The second pattern in GE Designs's Fast & Furious season 2 came out last week. I had a plan for which fabric I was going to use for this one. I'm not much of a Halloween person, but being in Massachusetts, we have plenty of Fall to go around. Like the last Fast & Furious project, I wanted to use fabric from my stash, so I went digging.

The fabric I decided on goes back to the December 2017 Sew Sampler Box! That box came with a Star Twist Helping Hands Fat Eighth Bundle by Kim Diehl for Henry Glass Fabrics, and I used all but one of the fat eighths for this project. I needed to select a background color, but I didn't have anything I could use, so I went with Laundry Basket Favorites Linen Texture in Parchment by Laundry Basket Quilts for Andover Fabrics. It's a beautiful fabric, and I'd love to revisit the line for something else. (I do have a Laundry Basket Quilts Rainbow Alaska Kit burning a hole in my pocket right now. It uses Century Solids, and it's been sitting next to me daily since I got it. It's a beautiful quilt, and Edyta has a quilt along for it going on right now, but this will probably be a later in the Fall/early winter project for me.)

Fall Fellows is a pair of pumpkins and is a quilt as you go project. I wasn't sure how this one would work since the last one was all just straight lines on an angle, but I should've known to trust Gudrun. Other than a couple of reading comprehension issues, this pattern, paired with the video, was fun and straightforward. I did use Photoshop to figure out which colors I wanted where. I tried lighter pumpkins, teal pumpkins, and every variation and settled on this.

For the backing, I used two of the fat eighths in the more natural colorways, plus the green that I used for the pumpkins' stems. Even though I used light thread, it doesn't look like it doesn't belong on the back with the quilt as you go lines.

The prairie points were a little challenging, and they didn't sew down perfectly. I'm sure I could've made it look a little tidier if I had taken a bit more time on it, but I do like the dimension they add. I love the finished look of this piece. I'm not sure where I'll put it. I don't have a place to use a wall hanging, but I have plenty of flat surfaces that could use a little sprucing. I like how the deep colors pop off the parchment background. I did use one of the fat eighths for the binding in the deep teal color, and I feel like it finishes the piece nicely.

Details
Fabric: Star Twist Helping Hands by Kim Diehl for Henry Glass Fabrics, Laundry Basket Favorites Linen Texture in Parchment by Laundry Basket Quilts for Andover Fabrics
Thread: Aurafil, 50wt: 2000
Batting: 100% polyester
Pattern: Ge Designs Fall Fellows
Total Hours Spent: 4 hours, 30 minutes

I discovered GE Designs through Fat Quarter Shop shortly before the pandemic began. I started following Gudrun's Facebook group, and when she announced a day-long quilt along in March, I signed on. Since then, I've become a huge fan and have participated in the other quilt alongs Gudrun has hosted. When she announced season 2 of the Fast & Furious Club, I decided to sign up.

I don't have a ton of experience with quilt as you go, but I liked the idea of not having the stress of quilting later. The first project is a table runner called Off Kilter. It calls for fat eights and fat quarters. Still working towards my goal to use up some of my stash, I decided to do some searching through what I already have. As I've mentioned, some of the projects that I've "kitted" up for myself no longer have the same appeal, so shopping through the stash currently works.

In my search, I discovered the 2019 Jolly Box from Fat Quarter Shop. I love the fabric, We Whisk You a Merry Christmas by Kimberbell from Maywood Studios. At the time, I also thought the stockings included in the kit were adorable, but since I haven't made them and we don't have a used for the stockings, I decided to repurpose the fat quarter bundle included in the kit for this project.

Since the project calls for a combination of nine fat quarters and fat eights, and I only had six fat quarters, I had to do some figuring to decide which fabrics I could use where. I ended up only using five of them since one of them didn't seem to blend as well as I hoped. For the most part, I could do the math in my head, but there were a couple of options that I had to draw out to make sure I could cut everything I needed from the fat quarters. As with Sewcialites, I used Photoshop to figure out fabric placement.

Once I had that figured out, I ironed my fat quarters and set out to cutting. I didn't bother starching for this project since I wouldn't be doing an excessive amount of cutting, and I wanted to get going on the project. I did use my Alphabities for this one, though; there are a lot of different strips! I fussy-cut the middle square to show off the "We Whisk You a Merry Christmas" saying.

The pattern includes video instruction as well as the actual pattern. Since I haven't done much quilt as you go before, this was very helpful. It's also sometimes easier if you see something demonstrated than just reading the pattern. I did have an issue with my fusible batting, in that it wasn't fusible, but I made what I had work with Odif 505 Spray.

For the backing and binding, I was able to scrounge up some plaid from the fabric collection that was remaining online. I do love a plaid. I didn't do the best job of piecing the back/matching plaids when I put my label in, but it's the back, so I'm okay with it. (I’ll show you my backing, but no judgement…well, you can judge, just so it silently, please. From a distance, I suppose it’s not that bad.)

I would have been able to finish the project easily in a day if I didn't hand bind the table runner, but I just am not good at machine binding, and I know if I don't practice, I won't get better, but I didn't want to practice on this!

I love the finished table runner! It shows off the fabric well, is a great size, and was super quick. I can see making more, and I think they would be an excellent project for a last-minute gift.

Details
Fabric: We Whisk You a Merry Christmas by Kimberbell Designs for Maywood Studio
Thread: Aurafil 50wt 2692
Batting: Bosal 100% Polyester
Pattern: GE Designs Off Kilter (Fast & Furious Season 2)
Total Hours: 8 hours, 4 minutes