I started this little quilt late on a Tuesday afternoon. I sewed all the strips together and then left it until after supper. I sewed the lengths together the same as the big quilt, but you know all this if you read yesterday's column.
Here, watch Jenny Doan do it.
You don't need to buy a jelly roll, you can make your own. For a quilt measuring about 60 x 70 cut 40 - 2 1/2" strips from a good variety of fabric. For the baby quilt, cut 19 strips, using the same method.
The next day I made the backing, sandwiched the quilt and then started to machine quilt. I used a 3 length and some yummy lime green variegated thread. I'm so glad I bought this one from Anita. I've used it quite a few times on different projects. It was money very well spent.
I did very simple quilting. I let my foot follow the seam allowance on both sides and that was all. I didn't want anything complicated. I didn't want to detract from the fabric.
After it was quilted which didn't take long -- up, down, up, down -- change the bobbin once -- and it was time to square it up. This is not easy for me to tell you how to square up a quilt. I've done it so often now its just matter of fact.
I take my 12 1/2" square ruler and lay it straight on the quilt. Find a marking on the ruler and lay that on the seam, in this case. Fortunately for me, this quilt did have straight seams.
Next to this ruler, I lay my 6 1/2 x 24" ruler. The square ruler helps to guide me with the placement of the narrower one. Then I trim with my rotary cutter.
You can see the bottom of the quilt was quite wonky. I knew it was just by looking at it. I didn't think it was this bad though.
It was all trimmed away and no one will be the wiser. I measure it once the cutting is done, in case it isn't squared up. This one wasn't, so back to the cutting table.
I measure diagonally in one direction left top to bottom right. Then from bottom left to top right. If those numbers are within 1/8" its good to go, if not, then I measure across the top and bottom and down the two sides. That's where I find out what isn't right. Then I trim it away.
this is the back which I really, really like
I am really happy with how this turned out. Those straight lines are actually trees the owls are sitting in. Its in the pile for Healthy Babies, Healthy Children.
Just a little add-on here. I just saw another great idea in a magazine for another jelly roll. I'm going to give it a whirl and let you know how it turns out. It will probably be sometime next month, but heck that isn't far away, is it?
Quilting at the Cottage -- a blog I follow -- posted a couple of pictures this week. I went in search of more and found them. I'm going to leave you this week with "quilt patterns in the snow". Thanks Nanci, I wouldn't have known about these without you posting them.
