Fabulous freeform filler strips

Quilter, author, and pattern designer Gail Garber has come up with another winning concept for interpreting traditional quilt patterns in a more contemporary style. She calls her technique Freeform Fillers—they’re basically curved rows filled with a variety of foundation-pieced designs such as Flying Geese and Picket Fence. These colorful pieced fillers can be used to create an entire quilt, or they can simply add a dramatic border or center to your next project. As you can see from these photos, Gail's fillers have a graceful swooping and dipping bird-like quality, not surprising when you learn Gail is also director of Hawks Aloft, a New Mexico non-profit organization that works to protect indigenous wild birds.

Gail outlines her technique and shows you how to design your own fillers in the July 2011 issue of American Quilter magazine, which will be mailed to AQS members the first week of June. If you’re not yet an AQS member or if you joined after May 3, 2011, you can purchase this issue on newsstand in mid-June or order a copy now through our member services department at 800-626-5420. (This issue is supersized to 114 pages and features all the winning quilts from both the Lancaster and Paducah AQS shows. It's always a quick sellout.)

And if you want to explore Gail’s technique even more, check out her book Flying Colors – Design Quilts with Freeform Shapes & Flying Geese (C&T Publishing), available for purchase at http://www.americanquilter.com/books_supplies/item_detail.php?id=8319.

Breaking the border-cutting "rules"

American Quilter magazine pattern editor Marje Rhine shares her views on cutting fabric borders:

"Quilters are usually taught to cut quilt borders parallel to the selvage. There are a couple of good reasons for this. First, there is less stretch in the fabric parallel to the selvage so less likelihood of wavy borders. Second, the borders would not need to be pieced with adequate yardage.

But we all know there are no quilt police and there are good reasons to occasionally break the quilting 'rules.' I often cut my borders across the width of the fabric (WOF) from selvage to selvage. The borders usually need to be pieced but less fabric is required. And if the fabric is one of those large-scale prints so popular today, the borders may look better cut across the fabric width.

For example, here is a large-scale print I want to use as the outside border for my quilt.

For the next figure, I have superimposed cutting lines on the fabric to show the difference in the appearance of the borders after the fabric is cut. Although there is quite a bit of the blue I want in the print, some border strips cut parallel to the selvage will have almost no blue. Also, the same motifs repeat often in a lengthwise border strip. The border strips cut selvage to selvage have more variety in color and motifs.

See the difference in these quilt mock-ups below. The quilt with the borders cut across the WOF is more balanced and interesting to look at.

 
Don't be afraid to break the rules if, in the end, you like the quilt better."

Springtime in Colorado

Having lived in wonderful Colorado for nearly 20 years now, I often joke that the unpredictable weather is perfect for people with short attention spans. It’s not unusual to have 40 or 50 degree temperature variations between morning and night on the same day, and the weather can go from heavenly to devilish in a matter of hours.


Well, this week has been remarkable even for Colorado! It was 81 degrees in Castle Rock two days ago, and since then we’ve had over six inches of snow. And it’s still snowing! The hummingbirds are usually busy finding nesting places in the nearby scrub oak but when they see the snow piled up on my feeder (photo above), they’ll probably head back to the Gulf of Mexico for an extended winter stay.

The good part about this kind of weather—and with the advantage of working from a home office—I’m spending lots of extra time indoors, exploring new ideas for future issues of American Quilter magazine. One of the things that makes AQ unique is the variety of voices in which the articles in each issue are told. Quilting does not have a narrow spectrum, and one of my goals as editor is to encompass fresh new stories, techniques, patterns, lifestyle ideas, and author voices to make each issue special and unique. Maybe that “short attention span” thing comes into play here, but you won’t find a humdrum formula in AQ from one issue to the next.

The supersized July 2011 issue, with photos of 77 winning quilts from both the Lancaster and Paducah AQS shows, goes to press today. AQS members can expect to see that issue arrive in their mailboxes (though delivery is highly dependent on your local post office!) beginning the first week of June. But please be patient, and perhaps read my posting from March 25, which offers a little detail about magazine delivery. If you just joined AQS and did so AFTER May 4, your subscription will begin with the September issue. However, you can still order a copy of the July issue through our member services department (800-626-5420 or memserv@aqsquilt.com) or purchase it on newsstand after June 14th.

What is springtime like where you live?

Coming attractions: Supersized July issue!

The next issue of American Quilter magazine (July 2011) will be published in mid-May, shortly after the annual AQS show in Paducah. To accommodate all the winning quilts from both the AQS Lancaster and Paducah shows, we've added more pages to the issue: "Yes, supersize that, please!"

In addition to the show winners, you'll find terrific articles on The Modern Quilt Guild by Iris Frank; Remarkable Hand Dyed Fabric by Mark Sherman; and Window of Imagination, in which Michele Byrum shows you how to create gorgeous floral appliqué from the most unlikely fabrics.

