Here it is, my version of the Summer quilt from the Quilt Giving book (affiliate link), which I've renamed Summer Ocean because of the color scheme. Doesn't the garden gate/trellis make a pretty quilt hanger?
And here's the whole quilt, made the same size as in the book, 64" x 80".
Originally, I wanted to just make a baby quilt size, but found that because of the block size, the design was cut off on the side and bottom.
Scaling back the block size would have been better - maybe next time! Fortunately, I had just enough background fabrics to make more blocks for the full size, though I'm not really sure what I'm going to do with such a large quilt.
But check out the backing! A pretty blue/aqua 4 yard piece was in the stash, and it works so well with the front.
Remember I gave hints for piecing backing that would make a longarmer very happy? Well, I did that horizontal seam, and then decided to load the quilt on it's side so that I could quilt a lengthwise row. Not the best planning on my part.
But being me, I bit the bullet and dealt with yet another quilt with some sagging on the ends. Fortunately, this one came out fine.
I also chose ruler work in keeping with the geometric theme. There were lots of stops and starts, and the quilt police will surely point out my knots!
I'll be keeping this one around for awhile, as it has a nice soft hand, then who knows where it's forever home will be?
So that's it for my January Book of the Month feature. I could have kept going and made a few more, as there are some really nice, modern patterns in Quilt Giving. But, it's time to move on, and to continue to use up the stash - just makes room for more fabric!
Happy Quilting!
There's been lots of sewing activity going on around here, mostly in making more blocks for the Summer quilt pattern from the Quilt Giving book (affiliate link). In the process, I've learned a few tricks in making these corner triangle blocks that I'd like share today.
Sewing these corner triangles is also known as the 'stitch-and-flip method', as the two pieces are stitched together, trimmed, and then the smaller piece is flipped over to the right side to finish the block. Let's have a look at the tips below to make the process easier.
The first tip is to mark the backside, from corner to corner, of the small square that will be the corner triangle. There's no room here for guessing a straight line, or using a guide placed on the machine. A straight pencil line to follow is what's needed here.
Once the outer edges of the small square are lined up with the larger block's corner, the next tip is to stitch just a thread's width to the seam allowance side of that drawn line.
This compensates for that little bit of fabric that's taken up in the fold when the seam is pressed. And if all has gone well, the edges will line up too, eliminating extra trimming. I've placed lines on each edge to show how everything has lined up after pressing.
And here's an optional tip: stitch another line 1/2" away from the first, within the seam allowance (the area going toward the corner of the large square). Then cut in between the two stitching lines.
And the result is the original corner square block, and a bonus HST.
Now that's efficient sewing - creating the block needed, and getting HST's to use in another project, cutting down on a bunch of triangles to add to the scrap pile. Woohoo!
So I'm off to finish up my blocks and get them sewn into a quilt - there's more coming on the Summer quilt in the next few days.
Happy Quilting!
Today it's all about black and white quilts for another fun blog hop hosted by Carla at Creatin' in the Sticks!
If you've been paying attention to some of my previous posts, you'll know I've been working on a couple more quilts for Paradise, CA. And funny, they just happen to be black and white - yes, I planned it that way!
Let me introduce Paradise 8,
another from my Quarter Cut quilt tutorial, made with a black and white theme this time.
And then there's Paradise 9,
made from blacks and whites pulled for Paradise 8, but didn't make it into that quilt. This one is totally free form piecing, using the given widths and lengths of the fabrics pulled. There was very little cutting to make the pieces fit - lucky me! I really like this one too, as it reminds me of an interesting tile setting, with the variety of big and little pieces.
Both large lap quilts use the Happy Times pantograph, as it's such a nice open, pleasant design.
Don't you just love that zebra print? Tried to use all of it, even with the binding, but still have about 1/2 yard left.
And the best of all? Both quilts have the same backing fabric, with a horizontal strip to add a bit of length.
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| Paradise 8 backing |
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| Paradise 9 backing |
Though both backings have vertical seams (dreaded by longarmers!), I dealt with it just so I could use up that fabric. That's right - 6.5 yards of a sheet music print is no longer taking up valuable real estate in the stash - woohoo!!! I really need to start making one of those fabric in/fabric out tally sheets for the year, as I'm off to a great start on using up the stash.
Also notice the numbers behind the quilt names, 8 and 9. It means this is the eighth and ninth quilt I'm sending to Paradise, CA, and probably the last. Nine large lap sized quilts in two months is a pretty good donation number - I hope they provide some comfort.
Enjoy hopping!
My Favorite Patterns
