What size are the blocks, and how wide do you want your borders?

beverly

Are you talking about putting sashing between your blocks? Could you draw a picture and then show us what you have in mind?

Here's a link for putting sashing on quilt blocks. Hope it's helpful.

SharonG/FL-IN

Here is a link that might be useful: Adding sashing

Sorry about the mistakes in my original post...ie "quilt club" did block a month. My blocks are 12 in. and I don't have a preference about borders except that I want the quilt to be a bedspread....I will have a skirt arount the bottom. Geezer thank you for the link. That is most helpful. My last and also my first I put together with sashing and did one continuous strip and didn't go together as nicely as this process seems to make them. I just really need ideas for how I want it to look. I probably will do something like the tuitorial but I think then I want to add borders on the sides or maybe if I do the right sashing size I won't need a border.

Casi,

Partly depends on how much "drop" you like on your quilt. The following are approximate measurements for finished sizes of quilts. You will need to decide how much drop you like - it also depends on how thick your mattress is! The newer pillow top ones can affect your quilt size.

Quilts used with dust ruffle usually include a 12-inch drop on the sides and bottom. Quilts that cover box springs have 16-inch drop & add 10 inches for a pillow tuck. The measurements for the quilts using dust ruffles do not add any for a pillow tuck.

Double bed size 54" x 75" so quilt using dust ruffle is 78 x 87, quilt to cover box springs 86 x 101.

Queen bed size 60" x 80" so quilt using dust ruffle is 84 x 92 and quilt to cover box spring is 92 x 106.

King bed is 76" x 80" so quilt using dust ruffle is 100 x 92 and quilt to cover box springs is 108 x 106.

You will need to decide how much sashing and border you want to add to your blocks to come up with your finished size. If you have 20 blocks, you are looking at a 4 x 5 arrangement. I would lay them out on your bed and see what you think.

Good luck and let us know how it turns out.

Sue

Sue's advice to lay the blocks out on your bed is excellent! It will give you an idea of size and help you decide if you want to add sashing between the blocks or borders around the blocks.

Here's a link to a quilterscache.com site that will show you how to make slightly fancier sashing, with stars at each juncture. It's easy to do but looks great! Star Cornerstones

This link will take you to the quilterscache.com site that shows a variety of borders. Borders!

Hope that helps!

Kate

Casi,
If you haven't decided yet if you want to use sashing or not, check out this months posting on the birthday groups. Scroll down a ways in that post to see a picture of a quilt that Jeanne (aka "Sandlapper_Rose") just finished. It's in shades of blue. You'll see she did several different blocks and combined them without sashing. It's beautiful!

Kate

Here is a link that might be useful: Birthday Group posting for June

Kate and Sue, thanks so much for the great links. I love Jeanne's blues! I have been putting the blocks on my bed...they will require a lot of fill! I have more material and I've been having fun making different quilt blocks, so I guess I could add to the blocks. I have been using 4 print fabrics; I did go shop for sashing material and I can get more if I need it. I got a solid color. I don't know what to do. some of those borders look like they could take a lot of time. The star thing might work.

LOL! I understand your problem! There are always so many options and even though I know there's no right or wrong choices it's hard to pick just one.

The borders in the examples can take some time, but they can be worth it. A couple plain (or print) borders and one that's more detailed can be a great combination - and they can add lots more yardage.

You are going to need a lot more than 20 quilt blocks to make a king size quilt. Your sashing shouldn't be more than 2 or 3" at the most. If you make at least another ten blocks, I think you will be much happier with the end results.

The king I just finished, without sashing, has 36 blocks for the center section, then another 20 for the portion dropping over the side of the bed. It really does take a lot of fabric for a king size bed quilt!

I now have 29 blocks. I have one more to make but I am almost completely out of 2 of my fabrics. I'm in a dilemna. I had hoped that I could get some more of at least one of the fabrics so I could pull it out into the border. It is going to look not right to go completely to different print in the surrounding border isn't it? I'm thinking of doing the sashing the way the links that Kate and Sharon shared with me. I think I got 4 yds of the solid color which I could do the corners in it and maybe I'd have enough to take it out into the outer skirt. I can't remember how to post a picture on here....will have to do some research and then maybe you can see my situation.

You have to upload your photos to a file sharing site like Photobucket (it's free) then copy the link for that photo and paste it into the text box here. The photo link you want is the one called "HTML Code". Hope that helps!

Don't know if this will work,

try this link to see kinda what I got going on...
http://us.mc1260.mail.yahoo.com/mc/welcome?.tm=1312654723#_pg=photoPreview&fid=%2540S%2540Search&sort=date&order=&startMid=0amp;filterBy=&squery=&vp=1&mode=photo&.rand=214659951&mid=1_22_1_194009_0_AFfjimIAAF3LTj18%2BwNn3R2FHdI&pid=2&cmd=msg.downloadall&clean&.jsrand=4529045

Nope, that doesn't work. It takes me to a yahoo log-in page. You need your photos on a public sharing site, like photobucket.

When you click on "Preview Message" on this site, it will show your photo if you have done it correctly.

OK, thanks Mary....I found some instructions that said I could save to a public site ie: Yahoo.....but apparently I did it wrong. I will do the photo bucket thing.