thangles. yep. thangles.
I had never heard of them until amanda started raving about them. she sent me a couple packs to try and, I'll admit, I ignored them because I just didn't get it. I got used to the monotony of making half-square triangles I guess. a couple of weeks ago I wanted to get back into my 80's quilt and the next block on the list was mostly half squares. this was the fastest block I've put together and everything lined up perfectly. thangles for the win!
sometimes a fabric line just grabs you. gerta certainly did. I love the graphic lines and the discharged look. I'm not sure what kind of quilt I'll make, but once I find some solids I like with them it's on. I also see a bag or two in my future with this fabric.
I started using bobbin thread after lisa explained to me its virtues. maybe it's just psychological, but I love seeing the little stitches on the back and I feel like my seams are even better now.
my aurifil thread stash. enough said.
linky links:
I'm a little behind on this month's bee blocks, but I just got my second one done today and I still have a few more days to get a third, and maybe fourth, done so I'm not sweating it yet. our bee seems to be dominated by stephs and amandas. july is steph's month with stars, but june was steph's month and stripes. did they plan it out somehow? I don't know, but I'm suspicious!
at first I thought working with only two colors would be a challenge or intimidating, but I ended up loving it. I definitely see myself making a similar quilt for myself in the future. steph wanted stripes of any kind and my mind immediately went to rothko. I wanted my blocks to be clean and graphic. instead of lots of thin stripes, I wanted larger blocks of color that would make the blocks really pop. of course, I went a little overboard and some of my blocks ended up a lot bigger than necessary. it'll be interesting to see how they work in relation to the others.
by the third block I reigned the size in to be closer to 15" square. at the time, this one was my favorite though I can't really explain why. the proportions maybe. it doesn't feel so "in your face" as the other two. but then I got inspired to make a fourth block since I still had enough scraps left.
this block became my favorite (for now at least). I was inspired by an amish quilt I saw online. that quilt was pieced in many colors with rectangles going up the side (my memory is a little fussy right now). I really liked the movement and tried to recreate that feeling with only two colors. I randomly pieced the center of the block until I got a size I liked and then surrounded it with larger swatches of color. it still has the constraints of the other blocks with hints of a freer feel to it.
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we started with freezer paper stencils and then moved on to photo emulsions. of course I had to play with the idea of quilting with freezer paper. all the colors were "found" and just tweaked a bit to get what I wanted. I think this took me longer than an actual mini quilt would have (it's from an edition of 20) with all the lining up I had to do. .
I let loose on the second print is. I hand drew everything on acetate and then added some pictures of the vintage polaroids. that was basically the only plan I had before printing anything. I made it up as I went along which drove part of me nuts but I'm in love with the textures I was able to get.
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I've been ignoring my 80's quilt for a while because I felt like I couldn't move on. I drew out the blocks for the third column, but there was this drunkard's path block that scared the hell out of me. all those little wedges mocked me. I could have started some other blocks but leaving an empty spot to come back to irked me. I finally made myself sit down and sew it yesterday.
after making four little "perfect" wedges, I decided to shake things up and make the rest wonky. it is a DRUNKARD'S path after all. I threw in a little linen to add texture and more grey. you can't have enough grey. after all my whining and fear it wasn't so bad. fiddly, but not awful.
with the other two blocks I have done, I can finally say there are two columns finished, three more to go!
may is our first month and amanda asked for log cabin or square in square blocks. the only request was to use a grey strip of fabric in at least one of the blocks. since there are only eight of us we decided to each send in three blocks.
it was great taking a little break from the precision blocks of my "80s quilt" and just being free to improvise. no worries about seams or patterns here. just random cutting and piecing. it also helps that amanda has great taste in fabric. can you believe these are from her scraps?! this was my first time working with the heather ross gauze so I just had to show off that little frog.
I wanted each block to stand on its own, so I approached each one differently. my original plan was to gradate to the blues, but my block became pretty big without me realizing it. I like how it reads as calming compared to my other ones.
my next challenge was to only use solids. I wanted it to be graphic and modern. I hope I succeeded. I love the way the shot cottons mix with the linen.
before I mailed out my blocks I got the urge to use up what I had left for a bonus block. I think this one is my favorite. the blues and whites are so fresh and relaxing.
