Annie Smith will be teaching:

On Wednesday, January 20th- 3014C – Build Your Own Color Sense

On Thursday, January 21st- 4015C – The 1:10 Quilt

On Friday, January 22nd- 5014C – Aurifil Thread Matters

On Saturday, January 23rd- 6014C – The “A” Word By Machine

And on Sunday, January 24th- 7012C – A Is For Applique

Annie Smith: 40 Years Quilting

Annie Smith was a garment sewest long before she started quilting. In high school, Annie made clothes for herself, her friends, and then her friends’ moms. Quilting was a natural transition. Annie began by making a quilt for her first baby in 1980. Calico and solid cotton/poly blends were all that were available at the time. No one in her family quilted so there wasn’t anyone who could guide her. Annie’s husband bought her a book which taught her how to piece and quilt by hand. Annie pieced those first blocks from her hospital bed when she developed pregnancy complications. Later, she took classes at a local quilt shop to have a night out and she found that she got hooked quickly.

Quilting Influences

Annie says that the quilt book, Quilts! Quilts!! Quilts!!! by Diana McClun and Laura Nownes (former Road to California featured quilters) has had the biggest influence on her quilting. Annie shares, “That book was cutting edge and rocked the quilting world and changed the way we looked at making quilts. The sampler quilt in that book has been made thousands upon thousands of times. That quilt and the techniques from the book are so varied — that if you follow the instructions to make that quilt, you will gain the most whole instruction for making a quilt that you could ever get. The techniques teach you how to make a quilt from A – Z; quick-piecing, hand-piecing, applique, y-seam construction, drafting, mitered corners, and so, so much more. They also included instructions in the book for anyone who would like to teach, as well as a lesson plan – remarkable.” Annie ended up teaching a 12-week class using that lesson plan for over twenty years for hundreds of students.

Annie’s favorite quilting tool is Clover Fork Pins. They allow her to butt her seams, securing them in place as she stitches. She always ends up with perfectly aligned seams and perfect points. “They’re worth their weight in gold.”

Quilting Space

Annie was asked to describe her quilting work area:

“First of all, I’m a dedicated BERNINA girl — six and counting. I downsized my work area when I moved from California to Texas recently, so I’ve had the challenge of making the most out of my space. I use two Arrow Gidget II tables for work surfaces and rely on Ikea pieces for storage and versatility. I have a few cool things that I love in my work area. I repurposed CD racks from Mexico to use for fat quarter and half-yard fabric collections, which makes it so much easier for me to shop in my own stash.

Then, I have a wall-to-wall, floor-to-ceiling design wall that I can’t live without. I have a glass white board that is also magnetic, so I can work out quilt details and diagrams and attached fabrics and photos to the board for easy viewing.

I also love to have familiar and sentimental things around me that keep me grounded: family photos, beautiful artwork, framed pieces from my first book, a tin butterfly from Asilomar, CA.

What the Coronavirus has Taught Her

When everything began shutting down in the United States, Annie was on a teaching trip. The past six months have been the longest she’s been home in over fifteen years! Annie has used this time to “truly organize” her workspace, using cool iPhone apps to catalog fabrics, patterns and books (mainly so she doesn’t re-buy the same thing when she shops!). She has also reformatted her in-person lectures and classes so they can be given virtually via Zoom.

Annie and her husband moved to Texas to be near their kids and while they haven’t been able to see them as much as they would like, they’ve still  been able to do some creative events like a cyber baby shower and helping her grandson with his first day of online-Kindergarten while his mom gave birth to a new baby sister.

The pandemic has taught Annie that “life is even more fragile that we think, that the world can come to a screeching halt overnight, and that we are so much more resilient than we realize.”

Teaching at Road 2021

Annie has been teaching quilt classes since 1984. For twenty years, she worked in Silicon Valley and then would teach classes at night and on weekends. She credits her “experience in my job, training employees in customer service excellence practices and soft skills” for really helping her structure curriculum for her quilting students.

The best part of teaching quilting classes for Annie is meeting new people, many of whom have become dear friends. She loves to nurture people and feels she can learn just as much from them. Annie says that she is really grateful for the students who desire to take classes from her — for, if they weren’t there, she wouldn’t be there either.

Annie hopes her students at Road 2021 will gain self-confidence and realize that they are capable of creating so much beauty. Annie says, “They come into class with so much talent already — and I’m there to assist them in learning something new, and, hopefully, exciting. I love to see the light bulb come on over their head when it all clicks in place — it’s delightful to see!”

