standard online quilt magazine â€“ vol. 4 no. 1 online quilt magazine

Standard Online Quilt Magazine – Vol. 4 No. 1

© Online Quilt Magazine.com All Rights Reserved P a g e | 1

Online Quilt Magazine.com

Standard Issue Vol.4 No.1 – January 2013

It’s 2013 – Get

Out of your

Comfort Zone

PROJECT –

Images Quilt

Pattern

What Makes

Good Quilting

Fabric?

New Book

Review,

Tips and

More!



Online Quilt Magazine Table of Contents

No Comfort Zone ….…………..…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….……………..….. Page 4

PROJECT – Images Quilt Pattern ……………...…………………..………………………………………………………………………………….…….………….. Page 9

What’s New from the Fat Quarter Shop ………………………………………………………………………………………………………..……………………

What Makes Good Quilting Fabric? ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….………………..

Page 13

Page 15

Book Review – ‘Crafty Canine Projects’ by Moya Hu ……………………………………..……………………………………………………………………

Reader Recipe- Apple Slice …………………………………………..……………………………………………………………………………………………………

Page 18

0

Reader “Show and Tell” ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

BLOCK OF THE MONTH – Crown of Thorns Block .................................................................................................................

Page 22

Page 24

Today's Tips.............................................................................................................................................................................. Page 27

YES – We Want To hear From You.......................................................................................................................................... Page 28

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Letter from the Editor

Jody Anderson

Hi!

Happy New Year!! It’s always exiting to start a New Year – there’s plans to make and resolutions to

keep, and 12 months of exciting potential to look forward to. I already have a list as long as my arm of

quilt-making projects that I want to do… yes, some are UFO’s to be finished, whilst others are great big

whole-new-project designs that I can really get my teeth into. And then there’s those quick ones that

seem to crop up ALL the time – you know the ones I mean. (I’m sure several will turn up in here sooner

or later anyway!)

In keeping with the spirit of the New Year, Leah has a great article on getting out of your comfort zone –

make this the year you try a different technique or use colours and fabrics you’d never dream of

touching and see just what you can do with them – you may be pleasantly surprised.

This month too, we have another great pattern from Rose, a new book review (and this one’s for your

furry friends), more yummy fabrics and even more!

Have a wonderful month!

Jody



You know those No Passing zone signs shaped

like a pennant? I want to make a NO COMFORT

ZONE sign!

Why? Because it's always nice to have a reminder

to shake things up a bit every once an while.

It's very easy to get into a rut of what you know

and what you can do well. Why change anything

when you can make a quilt quickly using x

technique, and y fabric, and z pattern?

It's certainly true that sticking with one thing will

definitely teach you loads about it. That's a large

reason why we've spent 9 solid weeks on

Stippling - we've learned more about it,

experimented with it, and challenged ourselves

to see it in a new way.

But after the learning phase is over, sticking with

the same thing, day after day, quilt after quilt,

can get rather tedious.

Personally I've recently realized I have a huge

comfort issue when creating Goddess Quilts,

specifically in the fabrics - all batiks that read as

No Comfort Zone

By Leah Day from www.FreeMotionQuilt.blogspot.com



solids.

I also can't seem to help myself from stitching the

snot out of these quilts. At least with my last

quilt, Torrent of Fear, I avoided this tendency and

for once stitched on a larger scale and ended with

a much softer finish.

Part of this challenge to create 12 goddess quilts

is to drive myself out of this comfort zone rut. I'd

really like to challenge even the notion that a

goddess quilt can't also be a bed quilt, or a lap

quilt, or a baby quilt. That one of these girls could

also be used and useful, not just a pretty girl on

the wall.

So partly from this desire, and partly because I've

been watching Top Gear UK a lot recently, I

decided to force myself out of my comfort zone

and into a whole new world of fabric....

Prints!

I've been collecting prints since I started quilting,

but for the last 3 years a better description would

be HORDING, since I haven't used them at all.

I've purchased gorgeous prints, collected a

drawer of fat quarters, and splurged on lots of

yardage with the idea that ONE DAY I'll use these

pretty fabrics to make skirts, pants, shirts, quilts,

and many other fun projects.

Yet all I've done is collect and wait...collect and

wait...collect and wait...



