More on Odicoat

Canvas Travel bag with Odicoat
Canvas Travel bag with Odicoat

I have been wondering about what would happen if I applied Odicoat to a finished bag. I haven’t been brave enough to try it on a bag I have made. After returning from my trip, I decided to try it on the bag I used as a handbag.

I am pretty pleased with how it came out. This bag is made from some kind of canvas. It is a very heavy fabric.

I applied the Odicoat to the bottom of the bag only. It turned out that the bottom became stiffer. It’s also slightly sticky or, maybe, just not smooth.

I have heard that Odicoat shrinks up fabric. I didn’t see that in this bag. Still, the Odicoat will keep the bottom of this bag clean.

I also don’t think this is a great example of what can happen with regular quilting cotton.

Playing with a Cricut

We had a guild meeting yesterday. Before the last guild meeting, SIL #2 and I visited the Makerspace that has recently been installed in the Library. Today, I left for the meeting early to try out the Cricut they have there.

Small Hackney cut out by Cricut
Small Hackney cut out by Cricut

Short story? It worked GREAT! I cut out two bags in 1.75 hours including the learning curve.

I had to prepare in advance by finding fabric and downloading my SVG files to a flash drive. Sidebar: this is one reason I like the patterns from Sew Sweetness. They come with SVG files.

I didn’t have any instructions for preparing the fabric so I went on to the Sew Sweetness site and found a video by Michelle Graham, one of the moderators, on using the Cricut Design Space. It didn’t help me prepare the fabric, but it gave me enough knowledge to work with the software once I got to the library.

I looked at a few different sites trying to find information about fabric preparation and decided I should put SF101** on the back. Later it turned out that for the Cricut Maker** you can just cut out cotton fabric. Cutting the fabric with the SF101 means I don’t have to adhere it later.

Cricut machine with my fabric
Cricut machine with my fabric

Once I got to the Makerspace, I was pretty much ready to go. The photo above shows the small Hackney pouch I cut out. I also cut out a large one. The Cricut only cuts what is on the mat. The mat they have at the library is 12 x 12**, so I couldn’t cut the gussets. Cricut also makes a 12 x 24 mat**, which I think would be useful. Just cutting what I did will save me time.

I had to load the files into the software, which shows where on the mat the pieces will cut. This information helps to position the fabric, especially if your fabric isn’t 12 x 12.

Cricut cut foam
Cricut cut foam

I was really thrilled that the machine cut foam!

All in all, I think this was a good experience. The Makerspace isn’t open very often when I can visit, but I can visit on guild meeting days. I have several bags cut out, so I had better get busy.

The Hackney pieces shown at the top are for the small Hackney. I haven’t made one of those before, so cross your fingers for me!

 

 

 

 

 

**Obviously, you should shop at local quilt shops and small businesses. However, if you are too busy or can’t find what you need there, I use Amazon affiliate links and may be paid for your purchase of an item when you click on an item’s link in my post. There is no additional cost to you for clicking or purchasing items I recommend. I appreciate your clicks and purchases as it helps support this blog.

Missouri Star Block

Double Missouri Star
Double Missouri Star

I talked about one of the Triple Play Missouri Star videos in a recent Various & Sundry post. In this video, Jenny, Natalie and Misty take the same block pattern and make different quilts. I really liked what Natalie did with her version and I decided to try it out myself.

I thought it would be a quick test. Then I thought that I know how those quick “tests” go and started surfing around the Internet for fabric, thinking I would make an entire quilt. Fortunately, I got myself under control and decided to make one block with the True Kisses fabric I have and go from there. Cotton Cure still has packs of yardage.

I stopped and started the video as I followed along with the Missouri Star directions. Unlike other shows, Jenny and the gang tell viewers what sizes to cut, show you how to sew and press so you can follow along and make the block or quilt just from watching a free video. I like this about them.

Double Missouri Star center
Double Missouri Star center

The Missouri Star is a block they use for their logo. In this video they redid it. Jenny shrank the block and made a quilt from smaller versions. This version provided the directions for the center of Natalie’s block (above).

I didn’t choose good fabrics from the True Kisses line. There wasn’t enough contrast in the legs. Unfortunately I succumbed to the lure of those fabrics and the desire to just make something.

Trimming alternative
Trimming alternative

In the video, they show how to use the Clearly Perfect Trimmer**. I didn’t have that ruler so I tried their alternative method of using a regular ruler and it absolutely didn’t work. I should have saved myself the trouble and just squared up the various pieces the normal way.