Who is Breakwater Fabric?

Housed just a few miles west of the Ontario Convention Center, Breakwater Fabric is a quilt shop specializing in Kaffe Fassett fabrics. Singer Featherweights, Riley Blake and Moda.

Owner Rachel Mayfield has been quilting since 1989. She has a passion for “beautiful fabric and Singer Featherweight machines.” She recalled that she and her husband were once selling Singer Featherweights in an antique shop in Orange County, California. Leaving a quilt shop one day, Rachel was driving in her car and decided that she could open an online quilt shop to sell Featherweights and quilt shop fabric at quilt shows. Combining this desire with her background in accounting and display, “Breakwater Fabric just all came together.” 

Rachel says that she LOVES chatting with the quilters who come into the Breakwater Fabric booth at the various quilt shows they attend. “My customers have become my friends.” Rachel also really enjoys display and she is constantly thinking of creative ways to share new fabrics and notions.

How has Breakwater Fabric adapted during the age of COVID-19? “The biggest change we had to make,’ said Rachel, “was to open an Etsy shop and move all of our online presence to Etsy. This has been great for us”

Coming to Road 2021

Breakwater Fabric can’t wait to see their customers in person again. They “so miss chatting and visiting with the quilt show attendees.” Rachel continued, “I feel like we need to reconnect through our love of fabric and share how we’ve been working on our projects since the Corona Virus Safe at Home recommendations.”

Featured in their booth will be Moda Grunge, Robin Pickens, and FreeSpirit Kaffe Fassett fabrics along with Singer Featherweights in their booth at Road. They will also have some fun antique sewing machine items to share this year.

Road is looking forward to having Breakwater Fabric at Road 2021. To learn more about this online shop, please visit their Facebook Page.

Best Piecing winner for Road to California 2020, Nancy Simmons, won $1,500 from Sponsor, Hannah’s Quilts, for Farm Market Blooms

Meet Nancy Simmons

Pennsylvania resident, Nancy Simmons, began her quilt journey by taking a beginner quilt class at a craft shop thirty years ago in 1990. It wasn’t until 20 years later that she won a blue ribbon for her quilt at a country fair. With that win, she went on to enter a quilt in the Muncy Historical Society Quilt Show the next year where she won 3 awards: Best of Show, Best Machine Quilting, and First Place Wall Hanging. Her prizes were a free quilt appraisal and a framed watercolor print from a local artist. Things sure have changed for winning quilters since 2011!!!  

Farm Market Blooms

Nancy said that Road’s 2020 Best Piecing winner was inspired by the tiny, ½” finished diamonds. The design basis came from Edyta Sitar’s Flower Box Pattern.

Of her winning Best Piecing quilt, Nancy shared, “I especially love antique quilts originating from diamonds. The Lonestar being a favorite. And I love precision piecing…the smaller, the better. The possibilities are endless!”

The quilt took 9 months to complete with a lot of “patience needed for the precision piecing.”

Road to California Winning Entry

Nancy was at home when she found out she had won Best Piecing. She received a message along with a picture of Farm Market Blooms “adorned with that beautiful ribbon. I was so shocked and delighted,” recalled Nancy. She planned to use her winnings for “more fabric and paying for my next quilt retreat. We hope she was able to go before the Coronavirus shutdown!!

Nancy had already began putting the binding on her next quilt design when it was announced she was the Best Piecing winner. She said that “ideas are bouncing around my head for the next one…it will be stars.”

Who is Quilter’s Rule?

Popular Road to California Vendor, Quilter’s Rule, was started in 1983 by Jim and Patricia Simons. They produced the first “fabric gripping” ruler made especially for the quilting industry. This signature ruler was designed to be used with a rotary cutter. Quilter’s Rule has since designed many rulers with the same “fabric gripping” technology.

As their logo says, “We’re more than just rulers!” Quilter’s Rule also manufactures a variety of products including:

• MegaMat pinnable gridded mats, sizes range from 5″ x 7″ to our largest 60″ x 120″.
• A large assortment of Machine Quilting Templates for use by short-arm, mid-arm, and long-arm machines as well as large-throated sit-down machines.
• A host of Specialty Rulers.

Teaching at Road

Patricia Simons is always willing to share product knowledge regarding her company’s rulers and mats. She is easily recognized by her flamboyant hats and her long braid.

