The Field Day Zipper takes on a new view once it is on the design wall. So does my workroom. I need to get this piece sewn together and OFF the wall as it really sucks the light out of an, otherwise, fairly bright room.
This is such a weird concept to me and I spent some timing thinking about it. No, it is not directly related to the making of this piece, but it affects my work in general.
First, sadly, my workroom is still life sucking beige. (Why is a question for a long evening and a bottle of your favorite libation.) The ugly and light sucking nature of the color, if you can call life sucking beige a color, means that all the other colors I work with in that room look different. Also the light has to work a lot harder and I have to be careful to move bits of the projects to other parts of the house. It isn’t a perfect system, but it is working to a certain extent.
Anyway, I still have not put up my new design wall, but I did put FDZ up on the smaller design wall (~4.5′ x 7′). It doesn’t all fit as you saw in Design Wall Monday, but it will fit better once I sew some more of the parts together.
The other thing, unrelated to color, about this project is that seam allowance is affecting the size more than I anticipated. When I laid the piece out, the strips of Sangria were roughly equivalent to the ‘coin’ segments. As I began sewing the coins together into vertical strips, I lost many inches. I added a couple of coins to the first couple of rows to see what would happen and how many coins I would need. I could just cut off the solid strips, but I want the piece to be the length of the Sangria strips. I am going to sew more of the vertical strips together and then see what I need to do.
I am desperate to get back to this project — or really any project. I haven’t been able to sew at all in the past week and am feeling the effects.
Before I revamped my design wall, I reorganized the Flying Geese from my exchange with TFQ and took a good picture of them.
Yes, the mistakes are still in there, but they won’t be on the front of the finished piece.
It is kind of fun to see how bright and cheerful they are. Even the grey does not make the group look depressing.
Looking at them this way makes me see all the red and pinky-red I, especially, have used. I think I need to work with some cool colors for awhile.
Looking at them also made me want to sew them together instantly. I don’t have enough to make anything (and I had no time), so I refrained. Still, I think the end product will be one I enjoy when I do sew them together, whenever that is.
I worked on the Box Full of Letters blocks at the Retreat. I made 21 blocks as leaders and enders. The photo (left) shows a selection of the blocks I made.
I love the leaders and enders technique. I couldn’t believe how much I accomplished using leaders and enders.
I still don’t know what I am going to do with these blocks, but I am thrilled that I have an actual group of blocks with which to work.
I am not liking the name Field Day Zipper. It is too long and unwieldy. Anyway, I made progress on this piece at the fabulous retreat.
Field Day- May 2015
All of the pieces are cut and all of the sections are sewn to the background. As well, sections are sewn to each other, so there is no more than two sections are alone. I worked hard at getting the piece put together, but couldn’t quite do it. Still, I am pleased with how much progress I have made and see the end in sight.
The fabrics, as you may recall, are all from one line. As you also may recall, I usually advise people to to remove about 20% of the line and replace it with other fabrics not from that line. One issue that I had is that I did not add or remove any fabrics from the piece. It really shows. I had to be careful about where I placed fabrics so as not to create big blobs of color or pattern. It isn’t easy to remove certain fabrics and add others, but this is a lesson to me to take my own advice.
I spent the first part of the quilt retreat (will write about the retreat in general, but want to talk about the projects first!) working on the Food quilt that will go to a friend of the Young Man’s.
We are friends with the parents also, and they are very interested in my quilts. It seems reasonable to make a graduation gift for their son.
I bought plenty of fabric when I purchased for the Young Man’s Food Quilt, so I have plenty of fabric. The fabric is hard to find near where I live, but I bought most of it in Lancaster County when I was there with my SIL. Food themed quilts are good for boys as they are sort of neutral, but not too girly for boys. Quilts can easily be kind of girly, especially for someone like me who loves pink. 😉
I did the same pattern, a Disappearing Nine Patch, though I arranged the blocks in a different way.
I wasn’t able to finish the top, because I forgot the black I want to use as an inner border. I did make 4 piano key borders to add once I put the black border on the piece.
