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Quilting, Piece by Piece

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A Few Hints For Setting Triangles

22 Sunday Mar 2015

Posted by quiltingpiecebypiece in piecing, scraps, tutorial

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

A Tribute to Mary Ellen Hopkins, Borderpalooza, piecing, quilting, UFO. WIP, V is for Victory

Still snow out on the porch, so this is as much fit as I could photograph.

Still snow out on the porch, so this is as much fit as I could photograph.

Wow.  How did that happen? I was going to post again “in a few days” and almost 2 weeks flew by?

I’m still coughing, but more in a general “let’s get this illness over with” kind of way. I feel fine, though, and I doubt I’m contagious.

And, yes, I did finish the Tribute to MaryEllen Hopkins quilt top. I only was able to take a picture of half of it, though.

I have been using some of my string piecing scraps to make blocks for V is for Victory.

I have been using some of my string piecing scraps to make blocks for V is for Victory.

That, of course, means that I have finished my current piecing project and I need to start another one. In this case, I had to decide between one of three. The first one is V is for Victory.

I just couldn’t help myself. I’ve been trying to give my friends hints on how to make this quilt for a while now meaning to pull them all together in one file and publish it on the Chelmsford Quilters’ Guild web site, but things keep getting in my way.

Anyway, I won’t be making the entire big quilt.  Mine will only be 80 blocks… a lap size (unless I run amok with the borders…)

But, in case you have been wondering, here is one last piece to the puzzle of how to make that quilt.

There are plenty of places to learn how to put together a quilt with the blocks on point (I rather like this one by McCall’s) so I’m not going to go over the details in this post.

The corner triangles for V is for Victory are made from two 4″ triangles cut on the diagonal (this will keep the on-grain edges on the corners.) Yes, no matter how big you plan on making this quilt, you only need 4 of these.

(Truthfully, I usually cut mine a tiny bit bigger.  I cut my corners at 5″ and line up the center of them with the center of the block when I sew.)

Cut a 45 degree triangle off the edge of the strip to start.

Cut a 45 degree triangle off the edge of the strip to start.

For the edges, you can cut a 7″ square and cut both diagonals, leaving one side on the grain and two (smaller) sides on the bias.

I. however,  cut strips of 3.5″ and cut my QSTs that way.

First, cut off one corner at 45 degrees (this one won’t be used in this project so put it somewhere you won’t confuse yourself with it.)

DSC04077

The 45 degree angle on your ruler aligns with the top of your strip, and the “horizontal”lines of your ruler align with the cut edge.

Then cut your first QST out of the strip by using the 45 degree line on your ruler placed on one edge of the strip.

Slide the 45 degree line until the edge you use to cut with is exactly a 90 degree angle with the previously cut edge.

For this example, the point under the ruler will be at the 5″ line. (This will not always be the case!)

Keep alternating 45 degree angles (I usually just flip the fabric), until the strip has been cut (or you have enough.)

This 4.5" block will match the corner triangle if I trim one of the bias sides to 4.5" as well.

This 4.5″ block will match the corner triangle if I trim one of the bias sides to 4.5″ as well.

Another trick I use when I start sewing on the setting triangles, is to clip off one of the corners so the sides you are sewing together match exactly.

You really only need to trim one corner because when you sew the rows together you are matching something else entirely.

When you sew the corners on, you can also trim them, but I only do that on two of them. (The ones you are sewing into rows.)

To do that, fold the corner triangle in half, and trim TWO corners off at the same time by using half the size of the UNFINISHED block. This will make it easy to align the corner triangle to the block.

The corners you sew on last will be easier to align without trimming at all. Just fold them in half and align the center of the triangle with the center of the square.

If you have any questions, just put them in the comments or send me email. I know I sped through the process, but that’s because it’s covered in depth and very well elsewhere.

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Quilting Assistance

11 Wednesday Mar 2015

Posted by quiltingpiecebypiece in cats, fabric, handquilting, piecing, quilting, rumi, scraps

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

A Tribute to Mary Ellen Hopkins, charity, Jinny Beyer, Meezer Teaser Balls, quilting, Rumi

The second shipment is away!  Check the Siamese Store or the SCRC Facebook Page for when they go on sale.