My pieces were all the wrong size. Since I followed the Missouri Star method for making HSTs, all of my edges were on the bias. The small center block looked awful. I took the whole block apart, trimmed and put it back together again. I was reminded of how bias can work against me. I also think I didn’t completely understand the alternative method of trimming.

Using the Clearly Perfect Trimmer
Using the Clearly Perfect Trimmer

I did end buying the Clearly Perfect Trimmer**. I had never heard of this ruler and I was curious to try it out. I can’t really tell if it was any better than trimming the regular way. The one difference was that you only make two cuts vs making two cuts, turning your piece and making two more cuts.

I haven’t read all of the directions for this set of rulers, but I am interested in learning how to use more of its capabilities.

Despite all of the ripping, I am pretty pleased with the way the block came out. I won’t be making a whole quilt, however.

 

 

 

 

 

**I use affiliate links and may be paid for your purchase of an item when you click on an item link in my post. There is no additional cost to you for clicking or purchasing items I recommend. I appreciate your clicks and purchases as it helps support this blog.

Rock Star Test

My class is designing circle quilts. I decided that I had better try some of the rulers I have been suggesting my students try.

Rock Star Block Finished
Rock Star Block Finished

I tried out one of the new blocks using the Wonder Curve ruler. This is one of the blocks from their recent sew along. Sadly, they do not have a photo of the finished quilt in their IG feed. I think it will probably be a pattern sometime in the future. I wasn’t super enamored of their sampler, but I did like this block. I did think it would be a good test of the ruler, so I made one over the weekend.

I am still liking the blue and red-violet combination that I used in Frolic!. This blue is more turquoise than the blue-violet I used in Frolic!, however the combination is interesting. Also, the fabrics were handy and I didn’t have to rummage.

This is the first Sew Kind of Wonderful project I have made since Metroscape and Mod Lights. As I mentioned when I made those projects, I really liked the Quick Curve ruler and the mini Quick Curve ruler. The Wonder Curve ruler does those nice petal shapes, but I didn’t feel the love quite as much with this ruler. It could be that it was new to me and I only had a block pattern for directions. I didn’t watch the Live demos.

I am interested in seeing what patterns the SKOW team produces. I wouldn’t make or put the Rock the Block sampler together like they did. I didn’t think the design worked, though the individual blocks were appealing. You see the sampler top finished in a video at minute 5:30.

Rock Star block in process
Rock Star block in process

This block, after cutting the petals and putting the individual units together is a regular 9 patch. I thought about making a quilt with these blocks, but it doesn’t have enough appeal at the moment to make me do it. I do like the way the center layout makes the block look woven.

I am pretty impressed with SKOW, in general. Their rulers work well.

Orange Peel Circle

Orange Peel Circle
Orange Peel Circle

Remember a few weeks ago when I was thinking about circles? I was fortunate that Latifah agreed to show me how to make the cuts using the Clammy to make my Orange Peel Circle. She took time out of class on Saturday to show me two methods of making the shape.

I went away and tried out the technique. I came up with piece on the left. I used the 12 inch Clammy** for this test. It was always in my plan to use different sized Clammies. After this test, I won’t use many of the 12 inch circles – a few, but not many. It is too big  and looks like it takes up too much space. I am going to try one of the smaller Clammies later, 10 inch** for sure, but the 6 inch** maybe as well, and see what I think. I am full up on design wall space so I need to finish some things before I commit to any other projects. Even tests  have to be put on the back burner.

Still, I am pleased I know how to to do this now.

 

 

 

 

 

 

**I use affiliate links and may be paid for your purchase of an item when you click on an item link in my post. There is no additional cost to you for clicking or purchasing items I recommend. I appreciate your clicks and purchases as it helps support this blog.

Thinking about Circles

As I have mentioned, I am teaching a quilt sampler class based on my series of tutorials. The class teaches much more than the tutorials offer, including dissecting blocks and quilts so students can think about construction and try things without having to buy a pattern every time* they want to play a little bit.

One of my students is looking at tile and other non-fabric designs and thinking about them in terms of making the design into a quilt. I am thrilled.

Divided Circle Design
Divided Circle Design

She sent me a design this week that she has been thinking about. I didn’t get all the straight lines lined up, but you get the idea. I thought of the Sew Kind of Wonderful QCR ruler** and how the designers of those patterns have you make units with straight lines and then cut them up.