This project has been hanging over my head so I am glad I have made significant progress on it. Hooray for retreats!
I had pretty much decided to skip the One Block Wonder this time. I really like how Pam’s piece came out, but wasn’t sure I could replicate her success with work as interesting or cheerful. I have seen others that are not as nice.
When I saw the fabric on sale I looked at it and really made a conscious decision not to make a One Block Wonder project. I thought really hard about the logistics, time and money required to make the project and decided no, not now. I didn’t like the fabric enough to commit. I took the book back to the library and that was that.
Yay! Done deal. Moving on.
Then, yesterday morning, I went on Instagram and saw a new Peacock range by Timeless Treasures (damn you, social media!).
The colors in the panel are much richer and bolder. The design of the panel is more complex and way more interesting. The motifs are much more stylized and lush. Oh, and, Timeless Treasures, thanks for including those awesome solids that match the panel. Just what I needed. More temptation!
This is another good reason NOT to keep your tablet by your bed.
So, now this idea is back in the thinking pile. Here are some questions for you to answer:
What do you think of the panel?
If you saw it in the store, would you think of me? (since, of course, I am always first on your mind. 😉 )
Do you think a finished pieced piece would be too dark?
I have made my half hexie star project larger. I like making the stars and, as I have said in the past, they are great for a traveling project. However, I seem to be obsessed with making the ‘top’ piece larger. I don’t know why, but when I sit on the couch to watch TV with DH, I add a star or a row of stars to the larger piece. It wasn’t in my plan to do that, but I can’t seem to help myself. Even the sleeve from the Russian Rubix is languishing, because of this new obsession.
I really need to keep this project going through 2017, so that I have something on which to work when I travel with DH on his rounds to the various parlors. I can’t just zoom through it.
The other night I sewed a row of dot-stars (I decided to make the piece have a stripey effect with stars made from dots on white alternating with the other scrappy stars) together and then added them on to whole piece (see top of picture). Yesterday, I laid the piece on the bed to see how big it needs to be. I estimate that it needs to be 2.5 -3 times as wide as it is now to be a bed quilt with a bit of drape over the sides.
Friday night I pulled out a lot of the center papers, because I was running out, so now there is just a row of papers left around the outside. I got a little over enthusiastic with that process and pulled out half of one on the edge. I didn’t want the stitching to come out, so I sewed the blue batik star to the purple star to keep the purple seam from being lost. That is why you see the blue batik star sticking up, seemingly at random, on mid-bottom right. I didn’t really mean to add another row to the top.
The lavender dot in the lower right hand corner is just clipped to the piece so I remember to place that star in that location. I need to sew it to a white dot star before I sew it to the whole piece. It isn’t hard to inset the stars, but it is less work to sew two together and then add them at once.
EPP Stitching
What I really wanted to talk about was thread. I have a hand sewing kit I use when I sew on the couch that has random bits of thread and everything I need to do almost any kind of hand sewing. I don’t always have the exact color, but usually I can find one in there that will work for whatever my project is.
At some point I ran out of Aurifil #2600 and never replaced it. I could just walk upstairs, wind a bobbin and voila. Sadly once I have parked myself on the couch there will be very few steps added to my FitBit. As a result I haven’t replaced that thread.
I am using an Oliver Twist thread that came with a pack of those threads when I bought them several years ago. It is quilting thread, I think, so fairly thick. I don’t think it is ideal, but it doesn’t fray like some others, though it is hard to thread.
I feel like adding only two stars to the larger piece is major progress. I like the symmetry of the [kind of] rectangle. Somehow this looks like I am making something.
My plan is to make the piece big enough to cover a bed. I will slowly make the stars as I travel with the Grand President (HA! DH) then add them to the piece when I am at home.
I know it seems like I should be able to take this piece with me. It is, however, 1.5′ x ~1 foot and I want to keep it as flat as possible because of the cardboard EPP templates still inside. Making one at a time is better for travel.
I have a bin of stars that I have been making. I pulled out my bin of stars and picked some to add to the piece later. I made the stars and stored them in the bin thinking that I would just make the stars and put them together eventually. I couldn’t wait, thus I started putting the piece together into what you see above.