I'm tired of waiting! I'd like to USE these pretty

bold, crazy, wild fabrics in an awesome quilt so

it's time to bust out of this comfort zone and go

DO IT.

So I did.

Pretending a bit that I was a Top Gear presenter

with a quirky production team sending me rules

for a challenge, I decided to cut and piece a Giant

Dahlia quilt top this weekend with the following

rules:

- No batiks.

- No fabrics that read as solid, even prints look

busy up close but that read solid from far away.

- No buying new fabric.

I can't tell you what a challenge this was! For one

thing, while I've collected a lot of prints, I seem to

have mostly focused on green and blue, and

many colors like purple I had barely enough to



cut from.

But I made do! No buying new fabric or trying to

micromanage this! Every time I felt the need to

run to the quilt shop, I'd grab the loudest, most

garish, clashing print I could find and force myself

to cut a big ole' piece of it for the dahlia!

At first I wasn't very optimistic. This can't possibly

look good, can it? All these different colors and

shades, and busy, complicated prints - they're

just going to make a big mess!

But slowly the quilt took shape and I have to say,

it's probably the prettiest quilt I've made in

several years:

So where does the goddess go in this quilt? Right

in the center where she belongs! I'll be using her

right in the center of the quilt, then squaring the

whole thing up and adding a border.

In the end, this won't really look like a giant

dahlia as much as it does right now, but I

definitely plan on making another one with a

different color layout.



It's a terrific pattern and surprisingly easy to put

together. I used Marti Mitchell's Giant Dahlia

templates and so far they've been perfect to cut

out, mark the matching points, and it's piecing

together very easily.

So now I'm needing to head back into the No

Comfort Zone to finish up this top, piece the

goddess center, and get ready to quilt it nice and

open so it can be used as a throw on the couch!

About the Author: Leah Day is the author of the Free

Motion Quilting Project, a blog project dedicated to

creating new free motion quilting designs each week and

sharing them all for FREE! Leah is also the author of From

Daisy to Paisley - 50 Beginner Free Motion Quilting Designs,

a spiral bound book featuring 50 designs from the project.

www.daystyledesigns.com

Leah’s finished quilt

Leah’s New Free Motion Quilting Course

has just been released as a Craftsy Class –

check it out at:

http://www.craftsy.com/class/free-motion-

quilting-a-sampler/116?ext=fmqas



PROJECT - Images Quilt Pattern

By Rose Smith from www.ludlowquiltandsew.co.uk

This quilt pattern is based loosely on a traditional quilt block called

Images. Within each block there is a small diamond which is framed

by the blue patchwork, but when several of the blocks are sewn

together it becomes a marvellous big trellis with several large white

diamond shapes.

I have made this as a 50 inch square quilt, ideal for a lap quilt or a throw, and to make it you will need

½ yard of white fabric, ¾ yard each of light blue and dark blue and 1 yard of the medium blue fabric.

Cut the following for the main part of the quilt top:

* fifty six 2½ inch squares in both light and dark blue,

* thirty two 2½ inch white squares,

* 2.7/8" squares in the following combinations: eight each of light blue/medium blue, eight each of

dark blue/medium blue, forty each of medium blue/white.



All the 2.7/8" squares are used to make half square triangles in the colour

combinations listed above.

Place two squares with right sides together and mark a line along the

diagonal. Sew a ¼ inch seam either side of the marked line and then cut

along the line. This produces two 2 ½ inch half square triangle units.

For this quilt I have made four 16 inch blocks and then added five quilt

borders.

Lay out the squares for each block in eight rows of eight squares. The

photo is not as clear as I would have liked: the large triangles formed along

each edge and the diamond in the middle are in fact all white.

The colours show up better in this photo showing the top four rows.

As you can see, the light blue squares on one side of the block are in the

same position as the dark blue squares on the other side of the block.



The bottom four rows are shown on the

left and the completed block is shown

on the right. It really is a lovely quilt

block, isn't it? Make four of these

blocks and then sew them together in

two pairs. Sew the pairs of blocks

together to make a 32 ½ inch square.

I became quite carried away with the borders and put five on to this quilt.

The first one is made using 2 ½ inch strips of the medium blue fabric: two

strips 32 ½ inches long for the top and bottom of the quilt and two strips

36 ½ inches long for the sides of the quilt.

