Do you sometimes struggle after you have all your quilt blocks finished to find a way to connect it all? Well, I have three projects in the works right now where that just happens to be the case. Sashing is the most obvious answer, and with good reason... it's simple and doesn't overwhelm a project. But then sometimes a project needs a little more than just simple.
I was over the moon excited when I stumbled on @janemichelquilts post and saw how she put her Brimfield blocks together. Just a step above simple, yet obvious enough to be annoyed with yourself that you didn't think of it first.
It was pure brilliance to take the small houses block, add a simple center, and then it transitions into the perfect flower cornerstone!?! Once
I figure out the exact direction of a project, it seems to push it
along a little faster.
This is the third "green quilt" that I have in the making, and yet I would like each of them to have a different feel. For this quilt I've pulled in some patina green, and pale aquas, while my yellow stars applique quilt is more yellows and chartreuse green. But they are all planned for the same room, so there should be enough to still tie them to each other.
... but since I still have two other quilts to figure out how to connect, I would love to hear your favorite way to connect quilt blocks. Sashing, or something entirely different?
Every quilter has that one sewing technique that is avoided like the plague... for some it's paper piecing, for others it's applique, Y-seams and partial piecing always make a list, and I'm sure that curved piecing has to be on someones don't-go-near-it list. For me that one thing is EPP - English Paper Piecing!
Aside from the fact that I can't do much hand sewing because of numbness in my fingers, somehow EPP just feels like mending sewing to me... it would be like asking a Picasso to paint your garage. Not that I'm comparing myself to Picasso, but I am a quilter who simply wants to sew and not mend things, despite how portable the technique is.
Well, with all that being said, I suppose it might be slightly confusing why you are seeing snap shots of EPP blocks in my feed.... hmmm. When @brimfieldawakening first shared their new #brimfieldblock, I instantly feel in love. Even though it was EPP, I kept coming back to study and examine it.... I kept thinking to myself that there had to be another approach to this block, and that my ever beloved starch applique method was just the thing!
I asked a friend, who had traveled to the States recently, if she could pick up a single block set for me, knowing that it would be light enough to fit into a purse without being noticed. I then traced the shapes onto freezer paper, and decided to triple layer them. Because of the sturdiness due to the extra layer, I should be able to finish a whole quilt with my one set of freezer paper shapes! It was critical to cut them with a ruler and my paper rotary cutter to make sure that the shapes fit when finished.
I've since added a couple more blocks and will join in on the sew-along that Brimfield Awakening is hosting. An all green quilt has been on my to-do list for quite a while, and I'm enjoying digging into my favorite color stacks in my stash.
One of the beauties of working on such a block is that there is plenty of room for fussy cutting. I've been saving this Heather Ross fabric for something special, and I love these Daisy Chain fabrics from Annabell Wrigley.
Do you have any "back door" approaches to quilting when you didn't want to go through the front door?