I already got our june package and I can't wait to get started. I'll admit I'm a little nervous, there were only two colors in the envelope.
guys, I had a deadline! partially self-imposed and partially out of my control. you know, the mother nature kind? hence the silence. I started with a month to spare, but something about piecing all those half hexagons kinda killed me. I wasn't entirely sure how I wanted the whole quilt to look and all those rows seemed to take forever. of course, babies don't wait for design decisions do they?
the quilt was delivered on the 15th and the baby was born on the 18th. it got there just in time! now I wish I had better photos of this one because I love it so much. I asked Illanna what the baby's room would be like and she said "linen with pops of color". I basically ran with it, using some hello betty in the retro colorway with essex linen in putty. the binding is from lantern bloom.
I'm still shocked I managed to surprise her after asking about the baby's room and constantly checking on her due date. if you want to surprise someone, then just ask questions through twitter. tons of distractions there apparently :)
over easter I was able to get my hands on the original quilt that I've been basing my blocks on. I wasn't lying about the green was I? I don't know too much about the quilt, other than my mil won it in some charity raffle. it was handmade my a group of women, but I'm not sure what their group was or if they had a group name even. I know that my mil was too busy to pick it up after winning it, since it was in the middle of a work day, so she sent her mom, who was also a crafter, to receive it on her behalf. apparently they really took their time showing her every little stitch and block design. I'm imagining tom's grandma being surround by a bunch of ladies all wanting attention on their block. the only other clue I have, and it isn't a very good one, is the embroidered block on the top left of the picture. if tom hadn't held the quilt upside down, it would read "bethlehem senior citizens". not sure if they're supposed to represent every single senior citizen in town or if someone didn't bother to write "center" or something like that.
I've been working on what I thought were the first two rows, but really the last two columns. either way, I still have a quite a few blocks ahead of me. my quilt will turn out a bit smaller, my blocks right now are 12" while in the original quilt they are 14". I still have no idea how I'll do the sashing, but that's ok. I'm just taking it one block at a time.
can you spot my new blocks in the original?
this one is so out of my comfort zone, but I love it.
I used my own silk screened fabric for this. I like how quirky it looks compared to the perfectly printed fabrics in the other blocks.
I cut the center fabric to play off the appliqué on the original block.
this one is so simple, almost boring, but still one of my faves.
]]>I have been daydreaming about knitting something out of ori ami knits once I can get my grubby hands on a copy (and my arm is feeling better). these are the patterns I have been looking for, a little bit edgy with interesting construction and unexpected details. I don't need patterns for things I can simply get at the store, I rather spend my time making something unique. I might also be looking for an excuse to visit habu; all the patterns in the book feature their yarns, sometimes combining different fibers.
I was lucky enough to be asked to help edit some of the writing, so I got a sneak peek of all the patterns. vanessa did an amazing job with the photography. the landscape looks lush and magical. you can tell that olga, kirsten, and vanessa love habu yarns because the designs work perfectly with the yarn. none of them feel forced or gimmicky. the sizing is pretty generous, it ranges from 32-50" on every pattern.
some of my favorite pieces are:
the duplicity pullover. this is one of those duh moments. I've been wanting to play with layering and of course olga goes and does it better than I could have. the tsugumi silk and stainless steel create the perfect fabric; part of the sweater looks transparent while the other part has a rich texture. I basically want to knit it in the exact yarns and colors.
I'll admit it, knit skirts scare the hell out of me. but, those pockets! I have to have those pockets. the airfoil skirt is knit in tsugami silk and paper moire; the fabric looks so rich. I can definitely see olga's sewing skills influencing the tailoring. the way you can wear the 'pockets' in different ways reminds me of something issey miyake or commes des garcons would create. the question is, am I sophisticated enough to wear it?
the japonica cravat reminds me of this earring and necklace set I bought at the last minute for a wedding. I was suckered in by the tiny knitted metal stitches. I wore the set once and then never again. if the necklace looked half as dramatic as this cravat I would wear it all the time. I'm pretty much ready to order up some silk wrapped stainless steel and knit myself this gorgeous neckpiece.
