I finally had a free weekend at the same time as a local day sewing retreat, and finally took advantage of it. It's not as much work to pack when you're only going for one day, and are close enough to home to retrieve forgotten items. But what to bring? The first idea was to bring several new projects to cut out, but decided to work on something already in progress instead. I tracked down my project list, crossed off a few finished things, and pulled out the box with the Ocean Waves swap blocks from a couple of years back.No notes in the box on the status...hmm....pulled out and counted the finished blocks - 21. The quilt as designed is supposed to have 36 main blocks and 52 border blocks. Measured the backing fabric, and realized that the top could be larger if there is enough background fabric for the blocks. The background fabric for the original 36 blocks plus the border blocks had been cut out long ago, and the extra was still in the box. There were only enough Thangles foundations for four more blocks (each block has 10 half-square triangles), and realized that is probably why I had stopped.
At the retreat I cut out all the dark fabrics for the remaining blocks, and completed 4 Ocean Wave blocks and 4 partial blocks, using all the foundations. I also stitched up the remaining border blocks, which didn't need foundations. Then I made a list of what pieces and how many of each would be needed to add another row - 6 ocean wave blocks and 4 more 5" border blocks. After measuring carefully, there was enough fabric, so I cut the background pieces for another row of blocks. I ran out of time before cutting the necessary dark pieces for the blocks.
I really miss having a fabric/quilt store close by, as sadly the six in my area have closed. The closest store is 20-30 minutes away, depending on construction detours and trains. The Thangles site has a list of stores that carry them, and a quilt store about 40 minutes south caught my eye, as we were heading that direction to search for outdoor furniture, so we stopped by, and I was ready to roll again. I finished the partially finished blocks at home that afternoon, and cut the remaining dark pieces for the blocks and border .
I'm so glad that I revisited this project. It was a good project for a retreat, as the sub-pieces of each block needed pressing, so I had to walk frequently to the ironing board, and didn't get tense from sitting too long. The foundations give me precise half-square triangles, and are fun to sew. Now that all the pieces are ready to sew, I can keep my momentum going by doing a block or two in a short amount of time.
At the retreat I cut out all the dark fabrics for the remaining blocks, and completed 4 Ocean Wave blocks and 4 partial blocks, using all the foundations. I also stitched up the remaining border blocks, which didn't need foundations. Then I made a list of what pieces and how many of each would be needed to add another row - 6 ocean wave blocks and 4 more 5" border blocks. After measuring carefully, there was enough fabric, so I cut the background pieces for another row of blocks. I ran out of time before cutting the necessary dark pieces for the blocks.
I really miss having a fabric/quilt store close by, as sadly the six in my area have closed. The closest store is 20-30 minutes away, depending on construction detours and trains. The Thangles site has a list of stores that carry them, and a quilt store about 40 minutes south caught my eye, as we were heading that direction to search for outdoor furniture, so we stopped by, and I was ready to roll again. I finished the partially finished blocks at home that afternoon, and cut the remaining dark pieces for the blocks and border .
I'm so glad that I revisited this project. It was a good project for a retreat, as the sub-pieces of each block needed pressing, so I had to walk frequently to the ironing board, and didn't get tense from sitting too long. The foundations give me precise half-square triangles, and are fun to sew. Now that all the pieces are ready to sew, I can keep my momentum going by doing a block or two in a short amount of time.
No comments:
Post a Comment