Tuesday, April 5, 2011

Just had an idea

So....looking at my Country Threads Goes to Charm School book gave me an idea. There is a quilt they made using charms and I really like it. But...

What if I up-sized the whole thing by using layer cakes instead of charms? It would be the same quilt only much larger.... (Being a large person leads me to like larger and longer quilts).

I think it woul look amazing. I would have to take Nonnie's recommendation and use yardage for the rest of the block, though.

I love it....except I have to do the math...again. I am tempted to make a block the way that I want it to look, and then measure it. Is that nuts?

7 comments:

  1. I say go for it. Do your own thing and be unique! It's what women have done with quilts/textiles for forever (probably) and it's what made them special. You might come up with your own "signature" block pattern.

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  2. Heheheh. That would be cool. I just want to make their blocks bigger, because they are so tiny. I want to make the quilt larger. It just seems silly to make the block, and then measure it. I do think it would be unique.

    Steph...how did your quilt turn out? Do you have any pictures?

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  3. It turned out okay, considering it was my first one ever. I think I bit off WAY more than I should have...and I should have started out smaller than trying to make the monster I did. I'll have to take some pics to show you. I like it though, and it's not a super heavy quilt, so it can be used for summer if necessary.

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  4. I agree with Stephanie - go for it. I think the layer cake instead of charm square idea is great. There is nothing wrong with making a block the way you want and then measuring it! :)

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  5. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9wYbZJ0pCdw

    This is a link for Leah Day's YOU tube post. Leah is a rising star in the machine quilting venue; last year her goal was to design 365 designs for machine quilting. Most are on video or have tutorials. You should watch them even if you do not feel ready to free motion.

    BTW you need an email address for your podcast. Then your listeners can send you private information and comments. YOU will want to keep it separate from the family / personal email accounts. It will make it easier on you. g mail allows you to have more them one address.

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  6. I http://www.amazon.com/Foolproof-Machine-Quilting-Paper-Cut-Stitching/dp/1571205098

    I recommend Mary Matsuta's book for machine quilting...FOOL PROOF MACHINE QUILTING USING A WALKING FOOT....works great for smaller quilts.. harder for the really big queen and kings but to be honest those sizes are hard to do regardless of what method you use. She suggest using contact paper templates similar to cutting out snowflakes and you sew around them. She also recommends the heavier weight thread, going slowly, decorative stitches and other technique to quilt and enhance your work. Most machine quilting gurus recommend top stitch needles with the larger eyes.

    Hope this helps you get over the machine quilting fears.... remember our ansestors did it all my hand cause they had too.... if they were here now they would buy wild and crazy fabrics and use a machine to get it done faster....

    They were not stupid women and would embrace any time saving techniques

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  7. cutting tips... look on YOU Tube for Debbie CAFFREY'a Power Cutting video clips. Debbie wrote several books on how to cut properly they had a lot of pointers and patterns for better cutting. Her books explains correct cutting ... straight of grain and how to achieve it... how your sewing goes wrong and how to correct them. She discusses correct sewing and cutting of strip sets. She shows how and why to use two rulers to get your correct cuts. She did work for OMNIGRID rulers but I use CREATIVE GRIDS... both are good rulers.

    NONNIE

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