A Patchwork & Laminate Picnic Quilt Tutorial : :

With Summer fast approaching, today I thought I'd share my tutorial for a Hand-tied Patchwork & Laminate Picnic Quilt using a simple patchwork for the quilt top and a Yellow Chevron Laminate Fabric for the back. This tutorial was originally created for the RBD blog as part of the Design Team, using their adorable Seaside Collection, which is a little hard to come by now. You can substitute with any collection of quality cotton fabrics. If you have any questions please leave a comment or feel free to email me at maureencracknell@hotmail.com. Now let's get started!!  

What you'll need : :

• 24 - fabric squares measuring 11.5"
• 2 - fabric cuts measuring 4.5" x 44"
• 2 - yards of Laminate Fabric
• 1 - skein of matching floss or twine (source) for hand-tying
• white thread
• Sewing pins (use the smallest gauge pins you can find, to avoid holes in the laminate)
• Sharp scissors and/or a rotary cutter/mat set   

Sewing the Seaside Quilt Top : :

1. pin two 11.5" squares together with right sides facing, securing with a couple of pins on one side 2. repeat with all 24 squares until you have a stack of 12

3. sew squares together on one side, keeping a 1/4" seam allowance, removing pins as you go 4. snip connecting threads with scissors to separate, press the seams open

5. pin two of your panel of two squares together with right sides facing, securing with a couple of pins on one side 6. repeat with all 12 panels of two until you have 6 panels of 4 squares, press as you go

7. repeat by sewing your panels of 4 squares together to make 3 panels of 8 squares, then continue to sew the quilt top together until all 24 squares are sewn together (the finished quilt top will be 4 squares wide, 6 squares long)

8. press seams open 9. add one border strip of fabric measuring 4.5" x 44" to both ends

Sewing the Quilt Top to the Chevron Laminate : :

10. with right sides facing, pin the finished quilt top to the piece of laminate fabric staying close to the outer edges. Sew the top piece to the back with a 1/2-inch seam allowance around all four sides, removing pins as you go, and be sure to leave a 10-inch gap at the bottom edge. Back stitch at the beginning and end of this seam. This opening is for turning out the quilt

11. snip off the corners and turn the blanket right sides out making sure to poke the corners out. 12. Press the quilt well on the patchwork side to smooth out wrinkles and pin along all four edges, pinning the opening closed. Top stitch around the entire blanket a 1/4" from the outer edge, back stitching at the beginning and end of the seam

* NOTE * When you top stitch, have the laminate side facing up, to avoid sticking.

This finished quilt will measure 42" x 72", of course you can make it larger!

Hand Tying the Quilt : :

13. Use a length of twine or floss measuring 4", thread through a sharp needle (there is no need to knot the end). At each place on the quilt top where fabric are sewn together, push the needle through the quilt top, making sure it goes through both the quilt top and bottom laminate layer of the quilt, bring back up through the top leaving a little stitch. Tie each stitch tightly with a square knot (a square knot is a simple double knot), trim threads to be about an inch in length. Repeat throughout the quilt.

Voila! Your Patchwork & Laminate Picnic Quilt is finished!!

Now you're ready for those fun Summer picnics and trips to the beach!

Thank you so much for stopping by today, I hope you enjoy this tutorial! If you do give this project a go, please be sure to share on my Facebook page or in my Maureen Cracknell Handmade Flickr group!   
♥, Maureen

A Seaside & Chevron Picnic Quilt {& GIVEAWAY} : :

A Riley Blake Design Team Project!

Today I'm SO excited to be sharing a new project for the Riley Blake Design Team!!

This tutorial is for a Hand-tied Picnic Beach Quilt using a simple patchwork of Riley Blake's new Seaside Collection for the quilt top and their Yellow Chevron Laminate Fabric for the back.



This quilt has already turned out to be one of the most loved projects that I have ever made and I adore how functional it is! The soft yellow, aqua, and gray palette is a favorite of mine and the adorable prints in this collection are so, so sweet! It's just perfect for Summer sewing!

