I apoligize for this less than thrilling post with no pictures. Just giving an update. I am up to my elbows in boxes and packing paper. The upstairs is just about done and then I can refocus on the downstaris. The important part of that being my new sewing room!!! I can't wait to open up those boxes and spread my fabric out. There is going to be so much storage. Much, much, much more than I had in the old place. Mostly, I just can't wait to unpack my sewing machine. I miss it!!
I promise to take some pictures when I get it set up :) (And when I find the camera, tee hee hee) So that is the goal for the next few days. Get the house unpacked, with high priority on the Sewing Room!!!
Showing posts sorted by relevance for query new sewing machine. Sort by date Show all posts
Showing posts sorted by relevance for query new sewing machine. Sort by date Show all posts
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Wednesday, August 12, 2020
More Mask Making
Last night was spent making more Masks, only this time, I was teaching the amazing Young Women in my church how to make their own masks. School is a few weeks out and they all need masks. It was fun to see the different personalities come though in their picks of fabric. A lot just wanted simple black, (it goes with everything!!!) but some also picked some fun and funky ones :)
They all did such an amazing job!!! For quite a few, this was their first introduction to a sewing machine and they really did great :) The other young ladies got introduced to a sewing machine when I taught them how to make Charming Totes a few years back ;) I just love that this allows me to pass sewing on to a new generation. Thank heavens there are so many of us that know how to sew right now, I can't even begin to imagine how many homemade masks have been sewn in the last few months by all of you amazing sewers!!!
Oh, and just in case you missed it, I added the link for this pattern on my Monday post, and will also share it here. Link to the PDF Templates. I have found this to be an awesome pattern for fit. I just used 4 of the Part A Pattern and don't do the fitter pocket. And I love using old T-shirt 1" strips that have been stretched and made into loops for the ears, it is so much softer than elastic. And today, My plan is to make some masks for me ;)
I hope you all have a very Happy Quilting Day!!!
Thursday, August 4, 2016
Summer Solstice Quilt-A-Long - Drunkard Path
** NOTE - This post is part of a series of posts for the Summer Solstice Quilt-A-Long. If you would like to join (and have a chance to win $100.00 Gift Certificate and Fat Quarter Bundle grand prizes sponsored by The Intrepid Thread and Fat Quarter Shop ) you can find a list of the post links here :) Here is the schedule
Now, first off for this week, we need to pick a winner for the Half Square Triangle Assignment. And great job to everyone on their wonderful piles of Half Square Triangles!!! I know that was a whole lot of piecing and trimming, and you all did so fantastic!!!
The Half Square Triangle assignment winner who gets a Moxi Charm Pack by Studio M for Moda from The Scarlet Thread Quilt Co. is . . .
So I know lots of you are going to be trying something new today and I am so super excited for you ;) Just a quick note to remember, Relax and have fun with it ;) The more you can relax, the easier curve sewing will be!!! So let's get to it :) Oh, and If you are just finding this QAL now, it's never to late to join in the fun, the tutorials will always be on my blog so you have lots of time to join in :)
THIS WEEKS ASSIGNMENT - DRUNKARD PATH BLOCKS
Just a note before we start. We will be making a slightly modified Drunkard Path blocks as the "crust" section of the block is skinnier than your traditional Drunkard Path blocks. This way our Seams from the blocks will line directly up with the seams in our surround and there won't be that little gap :) So that this means, if you have Drunkard Path templates at home already, you might want to double check before using them as they are most likely for traditional blocks ;)
MAKING THE TEMPLATE
Alright, Let's get our Curved Piecing on!!! To start, you will need to print off the Drunkards Path Template for your designated size block. You can find the Drunkard Path Template by clicking right here. Depending on your size block, will depend on what size template you need.
2 1/2" Finished Modified Drunkard Path Template is for the 20" Block
3" Finished Modified Drunkard Path Template is for the 24" Block
3 1/2" Finished Modified Drunkard Path Template is for the 28" Block
4" Finished Modified Drunkard Path Template is for the 32" Block
5" Finished Modified Drunkard Path Template is for the 40" Block
And be sure to double check that the 1" square on your printed page is a true 1" square ;) Now cut out the two template pieces. I made a note on my templates what size starting square I was using and the finished size, just so they wouldn't get mixed up ;)
From here, we are going to use our paper templates to make a sturdier template ;) So whatever supplies you got at the beginning to make your template on, it is time to pull them out. I am using Extra Thick Plastic Template Sheets
. Place your two templates onto the corner of your template material and trace around them. The reason I do it is the corner, is because that is two fewer sides I now have to cut ;)
Now, go ahead and cut out your two permanent templates. And I know you all know this, but it never hurts to remind, Don't use your fabric scissors to cut these out. They will ruin them. (But if you happen to have a pair of fabric scissors that your children have used on paper and ruined them already, feel free to use those :)
CUTTING THE PIECES
Now you have your templates ready and you are all set to start cutting out your Drunkard Path units. So, go ahead and grab your stacks of DP (Drunkard Path) squares. These should be the only ones you have left, but just in case, the sizes of them are listed below. I will be showing your first how to cut out the pieces, and then explaining what parts you need in the quilt, so be sure to keep reading on before you start actually cutting ;)
We start by cutting the Concave piece, or what is easier remembered as the "Pie". Align the Pie Template so it is flush in the corner of the square and the sides are aligned. Now, holding the template in place, gently cut along the outer curve of the template. This is the easier of the two curves to cut, just try to stay relaxed and let your blade follow along the outside arch.
