Just Playin' A-Round!

Hi, Everyone!  I'm Val from PinkPlease!, cooking up my very first Moda Bake Shop recipe.  When I was making this play mat, I felt like half of the Jelly Roll was being cut off and thrown into my scrap bin.  I thought there has got to be a way to reuse these scraps ... and Voila! ... the changing pad was born!  You just can't beat two quilts made from one Jelly Roll!

I am completely in love with all things MoMo, and when I saw her new fabric line, “Just Wing It,” I knew these quilts would be a perfect fit!  I've partnered up with Fat Quarter Shop to bring you a giveaway to help start your quilts.  You gotta play to win, so hurry on over to my blog for your chance!

1 Jelly Roll of MoMo's Just Wing It (#32440JR) for top(s)

2 yards of Just Wing It (#32440 27) for backing(s)

1/2 yard (#32445 20) for binding(s)

I intermixed a few Bella solids, but you can definitely complete the top of both quilts with just one Jelly Roll.

***All seam allowances are ¼”.***


***Read the entire recipe before starting.  By doing this, you will learn how to make both the play mat and the changing pad simultaneously.


***It may not be a bad idea to use a stronger 90/14 needle since it gets quite congested in the middle of the quilt towards the end.  I used an 80/12 needle for both of these quilts, but on another play mat I made, I used an 80/12 needle and it broke when I got to the center of the quilt (when the quilt was almost complete), flew at me, and almost took my eye out.  ...just sayin'!***

Creating the Play Mat

1.  Cut the entire Jelly Roll in half, creating 80 (2 ½” x  22") strips.


2.   Set out all your strips in a circular pattern to determine your sewing order.  For the play mat, you will need approx. 68 strips.  (You'll need to set aside 3 additional colored strips for your changing pad.)
 

3.  Choose your first strip and lay it right side up on your cutting mat.

4.  Cut the strip diagonally lengthwise starting at the top right corner and cutting to ¼” over from the bottom left corner (I know this sounds confusing so I've taken a close-up photo below for a visual aid). This ¼” provides the necessary seam allowance for attaching the next strip.  Make sure the selvage is always the widest part of your strip (this will be the outside edge of the quilt(s)) when you both cut and sew.  On second thought, it would be pretty cool to put your selvages toward the center of your quilt so the middle could scream "Mo Mo, Mo Mo, Mo Mo!"

5.  Here is what the first piece looks like after it's cut.


The piece of the left will be used for the play mat,
the scrap on the right will be used for the changing pad.



6.  Don't throw away the scrap you just cut!  This will be used to make your changing pad.

7.  With right sides together, pin (if you choose) and sew your second full uncut strip to the first diagonal piece, sewing from the outside (selvage) of the quilt to the middle/inside.



8.  Press seams open.

9.  Place the two pieces you’ve sewn together right side up on your cutting mat.  Cut the second strip (on the right) as you did in step 4 (above), starting from the top right corner and cutting on the diagonal down the length of the strip to ¼” over from the bottom left corner of the second strip.  

10.  With right sides together, sew the third full strip to the second diagonal piece.

11.  Press seams open.

12.  Place the three pieces you’ve sewn together right side up on your cutting mat.  Again, cut the third strip (the strip on the right side) as you did in Step 4, starting at the top right corner and cutting on the diagonal to the bottom left corner, leaving ¼” seam allowance intact.

13.  Repeat steps 3-7 for the remaining 65 strips.

Make sure to always leave 1/4" in the center when cutting off your scrap strip.



14.  When it is time to sew the final seam connecting the last diagonally cut strip to the beginning first strip, I have found that it is most effective to sew this strip starting from the middle of the quilt and sewing toward the outside to make sure everything lines up nicely.  Sew slowly, so your needle can get through all those layers without breaking (and taking out an eye!)

