Participants.... MnNancy, Patti, Gini. Jacy, Donna B. , Nana
Vinton, Virginia
here we go. we need to start posting about the row quilt here. i'll go retrieve my other post and put it here.
gini in north idaho
could we do it with more, but not everyone would work on every quilt? i'm putting my math hat on, this could be scary
if we had 7 participants, and each quilt had 5 rows. and we only did 5 rows each, each of us would only work on 5 different quilts. i think this could work if everyone was ok with it. we would need to have a lotto to see which 5 quilts each person worked on. i think, here i go again, thinking, each person could be assigned a color and would have 5 pinks or 5 blues, etc. the colors could be divvied up into groups of five with no two colors the same in each pile. each pile could be assigned a number, then we could give a number to each person and we would make those 5 rows. is this too complicated?
if we have enough for two groups, great, but i think we could make it work with 7 or eight people in one group. patti, help?
i was thinking of using colors to keep it somewhat anonymous when picking groups. we could make the piles of colors, then assign everyone a color, and assign every pile a number, then have a lotto to pick a pile. if anyone has a better idea, please shoot me before it gets any more complicated here.
who's on first?
i'm crackin' myself up and i haven't even been drinking. i need to get back to sewing.
Gini
I am sorry but this made no sense to me whatsoever.....ROFLOL.
My brain is really muddled today. I looked up the row quilts and if you get enough people to break into two groups, depending on how complicated it would be, I think it would be fun. I don't think I could do 7 or 8 though so I'm good staying out if one group works better. Still haven't started my blocks for the retreat but I do have the fabric. Also have an idea of what I am going to do at least.
gini:if we had 7 participants, and each quilt had 5 rows. and we only did 5 rows each, each of us would only work on 5 different quilts. i think this could work if everyone was ok with it.
Sounds do-able to me.
And to be sure I'm picturing this correctly, we each do one row in a given theme with a given color scheme for each of the five people we are assigned to. The rows are all the same length so we don't have to mail them to the next person for fitting - just a picture so we avoid duplicates and create designs that will look good together. We end up with a rectangular quilt. Is that right?
Example: I could set my theme as "a winter night" with main colors specified as anything cool/wintery. Then I'd make my first row, a bunch of snowmen, and post a picture of it. Four of you would create additional rows. When we get together at the retreat, I could add more rows if I wanted and/or sashing and my borders.
Am I understanding correctly? What width should we work with, and what minimum-maximum height for each row should we set?
On the banks of the Mississippi River in north central Minnesota (Brainerd lakes area)
Nana: Gini I am sorry but this made no sense to me whatsoever.....ROFLOL.
Me too!
Gini, I haven't got a clue what you are talking about!!! ROFLOL.
Winthrop, WA
Nancy, you are understanding perfectly.
Keeping rows to the width of fabric works well, so around 42 inches wide. I don't think we need a limit on heights, they usually don't get too high
I think we could private message each other with pictures so the owner doesn't see her quilt until all her rows are done. The owner of the quilt puts the rows together as she likes, and can add whatever she wants too, borders, sashes between the rows, more rows.
MNnancy:Example: I could set my theme as "a winter night" with main colors specified as anything cool/wintery. Then I'd make my first row, a bunch of snowmen, and post a picture of it. Four of you would create additional rows. When we get together at the retreat, I could add more rows if I wanted and/or sashing and my borders.
I think I am getting the picture here. We are visual people you know...a pic is worth a thousand words, right?
It should be obvious that I am pretty clueless to what I said, too. We need a number on exactly who is participating.
Would it not be harder to match colors from the computer, sometimes they look different than they really are, especially if your lighting isn't good.
Could we mail them, doing 1 row each month. 5 rows would be April thru Aug and would give us an extra month if anyone fell behind schedule.
Jacy
At the price of mail these days it could get a little pricey mailing out all those rows. If you notice in the example that Nancy posted none of the colors are exact and none of the backgrounds are the same. I think it could work if we stick within a color theme as well as motif theme with just a pic. We will just have to get everything arranged so that this will run somewhat smoothly....LOL> I get confused easily so that could be difficult...LOL>
I found these instructions online. What do you think of them?
