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Island Batik Ambassador- February 2023 Project- Puff Quilt- Part of the All Puffed Up Blog Hop

Finished Puff Quilt

Ready for some fun? This month’s blog hop is called All Puffed Up as the Island Batik Ambassadors will all be making  puff or bubble quilts using different fabric collections from Island Batik. These quilts are so much fun to make! I know you are going to see some awesome quilts with this month’s Island Batik blog hop. Since this month is a blog hop, you can check out the Island Batik blog and enter each week to win a fat quarter bundle of some of the fabrics the Ambassadors are using in their projects. I will show the other fabric collections later in this blog along with a link to the giveaway from Island Batik and links to other ambassador’s blogs.

All Puffed Up Blog Hop
All Puffed Up Blog Hop

 

The February project was to make a puff quilt using an upcoming fabric line from Island Batik. I love the fabric I was given to use: Double Dutch by Kathy Engle. Just look at this gorgeous collection of blue and white batik fabrics. I just love blue and white quilts. The Double Dutch collection may be found at your local quilt shop that carries Island Batik, such as Fabric Smart in St. Petersburg FL. This collection should be in your local quilt shop between now and July of 2023. You may find them online at www.fabric-smart.com or call them at 727-914-8850. Another online option for you to shop for this fabric would be Hancocks of Paducah: Hancocks of Paducah

Double Dutch
Double Dutch

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The quilt I made is a large lap sized quilt- 42″ x 42.” This ombre puff quilt has shades of light blue, blue, dark blue and white. This is called an ombre pattern as the fabrics in the quilt transition from light to dark to light again. The Double Dutch collection has a nice variety of shades to be able to do this. Making this quilt was a fair amount of work, but it was easy and fun. This quilt is now a favorite in my home and if you make one, it may be a favorite in yours as well. The puffy Fiber-Fil makes the quilt nice and warm and it is so much fun to pat the puffs. Humans love this quilt, but here’s a secret- pets really love it to, so you could make a much smaller version for your favorite furry friend.

Finished Puff Quilt
Finished Puff Quilt

Here are several closeups of the Double Dutch batik bundle I was provided. What a beautiful selection of blue and white batiks. The first photo is from one of several Tik Tok videos I made about this quilt. My username on TikTok is BlueBearQuilts.

DD and me
DD and me
Double Dutch Bundle
Double Dutch Bundle

I used my Electric Quilt 8 software to design this quilt. The first photo is a version I thought of doing which is in the genre of an Around the World Quilt. I really liked this version.  I decided to go with the ombre version in the second photo. You’ll notice that I originally thought of putting a white border around the quilt, but when I was ready to put the border on, I like the look of those lovely navy blue batiks from the collection, so I made a last minute design change. You will also nice that the actual quilt is larger and has more squares in it than the original design. I decided that the quilt was not large enough, so I added a couple of extra rounds of squares around the outer edge of the quilt. This expanded the light areas of the quilt.

Round the World EQ8 Design
Round the World EQ8 Design
Ombre EQ8 Design
Ombre EQ8 Design

After deciding on the fabrics and the design, I had to figure out how I was going to make a puff quilt as I had never made one before. I checked out a couple of tutorials online and saw that it was fairly easy, so I knew I would be able to successfully make this quilt. Speaking of tutorials; below, I will provide a link to a You Tube video where I show how I made this quilt. Between this blog post and the video, I am confident that you will be able to make your own puff quilt.

Squares cut out
Squares cut out

A puff quilt is made by sewing puff pockets together, which are then stuffed with Fiber-Fil. You need a smaller backing square, and a larger front square, for the puff. My smaller backing squares were cut at 4-1/2″. These can be made from scrap fabric as they will not show when the quilt is finished. My front squares were cut at 5″. These are the squares made from the beautiful Double Dutch collection as they will be the front of the finished quilt. I needed 169 squares of both the front and back fabric.  I got out my Creative Grids Stripology Ruler and quickly cut out all the squares I needed to make this quilt. 

squares laid out
squares laid out

In the next step, you have to lay out the squares in a pleasing arrangement. This can also be done after all of the puff pockets have been sewn as you will see in the next picture. To make the puff pockets, I sewed with a scant quarter inch around three sides of the pocket. A scant quarter inch was used as then the previous stitch lines will be concealed when the puffs are sewn together with a full quarter inch seam. When sewing along each side, it is necessary to make a small pleat along the edge. This is what makes the larger square match up with the smaller bottom square and also what creates the puff in the larger top fabric. 

