A Traditional Grandmother's Flower Garden Quilt - Part 1

Work in Progress.

At last, another blog update! I know some of you have been wondering if I am still stitching. I am doing the best I can right now and stitching (in particular English Paper Piecing) is still a daily pastime, but I am very much enjoying the relaxed timeline. Having taken a step back I can see more clearly that the pressure (self-imposed!) to update my blog regularly was starting to impact the joy of making and sharing. I am slowly getting back on track - I sure spend a lot of time thinking about the quilts I want to make - but make no promises. The focus for now is on enjoying the process.

I had no business starting another English Paper Pieced (EPP) quilt for I have yet to baste and quilt  my B is for Blues Hexagon Quilt, but I so enjoy the slow sewing process that starting another EPP quilt was inevitable. This project is a traditional Grandmother's Flower Garden Quilt; with a traditional layout, solid center flowers with a solid yellow center. (This is my second Grandmother's Flower Garden Quilt - see details of my Scrappy Grandmother's Flower Garden Quilt here - it includes instructions on how to prepare the "Flower Units" for easy row sewing).

QUILT DETAILS

Traditional Grandmother's Flower Garden Quilt 

The finished quilt measures 72 inches x 80 inches.

Started: May 2019.

English Paper Pieced.

46 Hexagon Flowers.

1¼ inch hexagons.

A total of 1440 hexagons.

Background fabric:

Robert Kaufman Kona Cotton in Snow.

TOOLS AND NOTIONS

 1¼ Inch Hexagon Papers

1¼ Inch Hexagon Template with 3/8" seam allowance.

Water Soluble Basting Glue - Sewline.

Straw Needles - Size 11.

The Bottom Line 60wt thread by Superior Threads.

A Traditional Grandmother's Flower Garden Quilt - 72 inches x 80 inches.
English Paper Pieced.

The fabrics used for this quilt are all from stash; some fabrics have been part of my stash for some time, some are more recent additions. My fabric selection for this quilt includes medium scale graphic prints (like stripes and gingham) which create striking movement, as well as medium and small scale floral prints, and stash basics (dots). Numerous fabric designs have been fussy cut to feature a design element or to create a graphic element. All fabrics used are quilting cottons, and all solid fabrics are Robert Kaufman Kona Cottons.

I continue to glue baste my papers/fabrics for English Paper Piecing and have no trouble keeping the papers in place for as long as is required, nor do I have difficulty removing the papers. Many of the hexagon papers used for this quilt were previously used to piece my Liberty of London Hexagon Quilt. All the photos shown here are of the quilt top after the papers have been removed, except for along the very edges of the quilt top where papers were left in so that I had the option of making the quilt top bigger should I wish to do so (this now seems unlikely😄).

Thank you for your patience everyone! I really do appreciate that you continue to stop by to check in on what I have been up to.

Happy Stitching!
Rita

RELEVANT LINKS:
More Red Pepper Quilts English Paper Pieced Quilts:
A Scrappy Grandmother's Flower Garden Quilt - September 2018
Mandolin Quilt - May 2018
Liberty Stars Quilt - January 2018
The Daisy Chain Quilt - November 2016
Stretched Hexies Quilt - April 2019

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COPYRIGHT: Do not copy or use any content or photos from my blog without my written permission. This is original content from www.redpepperquilts.com.

An English Paper Pieced - Low Volume - Stretched Hexies Quilt: Part 2

My Stretched Hexies Quilt is finally finished. I may have spent more time thinking about basting and quilting this quilt than the actual doing .... I am such a procrastinator! Of course, the task was not nearly as ominous as I had imagined it to be and I am really very pleased with how the finished quilt looks. Quilting my own hand pieced quilt tops still raises the level of quilting anxiety but I am always happy to embrace the challenge even if it takes that bit longer to get started on the basting and then the quilting.  I have lots of photos to share so please do bear with me!

The quilt has been quilted with straight vertical lines only. I love the simplicity of straight line quilting, both the actual task and the look (and feel) of the finished quilt that closely spaced lines offers! The lines are spaced ½" apart and run from top to bottom edge of the quilt. I have used a quilting guide attached to the walking foot to assist with keeping my lines nice and straight (by running the guide along previous quilting lines). It took many hours of slow stitching, multiple bobbin changes, and lots of quilt wrangling to complete the quilting but it was well worth the effort

When quilting I start at one side of the quilt and work my way to the center of the quilt. I then turn the quilt around and work my way from the center of the quilt to the edge of the quilt. I also start by quilting the lines more widely spaced apart - like 1 inch apart - and then go back and fill in the lines in between.