And now onto the Convex piece, or the "Crust" as we will refer to it. Start by rotating your square 108 degrees as shown so the cut is more natural for your hand. Now place your Crust Template onto the remaining piece of square so that is flush in the corner and the sides are aligned. Start by cutting along the top and side edge of the template to square it up. Then, holding the template in place, gently cut along the inner curve of the template. Again, Gently is the key here. This curve takes a little practice to get used to, but just relax and you will get it. The key is when you are coming out of the curve to not press so hard that you cut into your template. Relax and just let your cutter glide along the edge. I had to keep reminding myself to relax my hand and let the cutter do the work ;) But no worries, by the end of cutting your pieces, you will be a pro!!!
For each square you cut, you will have a Print Pie and Crust piece an a Background Pie and Crust piece. You will alternate the Pie and Crust so that they match up with a Background Pie and Crust as shown below ;)
Once you feel that you are getting the hang of cutting, you can speed things up a bit by stacking up 3-4 squares at a time. Be sure that your blade is sharp so that it will go through all the layers, and again, practice on single squares before you jump into this. But once you feel confident, this will save a lot of time.
WHAT PIECES GO & SOME PRACTICE
So now you know how to cut them - Let's go over how you will sew them together. Once again, the 1 x 1 Layout is going to differ from the 2 x 2 , 3 x 3 , or 4 x 4 Layout.
So let's start with the 2 x 2, 3 x 3, or 4 x 4 Layouts.
If you are doing any of these layouts, the easiest way is to cut both pieces (Pie and Crust) from all of your Drunkard Path squares as explained above, and then place them into two large grouped sets. One group will be the Print Pies with the Background Crusts, and the other group will be the Background Pies with the Print Crusts.
With that said, when you start sewing up your two groups above, you will have some extras when you are done. For each block you need 4 Background Pie/Print Crust blocks (Used in the Center Star) and 8 Print Pie/Background Crust blocks (Used in the Surround). This means that you have 4 Extra Background Pie/Print Crust blocks times how ever many blocks you are making. These are great practice and wonderful "oopsie" blocks . . . So what I would suggest is sewing your entire group of Background Pie/Print Crust blocks first. This will give you lots of practice on your curves, and you can go through this pile later and pull out the best 4 of each print from the group to be used in your Summer Solstice quilt, and save the "learning" 4 from each print in the group for another project, or scrap.
So now, onto those doing the 1 x 1 Layout
If you are doing the 1 x 1 Layout, you should have (8) squares from your Surround Fabric, (4) Squares from you Center Star Fabric, and (8) Squares from your Background Fabric. And I know, it has been super confusing that there aren't the same number of squares, but it will all make sense now ;)
Once again, the easiest way is to cut both pieces (Pie and Crust) from all of your Drunkard Path squares as explained above but now you are going to be grouping them a little differently.
You want to make the following sets to make your blocks.
(4) Background Pie/Center Star Fabric Crust sets.
(8) Surround Fabric Pie / Background Crust Sets.
And then you will have some extra pieces ;) I suggest making these extra pieces into the following sets.
(4) Center Star Fabric Pie/Surround Fabric Crust Sets
(4) Background Fabric Pie . Surround Fabric Crust Sets.
I would highly recommend sewing these extra sets together first to use as practice on sewing with curves. Once you feel confident in your curved sewing move onto the sets you will need in your quilt. You can use the Extra blocks in another project or for scrap :)
SEWING A DRUNKARD PATCH BLOCK
So now that we know how our pieces all go together, let's learn how to sew them together!!! I will be showing the process with one block, but or course, you will be making lots and your fabric layouts will be different on about half of the blocks. Just be sure to keep the groupings that you made above.
And one last note before we get into it, I like to use 3 pins when sewing curves. Some people use 1 and some people use a ton :) If you find you want more than 3 pins, fabulous, if you find you like 1, wonderful!! Do what works best for you :)
Okay, to start, we need to find the center of our pieces, so to do this, fold your pie and crust in half and finger press the crease.
Now, with right sides together, place the Crust onto the pie aligning the two creases. Pin the two pieces together along the crease.
Now, grab the end of your Crust and align the two sides with the two sides of your Pie. These should align perfectly, just like if you were sewing a square together. Pin in place. Just be careful when you are pinning not to stretch your fabric to much as these are cut on the bias. And I like to pin pretty close to the edge so that that alignment won't shift on me.
