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Bigfork, Montana, USA
Bigfork Bay Cotton Company is a full service, brick and mortar quilt shop, as well as a retail/wholesale pattern business. You can view our pattern line on our website, but on a more personal level, we'd like to invite you into our shop and share with you the joy of quilting in our corner of the world!

Thursday, February 10, 2011

NEW MYSTERY QUILT BEGINS SATURDAY!

Those of you that receive our newsletter already know that we are beginning a new mystery quilt on Saturday. Even if you cannot make it in to the shop, you can join us in solving this mystery! Each month, on the second Saturday, I will be posting a new step. This is a traditional, pieced quilt, finished size approximately 62" X 62".

Today, I am giving you your fabric requirements.

First, start with a Focus fabric. Just pick something you like....that's easy, right? You will need 2 yards. (This will include the outer border.)

The rest of the fabrics need to "get along with" the focus fabric, and with each other.

Light 1 1/2 yards (One and one half yards)

Light/Medium 1 3/4 yards (One and three quarter yards) This could be the same color as your light, with a value change, or a different color altogether!

Medium or Dark #1 3/4 yard (Three quarter yard) (This will include the inner border.)

Medium or Dark #2 1/2 yard (One half yard)

Medium/Dark #3 2/3 yard (Two thirds yard) (This will include binding.) Now....about this one....If you can pull a third color out of your focus fabric, great. That's what I did. But if you can't, don't worry.....you could also use your focus fabric or one of the other mediums, just be sure to add this amount to the yardage required above for the one you choose.

Although I used to be a stickler about prewashing and ironing fabric, since I've gotten busy with the business, I often bypass this step. Luckily, I have never had a problem. Certainly, if you use hand-dyed fabrics or suspect that a fabric might bleed, you will want to prewash.

I base all my yardage calculations on 40 inches of width. That allows for any shrinkage that happens when you prewash. It also means that those who don't prewash may eke out an extra cut or two out of a strip, perhaps meaning you may need a strip less than the directions indicate.... Don't worry if you have an extra strip....just throw it in your scraps!

Tomorrow I will post cutting instructions....and then on Saturday, STEP ONE!

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