Okay, so I used up my old list with crossing stuff off and writing stuff on. It’s a bit dispiriting to see some quilts that never seem to launch, but I’ll give it a go. Again.
I had fun at this web site, making these titles in a “text generator.” Scroll down to where you type in your text (on the left), choose the kind of font you want (scroll up on the right to see the categories), add color, effects and then generate it. As a Mac owner, I hold down the Shift+Command+4 and it turns the cursor into a crosshairs pointer so I can capture images. I wadded them all up into one document and printed it off. I hope soon to get to crossing off things.
I finished Mary’s star block for June’s Gridster Bee blocks. She blogs at NeedledMom and always has a lot of fun gardening things to see, besides all her stellar quilting. The free download for her choice can be found here. And here is our signature blocks, which we send to each other:
I use a cardboard template behind my block to help me remember what to sign (and I also back the signing place with a piece of ironed-on freezer paper and use a .08 Micron pen). Seems to work okay.
City Summer, by Nina Mata
Hope you get your summer launched off to a great start!
We all put double layers of fabric bindings on our larger quilts, but have you thought about using a single binding on a smaller quilt? It’s quicker, flatter, and really–are you going to wear out those edges any time soon? And if you do, won’t you just repair them? That idea came from Gwen Marston, in one of her last workshops. That idea — that a quilter would just repair them if they became worn — is why she uses single bindings on all her quilts.
Start by squaring up your mini-quilt. Yes, that is a gigantor square ruler, and I use it a lot, actually.
Prepare your hanging corners, by cutting a larger square (for a 24″ quilt, I use a 5 1/2″ square), folding in half, diagonally, and pinning it in the upper corners of your mini, against the back, matching raw edges to the edge of your quilt.
(Here’s what it looks like on another quilt, as my corners just disappeared on this one.)
Cut strips of fabric (lengthwise, if you can) about 1 1/2″ wide and the size of two sides. Pin, then stitch on, using a 1/4-inch seam.
Repeat for upper and lower edges. Pin and stitch, but watch out that you don’t veer off on those corners (I pin them).
Square up the corner, and cut off the excess, both underneath (above) and on the outer edge (below).
While this looks angular, it isn’t. 
Press binding out away from quilt. 
Fold up lower edge, so the raw edge of the binding meets the raw edges of the quilt.
Fold it up again, covering the raw edges of the quilt. Pin in place, and then repeat with the sides:
Hand stitch all the way around, or if you are a confident quilter, you can use a glue stick to affix the binding edges down, then machine stitch. I personally don’t like the machine stitching, as I think it makes the edges too rigid, but “To each his own,” said the Old Lady as she kissed the cow. (My Dad used to say that all the time.)
Here’s the corner already on, but it’s hard to see. I cut a dowel the width of the quilt, minus 2″ and slip it into place. Then I hang my minis, balancing it on a push pin.
Thanks to all who came to the Trunk Show and to all who sent their best wishes. It was a lovely evening! If your guild would like to see my Abecedary of Quilts Trunk Show, just drop me a note.
This is beginning to feel like the never-ending quilt.
I then cut matching pieces of fabric into 1 -1/4″ x 2-3/4″ bits. I sewed a matched set of two strip-set-blocks, one on top, and one of the bottom to make a “plus.” Then I sewed 1 -1/4″ x 2-3/4″ pieces of low-volume on either side of a “dot” to create the mini block that is at the intersection.
The “plus” and “dot” units finish at 2-1/4″ square, so trim them to 2-3/4″ square (
