Block Party Small Group - Row Quilt 2004

To help other small groups, Block Party Small Group, is allowing us to post their instructions and guidelines. It may help out other small groups trying to plan a row quilt. Block Party says they got a lot of help from the Knotty Girls Small Group who have a few row quilts under their belts.

We will be making a row quilt. Each month you will do ONE row of a quilt following the theme set for that month. The first month you will be working on the row for YOUR quilt. After that you will be adding a row to another group members quilt. In the end in February 05, you will have 8 rows of a quilt ready to put together. Each row will have been made by a different member of the group, with one of them being you. Each of the group members will also have 8 rows to put together into a quilt, with a row by each member including you. The monthly themes are stars, houses, flowers, baskets, dogs, fairies, flowers, butterflies and trees.

Row Quilt Rules

• FABRICS: You will make your first row of blocks using your colours and/or theme fabric. If you want your quilt to be scrappy, you will not be supplying fabric to the other participants. If you are using a generic colour background such as solid black, white on white, etc. or a theme colour such as any purple, then, this would also apply. However, if you wish the swappers to use a specific fabric, you will need at least a fat quarter for each of your fellow swappers.
• Pizza boxes will be supplied at the first row exchange for the rows to be stored in. These boxes will have inside the box a list of who is doing what row for that particular quilt and when it is due. For the first meeting bring your row in a zip lock baggie.
• The person who does the first stars row of the quilt, is the quilt owner. You set the look and feel for the quilt with that first row.
• Your row should be no more than 50 inches wide.
• The row quilt owner sets the height of the quilt with their first row. Remember there are seven rows, so try to set your height so the quilt will be in proportion.
• If you have embellishments, think about if they will interfere with quilting it. If they will, put them in a ziplock baggie, for the row owner to add after the quilting is done.
• Do NOT attach your row to the previous. The rows must remain seperated. When all seven rows are completed, and returned to the row quilter owner, he/she will then assemble the rows into a quilt, using sashing or whatever method they want to join them together into a quilt. The plan is to show the completed tops/quilts at the March or April 2005 guild meeting show and tell.
• Buy a journal (just a note book with blank pages will do). Write your thoughts into the journal. Things you were thinking about when working on the row, design thoughts, colour scheme thoughts and what you would like to see for your row quilt. Paste in scraps of fabric if you want. Each person who works on your row quilt, will write a little bit as well.
• Treat each quilt with respect, keeping it in a clean, dry and safe place. Keep away from direct sunlight, pets and tobacco smoke.
• Use only 100% quality cotton fabrics, nothing with a loose weave and no cotton polyester blends. Pre-wash and press every fabric. Test each fabric to ensure colourfastness.
• And please remember the GOLDEN RULE OF QUILTING: Work on another’s quilt like you would your own!

Row Quilt Exchange Order

How does it work?

As an example of the path a row quilt will take. Let's use Tammy's quilt. Before July 15th, Tammy will make a row for the quilt with a star theme. This row will set the trend for the rest of the rows. And this is the row that Tammy will get back with the other rows and will be her quilt. Tammy will also jot down thoughts in a journal especially purchased for this project. She will note down things she was thinking about when making this row, what she would love to see for other rows. At the July 15th meeting, Tammy will come with her star row. She will put it in the pizza box marked with her name. The box will be handed to Carol, with the row and journal inside.

Carol will take the box home, measure the row and read the journal, and make another row with the theme of flowers. She will make sure that her flower row is the same size as the first row that Tammy made. Tammy might have provided fabric that she wanted used in each row, and if so Carol will make sure to try and follow Tammy's request and any other requests Tammy might have. Carol will NOT attach the row to the other row. The rows must remain seperated. Carol will put her flower row in the box, with Tammy's star row and write in the journal and put the journal in the box. She will take the box to the small group meeting August 19th.

Carol will hand the box on to Ann, who will take it home and make a row with a baskets theme. She will write in the journal as well and return with the box with rows and journal to the September meeting. She will hand the box on to Sylvia who will make a butterfly row. The box will then go on to Emily for a row with a house theme, then on to Sharni for a row with a dog theme, and then to Dan for a row with a fairy theme, and finally on to Renee for trees.

During all this time Tammy will NOT see the rows. Aside from the first one she made, she will not see the rows until the February 05 meeting at which point she will recieve her pizza box with 8 rows in it. Inside will also be the journal that everyone wrote in. Tammy will then take her box home with her rows and journal. During the next month she will work on putting the rows into a quilt. It shouldn't take long at all, as most of the work has been done. She might add sashing, she might just join the rows direct. It all depends on how she feels it would work best. And then at the guild meeting in March (perhaps April if March is Trash to Treasure), she will get up with the rest of the group at show and tell and show off our masterpieces that were the work of eight friends.

Sample row quilt pictures

Most of these quilts were made by the same person using a pattern. But there are some here that were made by several people like ours will be. However, the pattern ones still give wonderful ideas.

• Row by Row quilt - This one even has rows that have some of our themes.
• Electric Quilt Row Quilts - These are designed on the computer as a challenge.
• Row Quilt - This one was made like ours will be, with a different person doing each row.
• Row by Row Quilt
• Row Quilt - This one has some of our themes.
• Snowmen row quilt
• 30's reproductions row quilt
• Wild west row quilt
• Country Village row quilt