12 Days of Christmas in July Blog Hop and Quilt-Along - The Beginning!

Hi, all!

Welcome to this year's 12 Days of Christmas in July Blog Hop!  We have twenty-eight great bloggers all lined up to give you some fabulous crafty ideas with which to bring in the season - and all in July, so you have time to pick and choose (and finish!) your favorite projects!  Each day, here on the blog, I'll be directing you to that day's bloggers AND providing a calendar of all the blogs participating.  

And that's not all that will be here on the blog - as in the past years, I'll be doing a tutorial for a quilt top that can be finished in about an hour a day over the twelve days of the hop.  There will even be a couple of catch-up days, too, in case you get behind.  And this year, I've shown some alternate color ways of the quilt, so if you don't want a Christmas quilt, you can see the potential of other color combinations.  

And best of all?  I've got a few giveaways to do during the hop, and so are some of our bloggers.  So don't miss a day - you might miss out on a flash giveaway!  

So let's get started!!  First, I'll introduce you to today's bloggers.  First of all, we have Joy from Days Filled With Joy.  You might remember that she was a guest blogger for the Hands2Help Challenge this year, sharing what it's like to live and quilt in the Middle East.  She's going to share some great gift ideas with us and I for one can't wait to see them!  Our second blogger is Selina, who blogs at Selina Quilts.  It seems like I've known Selina forever - I think hers was one of the first blogs I ever followed - and I love her style!  She's going to share a scrappy Christmas tumbler quilt with us today, and I know you'll love it!  

And FYI - here's your first giveaway alert:  one of today's bloggers is having a giveaway!  So check them out and join in the fun!

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And here's this year's quilt-along quilt!  After much pondering on names, and a lot of help from my friends, I think we'll call this one "Rejoice"!  You can see some other color ways on this post, too, including one that would be appropriate for Quilts of Valor.

So let's get started!  Here are the fabric requirements:

This quilt, as shown, finishes up at approximately 68" x 68".

You will need three different fabrics for this quilt.  Looking at the quilt above, let's call the red A, the white B, and the green C.  For the top only, you'll need the following amounts:

Fabric A:  1 3/4 yards

Fabric B:  2 1/8 yards

Fabric C:  1 3/8 yards

The colors in each top are arranged in the same sequence, so if you prefer one of the other colorations, or one of your own, just choose your fabrics accordingly!

It will also be helpful to have a Tri-Recs ruler and a 6.5" Bloc-Loc ruler.  You can find more information about those on the post referenced earlier showing the different color ways.  There's also a discount code for the Bloc-Loc ruler that is good through 7/15/18.  If you don't have, or don't want to buy a Tri-Recs ruler, I can send you a PDF with the correct size templates drawn on it.  NOTE:  Be SURE to give me your email address in your comment!  If you don't, I may not be able to send it to you, as Blogger sends many comments as "no reply".

Now for the cutting.  I would recommend that you press all your fabric, matching the selvages so you will get nice straight-of-grain cuts.  It adds a little time but you'll be happier with your finished quilt!  And here are the pieces you'll need to cut:

For Block A:      6  Fabric A  10" squares
                           6  Fabric B  10" squares
                         48  Fabric C  4.5" squares
                         12  Fabric A  4.5" squares

For Block B:    65  Fabric A  4.5" squares
                     120  Fabric B  4.5" side (Recs) triangles 
                                                     (includes border triangles) 

(Cut both the Tri and the Recs pieces from strips cut 4.5" x width of fabric (WOF).  Do NOT open up the strips.  Leave them folded as they were on the bolt.  This way, when you cut the Recs pieces, you'll get both a right and a left side from each cut.  Line up the top of the template with the top of the strip; the line under 4.5" should line up with the bottom of the strip.  And see those little corners cut off on the template?  It really does pay to cut those off too - it makes it so much easier to line your pieces up correctly to sew them!)

                       60  Fabric C  4.5" center (Tri) triangles 
                                                     (includes border triangles)

Set aside your leftover material to cut borders later!  Don't lose it!

And that's it for Day 1!  Not too much, I hope.  Tomorrow we'll start making the parts for Block A.  See you then!  

Oh, and here's a list of all of the bloggers who will be participating in the blog hop - because I know you all want to know! 

Saturday, July 14th

Joy @ Days Filled With Joy

Selina @ Selina Quilts

Sunday, July 15th

Joanne @ Everyone Deserves a Quilt

Jan @ The Colorful Fabriholic

Monday, July 16th

Carole @ From My Carolina Home

Jamie @ L'Fair Quilts

Karen @ Tu-Na Quilts, Travels & Eats

Tuesday, July 17th

Sharon @ Vrooman's Quilts

Mary @ Made by Marney

Wednesday, July 18th

Karrin @ Karrin's Crazy World

Marian @ Seams To Be Sew

Thursday, July 19th

Christina @ Christina's Handicrafts

Sherry @ Books, Hooks, Sticks, etc.

Danice @ Homespun Hannah

Friday, July 20th

Kristi @ Confessions of A Fabric Addict

Wendy @ Pieceful Thoughts

Saturday, July 21st

Cindy @ Stitchin' At Home

Meloney @ Mel's Quilting Blog

Sunday, July 22nd

Anja @ Anja Quilts

Moira @ Quilted Snail

Monday, July 23rd

Brenda @ Songbird Designs

Amy @ Sea of Estrogen

Bonnie @ In Stitches With Bonnie

Tuesday, July 24th

Kathy @ Kathy's Kwilts and More

Summer @ Summer Lee Quilts

Wednesday, July 25th

Susan @ Quilt Fabrication

Brandy @ Pampered Pettit

Jean @ All Points of the Compass

Don't miss a day - it's going to be awesome!  And don't forget those flash giveaways - you never know what day there'll be one (I don't even know!) so check in daily!

Hugs!

Sarah