The second shipment is away! Check the Siamese Store or the SCRC Facebook Page for when they go on sale.

I know I’ve talked about my Meezer Teaser project quite a bit on this blog, but I’d like to give a nod of thanks for all the support, fabric and batting scraps, and other help from my friends (both in CQG and otherwise) and my family.

I’ve been sick for a couple of weeks, so I’m way behind on this blog, but I have been collecting snapshots of my special Meezer assistant on this project and thought I’d share them with you.

Yes, each Meezer Teaser Ball has been rigorously supervised for quality control by one of my crack Snooze-r-visors.

Yes, each Meezer Teaser Ball has been rigorously supervised for quality control by one of my crack Snooze-r-visors.

Much care goes into selecting. cutting and readying our fabric donations for use in our balls...

Much care goes into selecting. cutting and readying our fabric donations for use in our projects…

Rumi4

In fact, everyone here is very “paws on” for all aspects of the projects, including telling the labor force just when it is time to quit for the night.

And of course, the testing phase is intensive and requires much time and focus.

And of course, the testing phase is intensive and requires much time and focus.

I hope to be back blogging on quilting in a few days.  I can even see the light at the end of the tunnel on the Tribute to MaryEllen Hopkins quilt, so more design is in sight!

Thanks all for sticking with me.

 

Ten More Days…

13 Friday Feb 2015

Posted by quiltingpiecebypiece in binding, fabric, quilting, rumi, scraps

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Tags

A Tribute to Mary Ellen Hopkins, Borderpalooza, DaGM20, DnA3, Kansas Dugout, labels, Meezer Teaser Balls, Rumi, UFO. WIP

crosslabel

Only 2 labels are left to be sewn on: Topsy Turvy Nine Patches (which also needs to be laundered) and DnA3 (which needs the binding and some other finishing work.)

I just noticed a couple of days ago that I had only a dozen more days to prep for my member showcase at my Guild.

As luck (and total obsession) would have it, I am well on the way to completing what I need to finish before then. At least the snow has been good for keeping me inside and chipping away at the list.

As long as there is some day in the next ten that I can get to the laundromat, I should be okay.

The binding is sewn on DnA3 and I am doing the hand-stitching.  I know I should be burying the threads before doing the binding, but at least progress is being made.

This Meezer Teaser ball has bells inside it.

This Meezer Teaser ball has bells inside it.

I only need 9 more Meezer Teaser balls for the next shipment to The Siamese Cat Rescue Center’s store. These are turning out really nicely, and I have figured out a way to get bells and rattles inside some of them.

My Mom has decided to contribute some pre-cuts to the cause.  Not sure what she’s sending, but I love fabric, and even random old calicoes look great in 3D!

I would like to think that I’m more than half-way done with the border to A Tribute to Mary Ellen Hopkins.

I would like to, but I really don’t know if I am… still plodding along there. Will I ever be done?  Stay tuned!

Rumi is helping with quilt organization...

Rumi is helping with quilt organization…

This weekend, my plan is to line my quilts up in order for the speech and make index cards with what I want to talk about for each one.  No doubt when I get up in front of people I will totally forget that I have these cards (or how to read) and I will just wing it (or babble), but I want to give myself a fighting chance.

Since they’re calling for another foot of snow, there’s not much else for me to do anyway… except for playing Fetch with the cats.

 

To Do List

06 Friday Feb 2015

Posted by quiltingpiecebypiece in binding, fabric, finishing, longarm, piecing, quilting

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

Borderpalooza, DNA1, DnA3, Drop and Give Me 20, longarm quilting, machine quilting, Meezer Teaser Balls, piecing, quilt labels, quilting, Spirographology, Tribute to Mary Ellen Hopkins, UFO. WIP

DnA3

DnA3 (or is it 4) is ready for binding. The trick was finding something that looked good on front, but didn’t cause the pieced back to look bad.

Just a short post this week as I clear the decks for… well, I don’t know what since we’re supposed to have another multi-day snowstorm.

1. Binding for DnA3.  Thanks to Cricket, I now have enough purply-pink wisteria fabric to bind this quilt.  It took a long time to decide what to do with it since the original plan was to use black.

