lala's irish chain

Lala's Quilted! from Melva Loves Scraps

I've done it! It took hours and hours and hours and so much thread... BUT... Lala's Scrappy Irish Chain Quilt is finished!

I was questioning my decision to quilt it "just as Lala did" before I was even half-way finished.

I was too far in to change my mind and yet soooooo far from the finish line.

I kept telling myself, "It will all be worth it in the end."

And I was not lying to myself! I adore it! My sore arms and back will recover with the assistance from our hot tub.

And though the quilting ...

added by Melva 0 minutes ago. under friday finishes , lala's irish chain

Lala's Gallery of Quilts ~ Sew & Tell - 9/21/26 from Melva Loves Scraps

Here's a little quilt "gallery" of the quilts I have made by Lala and the little bit of information I have on them.

Ocean Waves made by and quilted by Lala Teegarden.

If I were to guess on when it was made... Late 30s or early 40s. It has a children's print featuring clowns and other circus items on the back.

It is in good condition. The fabrics have held up well for the age.

This is a simple scrappy patchwork quilt made with 4" squares of fabric... mostly leftover from Lala's sewing pajamas for the family ...

added by Melva 3 weeks, 4 days ago. under lala's irish chain , sew and tell

Lala's Irish Chain - Week IX from Melva Loves Scraps

We have arrived at the final installment of Lala's Irish Chain Sew Along and I am offering the finishing instructions.

If you have followed along and have kept pace with the sew along, you have your borders on and are ready to sandwich and quilt it. Good for you!

I have gone through numerous quilting books that I have in my library in search of some alternative quilting designs for Irish Chain quilts but kept coming back to the simple outline of the patchwork blocks and the pretty daisy in the setting squares.

After all, if I'm ...

added by Melva 1 month ago. under lala's irish chain

Little Lala ~ Sew & Tell - 8/31/26 from Melva Loves Scraps

We stand at the cusp on the end of another month! The "ber" months are around the corner, and it seems that many in the northern hemisphere are ready for the change in the calendar and the change of the seasons... a new chapter of sorts.

Which brings to my mind my Bookish Journal Quilt. While I've continued enjoying the audio books, the disruption in life had prevented me from spending much time in the studio... and the precious time spent there was focused on finishing my Little Lala Irish Chain Quilt. But I'll hold those thoughts until ...

added by Melva 1 month, 1 week ago. under bookish journal , lala's irish chain , sew and tell

Lala's Irish Chain - Week VIII from Melva Loves Scraps

Week 8 of this sew along!

Are you ready for the border? The original quilt was made with 4" wide strips.

If you are a quilter that likes to have borders cut to a precise size that's great.

I'll help you figure out the length of the borders you need. Here's the quilt math lesson...

Each block is 10" finished.

Number of blocks in a row _____ x 10 equals ____ + 1/2".

My quilt is 8 blocks wide, 8 rows long. 8x10 = 80+ 1/2"

I need two 4" strips for the side borders cut at ...

added by Melva 1 month, 1 week ago. under lala's irish chain

Lala's Irish Chain - Week VII from Melva Loves Scraps

It's week 7 of Lala's Scrappy Irish Chain Sew along!

I could very nearly hear that your machine was humming along last week. Assembling the patchwork blocks was a big task!

I was beginning to question myself in making Lala's quilt so large... and then I remembered that it was supposed to be fun!!!

I took a break and went for a walk and then had a popsicle because it was still hot the day I pieced all of them all a few weeks ago.

I was refreshed and ready to go again after 30 minutes.

This ...

added by Melva 1 month, 2 weeks ago. under lala's irish chain

Lala's Irish Chain - Week VI from Melva Loves Scraps

Welcome back to week 6 of Lala's Scrappy Irish Chain Sew Along!

We are chugging right along and on the downhill side of the steps.

This week, now that all of your 2-patch units are ready - one set with the background fabric and the second set with the main color - we will be making your 5x5 patchwork blocks.

