Jewel Box Quilts #5 and #6

We have started to fill the quilting pipeline with our Jewel Box quilts so we should be seeing some regular finishes.  Janet has been deciding the layouts on most of these blocks and then I sew them together.  She is not a quilter but is having a ball playing with the colors and he designs.

This plaid backing is actually thin fleece, and I really wanted it to find a home this winter.  So I asked Janet to pull some blocks to go with it.  It is always fun to see someone's interpretation - I would have pulled navy and dark green blocks.  Janet went another way.

This quilt measures 48" x 54".

I feel like we have just started this quilt series, and we are already up to quilt #6.  I think the diagonal layout is one of my favorites.  We pulled this flannel (sent in by Kristin) with lots of shades of blue for the block inspiration.

This quilt measures 56 x 72".

Both of these quilts are already delivered and should be going out to comfort some older kids soon.  I delivered 25 more quilts to Bags of Love just before Thanksgiving.

Hope those who celebrated had a nice Thanksgiving.

The newest block drive has been announced.  These kid blocks are super cute and fun to make.  You can read more about this block drive here.

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Block Drive - Split 4 Patch

It is hard to believe that it is already time for another block drive.  I am nowhere near finished with the last one!  We are making blocks for kids again.  I first made this block DECADES ago and it took me a bit to puzzle out how to make it.  I think you are going to have some fun making them.

I have no idea what it is officially called - so I am going with a Split 4 Patch.

For each block you will need two 5" squares of a novelty print and two 5" squares of a solid or a tone on tone print in bright popsicle colors.

Sew them into a 4 patch like the one above.  

Make sure the novelty prints are in the upper left and lower right.

Trim 1.25" from the two sides of the 4 patch.  Don't lose those thin strips. 

You are going to need them later.

Then trim 1.25" from the top and bottom of the 4 Patch.

Take those two strips you just trimmed away and sew them to the sides of your 4 Patch like above.  Don't worry about the direction of the prints.  They should be just the correct size.

Now you need those longer strips you trimmed from the sides.  You need to trim them down on each side so they measure 4.25" from the center seam.  They should measure 8.5" long when all trimmed up.

These strips will get sewn to the top and bottom of the block. Note that these strips create alternating corners around the outside of the block.

Your block should measure 8.5" unfinished.

Here are three blocks I put together last night.  I used some leftover solid charm squares but you can use some tone on tone or fun small prints for your squares.  Please try to keep nice contrast on your blocks, however.  If your fabric choices get too crazy, the quilts are going to look really chaotic.  For this block drive, it is really important that there are places for the eye to rest.

 We still have blocks from the last kid block drive to sew up into quilts.  They are the same size as these blocks so maybe we will combine some in a few quilts.  This block drive will hopefully make enough kid quilts to cover the remaining demand for next year after we finish any donated quilts and quilt tops.

This drive will run until the end of February 2025.  So, if you have a busy holiday planned, you still have time in January and February to make some blocks.  If you have any questions or need my address for shipping, send me an email at cynthiabdesigns at gmail dot com.

Hope all of you in the US have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

 These quilts will all be donated to Many Hands and Many Hearts where they will go out as compassion quilts in Oregon.

I am so thankful for all the support I have received in this endeavor.

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Jolly Bar Jumble

It is time for me to reveal my Jolly Bar Jumble quilt (sponsored by the Fat Quarter Shop).

Oh wait - I made two 😂

I couldn’t decide which Kona solid - navy or butterscotch - I wanted to use for the background. So I decided to go ahead and make two quilts.

 I used the newest shortcut quilt pattern from the Fat Quarter Shop.

I love this combination of Kona Butterscotch and the warm autumn tones in the Folk & Lore fabric collection. I didn’t quite follow the pattern. I decided to make the big squares darker colors and the small squares I used the lower volume prints. 

I used a dark blue print for the backing that was donated by Sandy.