I posted photos of all the projects in the extended entry, including the two bonus patterns you receive if you pre-order the book by may 1st. I don't think I've seen anything like the gills tank before, which uses the drape and stretch of bamboo perfectly. I want to take the little flowers from the vespertine necklace and use them in a mini quilt. and with that, I just got an awesome idea for the bee I'm in! now I just need to figure out how to find the time and energy to knit all these projects.
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I'm pretty much in love with this quilt. the different blocks. the curved piecing. all the different fabrics. the binding. yep, all of it.
for the quilting, I made random straight and curved lines with some quarter circles and faux wonky nine patches. I wanted to echo all the movement going on in the quilt and fill in the "blanks" in the random grey blocks.
I wasn't sure what to do with the back, so I randomly pieced some of the leftover grey fabric with kona in grass green. the circles were originally supposed to go in the front but I wasn't feeling that, so to the back they went. I threw them on the back and wherever they landed was where they were appliquéd. can you sense a theme here?
I decided to go with the pressed leaves print from wildwood for the binding. I was always leaning towards that one and once I saw it against the grey I knew it was perfect. the green matches the overall quilt, while the pinky purple and white just make everything pop. by the way, this was the first time I was able to make a bias binding without wanting to kill myself or anyone near me. I always mess up something, be it the way I cut the fabric or sewing it at the wrong angle. this time I did a continuous binding and it came out great. soooo much easier and faster.
in my little "80's quilt revival" I've had to ask myself how true to the original quilt I wanted to be. was I simply copying it to end up with a quilt that better suited my tastes or was I trying to go deeper and learn about traditional quilt construction from a group of women I'll never get to meet. I know I'm already going to fail in that regard since I'm not hand-quilting it. I am taking inspiration from their fabric placement though. all my sketches have little notes marking which pieces were prints or solids and what the color values in each block were. but there's something I'm just not loving, besides the hunter green, and that is appliqué. some of the blocks have center appliqué squares, that I don't see myself replicating. right now, hexes seem very modern and it would be an interesting challenge to limit a hex design to a six inch square without relying on a "grandmother's garden" flower. I just see myself ending up with a very messy block or a design I would constantly question. and I already question everything I do enough.
looking through my notes, there are two blocks in the first two rows with an appliqué center, a heart and a flower. I decided to play with fussy cutting, what seemed to me like another 'modern' option, to replace the heart. I also tried out a pinwheel to match two of the blocks in this row. I'm calling these "square in squares" and "pinwheels in a square" (which then leads me to call it "pinwheel in a box", which leads to singing). that's another thing I've noticed in this project, it's really hard to find quilt block patterns if you don't know their names. some blocks have more than one name and sometimes I'm not even sure how to go about finding them. it would be easier if I was just putting together random blocks for a sampler, I could just look through pictures and choose blocks that I like. but I'm trying to recreate a specific quilt, so there's a little more research for me.
right now, the fussy cut with plaid block is winning my heart. the pinwheel block is pretty too, but all that white is bothering me. especially compared to the other blocks I've made. I wrote down how I made these blocks in the extended entry. it's pretty picture heavy.
square in squares
you will need:
center block (1) 6 1/2" sq
fabric surrounding center (2) 5 1/8" sq. each cut on the diagonal
second outer print (2) 6 7/8" sq each cut on the diagonal
this block comes together pretty quickly. simply place the solid fabric around the center square. sew the two pieces that are across from each other, press seams, and then sew the other two. press seams again.
repeat again with outer fabric, sewing opposite sides as you go. you may have to square up your center piece first before adding the outer corners.
pinwheels in a square
this one is basically the same, you just have to make some hst for the center and change up the corners.
you will need:
(4) solid 3 1/2" squares for corners
(2) white print 6 7/8" squares cut in diagonal
(2) orange print 5 1/8" squares cut in diagonal
(2) white print 3 7/8" squares for pinwheels
(2) turquoise print 3 7/8" squares for pinwheels
I started with the pinwheels. using the 3 7/8" cuts, make four half square triangle blocks. sew together into two rows and press seams in opposite directions. sew the two rows together and press seam.