I used the dark blue fabric on two borders so that it could frame the light

blue. This second border uses 1 ½ inch strips, two 36 ½ inches long for the

top and bottom of the quilt and two 38 ½ inches long for the sides.



The third border is the largest - light blue fabric 3 ½ inches wide.

I have used two strips 38 ½ inches long for the top and bottom and two

strips 44 ½ inches long for the sides.

The fourth and fifth borders are the same as the first and second.

First the dark blue 1 ½ inch strips: two 44 ½ inches long for the top and

bottom and two 46 ½ inches long for the sides. The fifth and final border

uses the 2 ½ inch strips of medium blue again: two 46 ½ inches long for

the top and bottom and two 50 ½ inches long for the sides.

The quilt top is now complete and ready for layering, quilting and

binding.

About the Author: Rose Smith was born and brought up in Zambia in Africa. She moved to the UK when she was 18 and

now lives in Shropshire, indulging her passion for quilting and sewing. She has sewn all her life - ‘anything that stood still

long enough’ in the words of her children - but now finds that patchwork and quilting have taken over her life. She

indulges this passion by posting patterns and tutorials on her website for all to share. www.ludlowquiltandsew.co.uk



We're pleased to be able to bring you a selection

each month of the Newest Fabric Releases and

the new season fabric "must haves".

Honey Honey collection by Kate Spain for Moda

Honey Honey is buzzing with the sweet, freshness

of a seaside cottage garden in full bloom! Ocean

breezes whirl throughout the collection that

features a mix of lush border gardens,

hydrangeas, asters, lavender and honeycomb

patterns. Lively tea roses in vibrant shades of

coral, blush and violet are ready to be snipped

and stitched into whatever project you can dream

up.

The Honey Honey collection by Kate Spain for

Moda is available in fat quarter bundles, jelly

rolls, layer cakes, charm packs, mini charm packs,

dessert rolls and yardage.

Check it out at:

http://www.fatquartershop.com/Honey-Honey-Kate-

Spain-Moda-Fabrics.asp

What's New from The Fat Quarter Shop

From Kimberly Jolly at www.FatQuarterShop.com



Le Belle Fleur collection by French General for

Moda Fabrics

This beautiful collection of late 18th and early 19th

century French floral prints was inspired by an old

quilt Kaari Meng of French General found at an

attic sale last summer.

The quilt was filled with antique prints and has a

surprise! Another quilt, in perfect condition, was

used as the batting.

Almost every one of the prints in Le Belle Fleur

has been salvaged from the two quilts.

The Le Belle Fleur collection by French General

for Moda Fabrics is available in fat quarter

bundles, fat eighth bundles, jelly rolls, layer

cakes, charm packs, mini charm packs, dessert

rolls and yardage.

Add some vintage charm to your home with our

Chantilly Quilt Kit!

View this collection at:

http://www.fatquartershop.com/La-Belle-Fleur-

French-General-Moda-Fabrics.asp



When you walk into quilting store and are

greeted by walls full of quilting fabric, so bright

and so colorful, you might just find yourself

overwhelmed by the possibilities.

For some people, choosing the fabric for their

quilting masterpiece is the most exciting part of

the process. Your creative juices are flowing,

you're surrounded by beautiful patterns and

prints, and anything is possible.

But not all quilting fabrics are equal. Some really

are better than others, and when you walk into

that store, you can't let the bright colors and

intricate patterns fool you. There's a lot going on

beneath the surface.

First of all, what is the fabric made out of? Most

quilters look for 100% cotton since natural fibers

tend to be easier to work with - easier to sew,

press, and quilt. Thread count is also important

here. Lower thread counts fray and wear out

much easier than a higher quality fabric.

The best count is somewhere between 68 and 78.

This will give you a thicker and more durable

quilting fabric that will stand up to wear and tear

and resist shrinking.

What Makes Good Quilting Fabric?

By Desiree Edwin



Next, consider the fabric grain. Fabrics are woven

in two directions - lengthwise and crosswise. A

quality quilting fabric will be straight along both

directions, forming perfect right angles where

they cross.

The print that lies on top of the grain needs to be

properly aligned with the grain as well. If it

doesn't, you may find yourself cutting to match

the print instead of the grain, which will only

result in a weaker, easily distorted pattern.

