Friday, September 16, 2011

CLAM SHELL TUTORIAL USING THE CIRCLE DIE FOR THE ACCUQUILT GO CUTTER

Some of you have seen this Clam Shell runner from a while back. It is made from the Accuquilt Circle die, using the middle circle (3" in diameter)






I am working on this quilt using the circle die again but using the 5" diameter circle.
Trust me, no fabric was wasted, what I didn't use for the large circle, the middle circle was used and what was not used for those two, the smaller one was used...very little waste.


So let's begin. For the quilt...I cut a 5" strip, this strip will be as long as you want your quilt wide. You will need a glue stick.


Lay out your strip. Take your first circle and crease the middle
place the crease on the bottom of the strip, like you see here.
you can see here where it is creased.
Then you just glue the top portion of the circle down on the strip of fabric.
Then you do the same to the next circle, you will place the circle next to each other, crease touching.
You will do this all the way down your strip. In this case I have nine circles, the next row will be eight....then nine on the third row, eight on the fourth etc.
Then you will blanket stitch around the circles to the end of the strip like you see here. As you can see, this is the back of the strip.
Now you will go and trim the back like this.
For your second row, as mentioned above, you will only have eight circles. You will crease the middle and if it is helpful, crease the middle both ways so you can match the middle crease to the top of your quilt (which will be inbetween two of the above circles)...
This is what the back looks like after the second row.
This is what it looks like after you trim off the back...now sometimes the glue has to be seperated from the fabric so you can get a nice cut...but that is not a big deal.



Also, every once in a while I measure from top to bottom on both side of the quilt to make sure I am keeping the same length and width on each side from top to bottom, from side to side.



I have not finished the quilt yet but what I did on the runner was, I cut the sides right down the middle of the circle, and bottom. Added a border to each side and bottom. Then I just did a straight stitch quilting around each circle, that is what gives it the puffy look.





For the quilt, I am thinking of cutting strips for the side and bottom but not cut the circles down the middle...I will glue the circles onto the strip and just blanket stitch around them....that is my plan as of now. I still plan to do the same quilting, straight stitching around each circle.





You will end up with alot of scraps.... This could be considered very wasteful...and you are probably thinking that using the go to do clam shells is a waste of such fabrics....

Take a look at this runner...do you think it is wasteful now? It is made from the scraps off the back of the clam shell. I have enough scraps to make more of these runners or come up with something new.

I say...let us try something new....so stay tuned!!


41 comments:

Gene Black said...

Good point Barb, wasteful is only a lack of creativity.

Ruth said...

I love that! It looks easier than doing it by hand, that's for sure. I do like clamshells and have seen other bloggers making them by hand. Don't know if I'll do this or not, but will definitely keep it in mind. Thanks for the tutorial!

free indeed said...

Great use of the scraps Barb! I'll be getting the circle die soon and this is a great project. Thanks for the tute.

Jean(ie) said...

What a clever idea!!!! I like how you used the scraps to make the flowers.

Terry said...

What a great way to do clamshells! You're so clever! :0)

JustCindy said...

Very good tutorial. I love both tablerunners but the one you made with the scraps is my favorite.

Susan In Texas said...

Oh Barb. That is very clever! Both the way you put the clamshells together and the way you used up the scraps. Very informative; thanks for sharing!

Susan in Texas

Cathy @ CabbageQuilts said...

Clever clamshells and fabulous use of scraps. Love the black and white theme! xo

Unknown said...

Super quilt! Love the black and white.

Susan said...

Oh my gosh...I love it!

Sheila said...

Thanks for this little tutorial , it sure is a pretty runner and I really love how you used those scraps to make the flowers , cool!

Wacky Woman said...

I love both of them. Very nice.

Ariane said...

I love this tutorial. So great!! And I love how you used the scraps. This is definitely a winner. Thanks for sharing it with us. Hugs Ariane

West Michigan Quilter said...

Great tutorial. Love what you did with the scraps! You are so creative.

andsewon said...

Neato Tut! I have an antique clam shell that hangs in my dining room made by my Great Grandmother Nora.
I always thought about making one but was daunted by the hand work. Now I can just use my GO! and circle die! Thanks Barb!

Elaine/Muddling Through said...

Genius! I love how you've done this. I don't like hand stitching. So I don't do it. At least not very often, but this looks like a great idea to me. And the go cutter is definitely the way to go!

suemac said...

Both runners are so cute. It really makes me want to get the circle die for my Go Baby.

suemac said...

They both are cute. It makes me want to get the circle die form my Go Baby.

Rosa said...

Wow,I love how you use scraps.Thanks for the tuto.

Geta Grama said...

Thanks for the idea, Barb! The pattern is beautiful and so easy to make with circles!

Robin (RsIslandCrafts) said...

Great tutorial! The clam shell runner is wonderful but I think the left over runner is so fun and whimsical. Great use of scraps!

Wendy said...

Don't you just love proving the quilt police wrong! I will definitely be doing this one! I love it! And your second as a table runner is just awesome! Great jobs well done......

Linda said...

Love it! Thanks for showing me how to do this.

Vicki ♥ said...

Love it Barb...thanks for being so creative :) Hugs Vicki x

evelyn said...

I love it. You are so creative. I will never look at a clamshell template again without thinking of this.

SewCalGal said...

I was wondering how you create beautiful Clamshell design. Great tutorial. Love it. Excellent. And I love what you created with the cutout of the clamshell pieces. Very creative. Love them both. I look forward to giving this a try. Thanks for sharing & inspiring.

SewCalGal
www.sewcalgal.blogspot.com

QuiltSue said...

That's so clever Barb. Now, all I need to do is persuade my machine that together we can do a nice blanket stitch. Oh yes, and get the circle die!

Marjorie said...

Barb, thank you so much for this tutorial. you are amazing - I love clamshells and this is a perfect quilt to make with the circles from the GO.

Fiona said...

Great projectS from your circles.... does your brain ever stop making up new ideas?
Hugz

Jane's Fabrics and Quilts said...

Barb! I LOVE this!! It is so on my "to try" list! Thank you for showing me how. I may start with a pot-holder!!

Deanna said...

I can't decide which I like best, the clamshells or the flowers. Isn't it nice that this tutorial gives a person both!

sewfunquilts said...

Great thinking and terrific creating, Barb. I love it. Thanks for showing us how to do it.

quilary said...

Fantastic! I couldn't imagine myself even contemplating a clamshell design...but now I think even I could do it... and 2 designs from one - more genius!

Mystica said...

Coming to this late but thank you ever so much for this. I got back to my quilting after five months. A rail fence quilt for a baby due in November.

QuiltNut Creations said...

love the clamshell runner but the *leftover* runner? fabulous!! thanx for the great tutorial Barb

Mary said...

Sorry I am slow, I am playing catchup. I love what you did with the circles. It is so neat. Like the black and white fabric. You come up with such great ideas.

Coisas da Laura said...

Barb,you have great ideas!!!!I will visit you everyday for inspiration!Thank you!!!

Heather said...

Great tutorial, and a very doable project. thanks.

Barbara Arcement said...

cute idea

Jay and Lynn Neathery said...

I've been wondering if I couldn't make a clamshell quilt with circles. Thanks for the tutorial.

Jay and Lynn Neathery said...

I've been wondering if I couldn't make a clamshell quilt with circles. Thanks for the tutorial.