Welcome to Day 1 of the Favorite Flavors Quilt SAL! Thanks for joining in. I'm so excited that you're here! You've probably already heard that this quilt along is for just one week since it's a quick and easy quilt to make. So let's jump right in! Today we will be cutting out our fabric.
We already talked about the SAL schedule, how to get the pattern, the parts of the quilt, the fabric pull, color choices, and a link to the coloring pages. If you missed it, read Getting Started, grab your Favorite Flavors Quilt pattern & some fabric, and Sign Up to join in on the stitching fun. When you sign up, you'll get email reminders & links to our live Zoom meetings, and the chance to win prizes!
Prizes
To be eligible to win the first prize, post a picture of your fabric pull and coloring page (if you did one) and/or your cut fabric on facebook or instagram. In the comments, tell us a little about yourself and your quilt - how many lollipops your quilt will have and in what size, the fabrics you've chosen, and what lollipop flavors you're making. Be sure that your profile is public so that I can see your post. Your post needs to include the hashtag #favoriteflavorsquiltsal to be entered to win and needs to be posted by midnight PST on April 25, 2023. The lucky winner will be selected at random on April 26th. They will get this stash building fat quarter bundle with 15 colors from Art Gallery Fabrics and they get to choose a Snapdragon quilt pattern! I can't wait to see your fabric pulls and lollipop flavors!
What I'll be Making
Here are the fabrics I've chosen for my SAL quilt which will have four of the smaller sized lollipops.
I really wanted a fruit fabric and was so happy when I found More Pie - Fruit Mix in Pink by Dana Willard for Figo Fabrics at my local quilt shop, Sew Yeah Quilting. I love that there are so many fruits and that it's so playful. I was tempted to make lollipops out of this fabric because I already used solids for the lollipops in the three sample quilts I made but ultimately decided to use it for the border.
I love how in the selvage of most fabrics there are circles containing the colors that are used in the fabric. I like to look at these dots because our eyes can make colors appear differently when they're against another color. But when isolated against black and white, they are easier to see as they truly are. This helps me decide if I like the coordinating fabrics I've chosen. The four solids in the photo below are going to be my lollipop flavors - peach, banana, berry, and blue cherry to match the print! The yellow I'm using is called Pineapple, a Pure Solid by Art Gallery Fabrics. It has quite a bit of an orange tint to it so I like it with the print. I didn't have a solid pink in my stash that I loved with the fruit print. The pink in the print is a peachy pink, not a pure pink and a pure pink just looked too syrupy next to it. So I went for orange hues and a deep blue called Heart of the Ocean, also a Pure Solid by Art Gallery.
Since I'll be using solids for the lollipop candies, I really wanted a white on white print for the background. There is a lot of background in this quilt so instead of having just one white on white, I decided to make the background more interesting by piecing a bunch of my white on white scraps together to make yardage. I rarely make a scrappy quilt but I love the way they look so I can't wait to see how this turns out!
My finished quilt will look something like this mockup but with a scrappy background and the quilting done. Digital mockups just don't do quilts justice, they lack the personality and texture of a real quilt! If I've got enough fabric, I may make my border a little wider to really show off the print and I'm thinking about quilting little flowers all over the background to match the flower in the print. I can't wait to put this together. It reminds me of summer :)
My dear friend Ashley is kindly editing this SAL (she's the one with experience in publishing and journalism) and she just sent me a sneak peak of the fabrics that she's using! Do we have some Tula Pink fans in the house? I love how bright and unique Tula's fabrics are so I am thrilled that Ashley's using some Tula in her Favorite Flavors quilt. Ashley is also planning to use Tula Pink's True Colors Starling Hexy Rainbow for the border. I can't wait to see this come together!
Before We Cut
Before we get into cutting, there are a few tips and suggestions:
This pattern is much easier to use if you take a pen or highlighter and circle or highlight the measurements you'll be using. If you're making the smaller sized lollipops, make sure to use the measurements in parenthesis throughout the pattern.
Starched fabric stretches less. This is really helpful when stitching the lollipop curves. Take a few minutes to spray on some starch before ironing your lollipop flavor and background fabrics. I like to use plain old heavy duty spray starch. I've also seen amazing results with liquid starch. Starch will make smoother, flatter, more accurate curves, I promise it is worth it.
Starting with a fresh rotary blade makes the smoothest and most accurate cuts. A sharp blade also results in a more pleasant experience with less cursing.
If you feel confident, you can stack 2 fabrics at a time and cut through them but it is totally okay to cut one at a time. Since the curve templates call for placing on a fold, you're already cutting those through two layers.
There are two sets of templates, one set is for the smaller lollipops, the other set is for the larger lollipops so make sure you're using the right set. If your pattern is the PDF download version, when you print the template pages, be sure the scale is set to 100% and check the 1" block with a ruler.
