Directions for Love Quilts
The following information is for ALL quilts:
Fabric: WHITE AIDA cloth (I can't stress the white enough, NO ecru)
Count Size: 11, 14, 16 or 18 count AIDA (NO linen please)
Outside Dimensions: 13x13 inches (app. 33x33 cm), PLEASE make sure it isn't under 12x12 inches (app. 30x30 cm). If your fabric is 12x18 in. please cut the 18 to 13 in., that is fine.
Inside Dimensions: 9x9 inches or smaller for design (app. 23x23 cm)
Stitches: We are asking that you NO LONGER put the child's name on the square or use a pattern that is the child's initials unless you are given specific permission from Cathy (this will be granted for only special circumstances specific to the pattern you are requesting and is good for that pattern choice only). So many were putting the name on the square that, when finished, the quilt looked a bit cluttered with names. Also, some squares were coming in with the child's name spelled wrong. Please no longer stitch the child's name on your square. Please, NO LONG STITCHES on your square anywhere (including your signature). These tend to get caught when the quilt is being put together. I am sure that the child who is snuggling with the quilt finds the same thing. Please use all the holes available even when making things such as cats wiskers for example. Do not include beads, charms or other sewn-on embellishments on your square. Besides being a choking hazard for young children, they catch on other parts of the quilt when being washed and could damage the quilt.
Signing Work: Please sign your work when you are finished. The children and their families just love to see where the squares have come from. Please do not stitch a date into the square any longer. This helps when the squares are used at a later date for a child who receives a quilt urgently because of health reasons. Please sign your name (first name is fine) and location (city, state and country is fine or just the state and country if you are more comfortable with that) stitching it on the bottom close to the finished pattern.
Care: If you feel comfortable washing and drying your square, please feel free to do so. The squares need to be forced dried by an iron. Just after washing, while the square is still wet, slowly iron with a moderately hot iron until dry. Iron the back side of the square, not the front. Make sure your square has dried for at least 24 hours before mailing! Put WASHED on the insert you place with your square with the name of the child and your name and email address. If you are not comfortable washing your square feel free to send it along and we will wash it for you. Please put NOT WASHED on your insert. Package your square in a small bubble envelope and send it. It is very important for you to let us know if your square was washed!
Occasionally we receive more squares for a specific quilt than expected and sometimes way less, even with the commitments, we have never received all the promised squares. A quilt is closed to new stitchers at 50 stitchers; we usually receive anywhere from 25-45 squares out of that list. When we receive more squares than needed for one quilt, we will make two quilts instead of making one HUGE quilt for one child, we would rather split it in two and make two quilts allowing another child to receive a special quilt from Love Quilts.
NEW!
We will do all we can to make sure your square is placed on the child's quilt you stitched for. But due to either issues with the child (such as an emergency) or with how all the squares on the quilt work together, we reserve the right to use your square on another child's quilt. You can put "please use on ... quilt" if you are a first time stitcher with Love Quilts, we will try and respect your wish, but know that it might be used for another child without notice.
Please email link here for the mailing address for the squares...
If you are able, please add $2.00 with each square to help cover the cost of putting the quilt together and for postage to mail it to the child. Also, indicate on the front of your package AND in your package who's quilt the square is to be used for. If you are from another country or are unable to send the $2.00 please do not worry about it. Each quilt takes about $60.00 from start to finish. This includes fabric, batting, pillow forms etc. as well as the cost of mailing the quilt to the child. We are also now accepting Paypal for your $2.00 donation. Paypal is a secure way to send money. You need to go to Paypal.com and click on send money. There you will enter the email address of Cyberfogie@aol.com and the amount you wish to send. This is the address Love Quilts is using just for Paypal. Please do not use it for any other correspondence to Love Quilts. To read more about how these funds are used click here... LQ Funds
