Lone Star Tree Skirt Sew Along Finish

Here we are, at the end of the Lone Star Tree Skirt Sew Along!  I’m checking in today to share my finished Lone Star Christmas Tree Skirt.  If you’re not finished yet, don’t stress!  There is plenty of time to finish, or start one before the Christmas rush.  Please join us!  The tree skirt pattern is available here .


I finished the binding and tied a pretty bow, and promptly wished for a tree to wrap it around.


Instead, I contented myself with pulling out a few vintage ornaments.


This project has been a fun one for me.  I added black to the mix, tried new things with my quilting, and got comfortable with this view:


It turns out it’s fun to try new things, including staring at a video camera.  (Especially if something pretty, like a finished quilt project, comes of it)

For some reason the ties on this project kind of melt my heart.

No idea why, but they do.



I want to say THANK YOU to all of you who have sewed along with me!  Thanks for your encouragement, your feedback, your questions, your photos, and for purchasing the pattern.


I hope this sew along has made the lone star quilt block less intimidating, and that you’ve enjoyed making one.  Please share your finished Lone Star Tree Skirts with the hashtags #lonestartreeskirt and #hopefulhomemaker because I love seeing them!

Remember that all posts for this project can be found on the Lone Star Tree Skirt Sew Along page.  The videos will remain on my blog for your reference.

Happy Sewing!

Love, Jennifer

Holiday Giant Hunter’s Star quilt tops

I have a picture in my head of a Christmas quilt on every bed this year, and several more for snuggling near the tree.  The only challenge is, I have a large family so bringing my picture to life will take a lot of Christmas quilts!  Last week I made three Holiday Giant Hunter’s Star quilt tops.


I bought a fat quarter bundle of the Holiday collection by Alison Glass, and although I’d love to do something amazing with it, I decided to make something NOW instead of save the fabric.  My Giant Hunter’s Star quilt has an option to make a 64″ square quilt top from 8 fat quarters and two yards of fabric.


I separated my bundle into pink/red and blue/green/gold, and had enough prints to make a quilt top from each colorway.  They took less than 30 minutes to cut out, and I pieced the quilt tops in just a couple of hours each.


My girls love the pink one, and I like the more understated holiday feel of the blue one.  Both will be perfect for snuggling with.


I’m waiting for backing fabric to arrive, and can’t wait to quilt and bind this pair of quilts!


I also pulled out an Alexander Henry mistletoe print that I have saved for too long.  I paired it with a green solid and made the 68″ square Supergiant Hunter’s Star.  The project went from folded yardage to a finished quilt top in less than two hours.


I’m going to piece a backing from my leftover fabric and a few other greens in my stash, and then the quilting will commence.


What are you making this week?

Lone Star Tree Skirt Sew Along: Cut Center and Bind

Welcome back for week five of the Lone Star Tree Skirt Sew Along!  Here we are in the last week of the sew along and we’re finishing our tree skirts!  Don’t worry if you’re behind or just beginning.  It’s a fairly fast project and there is plenty of time to make one before the Christmas rush.  Please join us!  The tree skirt pattern is available here .

Last week
we quilted our lone stars.  This week we will cut them to make a tree skirt as well as make a continuous bias binding and ties to finish the project.  There are three videos this week.  The first demonstrates how to cut your quilt to make a tree skirt.

This second video covers making a continuous bias binding.

Here is the formula I use to figure out fabric requirements for continuous bias binding. Total inches of binding needed x width of binding = square inches of fabric needed.  Then divide square inches of fabric by the length of your rectangle, to get the width of fabric you need to make your binding.
First, measure the number of inches around the perimeter of your quilt.  For this project, including extra fabric to make your ties, you want 275 inches of binding.

Multiply the total inches of binding needed x the width of your binding.  I prefer a 2.25″ binding, so for me that’s 275 x 2.25 = 618.75.  The answer is the total number of square inches of fabric you need for the binding.  If you like a 2.5″ binding, then 275 x 2.5 = 687.5.  Next, take that total and divide it by the length of your fabric (in my case, the width of fabric, which I’m estimating at 38″).  618.75 divided by 38 = 16.28, which I round up to the next whole inch, or 17″.  To make a 2.25″ wide continuous bias binding that is at least 275″ long, I need a rectangle of fabric that is 38″ x 17″.  For a 2.5″ binding, 687.5 / 2.5 = 18.09, and round up to 19″, or a rectangle 38″ x 19″.

Finally, the third video covers attaching your binding and making the ties for your tree skirt.

My tree skirt has the binding and ties attached and I’m looking forward to a little quiet time to hand stitch it down to the back of the quilt.


That’s it for this week!  Have fun finishing your lone star tree skirt.  Next week I’ll share my finished tree skirt with the binding finished.  Please share your progress with the hashtags #lonestartreeskirt and #hopefulhomemaker because I love seeing them!

Remember that all posts for this project can be found on the Lone Star Tree Skirt Sew Along page.

Have a great week, and happy sewing!
Jennifer

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