I like to use paper templates. If you're with me there, find some paper scissors, cut them out, and let's go! However, there are other great ways to use templates. One alternative is to use freezer paper. Do this by tracing each paper template onto the paper side of the freezer paper. Then write the letter of each template on the new freezer paper template and write fold along the edges that go on the fold. Then cut out your new freezer paper templates along your traced lines. The benefit of using freezer paper is you can iron it onto your fabric then cut without the freezer paper template shifting. Then peel it off and use it again and again. If it wears out, just make a new one! A second alternative to paper templates is to use something firmer like a cardboard cereal box or template plastic. Trace each paper template onto the template material, write the letter of each template on it, and write fold along the edges that go on the fold. Then cut the new templates out along your traced lines. The printed side of cereal boxes can be a bit slippery so I like to use that side up. Fat Quarter Shop sells template plastic that works great to make reusable templates.
Rotary Cutting the Lollipops
Let's start with template A and the lollipop flavored fabrics to make the lollipop candy parts.
Make sure you've got template A before cutting out any lollipop candies. Use template B on the background fabric not on your lollipop flavored fabrics.
I like to match up the cut edge of the fabric to the bottom of template A if the fabric edge and the folded edge are square. If they're not, I'll make my fold by lightly finger pressing it then cut the bottom edge of the fabric so that it is square to the fold.
Hold or lightly glue the template in place. Use pressure from the fingertips of your left hand (or right hand if you're left handed) and crawl them along the curve while you cut it out. Lefties can also use this layout but cut from left to right instead of right to left. Take your time here, enjoy the process, there's no need to rush.
Next, cut out the center candy stripe and a stick for each of your lollipops. Make sure to use the larger measurements for the larger lollipops and the smaller measurements that are in parenthesis for the smaller lollipops.
Cutting out the Binding
Refer to your pattern to know how many binding strips you'll need. That info is in the last column of the "Cut Fabrics" chart. I like to cut mine 2 1/2" wide across the width of fabric. I'm cutting mine out now with the rest of my fabric but most of the time I like to wait until my whole quilt is pieced and quilted to pick out my binding fabric. Which way do you like to do it?
Cutting out the Border
This pattern has a very simple border and you've probably already noticed there are two ways to do it, pieced (cut along the width of the fabric & pieced together) and continuous (cut along the length of fabric).
The benefit of a pieced border is that it typically requires much less fabric. The downside is that you do have to piece the borders to make them long enough. If you're going this route, cut the specified number of border strips as specified in the "Cut Fabrics" chart. Later we will piece them and trim them to length. Since I'm using a print, I'm going to match up the pattern so it doesn't look pieced & I'll cover my trick for this in the last blog post. I also got a quarter yard extra of that fruity More Pie fabric when I bought it. Turns out that I have enough to cut 5" strips! So I'm trying out a wider border than the pattern says. (I've always been one to tweak patterns and apparently I can't even follow my own instructions to the T!)
If you splurged or were lucky enough to have a long piece of fabric in your stash, cut your borders along the length of fabric according to the dimensions in the "Cut Fabrics" chart in the pattern. The upside of this is that you end up with some spare fabric. This is perfect for making binding and since you've got a long piece, you'll probably need to cut less binding strips. If you want something different for binding, then you've got a nice piece of fabric for your stash!
Background Fabric
The most important step when cutting out the background fabric is to cut the biggest (longest) pieces first, then the next biggest, etc. There are two spots to look for the background measurements in the pattern and you need them both. 1. Under the heading "Background Fabric" 2. In the "Cut Fabrics" chart. The background measurements are in two places because each lollipop block uses background and some layouts use additional background fabric strips.
I've got mine all cut out! How did you do? It was a little strange cutting my background pieces out of my white on white scraps all sewn together because of all the seams but I'm really looking forward to seeing how it comes together!
This completes cutting out the fabric and is a good place to take a progress shot and post it. Definitely don't want to forget that because you know we all want to see your photos and hear all about your version! Plus, I want to give you a prize!
Congrats making it to the end of Day 1 with me! I hope you enjoyed holding and shaping your beautiful fabrics today. Come back tomorrow with a smile, maybe a lollipop for a treat (does hazelnut creamer in my coffee count?!?), and your rotary cutter because we will be cutting curves into the background and candy center stripe. Tomorrow we will also be doing our first of two Zoom meetings. I decided to host Zoom meetings with the SAL so you can ask questions in person and I would LOVE to do a little show and tell so we can all see what you're making. If you can't make it, don't worry, I will record it so you can watch later and if you email me your questions and/or your show & tell tonight, I'll do my best to cover them in the zoom meeting in the morning. Send it to Jen.Snapdragon.Quilting@gmail.com. I I can't wait to see you tomorrow. Have a great night and Happy Quilting!
