Hive 9 - May Block Tutorial - Plus Block

 Hi Ladies, my name is Jennifer Barclay and I live in Eagle Mountain, Utah.  I moved to Utah from Southern California to go to College and kind of got stuck when I met my husband.  

I have lived here 15 years now and call it home with my husband Jon and our three boys, Evan (7), Dean (5) and Grant (2). I'm fortunate enough to be a stay at home mother, 

or rather a Director of Operations.

Oh and we can't forget our dog Stuart.

Tell us about how you got interested in quilting.

My Great Grandmother Ava was a master seamstress and she sewed clothes for her 3 daughters through World War II.  My Grandma Betty could make curtains in a pinch.  My mother became a master seamstress in a family of 7 kids out of necessity. If she wanted clothes as a teenager she made them.  She carried that on and always made dresses for me as a child and also made my wedding dress.

 I had little interest in sewing until I had children of my own, however, I'm not much of a clothing seamstress and have latched on to quilts as my form of craft. Though I can follow a pattern in a pinch for Halloween costumes.

 

How do you organize your fabric stash?

 Organize is a loose word right?  We have a finished basement and I have a room down there to keep my sewing things. However, that's not where the action is. So I do most of my sewing at the kitchen table.  I keep works in progress in a small corner of our bed room (ya my husband is awesome that way) and then the bulk of my stash is kept in my Great Grandma Ava's cedar chest.  What's left is kept in plastic bins in the room downstairs.

Who is/are your favorite fabric designers?

 I really like clean modern fabric.  I'm a bit in love with Lotta Jansdotter, Anna Maria Horner and recently Carolyn Friedlander.

What is one thing you have learned that you wish you knew when you first started quilting?

Use quality fabric and measure twice cut once.  And don't be afraid to sell or give away fabric that no longer inspires you to create. 

What is your favorite sewing/quilting tool and why should we all go out and buy it?

Aurifil thread is my new favorite sewing thing. It just works like butter in my Bernina. 

Who is your favorite fictional character and why? (Could be from a book, movie, TV show, etc.)

This is a hard question because I'm not a big reader but oh do I like TV. My favorite show in a long time is Downton Abby.  I just love Mary.

Now on to our block!

I've been in love with Ashley's (Film in the Fridge) Marcelle Plus Quilt since she posted it on her site/blog last year.  I just makes me happy in so many ways.   Rachel aka Wooden Spoon also made a beautiful plus quilt.  However, the post I like best about how to make a plus quilt is from Adrianne at On the Windy Sid. 

Fabric requirements:

4  - 5 inch square charms (low volume - grays, whites, creams)
4  - 2.5 x 3 inch rectangles (low volume - grays, whites, creams)
2  - 3 x 3 inch squares (bold color)
1  - 8 x 3 inch rectangle (bold color)

Colors.....

 I went to a quilt retreat this winter and one of the teachers talked about color and had us take 2.5 inch pieces and find our style by picking colors we liked.  These were mine. So now I'd like a quilt with those colors.  I pulled from my own fabric stash and this is what I choose. 

 The main plus I'd like to have a bold, bright, jewel tone.  So instead of red, think magenta, instead of green think lime green or teal.  Purples, Navy, bright yellows, Oranges.

 For the background I'd like to stay in the Gray, White and Cream, low volume.  Think more modern. Texts, stripes, polka dots. As you can see prints are great.

 All Seams should be standard 1/4 inch. Please press seams open. 

Cutting:

4  - 5 inch square charms (low volume - grays, whites, creams)
4  - 2.5 x 3 inch rectangles (low volume - grays, whites, creams)
2  - 3 x 3 inch squares (bold color)
1  - 8 x 3 inch rectangle (bold color)

Piecing: 

 1. Lay out the block as you'd like it to look.  Then sew the sides together. 3x3 bold piece with a 2.5x3 low volume piece. Repeat for each side. 

2. Sew a 5x5 charm onto each side of the side piece. Repeat for the other side.

3. Sew a 2.5 x3 piece onto each end of the long bold 8x3 piece. 

4. Now sew one side piece to the middle.  When I line up my piece it's helpful to look down and match the lines from the side pieces together.  Repeat for the other side. 

5. That's it. That's all to this block.  Give it one final press.  It should finish 12x12 square. Please leave it un-trimed. I'd like to trim them all when I get them.

Believe me you'll love making this block. I immediately made another and have fabric cut out for a few more.  They are going to look great together. I'll take all of your blocks and add some of my own and I'm hoping to make a big quilt to cuddle under with my boys. 

Thank you so much for your hard work. I look forward to seeing them. If you have any questions please let me know.

Happy Sewing, Jennifer