2016 Free Motion Quilt Along - Winners!

Woohoo!
I've completed the random drawings 

for the prize winners in the

2016 Free Motion Quilt Along !!
***

Before I announce the "official" winners I want to congratulate everyone that Quilted Along with us on the Susybee Lewe's Balloons Growth Chart or otherwise.  
See the original QAL Post here

Learning to Free Motion Quilt is sew fun but can sometimes be frustrating -- so persistence and practice is key to improving your FMQ Skills.

There were a total of 13 projects (some finished and some work in progress) submitted by the extended deadline -- and at least one completed project was submitted after the deadline.

I used Mr. Random Generator to choose the Winners in the order the sponsors were listed in the original post.
Because we had a total of 13 entries

I've thrown in a few "extra" prizes
for those that didn't win
a sponsored prize...
Everyone's a winner today!

***

Many thanks again to all of our fabulous Sponsors -- for offering quality products and great prizes.

Let's start with the winner of the awesome designer thread collection 

Thank you

for Subtle Strings...

The beautiful new designer thread collection by my favorite 

FMQ mentor, Wendy Sheppard.  

The winner is:

 Glenice from Australia!

Woot Woot -- Glenice I KNOW you will love this 50Wt Aurifil thread collection!

Next

Thank you Creekside Fabrics, Quilts and Yarns in Arcade, NY.

For the:

 

The Winner is: 

 Di Di -- from the USA!

Congratulations DiDi -- You'll have some fun at the Creekside Fabrics Online Store!

Next,

Thank You

 Quilter's Dream Batting - my favorite batting/waddling. 

For one package each of

Dream Wool and Dream Cotton!

And the Winner is:

 Sharon from Upstate NY!

Sharon I know you'll find great things to do with this fantastic selection of batting!

Moving right along...
Thank you Sew It Is Quilt Shop

For providing another Susybee Panel

with some coordinating fabrics!

And the Winner is:

 Patti H from USA

Congratulations Patti -- You'll have fun making a selection from the Sew It Is Online Store!

Next up:

Thank you Quilty Pleasures in Geneva, NY

 For providing a $20 Store Credit

And the Winner is:

 Ellen from Albany, NY

Congratulations Ellen!
I know you'll love your selection from the
Quilty Pleasures Online Store!

Finally
Thank you World of Susybee !

For providing this fun Lal the Lamb 1 yard cut

And the Winner is:

 Karen C from the USA!

Congratulations Karen -- Lal is sew fun to FMQ - You will be thrilled!

And for the remaining ladies that submitted
Quilt Along entries....
***
I have some sweet older Susybee panels
you can use to
continue to practice your FMQ!!
***
Some Flip the Pig, and Bird and
a few other awesome panels...

Everyone....
To collect your prizes
I'll need an email and mailing address sent to me.
Once I receive this information
 I'll coordinate
getting your prizes shipped to YOU!

eMail me at redbirdquiltco at gmail dot com

Also, I've already rec'd some feedback on the Quilt Along -- if you have feedback too please send it to me, we can all learn together from this first Redbird Quilt Co event.

Happy Stitching!
Karen

2016 FMQ Along - Deadline Extended

Hello fellow quilters and thanks for stopping by!

As many of you know I was away at 

International Quilt Market last week

(So inspiring !! See my Quilt Market Instagram shares here)

while Giveway entries were open for the

2016 Free Motion Quilt Along

using the Lewe's Balloons Growth Chart 

by World of Susybee. 

Since we're all a bit new to the Linky Party interface on the blog and many of you don't have blogs of your own, there were a few technical difficulties linking up your completed projects.   

This combined with my being

away at Quilt Market 

made me a bit uneasy to hold true 

to the original 

Quilt Along Giveaway Entry

deadline of May 23rd at Midnight.

Therefore, I've decided to extend the deadline by 72 hours, giving you more time to email your project image to karen at redbirdquiltco dot com -- or redbirdquiltco at gmail dot com.

There's no need to have the project completed, just send me an image of what you've done so far -- by May 26th at Midnight Eastern Time (about 48 hours from now).

If you have any questions please do email me at one of the addresses above...

Best of luck!  I'll be doing a random drawing on Friday for the winners.

You can see the Giveaway Post and Linky Party entries here.

Good luck to all!

Karen

2016 Free Motion Quilt Along - Enter the Giveaway

Greetings Fellow Quilters!
&
Welcome to the
Final Installment
of the

2016 Redbird Quilt Co.

Free Motion Quilt Along

using the whimsical 

Lewe's Balloons Growth Chart
by the World of Susybee

artist Susy Bleasby

It's time to enter an image of your Lewe's Balloons Growth Chart
(even if it's not completed)
to be eligible for the random drawings for Quilt Along Prizes!!