- - - - - - - -
ROW BY ROW ROBIN:
A row quilt is a quilt where each robin member makes a row in a specific
width or length (MAXIMUM of 54" (42") PLEASE), determines the theme and
then passes (sends a picture of) the quilt to the remaining robin members of their group who
each make another row until eventually the set of rows return to the quilt
owner who puts all of the rows into a quilt. The quilt owner determines
whether his/her quilt will be in a vertical or horizontal orientation, the
widths/lengths above apply to both vertical and horizontal row by row
quilts.
PARTICIPATION:
As with any round robin or swap a row quilt involves a firm commitment
for the duration of the swap. If you cannot follow the rules or meet the
deadlines, then it is best to decline joining in. The key to a successful
robin or swap of any type is commitment and communication. If you get
stumped for ideas on your row ask other members of the group for ideas.
THEME:
Each quilt owner will decide on a theme for their quilt (ex: all blue, stars,
gardening, Christmas, etc) and/or the colors you wish to use as well as the
orientation of the row by row quilt, vertical or horizontal. The other robin
members will decide on the specific blocks to use in their rounds. For the
most part the quilt owner will not know what has been made until the
finished robin returns from the last member on the robin list (until the retreat).
FABRICS:
You will make your first row of blocks using your colors and/or theme
fabric. You can include fabrics with your robin but it is left to each
individual in the group to use or not use them. It is recommended to
include fabrics if you’ve chosen a specific color theme for your finished row by row
quilt. You can always tie your rows together with sashing and/or borders
when it returns home. Please remember to use 100% quality
cotton, pre-washed (?) fabric.
ROWS:
We will make rows in the orientation the quilt owner(s) decides on. Any
row of any quilt MUST be the width/length the quilt owner decided on,
as well as maintaining the orientation of the quilt, and each member
has the option of determining the block size to meet that width/length
requirement. It is recommended that your blocks/row widths/lengths
are no more than 16” (16.5” unfinished) finished or no less than 5”
finished (5.5” unfinished) – you are of course expected to use your
best discretion in deciding the appropriate width for your addition. Do
NOT attach your row to the previous row. Laying the rows out
or hanging them on a design wall for photographing and sharing the
images with the group is highly recommended. Take a photo of your
addition and email it to the group moderator before passing it on to the
next participant. Place your row in the bag with the other rows and the
rest of the fabric, if included, and pass it on at the next exchange.
By not sewing the rows together as the quilts progress through the groups allows
the owner to configure the quilt to his/her liking as well as adding any
additional sashing rows or borders when he/she gets it home.
LABEL YOUR ROW:
When you complete your row and before sending it on to the next
participant create a label with your name and row number and attach it
to your row with a safety pin so the owner can easily identify your round.
You can be as elaborate with your label as you see fit or as simple. The
quilt owner can also include individual labels if she wants something
specific for her quilt label. A simple label like a 2” x 5” piece of muslin
ironed to a piece of freezer paper with your name and round number on it
will suffice.
BLOCK PATTERN & SIZE:
Each robin member will decide which block pattern would be best for the
quilt as it comes to them. All blocks in a row do not have to be the same
pattern or even the same size. Blocks don’t have to be square. The key
here is to be creative, use sashing strips between blocks or add borders
to your blocks or sections to get the width/length you need for the row.
Maintain the theme of the quilt using your own fabric and any fabrics that
may have been included. Traditional piecing, paper piecing, or finished
appliqué will all work as long as the blocks compliment the theme and
meets the width/length requirement of the quilt.
JOURNALS/ROUND DOCUMENTATION:
It is highly recommended that you send a journal along with your
row. It can be as simple as 3” x 5” index cards or as elaborate as bound
journal. Include any notes to the group about what you would like. A
theme…photos of a theme, fabric to be added, etc. We also encourage
each quilt owner to include a label for each member of their group to sign
with their name, round, and date. Again this can be as simple as a piece
of muslin ironed to freezer paper or as elaborate as the quilt owner likes.
When writing in the owners journal try to annotate where the idea for
your row came from, i.e., Pat Sloan’s Katie’s Tulips or McCall’s Quilting
magazine, edition #, page #, pattern name.