My 2018 Quilt Auction to Benefit Alex's Lemonade Stand is Live!

It's that time of year again, quilt auction time! I've been hosting a quilt auction on eBay every other September since 2014 to raise awareness and funds to fight childhood cancer. I've got 12 quilts up for auction this year & 100% of the proceeds will be donated to Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation.

The kind folks at Soak Wash have donated travel size bottles of Soak that will be included with each quilt. 

This is Nathan's first appearance on my blog! Our son was born on Thursday, August 9, 2018. He's supervising this year's auction and running the snuggle security operation for the quilts. :-)

They're being kept very warm and snuggled before they head off to their new homes!

Here's the quilts that we have up for auction this year: August Stars, lap-size, in Sugar Bloom by Verna Mosquera for Free Spirit Fabrics.

Comet in youth-size featuring Coney Island by Fig Tree & Co. for Moda Fabrics. The quilting by Teresa Silva is so eye catching on this one.

Disco quilt baby-size in Confetti Dots by Dear Stella.

This is Giggles baby quilt in Happy Go Lucky by Bonnie & Camille for Moda Fabrics.

This is the Glazed Donuts quilt featured on the cover of the pattern in Jasmine by Valori Wells for Robert Kaufman Fabrics.

This lap-size Lotus quilt was made with our wedding colors for the celebration of 30 years of Kona Cotton for Robert Kaufman Fabrics.

This is the pattern cover quilt for the Sprinkles baby quilt in Sew & Sew by Chloe's Closet for Moda Fabrics.

This lap-size Night Sky quilt has feature fabric in Tigerfish by McKenna Ryan for Robert Kaufman Fabrics & background + binding fabric is Artisan Batiks: Prisma Dyes by Lunn Studios for Robert Kaufman Fabrics.

This Science Fair quilt is one of the lap-size cover quilts featured on the pattern cover. The fabric is Honey Honey by Kate Spain for Moda Fabrics. The quilting by Angela Walters is stunning on this one.

This lap-size Snack Time quilt features Artisan Batiks: Color Source 2 by Lunn Studios for Robert Kaufman Fabrics.

This lap-size Spectrum quilt is featured in the book Rock Solid, Complied by Karen M. Burns.

This Stereo quilt, as seen on the pattern cover, is lap-size and features Color Theory by Vanessa Christenson of V and Co. for Moda Fabrics.

If you've ever wanted to own a quilt pieced by me, this is the only way to get one! I don't sell my quilts, but when I do it's in a charity auction for Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation. This is also a great opportunity to own a quilt quilted by Angela Walters or Teresa Silva, two incredibly talented quilters.

Additional details about each quilt are included in the auction listings. We'll do our best to answer any quilt or auction questions this weekend before the auctions end Sunday evening, between 5pm & 5:22pm Pacific time.

Please feel free to share this post and the links to the auctions on social media. I appreciate your help to spread the word, raise some funds for Alex's Lemonade & some awareness about childhood cancer!

Happy bidding! Thank you for helping to fight childhood cancer!

© Blog post written by Julie Herman
For more information visit http://www.jaybirdquilts.com/

A New Jaybird Quilts Pattern: Trail Mix!

Meet Trail Mix! This is my spin on a traditional Snail's Trails quilt design using 60-degree triangles (and no Y seams!). You can get the PDF quilt pattern here.

Quilt Details  Fabric is Whisper by Dear Stella Pattern - Trail Mix, JBQ 163 Designed by me  Quilted by Angela Walters Started on 3/9/16  Finished on 3/19/16 Quilt measures - 56" x 72"

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This was one of the easiest and fastest pattern cover photo shoots ever. We found this perfect wall to photograph the cover of the pattern. Luckily this one parking spot was open so I could get the right angle. It was the only open spot in the entire lot! This photo really shows off Angela's quilting.

 

I love cutting stripes on the bias for binding!

Here you can see the pieced backing I made with my quilt label.

Here's a detail shot of Angela's quilting in the smallest triangles in the quilt. Trail Mix is made using my Super Sidekick ruler (click the link to see a video tutorial of how to use the ruler) and there are no Y seams!

