Today is the last day of the month -
One more day in the month of May -
One more day -
To try to finish up the projects -
That I had planned for the month of May -
One more day -
To work up a bunch more sampler blocks -
So that I can post them one at a time - while I make some more -
One more day -
To plan out what I want to get done next month -
As if things actually ever go according to plan - ;))
One more day -
Got me to thinking -
And you know how thinking -
Always gives me a headache - ;))
But -
What if -
You KNEW that you had only one more day -
Before you died -
And - in that day -
You could make -
One more quilt -
What quilt would you make?
I'm not trying to be morbid -
Or anything -
Just curious -
Would it be -
Something scrappy? -
Something traditional? -
Something modern? -
Something simple? -
Something complex? -
What quilt would you make?
Would it be -
A brand-new one?
Or an old UFO? -
Me? -
I think I would like to finish up my Floral Applique -
And my Someday Memory Quilt - here -
So -
Just in case -
I have only one more day -
Those are going to the top of my list - ;))
Talk to you later - gotta go - gotta sew -
Every once in a while -
I like to do a little LEFTY ROLL CALL -
Sort of a head-count of LEFTY Bloggers -
So that I can update my LEFTIES list -
That page/tab at the top of my blog -
See it?? -
It was intended to be a one-stop shopping list of other LEFTY bloggers -
But I need your help in keeping it up-to-date -
So - If you are A Left-Handed Quilter -
Or a Right-Handed Friend of a Left-Handed Quilter -
Please grab a button -
And let me know if you want me to add you and your blog to my LEFTIES list - ;))
We Molly Dookers have to stick together - ;))
And I don't sometimes know that you grabbed a button -
Unless you TELL me - ;))
And for those of you who have ALREADY made my little list -
THANK YOU VERRRRRRRRRRRRRRRY MUCH!!
You guys just MAKE MY DAY!! ;))
Talk to you later - gotta go - gotta sew -
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Note - these instructions are written in LEFTISH.
If you are right-handed - just reverse the directions.
============
As part of the documentation of my quilts -
I like to make a Scrap Card -
I showed you my process - here -
But basically -
I cut a strip/piece of each fabric -
That I use in a quilt -
And stitch it to an index card -
Like this -
Trim it all up -
And add it to my scrapbook - ;))
AND -
I make a Foundation Paper Pieced Heart -
I showed you the long version - here -
But - while I’m at it -
I thought my new readers might like to see -
A short version of -
How I Do It - ;))
I want my Wolf to take center stage on this heart -
So I sorted through my heart shapes -
And found the one I want -
I want my Wolf to go here -
And - because I do it BACKWARDS -
From the way most people do it -
I can put him here -
And KNOW that he will be there -
When he gets sewn -
And NOT be reversed!!
Yay for MY WAY!!
I just fold the pattern on the line -
And trim 1/4” past the fold -
That’s where he will be when I’m done -
For the left side of the heart -
I ignored the lines on the pattern -
And sewed a sample of each fabric used in the quilt -
Checking it against the pattern to make sure it fit the space -
And straightened the RIGHT edge -
Place it next to my Wolf -
Should be just fine -
Remove the pattern - temporarily -
Put the Wolf and the strip set -
Right sides together -
Baste the seam - to see if I like it -
Don’t want to have to “unsew” itty bitty stitches -
Don’t like it -
The Wolf is too low -
Do over -
Much better - ;))
Normally -
The sections would be sewn to the TOP of the paper pattern -
But - in this case -
I just used the paper pattern as a placement guide for the pieces -
SO -
I need to pin the Wolf section - to the TOP of the paper pattern -
For the rest of my “process” - ;))
Then -
Place the Wolf section - RIGHT SIDE DOWN -
On a piece of muslin -
Starting on a straight part of the side -
Sew completely around the heart -
Using a tiny stitch -
Trim it - 1/8”-1/4” away from the stitching -
Clip the “V” and the point -
Remove the paper - carefully -
Clip the muslin - being careful NOT to clip the Wolf -
Turn it inside out -
And -
Viola! -
A Heart and Scrap Card -
For my scrapbook - ;))
Talk to you later - gotta go - gotta sew -
DESIGN WALL MONDAY -
Check out all of us who link up with Judy L. at Patchwork Times on Mondays.
We have some awesome stuff on our walls!