A question Quilter’s Rule is often asked is “How do I take care of my rulers, templates and mats?”

Quilt Ruler Maintenance

Patricia says that it is important to shop for durable rulers because they will last longer. Essential features to look for in a durable ruler include:

• Molded instead of cut out of plastic
• Have their lines injected instead of silk screened on
• Have a clear coating protecting their marking instead of just having the ink speed dried.   

Templates

Patricia suggests that templates should be ¼’’ thick if they are going to be used with quilting machines. Thinner templates are best for tracing designs.

Mats

Patricia states that a common problem with quilters is that they don’t understand the durability of cutting mats. She commented that there is a notion that mats are self-healing; that cuts and scratches can magically fill in thus preserving the life of a mat. Patricia points out that because mats are made of non-living materials, there is really no way a scratch or cut can totally disappear. The ability for a mat to last over time is due more to the care that it is shown. Some tips for extending the life of a cutting mat include:

• Only use a rotary cutter with a sharp blade. Dull blades will damage a mat.
• Never push harder with a rotary cutter than is necessary to cut fabric.
• Cutting repeatedly on the same line will erode the mat on that line and cause it to bubble or warp. Move your cuts around.                        
• Wash your mat occasionally with warm soapy water to keep it clean.
• Always store cutting mats lying flat – not rolled up.
• Keep mat away from direct sunlight or excessive heat sources for long period of time.

Thank you, Patricia Simons of Quilter’s Rule, for these great tips. To learn more about Quilter’s Rule, please visit their website.

The Grace Company is one of Road to California’s newest sponsors. Located in Salt Lake City, Utah, they came to Road 2020 to get their name out to more quilters and share their vision of quilting and technology.

The Grace Company is Quality, Value, and Experience  

A leader in the quilting industry for over 30 years, The Grace Company products have not only revolutionized the industry, but they have also given those with a love of quilting “the ability to create masterpieces almost beyond belief.” The Grace Company has become the number one producer of both machine and hand quilting frames. They have also expanded to specialize in quilting hoops, rotary cutting notions and quilting machines, utilizing affordable quilting and technology.

The Grace Company is known for their outstanding leadership in three areas:

Quality– Their machines are built as reliable as any other high-end long arm machine

Value– The Grace Company purposely keeps their prices down by focusing on what is required for an optimal quilting experience, not just convenience.  

Experience– Through customer interaction, The Grace Company relies on customer satisfaction over time to remain relevant and competitive.

Strategic Partners in the Quilting Industry

The Grace Company has teamed up with other well-known quilting brands who together, want to drive the quilting industry forward. These brands include, Handi-Quilter, Bernina and Juki. “We are fortunate to work with all levels of companies to help all levels of users,” shared Nathan Erznoznik, Director of Marketing and Sales for The Grace Company. “We are truly team players as all of us have our company’s best interests in mind. We encourage people to go to other companies if we don’t have what they are looking for. In return, these companies will send people to us who are looking for the best quality for the best value.”  

A Quality Rail System  

Grace Frames are known for the smooth and fluid feel of their track and carriage system. When using a machine quilting frame, a sewing machine sits on a carriage, which rolls back and forth on a track. Grace frames utilize smooth ball bearings in high-quality steel wheels that practically glide along the plastic tracks in the frame.

The value of their quilting frames allows people to get into The Grace Company’s quilting and technology system at half the price of what their competitors charge. They were the first company to offer a midline long arm machine for under $6,000. “We are able to provide the first experience into mid-value long arm machines for our customers,” said Nathan.

Road 2020

The Grace Company was excited to be a new sponsor at Road 2020. Remarked Nathan, “Road has a fantastic location, great crowds and comes at a great time of the year.”

To learn more about this innovative company that combines quilting with technology, visit their website.

Two weeks ago we sponsored a drawing on Facebook for one of our brand new 2021 Fleece Jackets (they actually haven’t been embroidered yet – the picture was the prototype!) To enter the drawing we asked what would you like to see for Road 2021. We got some great feedback, and thought we’d make Matt write a blog and address some of the more frequently asked questions!

Suggestions for 2021 and Beyond

Food & Beverage

One of the top comments was regarding food service at the Ontario Convention Center (OCC). Lots of requests for food trucks, shorter lines and more choices. Once the convention center has reopened with their staff we will directly address your concerns with them. I would personally love to see food trucks at Road! However, the rules working with OCC and convincing the food truck owners that quilters eat (we try and try again) seem to keep them away.

