It Won't Be Too Long Now . . .

I want to thank everyone who voted and/or commented to help me pick a border for the George quilt. Most of you advised me to go with the red, and I did. I thought the yellow would have worked better for directing the attention to the center of the quilt, but I think those of you who mentioned scale were probably right. I think the width of the stripes on that one were just too large.

I also liked the suggestions to use the yellow for the binding, but I couldn't bear to cut into that yellow stripe just for binding, especially since I like to use bias binding. I found another yellow in my stash and I've pinned it to the design wall--I'm not sure there's enough there, but I'll figure it out when I get close to binding it.

Looking at this photo, though, makes me think those larger red half square triangles should be a different color. Maybe yellow. Do I want to mess with the mitered corners of the borders to take those out? Well, I'll have to give it some thought, that's for sure!

I took a photo of the Ghastlies when I was pinning it last night. I should be able to put together the pattern directions in the next several days--maybe sooner, but no promises.

I know there are several of you who have purchased fabric and are patiently waiting. If you feel you are a reasonably competent quilter and want to get a head start, I can give you a few directions. I'll repeat this part later when I have the whole thing written, so if you're not ready to start yet, don't worry--just wait a little longer.

To get started on this, first decide if you want it as large as mine--which is a good size for a double or queen size bed, I think. My size uses 13 fussy cut Ghastlies "portraits" for the center and 4 more for the corners. Making a quilt that's not as wide but just as long would likely fit a twin bed. For that size, you'd need 8 fussy cut Ghastlies for the center and 4 more for the corners. A smaller wallhanging might use 5 Ghastlies for the center and 4 for the corners. (In deciding how large you want to make yours, be aware that each block in the center is 12" finished and each border is 12" finished, so my quilt is 7' square. The next smaller size would be 5' wide and 7' long. And a wallhanging (or tabletopper) would be 5' square.)

Next, you'll want to fussy cut your Ghastlies to whatever size makes sense given each image. Some images are large and some are not. I find a good way to decide what size to cut a particular image is to use a large, square, clear ruler and place it over the image to check before cutting. Here are some things to keep in mind:

Remember to leave at least 1/4" around the image for the seam allowance.

If possible, cut these to the half inch measure. In other words, try not to fussy cut an image that measures 5-7/8" x 7-1/4"; instead cut it 6" x 7-1/2". It's not a terrible thing to not stick to the half inch measures, but it will make it a little harder to do the math later when we add more fabric to the blocks to make them all the same size.

Do not cut any blocks larger than 10-1/2" in width or height, and try, if possible, to cut them no larger than 9-1/2". Don't cut off feet or hats to keep them under 9-1/2", but don't leave a lot of background in either if your measurement would otherwise exceed 9-1/2". (Leaving background for the smaller images is just fine.)

Finally, for this part, cut strips of fabric (mine is the black with white polka dots) 1-1/2" wide to sew around the fussy cut Ghastlies. This will make the "frame" for each image. To figure out how long to cut these pieces, measure the longest length of the block. For instance, if your cut measurement is 5-1/2" x 8", the longest length is 8". Cut two strips 8" long. Now add 2" to the shorter length. For 5-1/2", that would be 7-1/2". Cut two strips at 7-1/2".

Next, sew the first set of strips you cut to the longer edges and press (seam allowance to the darker fabric). Then sew the next two strips to the remaining sides.

Once your Ghastlies are cut out and framed, you can stop and wait for the next step.

Let me know if you have any questions or if something doesn't work out right. Be forewarned that the early birds among you are "testing" these directions for the others, and that's why I suggest you should be reasonable competent to take this on now. Please try out a block before you cut for ALL the blocks, just to make sure my calculations and directions are clear. And thanks for playing with me and the Ghastlies!