I thought about that for awhile and think that it would be a good way to construct the block overall. However, I had to figure out how how to get the Orange Peel joined into the circle.

Since I got the Clammies for my birthday from Gerre and my SIL, I decided I would try them out. I played around for awhile cutting circles and trying to figure out how the Clammy** worked. I was moderately successful once I figured out the seam allowances. I look forward to watching her videos and getting more expert instruction on using the Clammy. I wasn’t able to watch the videos while I was playing, because I was at Craft Night.

Completing Circle with Orange Peel
Completing Circle with Orange Peel

I decided that I would worry about dividing the circle later and would start with a circle and an orange peel. I figured I can always break up the shapes later.

I kind of like the possibilities for this shape. It could be a ‘phases of the moon’ type quilt design.

After some fabric wasting, I found that I was ready to cut out some circles and orange peel. I had high hopes that I would be successful.

Fabric Completing Circle with Orange Peel
Fabric Completing Circle with Orange Peel

WRONG! I got the basics, but don’t have enough seam allowance for the orange peel to fit exactly and complete the circle.

Hhhmm. I decide that my next step would be to cut the orange peel with the larger Clammy and see if that works. I suspect Latifah did not anticipate this design and one Clammy cannot be used to cut these pieces. I am keeping an open mind.

Stay tuned.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

*N.B. I am not trying to put independent pattern designers out of business. I am not advocating copying the designs of others in order to avoid paying them. I often buy patterns since it is easier than redrawing complex designs myself. I find, however, like with Ring Toss that I didn’t need the pattern once I had the templates. Also, I just wanted to try it and was glad I hadn’t spent more money since I didn’t end up doing anything with the design. Knowing how to deconstruct a block or a quilt improves creativity in quiltmaking.

 

 

**I use affiliate links and may be paid for your purchase of an item when you click on an item link in my post. There is no additional cost to you for clicking or purchasing items I recommend. I appreciate your clicks and purchases as it helps support this blog.

Now I Like It

Even though I had cut about 1,000 pieces of fabric for this project, I was about to abandon this project.  I wasn’t happy with my first efforts in the new colors. I determined I would make 4 blocks and then decide on whether or not to proceed. I am glad that was my strategy because now I like the piece.

Stepping Stones #2
Stepping Stones #2

Part of why I like it is that I see a Sawtooth Star emerging. If you cover up the center and right side with your hand and just look at the right side you will see the legs of a Sawtooth Star emerging – the part that is normally formed by Flying Geese. That secondary pattern adds a design element I did not anticipate and do not see very well when I look back at the first Stepping Stones quilt.

There is better contrast, I think, in this version, though the red 4 Patches coming together in the center are a very strong design element. Looking at the previous version, I know I will have to pay attention to the border so that the Sawtooth Stars, if I want to keep them, will not be cut off. I think that means a different border.

 

As an aside, I fell down the Pinterest rabbit hole and saw this same pattern done in Denise Schmidt fabrics on the 3and3quarters.net blog. I was really interested in her fabric choices. I think her version looks so great! It makes me wonder anew why the Lintott girls chose the colors they did. I really dislike the examples in their book.

Revisiting the Stepping Stones

I have been a little on the cranky side lately – not cranky exactly, but a bit out of sorts. I am not sure why, so I blame work.

I have really wanted to sew and haven’t been able to settle on anything that demanded I get myself to the workroom and work on the project. As a result, I thought it would be a good idea to work on a project that would really be exciting to me. I like my other projects, but don’t want them to be #1 right at the moment. I know this means starting something new and not finishing things. TFQ reminded me that sewing/quiltmaking should be fun and not something I should do. I am taking my advice and her advice.

I dug around and pulled out two Lintott books and the two Kim Bracket books I have. I perused them to see what interested me, but was still enamoured with the Stepping Stones pattern in Layer Cakes, Jelly Rolls and Charm Quilts, pg. 72-79. I have been wanting to do this in the Bonnie and Camille fabrics (remember the test?), but wasn’t really happy with the background choices. The B&C greys are a bit depressing. I think they have some taupe or brown undertones I eschew. Bottomline: they didn’t really give me the look I wanted. I bought a solid during a binge of end of the year fabric therapy with the intention of using it as a base for the background. I still want it to be scrappy, but I should be able to use it to compare other possibilities.

