Blackberries picked on a warm July day and served over ice cream. Fat boysenberries tucked into pie crust and baked until the whole house smells delicious.
Welcome
This is the online site for the Blackbirds and Berries pattern by Laurel Anderson. Click the PATTERN button on the right to purchase your own paper pattern. Post pictures in the comments section showing your progress and completed quilt. We also want to see your blue ribbons!
There are a few unusual quilting tools required to make this design. Some can be omitted such as a good pair of scissors can be used instead of an electronic cutter like the Silhouette Cameo. You may choose not to add beads or add fewer leaves and blossoms. If you are a farmer and hate blackbirds, please turn the pair into some other type of bird or leave them off the quilt.
Supplies
Sharpie marker
Chalk marker and Frixion pen
Heat resistant template plastic, 2 sheets
Masking tape or Scotch tape
Scissors for fabric and scissors for paper and plastic
Sewing Machine with all sewing supplies
Hand appliqué supplies
Iron and pad
Rotary cutter and mat
¼” bias tape maker or 2 packs prepared double-fold ¼” bias tape
Roxanne’s Glue-Baste-It or Appli’- Glue
Gallon Zip-Lock bag
Terial Magic
Beads for the berries and birds (optional)
Silhouette CAMEO and laptop computer or
Brother Scan-n-Cut and USB stick (optional)
404 Spray and Fix and 1” painters tape
CD of cutting files for Silhouette or Brother electronic cutter.
Background
Terial Magic:
1. Prepare background fabric:
Cut the Violet fabric to 32” x 32”
Pre-wash the violet and white fabric. Press the violet fabric until dry and mark the center using marks that will wash or press away, mark a line from the center top to bottom and a line from center-left to right.
Spray the white fabric with enough Terial Magic so all areas are wet. Squeeze any excess out and press dry. Make sure the weave stays horizontal and vertical. (I pin it to my ironing board before pressing.)
Mark the vertical and horizontal center lines.
Template:
2. Tape two heat-resistant plastic sheets together and cut the scallop shape out on the outer curved line. Mark the inner curved line on the template with a Sharpie marker add the lines of the vine.
Place the template on the white fabric matching the center mark to the tip of the template point and match the center lines.
Mark the outer curve. Do the same to each of the vertical and horizontal lines. Add two scallops between each of the first four giving you 12 evenly-spaced scallops. Cut on the lines.
Scallops:
3. Cut the template on the top Sharpie line. (Cutting the seam allowance off the top curve.)
Clip the seam allowance at the inner point between each scallop.
Spray Terial Magic into a small dish. Using a small paintbrush or Q-tip, paint liquid Terial Magic onto the seam allowance (one scallop at a time). Place the template on the back of the white fabric and iron the wet seam allowance over the template edges. Keep the template point at the center mark.
If the scallop curves have points instead of perfect curves, paint more Terial Magic on the points and iron them until they are smooth curves.
Stitch white on violet:
4. Place the white fabric on the violet fabric, matching the centerlines and center point. Pin around the edges. Stitch the white onto the violet using matching thread or monofilament clear thread. I usually use a small zigzag or straight stitch.
Trim the center violet fabric to ¼” inside stitching.
