Jelly Stripe Sandwich Quilt

I've had quite a few people ask for a tutorial for my most recent finish of 2014, my rainbow stripe quilt. It was actually pretty quick and simple to put together—I’m fairly confident that as long as you can cut and sew straight lines, you can make this quilt.

Mine measures about 58x64 finished; however, I left out a couple of the colors in my jelly roll and trimmed the size in quite a bit.

I used the Westminster Fabrics Rowan Shot Cotton Jelly Roll, which just happened to be in my stash. I can’t seem to find a link to anyone selling more of them, but you could do this with any jelly roll and it would still look beautiful.

You will need:

-1 jelly roll, or 40 2.5” x 42" strips

-1.5 yards of a solid color for the middle pieces (I used Architextures Crosshatch in White)

-the usual quilting necessities—seam ripper, pins, sharp scissors, a ruler, and rotary cutting matt + rotary cutter. (post on that coming next week)

We are sewing with a standard ¼” seam allowance.

First, cut your solid color into 2.5” x WOF strips. Then cut them in half.

Next is the most complex part—and it really isn’t complex at all. For my quilt, I wanted each “step” to be 2”, but you can change it really simply if you have math skills. I don’t, so I’m going to give you the measurements I used, and you can finish the pattern depending on how many strips you have.

Cut your top strip so one piece is 5” long. This leaves you with another piece 37” long (assuming you have 42” strips, which are standard). Pin your solid color (in my case, white) to each side.

Cut your second strip so one piece is 7” long. This leaves you with another piece 35” long. Pin your solid color to each side.

Cut the third strip so one piece is 9” long. This leaves you with another piece 33” long. Pin your solid color to each side.

I think you can see where I’m going with this—if not, I’ve made a chart you can print out. Just check each strip off as you go to make it even simpler! On the chart, the starred rows are to let you know that the direction will shift. There are two direction shifts in the pattern, even though my quilt only has one. It depends on how many strips you’re using and how wide your fabric is.

Jelly Stripe Sandwich Quilt Checklist by hayleysews

^I should really make a design wall at some point...


I thought of lots of cute ways to quilt this pattern—horizontal lines, stitching in the ditch, FMQing…. Except I am terrible at FMQing. I’m going to work on it this summer, because I feel weird to be a quilter in 2014 who can’t do free-motion quilting. In the end, I decided to send it to my local longarm expert, Kathy (threadbearquilting.com). I picked a cloud pattern, because what goes better with rainbows than clouds?? 

The backing Lizzy HouseDaisy Pearl Bracelets—the new tonal Pearl Bracelets are my favorite. 

I machine-bound this quilt with some green I had in my stash. Rainbows, clouds, sunshine, and grass all in one quilt… Now if only this Michigan weather would start to be as cheerful as my quilt!

If you recreate this, I’d love to see it. Follow me on Instagram (@hayleysews) or email me pictures—hayleysews at gmail.

OH MY GOODNESS.

It's been a full year and a half since I updated this blog... College consumed my life. I wanted to turn this blog into something beautiful, but I just didn't have time last year.

I'll have a few new posts this week and I'm weeding out some of the old posts.

Chalkboard Wall Art

I made this a couple weeks ago and keep forgetting to post it on the blog.

One of my favorite quotes

Awake My Soul lyrics by Mumford and Sons

I went to the local craft store and bought a wooden frame ($2), chalkboard paint ($5), and acrylic paint for the frame ($1). If you want to make your own chalkboard paint, there are plenty of tutorials on pinterest or a quick google search.

 I started out by painting the frame. My walls are plum and light purple, so I chose a vibrant yellow for the frame. It took about an hour to dry.

 Using push pins, I hung the frame on the wall. Using a pencil, I traced the inside of the frame, then removed the frame. (I used push pins because it makes it seem less permanent...and I'm too lazy to hunt for a hammer and nails in the garage).

 I bought Martha Stewart Multi-Surface Chalkboard Paint, though I'm sure the brand does not matter. The directions said to paint at least two layers, letting each layer dry for one hour. I painted three layers. Then, it has to cure for 24 hours.

 (I apologize for the picture quality--my phone decided it wanted to be blurry that day.)

 After it had set for 24 hours, I rubbed chalk all over it, then wiped it off (it said to in the instructions on the bottle, but yours might have different instructions). Then, I hung the frame back up.

Now I can write whatever I want on it (though it usually has something motivational or song lyrics... I'm 18, what would you expect?)

Paperweight by Joshua Radin and Schuyler Fisk

Thanks for reading! I'm going to make an attempt to update this more often. Hopefully I can get a sewing tutorial up, seeing as how the blog's name is Hayley Sews, and not Hayley Paints...

Quote Canvas

Want to make a quote canvas for less than $10? Here's what you'll need:

• Canvas in whichever size you prefer, the ones from any craft store will work.
• Vinyl lettering in the font of your choice (usually located in an aisle near the canvas)
• Acrylic paint
• Toothpicks

First step: (not pictured) Tirelessly search through lyrics and quotes to find something you like enough to put on a canvas. Make sure it's also short enough to fit on a canvas.

Second step: Using vinyl letter stickers, design layout of the quote you prefer.

 Third step: pick out an acrylic paint.

 Fourth step: Paint. I wanted mine to look less sharp, so I finger-painted. This allowed me to get under every letter and let paint go wherever there was a bubble in the edge.

 Fifth step: Allow paint to dry.

 Sixth step: Begin to peel letters off. I used a toothpick and was careful not to puncture the canvas.

In the end, I got a canvas that looked clean but had rough edges. For more clean edges, I would recommend spray painting or using a wide paint brush.