As an Island Batik ambassador, this month's project was to make kennel quilts. As you know, I love to support our local animal shelter (see my recent quilty donation to them here). The kennel quilt initiative allows for helping our four-legged friends in another way!
I started my first kennel quilt with a pack of Island Batik 5" squares. These are called "Island Stamps" and the collection is "Lake Life." I added a couple more fabrics from the packs of Island Batik stash builder rolls in order to get enough lights and darks. I made a few HSTs (half square triangles) and cut all the fabrics into 1 1/2" squares. Then I sewed the squares together to create a dog bone quilt!
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Those squares finish at just 1"!
Kennel quilts don't have binding, so you layer the batting on the bottom, then the backing (right side up), then the quilt top (right side down). Sew all the way around the edge, but leave a 4" or so wide opening. Turn the quilt right sides out, then stitch around the outside edge to close the gap.
For the dog bone quilt, I quilted a single line around the outside of the dog bone.
I cut the leftover 5" squares into 2 1/2" squares to make another kennel quilt. Then I used a few more fabrics from the stash builder rolls to cut 5" squares to make some colorful kennel quilts! I used the same fabric on the back of each one (Island Batik Dotalicious in Custard). Of course I used Aurifil thread too! (Seriously, you need to try it!) The dog bone one is the only one that I added additional quilting. For the others, I just sewed around the outside edge.
In total, I made eight kennel quilts this month. I'm going to mail them to a shelter in Louisiana that has requested them.
The kennel quilts were a great way to use up some cotton batting scraps and were a quick finish!
I love being able to use what I love (quilting) to help others do what they love (care for animals)!
Here's a little more about the kennel quilts project:
In 2016, Island Batik joined forces with an existing group of industry partners and supporters of the Petfinder Foundation to create the Piece for Shelter Pets (PFSP) initiative. The initiative supports the Petfinder Foundation, a “public charity that works to end the euthanasia of adoptable pets by assisting animal shelters and rescue groups across North America”, through financial contributions made possible by the sale of fabric, thread, and other quilting related products. PFSP sponsors include The Quilt Pattern Magazine, Island Batik, Aurifil Threads, QuiltyBox, Benartex, and Hancock’s of Paducah.
The TQPM Small Kennel Quilt Team is a volunteer organization sponsored by The Quilt Pattern Magazine (TQPM) that springs into action (or should we say "stitches" into action) when disasters strike, sewing small kennel quilts for animals in need while they are separated from their humans and possibly injured. Creating kennel quilts is a way for quilters to help our animal friends in times of need by doing what we love. TQPM Small Kennel Quilt Team supplies kennel quilts to shelters across the United States. You can learn more here.
The finished kennel quilts need to be 12"x18". It is recommended that they are made with 100% cotton, don't have binding, and are made with a small stitch length.
Do you have any batting or fabric scraps laying around? Maybe a kennel quilt is the perfect solution! I'd love know if you make and donate one - or eight!
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The bone is awesome! Love the idea.
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