Sunday, November 30, 2014

Lone Star Class

My last class taught for the year, at The Patchwork Angel, is a Lone Star quilt.  I love this teaching this quilt, the fabric choices made by the students are varied and so all the quilts look different but all stunning.

At the end of the second class the girls had half the quilt sewn together.  In the first class we learn how to construct the star points with strip sets.  The second class is putting the star points together with the background fabric.

So here are the girls beautiful quilts. I love how this photo worked out all the halves lined out. I get all excited and start jumping around waiting for the ladies to get to this point, this is when it all comes together and you get your chance to see how all the fabrics have worked together and how stunning it really is.
 


This is Kathrine's top. It is over the top of mine so it looks a little jumbled.  Kathrine used civil war reproductions in greys, green and the pink is actually a red.  The background is a cream with red print.



Thurley went a completely different way with her colours.  Stunning yellows, reds and oranges.  Thurley's background is a black with white spots.

Sharon used blues of all shades for your Lone Star Quilt.  This has a completely different feel compared to Thurley's, the fabrics give it a cool feeling.  Sharon used a pale blue spot fabric for the background.

I didn't get a photo of Michelle's on her own.  So sorry Michelle.  Michelle's is the one right in the front of this picture. Michelle used beautiful civil war reproductions also but with greens, pinks and browns with cream background fabric.  The same type of fabrics as Katherine but they look so different.


 
This is one of my class samples.  Completely scrappy star points and a vibrant Shot Cotton pink used for the background.  Different look and feel again.
 
Thank you ladies for coming to my class, I am hoping to see your finished tops next year.

Wednesday, November 12, 2014

Ring cycles, a class with Leesa Siegle


 


After what seems like forever I back, maybe briefly, to show what I have been doing.
 
This class was fabulous.   For me the class was about tackling and mastering Set In seams, there  is a lot of these to be done to make this quilt.  Leesa calls this quilt Ring Cycles but it is more commonly known as Jacks Chain. Leesa is a great teacher with lots of knowledge and all too willing to share with her students.
 
First it is making lots of 9 patch units, and 6 units are needed per hexagon.  So lots and lots are in order.  Mine are pieced very scrappy.  These units are 3" finished.

 
 





next,  a 60 degree triangle is sewn to each 9 patch, starting and stopping at the 1/4 inch mark.



then attach then all to the centre hexagon, easy as.  Yeah Right



I had started to make this quilt a few years ago and only got as far as one hexagon unit, slightly put off by all the set in seams. I had many of the pieces cut out and was really really hoping that the same pieces would be right for the class.  Yeah they were the exact sizes for the triangles and hexagons.
 
 
right from the start of making this quilt I had decided to use a big variety of neutrals and that was a good decision on my part.
 
 
 So as of now the I am making more 9 patch units and then joining them to the hexagons.  The first pattern I had was putting the quilt top together similar to a Double Wedding Ring with whole and part hexagons sewn in rows. .



With Leesa's quilt, lots of hexagon units are made and sew together with a two triangles sewn between the hexagons.  Rows are made and then sewn together, again with all set in seams. Then half hexagons used at the end of the rows to square off the edges.  This quilt will the end up finished when all the hexagons that I had cut previously are all sewn.




I am enjoying making this quilt, set in seams and all.  I do want to make this again, this Ring Cycles has been on my quilt bucket list for many years and am very glad I took the class.