Color Image
Color Image

To create the ombre effect, I started with light squares in the lower left corner, then moved into the medium blues, and finally, followed by the dark blues. Then I reverse the placement order of the values and did medium blues, followed by the light blues. If you have trouble distinguishing the values and trying to determine if you have them in the correct location, you can turn the photo into a monochromatic one on your phone and it is much easier to see the values as you can see in the next photo. In the final quilt, I did switch two rows in the upper right hand corner as the values were not in the correct place.

Monochromatic image
Monochromatic image

 

The next step was to sew the puff pockets together in columns. It was really important to be organized for this step and to keep all of the puffs in the proper place. It was also important to make sure that the opening of the puff pocket stayed on the right side of the column. Thus, I only did one column at a time and then brought it back to my layout to make sure everything was in the right order. I think I only had to rip a couple of seams. Once the column was sewn, I brought it back to the sewing machine and starting filling the puffs, and I started with the top one. I filled that one with a small, round handful of Fiber-Fil and then stitched the opening of that pocket closed with a scant quarter inch, and I also remembered to create a small pleat in the seam. I used Aurifil 50 Wt. cotton thread to construct, and quilt, this quilt.

Columns sewn up
Columns sewn up

Once that first column has been puffed up, you stitch the next column to the first one with a full quarter inch. The second column is not filled at this point. Then you fill the second column, just like you did the first one, and then sew the unfilled third column on with a full quarter inch seam. You repeat this process across the quilt until you have puffed up the last column.

Top with border
Top with border

In the photo above, I am auditioning the navy border to see if I liked it and I thought that it framed up the quilt nicely.

Top pinned for quilting
Top pinned for quilting

One way of completing the quilt is to tie it.  I would have loved to try this method, but I found that with the tight weave of batik fabrics, it was a bit of a struggle to pull an embroidery needle through the layers. So I decided that I needed the strength of my machine and a Schmetz needle. The quilt was going to be warm enough without any batting due to the Fiber-Fil, so I decided to not use any batting and to stitch in the ditch, directly to the backing fabric. All I had to do was use a walking foot and push the Fiber-fil out of the way, and it worked out perfectly. I created a nice square quilting design on the backing. If you would like to see the back, you may see it in either my TikTok video or my You Tube video. Below, you can see how I rolled the quilt and was able to do the quilting on my Janome 6600. Finally, it was time to bind the quilt and I used a method of wrapping the backing fabric to the front to create the binding. This method of creating the binding is also demonstrated in the You Tube video.

Stitch in the ditch quilting
Stitch in the ditch quilting

 Below is the image of my You Tube video for making this quilt. Here is a link to the video if you would like to watch it and see more detail of how I made the quilt:              https://youtu.be/I4rz1bIDAPo

You Tube Video
You Tube Video

If you like the video, please be sure to like it, share it with your friends and subscribe so you don’t miss any upcoming videos.

 

 

The supplies I used to make this project were provided by:

Island Batik Double Dutch collection.

Aurifil 50 wt Thread

Schmetz 70/10 Quilting needle

 
 

IB-Aurifil-Schmetz

If you are on TikTok, be sure to check out the video I have posted of me with the quilt. (Look for Blue Bear Quilts)

Blue Bear hopes you like this quilt. Please let him know how much you love the this quilt by writing to him in the comments!

The other amazing Island Batik Ambassadors are also posting their February Blog Hop Puff quilts.  Check out their projects by clicking on the links next to their names to be directed to their blog posts.

 

December 5

WEEK 1

February 6

Emily Leachman, The Darling Dogwood

Sarah Pitcher, Pitcher’s Boutique

February 7

Claudia Porter, Create with Claudia

Brenda Alburl, Songbird Designs

December 6

February 8

Elita Sharpe, Busy Needle Quilting

Reed Johnson, Blue Bear Quilts   Thanks for stopping by!

