for traditional quilt patterns? We've discussed the copyright stuff until we were all blue in the face. I'm pretty sure that "Stairway to Heaven" is old enough that it may not still have a copyright on it.

Do you know a place to go to find a pattern for this quilt? I know the basic way to put it together, but I'm looking for perhaps a shortcut or help on the layout itself.

I googled it and all I could find was the quilting cats Stairway to Heaven with appliqued cats and 9-patches thrown in too.

Any ideas?

Big Book of Building Block Quilts
http://softexpressions.com/software/books/BigBkBuildBlocks.php
I see that it's listed in the book above, page 49...maybe that would help in your search. Is it known by other names?

Is this it? http://www.craftmailbox.com.au/PDFs/...n_Can_Wait.pdf

I have no idea when this block was created. Stairway to Heaven is easy to look at, but hard to describe. I'll try to explain it this way. W=White R=Red B=Blue. Here is the layout. Pretend all 3 colors are all solid and using one piece per color. Also, each individual block is one square of any size of fabric. For this example let's pretend our squares are 6 1/2 ".

R W B R W B R W B R W B R W B
W B R W B R W B R W B R W B R
B R W B R W B R W B R W B R W
R W B R W B R W B R W B R W B
W B R W B R W B R W B R W B R
B R W B R W B R W B R W B R W

Basically, you go in the same order across, but start in a different place each row. When finished, no two squares of the same color will be next to each other or on top of each other. ALL the squares will be the same color on the diagonal.

I don't know if it has another name either. I wouldn't even know where to begin researching something like that!

Does this help at all?

Finally got the PDF file to load. That is NOT it. That particular quilt pattern looks very scary.

I know a friend of mine when I was in OK made some....I may have to get a phone and call her. My only issue is that she's hard of hearing and I don't want to have to yell. Perhaps I could write her a letter in a card or something.

I think the easiest way that I would do it, now mind you...I'm doing this in my head.
Take the strips of the fabric, sew 3 or 4 side by side. Then cut to the size you are wanting. Almost like making a Borgella type.

Example....
R strip
W strip
B strp
Sew those together, then cut. That would give you 3 blocks
Then, just sew into a strip of
R W B R W B
and then keep doing the same.
The next row, you would start with
W
B
R
Does this make sense?

Hey Melissa! :) Is this it? :) :) :)

http://www.quiltville.com/streakofsunshine.shtml

And here's another one, but dif layout:

http://quilterscache.com/S/StreakofLightningBlock_Page2.html

Trying to download the two layouts. While they are downloading, I thought I'd tell you what I learned today. I explained the layout to one of my quilting buddies here, and she thinks that it is a variation on the "Around The World" pattern.

She thinks all the pieces could be strips instead of squares and all sewn together. Then she said to make a tube and sew it that way and then cross cut. I was rather confused but she said to google "Around the World" patterns and I should find a strip piecing instruction or two.

What do you guys think?

p.s. Great to see you Barb!

I downloaded those two layouts. Streak of lightening is VERY close, just about the same thing. Streak of sunshine is similar, but more different than the other.

I think the easiest way that I would do it, now mind you...I'm doing this in my head.
Take the strips of the fabric, sew 3 or 4 side by side. Then cut to the size you are wanting. Almost like making a Borgella type.

Example....
R strip
W strip
B strp
Sew those together, then cut. That would give you 3 blocks
Then, just sew into a strip of
R W B R W B
and then keep doing the same.
The next row, you would start with
W
B
R
Does this make sense?[/quote]

Yes that does make sense. This is one of the reasons quilting comes so slow to me. I have to dissect stuff and draw it out before it makes an ounce of sense to me.

Melissa, the streak of sunshine one is done tube style, and it's similar to trip around the world. Hope something works good for you for this :)

here's one pdf for you hope it's the right one?! HUGS, Julie
http://www.berninausa.com/media/knowledgebase/projects/pdf/prj0012_6d8.pdf

Barb, would there be VERY EXPLICIT instructions on the "tube style" somewhere??

Ladies,

I emailed a couple friends of mine who have made this exact pattern before. I drew it out on graph paper and color coded it and everything. I'll be using 5 1/2 inch strips to make this quilt. I've calculated the yardage. Sewing it together may be a bit of a challenge, I don't really understand the whole "tube" thing.

I also saw that Wally World had exactly the fabric I wanted. Red, White, Blue and a multi-American Flag print. I'll be putting their Department of the Army for the backing, binding and perhaps some pillow cases.

The quilt will be fore my step-son who is and MP in the Army and was just sent to Iraq last weekend for 18 months. I hope I can have his quilt done before he gets back!

M

Maybe I can help. Sew your strips together. Take the first strip and sew it to the last strip. This is what makes the tube. After that lay it on your cutting mat and cut across the tube and then you have what looks like rings. Just unpick the seam allowance and you have a strip.Does that help make it any clearer? Hope so.

Wow Vicki! I totally understood that. I didn't realize there would be a bit of unsewing involved. It's easy to understand when explained like that. I believe the light has just turned on!!!

M

Until I read it I didn't relize it was possible to strip piece this pattern because of it having to be staggered. I thought you had to just sew all the blocks together or make a zillion set of strips. So I learned something today besides how much I don't want to work and how much I want tobe home sewing.

I just wanted to let you know that I'm posting the pics from the Stairway to Heaven, as I go, on a different thread. It's called Stairway To Heaven Part II.

I've gotten a lot done and am now ready to sew the "tube". I wanted to thank everyone so much for their invaluable input.

M

I finished the Stairway to Heaven top tonight. I've been working on it since July, it just got moved around a bit since then. Happy to say it's finished. Since it was on my list to finish in 2009, I'm putting it in the What's Next in Pictures thread. I thought since you were nice enough to help me, I'd bump this up so you could see the finished top.

http://www.quiltingboard.com/posts/list/15284.page