Summer in the Park Tutorial Reboot Featuring Lee Ann Perry!

Revisited Quilting Tutorials from Missouri Star Quilt Co
Lee Ann Perry Tutorial Reboot
Hi! My name is Lee Ann. I’m a wife and mother of four. When I was expecting my third child, I saw some rag quilts on Etsy and thought they were adorable—but expensive. I mean, $65 for a little baby blanket?  
So I bought my first sewing machine and a set of fat quarters by Kaffe Fassett. I learned how to make my first rag quilt by watching a tutorial by Vanessa Vargas Wilson on YouTube. I was pretty happy with the result but my husband teased me a bit. ”Why spend $65 on a blanket when you can make it yourself for $300?”
But, I fell in love with sewing!  Putting colors together.  Feeling the fabric run through my fingers. And the finished project was an item that was both USEFUL and beautiful. I made several rag quilts before getting bored and wanting to learn more. That’s when I found the free video tutorials online by MSQC.
One of the first “real” quilts I made was from a pattern called Summer in the Park using a jelly roll, a line by Tula Pink, the Birds and the Bees.
Watching the videos made it easy for me to follow along—or watch a half dozen times if necessary, and sometimes it was! The finished quilt was so worth it.
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But, like many quilters, I don’t ever make the same thing twice! You’ve got to change it up a bit.
Recently I came back to this pattern and changed only two things.
In the tutorial, Natalie uses a brightly colored jelly roll and combines it with a jelly roll of white strips. When sewing them together, she sews two strip sets, 1) white, print, white, and 2) print, white, print.
So to change it up, I chose a jelly roll of Carolyn Friedlander’s Carkai. Instead of white, I used a darker CHAMBRAY fabric.  I also changed how I sewed my strips together. ALL of my 3 strip sets were sewed as: print, chambray, print.
 
The 3-strip-sets are then sewed to each other, right sides facing, into a “tube.”
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Now comes the really fun part—cutting the tubes into squares. You lay your tube down and cut triangles—when you open it up, they will be perfect squares!
The best ruler for this is the Triangle Square Up Ruler, 9 1/2” by Quilt in a Day. I don’t happen to have that ruler (mine only goes up to 6 1/2”), so I had to make do with my big square up ruler for squares. I put the point of my ruler right up to the seam but did not cross it. Then, I made sure both of the 8” marks touched the bottom seam before making a cut.
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Continue cutting the tube, swiveling the ruler around the opposite way to maximize the number of cuts you can make.  I was able to get five finished 8” squares from each “tube.”
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When sewing the squares together, I made sure to nest the seams to make perfect points.
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I sent this quilt off to MSQC for machine quilting.  My local lady is great but she will not back anything with fleece.  MSQC does — Cuddle/minky too!  This is my first quilt backed with fleece and it’s pretty much the best thing EVER.
After it came back, I had to choose binding fabric.  I always “audition” a few colors first.
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After letting this quilt and the different options sit on my table for a few days, I ended up going with the same chambray I used in the quilt blocks.
My favorite binding tutorial is The Ultimate Quilt Binding Tutorial by MSQC.  No binding tool required!  I used to have one but I don’t use it anymore.  This method is the easiest!  But, I must confess, I had to watch this video EVERY SINGLE TIME a quilt needed finishing for at least the first ten quilts I made.
Here’s the finished result of my “reboot”.
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And now that I’ve spent a few years piecing quilts…I’ve decided a $65 rag quilt is more than fair!  A bargain, really! But, I wouldn’t trade learning a new hobby for ANYTHING.  Quilting has become my quiet place and saving grace in my busy life.
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Thank you, MSQC for asking me to write this blog post and for teaching me how to quilt in the first place!
You can follow my quilty adventures on Instagram at leeannjperry.

New Friday Tutorial: The Block and Strip Quilt w/Guest Rob Appell

MSQC New Tutorial on the Blog!

Make an Easy Block & Strip Quilt with Jenny Doan and Rob Appell!

We live in a culture of chaos. Too many clothes. Too many knick-knacks. Too much clutter and busyness and excess. At times it feels like all that “extra” is clogging up my life, distracting me from the things that really matter. Sometimes, my soul just yearns for a little simplicity.

Make an Easy Block & Strip Quilt with Jenny Doan and Rob Appell!

This week Jenny has teamed up with Rob from Man Sewing to teach us how to make The Block and Strip Quilt. I know you’re going to love how easy it is to put together this refreshingly simple pattern, and if you’re not yet familiar with Rob’s electric personality, you’re in for a real treat!

Make an Easy Block & Strip Quilt with Jenny Doan and Rob Appell!

New Friday Tutorial: The Autumn Stars Quilt

MSQC New Tutorial on the Blog!

Make the Autumn Sweet Stars Quilt Using 2.5" Strips! Free Video Tutorial!

Every year as the days get shorter, a new star shows up to signal the arrival of fall. Fomalhaut, also known as the lonely star of Autumn, is so far away that the starlight we’ll enjoy this fall had to start its journey to Earth way back in 1991! Thank goodness that the Autumn Stars in today’s new quilt can be completed in just a few minutes!

Make the Autumn Sweet Stars Quilt Using 2.5" Strips with Jenny Doan! Free Video Tutorial!

