Hello all,
I need some help please. I'm a pretty new quilter and I have a king size bed. Most patterns don't come in that size and I have no idea how to enlarge them.

I found what looks like two great patterns that would be a nice next step up in Better Homes & Garden--Quilts and More--Winter 2010--page 82. It's a strip quilt called Line Art (by Holly Hickman). The second one is in McCall's America Loves Scrap Quilts--Winter 2010/11--called Nine-Patch Fondant. It soooo reminds me of my grandma's quilts--yum!

I love both these quilts but I'm afraid to start either one since I don't know how to enlarge the patterns. Could someone please help? I've looked at the calculators . . . I think they're from a different planet! LOL

Any help or suggestions will be greatly appreciated or you may see a bald quilter on here. :-D

Thank you,
Sashing-Sarah709

Sounds like one of the computer quilting programs is a neccesity in you future!

Ohhh I hope not. I'm fresh out of learning curves on computers and the quilt calculator was enough to make my head swim. There has to be some way to do this! LOL I'll just keep trying . . . doh!!!

Thanks for your suggestion , :D
Sashing-Sarah709

I'm no help, being pretty new to this whole thing myself, but I had to peak at the quilts! Love them both! I've been thinking of a twin quilt similar to the Line Art Quilt myself.

I am thinking the nine patch quilt would be the easier to enlarge. But I'm wondering if you would have to piece colored strips to get the desired effect on a king sized version of the line quilt? Just thinking "out loud." Someone will come along with some great advice!

Couldn't you just add another row of it across & down, to enlarge it? And you can always add more borders. See the size of the blocks they used, & the width of any borders, measure the bed, & go from there. I am not good quilt calculators either, but I just keep adding to a pattern, to enlarge it, or taking some away to make it smaller. Works for me!...

Hi fellow newbie of the quilt world. Yea!!! I know what you mean--it's a great looking quilt! I've collecting pastel butterflies and flower prints to go with my white muslin. Well that is if I can figure out how darn many strips I need! LOL I'll show pics if I can get them done. :-D

Sashing-Sarah709

you mainly want enough blocks to fit the top of the mattress. then borders to hang over a minimum of 14 inches. most patterns can be altered this way. you usually just need to make more blocks than the pattern suggests.

is this the first one?
http://myolivebranch.wordpress.com/2010/11/
second
http://www.mccallsquilting.com/mccal..._Patch_Fondant

Yes this is the first quilt I've done from a pattern. I've only done two patchwork quilts otherwise without any patterns. Gulp . . . it's scary since I'm teaching myself at this point. :shock: LOL

Wish me luck!
Sashing-Sarah709

Thanks Nancy,

Good advice. :-D I'm just nervous about doing that with either of these since it's an actual pattern rather than patchwork. I really don't want to get it messed up and like I said--the calculator results would've covered my whole city block! LOL I'm sure the calculator is fine...it's the operator that I wouldn't trust with an abacus!! LOL

Thanks again,
Sashing-Sarah709

You could draw it on graph paper. Scale it to (for example) one square for
one inch and make it as big as you want your quilt to be. Make sense?
I do it all the time on spreadsheet but when it's on point I would probably
use graph paper.

add more blocks to make it the size you need.

Just a suggestion....make a small version of your quilt rather than jump into a king size as your first project. I have seen many beginners lose their confidence when tackling a large quilt so early on.

this would be my advice also unless you can find someone with an EQ program that can help you.

I don't increase the block size, I increase the number of blocks. If a double asks for 30 blocks (5x6) and I want it larger, I go 8x9 making 72 blocks for the kingsize. I realize it sounds like alot more work, and it is. The other option is adding sashing between all your blocks,but, that tends to loose the effect of the pattern at times. This is just my method. Probably someone on here has an easier solution, so I'll be watching also.

I agree with k9dancer especially if this will be your first quilt.

That being said - I would increase the number of blocks in the quilt to alter the size. Just a reminder, however, once you increase the size of your quilt, your borders will be longer and need more fabric. Good Luck.

Good idea. I'm going to play around with this. Thanks! :D

Sashing-Sarah709

Don't enlarge a block.
Look at the block size and figure out how many more will be needed to get to King-sized.
It may only be needed for width, quilt lengths are usually around 80" so if it's that or more on your pattern you'll just add blocks for width.
The other thing not to do is add additional borders - will ruin the design. Rest assured, had the designer wanted more borders, she'd have included them.

the above suggestions to add a row, or blocks is the way to go...whenever i want to enlarge a quilt, i just another row, or two, to the side or bottoms, and yippee, there is a bigger quilt.........good luck with those two quilts, they are gorgeous.....gina

My thoughts exactly.