Two complete patterns, including my own quilt Meditation above, will be in this issue, plus instructions for an easy-to-make cotton bandana quilt as a free web bonus.

This issue is always a sellout, so be be sure to check your AQS membership expiration date to ensure this issue arrives in your mailbox in early June. Not yet an AQS member? As long as your membership is received and processed by 4 P.M. (Central time) May 3rd, your American Quilter magazine subscription will start with the July issue.

Inspired by Carol Taylor

Quilt artist Carol Taylor of Pittsford, New York, is a talented teacher as well as a frequent award winner in AQS and other quilt competitions. Last year she wrote a wonderful article for American Quilter called Transparent Beauty, about using sheer organza fabrics in a variety of colors to create shadows and layers in her art quilts.

I recently received a letter and photos from Janet Gajewski of Lenoir City, Tennessee, about Carol and this article. Janet shares:

"I first saw Carol Taylor’s art quilt Bountiful in the March 2010 issue of American Quilter. I was inspired by the design and technique, so I drew my design on paper and began what turned into a real challenge. Although I'm an experienced sewer, I have been quilting for only a year. My nine-patch background consists of cotton fabrics plus several home dec fabrics. The first border is home dec satin; the second border, binding, and backing are batik. Some of my leaves are double fused. For example, I had bright red organza, so I fused a soft gold over it to get the desired color. For the peach leaves, I fused a peach polyester curtain fabric over light peach cotton. The finished size is 20” x 20” and I named it Nature Dances.

My learning experiences were phenomenal! I experimented with different threads for the embroidery stitching and discovered that a quality thread like Guterman rayon worked best. I also discovered that a narrow buttonhole stitch worked better for me than a tight zigzag, especially for the berries. It was a lot of fun doing something so different and creative, and I am happy to share these pictures with my family and friends."

Thank you, Janet, for sharing your beautiful quilt. AQS members can access Carol's article at http://www.americanquilter.com/.

Quarter-square triangles: Efficient cutting

(Submitted by Marje Rhine, pattern editor for American Quilter magazine)
Some quilt patterns call for quarter-square triangles (QST), which are triangles cut from a square on both diagonals (fig. 1). These triangles are used instead of half-square triangles when the quilt designer wants the fabric's straight of grain to fall on the long edge of the triangle. This adds stability to the block.

Fig. 1
Often the large outside setting triangles for on-point quilt layouts are QSTs (fig. 2). One square produces 4 triangles, but sometimes a pattern calls for fewer than 4 QSTs, so there may be some left over after cutting. For small triangles this is not a problem, but it can result in a waste of fabric if the original square is large, as is often the case for setting triangles. Or, there may not be enough fabric left to cut a large square for additional QSTs.

Fig. 2
Special rulers may be purchased to help you cut these triangles one at a time. However, it is easy to do with just a large, square rotary-cutting ruler that you probably already have on hand.

First, make sure the strip or piece of fabric is at least as long and half as tall as the square size given for the QSTs. My pattern called for one 11 1/4" QST, so my fabric must measure at least 11 1/4" long x 5 5/8" tall.
Straighten the edge of the fabric.
Make small marks on the long edge of the fabric 11 1/4" apart (fig. 3).

Fig. 3

Rotate a large square ruler so the starting point for the measurements on 2 sides of the ruler are at the top point. Place the ruler on the fabric so the edges of the ruler touch the marks on the fabric.
Maneuver the ruler so the same measurement mark is at each of the 2 marks on the fabric. In this example the marks on the fabric fall just inside the 8" lines on the 2 sides of the ruler (fig. 4). Cut out using a rotary cutter, and you'll have one 11 1/4" QST.

Fig. 4

Reader quilt: Morning Star (Baby Greeensleeves pattern)

One of the patterns published in the January 2011 issue of American Quilter magazine was Baby Greensleeves by Claudia Clark Myers. Several readers, including Terri Kohlbeck of Kalispell, Montana, have let me know they enjoyed making this foundation-pieced quilt. Terri gave me permission to share her photo and letter here:

"Here is a picture of my Baby Greensleeves quilt. I named it Morning Star. It is all done in metallic fabrics. I have been quilting for about seven years after a traumatic experience with anaphylactic shock. I had a lot of brain trauma and believe the quilting helped me heal, and of course I became addicted. Quilting has been such a blessing. I entered Paducah this year and have been juried in to the show - what a shock and so exciting. Claudia has given me permission to show the quilt. I will have two quilts in the show.

I so appreciate the American Quilter's Society and their magazine (American Quilter) and all the wonderful people who work so hard to keep it all going. Quilting has become my passion and I do appreciate all the expertise I get from the designers and the magazine."

Thank you, Terri, for sharing your inspiring story and your beautiful quilt. And congratulations for having two quilts juried into the Paducah show; that is an honor in itself! 

The pattern for Baby Greensleeves is available online at www.AmericanQuilter.com for all AQS members.