If you're just joining us be sure to checkout the previously published

Free Motion Quilt Along Posts:

Introduction => here

Sponsors =>  here

Supplies =>  here
Part I Pieced Borders =>  here
Part II Pin Basting ==>  here
How to Quilt That =>  here

Part III Tools, Setup + Practice => here
Part IV Let's FMQ => here
Part V More FMQ => here
Part VI Echo, Pebbles, Loops & Swirls Oh My! => here
Part VII Landscape & Background => here
Part VIII Borders ==> here
Part IX Finishing ==> here

Many thanks to our generous sponsors for providing the following prizes:

The great folks at Aurifil 

are sending Subtle Strings -- the beautiful new designer thread collection by my favorite FMQ mentor, Wendy Sheppard.  

Subtle Strings contains 12 spools of Aurifil 50Wt thread -- they're perfect for FMQ'ing most backgrounds and negative space.  

Checkout the beautiful quilting Wendy did with this collection in this blog post -- don't miss it!

Thanks so much Aurifil for this awesome product and giveaway!

Images courtesy: www.wendysheppard.net

Next up -- the generous team from Creekside Fabrics, Quilts and Yarns in Arcade, NY.

  Creekside Fabrics is a full-service shop and an Elite Dealer for Baby Lock Machines and Products.  

Fabrics, yarns, custom quilting, long arm rental -- you'll find it all at Creekside Fabrics, Quilts and Yarns.

Sandy is providing a $25.00 Shop Certificate for the QAL Giveaway - Sew exciting! 

Thank you Sandy & Creekside Fabrics.

Next up -- the great folks at Quilter's Dream Batting - my favorite batting/waddling. 

Quilter's Dream is a USA based company and sponsor of the annual Hopes and Dreams Quilt Challenge for ALS

I've been using Quilter's Dream 100% Wool batting (Dream Wool) for just over a year and absolutely LOVE it.  You can read about my first encounter and see the awesome quilting results using Aurifil thread and Dream Wool batting in this blog post.

Wool batting provides for great quilting texture, drape-ability, and warmth without adding excessive  weight and with little/no bearding.

Quilter's Dream wool really does Quilt like a Dream.

The great folks at Quilters Dream Batting are providing us two products for the QAL giveaway!

A package of each Dream Wool and Dream Cotton -- Oh So Fun!!!
Thank you Quilter's Dream!

Moving right along... our next sponsor is

Cindy at Sew It Is Quilt Shop

Sew It Is Quilt Shop is a family run business based out of Endicott, NY with amazing fabric prices and long arm service too!!

  Be sure to visit SewItIs online (or in person) the next time you can't find something at YOUR local shop.

Sew It Is Quilt Shop is donating another Susybee Quilt Kit for the QAL giveaway.  

  The quilt kit will consist of a Lewe's (or Lal) Play Mat and Susybee border fabric -- Oh you will LOVE quilting Lewe or Lal !!  

Thank you Sew It Is!!

Our final sponsor is Quilty Pleasures in Geneva, NY

Quilty Pleasures is another full service shop with beautiful fabrics, classes, and long arm quilting services.  Visit their store in person or online for more information.

Quilty Pleasures is providing a $20 Shop Certificate for the QAL!

Thanks so much Quilty Pleasures!

Last, but certainly not least...  The World of Susybee is joining in the sponsorship fun!

The fine folks at World of Susybee are offering up their latest character for the Free Motion QAL giveaway!

Meet Lal the Lamb -- isn't she adorable?  Lal is a 36" panel that can be used as a floor play mat, turned into a pillow or just quilted and hung in the nursery.   

Oh I can't wait to quilt Lal!

Thank you Susy and World of Susybee!

That concludes the QAL Sponsor overview. 

To be eligible for the giveaway drawings you must "link-up" an entry from your blog, a personal Facebook post or an Instagram post.   

If you don't utilize any of these social media sources you can email a picture of your entry to me and I will enter it for you.

You have until end of day Monday, May 23rd to enter an image of your completed (or work in progress) Lewe's Balloons Growth Chart to be eligible for one of the 7 awesome prizes available.

Winners being announced on/around May 25th.

Remember, I'll be out of town this week at Quilt Market -- if you have any trouble linking up your entry please send an email to karen at redbirdquiltco dot com and I'll return your email during the week.  We'll make sure you're entered before the deadline.

I'm excited for everyone -- thanks for participating!
The Linky Entry is below the line... good luck!