I've thought about your suggestion and I think your right. I'm going to make the quilt by the directions so I can see how that goes before I make changes. As you mentioned--it can be a deal breaker if you start a too advanced project when your a beginner. I started a crazy quilt two and half years ago and it's only 2/3 done. I found the instruction online and they touted just how fast and easy it was to make one. Wrong!!! Gerrrr.... The instructions assumed people using the pattern would already know all kinds of things from adding the quarter of an inch seam allowance and other things only an experience quilter would know. Gaw!!! I’ll finish it someday but right now I’m sick of working on it. :roll:

Well thanks for your suggestions and thoughts. Nothing like listening to the voice of experience! :-D

Sashing-Sarah709

I also have a king size bed. I make twin/lap quilts about 73x90 and lay them across the top of the bed like a coverlet. I have a plain bedspread that will go with many colors of quilts so I can change the bed top as I make new quilts. I find that it is easier, cheaper and quicker to make twin size quilts.

I've thought about your suggestion and I think your right. I'm going to make the quilt by the directions so I can see how that goes before I make changes. As you mentioned--it can be a deal breaker if you start a too advanced project when your a beginner. I started a crazy quilt two and half years ago and it's only 2/3 done. I found the instruction online and they touted just how fast and easy it was to make one. Wrong!!! Gerrrr.... The instructions assumed people using the pattern would already know all kinds of things from adding the quarter of an inch seam allowance and other things only an experience quilter would know. Gaw!!! I’ll finish it someday but right now I’m sick of working on it. :roll:

Well thanks for your suggestions and thoughts. Nothing like listening to the voice of experience! :-D

Sashing-Sarah709

Take a class from your LQS. They may seem expensive but they will teach you the basics of quilting. You will save in the long and short run in time and mistakes that you make when trying to learn on your own.

This also sounds like good advice too. I tell ya, when I start add to this and then adding to that . . . I get sooo nervous! LOL I've had to add to clothing patterns before and boy it was a crap shoot if the garment would fit like I thought it would. LOL

This is the nicest place on the earth with so many good folks. Thanks to everyone for your suggestions and help. Makes a newbie feel welcomed and ready to start the task ahead! :-D

Sashing-Sarah709

Wow what a good idea! There are a few quilts I like that would be perfect for doing the same thing and it would help with learning more styles of quilts. Then maybe later I could branch out to king size on a few special quilts. Outstanding idea bigsister63. Man I love this place!!

Thank you bigsister :-D
Sashing-Sarah709

A woman after my own heart! LOL I agree that after thinking about it--I really am not ready to do "do the math" yet. Plus I think for this quilt, the extra borders would take away from the old fashioned feel of the quilt. There are other patterns I think would look nice with more or larger borders though.

You know, after getting all this good imput--I think I'm ready to start this project. :-D

Thank you so much,
Sashing-Sarah709

Okay, I checked out photos of both patterns.

LINE ART: The reason this pattern works so well for a large lap, twin, double or queen is that the width of the fabric is 42" and one full strip of 42" goes a good way across the bed type. To "convert" it to a king you'd need to piece each strip from two strips of the same fabric and trim it - now this is easy to do (especially if you're using two ready-made "jelly rolls"!) and has the added benefit that the leftover strips can be used for shams, throws or even a bed topper. (Bed topper? Think table runner for the foot of your bed - a "touch of quilt" as it were. They're usually about 24" wide and the width of a "properly fitted" bed quilt ... LOTS of leeway here for doing your own thing!) Also, for a beginner, this would be the "fix" with the least amount of cutting and assembly time and heartburn constructing it.

NINE PATCH FONDANT: This would entail a LOT more sewing since the cutting, piecing and assembly is more complicated than LINE ART. If you are still set on a king-size quilt, then enlarge the blocks so you don't scare away your confidence or lose steam. I'd cut 12" squares of a lot of scraps, lay one "light" square on top of one "dark" or "medium" square and cut the pair at the same time into 9 equal (4x4) squares, then assemble the 9-patch blocks. For the setting triangles along the sides of the quilt and corner triangles (if they're used in this quilt), use this weblink for calculating the sizes to cut and the "how-to."
http://quilting.about.com/od/quiltse...ngtriangls.htm

BED TOPPERS: Go to your local library and request through the interlibrary loan program "Toppers" and "Toppers 2" by Nancy Smith and Lynda Milligan. Check out the patterns without buying the books. Lots fo fun stuff here, and not too complicated.

I've never done a quilt by a set pattern but I did run in to this problem with my short-arm at the last place I lived I could only have it twin sized and I have a king bed so I made two twin extra longs and put them together. I suppose it could work the same for you as long as you don't add the edging in the middle.
Hope that helps, sounds very frustrating.