Hey everyone. Today we're sewing a fast, happy Jelly Roll Race Quilt with one roll and a whole lot of fun.
Here we go.
Meet the fabric
This is the All Star Jelly Roll, from United Notions.
It is a Moda precut.
The designer is Stacy Iest Hsu.
And the group name is All Star.
Inside the roll you get 40 assorted pieces.
Each strip measures 2 and a half inches by 44 inches.
That is your classic Jelly Roll strip.
Long, even, and already cut for you.
The tags call it multi color, so you get a mixed, cheerful look without hunting for forty matching fabrics. Somebody already coordinated it. Unroll it, give the strips a light press, and you are ready to sew.
The number on this one is 20850JR, if you keep notes for your stash.
No big cutting session to start. Just fabric, ready to become a quilt top.
The project: a Jelly Roll Race Quilt
We are making a Jelly Roll Race Quilt.
You join all the strips end to end, then fold and sew, and fold and sew again. The top grows fast, in a fun, scrappy way.
We're not reinventing the wheel here.
This fabric suits the race for a simple reason. A race quilt lives on long strips, and this roll is nothing but long strips, all the same width.
Here is the math. Each strip finishes at 2 inches wide once sewn on both sides. Most folks land with a throw size top, roughly 50 inches by 60-some inches, depending on seams and final trim.
Perfect for the couch, or for a gift. Super duper fun to watch come together, too.
Materials
- 1 All Star Jelly Roll — 40 pieces, 2.5 inches by 44 inches
- 1 piece of batting, about 58 inches by 72 inches
- 1 piece of backing fabric, about 58 inches by 72 inches
- Binding: about 1/2 yard, cut into 2.5-inch strips, or a binding you already like
- Thread to blend, and a size 80/12 needle
- Rotary cutter, ruler, pins or clips, scissors, and your sewing machine
Brief steps
First, unroll all 40 strips. Lay them in an order you like, or do not. Random is part of the charm. Completely up to you.
Next, join strips end to end. I like a diagonal seam: lay two ends at a right angle, sew corner to corner, trim the triangle, and press. Keep going until you have one very long strip. Do not twist it as you work.
Ask me how I know.
I made that twist once. We laughed, we unpicked a little, and we moved on. Just like that, you learn.
Now bring the two ends together, right sides facing, and sew the long edge with a quarter-inch seam. Near the end, cut the fold open so it lays flat, then press. Fold in half again and sew again. Keep folding, sewing, and cutting the fold open. Your strip gets shorter and your quilt gets wider. Stop when you like the shape, then square up the edges.
Then layer backing wrong side up, batting, and your top right side up.
Baste it well.
For quilting, stitch in the ditch along a few long seams is lovely. You can echo the lines, do a gentle meander, or keep long straight lines and travel from one to the next.
Set your stitch length around 2.5 for piecing, about 10 stitches per inch.
Go a touch longer for quilting if you like that look.
Finish with binding, all the way around.
Tips from my table
Clip, do not stretch. Those long seams will creep if you pull. Slow down on the long runs, or the layers shift and you will fight puckers at the end. Press as you go, too. A flat seam makes the next fold much easier.
And here is your permission beat, folks.
It doesn't have to be perfect.
You're your own worst critic.
A seam that lands a hair wavy is not a failed quilt.
It is a quilt that got made, and got loved, and got used.
Take your time.
It's not a race, even when the quilt has race in the name.
If I can do this, y'all can do this.
Want it smaller? Stop folding sooner and trim it to lap size. Want it bigger? That is what borders are for, and that choice is completely up to you.
Alrighty.
Thanks so much for sewing along with me today.
We'll see you next time. Bye.
Shop the All Star Jelly Roll at Linda's Electric Quilters.