Then repeat for the other end, again making sure that the two sides are aligned perfectly, just like a square and pin it in place. And your block is pinned and ready to sew. (And like I said above, if you get going and find you want a few more pins great, that can especially be helpful if you are doing some of the larger size blocks. Just center another pin between your current pins and again, be careful not to pull the fabric to much as these are cut on the bias)
And now you are ready to sew. Now before we start sewing take a deep breath :) The more relaxed you are, the easier curves are to sew. If you get frustrated and tense, it just gets harder, so remember, this is all about having fun :)
The biggest key I have found when sewing curves is to only worry about what is directly in front of your presser foot. The rest of the block won't line up until it gets there so don't stress about it. Just keep focused on what is about to go under the foot.
Using a 1/4" foot on your machine, Align your pinned edge with the foot and begin a few stitches. I like to backstitch 2 stitches once I have started. This isn't necessary, but I just like to where I pull on this piece when sewing a little more than traditional square blocks.
Now just try to imagine that you are sewing just like sewing straight lines. I like to use the finger on my right hand to keep the two edges of my fabric aligned and the fingers on my left hand to smooth or pull out any bubbles that are in the way. Just smooth those outward, you only have to have a 1/4" of flat sewing space. And again, just worry about smoothing out your sewing patch right before it goes under the presser foot.
Just keep aligning with the right hand and smoothing with the left hand. The fabrics will ease into position right where they should be as long as you be sure to keep the edges aligned. Every once and a while, you might find that you need to lift your presser foot to smooth out a stubborn crease and that is all good, just be sure your needle is in the down position.
When you get close to the edge, I find it helpful to slightly pull down on the edge, this just helps to pull out any last creases, especially when you are dealing with 1/2" width on the crust piece.
And just like starting, I like to backstitch a few stitches on the end. Again, it isn't necessary, I just like the idea of holding that bias seam in place ;)
Now, I just went through that super fast, and I know, it can be hard to tell from the pictures, but just remember, slow and steady and try to relax. Practice, practice practice and trust me, within a few blocks you are going to be flying through these ;)
SPEEDING IT UP
And just fyi, Chain Piecing is the way to go here. It will super speed things up if you sit down and pin a whole bunch of blocks first. I actually took mine to girls camp and pinned early in the mornings with the birds chirping, so relaxing. But a good flick will do the trick as well ;)
Then you can chain stitch your blocks, just keep feeding them through your machine one after another. And yes, you will note that I don't take my pins out, but rather sew over them. I don't like my ends shifting, so I just be sure to slow down when I get to a pin (and I only had one needle strike through my whole pile and the needle didn't even break) With that said, I know I should never recommend sewing over pins so do what you are comfortable with ;)
Once your blocks are all sewn. go ahead and clip the threads between blocks and remove the pins if you sewed over them.
PRESSING YOUR BLOCKS
And now, you are ready to press your blocks. We will be pressing towards the Pie piece. And I know, it seems like it would be easier to press towards the crust, but we press towards the pie so that when we sew these Drunkard Path blocks into our Summer Solstice Blocks, we don't have 4 layers of bulk right where we only have 1/4" of fabric to sew in :)
So, begin by grabbing the corner of pie with one hand and gently pulling it outward and at the same time pressing the center of the crust seam inward. Pulling gently will just ensure that we don't have any little bubbles in our seam.
Then, adjust your pulling finger to pull upward and turn your iron point towards the side. Really be sure and use the point of your iron to press into that seam and keep it nice and flat. Again, pulling gently will help pull out those bubbles.
And now again, change the direction of your pulling to pull outward and rotate the point of your iron into the renaming corner, being sure to use that point to help get right into the edge of that seam. It really gets fast when you get the hand of it and you won't have to lift your iron or let go with your other hand, it is just shifting the way are pulling as you go.
Finally, I like to flip my block over and give it a nice press from the front, just as a double check that I didn't get any little bubbles in my seam allowance ;)
DONE!!!
And that is how it is done!!!
If you are doing the 1 x 1 Layout you will end up with 12 Drunkard Patch Blocks, You will have (4) Background Pie/Center Star Fabric Crust blocks and (8) Surround Fabric Pie / Background Crust Blocks. And then your extra practice blocks that are now another project or scrap.
If you are doing the 2 x 2, 3 x 3, or 4 x4 Layouts, you will have 4, 9, or 16 piles of (8) Background Pie/Print Crust blocks and (8) Print Pie/Background Crust blocks. Now you can go through the piles of each of your fabrics and pull out the maybe not so great (4) Background Pie/Print Crust blocks that can be now be used in another project or scrap. And you will have 12 Remaining blocks (or two fabric layouts) in each of fabric piles.
And with that, you are ready to now enter to win the weekly prize :)
The Weekly Prize is sponsored by Kimberly's Fabric Stash and a huge thanks goes out to them for their support of the Summer Solstice Quilt-A-Long.