Good quality quilting fabric might also require a

little testing to make sure you're getting what you

pay for.

Some manufacturers attempt to "enhance" lower

quality material by adding chemicals. Does the

fabric have a strong smell? You might be smelling

the bleach or sizing that some manufacturers add

in order to make the material seem stronger and

thicker than it really is.

Unfortunately these chemicals wash out

immediately, and all you're left with is an inferior

product. These do not make a quality fabric and

should be avoided.

Does the color come off on your fingers? If it did,

it's probably not colorfast, which is also not a

good sign.

Good quilting fabric will always seal the colors

into the material. After all, what good are all

those wonderful colors and patterns on the

material if they're just going to fade and go dull

after the first wash?

Another way to make sure you're getting good

quilting fabric is to unroll the bolt enough to get a

good look at the print and the colors.

Consistency is an important indicator of quality

material. Does the color fade in parts? Does the

design overlap in some places? These could easily

ruin an otherwise beautiful quilt.

So why go through the trouble of finding the

good quilting fabric - especially if you can find the

same print for cheaper at a discount store? Isn't

that good enough?



The short answer is: no. When you are creating

something as intricate and beautiful as your

masterpiece quilt, it's not the time to skimp.

And when it comes to fabric, you really do get

what you pay for. The discount may carry the

same print, but chances are it was printed on an

inferior fabric.

Take the time to look for the quality indicators of

good quilting fabric, and then those wonderful

prints and patterns that were calling out to you

when you first entered the store will last a

lifetime.

About the Author: Quilting is my passion. Visit this

quilting fabric article to learn some tricks and tips.

Also, visit this quilting fabric

[http://www.fatquarterworld.com] website to buy

quilting fabric and get free patterns.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Desiree_Edwin



“Crafty Canine Projects” by Moya Hu

Both you and your pampered pooch are going to

love this new book that is chock-full of things to

make for your furry best friend.

Included in the 11 projects in this book are a few

different bags, including a carrier bag for a

smaller dog. There’s a collar, leash and purse set,

a sleeping mat, portable dog bowl, ball,

neckerchief, reversible raincoat and more.

I particularly liked the beanbag bed, and whilst

we don’t have a dog, I know a certain furry brown

cat who would just LOVE this too! In fact, many of

these projects, whilst designed for dogs would

work equally well for a number of different pets.

Book Review

By Annette Mira-Bateman from www.QuiltBlockoftheMonthClub.com



There’s fabulous ‘How To’ illustrations

throughout the book, and the instructions are

quite clear and easy to understand.

If your pet didn’t get what they wanted from

Santa at Christmas, maybe now is the time to

spoil them with some fun new accessories.

“Crafty Canine Projects” by Moya Hu is published

by AQS Publishing and is available from:

American Quilter's Society, P.O. Box 3290,

Paducah, KY 42002-3290 or online at

www.AmericanQuilter.com

Keep up to Date with What’s Happening on our

Facebook Page –

Do You Love Quilting Too?

Bonus blocks, hints and tips added all the time!!

http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Do-You-

Love-Quilting-Too/271888039492644

Don't keep this Online Quilt Magazine

all to yourself –share it with your

Quilting Guilds and Friends!

Don't wait - Invite them to

www.OnlineQuiltMagazine.com to

Subscribe and receive each New Issue

as soon as it's Published!

LUDLOW QUILT AND SEW

Discover new and exciting projects to quilt

and sew each month with clear and easy to

follow instructions.

Visit our website and subscribe to Ludlow

Quilt and Sew’s free monthly newsletter

now.

www.ludlowquiltandsew.co.uk



This recipe was sent in by one of our Readers,

Annette Norman...

Apple Slice

Ingredients:

1 pkt Vanilla Cake Mix

1 cup dessicated (finely shredded) Coconut

125g (4.4 lb) butter, melted

300g (2/3 lb) Sour Cream

1 Egg

1 440g (1lb) can Pie Apple

Cinnamon

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180*C (350 F) {160*C fan-

forced}.

2. Line a slice tin with baking paper.

3. Mix together the melted Butter, Cake Mix

and Coconut until well combined - looks a

bit like bread crumbs.