This lovely little quilt will be donated to Many Hands and Many Hearts.

I ordered three jolly bars so I had enough prints to make another quilt with a Kona navy background.  I did follow the pattern on this quilt and jumbled up the light and dark fabrics.

I knew this was going to be donated to Many Hands and Many Hearts so I used this lovely light blue print Beth sent in for the back.

I really enjoy using the shortcut quilt patterns by Fat Quarter Shop. They are written for precuts and most of them are super easy to make.

The Jolly Bar Jumble is a free pattern. 

You can find it here. 

(My desktop died today so I had to write this post with my phone. Sorry for any errors.)

 

Oh Scrap! : Scrappy Finishes

The only thing I did with scraps this week is to stuff them into my scrap bins.  I really need to get back into the habit f sewing with my scraps.  They are piling up again!

But a bunch of nice scrap quilts were finished this week for Many hands and Many Hearts so I thought I would share those.

I did sew up this soft flannel quilt top from some pre-cut squares sent in by Karyn.  I had some time to quilt something small on my longarm and this one was on the top of the pile.  The backing came from the flannel hoard sent in by Kristin.

This little baseball cutie might not have been made with scraps but I sure think the design lends itself to using a project's leftovers.  Denice sent in this quilt top and awesome plaid backing fabric.

I hope I have the maker correct on this lovely scrappy friendship star.  I think Priscilla made this one.  I had a few that all came in at the same time and tags sometime get misplaced.  I do know local quilter Laura did a great job finishing this one up.  With the fall themed backing, I will get this one delivered next week.

Marci makes these scrappy string blocks and sends them to us to make quilts from them.  She makes two different sizes.  These are the large ones.  This quilt measures 60 x 70" so we needed a really big piece of flannel for the back.  We were able to find two pieces that worked perfectly together without leaving a bunch of scraps.

And finally, there is this quilt top sent in by Jean.  This design is what I should be making with all the fall-colored scraps I have left over from the last block drive.  I really like how this quilt looks.  On the back is a fun minky fabric that has been hanging around here for a long time.  The two looked great together.

So these are my scrap contribution this week.  Hope you find some inspiration from them!

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It is now your turn to share what you are making with scraps.  Here are the details for linking up: 

• This linky party is for any scrappy project - It can be in-process or a finished piece.
• You can link up your blog post (not your homepage please) or Instagram photo from the past week that features your use of scraps.
• If you are linking to a blog post, I ask that you link back to my blog somewhere in your post. So if you are writing about scraps, just get into the habit of including a link as there will be a linky party available every week!
• If you are using Instagram, please use the hashtag #ohscrap.
• This is a party so remember to socialize and comment on the posts of others.
• Following my blog is not necessary but it sure would be great if you do! 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

 

The Last Two Step

I was really getting bored with the Two Step quilts so I decided to just get them all sewn up and finished.  I knew these quilts were all going to look very similar and was concerned how quickly I would lose interest.  But I stuck to it until the end of the pile!

I think one person actually sent in most of the blocks for this quilt.  When I can, I try and keep them together so the quilts look more like they were planned.  Stephanie sent in the large autumn colored backing fabric.  It wasn't quite large enough so I used a piece Nann sent in.

Stephanie sent in the two backing pieces for this one two.  She has been downsizing her stash and we were lucky to get a whole lot of fall-colored fabric from her.  It really helped out with this drive!

A big thanks to Penny for sewing on the binding. Penny is actually the President of the board of Many Hands and Many Hearts.  I sure appreciate all her help!

Along with all the fabric Stephanie sent, she also included some lovely fall-themed panels.  It was always nice when I could insert one of these in amongst the Two Step blocks to give a quilt a unique look.  I think I used all the panels Stephanie sent.

And this one is the last Two Step quilt!  You will notice it has the same backing as the one above.  Stephanie sent in 7-8 yards of this gorgeous print.  I think it was one of my favorites, so I saved it for the very end.

