WOW!!!!!! I have been going to sit and write this post all day – but it’s been such a crazy, hectic day – which of course is a good thing when this is your business….but…I just had to stop for a moment since I didn’t realize how late it was I am still working…it’s 9:51 p.m. on Monday evening…..I need to touch back on today’s tutorial before tomorrow’s session.

So, the FB LIVE this morning with the “STITCHER’S TRIO” Tutorial #1 was wonderful – a great attendance by so many of you – wonderful messages received after the tutorial….I am so excited to be able to share with you like this – and to have you participate in these projects with me.

I wanted to do the tutorial live for a couple of reason – but the main reason that I felt the live video was best was because of this…. so many of us are spending these days alone…many not able to see anyone – for this half hour or so this week….as we are all sharing in these projects, we are live….you are seeing me, I am seeing you all participate with your comments and message…we are a community sharing together and for that instant – we are not alone…and it remind us just that – that we all 1 big stitching family – and as the tutorial ends and you go back to your sewing room to work on your projects, think about that – and remember that well all be back together in the morning.

So, if you are seeing this post for the first time – and missed today’s tutorial…. you can still catch up by heading over to my Facebook page and checking it out. https://www.facebook.com/bill.locke.96

So….I hope that you’ve all had time to finish stitching your 2-1/2″ strips to your background/lining fabric.

I want to mention that once you have all 14 strips sewn down, you will have some area on both ends of the panel that will not have any of the 2-1/2″ strips.

Before moving any further in the project, I want you to hold the panel as if we were an apron – with the strips running vertically, and see if the 14 strips are going to be ok for the width of your apron. The extra on each side is a safeguard so that if you feel you need another stripe or 2 to make it a bit wider, this gives us that advantage to do that now.

If you do need to add a couple of strips, now is the time to add them before you move to the next step.

NEXT STEP!

With the 2-1/2″ strips all sewn in place and pressed open, the 2 outer strips are not stitched along one end. For these 2 strips, we want to stitch along that open edge, stitching the strips to the background fabric, using a scant or even 1/8″ stitch.

I want to give you a couple of more things to do but I think it would be best that we just leave it at this for this evening – and we can catch up again tomorrow at 11 a.m. where well continue to the next step – we are moving along quite quickly – with this panel almost complete – this is the base of all 3 projects – now it’s a matter of fun assembly – just want and see how much fun we are going to have!

Wishing you all a good night – we’ll see each other tomorrow in virtual class!

Happy Stitching!

Tomorrow, Monday, March 30th will be the first installment of our “STITCHER’S TRIO” Project.

The first of 5 fun stitching days!!!!!!

I want to remind everyone that tomorrow at 1:00 p.m. EST (Montreal/New York), (10:00 Pacific, 2:30 Newfoundland), I will be doing a Facebook Live so discuss the beginning of the project and the first steps to mover forward in our fun creative projects.

Meanwhile, I wanted to take a few moments to give you the Material list of what you need to gather for the project; keeping in mind that we will be completing all 3 of the projects in this pattern; the apron, the travel project portfolio and the pin cushion.

The Material list will be giving the day prior to my next Facebook Live so that will have the necessary items ready for the next step in your project.

NOTE: If there is something that is being used that you do not have or cannot find; you can order any of the projects from the Studio.

A reminder that we are working out way though the complete STITCHER’S TRIO Pattern over the next 5 days. It may be possible that some of you may not have all of the materials that I have used for the completion of the projects, but that’s ok. We will do what we can each day; and the FB Live Videos will be uploaded and published each day to Facebook and YouTube so that you can go back and use them has a reference to completely any portion of the project that does not get completed during this week.

Of course, I am always just a message away to answer any of your questions and to provide direction.

MATERIAL LIST – Day 1

14 assorted/Coordinated 2-1/2″ strips + 2 yards of a coordinating fabric

* This is what we’ll be using all week to complete all 3 of our projects.

You will need your 24-1/2 ruler or other long ruler

Quilting pen/pencil

Pins

I’m going to be stitching along and making my STITCHER’S TRIO in the KEEPING YOU IN STITCHES JELLY ROLL!!!

I’ve broken the projects this week into 5 sessions because I want to have smaller portions of homework for each day – so that everyone can work at a good comfort level; whether beginner, intermediate or advanced….and together we can all work on these fun projects and complete them by the end of the week.

