We Bee With It January - June 2014

January is my month to be Queen Bee
in the We Bee With It online quilting bee!
For me, the hardest part of quilting bees is choosing the block, there are so many wonderful blocks to choose from!!! Finally I have decided which block I will be using, thanks to "Modern Quilts from the Blogging Universe"

(I just love this book!) I was inspired by Kati Spencer's "Improv Color Blocks", immediately I thought these blocks would be a great way to use many of my scraps, Kati's quilt is on page 72 of the book. My blocks will be Scrappy Blocks instead of Color Blocks with at least one piece of solid white or muslin per block. As I stated earlier, I was inspired by Kati's Improv Color Blocks...my blocks will be 12 1/5 inch square and not 10 inch square.  

Once all the blocks are completed I plan to sash them with very narrow dark sashing add a border...create a scrappy back and hand quilt. I hope to have it completed by the first warm Spring day so I can celebrate with a picnic! :)

 
Making the Improv Scrappy Blocks[the best part: no 2 blocks are the same]

You will need:
12 1/2 square template[I made one using copy paper]
fabric scraps
iron
sewing machine
thread
scissors and or a rotary cutter


1. Gather fabric scraps, you may need to iron them if you are like me...wrinkled fabric doesn't trim well.
2. Make sure that there is some white or muslin fabric in your scraps.
3. Prints, solids, florals, plaid, dots basically anything goes.
4. Lay out your fabrics, in the shape of a square roughly 16 to 20 inches. Don't panic, this allows for seam allowances and trimming.
5. When assembling the blocks, work in small sections, pressing seams open after each seam is stitched...this prevents 'bulk-build-up'. After the individual unit sections are completed the assembly of the block is a snap!
6. Once the block is in one piece, press again [so it will lay nice and flat] pin the 12 1/2 inch template in place and trim. The remaining scraps can be used in your next scrappy improve block or yet another creative adventure!


                 ::TIP::
        Y Seams are your friend!
When creating improve blocks, let's face it, seams don't always line up nice and neat. Y Seams allow for what I like to call 'broken seams' and mismatched shapes.

When creating Y Seams, it helps to leave about 1/2 inch un-stitched where the seams come together temporarily as you fit the sections to each other...this makes joining the seams much easier.

To help if you have never sewn Y Seams here are a couple of tutorials, the first one is 'still shots' and the second is a video.

http://www.freshlemonsquilts.com/?p=1373



http://www.jinnybeyer.com/quilting-with-jinny/tips-lessons/detail.cfm?instanceId=71DAA699-0AFE-8A90-85D38BA999BD18D8

These blocks are a fun way to use bits and pieces of fabrics scraps of almost any size can be used! I am looking forward to being able to use many of my favorite fabric scraps...I'm sure you have some too! You know the ones...the fabrics you love and just can't part with even the smallest scrap.

Happy Quilting!
with love as always,
Carol a.k.a. Beulah