THERE'S ONLY ONE WEEK

LEFT TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF

OUR SALE

As of May 01, 2013. Quilt Templates and More will have been

operating as an online store for 18 months. 

Thank you for all your support and encouragement!

Our opening date was November 01, 2011. It seems like only

yesterday when we launched the store site! How time flies when

you're having fun!

An event like this deserves a celebration!

What better way than to have an 18 month

celebratory storewide

SALE

All our Quilt Pattern Templates! All our Homemade Quilts!

Everything in the store is on sale to celebrate this

milestone!

10% OFF

EVERYTHING

To take advantage of this offer enter Coupon Code # 18201310

when placing an order! Place as many orders as you want, this

is an unlimited offer. The only restraint is the TIME LIMIT! This

offer is valid from May 01 to May 22, 2013! THREE FULL

WEEKS!

Visit the store at quilttemplatesandmore.com

As of May 01, 2013. Quilt Templates and More will have been

operating as an online store for 18 months. 

Thank you for all your support and encouragement!

Our opening date was November 01, 2011. It seems like only

yesterday when we launched the store site! How time flies when

you're having fun!

An event like this deserves a celebration!

What better way than to have an 18 month

celebratory storewide

SALE

All our Quilt Pattern Templates! All our Homemade Quilts!

Everything in the store is on sale to celebrate this

milestone!

10% OFF

EVERYTHING

To take advantage of this offer enter Coupon Code # 18201310

when placing an order! Place as many orders as you want, this

is an unlimited offer. The only restraint is the TIME LIMIT! This

offer is valid from May 01 to May 22, 2013! THREE FULL

WEEKS!

Visit the store at quilttemplatesandmore.com

The Square Up Tool Template

This is the most basic and yet the most needed of the Basic Quilting Templates that we offer in our website store. It is the Square Up Tool. Made from 1/8th inch acrylic it is sturdy and durable and can make cutting your squares and squaring up your blocks a much quicker and more enjoyable experience.

It's a matter of simply lining up the center of the square or block on the centering lines; there are diagonal and up and down lines. Then using your rotary cutter you with the fabric on your cuting board, just run around the edges of the Square up Tool and the excess fabric is trimmed, and you have a perfectly square piece of fabric with a built in 1/4 inch seam allowance.

Mutiple squares or blocks can be trimmed at the same time, by stacking them, because the acrylic Square Up Tool is solid and easy to hold in place as you trim with the rotary cutter.

Using this remarkable tool you can also square up half square or quarter square triangle shaped blocks by using the diagonal lines, and rectangular blocks using the up and down lines.

All your pieces will be exactly the same size every time you trim using the Square Up Tool, and you will save precious time because you will be able to cut and trim all your blocks and squares so much faster.

The Square Up Tool comes in a variety of sizes from 1 inch to 12-1/2 inches, and several sets of different sizes are also available.

This is a fun and easy way to work with your quilting fabrics to get perfectly similar blocks and squares! Why not try it right away!

A few times last year I talked about several quilting projects that Bev had on hold. The tops were all sewn together, and they were ready to be pinned to the quilting frame to be quilted. (Today's blog is a recap of the quilt tying party that Bev and her friends had last spring.)

I even named the quilt tops as part of Bev's UFO's in my blog of January 09, 2012. The quilt top for the wedding quilt, {shown above(a gift from all the women who work with Bev, to one of their co-worker's daughter)}, was pinned to the quilting frame one night, but not here at our home.

           Pinning the back to the frame that night!                       Close up of Bev's quilting stand

Bev took the quilting stands and the quilt frame boards to work with her one morning, and set up the quilt frame in the Waiting Room of the Medical Clinic where she works. Bev had purchased the fabric for the quilt back and the batting since I last blogged about this quilt earlier last year. (Bev and her co-workers all gave money to purchase the materials needed, then Bev made the quilt top)

       The quilt top, batting and quilt back pinned to the frame and a close up of the quilt.

They decided as a group that they wanted to tie the quilt so that everyone could do a little work on it. Seing with the yarn can take a while for one person, hence the idea of quilting bees, so that many hands make light work. They are tying the quilt with a "Hidden Tie", if you look closely at the closeup above you can see the tie in the middle of the small green squares. (You might need a magnifying glass). They tied useing yellow yarn. It looks really pretty and neat.  

The gang at work. There were seven of them there tying, and I don't think it took anywhere near as long as Bev had thought it would. They ordered in pizza and made a party of the quilt-in.

A few days later, Bev bound the quilt with the strips shown below on top of the yellow backing fabric. It was a very beautiful quilt when finished.

Since then Bev has tied a few more quilts here at home on the quilting frames, following are pictures of two of them.

We had a wonderful time on the weekend as our son Steven and his best friend Payton were married on Saturday. It was a beautiful day, and the weather cooperated fabulously. It was a memorable wedding!