For the back of the quilt I have used a single floral and strawberry design cotton fabric from the Strawberry Biscuit collection by Elea Lutz for Penny Rose Fabrics. I bought enough yardage of this print for a quilt back and it has been patiently waiting for just the right quilt top ... and this was it.

And for the binding I have used a soft pink and white stripe - Essential Stripe in Baby Pink for Moda Fabrics. (It's not the first time I have used this pretty stripe fabric for binding - see this quilt).

QUILT DETAILS

Stetched Hexies Quilt

The finished quilt measures 49.5 inches x 60 inches.

English Paper Pieced.

710 Stretched Hexagons (Coffin Shapes)

(Custom cut papers from Imprezzio).

Stretched Hexagon measurements:

Short Sides: 1 inch.

Long Sides: 1½ inches.

Fabrics Used: Quilting Cotton

Started: February 2019.

Finished: April 2019.

TOOLS AND NOTIONS

710 Coffin Shape (Stretched Hexagons) Paper pieces.

Coffin Shape Acrylic Template with 3/8" seam allowance.

Water Soluble Basting Glue - Sewline.

Straw Needles - Size 11.

The Bottom Line 60wt thread by Superior Threads

in cream (655).
More quilt top construction and piecing tips here:
https://www.redpepperquilts.com/2019/03/stretched-hexies-quilt-english-paper-pieced.html

This quilt is available for purchase from my Etsy Store.

You will find all the listing details here:
Low Volume ~Stretched Hexagon Quilt 

AND new:

English Paper Piecing Kits
Custom cut Stretched Hexagon papers
plus acrylic template with 3/8" seam allowance
are available for pre-ordering from my Etsy Store.
(limited time only)
SOLD OUT

I have loved working on this quilt! It has been the perfect portable and on the go project over the Summer months. I am busy working on the next EPP quilt and hope to have more to show you of that project soon.

As always, thank you for stopping by! If you have any questions please don't hesitate to email me: redpepperquilts@gmail.com.

Rita

RELEVANT LINKS

Stretched Hexies Quilt - Part 1 Work in Progress
Red Pepper Quilts Etsy Store:

Stretched Hexagons - English Paper Piecing - Quilt Kit

Low Volume Stretched Hexies Quilt - The Finished Quilt

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COPYRIGHT: Do not copy or use any content or photos from my blog without my written permission. This is original content from www.redpepperquilts.com.

A Stretched Hexies Quilt ~ English Paper Pieced

I did not intend to take such a long break from blogging and sharing my sewing adventures! But I have enjoyed taking the "work" out of what has been my normal for the last 10 years; instead simply enjoying the making, and enjoying every decision that comes with that, from leisurely choosing fabric, to design, and every single (slow) stitch. No deadlines, no pressure to document. 

And I have been sewing! I have been working on this Stretched Hexies Quilt top for the last few weeks. This quilt top has been English Paper pieced (EPP). I continue to enjoy this slow sewing process, and have spent many a long and warm Summer days quietly stitching. I really like this traditional coffin shape, but it was pointed out to me that calling this quilt my Coffin Quilt was a little morbid, and as such Stretched Hexies Quilt it is.

The fabrics chosen for this project were predominantly from my "low volume" fabric stash, with a splash of more vibrant color here and there. A low volume fabric to me is a print/design on a white/light background and as you can see my version of low volume is in fact quite colorful (and busy!). All fabrics are printed quilting cottons and range in design from simple basics (dots, stripes, gingham) to floral and text fabrics, and larger scale graphic designs.

Most fabrics have been repeated four times, some have been repeated more often to create a somewhat cohesive look. Many of the fabrics have been fussy cut to feature a fabric design element. All fabrics were cut by using a rotary cutter and a coffin shape acrylic template (with 3/8" seam allowance).

QUILT DETAILS

Stetched Hexies Quilt

Quilt top measures approximately 50 inches x 60 inches.

English Paper Pieced.

710 Stretched Hexagons (Coffin Shapes)

(Custom cut papers from Imprezzio).

Stretched Hexagon measurements:

Short Sides: 1 inch.

Long Sides: 1½ inches.

Started: February 2019.

Fabrics Used:

Quilting Cotton

TOOLS AND NOTIONS

710 Coffin Shape Paper pieces.

Coffin Shape Acrylic Template with 3/8" seam allowance.

Water Soluble Basting Glue - Sewline.

Straw Needles - Size 11.

The Bottom Line 60wt thread by Superior Threads

in cream (655).

