quilt Festival}

It's time!!!  Are you ready for some quilt yumminess throughout the quilt blogesphere?

Imagine is the name of the quilting bee circle I am a member of for do. Good Stitches.  

This is Imagination. 

 The quilt makes me think of philosophers, staring into the skies and seeing stars...imagining what life beyond is.

This quilt had many challenges and road blocks for me.  The original, Imagination post walks you through it all.  For the sake of the festival, I will keep it simple!!!

The blocks: 

The sashing....and a pretty cool shot of the quilting!

I loved this scrappy piano key border.

A cool "on the longarm" shot of the quilting.

Scallops!

Simple backing for somewhat complicated quilting.

Close up of the back.

 

Binding

Solid Red.

I was so happy with the results.  The amazing blocks from my bee friends made it so wonderful!
 I couldn't be more thrilled.   

Quilt Stats:

Measures: 66" x 86"

Blocks Pieced by: Imagine @do.Good Stitches quilting bee.  Fabrics from their stash.

Sashing, Border fabrics: A variety of strips from my stash.

Backing: Blank Quilting Pattern #6239 and Kona Ash

Binding: Kona Cardinal

Quilted: By myself on my longarm HQ Avante 18.

This beauty went off to Threading Hope.  

I hope it brings comfort and joy to its recipient.

Thanks for stopping by!  I now must commence my perusal of the entries. Every single "season" I start recognizing my favorite quilts or I see some that have me meeting some new blogger friends!!!

Imagination

Imagine is the name of the quilting bee circle I am a member of for do. Good Stitches.  

This is Imagination. 

 The quilt makes me think of philosophers, staring into the skies and seeing stars...imagining what life beyond is.

 The Block

Why was I thinking the heavens and beyond? The detailed paper pieced blocks are made from the tutorial ET phone home block by Lily's Quilts.

 As soon as I read that name and decided it would be the July quilt block, all I could see were stars!

The Color Palette

For this quilt, I asked the ladies to use the colors from this color palette 

 

which, at the time, were colors on my mind due to a family trip to Washington, D.C. During the Fourth of July festivities!

The Piecing

They took the challenge and sent me some beautiful blocks. Since I knew they were probably cursing my name when they were piecing them, I really wanted to make sure that I showcased them at their best potential. I decided on blocks in point. I also was a bit concerned because I had given them cart Blanche on gray backgrounds. I thought there would be more variety, but the majority were Kona Ash. 

To resolve the gray fabric issue, I clumped the darker grays together and decided to emphasize then with the red center. 

The Sashing

I could have forgone sashing, because I know it sort of fights the idea of modern. But the gray was presenting a 'blech" problem for me. Mr Boss had even commented during the layout process that it was a bit dingy and depressing.  And if he seems interested in the process? I start listening.

Sashing seemed the only way to have the dark gray center intentional.  I had originally intended to surround the center blocks with aqua and then red sashing everywhere else.

But I changed my mind and used the coral red for the center and aqua everywhere else.

The Border

I am usually okay with no borders, but I felt like I had to frame these amazing blocks. I was having the "blech" problem again.  The sashing was so cheery and it just seemed to end.

 A range of my red, blue, aqua scraps made up the piano key borders with mitered corner.  

I may have gone a bit overboard?

The Quilting

Of course, the next challenge was the quilting. How to match the amazing blocks without overwhelming them.

I had sketched it out as best as I could. Loaded it and I started to quilt...and despised it. I didn't like the pattern.  I didn't like the darker gray thread on the Kona Ash.  I unpicked for days.

Four, to be exact.

  It was a bit of a pain to constantly change my thread, but oh so worth it!

I was never so happy to get it off the rails!!!

The Backing

Simple backing. 

One long piece of Kona Ash intersecting two pieces of an aqua fabric with what appeared to be an orange peel or cathedral window design.
I made the decision to make the gray stripe as wide as the quilt label.
  I was determined to have the label pieced into the backing instead of appliqueing it like I have in the past.  I felt that a simple backing would compliment the complicated front.

 

And show off the quilting.

The Binding

Binding.  Oh..it was tough!  I even sent out pleas here, on Instagram, and Facebook to help me make the decision. I ruled out aqua/teal pretty quickly because it just seemed "blah".  Blech seemed to have constantly plagued this quilt!

 I then was really debating the blue and red.  The blue did frame the quilt, like many suggested, but when I would flip it to look at the back, it was glaringly obvious that the small tiny dots on the backing fabric were actually black.

They just didn't seem happy with each other.

So red it was.

And I am so happy.  I couldn't be more thrilled.   

Quilt Stats:

Measures: 66" x 86"

Blocks Pieced by: Imagine @do.Good Stitches quilting bee.  Fabrics from their stash.

Sashing, Border fabrics: A variety of strips from my stash.

Backing: Blank Quilting Pattern #6239 and Kona Ash

Binding: Kona Cardinal

Quilted: By myself on my longarm HQ Avante 18.

This beauty is off to Threading Hope this week.   But first I have to clip all the stray threads you might have caught in the photos. It is about to rain and I had no other opportunity to do a photo shoot...so you are getting it "raw".  It is off to get washed and dried soon!

It is definitely heavier than most quilts due to the layers and layers of seams.  

I hope it brings comfort and joy to its recipient.

My finish for February for the 2013 Lovely Year of Finishes!!!