I really hope you like this tutorial as much as we do! My project is up on the Riley Blake blog. Please be sure to stop by and check it out!

GREAT NEWS, besides having the honor of guest posting on the Riley Blake Blog as part of the Design Team, I also get to host a new RBD Fabric Giveaway right here today!!!

How does a chance at winning a Fat Quarter Bundle of an entire Riley Blake Collection sound??!!

Well...the sweet folks at Riley Blake are so generously offering a Fat Quarter bundle of the entire Seaside Collection to one lucky reader!!! WOW!

You can find Seaside available with several of my sponsors --

*  Fat Quarter Shop    *    Pink Castle Fabrics    *    Skye Reve Fabrics *

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 

Enter to Win!

Here's how,

1. Simply add a comment to this post. (one entry) If you want, you can let me know what Riley Blake Fabric Collection you're most loving these days?
2. Follow the Riley Blake Blog or facebook page for a third entry. Just let me know that you do by making a separate comment here to record that entry. (one entry)
3. Followers of Maureen Cracknell Handmade get a second entry! Whether you follow me here, through your reader, or on Facebook, just let me know that you do by making a separate comment here to record that entry. (one entry)

That’s 3 possible entries! Enter now through Friday morning and I will announce the winner at the end of this post, here on the blog.

* Note * This giveaway is open to EVERYONE! If you're a "no reply" or an anonymous commenter, remember to include your email address in your comment so that I can contact you, should you win! 

As always, I thank you so much for stopping by!! 

And, I wish a very Happy 4th of July to all of my US readers today!

* * * * *  UPDATE  * * * * *

Thank you to all who entered and to Riley Blake Designs
for sponsoring this past weekend's Giveaway!! 

 

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *   

  From 1,020 entries, Mr. Random says the lucky winner of the Seaside Fat Quarter bundle is...

Comment #993 -- Jodi, who said...

Hand-tied! Of course! I'm just finishing a laminated drawstring quilt and my machine HATES it! Thank you!

Congratulations Jodi!!! I will be in touch shortly!

I have new Fabric Giveaway with Fabric Envy beginning this morning, and another with Art Gallery Fabrics on Monday when I share my first Fat Quarter Gang Project -- so be sure to stop back!! 

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

 

Sweet Summer Dreams : :

Today is the end of the school year here and in just a few hours our Summer will begin! I'm not sure yet how my sewing time will change, I am sure it will, and I plan to adapt as quickly as I can! Yes, I've already begun my sewing plans for Summer...

When Brenda asked me to put together a custom bundle for her shop, Pink Castle Fabrics, I knew it had to be Summery, beachy, vintage-y, yet very colorful.

I've been loving the color coral again this year, so that was an obvious first color choice, but once I thought of my favorite West Elm mugs it all came together quickly. The hardest part was making those cuts, I don't think a bundle of 20 fabrics is what Brenda had in mind. I asked my facebook friends for their opinions on naming this bundle, which was really wonderful. There were so many good ones! We finally decided on Sweet Summer Dreams -- a bundle of 12 fat quarters in soft grays, blues, corals, yellows, and aquas -- available right here! I hope you like it!!



One thing we really need for this Summer is a new beach/picnic blanket. Enter Seaside, the new collection by October Afternoon for Riley Blake. Aren't these prints adorable?! I think they'll be just perfect, combined with some yellow, chevron laminate, for our blanket and my next Design Team project!



Arriving with these fabrics was a bit of happy mail for me!



A little mention of my blog in the newest issue of Where Woman Create -- woohoo!



On Monday, we all agreed that we are ready for Summer days.







and for me...some Summer sewing!

Are you looking forward to any new Summer sewing or craft projects? I'd love to hear! ♥ Maureen 

p.s. Here's a peek a tomorrow's Fabric Giveaway!