I still have to bury the threads in the center of this quilt.  It’s a good thing we’ll be snowed in for the weekend, I guess.  I think I’ll cue up Pride and Prejudice with Colin Firth…

deflategate

My own version of “Deflate-Gate.” The original Meezer Teaser Balls sold out at The Siamese Store. These are waiting for catnip and filling so they can be shipped off. (Yes, I’m accepting scraps for this project.)

2. Binding for Spirographology. Freshly ripped off the long arm (no, not literally) I have a couple of options for this one.  I bought a multi-color batik with a black background, or I could use the black binding I previously cut out for DnA3.

I loved the Dream Puff batting for this quilt. It gave some dimension to the quilting that the cotton batting I had been using on the other quilts didn’t.

The big problem, though, was that Spiro is a hexagon quilt and I ended up having to shepherd some of the extra puffiness towards the center to keep it square. In a hand-quilted quilt this is not a problem, but I didn’t notice until the end, so I ended up more fullness toward the bottom and with some tucks on the quilt top.  I’m contemplating requilting those areas, but not until much later.

I think I may be more than half-way done with the border for the Tribute to Mary Ellen Hopkins quilt.

I think I may be more than half-way done with the border for the Tribute to Mary Ellen Hopkins quilt.

3. Meezer Teaser Balls.  Thanks to the kitty moms who follow the Siamese Cat Rescue Center on Facebook, the original shipment of the balls sold out in less than a week. I’m hard at work making more, but might not get them done and out until the end of the month.

4. Labels.  I now have all the quilts finished so I need to set and wash the labels, and, of course, sew them on.

5. Still plodding along on the paper-pieced border for my Tribute to Mary Ellen Hopkins.  I know I was trying to use up fabric from my stash with this project, but I ended up having to buy more of the top red fabric… and what do you know, some other pieces of fabric also jumped into my bag.

That’s my top 5 projects for now. What are you up to?

Hmm. This post is a bit longer than I had originally planned!

V is for Victory

11 Sunday Jan 2015

Posted by quiltingpiecebypiece in design, piecing, quilting, scraps, tutorial

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Tags

A Tribute to Mary Ellen Hopkins, binding, longarm quilting, Meezer Teaser Balls, paper piecing, piecing, quilting, Spirographology, UFO. WIP, V is for Victory

V is for Victory

I’m calling this quilt V is for Victory, but, in truth, I don’t know who made it or where it’s from.

Those of you who are connected to me on Facebook, or who have been looking at the Chelmsford Quilters’ Guild page there, know that a friend of mine posted the photo of a quilt she really liked and wanted to know how to make it.

It’s actually a very easy block, complicated only by an “on point” setting, and, if you like it scrappy, you can use 5″ charm squares or 2.5″ strips, or even the 10″ layer cake squares that Cricket and I run the raffle for at the Guild meetings.

For those of you who have been quilting a while, I suspect you see right away that this block is the start of a Log Cabin block using 2″ finished blocks/strips.

You only need three pieces for this block: two of the same fabric and one background.

You only need three pieces for this block: two of the same fabric and one background.

For those of you who didn’t see that right away, I’ll lay it out for you:

Each block contains 3 pieces: 2 2.5″ squares and one 2.5 “x 4.5″ rectangle. There are 270 blocks in the quilt as shown. (There is also no reason to be intimidated by the task of making so many blocks. Just make as many as you want, and your quilt will be either smaller or larger.)

First you will need to choose a background fabric.  In the first photo, the background fabric is a solid black.  For my test shots, I used white on white leftovers. You only need one 2.5” square of your background fabric per block.

DSC03967In fact, I used only scraps. I have quite a few scraps which I really should give away, but I can’t seem to part with since, well, it’s fabric.

For the scrap fabric you will need one 2.5″ square and one 2.5″ x 4.5″ rectangle (in a future post I’ll talk about how to cut this block from pre-cuts and how many you will get and what you will have left over.)

