There are a few new things on the Inklingo web site, in response to requests from quilters who are giving Inklingo demos in the next few weeks.

I am very grateful to all the quilters who fall in love with Inklingo and want to tell their friends about it. The new Demo Notes, Flip Chart, and updated Demo Handouts should make demos easier and more fun for you. They are under the Support tab with other good things.

An Inklingo friend wrote this week about a fun encounter in a Jo-Ann’s store.  She heard a complete stranger talking about printing freezer paper, and she told her about Inklingo. Sue said she wished she had a small card (like a business card) with the Inklingo web address, which she could keep in her purse for these occasions. 

There is a small handout (4 to a page) which describes how to get the free shape collection. Quilters have been able to print and give those away since September 2008, but I like the idea of a smaller one too. It is a great suggestion. Any more?

If you write in advance, I am always happy to print handouts for you, but the handouts on the web site are great for small quantities, or if you need something on short notice. Let me know if you would like some handouts for a guild meeting, a demo, a retreat, or the bus trip to Paducah, okay?

In my case, I find that it is easier to talk about Inklingo for an hour than it is to talk about Inklingo for 5 minutes.  Maybe the Demo Notes and the Flip Chart will help me stay organized.

Thank you very much for helping to spread the word about Inklingo!

Linda & Monkey

Cathi Godwin has done it again! She has created a new pattern for Inklingo!

As soon as she saw the shapes in the Inklingo Tumbler Shape Collection, she started designing new quilts. With Cathi’s imagination and flair, she found a way to create a new design with the tumbler, skinny triangles, and squares.

I could not resist playing with different color combinations in her setting.

Why am I not surprised that Cathi saw stars? If you visit Cathi’s Quilt Obsession blog, you will see that stars are a favourite theme with her. (That’s ‘favourite’ on purpose. Cathi is Canadian.)

It is a great pattern and includes a table runner variation. Thanks to Cathi’s generous heart and feeling of friendship for Inklingo quilters, she has made it available for free. You can order and download it right now.

Cathi made this pattern the best it could be, and she holds the copyright. One of the rights of copyright is that she can decide to give her work away for free. Only the copyright holder can do that, but she has given me permission to put it on the Inklingo web site for you. I am grateful that she is willing to share it with all of us. Please respect her copyright. If you want copies for your friends, please refer them to the web site so they can order and download for themselves.

Follow Cathi’s creative endeavors on her Quilt Obsession blog too. You’ll meet Mr. Q. O., Lester, and Smudge.

I can’t stop with these!

Many thanks to Cathi for her pattern and her friendship, and thanks to you for visiting too.

Linda & Monkey

Do you have the March April Issue of McCall’s Quilting? As usual, it is full of inspiration for Inklingo quilters.   

When Inklingoist Tilde Binger in Copenhagen received her copy in the mail, she immediately identified several patterns which use Inklingo shapes, and she wrote to the Inklingo Yahoo group about it.   

Inklingoable Patterns!

It is easy “to inklingo” any pattern that uses the same shapes and sizes. These tips will point you in the right direction. If you don’t have the magazine, you need to rush out and buy it! If you can’t find it locally, get a back issue from McCall’s web site. Issues of  McCall’s usually include several Inklingoable designs, so you should consider subscribing (no affiliation).   

The designers have used wonderful color palettes and the photography is great. Not only that, but there is more info on the McCall’s web site for each quilt, and KITS are offered so you can make the quilts with the fabrics in the photos. How cool is that?   

Colonial Star
(pages 30-32) and online at http://www.mccallsquilting.com/articles/Colonial_Stars with a “web bonus” (Check it out!)  

The eight-pointed stars in this quilt are commonly called Sawtooth Stars or Evening Stars. They are made with Flying Geese.

Inklingo Flying Geese require less fabric than the method in the magazine. The yardage is easy to calculate using the magazine, the suggested cutting layouts in the Inklingo Catalogue of Shapes, and Monkey’s Cheat Sheet.   