I thought I would write much more about the Flying Geese swap than I actually have. The last time I posted was back in January. My lack of reporting is not an indication of lack of interest.
Flying Geese, Early April 2015
This is a great exchange and I am really enjoying it. First, the FGs are easy to make. Next, they have a good impact. Third, there is a lot of bang for my buck. I take 5 squares and come up with 4 Flying Geese. Also, they are like potato chips. I can’t make just one set at a time. Once I get started, I want to make bunches of them. Finally, though I am sure there are other positives, all the colors I try work well.
So, the photo at right is the sum total of the Flying Geese I have made and received until last week. Not, it’s not a great picture, but, as you saw on my last Design Wall Monday, my design wall is backed to the gills and there is no space. I’ll get a better picture at some point, but for now you’ll have to be happy with this one.
More progress on the Octagon 9 Patch. It seems slow, but I see the progress. Compare from last time and let me know what you think.
The 9 patches are not in their final locations. I started to arrange them as I made them, but it was hard to judge progress so now I just put each nine patch in the next open space. I’ll arrange them later.
As mentioned in part 1, above is the current block in our Sampler Quilt Class. These directions are for machine sewing your Flower Basket and include a little applique’. The applique’ can be done by machine or hand.
Are you playing along? If you are just starting, below is the complete supply list. You won’t need everything for this step, but you will need to start with part 1 and that part requires more supplies. Also, note, there are a LOT of photos in this tutorial.
These directions use a quarter inch seam allowance. Check your seam allowance before you begin. If you don’t know how to do that, there are resources available, including one from Connecting Threads and Craftsy. You can search the web for others if you don’t like these tutorials.
You will be directed to use the Triangle Technique. Make sure you have the chart as well as the instructions handy.
Respect the bias.
After working through part 1, you have already chosen your fabrics, made your templates and cut your pieces. You are ready to sew.
Sewing
Carefully stitch along the hypotenuse of the large background triangle, about 1/8″ from the edge, to stabilize it. This stitching will be covered up when you stitch the handle part of the block to the basket part of the block.
Triangle Technique
Use the Triangle Technique to make your half square triangles. Make sure you have the chart available to confirm sizes. A brief overview is:
Draw an X from corner to corner diagonally on the wrong side of each of your 6.25″ x 6.25″ squares.
Place them right sides together and sew 1/4″ on each side of the diagonal lines.
Nota bene: If I had wanted to pin I would have pinned far away from any of the diagonal lines.
Now you have a piece with four seams forming an X.
Next cut the ‘Plus’ of your sewn piece. This means that you are cutting horizontally down the middle and vertically down the middle.
Line up your ruler with the edge of the fabric and the point in the middle where the two lines forming the X come together.
Cut vertically.
Do NOT move your fabric.
Reposition your ruler and then cut the piece horizontally.
The result is 8-2.5″ half square triangles. The above are actually a thread or two larger than 2.5″, which leaves the perfect opportunity for trimming to make them an absolutely perfect 2.5″.
Trim your HSTs to an absolutely perfect 2.5″.
Now you have 8 beautiful HSTs.
Of course, you can use whatever technique you like to make the half square triangles.
Layout and Assembly
Pieces cut and ready to sew
Now that you have cut all of your pieces, lay them out on your sandpaper board, or put them up on your design wall. It is great to be able to see where all the pieces belong and adjust any pieces that need adjusting before you sew.
Sew Handle to Background
Template on Handle, ready to traceTraced & Adjusted
Because I decided to use the method described below, I made another handle template with NO seam allowance. I placed it on the handle I had cut from the striped fabric carefully so there was an even seam allowance on all sides. Then I traced around it with my thin black pen. I thought the template was a little wide at the end so I adjusted the line a bit to make the seam allowance larger.
Handle & Background Triangle Cut, Laid OutPieces Laid Out
My pieces looked a little weird-not the right size, etc when I laid them out. Have no fear! They will improve.
Press seam allowance underPress with hot iron
I was using my stiletto to adjust the seam allowance, but it was impossible to hold the stiletto, the camera and the iron all at once. Press carefully, so as not to distort your pieces.