Karen

More Info:

I'm booking Redbird Quilt Co. Lectures, Trunk Shows and Workshops for 2017.

If your Shop, Group or Guild is looking for programs or workshops I would love to hear from you.

Domestic Machine Quilting,  Wool & Needle turn Applique - Technique or Project oriented workshops are available.

Send email inquiries to karen at redbirdquiltco dot com

or redbirdquiltco at gmail dot com

*

Social Media:

*** Follow Me ***

Did you know you can visit me on

 Facebook ~ Redbird Quilt Co

and/or

Follow Redbird Quilt Co on Instagram

I post all sorts of fun things there!!
**

If you love to Free Motion Quilt consider joining my 

Facebook Community Group

 Free Motion Quilting Frenzy

*

Plus

I share quilting related

videos on my YouTube Channel
*
I'll soon be sharing live feed TV on my Periscope

*

I'm also on Pinterest and Twitter 

and I share other tutorials and patterns on
My Tutorials on my blog
*
I have a few patterns available in my Craftsy Store
Thanks again for stopping by...

2016 Free Motion Quit Along - Part IX Finishing Steps

Greetings Fellow Quilters!
&
Welcome to Part IX of the

2016 Redbird Quilt Co.

Free Motion Quilt Along

using the whimsical 

Lewe's Balloons Growth Chart

by Susy Bleasby

Many thanks for your patience the last 2 weeks while I traveled from Eastern NY to Western NY sharing my love of quilting with Guilds and Shops along the way!

I'm pretty blessed to travel around sharing what I love with others -- sometimes I have to pinch myself to make sure I'm not dreaming.

In the final installment of our 2016 FMQ Along we're talking finishing steps for the World of Susybee

Lewe's Balloons Growth Chart Panel.

But FIRST !!

If and when you're done quilting the final border on Lewe's Balloons I REALLY want you to follow these instructions!!

1. Take a step back
2. Admire your work
3. Really -- admire your work!   You Did It!!
4. Now go to a mirror and give yourself a "high five" for walking through this beginner Free Motion Quilt Along and making it to the very end --- WOOHOO!!

If you've quilted along from the 1st to the last session you deserve a BIG pat on the back!   Great job! 

If you're just joining us be sure to checkout the previously published

Free Motion Quilt Along Posts:

Introduction => here

Sponsors =>  here

Supplies =>  here
Part I Pieced Borders =>  here
Part II Pin Basting ==>  here
How to Quilt That =>  here

Part III Tools, Setup + Practice => here
Part IV Let's FMQ => here
Part V More FMQ => here
Part VI Echo, Pebbles, Loops & Swirls Oh My! => here
Part VII Landscape & Background => here
Part VIII Borders ==> here

Also, do checkout our fabulous Sponsors and their generous Giveaways....
You can read all about that  ==> here

****

Finally -- lets talk finishing steps...

They include:

1. Squaring-Up the quilt top

2. Preparing a Hanging Sleeve

3. Prepare and attach the Quilt Binding

4. Prepare and attach a Quilt Label

In lieu of writing tutorials for each of the above steps I've decided to describe and/or refer you to some of my favorite tutorials that cover the finishing steps...

1. Squaring up the Quilt top -- the objectives of "squaring up" include:

• determining the length and width that the quilt top can be trimmed such that you'll have the same width across the top, middle, and bottom of sections of the quilt and the same length to the left and right of center   
• determining the length and width of the quilt that will allow roughly the same amount of final border showing around the perimeter of the quilt   
• ensuring that your corners are cut at a 90 degree angle 

In my Lewe's Balloons Sample Growth Chart I was able to "square-up" to 51" tall by 27.75" wide and with appx 3.75" of the Green Dot border showing all the way around.

Use a large square ruler, a LONG ruler, and a good rotary cutter to "square-up" your quilt.   You may have to "fudge" the squaring along the way -- you'll want to be sure that your corners are at a 90 degree angle.   "Fudging" means you may have some corners or lengths that only have batting showing (and not top or back) -- but that is OK as long as the binding will cover that area.  The main thing is that your quilt is "square", that the corners are at a 90 degree angle and that the width and length measurements don't vary from top to bottom or side to side.

I normally start on a corner of the quilt -- and double check measurements and ruler placement to ensure that I'll end up with a 90 degree angle in each corner.    If you need detailed instruction for "squaring-up" a quilt top there are several different YouTube and written tutorials available online.  I also talk about it briefly in my Family Tree Quilted Envelope Pillow tutorial on the Moda Bake Shop.   You're also welcome to reach out to me via email for help -- I would be happy to help if I can.  My email address is available at the bottom of the post.

