One thing that extremely cold weather is good for: staying indoors and finishing some old projects! I had two quilts on the way as a result of "demonstration days" last year: a "Practically Perfect Pinwheels" and a "Nicely Nesting Disappearing Four Patch." When I do a demonstration day I have a completed quilt in the pattern being demonstrated and then I make blocks in that pattern all day, demonstrating as I go. I also give hand-outs that show the whole process, along with illustrations of each step. And I hand out the squares necessary to make a block, as an incentive to go home and try that pattern. At the end of the day I have several blocks made for another quilt in that pattern!
Just now I finished the machine quilting of this Pinwheel Quilt. It's big enough for a good-sized lap quilt without borders, so I plan to bind it and be finished!
Number one finish.
Actually the first sewing I did after we got home in February was finishing the "Jacob's Ladder" quilt that was a club challenge.
Before we left in September I worked on this quilt. It needed only a bit more machine quilting and then the binding, etc. The binding has been sewed on but not hand-stitched to the back. It needs to have a hanging sleeve and a label put on the back as it is going to the Red Deer Quilt Show this month, as part of our club challenge. Several of us made a lap quilt in the Jacob's Ladder pattern to illustrate what incredible variety can be made from one pattern, as interpreted by a variety of quilters. It was a fun challenge, and I am happy with what I made.
Next in the line up is the "sandwiching" and quilting of this Nicely Nesting Disappearing Four Patch. A week from today I will be demonstrating that technique to the local quilting club. This is the finished quilt from the "Demo Day" last year at IDA.
That will be three quilt projects finished, clearing the decks for a new project. Always fun to start something new! A young friend of mine is expecting her first baby this month and I'd like to make a quilt for this baby. I'd been thinking of Pinwheels, but this time pinwheels that stand up from the quilt. I made up a method a year or two ago and have wanted to use this in a quilt. This seems like a good opportunity.
So the Pinwheels and the Disappearing Four Patch, and this new pinwheel quilt are all methods that I made up, differing in a significant way from the traditional methods. In the traditional (not "stand-up") pinwheel I simplified the method by sewing width of fabric strips, 4 1/2" wide on each of the long sides, cut them into 4 1/2" squares, then cut them diagonally, giving 1/2 square triangles. When you sew these 1/2" square triangles together to form the pinwheels, all the bias seams are on the inside of the block, making it much, much easier to get the inside points to match. If you'd like complete instructions, email me at l.mantel@telus.net and I will email the instructions to you.
With the Disappearing Four Patch, I postponed one seam and that allowed the pressing of each seam toward the dark fabric. As a result, all the blocks nest when sewed together into the quilt top. Again, if you would like the instructions, email me and I will send them to you.
When I sew the new "Stand Up Pinwheel" quilt, I post pictures of that.
So, even though I'm getting really sick of the cold, cold weather--as are all the others around here--it has some benefits in terms of projects finished.
No comments:
Post a Comment