Liberty Of London Blog Hop... And Tutorial!

Hi! It's my stop today on the Westwood Acres Liberty of London Blog Hop! Amanda asked if I'd like to come up with a project idea using the beautiful Liberty of London tana lawn fabric, and I, of course, said yes! Who wouldn't?!

Westwood Acres has a Liberty of London Club where they curate 10 piece bundles of Tana Lawn each month for a year. Click the link for more info on the club and build your Liberty of London stash!

I've never worked with lawn before, but having worked at quilt shops for the past five years or so, you tend to learn how to teach people about things you have little experience with. So I knew you should use a smaller, sharper needle with tana lawn because of the weave. A 70 microtex sharp needle was my weapon of choice, and it worked beautifully. Although honestly, working with the lawn was a dream... it's more delicate, yes, but it really doesn't need too much special attention. You know, aside from the smaller, sharper needle hehe

Amanda sent me a beautiful bundle of 20 fat eighths, and after starting at this loveliness for ages, I decided to make a log cabin quilt for my project, and pair the beautiful Liberty prints with a black and white Heath print. (The latter is no longer widely available, but Sketch would be a wonderful substitute if you'd like to have your quilt look like mine.)

You'll notice that it's not quilted. That's because I'm a severe derp and hurt my back somehow. I say somehow because I don't know how it happened. All I know is that I look like an old lady, hobbling away. It'll be quilted once I'm feeling better, promise!

Anyway, on to the tutorial!


Liberty Log Cabin Quilt
Finished quilt size: 52.5" x 63" (Finished block size: 10.5")

Materials
20 piece fat eighth bundle of Liberty fabric
1/8 yard for centre squares
1 5/8 yards background fabric
3 1/4 yards backing fabric
1/2 yard binding fabric

Cutting
From each Liberty fat eighth, cut:
3-4 strips, 2" x 26"
(Edited to add: Liberty of London fabrics run longer than the normal quilting cotton, hence the 26" length on the fat eighth)

From the Liberty strips, cut:
30, 2" x 3.5"
30, 2" x 5"
30, 2" x 6.5"
30, 2" x 8"
30, 2" x 9.5"
30, 2" x 11"

From fabric for centres of blocks, cut:
2 strips, 2" x WOF

From the two strips, cut:
30 squares, 2" x 2"

From the background fabric, cut:
26 strips, 2" x WOF

From the 26 strips, cut:
30, 2" x 2"
30, 2" x 3.5"
30, 2" x 5"
30, 2" x 6.5"
30, 2" x 8"
30, 2" x 9.5"

Block Assembly

All 30 log cabin blocks will be put together in exactly the same way, and will each require these 13 pieces -- one centre piece, six of the sub-cut print fabrics, and six of the sub-cut background fabrics.

Start with the centre fabric and a 2" x 2" background piece. Press to one side and trim as you go along.

Sew the 2" x 3.5" background piece.

Continue with the Liberty prints, and sew the 2" x 3.5" Liberty piece.

Then sew the 2" x 5" Liberty piece, and there you have your first row of 'logs'. It should measure 5" square (unfinished).

Tips!
1. If you feel like your blocks aren't coming up square or measuring what they're supposed to, try using a scant 1/4" seam allowance, especially if you tend to press your seam to one side.

2. If you ever get lost for where you're supposed to sew the next piece on, it's the side with the two perpendicular seams facing the edge :) And in my case, I kept going in a clockwise direction.

Continue sewing on the background pieces, then the Liberty pieces to finish your second row, and it should measure 8" square (unfinished).

Continue with the third and final row, and your unfinished block should measure 11" square.

Make 30 blocks. I'm a huge fan of chain-piecing and making several blocks together, usually between four and six at a time.

Quilt Assembly
1. Arrange the blocks in six horizontal rows of five blocks each.
2. Sew the blocks together in rows, and press the seam allowances in alternating directions from row to row. Sew the rows together and press the seam allowances in the same direction or open.

I'll get this quilted soon enough... I might add more rows, so don't be surprised if the finished quilt is larger than this!

If you'd like to follow along (or go back and see what others have posted...) to see all the awesome project ideas, here are links to the other blogs!

February 24th: Kick Off! A Crafty Fox
February 25th: Astrid at Red, Red Completely Red
February 26th: Svetlana at Sotak Handmade
February 26th: Andy at A Bright Corner
February 27th: Chase at Quarter Inch Mark
March 1st: Emily at Simple Girl Simple Life
March 2nd: Ashley at Film In The Fridge
March 3rd: Lee at Freshly Pieced
March 4th: Audrie at Blue is Bleu
March 5th: Amanda at A Crafty Fox