Saturday, January 4, 2014

Quilt Block Tutorial


Hi All :)

HAPPY NEW YEAR :)

Well, do you remember back in December last year, (lol, sounds like such a long time ago now!!! :)

I WON this amazing book "The Quilt Block Book" by Nancy Wick. 

I had great fun browsing thru it over the holidays and finally came up with a Quilt Block that I thought would be a challenge (for me) and fun to create :) 

(If you didn't see my "I WON" blog post you can check it out HERE :)

So, here is the square quilt block I chose to make and the final result, plus the tutorial on how I did it :)


The Marbles - Quilt Block Tutorial

So, I have to tell you that I am really not good at following written directions and so I really need great visuals to get me motivated and to help me know what the end result will be. When following a skirt pattern, for instance, I can usually make the skirt from the pictures alone, I rarely read the instructions. So, I was really excited that this  Quilt Block book had wonderful visuals and concise, clear instructions, (cuz I did have to read these, lol :)

Here is the pattern I chose and the fabric I felt might work :)



You can see from the design below that you can use lots of contrasting fabrics on fabrics to create multiple Block Squares to create an eclectic quilt.


My mind was going crazy with color combos but I had to stay focused on making the first one :)


First, I cut out a 6.5ins square of my red with tiny white hearts fabric, (I just had to remember to line up the little white hearts in a straight line for the first cut ) easy enough (this is classed as an easy pattern but wait..... :)




Next I used my "Wunder-Under" to trace the "Marble" applique pattern from the book :)



I then, with out thinking, pinned the pattern to the right side of the fabric, oops!!!



It seemed like the obvious thing to do, I cut it out and realised that the pattern would be all wrong because when I tried to fuse the web to the reverse side of the fabric it would be off, so then I had to read the instructions, pin the fusible side to the side you want it to be fused too, sounds obvious but I wasn't thinking (possibly too much celebrating over the Holidays, I guess, lol :) 

So, then I pinned the traced pattern and fusible web to the reverse side of the fabric, all was well :)



I ironed the fusible web (on a low-med heat - no steam) to the reverse side of the fabric and gently peeled off the paper backing on the fusible web.




The next step was to position the "Marble" applique on to my Square, I measured to make sure it was centered and then I pinned the applique to my red fabric and fused it to the fabric using an iron (again, low - med heat, no steam)




I really like how the patterns and colours worked together. :)

I think I will try the Blue fabric as the background square the next time and either use the Pink dot again for the "Marble" applique or maybe the Red with White Hearts, what do you think? :)

There is one last step I wasn't able to complete because my sewing machine is being very temperamental (she's old, but don't tell her I said that, lol :)

Anyway, as you can see from the image below, in the demo photo in the Book they have added a decorative shell stitch to the inner and outer circle, which serves 2 purposes - it pretties up the applique and makes it looks complete and you could use either a neutral colour thread or a contrasting thread and the other thing is it will stop the fabric from fraying. :)



Well, I hope you enjoyed my Tutorial and please let me know what you think :)

Have a lovely Weekend :)

Happy Painting/Creating! :) T.



14 comments:

Annette said...

Yes, I remember that book you won so long ago ;)
What a fun quilt block and so much easier than I would have thought. I can't tell you how many times I have done what you did with fusible interfacing! At least I'm in good company! I like the blue with pink dots for the next square!

Meeling said...

Very cool!

I enjoy quilting (when I have the time-which at the moment is not at all, but someday)

So glad you were able to put your prize to use!!

T@PoppyPlacePdx said...

Thanks Annette :)

Yep, you would think by now we would know how to use fusible interfacing in our sleep, lol :)

I agree, I think the blue with the pink will be a fun cute combo :)

Have a lovely Monday, cheers, T. :)

T@PoppyPlacePdx said...

Hi Meeling,

Yep, it was a fun project :)

Sorry, you can't get to doing any quilting at the moment but with all your class and homework I'm sure you have more than plenty on your plate :)

Have a lovely Monday, cheers, T. :)

Almost Precious said...

T, what an adorable pattern - very retro-mod. I love it and love the fabrics you chose.

I have never made a quilt but I do admire those who can and do make them. To be honest I look at their work quite enviously. ;)

T@PoppyPlacePdx said...

Thanks so much Anna :)

I was trying to work with fabric I already had and I thought these looked kind of "Retro - Mod" too :)

I've never hand quilted much more than a square but I have made a few strip quilts and I love that 20+ years later they are holding up well :)

I bet you would be awesome at quilting, esp. the appliques as they can demand patience with good colour co - ordination which I know you are good at with your beautifully worked beadwork :)

Have a lovely Week, Cheers, T. :)

Miss Val's Creations said...

The square is adorable! I love the combo of the large dots on the small dots. The color choice is so uplifting!

Unknown said...

Happy New Year!
I love that quilt design (I love circles), and your right the color combination are endless. Thanks for sharing.
Valerie
Everyday Inspired

T@PoppyPlacePdx said...

Hi Miss V. :)

Thanks so much for stopping by :)

So glad you like it :)

Have a lovely day, cheers, T. :)

(P.S. I am your latest follower :)

T@PoppyPlacePdx said...

Hi V. :)

Happy New Year to you too :)

I am really excited to get some other squares made and playing with the colour combos :)

Have a lovely day, cheers, T. :)

Clare said...

Quilting is one of those things that has always seemed just out of the reach of my ability! This looks like fun and great colors! I can see myself making the same mistake with pinning the pattern to the wrong (right) side of the fabric! ;)

T@PoppyPlacePdx said...

Hi Clare,

quilting is fun but I only do it as a very part time hobby. I love fabric with all its colours, patterns and textures :)

This was a challenge square for me, for all my years of sewing even though I thought I was breezing thru it until I came to the pattern pinning, I felt like an idiot but...................what can I say, it happens to the best of us, lol :)

Have a lovely week, cheers, T. :)

Why Girls Are Weird said...

I always thought quilting would be fun to take up!

T@PoppyPlacePdx said...

It is K. :)

Start with simple strips or boxes for quilting first because you get faster results and a reinforced sense of creativity :) T.