Stars Over Fairview Avenue Quilt-a-Long - Week One

Por Bari Ackerman

Welcome to the Stars Over Fairview Avenue Quilt-a-Long featuring Fairview Avenue fabrics by Bari J. for Art Gallery Fabrics. (See the bottom of this post for where to buy the fabrics. Several shops have kitted the quilt and have it ready to go!)

This traditional cozy quilt is made for a skilled beginner. I'll be offering a lot of hints and tips along the way to help you match up those points and make a beautiful quilt.

We are going to divide this into a six week series so that you can easily get it done during that time. And, you can alternatively do this on your own time. This will be evergreen on this blog. You can access the free pattern and all six posts any time at all!

Week one: Fabric cutting, Week two: Make the center blocks, Week three: Piece the center blocks together, Week four: Make the border blocks, Week five: piece the border blocks and attach to quilt, Week six: quilting and binding

Before I start this week's quilt making, feel free to download the whole pattern HERE and print it out. I will, however, put each week's task in the post for that week.

This week we are working on cutting our fabrics. If you don't have the fabric yet, below are the fabric requirements.

A few notes:

By way of reminder, you will really want to have the Wing Clipper Ruler when you go to trim your flying geese units. You can order that from my Amazon Storefront or try one of the quilt shops on this list.

Please always use a sharp blade in your rotary cutter. And remember: every time you set down your rotary cutter it should be closed for safety. For realsies. You don't want to come across the open cutter by accident while it's laying on the table. Or, drop it. Ouch!

Click here for my favorite quilting supplies on Amazon. (Amazon link is an affliate link.) You can also find many of these at your local quilt shop.

I'm a huge proponent of glue basting. This will be your KEY to matching your points later on. I highly recommend getting a bottle of Elmer's washable school and my favorite glue tips from Cristy Fincher.

Let's get started cutting:

Below are cutting instructions. You can right click to download any of these images. However, before you do that, I'll tell you a bit about how I cut these fabrics. I know we all work a bit differently when it comes to organization so you'll do what you think is best, This is how my brain works. I felt the pattern should be organized by cut type because I wanted my piles organized by what cut unit it is part of. That said, I went through each cut type and cut fabric by fabric. This will help you conserve the most fabric as well as help you stay organized.

So, for instance, I started with the section that says, "Corner Square for Main Blocks" and cut Cozy Gingham (sugar) for that, put a check mark by it and, then I looked at each additional cut type and cut each of those in the same fabric (if listed). Then I started back up at the top with the next fabric, crossing each one off as I went along.

You'll also find below, a page that you can use to label each pile. Cut those out and pin to your piles. You may want to print several of these. You can see I didn't have the labels made yet when I cut, so I was marking by hand.

These are my favorite tips for accurately cutting fabric:

Starch the ever-loving heck out of your fabrics. I always spray the wrong side, iron the right side and then visa versa. This makes your fabrics nice and stiff so they don't stretch on you when cutting. Starch washes out later, and it sure makes cutting easier.
Use a brand new sharp blade in your rotary cutter. A dull blade can slip or drag, leading to inaccurate cuts and frayed edges. Funny story: one time I put two new blades in and couldn't figure out what in the world was wrong. I know you won't do that. 😉.
Square up first. Trim one clean, straight edge before cutting strips. This sets the foundation for everything that follows.
Align fabric with the ruler, not the mat. Cutting mats can shift over time. Rely on your ruler's markings for accuracy.
Check grain direction. Make sure fabric is straight on grain to prevent distortion in piecing.
Measure twice, cut once. The old adage is the best advice. Double check your ruler before you slide that blade through.
Apply even pressure. Press firmly but smoothly with your rotary cutter to avoid veering off the ruler.
Take breaks. This quilt has a lot of cuts. It took me several hour to two hour stretches to get it done. Accuracy and safety drops when you are tired. Step away if you start to feel rushed or tired.

Why cutting accuracy matters:

I'm no perfectionist. And I'm sure not the quilt police, but if you want to make your life easier, it will help to start with accurate cuts.

Accurate cutting sets the foundation for everything that comes after. When pieces are cut correctly, they fit together smoothly, seams align and blocks finish at the intended size.

Small cutting inaccuracies compound as pieces are joined. A sixteenth of an inch here and there can result in blocks that don't match, points that miss, or borders that ripple.

Perfection isn't the goal. But careful cutting saves time, fabric and stress later on.

I support independent local quilt shops, both brick and mortar and online. I encourage you to shop local first. Therefore, I have listed shops by state and country. Happy quilting!

SHOPS THAT CARRY FAIRVIEW AVENUE (* - has kits)

UNITED STATES

CALIFORNIA:

COTTONEER FABRICS

CONNECTICUT:

COTTON CANDY FABRICS

IDAHO:

*OLIVE & ELLE QUILT CO (has kits)

LOUISIANA:

*SUMMER'S HAVEN STORE (has kits)

MISSOURI

GOLDEN GIRLS FABRIC CO