Bonnie Hunter released the first mystery quilt clue on the day after Thanksgiving - right when I was SO SICK! I couldn't do any sewing for days, so that put me behind on it before I even got started! At least the first clue was easy - four-patch blocks made out of scrappy neutral fabrics. The only bad thing was that I have to make 221 of them, and I'm only up to about 100. Yikes!
I had high hopes of finishing them this week in time for the next clue release on Friday, but it just didn't happen, so now I'm in catch-up mode. Bonnie suggests for those of us who fall behind, so stay with the clues and at least make a few of whatever each new one is so we can get a handle of what's going on and any what techniques it requires. I'm worried if I move on from the four-patches, I'll never go back! So I'm going to persevere and get these done before the week is over.
They're made out of neutrals, and I'm going a little out of my comfort zone and using things that will read as neutral from a distance but maybe not up close. I'm also using scraps for most of the quilt, so I'm hoping the overall look is one I like. It's hard to tell with mystery quilts. I'm just going by faith in Bonnie!
They're made out of neutrals, and I'm going a little out of my comfort zone and using things that will read as neutral from a distance but maybe not up close. I'm also using scraps for most of the quilt, so I'm hoping the overall look is one I like. It's hard to tell with mystery quilts. I'm just going by faith in Bonnie!
Bonnie is a stickler for accuracy. She talks about making sure our quarter-inch seams are accurate of course, but she also talks a lot about accurate cutting and giving ourselves the full width of the strip. She stresses having the line of the ruler right up on the fabric, not the mat...low and behold I've been doing it wrong all these years. It's just a thread or two, but those add up when you consider all the pieces in quilts - if each one is short a thread or two, you're talking about being inches short overall.
One other new thing I knew about but had never done, and that is spinning seams. This is when you open up a seam intersection so that you can press (or spin) the seams so that the center is nice and flat and you eliminate some bulk. Bonnie told us to give it a try, and I'm loving the results so far - nice flat four-patches that are accurately sized. It's a miracle!
One other new thing I knew about but had never done, and that is spinning seams. This is when you open up a seam intersection so that you can press (or spin) the seams so that the center is nice and flat and you eliminate some bulk. Bonnie told us to give it a try, and I'm loving the results so far - nice flat four-patches that are accurately sized. It's a miracle!
I understand the concept of opening the seam for a flat center but aren't you running the risk of having a "weak" spot & the chance of your center of your square opening up over time? Just wondering!! Aunt Karen
ReplyDeleteYeah...anytime instructions say "Open the seam" I get a little nervous! However, I've searched around and nobody seems to be concerned about the possibility of seams popping in the future. I think it's probably about as risky as pressing seams open vs. to the side.
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