Start out by adding one of the remaining main color squares to a scrappy/white two-patch unit. You will need 32 units (or 28 if making the smaller quilt). Press seam toward the middle square.

make 1 for each patchwork block ...

added by Melva 1 month, 3 weeks ago. under lala's irish chain

Lala's Irish Chain - Week V from Melva Loves Scraps

It's week five of Lala's Irish Chain!

We've reached the midpoint of the sew along and are one step closer to the finish of Lala's Irish Chain!

This week we are making another 2-patch set. Last week was with the background fabric... this week we are pairing your main color with assorted 2-1/2" squares. Press seams to the scrappy or jelly roll fabrics. Make 288 units for an 8x8 layout (252 if making the 7x8)

When you are finished with this step you should have some leftover main color squares... One for each 5x5 block ...

added by Melva 2 months ago. under lala's irish chain

Lala's Irish Chain - Week IV from Melva Loves Scraps

Welcome back to Week 4 of Lala's Irish Chain. This week's step is making a two-patch unit joining your background 2-1/2" squares with assorted 2-1/2" squares from your jelly roll or stash.

Press seams toward the assorted print fabric. This will help with nesting seams when the patchwork blocks are assembled.

Since Lala was a seamstress, making dresses for several ladies in Trinidad, I am sure she had a good variety of fabrics to choose from, including some feed sack fabrics from flour and sugar bags at the mercantile or store.

Her paid work as a ...

added by Melva 2 months, 1 week ago. under lala's irish chain

Lala's Irish Chain - Week III from Melva Loves Scraps

Welcome back to week 3 of Lala's Irish Chain Sew Along.

Were you able to get all of your cornerstone units pieced?

It was an easy task to be done. If not... you can easily catch up, I'm certain of it!

How did you do with your scant 1/4" seams?

I was remiss in noting the importance of it... sorry! "What do you mean by a scant 1/4" seam?" some may ask.

A scant 1/4" seam simply means that you will stitch the seam so that the thread is just to the right of the ...

added by Melva 2 months, 2 weeks ago. under lala's irish chain

Lala's Irish Chain - Week II from Melva Loves Scraps

Welcome back Melva Loves Scraps and Week 2 of Lala's Irish Chain Sew Along.

This week's step is adding cornerstones (2-1/2" squares) to the 2-1/2" x 6-1/2" rectangles - one on each end. Do this for 1/2 of the rectangles.

Press seams to the cornerstones.

Let me offer a quick introduction of Lala Teegarden as written by her youngest child, Forrest E. Teegarden (my maternal grandfather).

My Mama's name was Atchafalya Davis. She was known as Lala. She was born on October 14, 1876, in Knoxville, Ray County, Missouri. Lala bore the lovely Indian ...

added by Melva 2 months, 2 weeks ago. under lala's irish chain

Lala's Irish Chain ~ A New Sew Along from Melva Loves Scraps

Welcome! It didn't take much convincing for me to turn my idea of replicating my great-grandmother's Irish Chain quilt into a sew along.

I shared my plan and asked if anyone might be interested in sewing along with me...

There seemed to be a strong interest so here we are!

Just like that...

added by Melva 2 months, 4 weeks ago. under lala's irish chain

July 13, 2026

The Beginning of a Beautiful Thing ~ Sew & Tell - 7/13/26 from Melva Loves Scraps

Welcome back to Sew & Tell... the weekly party where you are able to share your recent projects (finished or progress) and friends get inspired and encourage one another!

I had a fun week in the studio. But before I tell you all about that let's take a look at the featured selection from last week's party. There were several scrappy style projects shared but Alycia's Pringles quilt in progress was the one that was randomly selected.

She had a huge growth spurt all due to the AC going down and repairmen needing supervision. I'm sure her ...

added by Melva 3 months ago. under lala's irish chain , sew and tell

lala's irish chain
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