February 9

Suzy Webster, Websterquilt

Preeti Harris, Sew Preeti Quilts

February 10

Blog Hop Round-Up Week 1 and Giveaway

February 11

Special St Valentine’s Day Post

Renee Atkinson, Pink Tulip Quilting

WEEK 2

February 13

Denise Looney, For the Love of Geese

Gail Sheppard, Quilting Gail

February 14

Anorina Morris, Samelia’s Mum

Sandra Starley, Textile Time Travels

February 15

Susan Deshensky, Lady Blue Quilts

Randi Jones, Randi’s Roost

February 16

Special Island Batik Designers Feature

February 17Blog Hop Round-Up Week 2 and Giveaway

 

WEEK 3

February 20

Brittany Fisher, Bobbin with Brittany

Lisa Pickering, Lisa’s Quilting Passion

February 21

Victoria Johnson, Forever Quilting for You

Mania Hatziioannidi, Mania for Quilts

February 22

Lana Russel, Lana Quilts

Pamela Boatright, Pamela Quilts

February 23

Jennifer Thomas, Curlicue Creations

Maryellen McAuliffe, Mary Mack Made Mine

February 24

Blog Hop Round-Up Week 3 and Giveaway

February 27

Leah Malasky, Quilted Delights

Connie Kauffman, Kauffman Designs

February 28

End of Blog Hop + Final Round Up

Giveaway Fabrics
Giveaway Fabrics
The first of 3 All Puffed Up Blog Hop giveaways, from Island Batik, started on Sunday, February 5th!
Two lucky winners will each receive a bundle of new collections that will be featured this week – Exuberance by Deb Tucker’s Studio 180 Design or Broken Glass, designed for Swan Amity Studios by Kathy Engle. Don’t miss out on your chance to add these beautiful batiks to your stash. Enter now and every week during the  All Puffed Up Blog Hop:

To enter for your chance to win one of the two prizes above, follow the simple Rafflecopter prompts below.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

This giveaway ends on February, 10 at 11:59 pm PST. Two random winners will be notified by email on February, 11 and announced on the Island Batik Facebook page on February, 14. Please check your spam folders! If the winners do not respond within the first two days after being notified, two new random winners will be chosen and notified.

Make sure to follow Island Batik on social media to hop along with the All Puffed Up Blog Hop. Be sure to check out the Island Batik Blog.

#islandbatikambassador #islandbatik #iloveislandbatik #hobbsbatting #aurifil #aurifilthread #schmetzneedles #doyoueq #Janome #allpuffedupbloghop #electricquilt #eq8 #creativegrids #HancocksofPaducah #fabricsmart



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Quilt Block Mania-Half Friendship Star with Heart Block- Complimentary Block Pattern for February 2023

Half Friendship Star with Heart

Hello there! February is a month for love. We love our friends and other connections. There are some great blocks with the theme of connections for February 2023. Connections for me means looking out for one another. Our complimentary block of the month for Quilt Block Mania, during the month of February 2023, Half Friendship Star with Heart Block, is great for making a small quilt. If you like receiving the complimentary blocks from Quilt Block Mania, please share this with your quilting friends on social media (please ask them to sign up for their own copy) so the designers can continue to do this every month. The designers thank you for your support, through your purchases of other patterns, which allow us to offer these complimentary block patterns each month.

Dashing Diamonds Cover
Dashing Diamonds Cover

During February 2023, we are offering 20% off one of our digital download patterns. It is the Dashing Diamonds quilt pattern. This quilt looks fantastic done in batik fabrics. The link to this pattern is here: downloadable-patterns/

Quilt Block Mania has 26 talented quilt designers creating blocks for this month’s theme- Connections.

Half Friendship Star with Heart
Half Friendship Star with Heart

This is the Half Friendship Star with Heart Block. This block features a yellow star with purple center on a white background and a red heart. This block makes it easy for you to put what ever appliqué shape you would like in the center.

The Half Friendship Star with Heart Block makes a great 32″ square quilt with a 1″ finished yellow inner border and a 3″ finished lime green outer border. This quilt allows a lot of space for beautiful free motion quilting in the center.

Half Friendship Star Quilt
Half Friendship Star Quilt

Here are a couple other layouts of the quilt which may be achieved by rotating the blocks, and a table runner.

