Okay, I hope this works! This is an auction quilt that I put together with the assistance of my 8th grade students this year. The "flakes" are actually their names and their favorite things -- really! We called them Nameflakes instead of snowflakes. They first made them out of paper then I gave them squares of black fabric that had fusible web on the back of it. They opened out their paper flakes and secured them to the black fabric block. Then they had to cut out the spaces. Their next task was to fuse the completed black flake onto their choice of fabric. They all seemed to gravitate towards brights, and I think the colors worked out pretty well. My job was to stitch the flakes (on every edge of the flakes!!) so they would be secure, put the blocks together, put the quilt sandwich together, and then have them tie the quilt. I certainly would have preferred that the quilt be quilted, but they wanted to have a bigger part in its construction. I wanted them to be able to do as much as they could so the item would be their work, too. One of the girls in the class won it. Sorry that it's sideways, but I couldn't get my software to cooperate to rotate it. :oops:

Patty

It looks sort of Celtic.

What a clever idea - it's very striking and attractive.

very pretty and unique your students should be proud of themselves.

Nameflakes - wonderful! What a great project - and it's beautiful.

How did you translate the letters into these shapes?

What a great project for your class. It turned out beautiful. You should be very proud.

You are a wonderful teacher. Your students will remember your class forever.

Wonderful! They will never forget having created this quilt, either. :thumbup:

What a neat project. Great quilt!

What a neat project. Great quilt!

I'm glad you like it. They loved it! They couldn't believe that it turned out so well. They all wanted to win it at the auction. They told the student who did win the quilt that she had to bring it in so they could take turns wrapping themselves up in it!

In order to make the flakes they folded their paper the same as for making a snowflake then drew whatever style letters they liked on the paper. Some chose bubble letters and others more of a block style. Once the paper is opened (just as you would do a snowflake) the letters are connected in most places. For example, the "fancy" one on the purple background reads: Rebecca Kerby. I think it's probably my favorite one. The one right next to it on the pink background is also hers. They are cameras because she likes to take pictures.

Believe it or not there were supposed to be three of these quilts, but the other two classes did not complete their paper nameflakes and turn them in by the deadline I had set. Oh, well. Lesson learned for them. They were so disappointed once they saw the finished 8th grade quilt. If I were to do another quilt -- or quilts -- next year, I'm sure they won't miss the deadline again! :lol:

You have some pretty talented students and making a quilter in the making! What an awesome project, I would have loved participating in a project like this while in school. Great job on the quilt from beginning to end!!

Very cool!

Oh My goodness you certainly had your work cut out for attaching all the name flakes down :shock:

And the memories you gave the students will last them a lifetime. And the lucky winner will always have her friends with her :mrgreen:

awesome

Welcome, waving from Indiana, USA

Wow- this is so amazing looking. Love the "flakes"
I did a quilt once with my daughter's second grade class when we lived in Canada - the school was named after an explorer -so I did a pen and ink drawing of him as the first square- the kids did squares of things pertaining to explorers and Canada. They fabric colored on white fabric - beavers, trees, maple leaf, moose etc, the last square was a pen and ink of the school itself. We sashed it in the school colors. I brought in a small hand crank sewing machine and the kids put the first sashing piece on their own square. For the label on the back it had one inset square that all the kids signed. I borowed a pvc pipe quilt frame and all the kids got to help tie it. We presented it to the principal who had no inkling that one of the classrooms had been doing this for several months. He had it mounted behind plexi glass and hung in the lobby of the school I assume it's still there. (my daughter just turned 27). The kids were so proud of their work. Wish I had a picture. Might have to send for one.

That is truly beautiful! Although I have to admit that I cannot make out a single letter, name, or image. They look like abstract snowflakes to me!

Very nice!

Wow, that turned out wonderful. I am not sure if maybe our church youth group might be interested in this type of project. To clarify, when they put their name on the block did the letters touch or did they leave a space between? I assume that they wrote their name in any direction they wanted it to go.

Great quilt! Hope you inspired lots of new generation quilters.

WOW!!! You and your students made a stunning quilt!!!
What a great idea, and so creative, too :D:D:D

That's amazing and so beautiful.

Thanks for showing this to the kids. That is one way to make sure the art of quilting goes on!

WOW :thumbup:

very good idea, excellent work by both you and your students.

