Have you made all the blocks you need for your quilt?  Now's the time to join them together to make the top of your quilt!  It really starts to look like a quilt now.

Lay out your blocks in order - this is your last chance to change your mind!  Sew together the blocks in the top row, pressing the seam in the same direction as the other seams in that row.

Repeat for the middle and bottom rows - and any other rows you may have.

Now stitch your rows together, pressing the seams in the same direction. If your cutting and sewing has been accurate, all your seams should line up.  If they don't, and one of your rows is wider than the next one, you will need to adjust one or more seams to make it the same width.  Look to see if one (or more) patch looks wider.  Re-stitch one of its seams with a slightly bigger seam allowance.  If your seams don't line up, but the row is the same width as the next ones, don't worry about it!

Voilà - one completed quilt top!

Next week, we will quilt together the top, wadding and backing, so you need to get wadding and backing fabric if you haven't already.  The wadding should be slightly bigger than the top and the backing fabric should be slightly larger than the wadding.  Thinner wadding may be easier to quilt if this is your first quilt.

If you have a quilt supply shop nearby, ask their advice about wadding.  The staff in those shops are usually very knowledgable.  If not, you will have to rely on the trusty (?) internet!  The Cotton Patch claim to have the  largest selection of wadding and cotton batting in the UK.   The home page of their web site gives a brief over-view of the different types of wadding.  Pelenna Patchworks also stock a selection of waddings, including a heat-resistant one - useful if you've made your block(s) into place mats.  There are other web sites which sell wadding, these are just a couple.  You can even buy wadding from Amazon - though without any help!  Or you can use a thick fabric, such as an old blanket - often used in the past.  I'm going to use some thick, brushed cotton which I already have.

Your backing fabric can continue the theme of the top of your quilt, be in a contrasting fabric, be in one piece or have a number of pieces joined together.  You may have something suitable in your stash - always satisfying!  The choice is yours.  I shall be using a piece of fabric from a print run which went wrong.

For the top row, I used (L to R): Paysmage's lizard gecko fuschia unusual stripes (large and small), lizard gecko fuschia; Art on Fabric's colour chart; Paysmage's Take off your shoes and watch the sunset multicolour, cat damask pink, tutti frutti sunset large, mice mouse, shell flowers october boo lines stripes; Heckadoddledo's Orange Lilies; a private design; Ashley@thejunipertree's Tawny owls in yellow; Adele Bradwell's Beach Huts and Watering cans.

For the middle row, I used (L to R): Art on Fabric's Woven Springtime; a private design;  Paysmage's Like in India uncommon stripes, Lizard gecko green, private design; Weavingmajor's Photographic snowflakes; Kate Garrett's Funny Farm; Adele Bradwell's Bunting; Sarah Summers' Run, dog, run, Here Kitty Kitty soft aqua, Snow Birds pale jade, Snow Birds; Rowena Taylor's Robin; Redbirds.

For the bottom row, I used (L to R): Paysmage's poisfleursbleu; Helen Hodgson's Littoral; 2 private designs; Ashley@thejunipertree's Barnacle geese; a private design; Magenta Rose's Pretty pointed; 2 private designs; Sarah Summers' Pretty ponies grape; private design; Adele Bradwell's Beach Huts; Art on Fabric's Lilac solid.

All these named designs are available in our Market Place.

Happy sewing and shopping ready for next week!