Additionally, another food related question was about bringing your own food into the building. OCC has a strict no outside food and beverage policy allowed. Almost all major convention centers share this policy. It has to do with liability – if you get some sort of food borne illness from your own food, OCC may have a liability (or at least that’s what they tell us.)

Chairs & Seating

We always receive tons of feedback regarding the amount of seating in the building or better stated, the lack thereof. Our hands are tied based on the rules of the Ontario Fire Marshall. We try to maximize the available seating based on what is permitted. Your safety is our #1 priority; therefore we will not place chairs that block egress which tends to be most empty spaces.

Wider Aisles

This is one of my favorites. We cannot make the aisles bigger. Why you ask? The electrical is set up for 10′ booths on 10′ aisles. This forces our footprint on a 10′ aisle since the electrical is in the floor. If we deviated from that, we would have massive trip hazards through the aisles. Unfortunately it is simply not possible.

Scooters, Wheel Chairs & Walkers

We receive lots of comments about mobility devices. According to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) we cannot limit the number of mobility devices or impose restrictions on when the devices can be used in the building.

Special Show Hours

Our current hours are 9 AM – 5:30 PM. In the past 10 years we added 30 minutes in the morning and took away 30 minutes in the evening. We survey our vendors each year to determine when the bulk of their sales occur and then ask them about the hours. In sticking with Road’s history of being a very vendor friendly show we respect the time and labor that our vendors invest in their booths. We will not ask a vendor to be open to a limited audience in the morning or for later crowds when the crowd thins out at the end of the day.

Classes

For 2022 The Grace Company has tentatively agreed to sponsor a third Longarm Room for Road in addition to Handi Quilter and Innova! That means MORE LONGARM CLASSES! We will continue to investigate Machine Embroidery and Ultra Beginner classes (However these classes may make an appearance at Road@Home…..)

COVID-19 & Attendance Capacity

Looking forward to 2021 – we are still awaiting guidance on what the attendance policy will be from the State of California due to COVID-19. I can’t imagine that by January the state will permit Road to operate without limits in place. As this is still a developing situation, we will keep you updated as we know more. Expect to see a big update after the beginning of October.

P.S. – We are optimistically hopeful that COVID will no longer be a concern in January…. But we’re realists too.

Move to a Bigger Building

For the past 6 years we have been investigating the possibility of leaving our home in Ontario California for a larger facility to accommodate our vendors, quilts, and classes under one roof. While we have investigated numerous options, none have met our high standards for Road. Currently, there are no plans to relocate Road, however due to the ever expanding nature of the show, do not rule it out.

Looking Forward

Road@Home

There were some comments regarding zoom classes which you can find at Road@Home. Our goal is to have a vast catalog of classes – one of the largest in the history of Road. There is SO MUCH coming out of Road@Home – make sure you subscribe to our newsletter so you don’t miss a single announcement!

The Return of Roundabout?

A favorite of long time Roadies, Roundabout is an event where teachers and vendors offer short demos of techniques or new products. Will this event be return to a Road to California event near you? Subscribe to our newsletter for more details about Roundabout 2.0!

P.S. I’m pretty sure you will hear about this soon.

Anything I missed?

What did I miss? There were so many comments I know I couldn’t address them all. Comment on the post and I’ll do my best to answer them before I turn the blog back over to the Road staff!

Matt

Jennifer Emry won $1,000 for Blue Window from Sponsor, Wonderfil Specialty Threads at Road to California 2020.

Meet Jennifer Emry

A resident of Arlington Virginia, Jennifer Emry likes to explore the possibilities of turning old quilts into new designs.

Jennifer became a quilter by first, collecting antique and early 20th Century quilt tops during the 1990’s.  She fell in love with the fabrics.  Not too long after, a quilter friend showed Jennifer how to hand quilt. Jennifer began hand quilting on some of the early tops in her collection. It wasn’t long after that she was “off on the journey.”  Along the way, Jennifer said she learned how to turn old quilts into new designs by repairing damaged quilts, straighten crooked work that did not lie flat, and creating what seemed to her, good designs. 

Jennifer has won many awards for turning old quilts into new designs. The first show she entered was the 2011 AQS Lancaster Show.  That same year, two of her quilts were entered and accepted into AQS Paducah Show.  The first prize Jennifer ever won was in 2012 at AQS Grand Rapid. She received first place in the category, Hand Quilted Wall quilts.

