Scrappy Autumn Place-mats~

Hello, here it is, Autumn again!  Although we don’t have a very dramatic change of seasons on the CA coast-the days are getting shorter & the nights are a bit chilly.  People are putting up their Halloween decorations & buying bags of candy, the holiday season has begun.  Soon it will be time to take the Christmas decorations out of storage & hang the Christmas lights.  After Halloween, time seems to fly by-I guess it’s because there is so much to do!  Decorating, shopping, cooking, baking special goodies, crafts and sewing projects.
This is my latest sewing  project:  Scrappy Autumn Place-mats. 



At least that’s what I’m calling them.  I love place-mats because they are an inexpensive & practical  way to dress –up the table. Cloth napkins are also practical & just, well- nicer.  As is usual for people who sew, I’m always trying to organize my hoard of fabrics.  I started by sorting out fabrics for Christmas, but discovered quite a few Autumn themed prints & solids.  The main, maple leaf, fabric has diagonal lines in its pattern-which led me to use this random braid design.  It’s starts by foundation piecing the middle braid.  I used this pattern- 

To print this pattern, follow this link to: Scrappy Braid Pattern.



Many people prefer to use paper as a foundation, which is removed when finished.  I think fabric makes a more stable foundation, even though it’s thicker.   I like to use light-weight scrap fabric as a foundation, I save old sheets, pillow cases-what ever.  Cut a piece that’s about 3-1/2”x18-1/2”, trace it on to the fabric using a pencil & ruler.  The pattern is only 5” long, but it’s enough to get started.


When foundation piecing, you place the fabric pieces on the front, and sew on the lines drawn on the back of the fabric.  Start by cutting a triangle that’s just a bit bigger than the beginning triangle.  Cover the triangle area on the front of the fabric with the right side facing out.  Place another piece of fabric on top of  the 1st, right sides together.  Match the two edges with the first line that’s between the 1st & 2nd area.  Then stitch on the line between the 1st (triangle) & the 2nd area. 

 
It’s alright if you sew past the next line, it will be sewn over.  After you sew the seam, trim the edge, then flip the piece over to right side out and press.
 

Next, place another small piece of fabric over the 3rd area, making sure it’s slightly larger than the section.  Match-up as before, this time sewing on the line between the 2nd & 3rd section.

 
Trim, flip open and iron, again.


Getting the idea?  The pattern will end, but just keep going, alternating the sides like this with random-sized pieces, to the bottom of the strip.


When you reach the bottom,


Trim the strip to 2-1/2”x18”.  The strip will be a little stretchy(I don’t know what else to call it), so iron it with a good amount of spray starch before taking the next step.



Next, I cut two 1-1/2” strips of dark green cotton, and sewed one to each side of the braid.  Ironed with a little more spray starch, pressing the seams toward the outside edge.


Cut two 1-1/2”x18” strips of tan fabric, and do the same as before.  You should have a 6-1/2”x18” piece of work, now.


Add a 4” strip of the Fall print to each side, press the seams toward the outside edge.  Now cut a 13”x18” piece of quilt batting & fabric for the backing.  Center and layer:  pieced top, then the batting, plain fabric backing on the bottom.

 

I just stitched along the six long lengthwise seams, and another two lengthwise down the middle of the Fall fabric.  I used invisible machine quilting thread on the top, and thread matching the backing fabric in the bobbin.  You may have noticed that I changed from having the green backing to the tan backing.  It just looks better.  After the quilting, I centered & trimmed the piece to 12-1/2”x17-1/2”.


I finished the edges with double-fold binding, the same as I would a quilt. You can find my binding tutorial Here.

