Hands 2 Help Charity Quilt Challange

One H2H quilt done and one to go.

You can read all about the H2H Challenge here: Hands 2 Help

I LOVE this quilt!

As I stated in a previous post I found this floral fabric in a bargain bin.

Kind of a Charley-Brown-Christmas-Tree-bolt-of-fabric if you will....  

I brought 1.5 yards home and hooked it up with these bright border colors.

Then, I quilted it with this large funky flowery freehand. 

I used all the leftover fabric from the borders and the binding for the back.

I just wanted both sides to be bright, joyful and full of surprises!

You can read more about the challenge and the charity this quilt will be sent to here: H2H Happy Chemo Charity

On the Design Wall Today

I have a couple of projects up here this week:

1) I have started this black and white "Paradigm Shift"

2 ) and I am ready to applique the May wall hanging for my Mom. 

Spring has Sprung in NW Ohio!

H2H Charity Challange

Sarah, over at Confessions of a Fabric Addict is hosting the 2013 Charity Quilt Challenge.

This week, the linky party is about Tutorials, Tips and Tasty Treats.

I am sending along a blog tutorial that I posted about a year ago on how I do machine binding.  I thought since we were all making charity quilts and machine binding is more rugged than hand binding, it might be helpful.

Machine Binding Quilts 

It's kinda long and as I reread it this morning, there are a few extra tips I had included that I had forgotten about~

Here is the link to Sarah's linky party this week.  Hope you head over to look, already there's lots of sharing going on!

H2H Time for Tutes, Tips, Treats

Brown and Blue

This is a sweet little baby quilt by Lacey.

Squares are quilted with a different take on the Terry Twist.  You can quilt back and forth all across the quilt with these little curly twists. Here's the stitching sequence: starting in the tan block on the left bottom corner, head right, up, down the left side of the blue, head right on blue and so on.  When you get to the end of a row, you simply make your way back to the left quilting all the top twists.  If you sequenced it correctly at the end of the row, you could continuously quilt the whole top. 

On the back, you can see 2 different secondary patterns.

This lily-like flower. . .  

and this rose-like shape. 

To compliment, I did freehand curlicues on the outer borders. 

Dark chocolate minky on the back 

The total package~ 

Thanks Lacey, for sending me so many fun and cute tops to quilt~

Daisy Take 5

Thanks to Joyce for making such a pretty "Take 5" on point quilt.

When I first spread out this top, I knew I wanted to quilt a freehand allover floral in the printed blocks,  As I was contemplating what to do in the white setting triangles, I kept looking at the white daisies in the brown fabric....here is what I came up with. 

Feathers worked out well in the outer brown border because I could stay away from the white flange.  

Crisp white cotton backing. 

The white binding makes the perfect finish to her quilt.

Pieced Quilt Backings

Several times the question has come up about pieced backings.

Can I?

Should I?

How do I?

Starting with this post, I am going to keep a collection of pieced backings 'cause I think they are cool!

In a nut shell, I LOVE pieced backings!

This is a charity quilt backing I pieced with left over blocks from the front.

I piece backings whenever I can. They add so much fun to a quilt.

One of the first things that need to happen to make a successful quilt with a pieced backing:  make sure all the selvages are trimmed off of each piece of fabric.  For these backings I simply used the standard 1/4 inch seam.

I can't stress enough the importance of pressing the backing.  Seams need to be pressed well, just like the top.

This backing was too short and too narrow by a few inches.  It was a kit sent to me from "Quilts for Kids."  There was enough fabric from the front to splice the backing and make this really cute show off backing.  

I like to take a length of fabric, split it off-center and sew in enough contrast fabric to make the backing wide enough.  This plaid strip matches the binding. 

Another charity quilt backed with left-over strips from the front and fat quarters. 

Here is the total package.  

Backings made by clients.

Easy to quilt if top and backing is nice and square.

For this large backing, after I cut off the selvages, I sewed the seams 1/2 inch wide with a very narrow zig zag stitch.  This gives this very long seam a bit of stretch.  The thinking here is that this makes the stitching in the seam less likely to pop as the quilt is used. 

 

Quilts of Valor backings:

This was one length of chevron fabric with blue added to each side to make it wide enough.

I know some quilters don't like to match backings to the front.  It can be done successfully with perfectly squared tops and perfectly squared backings.  This backing has a tutorial here.

These 2 QOV's were sent to me with backings made out of fat quarters. 

What a great way to use yardage more economically. 

If you want to see some REAL eye candy with pieced backings, go to this Flicker Group of backing photos.

Enjoy!

Hands 2 Help Charity Quilt Challenge 2013

"What does love look like? It has the hands to help others. It has the feet to hasten to the poor and needy. It has eyes to see misery and want. It has the ears to hear the sighs and sorrows of men. That is what love looks like."

~St. Augustine

Sarah, over at Confessions of a Fabric Addict is hosting this challenge for the 3rd year year.  I have participated all 3 years and have met many quilters through her ministry of quilt making.

This morning I read that she has 62 quilters signed up and most make more than one quilt.  There is still time to sign up here.

Just look at what I found!  I was browsing the fabric isle for another recent project and found a whole bolt of this Happy tropical flower print in the bargain bin!  How could no one see the amazing potential this fabric had?  I knew I had just the right bright fabrics in my stash to make it sing.  Whoot!  I even dug out this matching stripe for an inner border and the binding! 

 Have you ever seen a fabric and instantly knew exactly what you wanted to do with it? 

Here is my vision and I love it!

   

I plan to quilt a flowery, feathery freehand pattern all over the top.  As you can see, I let the tropical floral take center stage and this top didn't take long to put together.

I plan to make a masculine quilt also, just have not gotten to that point.  Sarah has organized the drive for two quilt charities this year and I am making my quilts for Em's Scrapbag.  Em makes and donates "Quilty Hugs for Happy Chemo."

Here is the link to Happy Chemo

Here is what Em's Scrapbag says about Happy Chemo:

"The first time I met Ginger Johnston, founder of Happy Chemo, it was my first visit to a chemo lab.  I was scared and unsure of what the future held for me.  In walked Ginger, bald and boobless but determined to bring a little sunshine into the chemo lab.  So before she started her treatment she took everyone’s name and drew prizes.  It so changed my experience that I knew I needed to help her in her quest.  I started making quilts for her to give.  Because I can’t sew as fast as cancer strikes I started asking for help.  I just want to bring a little comfort and joy to those who are facing the fear and uncertainty that trips to the chemo lab bring.

 

I accept quilts that are 45” square to 60”x 72”.  Any style of quilt is accepted as cancer effects men and women, children and adults.  Thank you for any help."

Here is a snippet of my story: Happy Chemo supports the Huntsman Cancer Center in Utah, where I had my surgery and treatments in 2009.  Although I did not have chemo, I did receive a hand made afghan when I finished up my 33 treatments of radiation.  I feel like I am fortunate to be able to give back to the same hospital's cancer patients.