One PITA is that there is a lot of cutting that has to go on before very much sewing can happen. The other PITA, which I am sure I mentioned as I worked on the first Stepping Stones quilt, is that the pattern doesn’t say that I should use light medium or dark to get the overall pattern. It actually uses the colors they used, which isn’t very helpful if the maker is using different colors. To make matters worse, the photo in the book is pretty bad and I am shocked that a great publisher like David and Charles would allow such a photo to be used in one of their books.

As I worked through those problems, I realized that I really wanted to push fabric through the machine. But I didn’t want to just sew mosaic piecing; I wanted to sew with a purpose. I wanted to sew something that would make me happy. Two goals a bit at odds with each other.

I started in anyway thinking I could always stop all the thinking I had to do to get the Stepping Stones to a stage where I could just piece. I pulled out my bin of Bonnie and Camille fabrics and started pressing and cutting and placing and looking.

Turquoise/Red Stepping Stones block in progress
Turquoise/Red Stepping Stones block in progress

An odd thing happened. I gradually moved from all Bonnie and Camille fabrics to some Bonnie and Camille fabrics and other more turquoise, scarlet and pinky red fabrics. I like the Bonnie and Camille fabrics, but the overall effect of them, for me, was not cheerful enough. They have a vintage look, which I like, but somehow the feel was too calico and not quirky enough. I think of vintage quilts (as opposed to vintage fabrics) as a bit quirky and ones I like do not have the feel of small calico prints.

I really like dark pinky reds and bright turquoises. The Bonnie and Camille fabrics have softer turquoises, tending towards light blue and a lot of orangey reds.

It is interesting how pieces evolve. I am also happy that I was able to give myself permission to use more than just the Bonnie and Camille fabrics. I know that sounds odd, but stuck in my mind was a quilt with Bonnie and Camille fabrics. Moving beyond the idea of a quilt from a whole line (or series of lines) of just Bonnie and Camille fabrics required a major brain shift. I am glad, because I am able to use some non-B&C fabrics that I really like while keeping some of the Bonnie and Camille fabrics that fit in with my new vision.

Free Motion Quilting

Full Piece Quilted
Full Piece Quilted

Yes, I did some free motion quilting.

Now that you have all peeled yourselves off the floor and revived yourselves with some smelling salts and a stiff drink, I will repeat that, yes, I did some free motion quilting. Kelly, the BAMQG President is issuing personal challenges and this is the first one I have really been able to do.

I got this fabric at the EBHQ show and just decided to use it for this exercise.

I decided to break up the exercise into 3 patterns, roughly the same size with the piece (1/2 yard x WOF): continuous boxes, flower petals and round swirly things.

Continuous squares
Continuous squares

Loopy circles
Loopy circles

Flower petals
Flower petals

Some of these are designs I learned in various machine quilting classes I have taken over the years. I did this exercise because of the BAMQG personal challenge, but also to test my skills.

Though I have not done a lot of machine or free motion quilting over the past few years, I am not terrible at it.I still have some skills and was able to get into a nice rhythm. I am not a pro by any stretch of the imagination and I won’t be firing my quilter any time soon, but I think I can do small pieces.

Full Piece Quilted-back
Full Piece Quilted-back

I couldn’t quite get the tension right, but the back doesn’t look horrendous. I will ask about adjusting the tension on the DC5100 when I go for lessons. I decided to concentrate on the look of the front, my speed and the length of the stitches.

I tried two different darning feet as well. Both came with my 9k. One is a hopping foot, which I don’t like that much, but ended up using on the DC5100. The other is a darning foot with no springs or hopping. It fits on to the shaft of the machine, screws in and is ready to sew. I prefer this foot as I can see better where I am headed, but it doesn’t fit on the DC5100 and no similar foot came with that machine. I also used Aurifil 50 wt thread. I used that thread, rather than the 40 wt, because I have a lot of colors and the color I wanted to use was available to me right at the moment I wanted it with no trips to the quilt store. I suspect the 9k didn’t like the speed at which I was quilting with that thin thread. It occurred to me later that I could have adjusted the tension, but I didn’t think of it before I switched machines.

Continuous squares in process
Continuous squares in process

I do free motion quilting at kind of a medium speed. I set the machine to that medium speed and that allows me to have better control over my stitch length.