From there you only need to sew 2 seams:

  1. Put the two 2.5″ squares together and sew a quarter-inch seam on one side.
    I usually press after this step, but it doesn’t particularly matter which side you press your seams to, or even if you press them open.  All have their merits.
  2. Sew the unit you put together in the last step to the remaining rectangle.
    If you have sewn your seam “correctly” at 1/4″, the two pieces should line up exactly.  If you haven’t, don’t bother trimming until after you sew the long seam, just center the short seam to the long side of the rectangle and sew.
    Again, I press after this step.
I don't usually trim until I have several blocks finished.  That way, if I'm off in my seam allowance, I can trim all the blocks to the same size.

I don’t usually trim until I have several blocks finished. That way, if I’m off in my seam allowance, I can trim all the blocks to the same size.

And that’s one block! You only have 269 more to go!

This is a great quilt to chain piece.  I would probably line up at least 10 blocks to sew step one, and then another 10 blocks to sew step 2. That way I would only need to cut out/set up 10 blocks out each day, and I’d finish 10 blocks each day.

So, there you have it, Pat.  That’s how to make the block.  I’ll talk about cutting and setting in another post.

In other news: I’ve finished Meezer Teaser Ball #25, and now that I have approval of the wording on the tags, all I have to do is print them out, put them on and ship the whole kit and caboodle to the SCRC.

I’ll let you know how much they’ll end up charging and when they go on sale when I know myself.

I have decided not to stress myself and finish 2 more quilts before my babble in February. I am now hoping just to finish Spirographology. That should take some of the stress off since I will have three bindings (two I’ve been putting off to play with Meezer Teaser Balls), and the label project.

MEHborderI also started the border for A Tribute to Mary Ellen Hopkins. I kind of like it even though I’m not really a fan of paper piecing.

 

First Quarter of 2015

03 Saturday Jan 2015

Posted by quiltingpiecebypiece in binding, design, finishing, quilting, scraps, writing

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

Borderpalooza, EQ7 printing problems, hand piecing, Meezer Teaser Balls, Member Showcase, NaNoWriMo, quilting, speaking, Tribute to Mary Ellen Hopkins, V is for Victory, writing

The Meezer Teaser Project grows!

The Meezer Teaser Project grows!

Rather than make resolutions for 2015, I’ve decided to simply keep on with my “to do” list and look over my accomplishments for the past year.

My first really good idea for the year, actually started last year.  I’m working on the Meezer Teaser balls for the Siamese Cat Rescue Society in VA. I’ve put on my “to do” list to make 25 of them by mid-January so they can start testing the waters. I’m up to 23, so I should make it.

Next up, I’m scheduled to talk at the Member showcase at my Guild in February. I have been working on showing more finished quilts than tops, and I have finished 13 projects last year, so my “show” will have actual quilts outnumbering tops.  I am hoping to get 2 more quilted (and finishing two that are quilted that just need binding.)

If you are in northeastern MA/southern NH the area, please feel free to join us. The odds are currently 4 to 1 that I will spend some portion of the presentation babbling. (Seriously, if you want more details, email me.)

BorderPalooza continues with "A Tribute to Mary Ellen Hopkins

BorderPalooza continues with “A Tribute to Mary Ellen Hopkins”

My biggest promise to myself is to schedule time with my friend Valerie. We have been on different schedules for so long, I barely remember what she looks like, and I promised I’d help her make a Double Wedding Ring quilt.

I’m also going to continue BorderPalooza since I’m so close to having all my tops that have the center done, but still need borders.

I finally figured out how to save stuff in PDF and how to print from my laptop in EQ7, so I expect some of the ideas I’ve noodled with will be turned into quilts.

The biggest use I’ve made of it for the past month has been trying out borders for the BorderPalooza quilts, of which there are only two left!)

This will leave me with 5 projects which need more work, and 15 tops which only need to be quilted and bound. Yeah, I guess I can start something else…

Also, I plan to return to writing.  I guess I got a little burned out on NaNoWriMo this year and I found myself forcing myself to write. All the joy had fled.  I took a couple of weeks off (well, three) and now I’m back (I hope) both creatively and technically.

This means, of course, that I will be posting tutorials here (next up how to rotary cut pentagons… probably in a couple of weeks… and the V is for Victory quilt for Pat.)

