looking for signature quilt ideas
01-04-2013, 05:21 AM
#11
Super Member
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: Kentucky live in WV
Posts: 8,482
Thanks for the tips. I have been curious about using "Sharpie ultra-fine point pens" for signatures. I bought an expensive special quilting pen - it would not write one word. I had not saved my register tape to return the pen. I had always used Sharpie for kids camps, etc. Glad to hear Sharpies work.
I did this one for my DD's wedding last August. Just finished and gave to them at Christmas. Very simple to piece. Having done this three times now, I thought I'd share a couple of tips. Iron your signature block fabric onto freezer paper, then cut the pieces generously oversized. Small pieces can be hard to work with. Draw a line wSharpie ultra-fine point pensith a washout pen that is at least 1/4" inside the eventual seam line. No matter how many times you tell people, somebody ALWAYS writes beyond the margin. This is one time when they really need to stay inside the lines. You may need to remind folks to write on the FABRIC side, NOT the paper side. Also, people are sometimes intimidated by writing on the fabric, I guess they're scared they're going to mess the quilt up, so provide plenty of extra pieces in case they feel the need to start over. You do wind up wasting some fabric this way, but it's well worth it. (There is a block in the quilt pictured that was supposed to be a "mess-up" but the groom's brother didn't throw the piece away, just left it lying on the table with all the other signed pieces. It looked okay to me so I included it in the quilt. I have since been informed of my error. Oh well, it's permanent now!)
Don't know what others may have to say, but I have used Sharpie ultra-fine point pens for mine. I've never yet had a problem and my DD's graduation quilt from 4 years ago is still going strong. She uses/washes it frequently. We'll see if the colors stand the test of time. If you use colors, do avoid the reds, they run (don't ask...) and the yellow and gold tend to fade. I always wash the quilt with Retayne or a dye-grabber sheet a couple of times.
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Don't know what others may have to say, but I have used Sharpie ultra-fine point pens for mine. I've never yet had a problem and my DD's graduation quilt from 4 years ago is still going strong. She uses/washes it frequently. We'll see if the colors stand the test of time. If you use colors, do avoid the reds, they run (don't ask...) and the yellow and gold tend to fade. I always wash the quilt with Retayne or a dye-grabber sheet a couple of times.
[ATTACH=CONFIG]385546[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]385547[/ATTACH]
01-04-2013, 06:32 AM
#12
Junior Member
Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: Boyds, MD
Posts: 255
If you just want signatures, and there are going to be a lot, I would suggest a "bookshelf" quilt. I did something similar for a retiring principal with all the names of people she had worked with. It came out nicely, and I was able to use some of my scraps! If you want people to write things, the other suggestions here would be lovely.
01-04-2013, 08:16 AM
#13
Super Member
Join Date: Sep 2011
Location: Illinois
Posts: 5,372
I made a signature quilt for my brother-in-law who was undergoing a stem cell transplant at the time. It included the signatures of his students, former students, fellow teachers and family members. He loved the outdoors and fishing so I tried to include fabrics that depicted those and quilted animal/bird motifs in the plain squares. I used the freezer paper technique and very fine black pigma markers. Both he and the quilt are still going strong, thank goodness![ATTACH=CONFIG]385774[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]385775[/ATTACH]
01-04-2013, 10:44 AM
#15
Senior Member
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: South Central Missouri
Posts: 333
http://www.quiltinaday.com/freepattern/ This is Eleanor Burns pattern for a signature quilt. Scroll down to the one called Crackerbox. I am making this one right now for a family that lost their home to a fire just before Christmas.
01-04-2013, 11:28 AM
#16
Member
Join Date: Nov 2012
Location: Georgia
Posts: 53
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I made this quilt for a co-worker who had a heart transplant. I ironed freezer paper onto the back of some cream fabric. Then cut the cream fabric into 4" squares and basted 1/4" around the edges of each square. I put everything in a basket with a couple of black pigma pens. Also included instructions to NOT go outside the basted line. Everyone wrote a message and put the square in another basket.
I made this quilt for a co-worker who had a heart transplant. I ironed freezer paper onto the back of some cream fabric. Then cut the cream fabric into 4" squares and basted 1/4" around the edges of each square. I put everything in a basket with a couple of black pigma pens. Also included instructions to NOT go outside the basted line. Everyone wrote a message and put the square in another basket.
01-04-2013, 12:04 PM
#17
Senior Member
Join Date: Oct 2012
Location: Birmingham, Sweet Home Alabama
Posts: 473
Dotti, I don't know the name of the pattern. I had seen it in a book a long time ago but couldn't find it when I wanted to make it. It was called "Woven Ribbons" or something like that. Since I didn't have the pattern, I made it up as I went along. It was really easy. It's basically a rail fence block with the middle "picket" wider than the outer ones and only uses two fabrics for each block instead of 3. I used 3 1/2 by 5 1/2" pieces for the signatures and 1 1/2 by 5 1/2" strips for the "ribbons". (I cut the signature pieces down to size AFTER they were signed.) The blocks finished at 5 X 5". The only trick is in the layout to make sure your pieces are lined up so the "ribbons" go all the way across the quilt. Turning every other block is what gives the woven effect. It was really easy to make. I wish I could find the pattern.
01-04-2013, 06:59 PM
#18
Super Member
Join Date: May 2012
Location: Central Wisconsin
Posts: 4,391
A few years ago I received a "quilt" from my friends as a going away gift. There was a catch: the gift included MY making the quilt! It was a basket with all the fabrics, batting and backing for a quilt, and each one signed the backing fabric using a fabric marker. You could use the idea and have family members sign muslin backing. I do recommend that you make sure they sign inside the areas you plan to use: I lost a few signatures because they were so far away from the majority of names that they wouldn't fit even for a queen sized quilt. The one advantage is that I could put together any top I wanted because the names are on the opposite side. Good luck!
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