This year I’m sewing along with Amy Gibson from Stitchery Dickory Dock. A bunch of other talented seamsters and I have joined up to make a quilt using Craftsy’s 2012 Block of the Month class. Here’s a reflection on my efforts to sew well.
Well, ladies and gentlemen, I’m proud to say I’ve completed all of the Craftsy 2012 Block of the Month squares before the little one’s arrival. Now, there’s still lots to do to finish the quilt. The November and December class lessons are devoted to “The Big Finish”: assembling, basting, quilting, squaring up, and binding. I don’t think I have the energy to tackle those steps right now (though who’s to say how my “nesting urge” will present itself?!). But, I also decided I’d like this quilt to belong to any daughter I might have, and you guys have voted for this baby to be a boy, so perhaps I have a lot more time before the quilt needs to be finished anyway?! (That said, the girl vote has made a big comeback recently, so you never know!)
Regardless, let’s get on to the new quilt squares!
In the August class we pieced together stars. First, we made an Ohio star block…
…and then we made a double star block.
In the September class we tackled curved piecing. Though curved piecing in quilting sounded complicated to me, I actually enjoyed seeing how the pieces fit together to make neat little squares. First we made a chain block…
…and then we made a Cleopatra’s puzzle block.
Finally, in October it was time to learn paper piecing. Now, I will admit that I put this lesson off for a very long time. Up through the September blocks, I was alternating between sewing blocks and sewing garments, as I explained in my last Block of the Month post. But, paper piecing made me nervous. I imagined cutting tons of crazy shapes out of paper, then carefully cutting those same shapes again out of fabric, and then finally having to sew all the little bits together. Boy, was I wrong! I did have to cut more paper than in any other class, but it was only eight 6+” by 6+” squares for the two blocks. The fabric pieces could be cut willy nilly – no precision needed! It was all very easy, and I can see how the technique could make for endless designs. I’m now totally sold on paper piecing! Anyway, in this particular class we made a friendship circle block…
…and then we made a circle of geese block.
And, that’s it! All twenty blocks are now finished! The other fourteen are below in the order that they were made. I wrote about making them here, here, and here.
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Now I just need to work on the layout. My initial idea is something like this one:
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I was going for a semi-diagonal-rainbow-order layout with no two squares from the same class sharing a side with each other. I like it, but we shall see if things change once I start working with the actual squares. As with the paper piecing and many of the other squares I’ve made for this class, I hope the next steps also prove to be easier than I currently imagine them to be!
Also, Craftsy recently announced their 2014 Craftsy Block Of The Month class. It’s free, just like the 2012 class and 2013 class, so I signed up. I won’t have time to start on it just yet (or likely any time this year, honestly, since I already have two other quilts in mind that I want to make first!), but if any of you have been bit by the quilting bug, getting started now means you’ll actually be sewing along with a whole slew of other quilters. I think that sounds like fun!
I love the colors. It will be beautiful when it is completed. It looks like you learned quite a bit from the class.This is the stage I stopped on the one quilt I made when I was pregnant with my second daughter who is now almost 15. I ended up finally finishing it for my niece a few years back. It will eventually be completed and listen to your body and rest. The class is tempting but I feel I should complete my UFOs before taking on anything new.
It looks great! I’m really enjoying the block of the month classes – such a great way to break up garment sewing and mix things up a bit! Looking forward to seeing your finished quilt!
Wow! These are so pretty! I particularly like the chain pattern– gorgeous!
This looks so pretty. What is it about piecing blocks that is so relaxing?
Dang, you beat me! Looks lovely! As I’ve said, love your fabric choice (way more than mine). Looking forward to seeing the assembled quilt.
There was a long while there that I was convinced you’d finish first. The little one gave me that last but of memo rum I needed!
Fun! Will you insert strips or alternate blocks between the ones you’ve made or piece them side by side?
Most of the finished 2012 BOM quilts I’ve seen online have had strips between the blocks. I like the look and have plenty of the Kona Snow left over to make white strips. I haven’t watched the classes yet to figure out what Amy Gibson actually recommends though!
It’s really cool how each block is unique! I also like the fact that it’s a block a month, seems much more do-able! 🙂
What a seriously fantastic idea! You know what might be cool for the next one is a block swap where each sewer sends another one their block. Could make for a really awesome patchy looking quilt! Anywho, just a thought. What a lovely thing for your child to have 🙂
I really like that idea! A sewing community quilt!
Yeah! I’d totally be into something like that 🙂
Hmmmmmm….more thought. We could all do a block and then perhaps donate to charity? I’d totally help organise this 🙂
Amy, these blocks are so beautiful, congrats! I just love your fabric choices, and it’s impressive that you’ve tackled curved seams and paper piecing – two things I’ve never done with quilting. Looking forward to seeing your finished quilt… whenever that happens. 🙂