Orange and Gray

Okay, I started working on this orange and gray quilt last fall.  I didn't go to the store and pick out all my fabrics at once - that can be a faulty strategy, especially for a beginner.  When you force yourself to pick everything out at one time you might miss a fabric that will be out next week or a good sale price for the material.  However, if you're not very picky or not worried about the cost, picking out everything can be kind of fun.  Okay, back to the quilt.  I collected some fat quarters (pre-cut pieces of material, 18"x21", equal to an 1/8 yard of material) and a few remnant pieces (fabrics that are bolt leftovers or have holes or damage and get marked down really cheap) and I bought a few pieces off the bolt.  I washed all my materials as you always should with 100% cotton. 

Side note:  I NEVER use material I cannot throw in the washing machine.  I have been given yards and yards of fabric and bought remnants that I had no care instructions for and the first thing I did was wash it in cold water and dry it on regular heat.  When I get the material free or cheap, I really haven't lost much if it doesn't survive.  However, if I sit there and spend 3 days making a dress I love and throw it in the wash and lose it - I've really lost something.chose a brick wall pattern (the fabrics are cut in strips and offset each other so the effect is like a brick wall, staggered elongated pieces) and got to cutting.  I cut 2.5"x9" strips till I got tired of it, and sewed them one to the other till I had a really long chain.

Okay, so I got all my cottons washed, then I ironed them, to the left is my iron and my absolute favorite, can't live without it, Mary Ellen's Best Press Spray Starch, Lavender Fields Scent.  She also has a Clean Linen and an unscented one.  It's a little more expensive than most, almost $7 a bottle.  The refills are $12 and fill a smaller bottle almost 3 times full.  Usually you can find it on sale though.  Also, if you're around a Hancock Fabrics they run coupons you can use to get it 40% off.  If you don't want to use it for everything, at least keep a bottle around for blacks, as this is truly a non-flaking starch (and it doesn't screw up your iron!).

After I got my fabric ready, I

Here's a picture of the chain and a couple more of my gadgets.  At the top left are my trusty pin cushion and my favorite scissors.  They are the Singer Professional scissors, very sharp and very lightweight.  Titanium scissors are really popular right now but they are very heavy and wear my hand out quickly.  Another thing to pay attention to with scissors is the price. I got my pink scissors on a 50% sale and they were only about $7.  Some scissors retail for about $30-$40 dollars and they are very nice, but the most important thing is how they feel in your hand and how they cut.

                                   

Some more tools (I know I'm really laying it on thick today).  This is a 18"x24" mat and a 6"x24" ruler and my rotary cutter.  These making cutting strips and squares and getting straight edges a lot easier.  They can get expensive but they are so helpful and will save you hours of marking and measuring and headache.

All the piecing to get the chain I actually completed several months ago and just today I picked it up again.  I wasn't sure how big this quilt was going to be, but I had a stray piece of white cotton that I decided to use for the back.  I measured it at 39"x45" and I knew I wanted my chain to run horizantally on the 39" width so I started measuring and cutting 39" long strips out of my chain.  I did not use my cutter and ruler for that, just my mat and scissors.  I know I will have to square up and straighten all my edges when I get done with the quilt so it's easier to just measure the 24" length of the ruler then measure to the 15" line and snip it.

After I finished I laid them out on top of the white cotton and began arranging them in a pleasing fashion, trying to avoid big chunks of whites, oranges or grays.  I played it with it for a while and came up with this:

Today I sewed the first five rows together:

As you can see in both pictures, the color pattern is not perfect - I have some really friendly oranges and grays.  I really love the fabrics and colors in this quilt but I still haven't decided what to do with it.  When I finish the piecing it will be about the size of a baby quilt.  I've thought about several things.  Mostly I've thought about making it bigger. (:  Just so you know - I'm not aiming for perfection here, just completion.  If you put the pressure on to make it perfect, you'll never be satisfied.

I would love to sew and chat some more but today other things are calling.  Tonight I'm trying a new recipe in my slow cooker, a Chicken Chili recipe.  My husband and I very rarely eat meat and I'm only putting in about half of what the recipe actually calls for so I'm hoping it turns out all right.

Till next time, happy sewing!