The Trail Mix pattern is printed in full color, includes templates and comes in 5 sizes (baby, lap, twin, full, queen). Here is the baby (right) and the lap (left) together.

This Trail Mix that I made from Angela's Fragmental fabric is a perfect match for my living room!

Quilt Details  Fabric is Fragmental by Angela Walters for Robert Kaufman Pattern - Trail Mix, JBQ 163 Designed by me  Quilted by Angela Walters Started on 1/19/16  Finished on 3/16/16 Quilt measures - 42" x 48"

Here's the pieced back. I used up a bunch of leftover scraps from the front in my pieced label strip.

Here's a Trail Mix quilt in True Colors by Tula Pink. This quilt top was pieced by Leslie Meltzer and quilted by Teresa Silva.

Trail Mix will be shipping to local quilt shops soon. Be sure to share photos of your Trail Mix quilts on social media using #TrailMixQuilt so we can share in the fun!

© Blog post written by Julie Herman
For more information visit http://www.jaybirdquilts.com/

Picnic Placemat Tutorial

I was inspired by the new Kiss the Cook fabric line for Dear Stella to make a BBQ themed project to use on my patio this summer.

Picnic Placemat - Finished size 12" x 21"

1. Placemat designed, pieced & quilted by Julie Herman 

2. Aurifil 50wt thread used for piecing & quilting. 

3. Batting is Warm Blend from The Warm Company. 

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Supplies for TWO placemats:

6 assorted Fat Eighths
3/8 Yard of binding
2/3 Yard of backing
2/3 Yard of Slicker by Sew Lazy (Optional)
Spray Baste (optional)
Batting
Ruler - Hex N More, Sidekick or Super Sidekick


Directions to make ONE placemat

1. Cut a 3 1/2" x 21" strip of fabric from each Fat Eighth.

2. Sub-cut strips into 3 1/2" triangles. You can use the Hex N More, Sidekick or Super Sidekick. You need 40 triangles for each placemat.

You'll need 40 triangles for each placemat. You can choose to be scrappy or plan out your layout. If you want to follow the layout I used, cut the number of triangles from each fabric as shown below.

2. Arrange 40 triangles as shown.

3. Sew triangles into pairs. Align notched corners when possible. If you're having trouble aligning the triangles you can cut all the tips off, as seen here.

4. Sew pairs of triangles into complete rows.

5. Sew rows together to complete the top of the placemat.

6. Cut a rectangle of backing fabric - 15" x 24"

OPTIONAL
Add "Slicker" to create a laminated fabric backing for the placemat. I like to do this for placemats because when you have kids, or messy friends, around you can flip the placemat over and cleanup is super easy on the laminated side! (Follow manufacturers directions, this is just a sample below.)

7. Cut Slicker to the same size as the backing fabric for the placemat.

8. Peel slicker off paper and place sticky side down on fabric. Avoid getting any threads or dust between the slicker and fabric.

9. It will look something like this once the Slicker as been added to the backing fabric:

10. Place the paper shiny side down on top of the slicker. Use a dry iron on medium heat and press for about 8-10 seconds in each area. You don't need to use much pressure.

11. This is the result.

12. Layer the backing fabric, batting and placemat top. If you laminated your backing fabric it is best to spray baste them to avoid making holes in the slicker. If you didn't laminate your backing fabric you can pin the 3 layers together.

13. Quit as desired. I quilted straight lines 1/4" from each seam with a walking foot.

14. Add binding. I used 2 1/4" strips. You can find my binding tutorial here.

15. Wrap binding to the back and clip in place with Wonder Clips. Hand sew the binding in place to finish the placemat.

Enjoy!

Share your placemats with us on social media using #PicnicPlacemats. We can't wait to see what you come up with for yours!

© 2015-2022 Julie R. Herman. All rights reserved.  No part of this tutorial or pattern may be reproduced without written consent of Jaybird Quilts. Items from this pattern may not be produced for commercial resale.  For more information visit http://www.jaybirdquilts.com/