This weeks prize is for a super fantastic Fat Eighth Bundle of the new Kim Diehl Fabric, Welcome Wagon!!!! Aren't those prints just so happy ;)
August 4th - Drunkards Path (Today)
August 18th - Building Blocks
September 1st - Piecing Top and Grand Prize Linky
September 15th- Summer Solstice Parade and Grand Prize Winners
The Half Square Triangle assignment winner who gets a Moxi Charm Pack by Studio M for Moda from The Scarlet Thread Quilt Co. is . . .
#22 - Little Bunny Quilts!! - Congrats :)
So I know lots of you are going to be trying something new today and I am so super excited for you ;) Just a quick note to remember, Relax and have fun with it ;) The more you can relax, the easier curve sewing will be!!! So let's get to it :) Oh, and If you are just finding this QAL now, it's never to late to join in the fun, the tutorials will always be on my blog so you have lots of time to join in :)
THIS WEEKS ASSIGNMENT - DRUNKARD PATH BLOCKS
Just a note before we start. We will be making a slightly modified Drunkard Path blocks as the "crust" section of the block is skinnier than your traditional Drunkard Path blocks. This way our Seams from the blocks will line directly up with the seams in our surround and there won't be that little gap :) So that this means, if you have Drunkard Path templates at home already, you might want to double check before using them as they are most likely for traditional blocks ;)
MAKING THE TEMPLATE
Alright, Let's get our Curved Piecing on!!! To start, you will need to print off the Drunkards Path Template for your designated size block. You can find the Drunkard Path Template by clicking right here. Depending on your size block, will depend on what size template you need.
2 1/2" Finished Modified Drunkard Path Template is for the 20" Block
3" Finished Modified Drunkard Path Template is for the 24" Block
3 1/2" Finished Modified Drunkard Path Template is for the 28" Block
4" Finished Modified Drunkard Path Template is for the 32" Block
5" Finished Modified Drunkard Path Template is for the 40" Block
And be sure to double check that the 1" square on your printed page is a true 1" square ;) Now cut out the two template pieces. I made a note on my templates what size starting square I was using and the finished size, just so they wouldn't get mixed up ;)
From here, we are going to use our paper templates to make a sturdier template ;) So whatever supplies you got at the beginning to make your template on, it is time to pull them out. I am using Extra Thick Plastic Template Sheets
. Place your two templates onto the corner of your template material and trace around them. The reason I do it is the corner, is because that is two fewer sides I now have to cut ;) 
Now, go ahead and cut out your two permanent templates. And I know you all know this, but it never hurts to remind, Don't use your fabric scissors to cut these out. They will ruin them. (But if you happen to have a pair of fabric scissors that your children have used on paper and ruined them already, feel free to use those :)
CUTTING THE PIECES
Now you have your templates ready and you are all set to start cutting out your Drunkard Path units. So, go ahead and grab your stacks of DP (Drunkard Path) squares. These should be the only ones you have left, but just in case, the sizes of them are listed below. I will be showing your first how to cut out the pieces, and then explaining what parts you need in the quilt, so be sure to keep reading on before you start actually cutting ;)
We start by cutting the Concave piece, or what is easier remembered as the "Pie". Align the Pie Template so it is flush in the corner of the square and the sides are aligned. Now, holding the template in place, gently cut along the outer curve of the template. This is the easier of the two curves to cut, just try to stay relaxed and let your blade follow along the outside arch.
And now onto the Convex piece, or the "Crust" as we will refer to it. Start by rotating your square 108 degrees as shown so the cut is more natural for your hand. Now place your Crust Template onto the remaining piece of square so that is flush in the corner and the sides are aligned. Start by cutting along the top and side edge of the template to square it up. Then, holding the template in place, gently cut along the inner curve of the template. Again, Gently is the key here. This curve takes a little practice to get used to, but just relax and you will get it. The key is when you are coming out of the curve to not press so hard that you cut into your template. Relax and just let your cutter glide along the edge. I had to keep reminding myself to relax my hand and let the cutter do the work ;) But no worries, by the end of cutting your pieces, you will be a pro!!!
For each square you cut, you will have a Print Pie and Crust piece an a Background Pie and Crust piece. You will alternate the Pie and Crust so that they match up with a Background Pie and Crust as shown below ;)
Once you feel that you are getting the hang of cutting, you can speed things up a bit by stacking up 3-4 squares at a time. Be sure that your blade is sharp so that it will go through all the layers, and again, practice on single squares before you jump into this. But once you feel confident, this will save a lot of time.
WHAT PIECES GO & SOME PRACTICE
So now you know how to cut them - Let's go over how you will sew them together. Once again, the 1 x 1 Layout is going to differ from the 2 x 2 , 3 x 3 , or 4 x 4 Layout.
So let's start with the 2 x 2, 3 x 3, or 4 x 4 Layouts.
If you are doing any of these layouts, the easiest way is to cut both pieces (Pie and Crust) from all of your Drunkard Path squares as explained above, and then place them into two large grouped sets. One group will be the Print Pies with the Background Crusts, and the other group will be the Background Pies with the Print Crusts.
