Friday, November 30, 2012

Fast Quilt Tutorial,Confession, and Giveaway!

Hello, there! Today we’re going to learn how to make the FAST! Centered Strips Quilt Top...then I’ll confess something...then we’ll have a giveaway.


Materials Needed:

  • Twenty-one 2.5” strips of fabric
  • Two pieces of coordinating fabric that measure approx. 13” x 60”. It’s best to wait to cut them until you are ready to sew them on. Then you can do exact measurements.
  • 3.5 yards jumbo ric rac
  • Coordinating thread

About this Quilt:

The inspiration for the center portion of this quilt is from the Heirloom Creations Jelly Roll 1600 quilt.

[photo courtesy of heirloomcreations.net] - Two Jelly Roll 1600 Quilts using the same jelly roll
They use 40 strips and end up with a full quilt top. However, our tutorial only uses 21 strips and ends up with a narrower piece. Then we add the two side pieces and the ric rac, and there you have it! 

Instructions:

Heirloom Creations provides instructions and a video to explain their technique. I highly recommend reading/viewing those first, before doing Steps 1, 2, 3.
Use ¼ inch seams.
STEP 1: Sew the strips together diagonally (like you do with binding) to get one really long strip. 

STEP 2: Cut off 18” of the really long strip and discard it. 
STEP 3: Take one end of the strip, line it up with the other end of the strip, and sew a seam along the entire long side. You will end up with a strip that is 1/2 as long as the original strip. The two are still attached at the bottom, so you’ll need to cut them apart. Now line up the top end with the bottom end, and sew along the entire long side. Repeat these steps until you have a piece that is approximately 26” x 60”. This is your quilt center piece. Press the seams open.

STEP 4: Side pieces. The width of each side piece is 13”. Measure the length of the quilt center piece, and cut the two side pieces to fit. You may want to leave an extra inch or two and trim it after sewing. Sew the two side pieces to the center piece.

STEP 5: Sew the ric rac on.
Your FAST! Centered Strips Quilt Top is done.

Now for the confession...

I set out to make the full Jelly Roll 1600 quilt. I didn't read the instructions carefully, so I didn't realize I needed 40 strips. The Rolie Polie (Riley Blake's version of the Jelly Roll) I used only had 21 strips, and it was too late before I discovered my error. After frantic phone calls with a couple quilter friends – THANKS LADIES! – I worked out a solution. So this really should be called the "Sara Doesn't Read Instructions Carefully Quilt."

Now for the giveaway… (the giveaway is closed)

I am giving away this beautiful Rolie Polie from Riley Blake’s Pieces of Hope fabric collection. It is the same one I used to make the center portion of this quilt.
    There are three ways to enter, which means each person can enter at most three times.
    • Leave a comment. Just say hi...or tell us about a quilting mess-up you have experienced. I’m sure I’m not the only one, right?!?
    • Visit Arcadia Cotton, then leave a comment back here telling us one thing you LOVE.
    • Visit Flannel Queen, then leave a comment back here telling us one thing you LOVE.
    Shipping: You must have a US or Canadian address to enter.

    Deadline: This giveaway ends Monday night at midnight (Dec 3). The lucky winner will be announced on Tuesday morning! Good Luck!


    37 comments:

    1. Great solution to an error in reading instructions.

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    2. I LOVE the precuts on the Arcadia Cotton's site

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    3. LOVE the chevron blue brown flannel on Flannel Queen's site!

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    4. Pretty fabric! Let's see... worse mistake I made was when I screwed up the SID quilting in one row from the top to bottom of the quilt and had to pick out the WHOLE THING. That was not fun. lol

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    5. Dang cute "Sara Doesn't Read Instructions Carefully Quilt"!! Super cute fix!! =O)

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    7. Visited the Arcadia Cotton website - forgot to add this the first time, ugh! LOL!! Love the model on the Home page! =O) Great variety of lines and fabrics. Nice work Ms J.

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    8. Visited Flannel Queen and LOVE the Believe line by Blend Fabrics - VERY cute!! Too much temptation.... hee-hee!!

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    9. What a great giveaway! Thanks for sharing.

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    10. I visited Arcadia Cotton and I really like Speckle Fresh Cut Flowers fabric.

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    11. I love Ruby Swoon at Flannel Queen :-)

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    12. Directions...who reads directions, I thought if you looked really close at the pictures that was sufficient. Great job, darling baby/teen quilt. Thanks for the fun idea.

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    13. I love all your awesome creations. You are amazing.

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    14. I'm following you now!! Thank your sweet m-i-l for getting me your blog :)!! And btw, I hardly ever read directions- I like to make things up as i go ;)

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    15. I LOVE that Julie has Meadowsweet still!! And even the Raspberry Henna Garden! I'm dying that it's $10 a yd- awesome deal!!!! Ohhh, I wish I had lots of money!!

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    16. I LOVE the Zoo Menagerie in Sara's shop- the monochromatic prints are awesome!!

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    17. I'm really horrible with directions and always manage to get ahead of myself, no matter what...hence why quilting takes every bit of my concentration.

      Thanks for the chance
      shel704 at aol dot com

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    18. At Arcadia Cotton I love the Santa Yule Trees fabric...it would make a pretty Christmas tree skirt
      shel704 at aol dot com

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    19. The Mod Tod Main Green Flannel at Flannel Queen is adorable
      shel704 at aol dot com

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    20. I use the leaders and enders method by Bonnie Hunter but get confused when I try it with two quilt tops at once. I take two pieces off the design board to sew them together and can't remember which way they were supposed to go when I'm done sewing them. Yikes.

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    21. Hi! This is a really cute quilt, and a great creative way to cover an "oops!"

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    22. I just visited Arcadia and I love the Advent calendar and banner kit.

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    23. Over at Flannel Queen, I really love the Fresh Fallen Snow collection!

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    24. I love the yellow chevrons and dots on Arcadia Cottons homepage!

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    25. The Flannel Queen's website will be a new shopping destination for me. Pretty flannel is always hard to find!

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    26. I have made 2 of the jelly roll 1600 quilts in the past. They really do go fast!

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    27. Awesome giveaway. Love the precut pieces.

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    28. Flannel queen is one of my favorite places to buy flannel! Love all the unique prints and good quality material.

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    29. Love the rainbow chevron and the $5 shipping at Arcadia Cottons is a plus!

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    30. From Arcadia Cotton, I love the Plaidsportation line! So cute!

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    31. I love Peak Hour and Fresh Fallen Snow from Flannel Queen. Too many fun ones!!

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    32. It looks comfy and cozy! I'm in for the giveaway!

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    33. Sara, may I ask how you quilted this top? I had the very same rolie polie--also thinking it was a jelly roll and when I found your tutorial I knew exactly what to do with it! I followed what you have done--(my sides are blue and my ric rac is red), but I am at a loss as to how to how best to quilt it (design wise)--this will be a first for me actually. I searched your blog to see if I could find the finished quilt, but I am guessing that I have missed it. I hope that you have a finished photo and thank you so much for this fun tutorial! I plan on using it again in the future. :)

      Cathy ♥

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      Replies
      1. I actually gave the quilt top away, so I didn't quilt it. I'm sure it will be great, however you choose to quilt it! Good luck!

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