Watch out for corners
Pay attention to the corners. The layers of fabric will want to pooch in weird directions. This is where one of those mini irons might come in handy. I used my regular iron and a stiletto, so I know those tools work.
Press seam allowance on handle under
Take your handle and press the the seam allowance under on both sides of the piece. Press so that the drawn line is on the inside of the handle and is covered by the piece once the handle is sewn.
<Nota bene: the orange fabric was selected for good contrast so that the steps would show up well>
Finger press patches in half
Fold the handle in half with wrong sides together and finger press on the midpoint. Unfold.
Fold your large triangle in half with right sides together and finger press. Unfold and layout.
Nesting handle & background
Nest the handle into the triangle with the right sides up.
Line up the bottom edges of the handle with the hypotenuse of the background triangle. If the handle ends are a little over, it will be fine. You can trim them later.
Eyeball your piece to make sure everything looks good and even.
Pin the handle to the background down the center of the handle. Remove the pins as you sew. Try not to sew over them.
Using a lot of pins will help keep the handle in place as you sew
Sew carefully
Sew slowly and carefully along the drawn line around the curve. I chose a matching thread, an applique’ foot and a topstitch/sharp needle.
You will either need to hand applique’ the other side down or using a machine stitch that suits you.
You could sew both sides down with a straight stitch, like I did. There are many options.
Optional: You can satin stitch (see the Machine Applique’ tutorial) or blanket stitch or use some other decorative stitch to machine sew the handle to the background triangle piece. If you use one of these stitches, you may need some tearaway stabilizer
Optional 2: you can hand applique’ the handle to the background triangle.
Handle sewn to background with straight seam
Once the handle is sewn you are ready to move to the woven part of the basket.
Basket Sewing Layout
Sew Basket Together
The block can be broken down into two pieces: the top half with the handle and the bottom half with the basket.
The two colored HSTs are supposed to give the illusion of a woven basket.
Trim off dog ears
Trim off dog ears from the A,B-HST/1 combo.
Sew Basket parts together
Sew HST/2 to HST/5. Press towards HST/5.
Using the diagram above to confirm placement, sew your A,B-HST/1 combo to your HST/2-HST/5 combo. Press towards the red.
Sew basket parts together
Sew HST/8 to Square 10. Press towards the Square 10.
Sew HST/6 to HST/9. Press towards the red part of the HST.
Sew 2 sets of woven basket parts togetherSew basket parts together
Using the diagram above to confirm placement, sew your HST/6-HST/9 combo to your HST/8-Square/10 combo. Press towards the HST/6-HST/9 combo.
Sew Triangle to HSTs
Using the diagram above to confirm placement, sew C to HST/3. Press towards the red.
Sew triangle D to C-HST/3 combo
Using the diagram above to confirm placement, sew D to your C-HST/3 combo. Press towards D.
Trim your dog ears
Trim your dog ears.
Sew HST/4 to HST/7. Press towards HST/7, making sure your seams will nest with the seams you have already pressed.
Sew parts of the basket together
Sew HST/4-HST/7 together and then sew the HST/4-HST/7 combo to E. Press towards E.
Four sections of the Basket
Using the diagram above for placement, sew your HST/4-HST/7-E combo to your C-D-HST/3 combo. Press.
Trim dog ears.
Sew 2 Sections together
Sew your A,B-HST/1-HST/2 segment to the HST/6-HST/9 segment.
Trim Your Dog Ears
Trim your dog ears!
Sew last two segments
Sew the last two segments of the basket part together. You may have to re-press some seams.
I didn’t move the borders the whole time I worked on the quilt See how much the basket part shrank? That is seam allowances for you!
Trim the dog ears
Trim the dog ears, if you haven’t already.
Sew 2 halves together
Now you have two halves of the basket. Sew the woven part to the handle part by placing the woven part on top of the handle part, lining them up and then sewing carefully. You can fold the two sections in half, bisecting the handle, to match them up if you think that you need to trim the handle portion later.