With that said, when you start sewing up your two groups above, you will have some extras when you are done. For each block you need 4 Background Pie/Print Crust blocks (Used in the Center Star) and 8 Print Pie/Background Crust blocks (Used in the Surround). This means that you have 4 Extra Background Pie/Print Crust blocks times how ever many blocks you are making. These are great practice and wonderful "oopsie" blocks . . . So what I would suggest is sewing your entire group of Background Pie/Print Crust blocks first. This will give you lots of practice on your curves, and you can go through this pile later and pull out the best 4 of each print from the group to be used in your Summer Solstice quilt, and save the "learning" 4 from each print in the group for another project, or scrap.
So now, onto those doing the 1 x 1 Layout
If you are doing the 1 x 1 Layout, you should have (8) squares from your Surround Fabric, (4) Squares from you Center Star Fabric, and (8) Squares from your Background Fabric. And I know, it has been super confusing that there aren't the same number of squares, but it will all make sense now ;)
Once again, the easiest way is to cut both pieces (Pie and Crust) from all of your Drunkard Path squares as explained above but now you are going to be grouping them a little differently.
You want to make the following sets to make your blocks.
(4) Background Pie/Center Star Fabric Crust sets.
(8) Surround Fabric Pie / Background Crust Sets.
And then you will have some extra pieces ;) I suggest making these extra pieces into the following sets.
(4) Center Star Fabric Pie/Surround Fabric Crust Sets
(4) Background Fabric Pie . Surround Fabric Crust Sets.
I would highly recommend sewing these extra sets together first to use as practice on sewing with curves. Once you feel confident in your curved sewing move onto the sets you will need in your quilt. You can use the Extra blocks in another project or for scrap :)
SEWING A DRUNKARD PATCH BLOCK
So now that we know how our pieces all go together, let's learn how to sew them together!!! I will be showing the process with one block, but or course, you will be making lots and your fabric layouts will be different on about half of the blocks. Just be sure to keep the groupings that you made above.
And one last note before we get into it, I like to use 3 pins when sewing curves. Some people use 1 and some people use a ton :) If you find you want more than 3 pins, fabulous, if you find you like 1, wonderful!! Do what works best for you :)
Okay, to start, we need to find the center of our pieces, so to do this, fold your pie and crust in half and finger press the crease.
Now, with right sides together, place the Crust onto the pie aligning the two creases. Pin the two pieces together along the crease.
Now, grab the end of your Crust and align the two sides with the two sides of your Pie. These should align perfectly, just like if you were sewing a square together. Pin in place. Just be careful when you are pinning not to stretch your fabric to much as these are cut on the bias. And I like to pin pretty close to the edge so that that alignment won't shift on me.
Then repeat for the other end, again making sure that the two sides are aligned perfectly, just like a square and pin it in place. And your block is pinned and ready to sew. (And like I said above, if you get going and find you want a few more pins great, that can especially be helpful if you are doing some of the larger size blocks. Just center another pin between your current pins and again, be careful not to pull the fabric to much as these are cut on the bias)
And now you are ready to sew. Now before we start sewing take a deep breath :) The more relaxed you are, the easier curves are to sew. If you get frustrated and tense, it just gets harder, so remember, this is all about having fun :)
The biggest key I have found when sewing curves is to only worry about what is directly in front of your presser foot. The rest of the block won't line up until it gets there so don't stress about it. Just keep focused on what is about to go under the foot.
Using a 1/4" foot on your machine, Align your pinned edge with the foot and begin a few stitches. I like to backstitch 2 stitches once I have started. This isn't necessary, but I just like to where I pull on this piece when sewing a little more than traditional square blocks.
Now just try to imagine that you are sewing just like sewing straight lines. I like to use the finger on my right hand to keep the two edges of my fabric aligned and the fingers on my left hand to smooth or pull out any bubbles that are in the way. Just smooth those outward, you only have to have a 1/4" of flat sewing space. And again, just worry about smoothing out your sewing patch right before it goes under the presser foot.
Just keep aligning with the right hand and smoothing with the left hand. The fabrics will ease into position right where they should be as long as you be sure to keep the edges aligned. Every once and a while, you might find that you need to lift your presser foot to smooth out a stubborn crease and that is all good, just be sure your needle is in the down position.
When you get close to the edge, I find it helpful to slightly pull down on the edge, this just helps to pull out any last creases, especially when you are dealing with 1/2" width on the crust piece.
And just like starting, I like to backstitch a few stitches on the end. Again, it isn't necessary, I just like the idea of holding that bias seam in place ;)
Now, I just went through that super fast, and I know, it can be hard to tell from the pictures, but just remember, slow and steady and try to relax. Practice, practice practice and trust me, within a few blocks you are going to be flying through these ;)
SPEEDING IT UP
And just fyi, Chain Piecing is the way to go here. It will super speed things up if you sit down and pin a whole bunch of blocks first. I actually took mine to girls camp and pinned early in the mornings with the birds chirping, so relaxing. But a good flick will do the trick as well ;)
Then you can chain stitch your blocks, just keep feeding them through your machine one after another. And yes, you will note that I don't take my pins out, but rather sew over them. I don't like my ends shifting, so I just be sure to slow down when I get to a pin (and I only had one needle strike through my whole pile and the needle didn't even break) With that said, I know I should never recommend sewing over pins so do what you are comfortable with ;)
Once your blocks are all sewn. go ahead and clip the threads between blocks and remove the pins if you sewed over them.