Half Friendship Star Quilt 2
Half Friendship Star Quilt 2
Half Friendship Star Quilt 3
Half Friendship Star Quilt 3
Half Friendship Star Quilt TR
Half Friendship Star Quilt TR

How to get the block

If you are new to our website and are interested in downloading a complimentary PDF pattern of our Half Friendship Star with Heart Block for February 2023, all you have to do is look for the box on our blog, on the right hand side, that says “Like this content? Sign up for free updates” and sign up to receive our newsletter. When you have done that, you will receive a welcoming email from us that will contain a coupon code and a link back to the complimentary pattern. You will act as though you are purchasing the pattern and in the cart, you will apply the coupon code, which will make the pattern free. You will need to fill out contact information, but no payment method will be necessary. Don’t worry, we do not send out newsletters very often and we never sell email addresses or contact information. Here is what the pattern looks like. It is in a format very similar to most Blue Bear Quilt patterns, so if you see what you like in this complimentary pattern, you will like our other patterns as well.

Please note: This pattern will only be complimentary during the month of February 2023.

HFS cover
HFS cover

Current newsletter subscribers, don’t despair! You will be able to download the complimentary pattern as well. You have already been sent a newsletter on February 7th which gave you the coupon code.

Be sure to follow us on our Instagram page, @bluebearquilts, as that is where we occasionally have giveaways.

I’m delighted to announced that I am an Island Batik Ambassador again for 2023. Below is a picture of all of the ambassadors. My February project is a puff quilt and if you have not made one of those yet, they are a lot of fun. My next blog post will detail how I made it and I will also have a You Tube video, on my channel, talking about how I made it. My blog post for the puff quilt will go live tomorrow, Feb 8th. It will be a blog hop and there are prizes every week. Below is another look at my December project, where I made a lone star quilt. Check out my last blog post to see how I made it.

2023-I'm-An-Island-Batik-Ambassador
2023-I’m-An-Island-Batik-Ambassador
Island Batik Ambassadors
Island Batik Ambassadors
Reach For the Stars quilt
Reach For the Stars quilt

If you like my December Project, stay tuned for more projects in 2023.

Please follow me on social media so you don’t miss a thing.

Also, please check out our Tik Tok and YouTube Channels (Blue Bear Quilts) for more quilting fun and inspiration.

We are so happy that you stopped by to visit us in the Quilt Block Mania hop and we hope that you like our block. Please stop by to see all of the other designer’s wonderful blocks. I post early, but the designers are not required to post until 9:00 am ET, so their blog posts may not be live until l then.

Connections Quilt Blocks
Connections Quilt Blocks

You can click on the links to the other blocks here.

Heart and Star
Woven Heart by Inquiring Quilter
Puzzle Block by Inflorescnece
Connected Hearts by BoBerry Design Co.
Mardi Gras Geese
Chain Link by Sugar Sand Quilt Co.
Linked by QuiltFabrication
Irish Chain
DNA by Palm Creations
Hello at Patti’s Patchwork
Lover’s Knot at Lovingly, Lissa
Double Hearts by Appliques Quilts and More
Key to my Heart
Connections by Penny Spool Quilts
WiFi Signal by Crafty Staci
With Love By Sew Cute And Quirky
Text Me!
Braided Love by Kaye Collins
Celtic Tree of Life By Sallys’ Sewing Circle
Hearts Together Block by Sew Worthy Mama
Sunshine Village Church by Sarah Marcina
Braille Block
Left and Right Block at The (not so) Dramatic Life
Love Encircled by Jessica of Blue Sky Modern Craft
Celtic Hearts by A Piece of Quiet Quilts
Half Friendship Star with Heart by Blue Bear Quilts

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Quilt Block Mania-Raspberry Cheesecake Block- Complimentary Block Pattern for January 2023

Raspberry Cheesecake Block

Happy New Year! Let’s start the new year off with some delicious desserts and who doesn’t love some raspberry cheesecake? There are some awesome blocks with the theme of dessert for January 2023. You should be able to find a block that will temp your taste buds. Our complimentary block of the month for Quilt Block Mania, during the month of January 2023, Raspberry Cheesecake Block, is great for making a small quilt or table runner. If you like receiving the complimentary blocks from Quilt Block Mania, please share this with your quilting friends on social media (please ask them to sign up for their own copy) so the designers can continue to do this every month. The designers thank you for your support, through your purchases of other patterns, which allow us to offer these complimentary block patterns each month.

