“Quilt to Give” Week—Cut Lots of Crosswise Strips
In preparation for
our annual
community
sewing and
quilting project
called Quilt to
Give, which will
be held at the
Quilt Expo in
Madison, WI
September 4–6, I
thought that those
of you who cannot
attend the expo
might be
interested in
creating an easy
twin-sized quilt to
give away in your
local area as a community service project.
The Quilt to Give quilt is created from a combination of fabric stashes. Column units are made (two outside
columns with a scrappy middle column), and then the columns are sewn together into a quilt top. Click here for
the online lessons and for a downloadable twin-sized quilt worksheet.
This year, we’re making twin-sized quilts to give away for two organizations that will be receiving the finished
quilts. Enchanted Makeovers and Domestic Abuse Intervention Services (DAIS) both requested this
particular size.
The Easiest Quilt to Give
The design is made even easier if a striped fabric is used in the center of each column unit. With this
design, there’s no need to cut and sew scrappy center strips.
I Gave Myself a Challenge!
Each year I challenge myself to sew or quilt a project and give it away to someone I don’t personally know. This
year, my project is a twin-sized Quilt to Give design with striped fabric in the center. To read more about selecting
and sorting fabrics, check out the previous blog posting. Make sure to download the twin-sized quilt
worksheet.
From the last blog, here are the fabrics I choose for the columns and striped center.
Then, I filled-out the worksheet to help in the cutting process.
The twin-sized quilt has 10 columns. Each column unit requires four 2-1/2″ crosswise strips.
The center of each column unit is made from two striped strips sewn together. Following the worksheet, I cut
twenty 2-1/2″ crosswise strips from the striped fabric for the 10 columns.
I also cut the fabric for the borders and the binding—the blue and green fabric along the right side of the photo.
My staff and I also cut crosswise strips for another quilt top.
The cut strips are laid out to show what two of the column units will look like. See how a stripe can expedite the
design, cutting, and sewing process!
The Original Quilt to Give
The online instructions feature a scrappy center for each column unit. If you don’t have a striped fabric for the
center, cut the fabrics chosen for the scrappy center unit in crosswise strips between 1-1/2″ and 3-1/2″. Read the
following online lesson for more tips in Lesson 2—Cut Strips.
Then, cut the solid fabrics for the outside of each column unit.
More Quilt to Give Insights on Saturday
In our next blog, see how far I get in my Quilt to Give project. The pressure is on!
For links to all 10 Quilt to Give lessons, click here or visit QuiltToGive.com.
Attention Quilt Expo Attendees!
We’re in need of solid fabrics, twin-sized batting, and backing fabrics. If you have any of these fabrics or supplies to
donate, we’ll be most grateful!
The gift is in the giving!
Nancy Zieman—author, pattern designer, businesswomen, producer, and national sewing authority—is the host of
the popular show Sewing With Nancy®, which appears exclusively on public television stations across the United
States and Canada. Follow Nancy’s Blog at NancyZieman.com/Blog and sign up to receive Nancy’s E-News for
the latest news in Sewing, Quilting, & Creating.
Content in this feed is © copyright 2014 by Nancy Zieman and may not be republished without written permission.
You’re welcome to forward the email to a friend or colleague but it’s not okay to add the RSS feed automatically as
content on a blog or other website.