I hope that you’ll join in on the fun….if you are working this week; it is because you are a part of our essential team and for that I do want to take this moment to say a heart felt thank you!

Beginning on Monday, March 30, 2020, I am offering a free, fun stitch-a-long featuring my pattern the “STITCHER’S TRIO”, that will offer 3 fun projects:

A STITCHER’S APRON
Travel Stitching Portfolio
Pin Cushion

I’ll be sharing FB LIVE videos to share tutorials as we work though the projects…..

WHEN:
Monday, March 30th to Friday, April 3rd.
LIVE VIDEO TIME: 1:00 p.m. EST (Montreal/New York)
(10:00 Pacific, 2:30 Newfoundland)

It’s a 5-day stitching party – let’s all have fun and create a gift for ourselves – what a wonderful way to share in some stitchy
isolation time.

NOTE: The pattern is not needed for these tutorials as I’ll be sharing everything with you as we work our way though the project. But, if Patterns are available for $12.00 should there be someone who would like to have a printed version.

FOR SHOPS!!!!
If you’d like to carry BILL LOCKE DESIGNS Patterns in your shop, please message me: billlocke@billlockedesigns.com

As an ISLAND BATIK AMBASSADOR, this month’s challenge was to creative a project under the topic if “VINTAGE REIMAGINED”.

As a traditional quilter, I have always loved the idea of trying to use my Island Batiks in a traditional way to bring a kind of new look to traditional projects. With “VINTAGE REIMAGINED”, it was the perfect time to do that once again.

When I first sat to think about what I’d like to do for this month’s challenge, my first idea was to center the project around a star. I thought about doing something along the lines of a crazy quilt; I considered another Quilt-As-You-Go method quilt….but in the end, the star won.

I would like to mention that the beautiful fabrics used in this project were given to me by Island Batik; batting provided by Hobbs Batting.

A couple of years ago I designed a fun star themed table topper with 4 large star blocks with sashings and a border…. I entitled that project “DINING WITH THE STARS”. For this months ISLAND BATIK AMBASSADOR project, I’ve taken one of those start blocks; changed it up a little – and creating a single star table topper entitled “A STAR IS BORN”. Measuring 36″ x 36″, it is the prefect size to fit the 36×36 required size for this month’s challenge.

The quilt top is one that you can make up in a couple of hours…perfect for when you want to start/finish/enjoy a project the same day.

OH….and I know it’s March and Spring…. but for this project, I’ve decided that I’m going to get a head start on another fun Fall display project for my home.

“A STAR IS BORN” started with a center 8″ block……and there are 8 blocks surrounding that center block that also measure 8″. 4 of those blocks were snowballed with 4-1/4″ squares to coordinate with the center.

The snowballed squares became the points of my star.

Stitching the 9 blocks together to make the center star is always fun. I love stars in my projects; and this one is no different. Working with the larger pieces also makes this project go together much faster.

When stitching together the star block, I stitch the blocks together in 3 rows, then join the rows. The seams in the first and third rows are pressed towards the outside blocks; the seams in the center row are pressed towards the center. Pressing the seams alternately allows you to really lock those seams when stitching your rows together.

Note: When pinning your rows together, match seams well…and pin just before the seam so that your needle will arrive at the pin before the seam. The pin will anchor the seams as the foot moves towards the seam.

With the center star block complete, I decided to add a smaller sashing, using 2-1/2″ width strips and corner squares. Corner squares are cut from the same fabric as my outer border.

I finished with a 5″ border – but of course, to make this project a little bigger, simpler make the sashing and border wider.

This project will be completed using my HOBBS Heirloom Cotton Batting; the Crib Size format. Hobbs batting is the prefect batting for my projects. I love the feel of my project once it has been quited; the handfeel is just the weight that I love to achieve.

With the quilt top complete, it is now getting ready to travel to Western Canada where my long arm quilter will work her magic to breathe even more life into this project; then it’s back to Montreal so that I can add the binding and put it aside in anticipation of finding a special spot to display it in my home this Fall.

Please take time to visit the Island Batik and discover more about what’s happening in their batik world; check out the wonderful creations by so many wonderful Island Batik Ambassadors; and get inspired by all of the fun designs and colors brought to us by Island Batik.

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