Checker Newsletter

It is about time!!!  Eleanor Burns will be inducted into the Quilter’s Hall of Fame this month – and it couldn’t happen to a nicer person!  She is a great ambassador for our industry and a true legend!

But, it doesn’t matter how nice you are – if you don’t have talent, you are not going to survive in this industry for over 30 years!

Quilt in a Day patterns are well written and accurate!  Her step by step instructions are simple enough for the true beginner – but produce results that make any quilter proud!  And, she creates the notions that make the whole process fun.

Let’s dissect one of her patterns to show what I mean:

Kylee’s Kite is the pattern that comes with the Quilt in a Day 4 1/2″ On-Point Ruler.

Item #2024QD  Retail $7.45

She designs quilts that use fabric judiciously.  Kylee’s Kite is a 36″ square quilt.  Not only is that the perfect size for a child’s cuddle quilt, it also can be backed with a standard 40″ wide fabric so the backing does not have to be pieced.   This quilt can be made from 5″ or 10″ squares -which makes it shop owner friendly as well as consumer friendly.  Create it from a pre-cut pack or scraps!  All you need to add is the background fabric and binding.

Eleanor respects grain lines so the consumer can successfully complete her quilt.  She has you cut the kite shape from squares, for instance, so the outside 90 degree angle is on the straight of grain.

These are the kite shapes that are used in the quilt.  The other pieces are used for the corner posts so there is minimal waste.

The background fabric is cut from rectangles so all of the outside edges of the block are on the straight of grain.  Again, there is very little waste of fabric!

When these triangles are sewn to opposite sides of the kite shape, it does not have to be exact.  Eleanor has been at this a long time and knows that not all quarter inch seams are created equal.

Place the lines on the template over the seams of the block and trim it down to the exact size.  All outside edges of the block are on the straight of grain so distortion and stretch are kept to a minimum.

Each block is created by sewing four of these units together.

Since they are trimmed to the exact size with the template, all of the seams match perfectly.

And, you get the template AND pattern for less than the price of the average pattern!  This simple pattern includes 25 illustrations – and even tells you how to press the seams!

And, that my friends, is why she is a legend!  She doesn’t leave anything to chance and makes no assumptions about the quilter’s level of experience.  Therefore, everyone is successful!

Eleanor is the most accessible designer of our time!  I  have seen her sit for hours autographing books, smiling for the camera, and listening to quilter after quilter telling her their story.  She engages everyone – making eye contact, asking questions – and for a few moments they know that this woman is special…

On a professional level, I worked with her when she attended the Checker Open House.  Eleanor is a class act in every sense of the word.  She and her team did everything they could to make our event a success.  Her work ethic and integrity are top notch.

That character extends to her personal life.  She has raised amazing children – who are now blessing her with grandchildren.   Her heart, her kindness, and her sense of humor shines through the next generations.

This could’t happen to a nicer – and more talented – person!  Congrats!