PRESSING YOUR BLOCKS
And now, you are ready to press your blocks. We will be pressing towards the Pie piece. And I know, it seems like it would be easier to press towards the crust, but we press towards the pie so that when we sew these Drunkard Path blocks into our Summer Solstice Blocks, we don't have 4 layers of bulk right where we only have 1/4" of fabric to sew in :)
So, begin by grabbing the corner of pie with one hand and gently pulling it outward and at the same time pressing the center of the crust seam inward. Pulling gently will just ensure that we don't have any little bubbles in our seam.
Then, adjust your pulling finger to pull upward and turn your iron point towards the side. Really be sure and use the point of your iron to press into that seam and keep it nice and flat. Again, pulling gently will help pull out those bubbles.
And now again, change the direction of your pulling to pull outward and rotate the point of your iron into the renaming corner, being sure to use that point to help get right into the edge of that seam. It really gets fast when you get the hand of it and you won't have to lift your iron or let go with your other hand, it is just shifting the way are pulling as you go.
Finally, I like to flip my block over and give it a nice press from the front, just as a double check that I didn't get any little bubbles in my seam allowance ;)
And that is how it is done!!!
If you are doing the 1 x 1 Layout you will end up with 12 Drunkard Patch Blocks, You will have (4) Background Pie/Center Star Fabric Crust blocks and (8) Surround Fabric Pie / Background Crust Blocks. And then your extra practice blocks that are now another project or scrap.
If you are doing the 2 x 2, 3 x 3, or 4 x4 Layouts, you will have 4, 9, or 16 piles of (8) Background Pie/Print Crust blocks and (8) Print Pie/Background Crust blocks. Now you can go through the piles of each of your fabrics and pull out the maybe not so great (4) Background Pie/Print Crust blocks that can be now be used in another project or scrap. And you will have 12 Remaining blocks (or two fabric layouts) in each of fabric piles.
And with that, you are ready to now enter to win the weekly prize :)
This weeks prize is for a super fantastic Fat Eighth Bundle of the new Kim Diehl Fabric, Welcome Wagon!!!! Aren't those prints just so happy ;)
So what do you have to do for a chance to win the Fat Eighth Bundle? Simple . . . Just link up your stacks of Drunkard Path Blocks :) You can link to a blog post or a flickr picture, or whatever. Just make sure to link up by the morning of Thursday August 18th when I will be announcing a winner in the next post :)
If you don't get your Drunkard Path Blocks done by August 18th you can still link it up :) (just not in time for the prize :) The linky will remain open until the end of the Quilt-A-Long. So if your out of town, or just had a busy week, no worries!!! Just link up when you can :)
And Don't forget to add your beautiful to the Happy Quilting Quilt-A-Long Flickr group and to post it on social media with using #summersolsticequiltalong. I am so excited to see all of your Durnkard Patch Blocks in their curvy goodness!!!
So let's get our Curved Sewing On!!!! Oh, and if you have questions, don't hesitate to email me at happyquiltingmelissa@gmail.com. Have a Happy Quilting Day!!
Sunday, December 25, 2016
Merry Christmas!!!!
Each year, my Husband writes a Christmas letter that we send to our family and friends. As you readers are all my friends, I wanted to share it with you as well. Here's our 2016 ;)
Dear Family and Friends
We have now
been in Cedar for over 5 years and feel like we should be planning some kind of
move or change. Our older children who
have memories of Indiana
are starting to see those memories fade.
Their memories of living in Salt
Lake , Pikeville, and Yakima have long since faded. I continue to enjoy working in my family
practice clinic alongside my brother as we care for my father’s former patients
(with some new patients as well). I
really enjoy my non work time and fill it with running, watching or reading
sports, tinkering on and playing on the snowmobiles and atv’s and of course, hanging out with the family.
Melissa
keeps herself busy with all things quilting.
She enjoys teaching her patterns at various quilting conferences
throughout the year. I lost track of the
number of quilts she has finished this year but I know it is a lot. When she is not sewing in the basement on her
sewing machine (still the best gift I have ever given her) she can be found
next door quilting on my mother’s long arm machine. She has also very much enjoyed her church
calling in the young women and attended Girls Camp for the first time in 20
years.
Spencer (a
few weeks short of 14) tries to keep himself busy with school, piano, french
horn, scouts, theater, and church. He
has recently been working on his eagle project, which we hope will be finished
over the next month. He keeps us on our
toes with his need to have “discussions” over every parental request but luckily
we still seem to have some of the correct answers. When Spencer isn’t busy outside the house, you
are guaranteed to find him curled up with a favorite book as he still loves to
read.
