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Tuesday, June 27, 2017

June QAL-week 4

Welcome to week 4-the final week-of the June QAL! It's been fun to see your work popping up on Instagram. If you would like to check out the instructions from the previous weeks, I've added the links below for easy reference:

week 1
week 2
week 3

This week we are going to assemble the quilt top and talk about quilting options.

The first step is to lay out the pieces according to the diagrams below. I would recommend using a design wall, if you have one. If not, the floor works, too. :)
baby size layout

lap size layout

assembly diagram

The June quilt is set on point (the blocks are placed at a 45 degree angle, rather than a 90 degree angle), so the quilt will be assembled in diagonal rows. The assembly diagram above illustrates how the rows are pieced together. It may look a bit complicated, but it's not difficult if you take it one step at a time. Arrows indicate pressing directions.

When adding an outside corner setting triangle (piece C) to a string block, use this method to align and sew the triangles:


When adding a small setting triangle (piece E) to a string block, use this method to align and sew the triangles:


When adding a large setting triangle (piece A) to a string block, use this method to align and sew the triangles:


Yesterday I took a bunch of photos to illustrate the steps above, but as I was working on the post this morning, I realized that I was assembling the quilt from a different corner than the instructions in the book, so it would have been super confusing. (Blergh!!) So, hopefully these illustrations will get the point across. 

This is when it gets exciting!!! I put the pieces up on my design wall, (minus a few string blocks, because they weren't all finished at this point) and I was delighted to see how this version is coming along.
 I really, really like it!!!
Here's a closer look at the patchwork. I like that I ended up using two different kinds of aqua for the cornerstones. It's not disruptive at all and it adds a lot of interest to the quilt. Plus, I was able to use what I had, which was key. Making do with what you have can be a very good thing!
It's amazing how different it looks from my first layout, isn't it? This really (!!!) illustrates the importance of editing. It's fun to see the progression by comparing the two side by side. It will be fun to sew the quilt together and see the finished product.

Now, let's talk quilting ideas.
For the original June quilt in the book, I sent it off to Steffani, who quilted it on her long arm. She helped me pick out this all over loop pattern. I still love this choice of quilting! I was especially happy to not have to wrangle an 85" square quilt through my machine. Ha!

My friend Katherine did a great job quilting her version of the quilt. Scroll down to the bottom of this post to see the fabulous quilting that she did on her domestic machine. It's really quite incredible!

One other quilting idea I had was to use a walking foot to do some concentric square quilting in the larger squares, but I am not sure how I would quilt the rest of the areas. Maybe you have a good suggestion for that?

One last thought....if you take a photo of your quilt and print a copy onto paper, you can practice drawing quilting designs to audition your ideas before you turn on the sewing machine. Hopefully the sketching ahead of time can help you avoid a lot of stitch ripping!

There you go! This post wraps up the June quilt along! Please remember to hashtag your photos with #junequiltQAL on Instagram or Facebook, so I can see your progress. Thank you so much for quilting along with me!

14 comments:

  1. I love this and am going to make one at our guild retreat on July 7-9. I'll be sure to use the hashtag on Instagram. Thank you.

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  2. Love the red and aqua!! It is really a fun quilt!!!!

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  3. Looks lovely with the aqua. I'm thinking about doing daisies in my background blocks, and wavy lines in the pieced sashing and a cork spiral in the cornerstones. LOL, I better practice.

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  4. Love your red & aqua quilt! I'm making a version too, but don't have ig. (You can see it if you visit my blog) Thanks for a great QAL!

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  5. I absolutely love this quilt! The red polka dot squares version just says MAKE ME, and is such a fun quilt! It is now on my list of 'Must Makes'.

    Thank you for making and sharing this one!

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  6. Such a fun, scrappy design, Amanda Jean! I've done one very similar to this, but using telephone book pages as foundation to string-piece scraps. Since making Slopes, I'm so low on scraps that I need to cut out new quilts to generate more! You're such a great scrap-use-up motivator! Thanks for all your neat designs.

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  7. I absolutely adore this !

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  8. Your fabric choices turned out so well!

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  9. Well, I intended to QAL, but life gets in the way! So I have been Following Along and will work on it soon. I am such a novice at quilting on my domestic machine...only table runners and really small wall hangings at this point. Recently I used the concentric squares in the center of a scrappy star block and wavy serpentine stitches in the sashing. It turned out pretty well. I'll post it to Finish It Up Friday, as soon as the binding is done. Tonight, maybe.

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  10. Gosh! This post is chock full of helpful info! I just love the diagrams. They are super helpful make the assembly much easier to grasp. Thanks for sharing it so clearly.

    PS. I love how the color change in the cornerstones makes them pop while the strips recede a bit. yippee!!

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  11. I just finished a scrap quilt but don't know how to share a picture on here. It was fun and very addicting. Have your new book and can't decide which one to make first! Although am thinking it will probably be the 9-patch one. Love your blog - so inspiring!

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  12. That teal with the red really does make that quilt pop. Good edit!

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  13. I LOVE your blog! I had cut strings to kill time while teaching a friend to quilt, so I was super excited when I saw this. I started Monday,or 5 days ago and am ready to see the rows. Thanks so much. I love how it turned out.

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  14. Oh, Spotty Dotty. What a lovely simple quilt that packs a punch in colours. I pop over to your blog occasionally & am always amazed how much you fit into your days. Take care.

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