15.  After you have sewn the last strip to the first, press the seams open.  As you will notice, the middle gets a little crazy.  When pressing, don't worry about the middle so much.  Let it go where it wants to go.  Just make sure to press the seams open as well as you can on the outer portion of the quilt. 

16.  Your play mat will now look like this.

17.  Once you have the top completed, it’s time to sandwich, baste, quilt, bind, and wash your play mat.  When basting, I recommend used basting spray to hold the top nicely in place.  I quilted the entire playmat first and then trimmed off the selvages from the edges before binding.    

18.  When binding, make sure to cut your binding on the bias for maximum smoothness around the curves. 

19.  Here is what your finished Baby Play Mat will look like.  Throw it on the floor and be the envy of all the parents at your next play date!

Here's the Back... (did I mention that I LOVE MoMo?)

Creating the Changing Pad

The changing pad is a breeze to make because your strips are already cut into triangles.  As scraps are cut from the play mat, you can start sewing them together to make this changing pad. Each time you cut a new scrap, immediately sew it onto the changing pad.  If you do it this way, you will be pleasantly surprised to have two completed quilt tops finished at the exact same time.  Keep in mind, the changing pad uses 3 more strips than the play mat, so if you want to add a strip into the changing mat at a specific spot, other than at the end, be aware of it while you are sewing and don't forget to add it in.  I just added my three extra strips at the very end.  I know it doesn't seem logical that the smaller changing pad uses more strips than the larger play mat, but it really does.  Here is a picture of what it will look like when you've finished the play mat and still need to add the 3 strips to the changing pad.

1.  You will basically be using the same technique as used in making the play mat.  Choose your first two strips you plan to sew together.  You can either follow the same order that you used for the play mat, or you can mix it up. I chose to follow the same order.

2.  Take your first strip and lay it right side up.

3.  Lay your second strip on top of the first strip (right sides together).  The pinked edge of the top piece (strip 2) should be on the right side. (This is the side you will sew).  Sew the two pieces together.

4.  Press seams open.

5.  Turn the two pieces you’ve sewn together right side up. If you'll notice, the strip on the right looks a little wavy.  You'll want to straighten'er up.

....Ahhh much better!

6.  With right sides together, sew the third strip to the second diagonal piece.  The pinked edge of the top piece (strip 3) should be on the right side.

7.  Press seams open.

8.  Turn the three sewn pieces right side up on your cutting mat.  Trim the strip up as you did before removing any waviness.  Make sure to leave your 1/4" seam allowance at the bottom.

9.  You will now notice that there is extra fabric starting to accumulate at the center of your changing pad.  You will want to trim the center up all the way to where your piece on the far right is 1/4" wide.  Measure the length of your fabric at this point.  Then, as you start adding strips to your changing pad, you will want to cut all strips to this length (see photo in step 10 below).  Here's a picture to better show this.

10.  Trim your next strip to the same length as the others.  Pin and sew.

11.  Press seams open. Turn fabric right side up and trim so there is 1/4" at the bottom-center of the right most piece.

12.  Repeat this process all the way around the changing pad.

13.  As with the play mat, when it is time to sew the final seam, connecting the last diagonally cut strip to strip 1, sew the seam starting from the middle and sewing toward the outer edge of the quilt.

14.  Once you have the top complete, just like the play mat, it's time to sandwich, baste, quilt, bind, & wash.  

15.  Yeah!  You're finished.  Now pat yourself on the back and admire your beautiful new quilts!! 

The finished play mat is approximately 38 ½” in diameter (after washing).

The finished changing pad is approximately 28 ½” in diameter (after washing).

I’d love to see the wonderful creations you come up with!  Please add your pictures to my PinkPlease! flickr group as well as the Moda Bake Shop flickr groups!

...oh, and if you're interested in knowing the secret of how I magically photographed these levitating quilts...come on over to my bloggie blog for an all-access look behind the scenes.

Make sure to leave me a note!  

I love comments!

~Val

howaboutpinkplease.blogspot.com