They received many gifts, but I really liked the quilts that they were given. Quilts are a long lasting token of love and caring, and they make a very practical gift.

The quilt pictured above is a beautiful quilt that Stevens Grandmother, My wife Bev's mother, started a few years ago, before she was affected by dementia. Bev found the completed squares in her mother's sewing room when they were cleaning out the house after her parents moved into a home a couple of years ago. Bev sewed the blocks together and added the borders, to finish the quilt top last year. Her mother passed away last fall, and Bev decided to finish the quilt and give it to our son Steven as a gift from his Grandmother. Bev had the quilt quilted this spring. I'm sure Steven and Payton will always cherish it.

This blue and yellow quilt will also become an heirloom for the lucky couple. It was made by Payton's grandmother on her fathers side. It has fabulous shades of blue and yellow, which were the brides wedding colors. I don't know much about the quilt or the quilter, but I do know it is beautiful!

The third quilt they received was made by one of Payton's paternal great-grandmothers. It will also be a treasured quilt for many years. Rich red and black fabrics make this a beautiful quilt that I'm sure will be a family favorite. Once again I don't know much about the quilt or the quilter, but I do know that I like this quilt too!

What a lucky couple to be starting their life together with such wonderful quilts all made with love. Such talented ladies on both sides of their families. We wish the couple all the best in life.

The above picture is the computer graphic of the Start Quilting Template Set, one of the Basic Quilting Templates found in our store. Some time ago I posted a blog about the fun one can have using this simple acrylic template set. Here it is again in part.

The Start Quilting Template Set is another in the collection of Basic Quilting Templates that Quilt Templates and More offer in the website store. Observe all the beautiful square and triangle pieces that make up each of the blocks on the picture to the left. Squares and triangles are probably about the most basic shapes that quilters routinely cut out in order to piece together the blocks that make up the majority of the quilt tops that they sew together.

Even my first two quilting projects, that I finished, were examples of these common quilt block shapes, squares and triangles.

The Start Quilting Template Set would be a very handy and versatile tool to have at your disposal in the sewing room. This set of very long lasting, easy to use, yet tough acrylic templates, would speed up and make much more enjoyable the cutting of all the squares and triangles needed for your quilt tops.

Whether a beginner or a seasoned pro you will find these templates easy to use in conjunction with a rotary cutter. Several squares and triangles can be cut out of many layers of fabric at the same time without any effort. The 1/8th inch thick templates are easy to hold in place and the rotary cutter just glides around them. 

Quilts like the one below Bev made some time ago, and which is shown in the slide show at the top of each of the websites pages, become much easier to make.

The squares and triangles are all uniform and exactly the same size when you cut them from the fabric using the templates in the Start Quilting Template set. The 1/4 inch seam allowance is already incorporated into the templates helping  make the sewing easier and more accurate and helping to make the finished squares and triangles on the quilt top all end up the same size.

Think of the possibilities and the time and effort that could be saved if you used quilt pattern templates in all you quilting projects.

The Start Quilting Template Set consists of 4 individual templates, 2 squares (1 large and 1 small), and 2 half squares (1 small and 1 large). There are two set sizes available, one for a finished block size of 6 inches, and the other for a finished block size of 8 inches. With the 6 inch block the small squares would be 1-1/2 inches and with the 8 inch block they would be 2 inches.

Actually, when using these Start Quilting Template sets there is no limit to the number of block patterns that are available. The set, however, comes with instructions for creating the nine block patterns shown in theStart Quilting Template Set picture at the start of this blog. You decide on the size you want!

The above picture is an heirloom cross stitch quilt that Bev's mother made many years ago. It was all hand stitched on her quilting frames, and is an example of her love and dedication to the "art" of quilting.

I have been thinking lately about all the quilts Bev has been making, and about the fact she gives many of them to family and friends. I often wonder what becomes of them and how much they are used. I often wonder if they really like them.

The following is an old blog I wrote a while back that addresses these recurring thoughts!

Jason Gabak wrote a news article on the auburnpub.com website about a discussion held at the Schweinfurth Memorial Art Center's 31st annual  Quilts=Arts=Quilts show. I found it to be an interesting and informative read.

Jason wrote: "guests were treated to a discussion hosted by Genie Barnes titled "Quilts: What's Their Worth?" I thought this should be interesting as he continued: "Barnes talked about about several different aspects of what determines the value of a quilt."

I was intrigued as Jason next wrote: "Barnes said there is sentimental value as many pieces are handed down in a family and have stories and memories attached to them. Pieces have monetary value as well as educational value for other quilters and those that simply appreciate the art form."

I believe that quilting truly is an Art form that has to be learned and mastered over years of dedicated work and practice.For generations my wife Beverly, her mother and her grandmother have been practising the "art". Between them they have created countless hand sewn quilts of all kinds and sizes, using many different quilting templates. Many of these quilts are cherished and have become heirlooms to the family members who now possess them.

