Project Update: 12.08.2021

Hello Friends and Welcome Back!

It's been another few weeks since my last Update. After a brief posting break over the last week, as well as a few days off from sewing, I'm returning with renewed motivation and inspiration to create!

Some of the projects I'm sharing today were made before the break, while others are much more recent. The ongoing Summer Mini Quilt Challenge is still occupying the majority of my time, but I have managed to progress with Simply Woven, the National Quilt Museum's block of the month, and a few other projects!

Read on, Friends, for more!

Simply Woven

Since the last update, I've purchased some new needles, completed the line of quilting that broke my last needle, and quilted a few more bars into the broken frame!

The completed areas of quilting are indicated in the diagram above with white lines, which show I've only added another bar and a half since my last update. While my progress isn't fast, I think going forward, I'll be trying to quilt at least one additional bar every week!

There have been a few things holding me back from working on the quilt, primarily the humidity. With the recent heat, I'm not very motivated to work on a project that involves draping a bulky quilt over myself. In addition to that, running all that bulk through my domestic machine takes a lot of effort that I don't really enjoy putting in when it's hot.

Regardless, every bit of progress I make is another thrilling step towards a finished quilt, and I'm excited to carry on quilting one stitch at a time!

National Quilt Museum 2021 Block of the Month

Like Simply Woven, the NQM BoM project has been going very slowly:

The July block, One Day in Summer designed by Ann Brauer, has not changed since my last Update. I've given myself the time to step back and reevaluate, but every time I come back to the block, I still don't like it.

I think the right course of action at this time is to take it apart and start again; I need the backing and batting squares since I have a fairly limited supply of each.

To reconstruct the block, I think I'll go back to the sketch that originally inspired me. I still love this sketch, and I think the improv piecing method from the block instructions doesn't work well with the angles and sizes I've drawn.

Instead, I think something more akin to foundation paper piecing might work. Obviously this is dramatically different from the original intent of the instructions; I've changed the block from improv, to something very planned and structured. But as I learned in my improv mini quilt research; improv piecing isn't a style, it's a process of trial and error, and of finding your way through making mistakes.

I'm feeling much more confident in this choice. Having an idea to work with has really renewed my interest in this block, and I'm excited to give this new method a try!

On top of some decision making for the July block, a new block has been released for the month of August! This block is called En Pointe and was designed by MJ Kinman.

Kinman, MJ. "En Pointe." 2021.

It's a really interesting block and comes with a lot of great suggestions for arranging colours and contrast. As much as I would definitely consider making a whole quilt with this block alone, I'm concerned that it's a little too representational to fit with the rest of the abstract blocks I've made so far.

I spent a little time thinking about how to incorporate my colour scheme into the block pattern, but none of the sketches really stood out to me.

Last night, I came up with the idea of sub-cutting the block and rearranging the pieces to create something more fractured and abstract. I'm really interested in this possibility, but haven't had time to make any sketches. I guess we'll see where this block takes me in the next Update!

After spending so much time thinking about piecing, I realize I've neglected the quilting part of this quilt-as-you-go project. Thinking back to about a month ago, you may remember this quilting diagram for Christina Cameli's Firework block:

I was really enthusiastic about it at the time, but I ended up putting it off. I realize now that it's because I'm still a little intimidated by free motion quilting.

Back in the spring, I did a few tests with a common free motion quilting motif called pebbles, which you can read more about here. It really wasn't that hard, but the motifs I would be doing for the Firework block are a little different. I think if I just take the leap and give it a try, I'll find that it isn't actually so difficult, it might even be a good idea to work it into the Summer Mini Quilts Challenge as some practice!

If you're interested in making any of these blocks for yourself, they are all available as free patterns on the National Quilt Museum's website!

Summer 2021 Mini Quilts Challenge

And speaking of my mini quilts, I've completed several since the last Update! If you don't already know what the Summer Mini Quilts Challenge is, check out my Challenge Announcement for more information.

For week five of the challenge, I finished my English paper pieced mini quilt following the hand quilting prompt:

Hand quilting isn't a completely new technique for me, but one which I've only recently started practising. If you'd like to see my previous attempts, check out the Segmented Circle and Beach Dreams blocks from the NQM BoM, and the Wholecloth mini quilt from the first week of the challenge.

All of my past attempts have been mixed with machine quilting, and the handwork was quilted in my hands, without additional support. For my challenge quilt, I wanted to include only hand quilting, and try quilting with the use of a hoop.

It ended up feeling a little awkward, most likely just because I need more practice, but I had a lot of fun with it and I'm more excited than ever to continue learning about hand quilting in the future! To see more of the making process for this mini quilt, and the research that helped shape it, check out my English paper piecing and hand quilting posts!

After all the handwork on that mini, I wanted to move into a project with a little more machine work involved, so for week six I chose the improv piecing prompt!

Before starting, I already knew that improv is a huge category with a lot of methodologies contained within it. What I didn't realize is that improv isn't actually a style unto itself, rather, it is an approach to quilt making. A process wherein a project is started without a clear plan, and mistakes and changes are embraced along the way.

With all of that in mind, I ended up making this mini quilt following an improv piecing method called crumb piecing. For more about that, check out my improv mini quilt post!

For week seven, the halfway point for this challenge, I took a break! Knowing when to take some time off is really important for the creative process. Constantly working on projects, making new things, and expanding your skills and creativity can be pretty taxing.

I've found that the pace of the Mini Quilts Challenge, mixed with the complexity of the projects I enjoy making, is a little more difficult to keep up with than I imagined. Despite that, I'm still very proud of the quilts I've made, and the experimentation I've engaged with!

This week, I'm back into week eight of the Summer Mini Quilts Challenge with a new prompt, mug rugs!

At this point, all I have left to complete this mini quilt is binding, which I'm hoping to do this afternoon. If you're interested to learn more about this project, check back with me next Monday for a post with my research and the making of the mini quilt!

Mask Making

Last week, I worked on a new mask for myself as a small weekend project! Throughout the last year, many sewists have been making and designing their own masks, and I have been no exception.

This new mask uses a few fabric remnants you may have seen me work with before; on one side is a white and green floral used in my Rainbow Railfence quilt, and on the reverse is an abstract print, reminiscent of the reflection of trees in water that I used in the initial test of my Rainy Day Friends quilt. The ties for this mask use some leftover binding strips from Rainbow Railfence, and I made an interlining from plain white.

Like all of my masks so far, this one is reversible and sewn entirely by hand! It uses a generic mask pattern which I adjusted to fit my face specifically. I was inspired to make a custom mask pattern for myself after watching w/Wendy's video on making fabric masks.

That's all for this week Friends! I've had so much fun working on these projects, and after a week off, I'm excited to continue!

Let me know what you've been up to, or if you have any suggestions for the projects I'm struggling with, in the comments below! If you'd like to keep up with my progress between updates, feel free to visit me on Instagram @vafibrearts!

Until Next Time Friends, Keep Creating!

VA

Image Citation:

Kinman, MJ. "En Pointe." 2021. August 2021: En Pointe, National Quilt Museum, 2021, p.4, https://quiltmuseum.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/augustbotm2021-final.pdf.