Are you curious about the stats on this block drive?  Well, we received 1095 blocks in total.  That count includes the blocks in the three Two Sep quilt tops we received.  A total of 50 people sent in blocks and we were able to make a total of 24 quilts. We have a few blocks leftover so if I can find a local volunteer to make the rest of the blocks needed for another quilt, I will gladly give them lots of fall-colored scraps!

I also want to thank everyone who sent in prepared bindings during this block drive.  My shelf was wonderfully stocked of autumnal colors.

The Jewel Box block drive is coming to an end.  Janet and I have been working away at getting all those quilt tops sewn.  So if you still have blocks to send in, please do so soon.  I will be announcing the next block drive early next week.  It is going to be a fun one!

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Oh Scrap! : Pre-Cut Flannel

I always enjoy opening all the packages that you guys send me.  

I never know what I am going to find!

Last week, Karyn sent me a box filled with some pre-cut squares and some pre-cut flannel rectangles.

I was instantly inspired with the flannel pieces.  There were two different sizes but they all seemed to be the approximately the same measurement on one size.

The first thing I sewed together was this simple little infant quilt.

The next little quilt top I made; I ran the blocks vertically.  I am not sure if all the pieces were a consistent size - I just sewed them without checking.  I knew I could square it up later.  Karyn also sent some long scraps that I was able to use as the vertical sashing.

I think I only had about 3 flannel scraps leftover.  I love when I can sew up bits into quilts as I receive them.  If they go into storage, wo knows when they will be uncovered again!  Now these soft soon to be quilts will get donated before the end of the year.

What scraps have you played with this week?

*********************************************

It is now your turn to share what you are making with scraps.  Here are the details for linking up: 

• This linky party is for any scrappy project - It can be in-process or a finished piece.
• You can link up your blog post (not your homepage please) or Instagram photo from the past week that features your use of scraps.
• If you are linking to a blog post, I ask that you link back to my blog somewhere in your post. So if you are writing about scraps, just get into the habit of including a link as there will be a linky party available every week!
• If you are using Instagram, please use the hashtag #ohscrap.
• This is a party so remember to socialize and comment on the posts of others.
• Following my blog is not necessary but it sure would be great if you do! 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

  Follow Me on Bloglovin'                 Follow Me on Feedly

 

Last Weeks' Finishes

Completions have been kind of slow the last few weeks.  A few of my longarm quilters are taking breaks and plan on hitting it hard after the first of the year.  

I need to get out there and find a few more volunteers!

First up is this fun monster truck themed quilt.  This is one of the quilt tops sent in by Kristin.  The big plaid flannel on the back was sent in by Janet.  

It will soon be putting a smile on the face of a child soon.

Here is another "just using up all my flannel bits" quilt top and backing made by Penny.  The print fabric has giraffe and elephants and other animals on it.  It is hard to pick which is the front!

This batik quilt top is one sent in by Linda and Margie.  The pattern is Isles of the Inland.  We don't have a lot of batik backings, but we were able to find a few pieces that work.  I think Karen sent us the dark blue piece.

Here is the second Oregon Ducks quilt top made by Chris.  I was able to highly piece the last of this bright yellow that Karen sent in to make a backing. Luckily you can't really see all the seams. A big thanks to Penny for sewing the binding for me.  This quilt will certainly well received here in Eugene!

Jeanine sent in this bright batik patchwork top. The batik dragonfly backing was sent in by Mari.

Laura did a great job with the quilting and the binding.  All I had to do on this one is add the label.

Our quilt holder Janet has been busy organizing all the Jewel Box blocks we have received so far.  The quilts will start to show up in the finished pile hopefully next week.  If you still have some blocks to send, hopefully you can get them in the mail soon.  It is hard to believe, but the next drive will be announced at the end of this month!  Yikes!

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My Quilt Infatuation (Needle & Thread)

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