Do these quilts, lovingly and painstakingly hand sewn, have sentimental value? Of course they do! These dedicated women spent hours and hours creating these beautiful quilts usually simply because they loved to practice the "art", and they could see a need for a quilt. They have created wedding quilts for children and grandchildren that displayed the brides wedding colors magnificently. Beverly and I received such a quilt on our wedding day, a Star quilt. Beverly has made quilts for all five of our daughter's weddings and will make one when our son gets married.

The birth of a baby always brings the gift of a baby quilt. Generations of babies in Beverly's family have enjoyed them. In fact we have baby quilts stored and ready to go when and if a baby is born to a family member or a friend.

These wonderful women have created hand sewn quilts for many other occassions and often they have made them for no reason whatsoever, except that they had the fabric or fabric scraps that needed to be used and they needed a project. These have also been given to others "just because".

Cherished and appreciated these quilts have been held on to and used often by those who have received them. They will be handed down from generation to generation.

When we were in Kalispell Bev actually managed to get five quilts quilted on the long arm quilter at Glacier Quilts. I showed the three queen sized quilts she worked on in my last blog, and today I am show casing the other two quilts that were quilted.

Above is a beautiful quilt with lovely fabric colors. The back of the quilt is as nice as the top. 

The fifth quilt Bev quilted is the quilt that I worked on last year! I'm no quilter, so she quilted it for me.

I really like the colors of the fabrics in this quilt, of course it's a jelly roll style quilt but I cut 2-1/2 inch strips of fabric out of some of Bev's fabric scraps.

This picture is a close up showing the quilt back that I bought on my own at a local fabric store. I bought way to much, so I now have a fabric stash.

Bev has worked on two new quilts this year, that she just tied instead of quilting them. They are both made from scraps, and are intended to be campfire quilts for our children.

The first one pictured below was tied normally on the quilting frame.

The next view of this same quilt is a close up to show the ties.

Unfortunately it's a little blurry, but that's an indication of my poor photography skills!

The next picture shows the second scrappy quilt on the quilt frame waiting to be tied.

This quilt isn't totally finished yet, but it is being tied with a hidden tie, and when it's finished and bound, I'll show pictures of it.

I blogged in February about our trip to Kalispell, Montana and Bev's two days of long arm quilting at Glacier Quilts, one of Bev's favorite quilt shops. Since then, Bev has been busy binding the quilts she quilted in order to finish them. I have included pictures of three of them. The blue quilt above is a beautiful Nine patch scrappy quilt that has been in the UFO pile for quite a while.

This is a beautiful quilt, I love the hexagon designs!

This is a close up of the quilt.

This view shows the beautiful fabric on the back of the quilt.

The next quilt is one of my favorite quilts, I love the design and the colors.

The next picture is a closeup of this quilt.

And a picture showing the back fabric.

These are beautiful quilts, and I love the colors of the fabrics. I'll show a couple more finished quilts in my next blog post. Bev is keeping really busy working on UFO's this spring. 

The magnifiscent Sue and Sam quilt above is another antique American quilt made in the state of Texas in the 1930's. (Courtesy of Eco American Quilt Museum). It is rare and special because Sue and Sam are dressed in matching clothes in each set on the quilt.

                                           Sue                                                                                           Sam

Pictures courtesy of Eco American Quilt Museum

The close up views of Sue and Sam above show the detail that was used in the quilt. It is truly a classic.

At Quilt Templates and More we offer two Sunbonnet Sue and a Sunbonnet Sam quilt template sets as part of the Applique Templates category.

            Sunbonnet Sue                             Windblown Sue                                Sunbonnet Sam

Our Sunbonnet Sue is almost the same as the Sue in the Antique Quilt, the bonnets are a little different in shape. This is a very popular Sue profile. The Sunbonnet Sue applique template set consists of 6 individual templates that produce the pieces needed to be appliqued to form the finished Sue. There are three different sizes available to be appliqued onto block sizes of 10 inch, 12 inch and 14 inches.

Windblown Sue is another popular Sue profile that shows Sue in a whimsical pose. This applique template set is composed of 5 seperate templates and also comes in three sizes that can be appliqued onto blocks of 10 inch, 12 inch and 14 inches.

Our Sunbonnet Sam has the same sideways profile as the Sues we carry, a different pose then the backviewof the Sams on the Antique quilt. The Sunbonnet Sam applique template set is made up of 4 template pieces, and also comes in three different sizes. Sunbonnet Sam can be appliqued onto blocks of 8 inch, 10 inches and 12 inches.

Of course you can arrange your Sues and Sams on your quilt however you feel best, and you can make their clothing any color you choose. Use your imagination and create a beautiful Sunbonnet Sue, Windblown Sue or Sunbonnet Sam quilt, or mix them together on the same quilt. Have fun!!