Ready to sew last borders
Now you are ready to sew on the borders.
Sew triangle to borderSew triangle to border with words
Sew the B2-G background section by placing the red triangle (G) face down on top of background piece B2 and sew the short end of the background to the triangle, as shown in the picture.
Sew on background B2/Triangle-G
Take the basket piece that you sewed together above and place the B2-G background section on top of the basket section. Line up the red triangle’s seam from the B2-G background section with the HST/8-Square 10 section. You want the seams to match, so pin. Press towards background piece B2.
Only one more border to go.
Take the basket piece that you sewed together above and place the B1-F background section on top of the basket section. Line up the red triangle’s seam from the B1-F background section with the HST/9-Square 10 section. You want the seams to match, so pin. Press towards background piece B1.
Sew on Final Triangle
Now you are ready to sew the last piece.
Trim dog ears
Trim dog ears.
Basket almost complete
Your basket is almost complete.
Line up triangle with borders
Complete your basket half by sewing background piece B3 to the basket. You have already snipped off the corners so you just have to line up the triangle piece with the borders already sewn to the block. Press towards the background piece B3.
Your half is complete.
Take the top half of the basket, the piece with the handle, and carefully sew it to the basket half.
I had to go deposit some checks the other day. Since I was walking I stopped by the library and borrowed the One Block Wonders book. I started reading it before I went to bed the other night and I am less sure about the project.
Majestic Beauties Peacocks Panel
First, the original panel I was thinking of using probably won’t work, because it has too much white in the background. I found the fabric on the site called Melinda’s Fabric Shop. I never used that shop before and they have quite a bit of variety as well as a good layout on their pages.
Since the site had related prints right on the screen showing the panels, I looked through the other prints in the line and there are some others that might work for this project. I like the squares print that looks like tile (Wilmington Majestic Beauties Tiles, #F6898), but that print, according to the book might also not work because there is not enough variety in the colors and shapes.
Peacocks fabric
I kept looking and found another print with the peacocks that has more variety in the design and not as much white in the background. It also incorporates some single feathers and the tile. The heads of the birds are a smaller part of the design, which is also kind of a relief, because I really don’t want heads in many, if any, quilts that I make.
The concern I have with this print is the size of the repeat. I can’t tell from the website so I sent them a message. The book says that there will be too many duplicates if the repeat is too small.
I still haven’t looked through my large pieces of Philip Jacobs fabric, but need to do that before I go out and buy more fabric.
I was pretty excited seeing Pam’s version, but as I read the book, I am less excited. I am not thrilled about sewing more hexagons together either. Been there done that. The whole project just seems a lot less interesting after reading the book. Perhaps that is what I felt when the book first came out.
I don’t think I have made much progress but I am making some progress. I finished all of the extra octagons so the piece is much bigger. I have to make a few more just to complete one side. I also still have a lot of nine patches to make.
I am now out of grey squares and have to make a concentrated effort to cut a bunch more. It isn’t a big deal; I just have to do it.
One of the things that makes me feel really good is when someone tells me that a project I made inspired them.
Lynnette’s Star Sampler
At a recent Sew Day, Lynnette was laying out star blocks that looked suspiciously like my Star Sampler, but in really awesome colors. She told me that my Star Sampler had inspired her.
Ooooh! I inspired someone. That feeling is awesome.
I know the colors are hard to see, but it is in shades of white, plum and grey. It will be a gift. That told me that Lynnette is a better person than I am. I am just thrilled to see another version IRL of the Star Sampler.
It looks so little. You know I make big quilts so this one just looks weird.
I could cut more octagons and make it bigger, but the pieces are really small and piecing the blocks takes forever.
I have a few more octagons that are in the process of being sewn into Snowballs, so the piece will be a bit bigger, but it won’t be bed sized.
I can add a border and I do have an idea for that already, so that will also enlarge it.
I could also just be okay with the size that it is.
Octagon 9 Patch – March 2015 detail
There are a lot of warm colors and I may need to cut a few octagons from cool colors, but I am not going to decide until I have more 9 patches completed and all the octagons are made into Snowballs.
