Hello, quilting enthusiasts, today it’s finally time for me to introduce you to my “Sail-away-with-me” quilt and invite you to my first quilt-along with BERNINA. We’ve been working on this gem for quite a while, me mostly on my sewing machine, and I can tell you: it was a real pleasure.
Cast off! Are you ready to Sail away with us?
Of course, our Quilt-Along is not called Quilt-Along, but … Sail-Along.
Are you with us? Then welcome aboard our fantastic Sail-Along.
What all will we be sewing and what’s in store for you?
As you may know, I love foundation paper piecing (FPP). It’s a quilting technique that allows for very precise, detailed sewing while being, I think, relatively easy. There is no need to precut fabric and no need to pay attention to the grain of fabric. You sew on paper, which is the foundation. Hence the word foundation paper piecing. The finished quilt block is created on the reverse side.
I am excited to introduce you to the sewing technique of Foundation Paper Piecing as part of the Sail-Along. I know many shy away from it because it is supposedly so complicated. However, the Sail-Along is designed so that even beginners can participate. We start with the easier blocks and gradually increase. As part of the Sail-Along, there will be some instructional videos where I show the procedure step by step. The Sail-Along is suitable for FPP-beginners as well as for ‘sailors’ who are familiar with all FPP-waters!
You’ll learn how to glue patterns together, the best way to lay them out, tricks for sewing and assembling each pattern piece accurately, and much more.
By the end of this Sail-Along, hopefully you’ll love Paper Piecing as much as I do, and it will come super easy to you.
Our quilt contains a total of 17 FPP quilt blocks. Some are included twice. We have a total of 9 different designs.
Just so you can estimate the amount of time it will take and see that it’s totally doable, most of the blocks in this quilt will take you about 1.5 hours to sew. Only the big sailing yacht needs more time.
For embroidery fans, there will be free embroidery patterns based on the designs from the quilt blocks – the dolphin and starfish and the sailing yacht. You can use the motifs, for example, to embroider the quilt label on the back of your quilt.
The fabrics
For this quilt, I used a new fabric line from Riley Blake Designs. It is called “Hoist the Sails” and is by Rachel Erickson. This fabric series is absolutely adorable for our nautical quilt pattern. It gives you lots of options for fussy cutting. If you want to learn more about fussy cutting, you can find a blog post on the subject here on my website.
You will find the fabrics for this ‘Sail along’ at your local Quilt shop, or at your favorite online dealer. It’s best to order as soon as possible, so you’ll have everything ready when the blog post for the first block comes out in three weeks.
The Quiltmanufaktur Frankfurt has fabric kits and delivers to Germany, Austria and Switzerland. Do you live elsewhere? Then contact the fabric dealer or quilt store in your area as mentioned above. Of course you can also participate in the Sail-Along with other fabrics. You are totally welcome to use your own fabric stash and color combinations. I’m excited to see your own creations and fabric choices.
An additional blog post will be published on Sunday, in which I will inform you in detail about the amount of fabric needed and the other material requirements. Of course all fabric requirements are also mentioned in the ‘Sail away with me’ quilt pattern.
The pattern – (with discount code)
To participate in the Sail-Along you will need the pattern for the “Sail away with me” quilt.
The pattern consists of 9 different foundation paper piecing quilt blocks and 55 4.5″ squares. The following blocks are included:
- the sailing yacht
- the small sailing ship
- the happy boat
- the small steamboat
- the big steamboat
- the dolphin
- the orca
- the shark
- and the starfish
You can get the complete pattern here on my website:
The purchase of the pattern is needed for participation. With the code SAILAWAYWITHME all Sail-Along-enthusiasts get a 15% discount.
You can use the discount code even if you are not participating in the Sail-Along.
Here is the Sail-Along schedule
The Sail-Along blog posts will be published on the dates below, each on a Thursday – so you have time to sew over the weekend. You can follow our schedule and sew the blocks step by step. You can also work on your own schedule and join the Sail-Along later.
Below is the itinerary of our quilting trip together. Before we start on 23.03. with the first block, there will be additional info this Sunday:
- 05.03: You’ll get exact details on fabrics and other materials – and there will be a starting raffle with great prizes!
