How to block QAYG blocks/quilt

[Marianne G.]

I am in the process of quilting blocks for a QAYG quilt. I have never bothered blocking quilts before 1) because I have never made a quilt for somebody else; 2) always throw the quilts I make on the bed, use and abuse them and 3) I have never made a quilt of this quality before or spent as much time making it as I have with this one. My local group think I should put it into a show although I keep saying that I don't think QAYG quilts are suitable for shows. My daughter wants the quilt as a present for a friend so it has to be as good as I can possibly get it :shock:
Now I need advice: do I block twice: first each individual block and then again when it is all put together and the binding attached? Or just once the whole quilt is finished.
I am a bit scared of doing each block individually because I have wadding exposed for attaching the sashing that will sew the blocks together but I could possibly cut that off after the blocking and put new wadding strips into the sashed areas.
I will need to wash the quilt when it is finished because I have starched the fabrics very well (as in stiff like paper :lol: ) but I really do not have floorspace for blocking a large quilt. We live in a small bungalow, have wooden floors everywhere except kitchen and bathroom where there are tiled floors. I will not be able to cook for a couple of days when the quilt is spread out there so it will have to be done when we go away for a couple of days and I can leave it out. I plan on putting out terry towels and then a sheet before gingerly treading around it to pull it into shape.
Any help is greatly appreciated. TIA
Marianne

[Kathryn S.]

Well, I can't contribute anything about block vs entire quilt. But I have wood floors also. If and when i block a finished quilt, i put a plastic tarp down on the floor in the living room, then the towels, then the quilt. The tarp protects the wood floor. You wouldn't have to do this in the kitchen on your tile floor. I usually soak my quilts in the washing machine, spin the quilt in the washer, and then lay the quilt down and pull it into place. It dries pretty quickly. Hope this is useful!
Kathy

[Marianne G.]

Well, I can't contribute anything about block vs entire quilt. But I have wood floors also. If and when i block a finished quilt, i put a plastic tarp down on the floor in the living room, then the towels, then the quilt. The tarp protects the wood floor. You wouldn't have to do this in the kitchen on your tile floor. I usually soak my quilts in the washing machine, spin the quilt in the washer, and then lay the quilt down and pull it into place. It dries pretty quickly. Hope this is useful!
Kathy

Thank you very much, Kathy! Great idea using a tarpaulin. Still storing one of the girls' ground sheets - that would do nicely. Maybe I can fit it under the dining table somehow though not sure there is enough space. As you can understand we have way too much furniture for the floor space we have. We reduced our square feet to 50% 2 years ago. Great for cleaning but difficult when it comes to quilting :lol:

Marianne

[E.M. T.]

I love the soft cudley look...so no blocking for my quilts..wash and tumble dry gently....unless it's for the wall and
needs some kind of correction ! :roll: so as to lie flat. Just a thought.....

[Marianne G.]

I love the soft cudley look...so no blocking for my quilts..wash and tumble dry gently....unless it's for the wall and
needs some kind of correction ! :roll: so as to lie flat. Just a thought.....

So do I Marilyn, love the soft, cuddley look; it is only because of the gift issue that I worry - decided not to enter it into a show now - somebody got in touch and said it is a big no-no to enter a QAYG quilt into a show. Will report back on that to quilt group when we go back in September.
Maybe I worry un-necessarily ops:

Marianne

[Nancy R.]

I don't know what show you're thinking of entering so you should check your show rules to see if a QAYG fits into one of the categories. There's no general rule that I've ever heard of that excludes them and certainly Leah Day entered her large QAYG quilt into at least one show where I think it even won an award. But each show has it's own rules and you need to read the carefully for any type of quilt you are entering.

[E.M. T.]

Perhaps there is a bit of quilt snob-ery going on.... :roll:

[Marianne G.]

Regarding the show thing - I was a bit surprised when the lady in charge of our group suggested that I should enter a show because I have never done so before. I really only want to make quilts for myself and nearest and dearest. I never liked exams, never did well in them and entering a quilt show would be like doing an exam. The lady likes to enter shows herself so perhaps that is why.
I will check out Leah Days blog to see if she has any advice on blocking. I did not realise she she had made one and entered it into a show. I guess it is all her 365 blocks she has turned into a quilt. I would like the quilt to look as nice as possible when I hand it over to my daughter to gift it.
Marianne

[Nancy R.]

Leah has actually had a couple of QAYG show quilts. One is the 365+ quilt designs that you mention. Another is a snowflake quilt. The snowflake quilt was definitely an award winner in at least one US national show. I believe the 365 quilt designs also won an award, but I could be remembering wrong on that one. Like I say, every show is different and has different rules and categories. You have to read the guidelines for any show you are interested in.

[Kathryn S.]

Regarding the show thing - I was a bit surprised when the lady in charge of our group suggested that I should enter a show because I have never done so before. I really only want to make quilts for myself and nearest and dearest. I never liked exams, never did well in them and entering a quilt show would be like doing an exam. The lady likes to enter shows herself so perhaps that is why.

Marianne

Marianne, another way to look at entering a quilt show is to view it as a way to share your work with others. If your quilt gives you joy to look at, then others will most likely feel that way too. My quilts will never win awards at a big show like Houston or Paducah but I like to let other people look at them. I love to go up and down the aisles at a quilt show and see what others have done.

Is there going to be outside judging at this show? Many guild shows do not have that, instead attendees vote on their favorites.
Like the others have said, find out the rules of the show. I have never seen anything that stated QAYG wasn't permitted, but its good to check.

Kathy

[Marianne G.]

Marianne, another way to look at entering a quilt show is to view it as a way to share your work with others. If your quilt gives you joy to look at, then others will most likely feel that way too. My quilts will never win awards at a big show like Houston or Paducah but I like to let other people look at them. I love to go up and down the aisles at a quilt show and see what others have done.

Is there going to be outside judging at this show? Many guild shows do not have that, instead attendees vote on their favorites.
Like the others have said, find out the rules of the show. I have never seen anything that stated QAYG wasn't permitted, but its good to check.

Kathy

Hi Kathy,
You are right of course and there would be no quilt shows if everybody looked on exhibiting like I do. I do thoroughly enjoy going to shows and looking at quilts but I don't want to cringe seeing my quilt amongst some that are much better than mine. You do sometimes come across quilts that stand out like sore thumbs and feel embarrassed on behalf of the person who put it in.
I will look at the entry requirements and what the general rules are for the show the quilt group lady talked about. I have been once to the show and there were several groupings as far as we could tell. There certainly was some judging because a quilt won the judges' choice. It does not take place until May so I can think about it for a long time.
Right now I need to finish quilting and decide how to deal with the blocking problem. Right now I favour waiting till it is all done and then find a place large enough to pull it into shape and leave it to dry.
Marianne

[Kathryn S.]

Thinking about it, your idea of waiting until it's finished sounds right. Even if your blocks were perfectly square, sometimes the actual quilt isn't (based on my own painful experiences ). I hope you will post a picture of it one of these days, I'd love to see it.
kathy

[Marianne G.]

Thinking about it, your idea of waiting until it's finished sounds right. Even if your blocks were perfectly square, sometimes the actual quilt isn't (based on my own painful experiences ). I hope you will post a picture of it one of these days, I'd love to see it.
kathy

My blocks are anything by square even before I started to quilt them although I was ever so careful when I pieced them I've tried to be very careful when I have basted them pinning them square to the ironing board before basting.
I will post a picture here when it is finish (next year maybe :P ) Thanks for your support Kathy
Marianne