Step 1

 1. Cut one square (unprinted, 4.75 in);  print 8 triangles (1.75 in HST, 5.75 x 6); and cut into squares for each set of 4 Flying Geese.  (Dimensions are provided in the Inklingo Catalogue of Shapes for HST in every Inklingo collection, so you don’t have to do any math.) 

2. Stitch

3. Cut

4. Press

5. Stitch

6. Cut

7. Press

No measuring, no drawing lines on fabric, no weird rulers, no paper to pick off, no waste! Flying Geese with Inklingo are faster and more precise than any other method.

The Inklingo method makes 4 identical Flying Geese units at a time, and that is exactly what you need for each star in this quilt. There are detailed, illustrated instructions in The Inklingo Handbook (pages 66-67), and in the Inklingo Triangle Tips (free PDF under the Machine Piecing tab on the web site).  

This pattern also uses 1.75 inch HST (half square triangles) in Sawtooth Squares and 3.5 inch Inklingo QST (quarter square triangles). See the Triangle Tips PDF for illustrated instructions for those too.  

Chimayo Dinner Party
(pages 48-51) and online http://www.mccallsquilting.com/articles/Chimayo_Dinner_Party     

This is a Dresden Plate design in great contemporary fabrics. See the notes on pages 46-47 about using wild prints. There is also more on Virginia Robertson’s web site.

With Inklingo, you can skip all of the tracing and templates and use the Inklingo Dresden Plate Appliqué Collection.  It includes the blades with folded points and several other blades to mix and match.   

The instructions for folded blades are in the Dresden Plate Design Book—74 pages, also FREE from Inklingo! 

Notice that the blocks in the magazine finish at 10 inches. You can use the Inklingo folded blades on a 10 inch background (11 inches unfinished). 

However, if you print the backgrounds with Inklingo (optional), the blocks finish at 9 inches. If want your quilt to be exactly the same size as the one in the magazine, you will need to add a row of blocks on one side and on the bottom edge. That means making more blocks, but if you do, the quilt will have an odd number of rows in each direction, so the corners can match, if you prefer a symmetrical layout.   

The Inklingo Dresden Plate Applique Collection includes everything you need. Order and download the Dresden Plate Design Book  (free, $20 value) first, to see complete instructions. Consider using the other blades too.

Cubism
(pages 52-54) and on the web site at http://www.mccallsquilting.com/articles/Cubism 

This a creative diamond design with wonderful use of color that is characteristic of Karen Combs. She designed this one to use her fabric line, and there is a kit available online. Be sure to check the photos on Karen’s blog too.

The magazine includes a template for a 2 inch 60-degree diamond. Inklingoists skip the tracing and the templates, and print the diamonds on the back of the fabric with Inklingo instead! No templates, no tracing, no measuring! 

The yardage requirements are the same (or less) with Inklingo, and you have a choice of four layouts to print on the fabric, depending on where you want the straight grain.

The cutting lines, stitching lines, crosshairs, and matching marks will make it a breeze to assemble this quilt—so you will be ready to start a new one when the next issue of McCall’s arrives!  

There are other quilts in this issue which use Inklingo shapes, but this should give you a good start. 

Inklingo Resources

The Index of Shapes (under the Support tab at Inklingo.com)
The Catalogue of Shapes in each collection (yardage requirements, cutting layouts, etc.) 
Monkey’s Cheat Sheet (under the Support tab at Inklingo.com)
The Inklingo Handbook (first chapter, Printing with Inklingo is free)

If you have not tried Inklingo yet, you can get started in the next few minutes with the free collection. Quick Start!

Some day, we hope all magazines will include references to Inklingo methods. In the meantime, refer to The Inklingo Handbook and the wealth of information on the Inklingo web site, and jot the numbers down on Monkey’s Cheat Sheet.

The Inklingo Yahoo Group is a great place to ask questions (and get answers) too. I hope you will join us there.

Linda & Monkey

I often hear from quilting friends who have started English Paper Piecing (EPP) a Grandmother’s Flower Garden (GFG) which is not finished, and which is likely to remain an unfinished object (UFO).

