Sew Along with McCall's!

Head on over to the McCall's Quilting blog to get all the details to make these scouting banners!

Get your fabrics together with the supplies list then check back after the new year for the instructions!

Here's a list of retailers where you can find Scout fabrics:

Fabric Depot

Hancock's of Paducah

keepsakequilting.com

equilter.com

fatquartershop.com

stitchinheaven.com

fabricshack.com

A Little Birdie Told Me... All about Pillowcases

I used to think that for some reason pillowcases were complicated. Basic Pillowcases are actually quite simple and you can make a few in no time. I made the above two pillowcases in under an hour.

 

A few reasons why pillocases are a great project

1. You can make them without an iron. {I did}

2. You don't need much fabric

3. No batting or matching thread on hand?.. no problem since you don't need either!

4. They are fast & easy

 

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Have you heard about the Million Pillowcase Challenge? I first heard about it at Fall 2009 Quilt Market. The goal is simple... between all of us... make 1 Million Pillowcases for local charities. You can download 13 Pillowcase patterns for free. My guild did a sewing night recently and made a few pillowcases to be donated.

  

I decided to make a few new pillowcases for Elijah to brighten up his hospital room. In addition to making Elijah some new pillowcases I also made one for his neighbor in the hospital. I thought she could use a bit more color in her room as well & made her a bright one with purple and pink. My goal is to make a few more and hand deliver them to some of the other children at the hospital.

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For Elijah's new Super Easy Pillowcases I started with the Basic Pillowcase Pattern. I wanted to add a green flange to the pillowcases similar to the green flange on Elijah's Stash Stack Quilt. Below are directions on how to add a flange to the Basic Pillowcase Pattern.

Supplies for 2 Pillowcases
- 1/8 yard Kiwi Green
- 1 1/8 yards Canary Dot Mingle by Monaluna
- 1 1/8 yards Urban Zoologie Owls by Ann Kelle 

1. Follow the Basic Pillowcase Pattern to cut the main four pieces. In addition cut two pieces 1.5" x 41" of the fabric you want to use for the flange. Fold the flange fabric in half along the long side and pin along one long side of the 10×41" pillowcase strip. Repeat for the second pillowcase.

2. Baste the flange in place with a large stitch and a scant 1/8" seam.

3. Follow steps #1 & #2 on pillowcase direction to join the ends and create band. At this point you can follow the rest of the directions to make the pillowcase. I chose to baste the two layers together as shown below before adding the cuff to the main part of the pillowcase.

4. Here are my finished pillowcase cuffs ready to be added to the main body of the pillowcase.

Initially Elijah was too busy reading one of his giant cards to notice the new pillowcases.

But he did discover that they made for a good foot rest.

After a little while he cuddled up with them and went back to watching a movie.

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I'll be back on January 7th with A Little Birdie Told Me!

Volume 1 post 10

{ Julie Herman blogs at Jaybird Quilts }

Daisies & Dots Tutorial

KarrieLyne over at Freckled Whimsy has created a super fun project using Daisies & Dots. The best part is we are providing the project to you for FREE! Take a look & download the full tutorial HERE.

A Little Birdie Told Me... Stash Stack Quilt Tutorial

This is a Stash Stack. Stash Stacks are bundles of 12 coordinated Fat Quarters. They are great to work with because the coordination of colors has been done for you!

Have you ever needed to make a quilt on short notice? If so this is the tutorial for you! Grab a Stash Stack and a solid and you'll have a quilt in no time! 

In order to make the quilt super soft I chose to use cuddle by Shannon Fabrics as the backing for this quilt.  It really makes you want to grab the quilt and cuddle with someone underneath it.

I also added a flange for a small pop of color before the binding.

Download the full tutorial here.

 

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I'll be back on December 24th with A Little Birdie Told Me!

Volume 1 post 9

{ Julie Herman blogs at Jaybird Quilts }

Update on Wednesday, December 29, 2010 at 8:45AM by Julie Herman

I got a few questions from people asking how to do the Binding Flange & decided it was best to take photos for a tutorial and share the info with everyone. The full Binding Flange Tutorial can be found on my blog.

A Little Birdie Told Me... Feel Better Soon!

Hi Everyone,

Julie's been a bit under the weather this week so she'll be back next week, Dec. 10th with some fun stuff to share.

In the meantime, how about a giveaway to bide our time?!

Want to win a ten-square of the Daisies & Dots collection by Piece O' Cake Designs before it hits stores next month?? It's just what you need to make a Dot Party quilt or a ton of other projects!

Tell us what Christmas projects or presents you're working on for a chance to win. We'll leave the comments open until 12 noon PST on Monday 12/6.

Good Luck & feel better Julie!

Update on Tuesday, December 7, 2010 at 8:07AM by Robert Kaufman Fabrics

We have a winner!!! Here is the following comment posted and randomly selected:

"I have been quilting a quilt for my Dad. This part is very tedious, so I have taken a break."

December 4, 2010 | Sarah P

Congratulations Sarah P. We'll be in touch very soon!