I also made matching cotton dinner napkins hemmed with mitered corners. A first for me!  I thought they would be tricky & time consuming.  But, I found that miter corners aren’t that difficult.  I found a tutorial at Sew4Home,  a great resource for all kinds of home sewing projects.  It may seem a bit fussy, but really makes a difference!  This tutorial first turns over a 3/8” hem, then an 1” finishing hem.  I did the 3/8”, but then turned over 1/2” finishing hem.  The 1” hem seemed too wide for napkins.  I’m pleased with the result.
Well, I hope you like this project.  Leave me a comment-I’d love to hear what you think!
Bye for now-Carole
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Gaining a New Perspective~

 
Recently a new fabric shop, Superbuzzy, opened only six blocks from my home.  I’ve walked by it a few times and thought it was a scrapbooking/paper craft store.  Finally, I took another look in the window, and saw racks of beautiful fabrics!  Mostly bright solids & modern Japanese prints.  Japanese, not Asian, the very latest trends. Very different from the other quilt shops in my area- intriguing.  I had a great time looking through the fabric, and chatting with the sales girl, Misty, who invited me to the next guild meeting at the shop-the Modern Quilt Guild of Ventura.  Modern Quilts?  Now, I’ve seen many art quilts online, but they aren’t necessarily ‘Modern’.  So, I decided to do a little research. 
I found:  Modern quilting is a rapidly growing movement, which began online and is now meeting in the ‘real’ world to create a modern aesthetic.  This is accomplished through fabric selection, asymmetry, increased use of negative space, & the improvisation of traditional blocks.  The emphasis is to make functional rather than decorative quilts, to embrace simplicity & minimalism, and to be able to finish quilts on home sewing machines.  Modern quilts are inspired by modern art & architecture, contain bold colors & graphic prints, and often use gray & white as neutrals.  All very interesting, I looked forward to the meeting.  I’ve been to two of the guild’s meetings now, and am even more interested.  I’ve always loved the geometry of traditional quilting-all the pieces meeting & fitting together so precisely.  The repetition of the blocks & the secondary patterns that they can create.  I’ve spent years gaining the necessary skills to create these blocks, but the freedom to color outside the lines is appealing.
The Modern Quilt Guild recently finished “100 Days of Modern Quilts” on their website.  Here are some of the quilts that I found appealing:



This is ‘Life in Technicolor’ by Jacquie Gering.  Brightly colored solids & prints, and improvisational blocks.  A white background with exquisite quilting.


This quilt is also by Jacquie Gering, ‘Proposal Moon.  I love the contrast of the bright orange against the shades of gray background.  And again, the quilting is just beautiful.


This third example is ‘Embracing Grey’ by Alissa Haight Carlton.  Again, a fairly simple design with a bright, solid yellow, gray & white background.  Though the patterns are fairly easy to construct, they have impact.  The heavy quilting is subtle, but the commitment of time & patience….
To see the other quilts featured go to:  100 Days of Modern Quilts-
Fueled with enthusiasm, I brought out a project I’d started, but thought it was just boring.  It began as a French Country inspired table runner, but-

 

And…..

Well, you can see what I mean.  Even though I like the fabrics it’s just boring!  I took it a part & started fresh.  This is what I came up with:

 

 

Of course, it’s nothing compared to the quilts above, but, it is a beginning.  I’m used to following a pattern, even if it’s my own pattern.  I was surprised to see how difficult it is for me to loosen-up & be more random. Anyway, to finish,  I layered the top, batting & backing.  Did a little stitch in the ditch.

 

Now that I have all this ‘negative space’-what do I do with it?





I decided to just quilt in horizontal lines and:






vertical lines.  In modern quilting there are no “quilt police”.  I didn’t even mark the lines to make them perfectly straight.  I felt so naughty!  I’m happy with the finished table-runner, but I don’t think that I’ve found my “modern” aesthetic, yet.




Bye for now & keep smiling-Carole



     

Related articles

• Jacquie Gering (quiltingismytherapy.com)

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My Trip to Minocqua, WI-Part 2

This is the second post on my summer vacation.  I probably should title it ‘Better Late than Never’ as it has been almost a month now.  Time seems to just fly by these days.  The ‘Walk in the Woods’ quilt show was on July 21, at Eagle Rivers WI. 

At:

Trees For Tomorrow, which was founded as an independent, nonprofit organization in 1944 by a group of Wisconsin paper and electric utility companies for the purpose of reforesting northern Wisconsin, as well as educating landowners and citizens about the need for proper land management.