The Journey for Blue Window

Jennifer describes her winning Judge’s Choice Quilt at Road 2020, a color and value study using blue fabrics in squares.

Blue Window was started in December 2018. The quilting was finished in April 2019.  Jennifer says that she learned that “inspiration comes from working, not from waiting for inspiration.” Experiencing an artistic block, Jennifer started working with squares of fabric in a square-in-square pattern just to keep sewing.  She says she “loved the calm, simple design.” Jennifer used “black and white photos to adjust the arrangement of the squares until the values were the way I wanted them.”

Winning Entries

Jennifer Emry actually won 2 awards at Road 2020. She first found out that she had received second-place in the category, Modern Abstract, for her quilt, Brush Strokes. She received $750 from Sponsor, Quilters Dream Batting, for this entry.

She didn’t hear about the Judges Award (given by John Flynn) until a few days later because the email announcing her selection, went straight to her junk folder. 

What is Jennifer going to do with her winnings from Road 2020? “I’m banking it until the perfect antique ukulele comes along.”

Thank you, Jennifer Emry, for sharing with the fiber art world how to turn old quilts into new designs.

Laura Heine will be teaching two, all day classes at Road to California 2021

On Monday, January 18^th 1006C – Scarlet, Lady Bug Collage

And on Wednesday, January 20^th, 3003C – Vino! Collage A Glass Of Wine!

Meet Laura Heine

Laura Heine is one of the most popular teachers and vendors at Road to California. She has been sharing her unique collage quilting at Road since 2014.

A native of Montana, this registered nurse gave up a full-time nursing position to open her quilt shop in Billings in 1994 and has “never regretted it.”   Laura is the mother of two grown children – daughter Jenna and son Brandon.  Her best friend is her Labrador, Hannah, who comes to work with her every day.

Laura started quilting over 35 years ago when she was expecting her first child. She took a quilting class so that she could be able to say “I made one quilt in my life.” Laura figured after the baby came, her chances to quilt again would be lost. Not true!! Since then, Laura has made countless quilts and has gone on to be a fabric designer, teacher, author and thread designer.

When she isn’t collage quilting, Laura enjoys glamping— glamorous/luxury camping. She owns a pink 1956 Shasta trailer that she restored. She takes it on all travels that she drives to including every time she teaches at Road to California. It’s always fun to see her pink trailer in the parking lot of the Ontario Convention Center!!

Fiberworks

Laura’s business in Montana, Fiberworks, is a 5,000 square foot shop where “talent, imagination and fun meets fabric, patterns, quilts, threads, and classes.” It supports a community of fiber artists that includes those just starting out, those whose work proudly adorns Fiberworks’ walls, and a delightful rainbow of colors in between. It’s a “quilter’s heaven” where “friends and quilters are invited to just bring your imagination.”

Collage Quilting

Laura’s collage quilts have received world-wide attention! She travels throughout the states lecturing and teaching her collage quilting technique.

Laura is always coming up with new ways to make collage quilts.  Recently she has chosen to collage the entire quilt!  Backgrounds of some of the quilts may appear pieced but they are actually collaged.

The first time Laura came to Road, her most popular collage quilting design was the Paisley Bear Floral Collage.

Over the years, she has expanded her designs to include other animals, insects, florals, and people.

Welcome back to Road to California, Laura Heine and Fiberworks. To learn more about Laura and her company, visit her website.   

First time Road to California quilt contest contestant, Cassandra Beaver, was a double winner at Road 2020. She won Honorable Mention in the Other Large category for Complementary Convergence and she won $2,500 from Sponsor, The Grace Company, for Outstanding Modern Quilt, Lateral Ascension.

A Winning Sewer at an Early Age

Road’s 2020 double winner, Cassandra Beaver, grew up enjoyed watching her Mom sew and quilt. When Cassandra was about four, her mother started teaching her how to sew.  Cassandra finished her first doll/wall quilt when she was eight years old. She continued learning to sew and making quilt projects for the next ten years in 4-H and has been sewing and quilting ever since.

In high school, Cassandra entered the fashion show portion of the AQS show in Paducah.  She recalls that it was a lot of fun meeting so many talented quilters during the show.  Cassandra ended up receiving an award for the best student entry.