Jessi (11)
moved from elementary to middle school as she entered 6th grade this
year and has absolutely loved the transition.
She is enjoying playing the flute in the band and improving her piano
skills and loves to play Softball. She
spends most of her free time running around the neighborhood with a great group
of friends. Occasionally they decide to
spend an afternoon at our house which is always a treat. And she can’t wait to join Mom in Young
Women’s next year and is counting down the days until Girls Camp.
Kristian (10)
is a happy 4th grader at South Elementary. We are a few weeks away from his favorite
activity of the year when he starts wrestling.
I’m not sure what he sees in the sport, but so long as he likes it we
will continue to support him in it. He
also started piano since the last letter and is progressing well, even though
it is a bit of a love/hate
relationship. Hates it the day after
lessons, loves it by the day before his lessons.
Kamryn (7)
is in second grade and is loving school.
She is catching up in her reading and we are so proud of all the hard
work she has put in this year. She gained a new friend next door as a new
family moved in. As our back yards
connect the two of them (with Josie in tow) spend ample time running back and
forth between our houses and filling the air with shrieks of laughter and lots
of joy.
Jocelyn (5)
is enjoying her few hours of preschool 4 days a week. She is so happy to finally being going to
school like all of her siblings. When my
day off falls on a Friday we enjoy having Josie and Daddy’s day of fun. This often includes lunch with Mom but Josie
gets to pick the place. And we are looking
forward to getting some snow so we can get back out on the snowmobiles
together.
We hope this letter finds you all well and wish you a very
Merry Christmas!
Love The Corry’s
And I wanted to leave this morning with one final note . . . This year my children's big gift from Santa was tickets to go see the Piano Guys in concert in February when they come to Cedar City. They are so excited!!!! There excitement this morning reminded me of this video they made a few years back. It always brings peace and happiness to my heart and I wanted to share it with you. It is my hope that regardless of where we are from, or what religion we practice, that the Spirit of this beautiful Christmas Season has filled our homes and each of our families hearts!!
Merry Christmas!!
Thursday, October 1, 2015
PSA - Bernina Giveaway
Wow, can you believe it is October already. Although I do love these months at the end of the year that seem chuck full of Holidays, Friends, and Family!! But seriously, did anyone else feel like we just were starting September just the other day.
I always love September because it is National Sewing Month and the online quilting world is chuck full of some amazing stuff in September. My good friends at Fave Quilts did an entire month of free patterns and giveaways for National Sewing Month. In fact, I shared my Super Scrappy Triple Irish Chain tutorial with them at the beginning of the month and somehow never got it posted here because I happened to be out of town when it posted.
I might have missed that . . . . and we might already be at the close of National Sewing Month . . . But Fave Quilts is still giving you a few more days to enter in their National Sewing Month Grand Prize aka a Bernina 215 Simply Red Sewing Machine!!!!
It's no secret that I love my Bernina's and I am sure one lucky winner is going to love this new Bernina. So be sure to pop on over and get signed up for the giveaway!! It closes on October 6th ;)
And with that little PSA for my good friends at Fave Quilts and Bernina . . . I am off to go stitch away, and of course, I will be stitching on my favorite Bernina Artista ;)
I always love September because it is National Sewing Month and the online quilting world is chuck full of some amazing stuff in September. My good friends at Fave Quilts did an entire month of free patterns and giveaways for National Sewing Month. In fact, I shared my Super Scrappy Triple Irish Chain tutorial with them at the beginning of the month and somehow never got it posted here because I happened to be out of town when it posted.
It's no secret that I love my Bernina's and I am sure one lucky winner is going to love this new Bernina. So be sure to pop on over and get signed up for the giveaway!! It closes on October 6th ;)
And with that little PSA for my good friends at Fave Quilts and Bernina . . . I am off to go stitch away, and of course, I will be stitching on my favorite Bernina Artista ;)
Monday, December 26, 2011
A Great Christmas and some Color Help Needed :)
** If you are looking for the Fat Quarter Shop Gift Certificate Giveaway you can find it here
We had such a wonderful Christmas. The holiday was spent (and will continue to be spent) with lots of family, just the way I love it!!! We are so happy to be back home and close to those we love. For me families are what make Holidays so special.
So do you want to see some Quilting presents?? My amazing Mother In Law gave me this awesome trio!!! A little pincushion / thread catcher basket, (which is so perfect because I keep trailing threads all over the house, oops ) a free motion design DVD by Leah Day, and some new quilting gloves!!!!! Oh my goodness, I am so excited!!! I can't wait to try out those new gloves and I think I will be watching the DVD before I go start quilting the next little quilt :)
My amazing Sister In Law designed this little stitch for me. Isn't it just fabulous!!! I love it!!! It is being mounted on the wall next to my sewing machine today. My Sister In Law and her mother have been making these types of stitches for years and they sell them at boutiques and such. They design all of the pictures, do the stitches and even make the frames. They also have a great shop online called Live Well Stitches. I just loved that she designed this for me :) Does my family know me or what?????