One of the design elements I used was to go around some of the cups and fruits rather than just quilting over all of them. some of them, as you can see, I did quilt over, but many I outlined. I found it to be good practice in following a design.

I never like it when the quilting doesn’t follow the piecing, or fabric design, but getting a little recent experience with machine quilting, I am reminded of the ease of pantographs and all over designs.

Sewing machine[s] setup
Sewing machine[s] setup
My machine was not very cooperative, but it could have been the thread. I switched machines to my back up machine and that worked better, but wasn’t very comfortable. I don’t have an insert yet for the back up machine (traded in my Jem for a Janome DC5100) and quilting with it up out of the cabinet was pretty painful. Also, with the 9K down in the cabinet, I had no good place to put my legs and kept barking my shins.

 

Russian Rubix Center Square Test

Russian Rubix 1st Block
Russian Rubix 1st Block

The center of the Russian Rubix blocks has been bothering me.

The block is put together like a four patch. to build the 4 patch, you add large and small triangles to the octagons. This makes the block really easy to put together (you should still buy the pattern).

The problem is that this type of construction means that there are four seams that meet in the center creating a very distinct seam line. I have had this block up on the design wall trying to decide if I can live with the seam lines or if I need to piece the block in a different way. Sometimes I can’t see the seam lines and sometimes they scream like a neon sign.

Russian Rubix block with solid center
Russian Rubix block with solid center

As I might have mentioned, I decided to cut a square and try piecing the block with a solid square.

As you, can see from the photo (bottom right), the center looks great – seam free and pristine. The bad news is those weird angles with which I need to sew the other parts of the block.

Sigh.

Some observations:

  • Print fabric with a large or distinct pattern would not work for the background. The messed up fabric design (from cutting up a large print or, for example, dot fabric) would scream at the viewer
  • Low intensity or solid fabric would work best.
  • Piecing the block with a solid center will end up with some weird angles to sew.

I don’t know where I will go from here. I will probably try to sew more parts of this block together to see if the piecing is as bad as I think it will be.

Russian Rubix posts:

 

Russian Rubix: Test Blocks

Russian Rubix: Pattern, Piecing, Process
Russian Rubix: Pattern, Piecing, Process

I had a feeling about the background drama and decided to make a couple of test blocks using my top two background fabrics.

Russian Rubix; Test Blocks
Russian Rubix; Test Blocks

I am glad I did. A couple of observations:

  • the Russian Rubix blocks have a lot of seams
  • the seams seem to be in weird places, even though they make sense based on the design of the block
  • the fabrics I chose as potential background fabrics make the seams look very prominent.

In the photos, the backgrounds look like either would be fine. In real life the dots look better. The movement in the batik isn’t as good as I thought it would be.

These blocks are not difficult even though they look complex. The pattern is written so there is a lot of trimming. If you join in, definitely get the templates from Richard. It makes the cutting and trimming easy and painless.

Russian Rubix posts:

 

Jelly Roll Race #2

Calm Top
Calm Top

I lost my mind again. I made another Jelly Roll Race despite the drama of the Renewed Jelly Roll Race.

“What were you thinking?????” is what I hear being screamed at me and you have every right to scream. No rending of garments or tearing of hair, please.

In certain respects, quiltmaking is an intellectual challenge for me. I want to know what makes the techniques tick, why fabric behaves the way it does and, often, what happens if….. The intellectual challenge in this case is to figure out how to make a Jelly Roll Race quilt not look terrible, to have some sort of control over what seems, essentially, to be an uncontrollable technique in terms of design.

In the back of my mind the little quilt voice was telling me to try the Jelly Roll Race technique again. It is hard to face that reality, but I have to. I don’t like failing at something unless I understand why and this is a mystifying technique.

Bali Pop Strip Set
Bali Pop Strip Set

I bought one of the Hoffman Bali Pops at PIQF (or shortly after, perhaps). I think that the first thing that makes a Jelly Roll Race more successful is to buy one with batiks. Batiks blend together really nicely and they have a depth that is subtle. I really liked the calming colors of this particular combination. I am not much of a beige person, but I was ok with the beiges in this collection, because they tended towards yellow or gold and went with the other the fabrics very well. I would buy this collection again. In fact, working with these colors and fabrics made me ask myself why I don’t buy more batiks. I don’t know if I could find the stock numbers of this particular collection and buy them all, though I suppose it is possible. I need to just buy more batiks.