I found that the easiest way to sew these shapes together and manage the progress of the quilt top was to piece the coffin shapes together into blocks as pictured above. I pieced 35 such blocks with fabrics chosen at random. Once the blocks were all completed I arranged and re-arranged them until I was happy with the overall layout, and then I pieced the blocks together: first in long vertical rows, and then I joined the long vertical rows together to complete the finished quilt top. Papers were removed as the quilt top progressed.

I now have two finished EPP quilt tops that need quilting (here is the other quilt top) and I have firm plans to finish both within the next few weeks. Let's hope I can commit to doing so without further distraction.

As always, thank you for stopping by!

Rita

RELEVANT LINKS:

More RPQ English Paper Piecing Projects:
B is for Blues - A Hexagon Quilt (December 2018)
A Scrappy Grandmother's Flower Garden Quilt (September 2018)
Liberty of London Hexagon Quilt (September 2018)
Liberty Stars Quilt (January 2018)

More RPQ Low Volume Quilts:
Modern Half Square Triangle Quilt and Quilt Pattern (May 2016)
One Patch Quilt :: Diamonds (July 2018)
Bright Hopes Quilt (November 2017)
A Low Volume Herringbone Quilt (November 2017)

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COPYRIGHT: Do not copy or use any content or photos from my blog without my written permission. This is original content from www.redpepperquilts.com.

B is for Blues ~ A Hexagon Quilt | Part 2

In case you are wondering what I have been up to ... this is it! Needless to say, the process of transforming the 108 hexie flowers from my previous work in progress blog post into a quilt top has been time consuming. Although I had already pictured in my mind how the hexie flowers were all going to fit together, I did spend much time pondering the final layout and the contrasting colors, including the use of the chambray - linen look - fabric for the joining hexie. Was it all going to work?

All photos have been taken after the removal of all papers.

Sometimes when you spend a lot of time staring closely at something, self doubt can creep in, you feel like you've lost your way, and you wonder if your project going to turn out as planned. I finally turned the corner of doubt once many of the units were pieced into long rows, and long rows were sewn together. This stage is probably my favorite part of English Paper Piecing; once the many individual units come together, a quilt top emerges!

Click on any image for a larger view.

I am super pleased with how the quilt top turned out. The color palette has plenty of variation; from deep dark navy to teal, aqua, and baby blue, mixed with a hint of green and shades of grey. The pops of bright yellow have added a ray of sunshine in all the right places. Yes, I did arrange and re-arrange the layout until I was happy with the overall composition of colors, ensuring also that no two the same hexie flowers were alongside one another. Inevitably something always sneaks past my close inspection. I am not perfect!

QUILT DETAILS

B is for Blues ~ A Hexagon Quilt
Quilt top measures approx 55 inches x 67 inches.
English Paper Pieced.

108 Blue/Green/Grey Hexagon Flowers.

88 White Hexie Flowers with (Black Centers).

Hexagon size: 7/8" SIDES.
Total Hexagons: 1861
Started: October 2018

Fabrics Used:

Quilting Cotton

(Many of the floral fabrics are by Japanese designer

Suzuko Koseki for Yuwa Fabrics).
Kona Cotton in White (Robert Kaufman)
Melange Yarn Dyed (Chambray - Cotton) in Natural by Lecien

TOOLS AND NOTIONS
 7/8 Inch Hexagon Papers (1861 hexagons)
7/8 Inch Hexagon Template with 3/8" seam allowance.
Water Soluble Basting Glue - Sewline.
Straw Needles - Size 11.
The Bottom Line 60wt thread by Superior Threads
in white (621), cream (655), and beige (652).

Let's for a moment talk about piecing the 88 solid white hexie flowers. Oh yes, that did test my strength of character: basting 500+ hexie papers with solid white fabric, then piecing the same hexie flower 88 times, over and again. I had to grit my teeth and set myself a daily target, and eventually slow and steady won the race, and it was worth it. 

The hexagon papers have been removed (all the photos here are of the quilt top after the papers have been removed) and this quilt top is now ready for basting and quilting. 

I am signing off until early next year, and wish all of my readers a joyous and peaceful holiday season spent with family and friends. Of course, I also hope you too get to spend some time with needle and thread!

Merry Christmas and best wishes for 2019,

Rita

RELEVANT LINKS:
B is for Blues ~ A Hexagon Quilt | Part 1

More RPQ English Paper Piecing Projects:
A Scrappy Grandmother's Flower Garden Quilt (September 2018)
Liberty of London Hexagon Quilt (September 2018)
Liberty Stars Quilt (January 2018)
Mandolin Quilt (May 2018)

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COPYRIGHT: Do not copy or use any content or photos from my blog without my written permission. This is original content from www.redpepperquilts.com.