We call these EPP GFG UFOs.

(This situation also arises with octagons and other polygons, but Monkey says, “EPP GFG UFOs are the most ubiquitous.” Someone must have given him a dictionary, a library card, or the link to wikipedia.)

Quilters tell me they wish they had known about Inklingo before they started EPP. They love a portable project but would rather sew with a running stich than use a whip-stitch, for many good reasons.

If you enjoy EPP, and finish your projects, that’s great. Stop here. Enjoy your favorite technique and feel happy about it.

However, if you are looking for a more precise, simpler, faster way to finish your quilt, Inklingo is the answer. You can add Inklingo hexagons and flowers on to your EPP GFG UFO. Print the shapes on fabric and sew with a running stitch instead of whip-stitching. You can even do some machine stitching in a hybrid. 

There is a new PDF called English Paper Piecing Rescue under the Hand Piecing tab on the web site. It describes why EPP appeals to so many of us, the ubiquitousness of unfinished GFGs, and instructions for adding Inklingo hexagons to an existing EPP UFO.

It is amazingly simple, but you will want to see the photos. There are too many to include here.

Advantages of a Running Stitch with Inklingo

•  More portable and relaxing than whip-stitching with templates
•  Efficient use of fabric (especially with layouts to cut with scissors)
•  Cut with scissors or a rotary cutter—your choice
•  Stitching lines, matching marks, and crosshairs on each piece
•  No basting
•  No templates
•  No matter how closely you look, the running stitches are hidden
•  Combine hand and machine piecing in the same quilt (hybrid)
• Compatible with fussy cutting
•  Seams are pressed to the side, not open

Try it now!

If you haven’t tried printing Inklingo shapes on fabric yet, see the Quick Start and order the free shape collection ($20 value). You will be able to print your first shapes in the next few minutes, and sew them by hand or by machine.

We hope you will enjoy finishing your EPP quilts, with or without Inklingo.

Linda & Monkey

PS From Mirriam-Webster online: Main Entry: ubiq·ui·tous
Pronunciation: \yü-ˈbi-kwə-təs\  Function: adjective  Date: 1830
: existing or being everywhere at the same time : constantly encountered : widespread <a ubiquitous fashion>

You can buy tickets online to see From Time to Time, the new movie based on Lucy Boston’s famous Chimneys of Green Knowe.  It just keeps getting better and better for fans of Lucy Boston, especially those who are making the Patchwork of the Crosses (POTC) with Inklingo.  Read on!

This movie trailer was posted on YouTube.

Diana Boston was at the Premiere at the London Film Festival last October.  She told me that when I see From Time to Time,  I will see Maggie Smith stitching on the Patchwork of the Crosses (POTC) beside the fire.  WOW.  The movie did not have a distributor at that time, so I have waited until now to mention it.

The writer and director, Julian Fellowes, wrote the screenplays for Gosford Park (one of my favs) and Most Mysterious Murders (excellent).  From Time to Time was not filmed at Lucy Boston’s ancient manor house at Hemingford Grey, but at Athelhampton, which Russ and I happened to visit in 1991.  Athelhampton was a good choice for several reasons, including the topiary garden.  You can see some great photos of Athelhampton in the online guide book (in 3 parts). 

According to the entry on IMDB several of my favorite actors are in the cast. In addition to Maggie Smith, there are Timothy Spall (Oliver Twist), Hugh Bonneville (many great films, including Miss Austen Regrets and a small role in Notting Hill), Harriet Walter (many, including S & S), Pauline Collins (Shirley Valentine), and others. 

Gosford Park is another connection between Maggie Smith and Julian Fellowes. I know it so well that I can enjoy “watching” it while I am drawing Inklingo shapes on the computer.

It has always amazed me that movie makers have endless budgets for big stars, but seem to spend too little to get a competent script. In this case, the writer is the director!  Judging by Julian Fellowes’ novels and other screenplays, he knows how to tell an engaging story, plus he was given an excellent start by Lucy Boston.

(The Young Victoria will be at cinemas here in Burlington soon, and he wrote the screenplay for that too.)

