The Final Day on the Polar Bear Plunge Blog Hop – My Turn!

Posted byCarol AndrewsPosted inBlog Hops, Finished Projects, Life, Quilting, What’s Going OnTags:, , , , , , ,

First of all I’d like to thank Joan from Moosestash Quilting for hosting this month’s hop with such a fun theme. I’m not sure which is my favourite for winter quilts; polar bears, penguins or snowmen!

It was easy for me to know what I wanted to share on the hop, because I had made this sweet little Nora Bear quilt and knew it would be perfect to share. It is a pattern by Donna Westerkamp which I did as a pattern test for the Quilt Pattern Magazine. The pattern was in the November 2021 issue. You can read my original post here.

Nora Bear finishes at 44 1/2” square.

I finally made it to the studio for 2 days with my beloved long arm and look what happened:

The background fabric on this quilt has snowmen and penguins and cute little birds playing in the snow. My backing fabric was leftover from a wide backing that I had used on another quilt. It reminded me of the cracks in the ice on a lake so seemed perfect for this quilt. I stitched some swirls and curly meander lines by free motion quilting on the background and border. I did some curvy lines on Nora Bear to indicate her fur. The checkerboard was stitched with straight lines, some in the ditch and some on the diagonal. The threads I used were more of the Essential lines; a pretty purple, a white and a gorgeous teal. My longarm really likes these threads!

Binding was machine stitched to the front and then hand stitched on the back.

Now for me winter is a time for snuggly, warm flannel quilts. I just happened to have some flannel that needed to be made up into a fun raggy quilt.

For those of you who have never made a raggy quilt you do need to be warned they can be addictive since they are so versatile and easy to do.

I started by making 18 nine patches which finished 12 1/2” square. I cut my 17 alternating blocks at 12 1/2” square from my flannel fabric which has snowmen and polar bears cavorting in the snow.

Each of these blocks are then layered with squares of batting and the backing fabric and I sew a line of stitching from corner to corner on each block to stabilize the block.

The fun part comes in when you are constructing the rows. The blocks are sewn together with the seams to the front side of the blocks, with a 1/2” seam ( or more if you want a really raised or fluffy lift). Then the rows are sewn together with the seams to the front as well. This leaves a nice “ridge” which will become the fuzzy part once the seams are snipped with some snazzy spring loaded clippers if you have them, or a good sharp pair of scissors.

If you wish to make the quilt larger you can add borders by stitching your top, batting and backing on the edges as if they were another row. I usually add my top and bottom borders and then the side borders.

Then you need to decide if you want a finished edge or clipped edges. For larger quilts I usually very carefully trim my batting back 1/4” and then fold the top fabric and backing fabrics inside and topstitch along the edge. Then I put a second row of stitching in 1/4” to give the quilt a more finished look. If I use borders wider than 2 1/2” I then do a couple of rows of quilting inside the borders.

These quilts end up with a smooth, snuggly backing and just look at that sweet fabric with snowmen and polar bears having fun 😉

If I don’t add borders to the quilt, I stitch a row of stitching 1/2” from the edge.

Then the fun begins when you get to snip every 1/4” or so, all of the seams which are sticking up on the front side of the quilt and the edges if you didn’t finish the edge. You could also do a traditional binding on the edge.

You can see the spring loaded clippers in this photo which makes the snipping part of the job easier. This is a photo of a baby quilt I made a couple of weeks ago. 😉

The best thing about these quilts is that they get softer and cuddlier as they are washed. The snipped seam also get fuzzier.

Raggy quilts are a nice, quick quilt. I often make them for baby quilts in the winter. They are also perfect for a friend that needs a quilty hug.

As you can see the “lap quilt” was made large enough to just cover the top of a Queen sized bed. This quilt was gifted to my friends at the studio. K had just received the news that his health issues were not cancer, but instead a bad reaction to the Covid vaccine. 😳

I do need to share one more Polar Bear quilt. It was made a few years ago but is a favourite of D’s at the studio. It’s her favourite couch quilt because it is backed in flannel. I keep an eye out for fun polar bear panels or fabrics. Can you tell?

Aren’t these polar bears the cutest? 😄

These are the other participants today on the hop.

Sew Many Yarns

Inflorescence 

Lianne Makes Stuff

Stitchin at Home

Lynns Beauty

MooseStashQuilting

I hope you have been visiting all of the great blogs and leaving comments for all of the participants. That makes our day if you let us know you enjoyed our posts. Thank you for stopping by to read my post. I enjoy reading your comments and reply to each of them. 😉 Carol

Published by Carol Andrews

I have been fondling fabric and creating things with fabric and fiber for as long as I can remember. My children had homemade clothes, blankets, canning and quilts most of their lives. Now I create goodies to share! Hope you enjoy viewing them as much as I enjoy making them! When I am not creating with fiber or fabric I keep busy with Dear Heart, kids, grandkids, great grandkids.

35 thoughts on “The Final Day on the Polar Bear Plunge Blog Hop – My Turn!”

  3. Oh my goodness, you gave us a triple treat. I’m dancing with delight seeing your fabulous polar bear projects! They are all just too cute for words! Thanks for playing along with us! 🙂

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  6. Oh my goodness, so many beautiful polar bear sweetness! I love your little Nora Bear…so cute. I haven’t made a rag quilt in a long time, but they are definitely cozy when they are done being snipped and washed. Thank you for sharing all your amazing projects!

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  7. There really is so much polar bear fun here, Carol! I love all three quilts. It’s been a long time since I made a rag quilt – actually two for a set of twins born to a friend in our church! Thanks for sharing!

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  9. Hi Carol! Oh, Nora Bear is just perfect to share today. She is sweet. Your cuddle quilt turned out great, too. I can just feel how soft and squishy it is from here. And a third polar bear-inspired quilt! Love all of them. {{Hugs}} a bunch. ~smile~ Roseanne

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