HeartStrings Quilt Project

Jackie made a RWB QAYG for Quilts of Valor.

Our QAYG project continues and you can make blocks to send to Jay for assembly or make your own as Jackie did.

Instructions for the blocks are  at the link below – make sure you check out the links at the bottom of the instructions to see how to assemble them.

Instructions for QAYG blocks

Our Australian coordinator, Stephanie, has been busy with both personal HeartStrings quilts and those from group blocks too. Click on thumbnails for a larger view of any of the tops or quilts.

Look at the gorgeous quilt Petra assembled from blocks she found “stuffed in a bag in the back of our quilt groups storage”.

Just to keep things interesting we have two special projects going on right now.

We started making pillowcases on the first of January and will continue them through February. You can donate them locally or consider making some for Alycia and the Quilts of Valor she collects and donates. They don’t have to be RWB but keep in mind that most of them should be somewhat manly!

These are the ones that Mary Hopkins has been working on.

Pillowcase Project information and links to instructions

We’re also doing a short-term Quilt as you GO project. Jay will be accepting and assembling String Quilt as you GO blocks into quilts for a nursing home project.  Pat already has blocks made and ready to ship.

Quilt as you GO guidelines and instructions.

As always, we continue to accept our regular HeartStrings blocks made according to the guidelines so jump in and make some pillowcases, make some QAYG blocks, or make some HeartStrings blocks.

We’re in the process of building a HeartStrings blog ring where you can visit the blogs of HeartStrings members to see what we’re up to with our personal and HearStrings quilting.

There’s a link on the left sidebar to view member blogs or If you’re a member of HeartStrings and have a blog you can click here to apply to join the blog ring.

Since our quilts are finished and donated locally rather than through a central location it can be difficult to get an accurate count. However, we try!

919 quilts were logged in our donations database this year — completed by HeartStrings members and donated to a variety of organizations and individuals in need.

Additional quilts were made from Quilt as You go blocks sent to Australia for those affected by the bushfires where they’ve been assembled by Jan Mac and donated.

Still more quilts were inspired by our HeartStrings project and made by individuals and quilting groups and donated in their local communities.

Won’t you join us in 2010?

We’re going to bust some stash in January and February and make pillowcases along with the All People Quilt site in their goal to make and donate 1 million pillowcases.

I plan to make some to send to Alycia to be used to present Quilts of Valor but there are lots of places both locally and nationally to donate yours. Click this link to for ideas for places to donate them.

We’ll still be making our HeartStrings quilts so don’t worry. Blocks made according to the guidelines are accepted (and appreciated) at all times and are pieced into tops to be quilted and donated.

So bring in the New Year with us as as we start our 4th year making quilts to provide warmth and comfort to those in need!

Pillowcase Photo Tutorial

More Pillowcase ideas

Stacey wrote:

I am a small quilt shop owner and always have tons of left over strips of fabric, end of bolt pieces, crooked cuts and boo boos. So that means lots of strings. Right? I made a challenge to myself that from Thanksgiving all the way through December 26th all I will work on will be string quilts to donate to
kids in need charities.

Visit Stacey’s blog to watch her progress. Instructions for the Patriotic String Star can be found at MaryQuilts.com and all the thumbnails below can be enlarged by clicking on them.

Just a reminder that in addition to our RED and BLUE centered blocks we always accept RWB HeartStrings blocks and completed tops from RWB blocks to be finished and donated as Quilts of Valor.

This quilt was pieced by Pat and sent to me to quilt and donate.

Instructions for piecing RWB HeartStrings blocks

Did you know that tying is a traditional way to finish string quilts?  We’ve written instructions on tying a HeartStrings quilt to help you out.

These tops were pieced by Lani and her group in CA and tied by me. The backings were brought to the front and machine stitched down for the binding.