- 23.3.2023 (ok, that’s the most beautiful date this year 😊) : We’re going to start sewing starfish. You’ll get a step-by-step tutorial that’s perfect for FPP beginners. There is also a video with detailed sewing instructions.
- 30.3.2023: We’ll sew the little sailboat.
- 20.4.2023: We’ll sew the dolphins.
- 27.4.2023: This week’s program is the shark.
- 4.5.2023: We sew the happy boats.
- 11.5.2023: We are sewing the orcas.
- 18.5.2023: This week we are sewing the little steamboat.
- 25.5.2023: We are sewing the large steamboat.
- 1.6.2023: We are sewing the sailing yachts.
- 8.6.2023: We cut the squares and join the quilt blocks.
- 15.6.2023: We’ll be sewing the border to the quilt. We will also have the big final draw. Show us pictures of your work no later than 7/14!
- 20.7.2023: Announcement of the winners
You can share this button on social media
Are you joining us? Raise the anchor, hoist the sails, tighten the sheets and show everyone on social media that you are on board for the Sail-Along! You can use the following button to do so. Please use the hashtag: #sailawaywithmequilt in all posts on social media. We will then see your posts on Instagram and Facebook.
Of course there is also a raffle
More precisely:
There are two raffles! With the blog post on fabric requirements, which will be published next Sunday, 05.03., you get the first chance to win great prizes, including a large thread case from Mettler. So be sure to check out on the BERNINA blog post next Sunday.
In the summer, when all the quilt tops are finished and the binding is done, we will have another raffle. You don’t have to sew the “best” quilt. I just want you to have a beautiful “sail-away-with-me” quilt finished by summer, hopefully you learned a lot and, most importantly, you had fun sewing it. The lucky winner of our draw will be chosen at random.
BERNINA is providing two possible grand prizes.
Other prizes to be won are:
- Fabric bundle: Fat quarter bundle of “Hoist the Sails” by Riley Blake Design.
- Three patterns from Joe, June and Mae worth EUR 7.90 each.
- 2 18-piece kits Silk-Finish Cotton by Mettler (one each for the readers of the German and the English blog).
I hope you are as excited as I am. I look forward to seeing everyone who participates.
How to enter
To enter the giveaway, post a picture showing your finished quilt top by 7/14/2023.
Here are the conditions
Your quilt top should have been sewn in its original size following the instructions in the Sail-Along. You are free to choose fabrics, colors and materials. Binding is not required, nor does the quilting have to be completed. Entry into all raffles is by posting the picture on Instagram or Facebook. Remember to use the hashtag #sailawaywithmequilt!
If you don’t have an Instagram or Facebook profile, you can enter by uploading pictures of your quilt to the Community section of the BERNINA blog. When uploading to the community area, don’t forget to select the “Sail-Along” line in the drop-down list under “Participate”:
The winners will be chosen randomly. You can participate on all platforms at the same time, Facebook, Instagram and in the community section of the blog. This way you increase your chances of winning.
Here are all the details at a glance:
- Would you like to participate in the Sail-Along? You are welcome on board! No registration is necessary.
- In next Sunday’s blog post you will find more detailed information about the fabric requirements and a starting raffle.
- The first instructions will be published on March 23. The end of the Sail-Along is mid-July 2023.
- The instructions will always appear on the BERNINA blog. Here you will find an overview of all Sail-Along blog articles: Sail-Along in the BERNINA Blog.
- You can sign up for the BERNINA Blog newsletter or for my newsletter and receive regular updates.
- It’s a community project. Show us pictures of your work anytime! On social media (please hashtag #sailawaywithmequilt) or in the community section of the blog.
- Get your fabrics and patterns before March 23, 2023, and of course you can work with fabrics from your stash.
I am so looking forward to seeing you guys. As they say, we will have a whale of a time….
Sail along with me!
See you soon again
Ingrid x
This will be a joy to work on, thank you so much.
Thank you so very much Jacky, I really appreciate your positive feedback 🙂