4. Evenly spread mixture into prepared slice

tin.

5. Press firmly into tin.

6. Place in oven, bake for 10-12 minutes –

top is lightly golden brown

7. Remove from oven.

Reader Recipe – Apple Slice



8. Mix together the remaining ingredients –

Sour Cream, Egg & Apple.

9. Pour mixture evenly over the base,

10. Sprinkle with Cinnamon

11. Place back into the oven and bake for 20-

25 minutes, until top is set.

12. Cracks will start to form in the top.

13. Cool in about 15 minutes.

14. Remove from tin, cool on rack.

15. Cut into squares,

16. Store in fridge in airtight container for up

to 5-7 days.

NOTE: Pie Apple can be replaced with Pie Apricot

or Pie Peach.

Special New Year Bag-Making Offer

(Available for January ONLY)

1 Year Subscription to the Bag Making Patterns Club

includes a New Bag Pattern emailed to you EVERY Two

Weeks!

Pay for 8 months – Get 4 months

FREE

Only $79.00 AUD for an Annual Subscription

Contact Jody Now at

[email protected]



This month we continue our regular segment of

“Show and Tell” quilts made by our Online Quilt

Magazine Readers. We will include them as long

as you can send them to us, and that way we can

all share in the wealth of creativity and

inspiration abundant within our quilting

community.

“…thought you might like this too...... It is

destined for Aussie Hero Quilts. Jan-Maree has a

blog about this group of people and what they do

- http://aussieheroquilts.blogspot.com.au/

I think it a wonderful cause.”

- Joy, Mill Park, Melbourne

Australia

Reader “Show and Tell”



Jacqueline has been making bags this month

too…

“I send you 2 pictures of old jeans trousers, and a

bag from hexagons in two colors.

So you can see, I always have the bag bacterium

!!!!!”

- Jacqueline Bonnier, Belgium



This Month’s block is the Capital T Block. Whilst

not difficult to piece together, you will need to

take care with your seams to complete this block

accurately.

To make this 12 inch block as shown, you will

need 3 different fabrics, and once you have

rotary cut the pieces according to the Cutting

Diagram, you can piece them together as shown.

Block of the Month



For more great quilts and blocks, visit www.QuiltBlockoftheMonthClub.com



Today’s Tips:

Here’s a few tips we came across this month that

are well worth remembering…

*Use different widths of masking tape to guide

you in an easy way to quilt parallel lines without

marking the quilt top.

*Make sure you always use only cotton thread

when stitching older fabrics because synthetic

threads (even cotton-covered polyester) are likely

to damage or cut the fabric.

*Better to buy more fabric than you think you

need for a quilt (or bag!), rather than too little, as

this allows room for mistakes, shrinkage or

making a sample block, and (equally importantly)

for building your stash.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

And this is my favourite quote for the month:

“Quilting is a gift you give yourself”

Which leads me to a new word I learnt recently

too:

“Akrasia” – a weakness of the will, by which we

do that which we really want to do in the full

knowledge that we should be doing something

else.

(Ring any bells? Me, I’m sitting here munching

chocolate, half designing a new quilt instead of

finishing this magazine……!!!)

(even this looks like a quilt pattern…!)



YES, We Want to Hear From

You!

As our Online Magazine continues to grow each

month, we need your feedback in order for us to

continue to improve our publication for you.

• We want to know how you liked it.

• We want to know the topics you're

interested in.

• We want to know if you have any

suggestions, Hints or Tips of your own that

you'd like included, or if you know anyone

we should include a story on!

Please send me an email with your Testimonial,

Tip, Suggestion, “Show and Tell” Quilt or

Enhancement – I'd love to hear from you!

Send all emails to:

[email protected]

If you'd like to submit an Article, or a Project for

Publication, or take advantage of our Very Very

Reasonable Advertising Rates, please email

details or queries to Jody at

[email protected]

To subscribe to our Monthly Online

Quilt Magazine, please go to

www.OnlineQuiltMagazine.com and

register so you don’t miss another

issue!

"Quilt-y" Quotes…

* When life gives you scraps,

make quilts

* Will work for FABRIC!

* You may admire my dust, but

please don't write in it!

standard online quilt magazine â€“ vol. 4 no. 1 online quilt magazine

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