Sorry so few pictures this time!

Looking Forward, Looking Back

16 Tuesday Dec 2014

Posted by quiltingpiecebypiece in pattern testing, quilting, rumi, scraps, writing

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Tags

Hello Kitty, Jinny Beyer, machine quilting, Meezer Teaser Balls, piecing, Puzzle Balls, Quilt Guild, quilt labels, quilt talk, quilting, Rumi, stash, UFO. WIP, V for Victory

Rumi is fast becoming an integral part of the family... though mostly in an advisory role.

Rumi is fast becoming an integral part of the family… though mostly in an advisory role.

I finally got all the furniture back in the living area (from my bedroom) and all of the boxes unpacked after the flood.  The reason it took so long was I was trying to get rid of some of my stuff, and I did get give away quite a few books.

More are still to go, though, including about 3/4 of my “library” of flying books. I miss flying, but it’s unlikely I’ll be able to afford to return to it more than occasionally any time soon, and I figured I’d be better served searching for what I need to know online. It’s sad to give up the hope of getting my instrument rating, but it’s kind of cool to be able to say “I’m a pilot” even though I don’t fly anymore except as a passenger.

Yesterday was my Guild Holiday party and I’m in a pensive mood.

I got to talk to people I haven’t seen in a while, and it was announced that I’m featured in the “Member Showcase” in February.

Now, I haven’t been quiet about the Member Showcase.  I didn’t know it was a secret, but I was still gratified that people applauded and looked happy that I was scheduled to do it.

Now to get serious and work on my list of quilts.

Chrissy and I share an "unfortunate" addiction to all things "Hello Kitty."

Chrissy and I share an “unfortunate” addiction to all things “Hello Kitty.”

I didn’t get to talk much to my friends Chrissy and Susan, whom I rarely actually see but keep up with on Facebook. It was nice to touch base and see them looking happy and well. With all our allergies and sensitivities, we swap recipes and try to work out how to make them so we can eat them.

I had recommended Chrissy to work with a friend of mine this fall, and she actually got the job. This is not surprising since she’s smart, dedicated and a hard worker (like most of my friends), but more because I seldom get to recommend my friends to my other friends because the skill sets never seem to line up.

I think I was almost more thrilled than she was when she got hired!

The first five prototypes of the Meezer Teaser Balls.

The first five of the Meezer Teaser Balls.

I’ve planned a fund-raising project for the Siamese Cat Rescue Center (who gave us Rumi) for the next year.  I’ll be trying to make at least one puzzle ball a week to be sold for make some money for their operating costs.

As of now, I’m calling them “Meezer Teaser Balls” because “Rumi’s Balls” was considered… er… a bit too… risqué. I just finished the sixth last night.

I’m using scraps from wherever I get them and polyester fiberfill (and thick poly batting scraps which I cut up to use with the fiberfill, since it’s free and I’m not using it for anything else.)  I had wanted to make some using flannel, but I don’t quilt with flannel, so I have no flannel scraps.

I’ve adapted some of the puzzle balls from Jinny Beyer’s book. (the triangle balls are slightly bigger, and most of the other balls have been reduced in size.) Which reminds me, I should probably get official permission to make these balls for this purpose…

My next big quilting project is to put labels on the quilts which were (or will be) finished for my talk in February using Bubble Jet Set.

Oh, and writing up the “V for Victory” quilt instructions.  Would you like to see them here?

As for holidays, Happy Hanukkah (with or without the C or the double n or only one k or however you spell it in English). I hope you enjoy your Christmas, Kwanzaa, and all other winter holidays you celebrate, and I hope to write again before the New Year.

Fun Times

06 Thursday Nov 2014

Posted by quiltingpiecebypiece in cats, fabric, longarm, miko, quilting, rumi, writing

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

cats, flood, longarm quilting, machine quilting, Miko, NaNoWriMo, quilting, writing

livingroom

So what have I been up to in my missing couple of weeks? Well… there in lies a tale (and at least a couple of tails.)

First of all, I woke up the morning of October 23rd to find half of the front room of my apartment flooded.  The drains had not drained and, having been asleep, I hadn’t bailed.

