Red Pepper Quilts: Single Irish Chain Scrap Quilt

Friday, October 23, 2015

Single Irish Chain Scrap Quilt - Work in Progress

Single Irish Chain Quilt - Work in Progress | Red Pepper Quilts 2015

This quilt has been on my mind for some time and this week I finally tackled it. The pattern is a a traditional Single Irish Chain Quilt set on point, which rather reminds me of Granny Square blocks. It is a interesting quilt which emerges from a simple design ~ alternating a square with a Nine Patch block ~ more often seen in reverse (that is, the printed fabrics are a white/solid fabric, and the solid/white solid fabric is a single contrast fabric).

I've further complicated the design by using scrappy fabrics. This means that each Nine Patch block has a very specific fabric layout, as is determined by the adjoining printed fabrics. Cutting out the scrappy fabrics was not complicated - one large square plus 4 small squares for each printed fabric - the same however could not be said for sewing the quilt top together. There is no simple "sit and sew" technique. Instead all of the fabric pieces were laid out and arranged, and the nine pieces for each Nine Patch block were carefully picked up to ensure correct fabric placement, and then sewn together. One nine patch block at a time, one row at a time.

Scrappy Irish Chain Quilt

Quilt Stats
Quilt top measures 47 inches x 58 inches

80 Nine Patch Blocks

99 Large Squares and 99 different printed fabrics.

819 pieces plus setting triangles along quilt edges.
(solid fabric is Robert Kaufman Kona in White)

Sewing the top together became a puzzle marathon; joining the pieces together in a logical way to ensure that the pattern was maintained throughout. It was a good way to challenge my patience and I was super happy to sew together that last Nine Patch block and eventually the quilt top!