Arial view of the Trees For Tomorrow campus in the 1940s

In the 1940s and '50s TFT established an education facility in Eagle River and used the recovering northern forest to teach school students, their teachers and the public about the need for proper forestry practices. In the 1960s, with reforestation substantially completed, TFT turned all its energy to education. Today, "Trees" is the Midwest's leading natural resource specialty school providing field workshops renowned for their effectiveness in teaching natural resource conservation and management concepts to students, teachers and the public.  For more info visit: http://www.treesfortomorrow.com

 

 

 

 

On a sunny, summer day, Trees for Tomorrow provided the perfect setting for the Cranberry Country Quilt Guild’s ‘Walk in the Woods’ Quilt Show.  Beautiful quilts displayed informally outside on clotheslines between the trees.

 

 

 

And inside on bunk beds……

 

     

 

There were many activities, classes, a quilt contest, a rummage sale and BBQ for lunch.  Many vendors set up booths, such as the Bigfork Bay Cotton Co.  Represented by Laura Krasinski, educator, lecturer, and designer.  She lives in Menomonee Falls, WI with her husband & two children, Jessica & Luke.

 

 

My sister bought Laura’s first appliqué quilt pattern, “Daisy”.  Lyn bought it-and I get to make it for her.  What are sisters for?!  I’m looking forward to getting started on this project.  The pattern is Laura’s original design, and includes all the pieces already printed on fusible web.  Its a great excuse to go fabric shopping as well as using some of my scraps on the smaller pieces.  It should be a fun project.  

 

 

 

Laura can be found at:

 http://laurakrasinskisartontherun.blogspot.com

http://laurasartontherun.blogspot.com

 

Her pattern “Daisy” can be purchase online at:

Craftsy

Well, this is all for now-Carole

 

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My Trip to Minocqua, WI~

I just returned from visiting my big Sis, Lyn Cote, at  her lovely home on Tomahawk Lake.  It’s near Minocqua, a small town in upper WI.  Lyn is the best big sister I could ever want, it’s a shame we live so far apart.  But, she loves the northern woods, and I’ve made a happy life here on the CA coast.  My sister is a  successful novelist with thirty-five published works.  She writes Inspirational Romances which she describes as having “no heaving breasts” or anything else heaving.  Lyn has a BA in English Literature & a Masters Degree in History, so many of her stories are set in America of the past. They have many interesting, day-to-day details of life in the past.  Her heroines struggle with romance & are rewarded with true love.  Her home is fairly secluded in the woods, and is only about 20 feet from the lake.  A quiet place for a writer to write.  Here are a few photos taken from her back porch-

The three above were taken on a sunny day, this next was after a dramatic night of lightening, thunder, and pouring rain.  Any direction you look is a potential postcard!




The properties on either side are large vacation homes, and are usually empty other than summer weekends.  Just a lovely, relaxing place to live-and that is what we did for the most part:  Relax.  We did find a little time for shopping at the new quilt shop in Minocqua.
 
 
 

 

A great little place, the ‘Around the Block Quilt Shop’, at  9785 State Hwy. 70 West, Suite B, Minocqua, WI  54548.   Owned by a nice & very helpful Diane Gitzlaff.  I really love the little hand quilted ‘Open’ sign.  Such a nice touch.

 
 

Looks can be deceiving, from the outside the shop looked like an office building.  But, the inside looked more like a comfortable home.  The shop was broken up into small rooms with country style furniture & lamps.  Quilts covered the walls, and bookcases were filled with bolts of fabric.  A very pleasant & comfortable shop.  Of course I managed to find a ‘couple’ of fabrics that I liked……

 

 

 

 

Lyn and I also went a to a quilt show over the weekend.  It’s a bit funny because we hadn’t planned on going.  It was mentioned at the end of the local news cast, and we just decided to go.  The “Walk in the Woods Quilt Show” was literally in the woods.  Well, this post is getting lengthy-so I’ll tell you all about the quilt show in my next post.  Until then, take care, Carole 



More about my big Sis, Lyn Cote-Author
When Lyn became a mother, she gave up teaching, and while raising a son and a daughter, she began working on her first novel.  Rejection followed.  Finally in 1997, Lyn got “the call”.  Her first book, Never Alone, was chosen for the brand new Love Inspired romance line.  Since then, Lyn has had over thirty-five novels published.  Presently, she is preparing some of her works to be published on Kindle. 
In 2006 Lyn’s book, Chloe, was a finalist for the RITA, and her book, Her Healing Ways, won the Carol Award in 2011, two of the highest awards in romance.  Lyn also features stories of strong women both from real life and true to life fiction on her blog http://www.BooksbyLynCote.com.
Writing books at her lake cottage in northern WI, Lyn hopes her books show the power of divine & human love.  I believe she succeeds.