As a college student, Cassandra worked in the theatre department costume shop, sewing theatrical costumes and soft props. She continued this work for many years following graduation. Then, in 2014, Cassandra returned to quilting, creating a modern interpretation of a log cabin quilt made using a potholder quilt technique.  That quilt was accepted into the Paducah AQS Show.  

Outstanding Modern Quilt

Lateral Ascension was inspired by Cassandra’s work in the theater department. Says Cassandra, “As a theater designer, I drafted quite a few spiral staircases.  This quilt design is based on the side view of a staircase draft in the very beginning stages. The quilt shows the simplified placement of stair treads prior to adding the handrail and spindles.”

Cassandra first made a mini quilt version of her design concept a couple of years prior to constructing the larger quilt.  She adjusted the proportions and techniques a bit before making the second quilt. She had felt confident with the design before she began the construction process.  Actual construction time was just under two weeks because she was really hoping to get it done in time to enter a show!

Lateral Ascension was the first quilt that Cassandra experimented with combining large stitch hand quilting with machine quilting. The colors of the quilting thread were chosen to add to the design.  Matchstick quilting stitches in a heavier 12 weight thread pull the color of each stair tread out to the edge of the quilt. Cassandra shared, “When you first look at the quilt, the color palette appears quite limited, but when you look more closely, you will see that all primary and secondary colors are represented in the design.”

Double Winner

Cassandra wasn’t able to attend Road 2020, so she depended on Instagram friends to let her know how she fared. She was “stunned” to receive a photo with a ribbon on Lateral Ascension. Then, when she received another picture, this time of Complementary Convergence with a ribbon on it, Cassandra says she “was over the moon!  It’s amazing to win one award, but two was beyond my wildest dreams!”

Future Plans

The prize money for Lateral Ascension was used toward the purchase of a much-needed laptop upgrade.

This double winner had been preparing patterns to be released for wholesale at Spring Quilt Market, which was cancelled due to the Coronavirus. Creatively, she is working on a 100-day project that she started on January 1st and had hoped to have finished by April 9th.  It is a blue and white improvisational log cabin quilt that is constructed entirely from her scrap and stash fabrics.

To learn more about double winner, Cassandra Beaver, please visit her website.

When you don’t want to cut out fabric or when you want to play around with all the variations of a particular fabric, then precut fabric is what you need.

What is Precut Fabric?

Precut fabric is a bundle of fabric cut to a specific size shape. It is often sold as part of a collection so that all the designs work well. Precut fabric includes fat quarters, jelly roll strips, and squares in either 5” charm packs or 10” layer cakes.

Charm Packs are the most popular because they adapt well to quilt making. They are perfect for one- and four-patch blocks, half-square triangles, and lots of other smaller pieced designs.

Jelly Roll Strips are 2-1/2 inches wide and 42 inches long. They are very versatile as they can be used for quilts that specifically calls for strips, as part of strip-pieced blocks (like a rail fence or nine patch) or for sashing and bindings.

Measuring 18” x 22”, fat quarters are generally the most expensive of the precut fabrics, but they also yield the most pieces of fabric when they are cut. It’s important to iron them before cutting to get all the folds out.

Benefits of Using Precut Fabric

When Jenny Doan of Missouri Star Quilt Co. presented her trunk show at Road to California 2018, she shared that she was a huge fan of precut fabric for the following reasons:

They Save Time – Time in cutting out fabric and time in sewing. “It only takes 1-1/2 hours to make a quilt from a layer cake pack,” remarked Jenny.

They Make Matching Fabrics Simple – Jenny told the crowd that she doesn’t “do colors.” She continued, “Being good with fabric is a gift and a talent.” Jenny noted that not many people – including herself – have that talent. She would much rather trust the designers who put the precuts together then her own fabric matching ability.

They Cut Down On The Overwhelm Factor – It’s a lot easier to work with 10 fabric precuts that have been coordinated in to one collection than try to match on your own fabric from 40 different bolts of similar yardage.

Did You Buy Enough?

A problem with using precut fabric is that they are only cut and packaged once. Which means, if you didn’t purchase enough the first time, there probably won’t be any available if you need to go back for more. That’s why it is important to purchase the right amount for the size quilt you are making.

At Road 2018, Jenny introduced the crowd to a handy spiral bound pamphlet that Missouri Start Quilt Co. has published, the Quilter’s Precut Companion. It has everything you would want to know about making quilts using precuts including a chart that explains how many precuts are needed for popular size quilts.

Have you tried using precut fabric in a quilt?