Rugby Stripe Baby Quilt

I pulled out my bin of 2 1/2 inch scrap strips to make some Rugby Stripe Blocks on a bit of whim. These blocks are so quick and easy to put together, before I knew it I had enough for a scrappy baby quilt.

The blues, greens, and blacks make this version more masculine than the first, larger iteration of the quilt. I love how fabric choice completely changes the look and feel of a quilt.

I quilted it simply with my Bernina's serpentine stitch. You can play with the width of the wave and the stitch length and use the side of the walking foot to gauge distance between rows of stitching. These are about an inch apart.

The binding is a crisp navy and white stripe that should fit the nautical theme of my friend's nursery, and the flannel back will make this quilt a cozy on for her new little boy. At 41 x 55 it is a nice size to serve him through his preschool years too.

Rugby Stripe Quilt

I finished up my Rugby Stripe Quilt this past week and have been waiting for a pause in the rain to snap a few pictures.    The color scheme and blocks were inspired by Samantha's blocks which she has now transformed into this unique sewing machine cover.  I enjoyed working with the rather unexpected combination of chartreuse, navy, plum, aqua and black, and I was able to use up quite a few of my 2 1/2" scrap strips.

I made 40 Rugby Stripe blocks (you can find a tutorial for the block here).  In this 8 x 5 setting, the quilt finishes at 56" x 70" which is a nice throw size.

I love the bird print from Violet Craft's Waterfront Park line on the back.  It's just the right scale, and the Comma dot binding frames the quilt nicely.

I quilted in a simple meander which I find to be a good choice for busy quilts like this one.  I've placed this quilt in my shop.

Rugby Stripe Block - a tutorial

One of my scrap management techniques is to cut 2 1/2" strips from scrap pieces of fabric.  The strips have been piling up, awaiting the right project, so when I saw this lovely photo by Samantha of Always Making Life Prettier, my mind went immediately to that box of jumbled strips.  Samantha was kind enough to allow me to use her idea as the inspiration for a new quilt and this tutorial (and believe it or not, her blocks are only a starting point for a much more elaborate design).

The Rugby Stripe block is extremely simple.  It is totally achievable for even a beginner, but it's also a great stash buster or way to use scraps for any quilter.  It's always nice to have a quick block for those fat eighth or fat quarter bundles or jelly rolls that doesn't require you to purchase a background fabric.
You can make a single Rugby Stripe block from two jelly roll strips, or simply use 2 1/2" strips cut from yardage, or scrap strips as I did, to create these 7" x 14" blocks.  You will need 45 blocks for a 63" x 70" throw quilt or 21 blocks for a 35" x 42" baby quilt.

To make a Rugby Stripe block:
1. Cut the fabrics

    Fabric A:
    1 strip 2 1/2" x 23"
    1 strip 2 1/2" x 7 1/2"

    Fabric B:
    1 strip 2 1/2" x 23"

2. Sew the 2 1/2" x 23" strip of Fabric A to the same size strip of Fabric B.

3. Press the seam as desired and sub cut the strip into 3 rectangles 4 1/2" x 7 1/2" each. I allowed an extra 1/2" wiggle room to trim away for perfectly straight edges.

4. Sew together the three rectangles created in  the previous step, alternating Fabrics A and B, and add the final 2 1/2" x 7 1/2" strip of Fabric A.

That's it!  These blocks sew up so quickly.  Of course, if you don't have strips or want to use fat eighths or fat quarters or smaller scraps, simply cut 4 rectangles of Fabric A and 3 rectangles of Fabric B, all 2 1/2" x 7 1/2" to make a single block. (FYI, if cut this way, two fat eighths will yield two blocks). Hope you enjoy the simple tutorial.  I'll be finishing up the blocks for my throw to show soon.