I can hardly wait until I can see From Time to Time! There is no news yet about dates for North America, but if I were within a few hours of Glasgow, I would find a way to get there! Let me know if you are lucky enough to see it, okay?

Linda & Monkey

Do you love the curves and circles of Winding Ways and Wheel of Mystery? 

There are three new Inklingo shape collections and a Design Book to tempt you!

The Winding Ways Design Book is at least a $20 value, but it is free right now.  It is packed with information and worksheets to help you design your own quilt or use any traditional pattern with Inklingo.

Combinine the 6 and 9 inch blocks for a stunning custom design. . .

. . . or use all three sizes in one quilt.

The curves are easier to stitch with Inklingo’s matching marks and stitching lines printed on the fabric, and you can cut the fabric with either a rotary cutter or scissors. 

The instructions for cutting, sewing, and pressing are included in the free book, so you can design your own variation, or for follow any existing pattern using Inklingo.

We think you will especially like the handy one-page reference with simple tips for stitching the blocks. 

Monkey and I need a nap. You have the  difficult task of deciding whether you want to sew 4.5 inch blocks, 6 inch blocks, 9 inch blocks, or all of them.  (There is a special combo price until February 7th.) We hope you will love Winding Ways as much as we do! It is irresistible.

Thank you for visiting.

Linda & Monkey

Layered back-basting is explained and illustrated in The Inklingo Handbook.

Has anyone seen what is now called “back-basting” or “template-free” appliqué described in older sewing books, patterns, or newspapers, or with another name?  Since Canada is such a melting pot of cultures, it could have come from anywhere.  Just curious. 

Garbage Eve or Charm-Free

Like most families, ours has a few pet terms.  Two of my favs are “Garbage Eve” and “charm-free.” Charm-free is a pseudo-diplomatic way to describe an unpleasant, self-centered person–which every group seems to have. 

Please let me know if you have heard about “back-basting” called something other than “template-free.”  Calling anything “xxxxxx-free” has a negative connotation for me, so I don’t think I want to refer to such a nice technique that way.    

Pseudo, serendipity, and esoteric are all nice too, but the opportunities to use them are sadly limited, especially with sewing techniques. Maybe another time.

Linda & Monkey

PS  Garbage Eve is the night before garbage pickup, when Someone has to go out to the garage and get it ready.

Back-basting overcomes the disadvantages of traditional needle-turn appliqué, and it is simpler than some imagine, so Monkey and I have prepared this little summary.

Traditional Needle-turn 

Let’s review traditional needle-turn first.

Trace the outline of the patch—a heart, for example—onto the front side of a fabric patch (or print with Inklingo). Cut out the heart, leaving a narrow turn-under allowance. Pin it in position on the background and and turn the edges under with the needle, a little bit at a time, so you can make invisible stitches to attach the heart to the background.

Advantage: The  preparation is faster than template methods.
Disadvantages:  It is more difficult to accurately position because each heart is bigger than its space since the edge is not yet turned under. It can be hard to see the outline of the heart, especially on dark patches. It can be tricky to use the needle to turn the fabric edge under accurately and make invisible stitches at the same time.

Back-basting

Back-basting is a variation of the needle-turn method, and overcomes the disadvantages. It is my favorite method.

1. Instead of tracing the outline of the heart on the front of the appliqué fabric, trace the entire design (or print with Inklingo) on the back of the background fabric.

2. Postion a rough-cut patch right side up on the front.  To ensure that the fabric completely covers the outline of the heart, cut it big and hold the background up to the light, or place pins from the back as a guide.

3. Working from the back, baste the patch to the background (hence the name “back-basting”), following the outline of the heart, using a big needle and thick thread.

4. Working from the front, trim the rough-cut fabric patch, leaving a narrow turn-under allowance.

5. Working from the front, clip and remove the basting stitches one small section at a time— just enough to allow you to needle-turn and stitch the next half inch or so. Use invisible stitches.

How Back-basting Works

Basting with a big needle and thick thread along the line on the back holds everything in perfect position and marks the edge of the patch!

