Yesterday, we gave our "Signature quilt" to our retiring President of the Quilt Guild here in Florida. She was overwhelmed by it all. It turned out so pretty once we got the machine quilting done on it. The squares were not all perfect, but, neither are we! The sentiments were written with Pigma pens, and that means it will last forever.
One bit of advice for anyone wishing to make one for a friend, be sure that you use the Pigma Pens that state: Archival ink, acid free. Otherwise, some inks will eat right through the fabric. The usual black pens that you pick up at the stores, usually ARE NOT filled with ARCHIVAL INK. Steer away from them!
Another very important thing is to have all of the squares measure exactly the same size. It is wise to give each person a pattern that has the 1/4" seam allowance added, and then request them to use only a 1/4" seam.
Ironing "freezer paper" to the back of the area that people are going to write their sentiments on, will also help the penmanship to be much more readable.
Using the pattern that I put in the newspaper or the one that is on this blog, the center piece, MUST BE the same size, or the points will not match up. Have someone cut out ALL OF THE CENTERS out of the same fabric and iron the freezer paper on them BEFORE giving them to the others to add the triangles to each side. This will certainly make a nicer square and a nicer quilt.
Time was of essence when we were making our signature quilt, and we didn't have time to get this last step done for them. I'll save you a lot of trouble when making yours by heeding my advice!