TFQ was here and she arranged all the strips for me. It was very helpful, because I didn’t think to do it before hand, but really needed to do so.

Sewing LOOOOONG Seams
Sewing LOOOOONG Seams

Why I say I lost my mind is that this type of quilt is a pain in the neck. I forgot how much thread this technique uses and how long the seams are. I went through at least 2 bobbins of Aurifil! Ironing the piece was stultifying! This technique is just plain tedious.

We did cut half of the strips in half, which made the process more tedious. I can’t say whether it made the top more interesting or not. I need more data to decide on that point.

I do think I had some success with this quilt top, though, so some tips:

  1. Use batiks or blendy fabrics.
  2. Arrange all the strips in the order you want to sew them. I suggest placing the same fabrics next to each other, so they don’t end up on top of each other.
  3. Add 2.5″x2.5″ square to the end of each strip. It adds interest to the quilt and helps move the eye around the design field.
  4. When you fold the first long strip in half to sew the halves together to start stacking the strips, don’t be afraid to adjust the strips so that the 2.5″ squares don’t butt up against each other right off the bat.
  5. Keep all the strips on the machine in one long chain until all the strips are sewn together. The way I did it was to sew the 2.5″ square to the strip, do the same for the next one. Continue. As soon as convenient, sew strip 1 to strip 2.
  6. Iron seams open, but fingerpress first. This method creates less bulk

Optional: cut the long strip into lengths of about 63″ and arrange them the way you want and then sew them together. TFQ’s idea was to sew a few strips together see how it was going and then rearrange them before sewing them all together. Good advice I didn’t take.

I may try this again despite the tedium of the long seams, because I made my husband do some math (will see about making it pretty and posting it sometime) to try and figure out how to keep like fabrics from butting up against each other as the rows are sewn together.

Last post on Jelly Roll Race quilts.

Star Sampler Tests

Star Sampler Background Tests
Star Sampler Background Tests

I was still not quite ready to start this project, but I did need to decide on the background.

These two Sawtooth Stars are 4.5″ each. I used the Philip Jacobs print for the center and a couple of different background possibilities.

I really wanted the leaf print (right) from Simply Color by V&Co to work. I really like that print and wouldn’t mind having yards of it around. It would work with some of the solids I have chosen for the project, but, as you can see, with prints it would be a problem. I want the stars to be crisp and this print, sadly, makes the stars mushy.

I’ll put it on the back.

This conclusion meant that I needed to use the square dot print. I like it very much. It wasn’t what I expected to use, but I think I will like it. I wanted to do some more tests with some of the different fabrics, but the way manufacturers go through fabric lines, I had to get it quick before it was gone. The place I wanted to buy it was out, sadly ($4.20/yd!), but I found the amount I needed and am waiting for it to arrive.

Stepping Stones Thoughts

2 Stepping Stones blocks
2 Stepping Stones blocks

I finally made the second block for the Stepping Stones test (note: when I say it is a test that means it cannot, yet, be a project). I introduced this project test in a previous post.

I finally finished the second block and it helps me see the pattern starting to emerge. It is very clear to me that the flower print with the grey background is not going to work. It muddies the line between background and the big red blob of squares that will end up center the diamond formed by the half square triangles. I like that print, but I’d like the lines to be a bit clearer than the previous Stepping Stones quilt.

I have to be clear with myself that the pattern truly emerges when the whole quilt can be seen. a few blocks just doesn’t do the thing justice.

Test Piece

Test Piece
Test Piece

The center of this piece has been on my design wall for a long time. I made it to try and get my head around sewing diamonds together for FOTY 2010. I didn’t feel like I could toss it even though it isn’t my best work.

Eventually, I decided to use it to test my idea for the border on the Original Bullseye. After some thought, I decided not to use my idea for the Original Bullseye, but I decided to try the border on the Test Piece anyway.

I used some fabric that I didn’t really care about for the border. I modified the directions from an old QNM article (hand applique’ was not going to happen on this piece) and went to work. I got surprising results. The surprising part was that I finally became with one mitered corners. I finally understand the ins and outs of creating a mitered corner. I have known, in a theoretical way, how to do it, but this was the first time the process and theory really made sense to my brain and hands together.

This is no masterpiece, but it does prove that quiltmakers can learn something from every piece. I find it somewhat freeing to not care about the overall piece. I have cared about each specific element or technique or process, but not the whole piece. The point of this piece is learning.

And, in that, this piece has value.