And here is where the Color Help comes in. My husband and I got ourselves a new bedroom set for Christmas. Yippee Skippee!!!! This is our first actual bedroom set, it is a deep brown finish and I love it. And if you are thinking, does that look really high?? The answer is yes, they ordered the wrong box springs so we have to poll vault into bed until the new ones come :) This bed also happens to be our first king size bed so we have no bedding for it. The walls are green, obviously leaning more towards a minty color than a sage color. So . . . . If you were going to be making a king size quilt for this bedroom, what colors or what line would you use???
Wednesday, June 8, 2011
WIP Wednesday - The last South Bend Edition :)
*** NOTE - If you are looking for the Fat Quarter Shop Sponsor Giveaway of Pat Bravo Nature Elements Fat Quarter Bundle you will find it by clicking here :)
I am happy to say, that I am "on schedule" for my WIP to be completed in South Bend. (Which is good as I am moving this weekend :) I have been going crazy gang busters to get everything squared away so I am pretty excited to have it all almost all done :)
After 7-8ish hours of quilting yesterday, I can say I am almost done with this project. Ya, I am showing the back as I can't show the front yet :) All that is left is to bind it (today's project) and then it moves from WIP to Completed, Yippee Skippee!!!
I went for a flower, leaf, and swirl pattern. I did it in a rather small size, especially compared to the size of the quilt :) (75 x 75). So ya, my shoulders are a little sore this morning :)
Yesterday we got about half way finished with Teacher's gifts :) We plan to finish them when the kids get home from school and hopefully I will be able post the completions tomorrow.
And that is it for the South Bend WIP!!!! Yippee Skippee!!!
So now, it's on to thinking about Cedar City WIP's - I won't have my sewing machine for a few weeks as it will be on the moving truck (this very well might kill me :) So my first WIP will be to get my new sewing room painted and ready to welcome all of its lovely fabric goodness home. This is the color I choose, What do you think??
I am happy to say, that I am "on schedule" for my WIP to be completed in South Bend. (Which is good as I am moving this weekend :) I have been going crazy gang busters to get everything squared away so I am pretty excited to have it all almost all done :)
After 7-8ish hours of quilting yesterday, I can say I am almost done with this project. Ya, I am showing the back as I can't show the front yet :) All that is left is to bind it (today's project) and then it moves from WIP to Completed, Yippee Skippee!!!
I went for a flower, leaf, and swirl pattern. I did it in a rather small size, especially compared to the size of the quilt :) (75 x 75). So ya, my shoulders are a little sore this morning :)
Yesterday we got about half way finished with Teacher's gifts :) We plan to finish them when the kids get home from school and hopefully I will be able post the completions tomorrow.
And that is it for the South Bend WIP!!!! Yippee Skippee!!!
So now, it's on to thinking about Cedar City WIP's - I won't have my sewing machine for a few weeks as it will be on the moving truck (this very well might kill me :) So my first WIP will be to get my new sewing room painted and ready to welcome all of its lovely fabric goodness home. This is the color I choose, What do you think??
Monday, February 26, 2024
My Favorite Purple Tools
This morning I got working on a new project that is all grunge in all the purples!!! You know how I love purple ;) Well, I had to laugh when I realized that the three tools I use the most in my sewing room are also all purple, I mean, are you surprised??
I love my Olfa Splash Rotary Cutter for cutting. The blade is super easy to change and the grip fits perfectly in my hand. Olfa Splash comes in lots of colors (and yes, I have all of them :) but the purple cutter is the one on my sewing room cutting table!!!
And this is my all time favorite seam ripper!!! It is a hand-turned wood seam ripper made by a wonderful couple from Gunnison Utah who vend at lots of the Utah retreats I teach at. They are the Westenskows and they have a little etsy shop here ;) Their hand-turned tools are just beautiful, and they have a "flat spot" on the underside so they don't roll off the table, I just love that!!! They come in natural wood colors as well as dyed wood, and you know I needed a purple one ;) And my favorite thing about these seam rippers . . . anytime my blade gets dull, the Westenskows will replace the blade with a new one at retreat. So great!!!
And finally, my favorite thread snippers, and lucky me, they just happen to be made in purple!!! These are the Gypsy Quilter's EZ Snips. I have tried so many thread snippers and these are by far my favorite. They are a little pricey for thread snips, but they are well worth the cost. I love that they are spring loaded so I don't have to "open" them each time I snip. And I have been using this pair for over 5 years now and they still cut smooth and quick.
In fact, I love these tools so much, I know have 3 sets of all of them!!! One set for my sewing room . . . one set for my traveling sewing machine case . . . and one set for my teaching bag of tools!!! And can I just say, it is so nice to have the tools you love anytime and anywhere you are quilting ;) And the fact that they are all purple . . .well that is just a super happy bonus!!!!
What are your favorite tools and just because I am curious . . . does anyone else collect their tools in their favorite color ?? Leave a comment below ;)
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