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Rainbow Chevron Block Table runner~

I love rainbows, they always make me smile!  Lately I’ve been seeing them everywhere-from cake decorating to home décor.  Big, bold slices of color.  Many of the new fabrics on my wish list are jewel tones.  I particularly like the contrast of the bright colors against a clean, white background.  So, I’ve been experimenting with rainbows and started using some of the fabrics I’ve stashed away, because I didn’t quite know how to use them.  Colors like bright oranges & dark purples.  I’m usually drawn to softer colors.  Anyway, I came across a full-size quilt pattern with the 1/2 square log cabin, chevron pattern, set on point in rows and connected with small black & white checker-boards.  It inspired me to create this little table runner.  I foundation pieced the little chevrons, and used black, baby ric rac to connect them.  The ric rac gives a similar look with out having to piece little, teeny, tiny checker-boards.  I like piecing little details-but there’s no need to go crazy!  I don’t know if this project is suitable for beginners, but I’m including step-by-step instructions with lots of pictures.  If you have any questions, you can always e-mail me or leave a comment.

This is the pattern I used to piece my blocks.  A printable version can be found Here.  The pattern block should print out at 3-1/2”, print out 20 blocks for this project. 

 

Obviously you can use any color combination you like. The stripes of the pattern are 3/8” wide, so it’s easiest to cut fabric strips about an 1” wide.  What I love about foundation piecing is being able to use up even your tiniest fabric scraps.  Also, I have a large rubber stamp(a relic from the pre-computer printer past) of this pattern.  You see, in the olden days quilters had to trace the same pattern over & over again by hand.  So, extra-large rubber stamps were created to simply stamp the pattern on fabric or paper.  But now, it’s easiest to print them from the computer.  Anyway…… So I’ve stamped the pattern on scrap cotton, mainly old sheets & pillow cases.  I keep the fabric layer, but if you use paper as a foundation you need to tear it away when the block is complete.

   

These photos show step by step how I pieced this pattern.  The stitching is in red on the back, to make it easier to see. The fabric is placed on the front of the pattern, but is lined-up with the stitching lines on the back.  Begin by covering the first two areas with appropriate fabric pieces on the front of the pattern with right sides together. Working from the back, sew on the line between them. Trim, turn & press after each addition. Continue back & forth until all the areas of the block are covered.  Trim on the dotted line to leave a 1/4” seam allowance around the entire block. 

 

When all 20 of the chevron blocks were completed, I added white triangles to each side, so they could be placed on point.

 

 

  

I had a stack of 5" squares left from another project, so I cut them twice on the diagonal to create four triangles from each square. Then sewed one to each side of the chevron. 

 

  

I then trimmed each one to a 4" square. Notice the edge of the chevron is lined up with the 45 degree line. Trim each side this way.   

 

 

 

Next, I cut 4” wide strips of white cotton to use as sashing strips.  I marked a light pencil line down the middle lengthwise to position the ric rac trim.  Before sewing, iron the ric rac trim and be careful with the ends, they fray easily.  Put a few stitches in after cutting them or use something like FrayStop to keep  them from unraveling.

    

 

Sew right down the middle, then cut the strips into 2-1/2”x4” pieces.  Next, cut 1-1/4” strips of small black & white gingham.  Position pieces and strips as they are in the following photo.  The gingham strips on the outside edges were cut 1/4” wider, to leave room for 1/2” side seams. 

 

All in all, four rows with five chevron blocks in each row.  Then, I added a trim strip of sashing at each end.  When the top was pieced together, I finished it using the pillowcase method.  Instructions for this method can be found Here.

I just did a little simple 'stitch in the ditch' quilting. Finished size is 8"x30".    

Here are a few more photos-   

 

 So ends my first blog post. Hope you've enjoyed it...!