Class planning for 2020

For many people November and December are times for winding down, preparing for holidays and Christmas, spending time with family and relaxing.  But this is not the case for travelling textile teachers.  This time of year is when class proposals are due for both Houston Quilt Festival and Birmingham Festival of Quilts.  So I, like many of my peers are busily putting together new classes, making samples and preparing step-outs and handouts.  I have just gone through this process for a London show I am teaching at in March, so thought I would share one of the projects I have made for that program.

This project is made entirely on an overlocker (serger) and the technique is very adaptable to lots of different looks.  I made a quilt as you go messanger bag from charm squares and six strips from a jelly roll.

Here is the project photo

I used black and white fabrics from Byndees Precuts.  These are from the 10 inch charm squares which I cut into half square triangles.  I then found a heap of offcuts of wadding and cut them into ten inch squares and then half square triangles.  I tried to keep a mix of light and dark and through in two squares of the hot pink for some lift.

Then I made sandwiches of the wadding and two fabric triangles.

Then it was off to the overlocker.  I took two triangle sandwiches, one light and one dark and stitched them together along the long side.  Repeat this until all the triangles are back to squares.

These squares are then joined up to sets of two and formed into the front, back and lip of the bag.  I then joined two sets of three strips from the jelly roll to make two long, long strips.  Next, I used the two fabric strips on either side of wadding cut to the same size and stitched the sides of the bag together.

All quilt as you go and made in a couple of hours.

If you would like to make this in a class, you can see me in London or organise for the class to be run with your group or guild.