2. Preparing a Hanging Sleeve....  

NOTE:  The sleeve instructions below are not quilt show approved....  Preparation of an AQS Approved Quilt Sleeve can be found here.

Image shows the beginning of the sleeve process.  I cut a 8" tall by WOF piece to begin.

For quilts used at home or gifted... my standard way of preparing a quilt sleeve is:

• Cut the sleeve fabric 8" tall by the width of the squared quilt minus 1 inch
• Fold the short ends of the sleeve fabric over twice at .5" (each fold) and machine top stitch to make finished short edges
• Fold the sleeve in half length (long) wise with wrong sides together.
• Center and position the raw edges of the folded sleeve at the top of the quilt sandwich on the back and pin or baste in place -- be sure it is centered left to right.
• The sleeve will be sewn to the quilt back when the binding is applied
• Once the binding is complete, hand sew the bottom and sides of the sleeve to the quilt back -- leaving the outer layer of the short edge open for the rod.

For our Lewe's Balloons Growth Chart I suggest you start with a raw edge sleeve 8" tall by 27" wide -- once it's sewn into the binding it will finish to be 3.75" tall by 25" wide.  

3. Preparing and attaching a quilt binding...  

Oh there are so many ways to make and attach a quilt binding.   The most common method is detailed in this Moda Bake Shop Binding tutorial.

PLEASE NOTE:   We planned for binding strips 2.25" wide and sewn on with a 1/4" seam allowance.   The referenced Moda Bake Shop tutorial assumes the strips are 2.5" wide and sewn with a 3/8" seam allowance.   You can follow the Moda Bake Shop tutorial step by step -- except you'll cut your strips 2.25" wide and use a 1/4" seam allowance.   (If you have enough fabric to cut your strips 2.5" wide, you can follow the Moda Bake Shop tutorial exactly as written).

For our Lewe's Balloons Growth Chart Binding:

• I cut (5) 2.25" strips by Width of Fabric
• I sewed the 5 strips together (end to end) with a mitered connection - this reduces bulk when you're attaching your strips to the quilt top.  (See Moda Bake Shop tutorial above). 
• Once your strips are sewn together end to end and the seams are pressed open, fold the binding in half lengthwise (wrong sides together) and press
• Now align and pin the raw edge of the binding on the raw edge of your squared quilt on the front side of the quilt (machine stitch to the front and hand stitch on the back). 
• See detailed instructions for the remaining steps in the Moda Bake Shop recipe.

Label -- it's really important to label you're work.  I normally include these items on my quilt label:

• Name of Quilt
• Name & Location of Person who made the Quilt
• Name of Person who quilted the quilt (if different than the maker)
• Date the Quilt was completed or gifted
• Name of Person the Quilt was gifted to

I've tried many times to make a hand-written label and I never seem to be satisfied with them.  For quilts that won't require extensive washing and drying I use the computer to prepare and print the label on fabric.   I've written a tutorial for preparing a label with your computer, you can see it ==> here ==> Printed Quilt Label Tutorial -- sew fun!

Ok then -- once you've completed these steps you've made it to the end game.

In the next few days I'll be posting a recap of our Redbird Quilt Co 2016 FMQ Along AND having a Linky Party so you can submit entries for the Giveaway.   If you don't have a blog, Instagram or Facebook account you can submit your entries to me directly (email below) and I will post them for you so you are eligible for the giveaway drawings.

Great job everyone!! 

Take care now and Keep on Quilting!

Karen

****

More Info:

I'm booking Redbird Quilt Co. Lectures, Trunk Shows and Workshops for 2017.

If your Shop, Group or Guild is looking for programs or workshops I would love to hear from you.

Domestic Machine Quilting,  Wool & Needle turn Applique - Technique or Project oriented workshops are available.

Send email inquiries to karen at redbirdquiltco dot com

or redbirdquiltco at gmail dot com

*

Social Media:

*** Follow Me ***

Did you know you can visit me on

 Facebook ~ Redbird Quilt Co

and/or

Follow Redbird Quilt Co on Instagram

I post all sorts of fun things there!!
**

If you love to Free Motion Quilt consider joining my 

Facebook Community Group

 Free Motion Quilting Frenzy

*

Plus

I share quilting related

videos on my YouTube Channel
*
I'll soon be sharing live feed TV on my Periscope

*

I'm also on Pinterest and Twitter 

and I share other tutorials and patterns on
My Tutorials on my blog
*
I have a few patterns available in my Craftsy Store
Thanks again for stopping by...