I have a sure fire way of making a quilt in the shortest amount of time possible...but first...let me just say how HAPPY I am that I can get back into my blog! Typepad, who hosts my blog, has had some kind of defugalty...an attack...I don't exactly know what happened, because, you know, I only know what I know and they aren't exactly saying...but I've been locked out, along with everyone else for several days and I've missed this! I've really missed it! I am told they are feverishly working on the problem and will get things right before too long but now I am fearful that my blog might disappear permanently and then what would I do?!? I might have to get a real job or clean the house! Godfrey! Shivers are rocketing up and down my spine at the thought! Enough...let's talk fast quilts...
The fastest way to make a quilt is to BUY the top! Cheating? I think not. Not when you stumble upon a pile of scrappy and vintage quilt blocks that are in desperate need of a home. And the price tag says $15.00. Done!
This quirky top is going to be loved when it's quilted...scrappy quilts are always the ones that are grabbed first around here and I think my Max will like looking for all the funny fabrics that are hidden in this top - kind of like an "I Spy" quilt - but quirkier!
Every quilter I know needs at least one more Christmas quilt - even me! I found these blocks languishing in a heap at a quilt show - all of them set me back $7 - I added on some vintage fabric for borders (that I found at a garage sale about 10 years ago) and it's sort of taken on a life of it's own, no? I love how this one turned out...will be great once it's quilted!
That's Mrs. Santa Claus on the border fabric...I'm beginning to look just like her, which is fine by me, if only the mister would turn into a Jolly Old Elf, think of the fun we could have!
This is definitely a keeper - and worth every penny of those seven dollars! Blocks to top in under an hour!
This top was all sewn together, I just added on the outside border. When I found this top I immediately thought of a friend of mine who is turning 90 this June - I think it will make a great birthday present! It's got all of her colors in it but it seemed a bit bright so I dyed it with coffee.
This is the top before I added on the border - the white fabric in the center is truly white - it just seemed too stark to me. I headed for the kitchen to dye it so it would be a bit softer. I decided to use coffee because it always give the fabric a brown hue - tea, depending on the type, can give the fabric anything from a pink to a black tone - I just wanted a soft tan so coffee was the way to go. Just so you know, it doesn't matter if you use regular or decaf, expensive or cheap, any coffee works but I'd stay away from flavored coffee! Oh - skip the cream and sugar, too! The kitchen sink works great, some people use their bathtub or even their washer but for a small top the sink was perfect. I used very hot water, added in very hot and very strong coffee, gave it a stir then tossed in the quilt top. I had to put in a few pans to keep the quilt submerged. I let the quilt top sit for about an hour, then rinsed it in cold water, wrung it out and tossed it into the dryer to "set."
When I rinsed the top in cold water, I didn't rinse it well, just enough to remove some of the coffee. By the time I got upstairs to my dryer, the smell of coffee was almost over-powering but I didn't want to rinse it all out, I needed it to "stain" and "set" first. After I took the top from the dryer, I pressed it, sealing in the coffee one more time. The top had a very faint coffee smell - not bad though. I always wash my quilts after they are quilted and bound so by the time my friend opens it the smell will be gone.
The dye-job might not look like much but it's definitely softer and for me it helps those weird colored blocks go together better. This quilt top set me back $12 - a steal of a deal! There you have it - the fastest way to make a quilt...and the fastest way to get them all quilted is to send them off to a machine quilter but I can't justify that so it's time to fire up the Pfaff and get busy!