Mayfair Terrace Cover

During January 2023, we are offering 20% off one of our Spring patterns. It is the Mayfair Terrace quilt pattern, a fun appliqué project, which also includes the instructions to make an alternate table runner. The link to this pattern is here: downloadable-patterns/

Quilt Block Mania has 21 talented quilt designers creating blocks for this month’s theme- dessert. There were no theme colors this month.

Raspberry Cheesecake Block
Raspberry Cheesecake Block

This is the Raspberry Cheesecake Block. This block features a red raspberry star on a cream cheesecake and dark brown graham cracker crust background. This block looks good enough to eat. Yum!

The Raspberry Cheesecake Block makes a great 32″ square quilt with a 1″ finished light pink inner border and a 3″ finished dark brown outer border. It also makes a nice 20″ x 44″ table runner with 3 blocks, a 1″ finished light pink inner border and a 3″ finished dark brown outer border.

RC Quilt
RC Quilt
RC Table Runner
RC Table Runner

If you like many different toppings on your cheesecake, you could mix it up with strawberry, blueberry, lemon and lime and add a dark brown binding to frame the cheesecake border.

How to get the block

If you are new to our website and are interested in downloading a complimentary PDF pattern of our Raspberry Cheesecake Block for January 2023, all you have to do is look for the box on our blog, on the right hand side, that says “Like this content? Sign up for free updates” and sign up to receive our newsletter. When you have done that, you will receive a welcoming email from us that will contain a coupon code and a link back to the complimentary pattern. You will act as though you are purchasing the pattern and in the cart, you will apply the coupon code, which will make the pattern free. You will need to fill out contact information, but no payment method will be necessary. Don’t worry, we do not send out newsletters very often and we never sell email addresses or contact information. Here is what the pattern looks like. It is in a format very similar to most Blue Bear Quilt patterns, so if you see what you like in this complimentary pattern, you will like our other patterns as well.

Please note: This pattern will only be complimentary during the month of January 2023.

RC Cover
RC Cover

Current newsletter subscribers, don’t despair! You will be able to download the complimentary pattern as well. You have already been sent a newsletter on January 3rd which gave you the coupon code.

Be sure to follow us on our Instagram page, @bluebearquilts, as that is where we occasionally have giveaways.

Be sure to look at my last blog post, which has the details for my December project as an Island Batik Ambassador, where I made a lone star quilt. Check out my last blog post to see how I made it.

Reach For the Stars quilt
Reach For the Stars quilt

If you like my December Project, stay tuned for more projects in 2023.

Please follow me on social media so you don’t miss a thing.

Also, please check out our Tik Tok and YouTube Channels (Blue Bear Quilts) for more quilting fun and inspiration.

We are so happy that you stopped by to visit us in the Quilt Block Mania hop and we hope that you like our block. Please stop by to see all of the other designer’s wonderful blocks.

Dessert Quilt Blocks
Dessert Quilt Blocks

You can click on the links to the other blocks here.

Jelly Roll Quilt Block by Carolina Moore
Birthday Layer Cake by Crafty Staci
Ice Cream by Inquiring Quilter
Thumbprint Cookie at Inflorescence
Cupcake Block by BoBerry Design Co.
Cakestand by Scrapdash
Rocket Pop at Sugar Sand Quilt Co.
Banana Split by QuiltFabrication
Guava Empanadas by Paleofish Designs
Butter Dominoes at Patti’s Patchwork
Cupcake by Penny Spool Quilts
Macarons at Lovingly, Lissa
Ice Cream Cone at The (not so) Dramatic Life
Rainbow Gelatin by Patchwork Breeze
Sherbet Pop by The Quilting Room with Mel
Peppermint by Katie Mae Quilts
Smarties By Sally’s Sewing Circle
Rainbow Sprinkles
Cake on Stand
Cherry Pie by Flowerdog Designs
Raspberry Cheesecake block by Blue Bear Quilts