Well folks, it happened. I have a new hobby.
It was bound to happen — I hadn’t tried a new craft in a while. What surprises me is the craft itself: quilt piecing.
Quilting has always intimidated me. I admire the craft, but never thought I’d be good at it or brave enough to try. But when my friend asked if I would attend a paper-piecing class she was teaching, I took the plunge.
The class was at Stitch in Westover — a charming fabric shop that regularly hosts classes. My friend Jennifer Kahly led the class through a project I’d admired when I saw her working on it recently.
The project was the triangle log cabin mini paper piecing block from the Alison Glass and Giucy Guice mini-series block challenge. The pattern starts with a teeny, tiny triangle at the center –— it is about half the size of my pinky fingernail.
Much to my relief I didn’t have to cut out that small a piece. Instead, I just roughly cut a small piece and started by gluing it on to the back of the paper pattern with a glue stick.
The next step was to fold the paper over a straight edge along the pattern line and using an add an eighth ruler and a rotary cutter on a cutting mat, cut the fabric the perfect amount. Since my sewing has all been apparel, home decor or other craft projects, I wasn’t familiar with an add an eighth ruler but boy is it a handy tool.
The ruler is tapered with a lip on the bottom side of the higher edge. When this lip is butted against the edge of the pattern (and the straight edge piece I folded the pattern over) it adds an eighth of an inch — so when the rotary cutter rolls against the side, it adds the perfect amount for the seam. A brilliant tool.
After cutting, I placed my next fabric scrap against the edge I just cut, pinned it to the other fabric and paper, turned the whole thing over and sewed along the pattern line.
Then I flipped it back and pressed the two fabrics open with a handheld roller. Then I continued. Each pattern piece was numbered, guiding me around the triangle.
I made a few mistakes, such as using too small a fabric scrap for one section leaving a small corner gap.
But I was actually glad for this gaffe because I could correct it under the guidance of the instructor.
The pattern had suggested colors, a gradient of yellows to blues. But since I wanted to use some small scraps in my stash, I didn’t purchase these.
I found I had a lot of difficulty choosing a color order. Wanting to make the most of class time, I didn’t spend too long considering the sequence and ended up deciding as I went along.
In the end I’m glad I rushed through the color decision process. If I’d been alone at home, I would have deliberated and worried for ages about the color order. But I don’t think I would have ended up with a better result.
Although I’m thrilled to now have a grasp on this quilt-piecing technique, and would love to have a handmade quilt, somehow, I don’t see myself managing to finish that many blocks. However, my mind is already whirring over how I could work intricately pieced blocks into the new items I want to sew for my wardrobe.
ALDONA BIRD is a journalist, previously writing for The Dominion Post. She uses experience gained working on organic farms in Europe to help her explore possibilities of local productivity and sustainable living in Preston County. Email columns@dominionpost.com.
