Charity Quilt WIP

I did a little sewing on the charity quilt squares that I cut with the Accu-Quilt cutting system at my bee's sew-in last week.  My theme fabric was the patchwork print.  I also cut a few coordinating squares.

I decided to make a top similar to the ones several other members of the bee were making at our sew-in.  They basically are 5-inch patches of different lengths.  The ones from guild kits had white sashing strips, and also put some of the white strips in between the patches.  I decided to use the white sashing between the rows only.

I have several boxes of strips left over from other projects, so it was easy to chain-piece onto the strips that I had.

I have many, many more of the the multi-colored patchwork squares, so this quilt top will be growing.

I also have a new project that I did not want...a quilt repair job.  More on this later.  All I can say is...

"My Grand-dog ate my Handwork!"

Charity Quilt Sew-In

For several years, the January meeting of The Whacky Ladies quilt bee has been devoted to making charity quilts for Capital Quilters Guild in Raleigh, NC.  Sometimes we bring our own UFO's or other projects to work on.  The easiest way is to pick up some kits prepared by the various charity groups of the guild.  The quilts go to neonatal units of local hospitals, rest homes, a shelter for abused children, and other worthy charities.

Thursday was the day to meet at our member Donna's shop, Whatever's Quilted, in its new location at Capital Plaza, 11829 Retail Dr, Wake Forest, NC. 

Donna is not only a long arm quilter, but sells HandiQuilter machines and accessories, 108" wide backing fabric in a rainbow of colors, and lots of other threads, gadgets and notions for quilters.

I arrived late due to a dentist appointment in the morning.  I brought my some of my own fabric to cut in an attempt to do some stash-busting.  Donna offered to show my how to cut five-inch squares on the Accu-Cut die-cut machine.

First, I needed to iron the fabric.  Another new gadget:  the Elna steam-press!

This was very easy to use.  Just lay your fabric across the table, lower the top, and wait until it chirps!

After my fabric was nicely steam-pressed,  Donna showed me how to use the 5" die cutter on the big Accu-Quilt Studio Cutter machine.

This model is larger and more heavy-duty than the smaller model machine.  It can cut through ten layers.  I ended up with hundreds of five-inch squares, perfectly cut in just minutes!

Donna sells both the steam press and the Accu-Quilt machines.

The other ladies had a head start on me, and were almost finished with several tops by the time I finished cutting my squares.  Here are Marilyn, Carolyn, and Lori working on their projects in the back of the shop.

Marilyn's kit featured a farm animal print in a streak-of-lightning pattern.

Donna worked on one of the machines she sells at the front of the shop, so she could keep an eye on things.

Lori was working on a stripy quilt with white sashing.

Lori also finished this Superman panel quilt top, which only needed borders to finish.

Donna was working on this scrappy strip quilt.  She used some of the leftover pieces from the fabric I cut in between the strawberry and floral fabrics.

I didn't sew anything in the shop, but have lots of cut squares to work on at home.  

We each brought something to contribute for lunch.  Mine were salads from Whole Foods, which I purchased on the way to Wake Forest from the dentist office.  It was a wonderful day with good friends, food, and fabrics!