Jelly Roll Batik Lap Quilt

Thanks to a link posted in the November issue of the Anchorage Log Cabin Quilters, Inc. newsletter, I located this Super Fast Jelly-Roll Quilt Pattern.  It just so happens I had a roll of batik strips just waiting for the right project to inspire action.  Mindless piecing projects like this one help facilitate my ability to enjoy what I call 'mind traveling' during simple sewing procedures.  For me, this is meditative productivity at its best!  The only thing that would make it more enjoyable is sharing it with a friend.

Since my dear and longtime friend Molly, whom I met through ALCQ  20 years ago, now lives in Maine with a four hour time zone between us, we rely mostly on the internet to keep us reasonably connected.  I knew she had a Jelly-roll or two in her fabric stash and with her new sewing room just begging for activity, I thought it would be fun to work on this project simultaneously.  Think of it as a long distance Quilt Retreat.  When I proposed the idea, Molly said let's do it, send me the steps one at a time and treat it like a Mystery quilting class.  Yay ~ sewing with a friend is always fun.

Well...  I woke up this morning to two emails Molly had sent telling me she was well underway on her piecing! Gee whiz, I hadn't even made coffee yet.  Thus the 4 hr. time difference I made reference to earlier.  I was stunned and thrilled Molly was going great guns and having fun sewing - once she found the power cord and got reacquainted with her machine.  I had some serious catching up to do!

I'm posting the beginning steps of my Jelly-roll quilt as well as the completed top.  Hopefully Molly will send me a photo of her finished quilt top to share with readers also.

This particular Jelly Roll fabric I purchased from JoAnn's with a 40% off coupon. The entire quilt top cost $7.50 to make.  There are other fabrics and colorways available at JoAnn's I may have to try.  I chose not to put a border on this top.  Molly used a batik Bali Pop.  I don't know if she will sew up more tops like these but I plan to try it using different colors and themes such as Aunt Grace or Oriental fabrics.  So many possibilities and so little time required to make them!  This one took about 5 hrs. start to finish.