Well, THEY do - ME - not so much sometimes - ;))
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Note - these instructions are written in LEFTISH.
If you are right-handed - just reverse the directions.
============
I took another break –
From my LHQ Sampler Quilt -
See the page/tab at the top of my blog -
I decided to finish the backing for the Wolf Song quilt –
I started working on it a while back -
But I got sidetracked - ;))
The panel came with two more wolf scenes –
Perfect for the back –
Add some brown trees for a strip in the middle -
Add some green trees and the extra wolf vignette fabric –
For a strip along the top –
Then fill in with some black along the bottom -
Looking good!! –
And then -
I saw another squirrel - :))
And never got back to it -
Until now -
So -
One problem is that my first plan doesn’t fit this wall -
It's too big -
So I switched to the wall in the hallway -
And - because I have a tendency to measure WRONG -
I put up the top first -
Now - if I pin the back on top of it -
With some extra on each side -
I can SEE if it’s big enough -
Or not - ;))
The green trees and extra wolf vignette fabric -
At the top -
A chunk of dark green at the bottom -
Gotta save that BLACK - LOVE that BLACK!! -
The wolf scenes can go in the middle -
So they won’t get chopped off when it gets trimmed -
With a spacer strip to set off the wolf vignette fabric -
Sew some more green trees to the left -
And some brown trees to the right -
Shift the big green chunk on the bottom -
Over to the left side -
Add some more green trees to the right side -
NEVER going to use those green trees again -
Might as well use it UP!! -
And when I sew larger pieces together -
I always put an extra pin to keep the sides straight -
See the top pin on the right?
I’m sewing the edge along the bottom -
Close-up of the wolf scenes -
Looking good!!
Here’s another shot from the other end of the hallway -
The whole top is covered -
Looks big enough to me - ;))
Sew it all together -
Put it up on the wall -
Top and back -
Side by side -
Now I need the sleeve - binding - and label -
Then I can pack it up for my friend/quilter -
To quilt -
While I make the scrap card -
Heart -
Write the story -
And gather photos - ;))
Talk to you later – gotta go – gotta sew –
Another 6” sampler block -
That you can make using -
2-1/2” squares -
and HST that FINISH at 2” -
Three across and three down -
Variations of the basic NINE-PATCH -
The sewn block will MEASURE 6-1/2” -
And FINISH at 6” -
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#24 - Road to California
2 light squares
3 dark squares
4 light/medium HST
Talk to you later - gotta go - gotta sew -
Another 6” sampler block -
That you can make using -
2-1/2” squares -
and HST that FINISH at 2” -
Three across and three down -
Variations of the basic NINE-PATCH -
The sewn block will MEASURE 6-1/2” -
And FINISH at 6” -
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#23 - Simple Basket -
3 medium/light HST
4 MEDIUM/light HST (a second medium)
2 MEDIUM squares (the second medium)
Here again -
EQ7 wanted me to make this block -
With all of the MEDIUMS as one piece -
I could have used a template -
Or I could have cut a large triangle -
And then sewn a smaller triangle to the bottom right corner -
Or sewn a square - using the sew-and-flip method - to the bottom right corner -
Or a number of different things -
But I like trying to break these blocks down -
Into nine-patches -
It’s fun -
Try it - you'll see - ;))
Talk to you later - gotta go - gotta sew -
Another 6” sampler block -
That you can make using -
2-1/2” squares
and HST that FINISH at 2”
Three across and three down -
Variations of the basic NINE-PATCH -
The sewn block will MEASURE 6-1/2” -
And FINISH at 6” -
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#22 - Simple Design -
2 dark/light HST (Triangles on a Roll)
1 dark square
3 dark/medium HST
2 DARK/medium HST (a second dark)
1 medium square
You could also make the top left and bottom right corners
From larger triangles -
But - hey -
So far I have managed -
To make all of these blocks -
As nine-patches -
So I made this one -
That way too - ;))
Talk to you later - gotta go - gotta sew -
Another 6” sampler block -
That you can make using -
2-1/2” squares
and HST that FINISH at 2”
Three across and three down -
Variations of the basic NINE-PATCH -
The sewn block will MEASURE 6-1/2” -
And FINISH at 6” -
===
#21 - Maple Leaf #2 -
For this version I used a Sew-and-Flip method -
I had 2 light HST triangles cut from my die -
So I sewed two of them to the corners of two strips -
But since you may not have the die -
You may use 2 light squares instead -
The top row will be -
1 light square -
2 dark/light HST
The middle row will be -
1 dark strip - 2-1/2” x 6-1/2” - with either a HSTriangle or square sewn to the LEFT BOTTOM corner
The bottom row will be -
1 dark strip - 2-1/2” x 4-1/2” - with either a HSTriangle or square sewn to the LEFT BOTTOM corner
1 light square
I started with the top row -
And used my “Triangles on a Roll™” -
For the two dark/light HST -
I cut a square of the paper for two HST -
And an oversized chunk of the dark and light fabrics -
Layered the fabrics - right sides together -
Put the paper on top -
And sewed on the dashed lines -
Cut them apart on the solid line -
Tore off the paper -
Pressed them open -
And squared them up to 2-1/2” -
Using my Easy Square Jr. -
For the middle and bottom rows -
I placed a HSTriangle - right side down -
On each of the dark strips -
And sewed on the diagonal -
From corner to corner -
If you use squares instead -
Just layer one light square - right side down -
On the LEFT end of each of the dark strips -
And sew from one corner of the square to the other -
Just watch the direction of the seam - ;))
Press the light triangle open -
Check to see if it matches -
The bottom corner of the strip -
Before trimming the fabric underneath -
The one on the right will have to be “unsewn” -
And redone -
It’s just a tad short -
There - that’s better -
Trim the dark fabric from underneath -
(And the extra fabric from the square - if you used one)
Lay out the rows -
And then sew the block together -
Just like normal - ;))
OR -
You could just make it with squares and HST - ;))
4 dark/light HST
3 dark squares
2 light squares -
Talk to you later - gotta go - gotta sew -
Another 6” sampler block -
That you can make using -
2-1/2” squares
and HST that FINISH at 2”
Three across and three down -
Variations of the basic NINE-PATCH -
The sewn block will MEASURE 6-1/2” -
And FINISH at 6” -
============
Note - these instructions are written in LEFTISH.
If you are right-handed - just reverse the directions.
============
I figured that you’re probably getting bored -
With the squares and HST by now -
Assuming you are even with me - ;))
So - this next block will be a slight variation -
On the HST and square theme -
#20 - Maple Leaf - with corner stem
The fun part on this block is the stem in the bottom right corner -
I'll show you a couple of different ways -
But you can use Templates -
Or Squares -
Or Triangles -
Or whatever works for you - ;))
For the first way -
You will need -
4 dark/light HST
3 DARK squares (a second dark)
3 light squares -
1 dark strip - 1-1/2” x 5”
We’ll start with the corner stem -
Take 2 light squares -
And your Easy Square Jr. - 6-1/2” ruler -
Put the light squares on the diagonal -
And put the TOP LEFT 45 degree line of the ruler -
Along the TOP RIGHT edge of the square -
Making sure that the dashed 1/4” line on the ruler -
Is ON the diagonal of the square -
Going from TOP to BOTTOM -
Like this -
See the dashed line? -
That will be your “sewing” line -
Right down the center of that square -
What you want to do -
Is to cut 1/4” to the LEFT of that line -
1/4” to the LEFT of center -
And that’s where the edge of the ruler is - ;))
So - you need two light triangles -
Cut from two light squares -
And the dark strip -
Or you can cheat like I did - ;))
I had two light triangles already cut -
From my HST die -
That’s why the dog-ears are trimmed - ;))
Anyway -
Make a little sandwich with the two light triangles -
And the dark strip -
Bottom light triangle - RIGHT side UP -
Dark strip - folded in half - WRONG sides together -
Top light triangle - WRONG side UP
Make sure all of the raw edges are even -
Sew it together -
Press the seam open -
At the same time -
Opening up the dark strip -
On the other side -
Here we are -
All sewn and ready to trim -
And yeah - it’s 3D -
The stem has a little flap on both sides -
So those will DEFINITELY have to be sewn down -
NO flanges - right Judy? ;))
All laid out -
Ready to sew -
My corner stem didn’t come out perfectly even -
Now ask me if I care - ;))
After I made the corner square -
I sewed the HST together -
And then the rest of the block -
Just like normal - ;))
Talk to you later - gotta go - gotta sew -