Take a square of paper. We used printer/copy paper. Fold it into a square. Then fold the square into a triangle, fold that into a triangle, and fold that into a triangle. You will end up with one fold along one side and the other folds "stacked" up on the other side. The letters must touch the single fold, but do not need to touch the "stacked" folds, but they can if that is how you choose to draw your design. Is this making ANY sense?? :? Cut all around the outer edges of the letters, but be very careful not to cut between them. The flakes won't hold together if you cut between the letters. Cut out any openings in letters (i.e. the opening in the letter "P") I've even made nameflakes using script/cursive letters -- really pretty done this way!! :thumbup:

I was thinking I could post pictures of the process if anyone would want me to do that. I just made a nameflake (Patty) using simple bubble-shaped letters. I worked from the open end of the triangle to the pointed end. The design would come out quite differently if I work in the other direction (i.e. pointed end to open end). There are sections in it that look like little hearts. I used uppercase letters. Any style letter would work. Some come out so intricate, others a bit boxy, and still others are a little jagged. I had one of my other students draw an island with a palm tree in the middle -- too cute! Unfortunately, that class missed the deadline for the flakes. A few students had to use manicure scissors to cut out the really small spaces in their designs. The more intricate the design the more tedious the process. All of my students were very pleased with the results of their nameflakes. I actually created "monsters" becaues they became quite addicted to making them. The 7th grade class read Treasure Island this year, and one of the girls made a nameflake of the title! It was beautiful and hung in the classroom for a couple of months.

I hope you understand a bit better about the process. Let me know if you would like pics of the steps involved.

Patty 8-)

Yes please on the pics.
Thanks,
Lori

The key -- from left to right then top to bottom:
flower (the flower is not the "o" in the word flower -- it's simply a flower between a couple of the letters), Andrew, cameras (images of them), Rebecca Kerby, reading (also has open books with ribbon bookmarks sticking out of the binding), Megan, Lisa, Family (the word family), Joanna, love dogs (a heart and dog in each section), cooking, Jessica.

I agree that they are difficult to see the name or design -- except for the cameras. Most of them really do look like interesting snowflake designs. One method we used when looking at the black flakes was to section off the name or design with our hands. We angled our hands to make an open triangle and placed them on either side of the name or design. Remember that one side is right-side-up, and the other side is the mirror image. 8-)

We're glad you like our little quilt.

wish I was in your class. I think that they are probably old enough to do some actual quilting on it if you start the project at the beginning of the school year.

Welcome to the board from Southern California!!!!
Great quilt!! What a wonderful project for your students!!

I would love to see the blocks the kids made up close. Is that possible? The quilt is absolutely incredible!

I love the quilt!! It is truly unique! I would love to see a tutorial for the nameflakes. You know one picture is worth a thousand words!!

Ditter

As soon as I can I will post a tutorial. I've asked my student who won the quilt to bring it in tomorrow so I can take some close-up pics of the flakes. Once I put a paper border around the name/design, you will be able to see the name/design.

I will be putting together directions for making the flakes, too. Things are a bit hectic right now. They have two more full days of school and then start their final exams on Tuesday. The last day of school is June 11. Grades aren't due until June 16, but I will be attending a conference in Durham, NC so will head for my mom's house in the southwest corner of Virginia for a few days before heading to NC. Lots of driving ahead of me! :shock:

We're glad you like our little quilt! :wink:

What a great idea!

Very cute. Hi and welcome from St. Louis, Missouri

Beautiful quilt. Thanks for sharing

Cool!

The students followed their teacher's instructions and the result is stunning. Great job, teacher!

It is so nice to see a teacher get so involved with her students. The quilt is beautiful and the meaning of it (class project) even more.
Karen

That is such a neat idea. I did one of the hand prints of my daughter's first grade class. Each class was to come up with a project that could be in a silent auction to raise money for their school. It is a Christian School. I had just a few days to put it together and get it in the mail. I live in Ohio and I had to send it to Texas. One of the mothers whose daughter was in the class made a bid of $500.00 . I am sure her mom wanted to donate that amount to the school. Her daughter will have the hand prints of all her classmates to share with others when she is older. Your quilt is so beautiful. Thank you for sharing it with us.

Don't you just love awesome teachers. They are very blessed to have you as a teacher. Truely great teachers are hard to come by. I was blessed with three truely gifted teachers and I still think about them.
Your project turned out beautifully and I'm sure that if you continue the tradition you will be blessing alot of children.