April Meeting Recap

Thanks to Maria G. for this great space!

We had a great time at our "mini retreat".

Plans are in the works to do it again.

April Block Lotto

April Block Lotto

Tile Blocks with Striped Fabrics

Selecting Your Fabrics:

In the first sample (top) the value of the center and the three corner blocks is light.

The stripes are dark.  Therefore the four pieces surrounding the center are of 

medium value.

In the third sample (bottom right) the value of the center and the three corner blocks is

medium.  The stripes are light.  Therefore the four pieces surrounding the center 

are dark.

Directions to make for the second sample (bottom left) follow.

(You can see here that this block measures 13" square.)

Cutting Your Fabric:

1.   One 5" Center block and twelve 2 1/2" squares in the same value.

       In the sample above the center is dark.  Therefore, the three corner blocks are dark.

       They do not have to be three different fabrics.  You could make them

       all from the same fabric or you could make one or more match the center square.

       It's the value that counts.

2.    Around the dark center there are four 2 1/2" x 5" pieces in a light value.

3.   From striped fabric in a medium value, cut four 2 1/2" x 5" pieces and pay attention to 

      the direction the outer stripes must go before you cut into your fabric.  Then cut four 

      2 1/2"  squares.  The direction of the inside striped pieces does not matter.  In the

      sample above the diagonal pieces are going in the same direction. 

Sewing Your Block Together:

1.  Sew you block together in columns (or rows).

2.  Press all the seams in a column in the same direction.

3.  Alternate the direction each time you press a column so that when you go to sew

     all the columns together they nest easily.  Back view:

March Meeting Recap

Still Trying Out Our New Space!

We tried a different setup this time, so we could view a slide show from Quiltcon created by Anita.

March Block Lotto

Let's Celebrate Flowers!

To Make One Block You Need:

One 6" square of fussy cut "painterly" flower fabric (any colors)

Four 2 1/2" squares (same fabric)

Four  6"  x  1 1/2" white, white-on-white, or  off-white strips 

Step One:

Sew two of the white strips to the square on opposite sides.  Press

so that these white strips remain flat on the back.

Step Two:

Then sew the remaining two strips to the square on the other opposite sides.

Trim off the extra  1/2" of fabric you've lost doing Step One. 

Press the last two strips away from the center.

Step Three:

Draw a diagonal line on a smaller squares and crease.

Align that diagonal crease as in the above photo.  (When you sew on the line

you drew, ideally you want to just touch that corner of the 6" square.)  Open the square, 

pin, and sew on the diagonal. Press closed toward the corner.

Repeat for the remaining corners.

Step Four:

Trim the extra fabric from the corners and press.

The block measures 8" square.

Baby Quilts for 'Room to Grow'

Hi Mods! Our next charity project is making baby quilts for Room to Grow. This is a fantastic local charity that supports families in NYC, giving them access to the resources they need for their babies to thrive. You can check out their website at www.roomtogrow.org

A few notes about the baby quilts...

• They will be given to babies between the ages of 0-3,
• They must be in new condition (not previously used),
• They must be machine washable,
• Minimum size is 30" x 40"

You can use whatever fabric, colors and patterns you like - so long as the quilts are suitable for infants, and they're good enough quality to be given away as gifts.

The project deadline is our guild meeting on Saturday June 2nd.

To kick-start the project, we're having a 'Charity Sew-In' after our guild meeting on Saturday April 7th. We'd love for you to join us! Bring along your sewing equipment and materials, and we'll start working on our baby quilts together! (The board will provide further details about this event - including the meeting place & time.)

If you have any questions about the baby quilt project, please contact Eva LB.
A big thank you to everyone for taking part in this project! I can't wait to see all your beautiful quilts!

February Meeting Recap

Welcome to Our New Space!

It's bright and spacious, but feels intimate and cozy.
Looking forward to many more meetings here! 

February 2018 Block Lotto

Charleston Square

8.5" unfinished

8" finished

Step One

What you need for one block:

2 solids in the same color family

Low Volume

Step Two

For one block:

* There is an error in the photo above.  Each label that says 2" square  should say 2 1/2".

1 - 3 3/8" square (low volume)

4 - 2 1/2" squares (low volume)  *

1 - 3" square cut on the diagonal (light solid)

4 - 2 1/2" squares (light solid)  *

1 - 3" square cut on the diagonal (dark solid in the same color family)

4 - 2 1/2" squares (dark solid in the same color family)  *

Step Three

Place one triangle face down on a side of the diamond.

The dog ears overlap the diamond 1/4" on each side.

Sew the triangle to to the square using a 1/4" seam.

Repeat with a triangle of the same color on the opposite side.

Step Four

Repeat Step Three with the remaining two triangles.

Open the triangles and press.

Trim your square to 4 1/2" if necessary paying careful attention to the 

corners where the diamonds and triangles touch.  

Look at this next photo:

Step Five

Lay out all of the pieces for the block noting how the light and dark solids are grouped.

Step Six

Sew the top row of squares together using a scant 1/4" seam.

Sew the bottom row of squares together using a scant 1/4" seam.

Step Seven

Sew the two solids on either side of the center square together and press the seams.

Then sew these  two sets of side solids to the center using a scant 1/4" seam.  Before

sewing, put an anchor pin through both layers of fabric at the intersection of the seams.

Then put a pin on either side of the anchor pin.  If you stitch on the wrong side of the

center square, you can see exactly where to sew through the seam intersection and not

cut off the points.

Step Eight

Sew the three rows together.  Again, put an anchor pin in, and side pins in, and sew on the wrong side so you can see exactly where to sew through the seam intersections.   Press.

January 2018 Block Lotto

What you need -
Step One
Choose 3 Modern Fabrics:
Navy Blue or dark blue  (print should not read as a medium or light)
Low Volume
One other color of your choice

Step Two
For one block you need:

4 - 4.5" x 4.5" print A
1 - 4.5" x 4.5" print B
12 - 2.5" x 2.5" print B
4 - 4.5" x 4.5" print C

Step Three

 Pin eight of the 2.5" squares as shown.

 Draw diagonals as shown and then sew on that line.

 Press toward the corner.

Step Four

Since I chose white for the   +  part of this block, I need to take the four remaining
2.5" squares and also pin them to the white squares  as shown.
Draw diagonals, sew, press.

Step Five

Arrange all the units and the one remaining 4.5" print square as shown.
Sew into rows.  
Sew the rows together nesting the seams as you would in a nine patch.

Four Finished Blocks showing possible placement of print colors: