Sorting for the strata -

 

 

The other day - Linda - asked me to show how I sort the strips -

 

For my Upstairs/Downstairs tops - 

 

So I thought I could use the "Christmas colors" that I just sorted - 

 
 

But - I needed to "reverse it" first -

 

To get them back to where I started -

 

And then "sort" them - again -

 

In order to show you the "process" -

 

So - here we go - LOL - ;))

 

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For my favorite version of Upstairs/Downstairs -

 

6 x 8 layout - 48 total blocks - 

 

10" blocks - 60" x 80" -

I need 80 strips -

So I need 4 rolls of 20 - or 2 rolls of 40 -

This is the jelly roll as it came out of the package - 

 

20 different fabrics -

 

 

Each strata needs 5 strips - 

 

And this roll splits nicely into five groups of 4 strips each - 

 

All I need is one strip from each group to make a strata - 

 

 

Starting with the "lightest/neutral" ones -

or in this case the "white/beige/brown" ones - 

 

I make four piles - 

 

I take the next group of four strips -

 

And add one to each pile - 

Don't overthink it - just add one to each pile - ;)) 

 

Then take the next four strips -

 

And add one to each pile - 

Again - don't overthink it - you just need one in each pile - ;))

 

 

Rinse and repeat - 

 

With the next two groups of four strips - 

 

 

And that's all it takes to sort the first jelly roll - 

Four piles with five strips in each pile -

 

All shading from darkest on top to lightest on bottom - more or less -

I see now that some of the greens could "shade" better in some piles - 

And I can always change them before I actually sew the strata - if I want to -

But to be honest - it isn't that big of a deal with this pattern - LOL -

 

Each strata will be sewn in the same sequence - 

Red #1 - Red #2 - Green #1 - Green #2 - Neutral - 

And the darkest RED will be the MAIN diagonal in each block -

 

NOTE -

I had already decided that I want the RED to be the dominant color in my blocks -

If I wanted the GREEN to be dominant - I would have put the GREEN strips on top -

And would sew them Green #1 - Green #2 - Red #1 - Red #2 - Neutral -

That way - the darkest GREEN would be the MAIN diagonal in each block -  

 

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Then I take a second jelly roll - 

Another 20 strips - and do the same thing -

 

Split the roll into the SAME five groups of 4 strips each - SAME as above -

But when I make the piles - 

I mix up the order of the strips in each group just a little - 

So I don't have EXACTLY the same fabrics in each pile as the first batch -

 

What I want/need is EIGHT DIFFERENT sets with 5 strips in each - 

For EIGHT DIFFERENT block combinations -  

They may all look alike at this point - but that's part of the "magic" - 

They are all similar but not exactly the same -

 

 

Once I'm satisfied with the fabrics in the EIGHT ORIGINAL sets - 

 

THEN - I make a second MATCHING set for each of them - 

 

 

One set of 5 strips - one strata - is enough for 3 blocks -

Two MATCHING strata will give me SIX MATCHING blocks -

 

What I want/need is SIX MATCHING blocks -

 

In each of my EIGHT DIFFERENT block combinations - 

 

For my 48 blocks total -  

 

Trust me - it IS easier to DO than it is to EXPLAIN - LOL - ;))

 

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Sorting strips for the strata is the first "color/value" part of this magical pattern - 

 

The second part is the "layout" - 

 

I'll do another post with some examples of that - 

 

After I sort through some old photos to find the ones I want - 

 

I have a basic "formula" that I use for the "layout" - 

 

And it's easier to DO than it is to EXPLAIN, too! - LOL - ;))

 

But before I do that - 

 

I thought I would give you some more examples of strata sorting - 

 

From some of my recent projects - 

 

It might make it easier to "see" what I'm talking about -

All of the other steps - sewing the strata - pressing - cutting the segments - etc. - 

are the standard steps for making "Trip Around The World" - style blocks - 

 

But I have "my way" of doing it - and may do it a little differently than most - 

so if you're curious about any of that - just ask - LOL - ;))

 

I finally have my "system" down on this pattern - so it's fairly routine for me now -

which is one reason why it's my favorite no-brainer - go-to pattern - 

 

And I think it's nice to have at least one of those in my toolbox - LOL - ;))

 

Talk to you later - gotta go - gotta sew -