I needed to pack up my my bookcases and my china cabinet. Bear in mind, by bookcases run the length of my apartment, and my “china cabinet” is three separate units, the center one housing my TV, etc.

So, as I sat around with various maintenance guys moaning about how much stuff I had, and how dare I garden on my porch (because, obviously the dirt from replanting pots was so much more responsible for clogging the drain, than the times that they trimmed the hedges (and didn’t sweep) or strip the paint on the upstairs porches (which fluttered down to my ground level apartment… which they didn’t sweep)… well, you get the picture.

An exhausted Rumi returns from exploring the main room.

An exhausted Rumi (not to be confused with Rumor) returns from exploring the main room.

During all this, I adopted an “annoying kitty companion” for Miko.  His name is Rumi.

I had hoped to have the Siamese Rescue people hold onto him for a few days while we got our apartment back in order, but, no, he had to come to his “forever home” in a total state of chaos.

And so we have remained.

We finally dried out and now Miko met her match. They both prefer to believe the other doesn’t exist, so even though doors are open, there is almost no interaction (unless you call Miko trying to eat Rumi’s food, which she shouldn’t have.)

I haven’t done any quilting since.  Quite frankly, my sewing machine is unreachable.  Actually, my bed is almost unreachable since I have been storing most of the furniture from the front room in my bedroom.

PiecedBackI thought I was going to be okay, though. Before this disaster happened, I had pieced together the backing for the next quilt I wanted to quilt on the long arm.

I went today and put it on, only to find out that my top was 2″ wider than my back.  I guess I’d better go back to measuring school… and find some fabric to add to the edges for next week.

You may also notice the widget on the left column. Yes, I am participating in NaNoWriMo again. I have gotten off to a rocky start in that I don’t have a clear idea of my main character, and pretty much everything that I’ve written so far is description and world-building that will end up on the cutting room floor.

Still, I have a better idea of what she’s about after 6 days of writing, and some of the other characters are coming into focus, so maybe I will be able to save the story after all.

I still live in the hope that I will return to weekly blogging about quilting.  We all must have our dreams…

Project Gap

16 Thursday Oct 2014

Posted by quiltingpiecebypiece in cats, edison, fabric, longarm, quilting, rumor, writing

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Tags

Borderpalooza, Cat fabrics, DnA quilt project, DnA3, DnA4, longarm quilting, MacBook Cover, machine quilting, pieced back, quilting, stash, UFO. WIP

The first of the DnA quilts to be quilted is, of course, the last one  to be made: DnA4: In Memory of Edison.

The first of the DnA quilts to be quilted is, of course, the last one to be made: DnA4: In Memory of Edison.

I haven’t been feeling very creative (quilting-wise) lately.  I have been finishing stuff, just haven’t been able to think of a new project to start. It’s been like that since I came back from Pittsburgh.

I have been quilting, however. I finally finished the last of the Dragonfly Path quilt tops. It was like pulling teeth at the end. I don’t know what I was thinking of when I volunteered to make THREE Drunkard’s Path quilt tops, one right after another. (And, yes, there still in a fourth one in the pipeline, but I just don’t have the strength at the moment…)

I was so glad to see the end of the Dragonfly Fabic, I didn't even snap a photo of the finished top!

I was so glad to see the end of the Dragonfly fabric, I didn’t even snap a photo of the finished top! This is the layout in progress.

New case for my new laptop. (Now I know why people buy these things!)

New case for my new laptop. (Now I know why people buy these things!)

I couldn’t figure out what next to do, though, so I made a laptop case for my new MacBook Air. (I got this new computer so I could have all my writing software on it and write wherever I was, especially when I was out of town, or needed someone else to make coffee for me. Worked great at Mom’s house, where I got both at the same time.)

Anyway, I learned lots in making this piece, most important of all is: it’s really worth paying someone else to make the next one!

Between the zippers and the piping and the doubled batting (to cushion the little Mac from life’s many bumps), my lack of a working walking foot (long story) the only real surprise to me was that I finished it. As you can see, it’s string-pieced on a foundation. You may notice some fabric from my other projects, including the yellow plaid from Les Filles des Mares. the iridescent dragonflies, from THAT project (above), and, of course, the obligatory Hello Kitty fabric.