Holes in the background and the patch

When the thick basting thread is clipped and removed from the front, one small section at a time, the line of temporary holes is a visual guide and temporarily “perforates” the edge, so it is easier to needle-turn accurately and stitch in place.

Appliqué with Inklingo

Inklingo has advantages with all appliqué methods, whether you are printing on freezer paper for templates or printing shapes on the patch fabric or on the background.

There is a complete chapter on appliqué in The Inklingo Handbook, including illustrated instructions for back-basting layered designs, stitching direction, needles, thread, invisible stitches (tack stitch and ladder stitch), inner points, outer points, etc.

If you like needle-turn appliqué, you will LOVE back-basting, especially since it eliminates all positioning issues.

If you have found traditional needle-turn appliqué difficult, it is time for you to try back-basting. Back-basting makes it easier to position the patches and to turn under the edges accurately. You will be amazed by the difference it makes, and I think you will understand why this old technique has become popular again.

You can subscribe to receive an e-mail whenever there is a new entry at All About Inklingo from the sidebar. Thank you for visiting.

Linda & Monkey

The government of Haiti was never a good one, but the best government in the world could not possibly protect its citizens from this kind of catastrophe.

Canada has sent 2000 military personnel, ships, planes, helicopters, medical supplies, etc, and was very quick to expedite the adoption process and immigration process last week.  The Canadian government is matching contributions from Canadians up to $50 million.  So far, Canadians have donated $22.2 million to the Canadian Red Cross alone. That represents just individual donations. It excludes donations by Canadian companies. This is a huge amount from a country with about one-tenth of the population of the US (Canadian pop 33 million).

We take hope from the number of countries that are helping to save Haiti.

Thank you very much to the quilters who placed orders during this time.  One quilter from Ohio deliberately placed an order for a shape collection she already has and asked me to contribute the whole amount to Haiti Relief.  It will have double the effect, thanks to the Canadian government.

Count your blessings and hug your loved ones.  I am.

Linda & Monkey

I made a personal donation to the Canadian Red Cross yesterday, earmarked for Haiti, and the Canadian government will match it.  I want to do more.  The need is for money that can be spent efficiently by recognized relief organizations.  They need cold, hard cash.

For every order placed on my web site  by midnight tomorrow night (Sunday, 17 January) I will donate 25% to the Canadian Red Cross on Monday.  Depending on the response, I am hoping to be able to repeat this.

For example, you pay $45 for Dresden Plate Fancy or Inklingo # 3. 
I will donate $11.25 to the Canadian Red Cross. 
The Canadian Government will add $11.25 to the Haiti Earthquake Relief Fund, managed by The Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA). 

Another example: If you pay $25.00 for a download, 25% is $6.25 ($13.50 with the matching funds).

Another example: If you pay $6.00 for Monkey Exercise # 1, 25% is $1.50 ($3.00 with the matching funds).

Many Haitians live on less than $1.50 a day.

The Canadian government is matching contributions made to charities for the Haiti Relief Fund made by Canadians.  There are specific rules.  http://www.acdi-cida.gc.ca/acdi-cida/ACDI-CIDA.nsf/eng/ANN-114115719-MVV  According to the CBC News Channel, the response has been unprecedented.  The government has already announced that the initial $50 million is not a firm ceiling.  This fund is in addition to the extra military personnel, relief workers, ships, helicopters, and other resources that the government of Canada has committed to Haiti since Tuesday.

Canada has a long history of involvement with Haiti.  Our Governor General, Michaëlle Jean, was born there, and there are thousands of Canadians with Haitian ancestry.  Even without that connection, this catastrophe speaks to our hearts because these are people like us, only poorer and without the advantages of being born in Canada or another prosperous country.  They need help desperately.

According to the rules, (linked above) although the Canadian government will not match donations made by a business from existing resources, it will match amounts from events undertaken to raise money from individuals in response to the earthquake, so you MUST add this note on your order:  Donate 25% to Haiti relief.

Let’s all count our blessings. 

Linda & Monkey