Sunday, October 23, 2011

Jelly Roll Quilt - Ideas for For Making a Stunning Quilt From Your Jelly Rolls


Over the last few years, jelly roll quilt rolls have become a huge craze in the quilting world. Usually made up of a number of 2.5" strips, jellies make quilting easy - everything's already cut for you! All you have to do is sew. But a lot of people buy their rolls and then feel confused about what to do with them. There are an endless number of possibilities - here are a few different ways you can make a stunning strip quilt, usually in only a few hours!
1. Simply sew the strips together, lengthwise, to make a strip jelly roll quilt. Stripes are all the rage right now, and are also timeless. If you're looking to make an heirloom quilt, the simple strip piecing will never go out of style. To add some interest, cut a few strips down the center, or a little off-center to make thinner strips, and alternate them with the 2.5" strips.
2. Use the "log cabin" design to make your jelly roll quilt. Rolls are absolutely perfect for making log cabin quilts. The log cabin block is created by starting with a center square, and then sewing on "logs" by turning the block 90 degrees repeatedly. Most people create the block so that half the block is one color, and the other is a contrast fabric.
Since all your "logs" will be the same width, 2.5" strips work great for this pattern.
3. Create a jelly roll quilt made up entirely of squares-in-squares. Start with one square cut from one strip, and then sew another fabric in a square around it. Then choose another fabric and sew another square. Repeat a few times until you have a block with several square-in-squares, and then repeat for another 12-16 blocks to make a nice-size throw quilt.
Whether you're a beginner or an expert, making a jelly roll quilt is fun and easy - and you'll be amazed at the visually impressive effects you can get making blocks with just 2.5" strips. And if you haven't already gotten into this method of quilting you're wasting time and money - not to mention developing carpal tunnel syndrome! - buying and cutting your own fabric!
I've got the biggest selection of jelly rolls, in every color and style you can imagine in my store at http://jellyrollfabric.net. Come check them out - they're gorgeous! - and get ready to make your very own jelly roll quilt now!

You can download a FREE Quilt Pattern eBook here - http://JellyRollFabrics.com

Jelly Roll Fabric Rolls - The Easiest Way to Make a Log Cabin Quilt


If you are a huge log cabin quilt fan - and who isn't? - you're going to be really excited when you buy your first jelly roll fabric roll. Jelly rolls started springing up all over the internet over the last couple of years and their popularity has gone through the roof - with good reason. Made up of pre-cut fabric strips, usually 2.5" by the width of the bolt, they make quilting - especially log cabin quilting - incredibly simple.
Since the strips are already cut for you, making a log cabin quilt with jelly roll fabric rolls is really easy. The best way to go about it is to buy enough fabric that you can easily chain-piece your log cabin. If you're unfamiliar with the term "chain-piece," what that means is, instead of making each block, one at a time, you make all 16 or 36 blocks (or however many you're making) in a big chain - like an assembly line.
So for your log cabin block, you'll start by either sewing together two strips to make the center square and first "log" pieces - or you'll start with larger center squares, and just start sewing those squares right to your first fabric strip. Then when you've got them all sewn to a strip(s), you'll just cut apart all your pieces, trim off the excess, and all your center pieces plus one log will be done. Repeat with another set of strips, and now all your centers, first and second logs are done. It's much quicker that way.
You can see why using pre-cut strips makes this a breeze. When you remove the time you'd normally spend cutting your fabric into all those strips, it quite literally can cut the overall amount of time piecing your quilt top in half. And since most jelly roll fabric rolls are die cut or rotary cut, your blocks are going to come out absolutely perfect - if you're careful sewing, of course!
Who doesn't love a log cabin quilt? They're easy enough even for a beginner to make perfectly on the first try. And seasoned experts can experiment with color and hue, as well as layout and block variations to make some incredible quilts. And jelly roll fabric rolls make the job a snap.
I've got the biggest selection of jelly rolls, in every color and style you can imagine in my store at http://jellyrollfabric.net. I've yet to find anywhere else on the internet where you can buy jelly roll fabric in so many different colors and styles - and we're always adding more!

You can download a FREE Quilt Pattern eBook here - http://JellyRollFabrics.com