Doesn't look like much now, but this is part of the pieced back of DnA3, which I'll be quilting next.

Doesn’t look like much now, but this is part of the pieced back of DnA3: In Memory of Rumor, which I’ll be quilting next.

At least two of the strips are backing fabric from some recently completed quilts. In fact, the third strip down is the back of the quilt I have on the long arm at the moment.

The last of my “filler” projects is the backing for the next DnA quilt: DnA3: In Memory of Rumor. It’s pieced from all the cat fabrics I have left… and I still didn’t use everything up. My now much-more- rationally-sized stash of cat fabric includes two 1 yard pieces and less than half a dozen FQs of cat fabric. (So don’t send me anymore for my birthday!  Send airplane fabric instead 🙂 )

I, of course, am trying not to go out and buy new fabric in the hopes that inspiration will hit again. I think until I find a block or vintage quilt that inspires me, I will simply go back to Borderpalooza.  I think there are 2 or 3 more than can be finished this year.

Playing Games

23 Saturday Aug 2014

Posted by quiltingpiecebypiece in design, fabric, piecing, quilting

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

Broken Dishes, Color, Dragonfly Path, Drunkard's Path, Fan Dance, Layout, piecing, Pinwheel, quilting, UFO. WIP

Drunkard's Path #1, which I have dubbed (after the iridescent Dragonfly fabric): Dragonfly Path.

Drunkard’s Path #1, which I have dubbed (after the iridescent Dragonfly fabric): Dragonfly Path.

As I think I mentioned in my last post, I received some Drunkard Path blocks (and the makings for many more) from my friend, Debbie, who doesn’t piece anymore. My quest is to put these together in a cool and fun way and give the top back to her.

Perfect for me, ’cause I LOVE making tops… but the quilting/finishing part is not as compelling for me.

I finished the first top earlier in the week. With the flash (indoors) the dragonfly fabric is much more prominent that in “real life.”

Part of what makes this project fun for me is that I get to play with Drunkard’s Path layouts.  I had already done that with Fan Dance, and you may notice a similarily between the four sections of Dragonfly Path and the quarters of Fan Dance.

Another Drunkard's Path layout using the black background as sort of "pinwheels."  Can you see it?

Another Drunkard’s Path layout using the black background as sort of “pinwheels.” Can you see it?

Now, of course, I have about 400 more blocks using black and the dragonfly fabric as the background with 25 different Fairy Frost quarter circles. I want to make these as different from Dragonfly Path as I can.

I’m playing with layouts of blocks in groups of four.

The thing I thought of was to view the Drunkard’s Path blocks as a sort of half-square triangle and try out layouts using that idea.

If you look at the first layout, the first four blocks in the corner I tried to make look like a pinwheel, but skipping over the first two on the left side, you can see the next four from a “Broken Dishes” block.

This version looks a bit more "Modern" to me but I can't really tell why.

This version looks a bit more “Modern” to me, but I can’t really tell why.

So, I decided that I needed two different 4-block units, and I came up with a layout I call “all in/all out.” I’m sure there’s an official name for it somewhere, but I’m too lazy to look it up.

I rather like this because it means there can be some motif quilting in the center areas with a contrasting thread.

I have to say, though, that I never really gave a thought to the quilting of quilts while piecing until I started trying to finish up my tops this year.

Adding that dimension has changed how I view my tops.

When thinking about how I approach quilting, I used to think about it the same way I would approach putting together jigsaw puzzles with my Dad. They usually don’t just “go together” at random, but there’s a “right way.”

pincushion

Well, in quilting, there really isn’t a “right way” and that’s what makes quilting a game for me.  I get to decide what’s “right.” The colors you pick for your quilts are a piece of the puzzle. Then you cut the actual pieces and put them into a block.  You can view the blocks as pieces to assemble into a top. You can add quilting motifs as another piece of the puzzle.

But the best thing is that you have control and you know when it’s “right.”

(p.s. You may eventually see Dragonfly Path in the shop of the New England Quilting Museum in Lowell, MA, since my friend, Debbie works in the shop.)

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