a string quilt

Remember this peek I showed you a couple weeks ago?

 

Well, the quilt top is finally done, so I can share a walk through with you. There is a really great tutorial HERE at Film in the Fridge (which is where I got the idea), so keep in mind, Ashley has even more detailed photos.

This is a quilt made with a paper background. Freaky, huh? But, it totally works and the paper makes it so easy to sew (and keep straight). My blocks are a different size than Ashley's...I kept it simple on myself and used 8.5 X 11 printer paper. I'm dying to try one with OLD scrapbook paper and do a 12 X 12 block, though.

Anywhoo, since you want a square, I just folded my paper diagonally edge to edge until I got a 8.5 X 8.5" square and trimmed off the excess. The folded line also gave me a guideline to place my middle strip of plain white fabric on the paper. I used...wait for it...basting spray! Heh. I think Ashley used glue stick (?). So, after you get the white strip glued down the diagonal of your paper - you should have a stack that looks like this. **Important note - my middle white strips are 1.5" wide; fabric strips are 2.5" wide; all seam allowances are 1/4".

 

Okay, not the greatest photo, but hopefully you get the idea. My white strips just hang over the edges of my 20 pieces of paper. Next, grab your stack of 2.5" strips. Mine are from a jelly roll I purchased at my lqs. It would be awesome to truly use a ton of scraps. In fact, I have a whole pile of strips I've been trimming from my scraps...for someday.

 

I randomly pulled strips from this pile and sewed them (right sides together) on either side of that middle white strip. Yes, right onto the paper. I used a smaller stitch length (about a 2) so it will be easier to rip the paper away later. But, don't rip yet. Press those first two strips open, and add two more. Repeat. With my strips width and my 8.5" blocks, I ended up with 3 strips on either side of the white.

 

You can sorta tell in that photo where I am adding the third row of strips. See how the fabric just lines up with the previous strip? No pinning required. The excess fabric is just hanging off the edge of the paper. We'll clean that up later. **Check out my new machine! A garage sale special for $44. Gotta love that.

Next up, the last bit of ironing.

 

Ouch. Kinda of busy there on my print ironing board cover. But, see how that second strip on the left is ready to press? Then, I will add the last row to cover that last bit of paper. When all six strips are sewn down and ironed, you will have a pile like this.

 

Getting there, but still kind of messy. Grab your rotary trimmer, mat and ruler and lay your blocks upside down.

 

Ah, there's the shape we want. Just lay your ruler along the paper edge and trim away all the excess fabric. Easy.

 

Flip that baby over and gasp in delight. Repeat nineteen more times.

 

Is that blissful, or what? Now comes the therapeutic part. Remove all the paper from the backs of the blocks. The tight stitching comes in handy. My paper came off fairly easily. I had to tug at a few strips, especially where the white was originally basted to the paper. But, all in all, worth the aggravation.

Now, lay out your blocks. (This is the fun part).

 

Four across and five down. Honestly, this is exactly how I laid them down first time. I didn't fiddle at all. They are all so random, it doesn't really matter. Since I used the jelly roll pack (which has tons of different patterns and colorways) I had very few repeats. If you have more repeated fabric, you may have to switch around a bit. But, I love how that white strip in the middle of the block separates the patterns. Here's a view from above.

 

Pure yumminess. Next, simply sew your blocks together.

 

Hmm, I think the sun kind of washed the color out a bit. I promise to take a few more photos after I quilt and bind this one. In fact, that's today's project, so off I go.

Thanks for bearing with all the steps. If you tackle this project, I'd LOVE to hear about it! Hey! Maybe someday we should have a block party together. FUN!

Later.

Comments

[Ashley Harris]

Kim!! This is beautiful! I love it. Can't wait to see the finished work of art!

[Scrapycandy]

Fascinating! Love the colors and geometry!

[Ally]

Ok - what praytell are you going to do with all these beautiful creations? You just can't stop, can you?

[Chrissy L]

i just got a fat quarter set of paula prass' summer soiree - i think this is the perfect quilt pattern!
thanks for sharing :-)

[nancy Hutchison]

thanks for the glimpse. My quilting bee is doing string blocks for an exchange next year, i am excited already!