Here’s what you need to make this stunning quilt!

Make the Autumn Sweet Stars Quilt Using 2.5" Strips! Free Video Tutorial!

We’re making MSQC history here! For the first time ever, you can buy a kit to make the exact quilt that Jenny makes in the tutorial (excluding backing fabric).

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Click on the button below to watch the tutorial and get the supplies to make your own Autumn Stars Quilt!

Watch the latest Quilting Tutorial from Jenny Doan of MSQC!

Flying Geese Log Cabin Tutorial Reboot: Featuring Guest Quilter Jen Van Orman

Hello! I am Jen, and am a wife and mother first and foremost. My mother is a quilter and I learned so many things from her when I started showing interest as a teenager. Quilting is my heritage and I hope it will also become the heritage of my children and grandchildren. That is where my name comes from, Heritage Threads. Quilting binds generations together with threads of love. 

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I am very excited to have the opportunity to share the Flying Geese Log Cabin tutorial reboot with you today. When I saw this tutorial, I could not get the thought of solids out of my head and I knew this quilt would look amazing in this Kona Cotton Lush Lagoon color way.For the gray accents I used Kona Cotton Coal. It turned out to be a wonderfully modern quilt that fits my personal quilting style so well.

I first started by separating my strips into 4 groups, ranging from lightest to darkest.

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I knew I wanted the center “log” of each block to be made out of the lightest fabric. Gather 48 of your 2.5” gray squares and 4 of the lightest strips. As you start off making this quilt, Jenny provides a great way to mark the center of the 2.5” squares. That is by ironing it in half. I love this method, but if you want to streamline your process a bit more, I really like marking a temporary line on my sewing machine with a long piece of washi or painter’s tape. Place the tape edge in line with the needle; keep the corners of the top square in line as you sew, and you’ll have a handy center line ready to go!

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I decided to line 48 of my gray 2.5” squares on top of 4 of the lightest strips as I was sewing my center logs. I ended up with a line of logs like this.

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I used a similar process for all of the logs, using up all of the lighter strips and continued through to the darkest hues in the color way.

One thing I always appreciate about Jenny in the Missouri Star Quilt Company tutorials is that she’s hilarious and knows how much I need repetition. Hopefully I’m not alone in the need for her to hammer the most important point home. Jenny says several times to make sure to put the dark goose in the top corner and sew down the side. I cannot tell you how many times I repeated this to myself as I made this quilt.

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After you finish making all 48 blocks, be sure experiment with different layouts. I attempted the layout in the tutorial and it just didn’t work. I tried a few others before I settled on my final layout.

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I picked this fun, bright Rhoda Ruth 108” wide backing for an added pop of color. I really like choosing an unexpected backing that doesn’t necessarily come from the same line of fabric as the front. The back can and should be just as exciting as the front of a quilt, in my opinion. Missouri Star has a huge selection of 108” wide backing and I am thrilled to know where to get more in the future!

Thanks for having me today to share this tutorial reboot. I cannot wait to see what you create! Share your projects on the Quilting Deals – Missouri Star Quilt Co. Facebook page or on Instagram/Twitter using #tutorialreboot!

Instagram.com/heritage-threads

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New Friday Tutorial and Fabric Feature: Diamonds Squared Quilt featuring Uppercase Fabric!

MSQC New Tutorial on the Blog!

SCROLL DOWN FOR A SUPER FUN FABRIC/MAGAZINE GIVEAWAY!!

50 light years from earth sits a white dwarf star with a core of pure diamond. Think of it! 10 billion trillion trillion carats, just floating around in outer space! (I’m suddenly feeling an inclination for space travel!) So beautiful, and yet, so out of reach! This new tutorial, however, features many diamonds that are easily accessible to even the least experienced quilter! This is one block that is as quick to make as it is pretty! It’s called Diamonds Squared and we know you’re just going to love it.

Watch the Diamonds Squared Tutorial with Jenny Doan!

Make sure to watch the tutorial so you can learn how to make your own Diamonds Squared Quilt!

Watch the Diamonds Squared Tutorial with Jenny Doan!

Watch the Diamonds Squared Tutorial with Jenny Doan!

This tutorial features the beautiful Uppercase 2.5″ Strips by Janine Vangool for Windham Fabrics. Aren’t they gorgeous? They’re so bright and happy that they give the perfect pop to this quilt! In fact, we love it so much that we’ve teamed up with Janine to do a little fabric feature and giveaway!

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The Uppercase Fabric line was inspired by Uppercase Magazine, which was founded by Janine Vangool and is operated by her and her family. The rich, saturated colors paired with neutrals brings this line full circle for any project that might need some happy, positive energy. Janine used small scale monocromatic prints in her designs to add depth to each color that can be used as a more dynamic alternative to solid color fabrics. If you can’t tell, we love it!

So, today we’re giving away a 1-year subscription to Uppercase Magazine (North American addresses only), 3 single copies of Uppercase Magazine (North American Addresses only), as well as a beautiful Uppercase Fabric Bundle! Find out the ways to enter below (All entry options are optional, but you have to choose at least one to enter!) That means there will be FIVE winners!!

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a Rafflecopter giveaway