and now, like before, sew the triangles around the center pinwheel block. I found it easier to work from opposite sides.
to make the corner units, first grab your 3 1/2" squares and draw a line on the diagonal. take the triangles cut from the 6 7/8" square and align a 3.5" solid block at the 90 degree corner. see image for placement. sew on the drawn line. cut excess fabric and press solid fabric out.
sew corner units to center square.
square up to 12"
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the thing about paper piecing that people 'forget' to mention is that if you make a mistake, you REALLY make a mistake. ripping tiny stitches off paper is not fun. especially after the fifth time you sew on the wrong line. but the results are so worth it. I'm by no means a precision cutter (or sewer!), but this block doesn't give me away. just remember the printed side is the BACK of the block so you want to reverse things. I knew this going in, but something about the printed side hypnotizes you and makes you forget how you wanted to arrange the block.
the other thing they don't say is that if you cut your fabric too small, you'll definitely want to kill yourself. yes, I know I'm very dramatic. learn from my mistakes here, just cut things bigger thank you think. really. after you grab the dutchman's puzzle, print four copies out and make sure it's printed to the correct dimensions. chrome didn't want to print it right, but firefox was perfect. then erase line 3 with some whiteout or something. you don't want to see it or remember it was there. trust me.
for piece 1 and 4 cut two rectangles that measure 4 x 6.5" for 2,5, and 6 you want three pieces that measure 4 x 5". you could probably go a little smaller, but just don't. I rather end up with some scraps than rip. the other tip I can give you is to leave the paper on until the end. it's so easy lining everything up when you sew on the seam line. just rip the paper covering the seams after sewing each unit.
so that's four blocks down on my "80s quilt" with two more to go on this row. this is my favorite block so far, I love that blue "modern meadow" print and the pop of pink from "nicey jane". I skipped the "official" fourth block because of some math issues, but I think I almost have it figured out. I just need to wait for my quilt-alongers to catch up. in the meantime I'm going to try to get my hands on the original quilt to show you its green goodness.
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I decided to go right along with my 80's quilt and on to block 3, otherwise known as shoo-fly (though I've also seen it called churn dash or wrench among others). I wasn't sure how to go about this one; not math-wise but fabric-wise. the original used a print and two solids (a medium and light green). I really didn't feel like getting another grey solid to coordinate with the slate I'm using. luckily I have some hope valley in the stash; the small print reads as a solid as you step back. problem solved!
this was a pretty relaxing block compared to the first two with all those half square triangles. rectangles? yes please.
you want to cut out:
(4) 2.5 x 4.5" of your solid
(4) 2.5 x 4.5" of your second "solid" (the hope valley print)
you'll make four pieced squares
(2) 4 7/8" squares of your solid
(2) 4 7/8" squares of your main print (timber)
you'll make four hst's out of these
(1) 4.5" square of your main print for the center
last night I had to fend for myself dinner-wise, which meant reheating some leftover pizza and a lot of time on my hands. since I couldn't work on my circles quilt I decided to finally start my "80's quilt". what really spurred me on was the fear that amanda was going to come back from vacation with a million blocks finished and I would have nothing.
so far I have the first two rows sketched out and almost all of them have some sort of math behind them. there are some blocks with curves which look frightening and are stumping me. more on that later. I decided to go with these first two blocks since they seemed manageable and the math was easy to figure out.
I wanted to get away from the hunter greens and white of the original quilt. run away is more like it. I'm using amy butler slate as my solid and mixing up some nicey jane and modern meadow so far. you can basically get the math for these two blocks if you visit rachel's pinwheel along . I changed my block placement to match the old quilt, but it's basically the same as rachel's block one or three.
I'm still iffy about the second block. part of me doesn't like the way the two prints work together. maybe I should have used an orange or pink print to make it punchier. other times I look at it and like how quiet it is. I figure I'll keep it for now and I can always make another block along the line once I have more of the quilt done.
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while I go find some more batting and decide how I want to quilt the circle quilt, can you decide which fabric I should use for the binding? thanks
I'm leaning towards one, but I won't say which. also, the heather bailey dots (on top) is only a fat quarter so I would have to go find more. ok go!
here's a little reminder:
