Modern BOM....Block 10, Film Strip

Wow, we really are moving right along with these blocks! 

I guess it feels like that since we doubled up the last two months. We are on Block 10, and there will only be one block per month now, for May and June.

I really enjoyed this month's block. 

First things first, cut out all the pieces you'll need. A heads-up...for the Half-Square Triangles, I think you could use smaller pieces, I had more waste than usual making these using 3.5" squares.

I didn't cut the so-called "scraps" of focal fabrics at this point.

Make your HST's and the 12 "other" blocks (I don't know what else to call them, lol).

For the centre star block, if you don't care for the star, you can actually substitute a block of your choice, as long as it is 6.5" unfinished.

When you cut the scraps for the star points I suggest scraps that are 1.5" - 1.75"wide. Perhaps make one of the units first to get the hang of it.

For the centre of the star block you can do one of three things...

1. use background fabric like in the instructions

2. use a print fabric

3. fussy cut a fabric....always fun!

I took a couple of pictures to show the difference...

....I fully intended on using background fabric for mine, but I really liked seeing the print in the middle. A tip...I took all three pictures, then looked at them on my phone so I could see what I liked best. Doing this did help me decide!

Lay out all of your components and shuffle them around until you are pleased with the arrangement. I did make a mistake in this layout so as to make a point. Nowhere in the block should any of the focus fabrics touch the outside edge of the block. Note the upper left corner where I've got the corner unit placed incorrectly.

In this picture you can see it corrected...

Next, sew the units to the left and right of the star block together, then the upper and lower units...

Then sew the final seams to complete your block!

Now, I could have switched out the really short star point with a longer one (that was the first point that I sewed), but I'm ok with the quirkiness of it.

I'm going to put a bug in your ear to maybe start thinking of how you want your quilt put together in the end. There are so many possibilities.

I arranged my blocks on the design wall in no particular order...

Then I arranged them on point...

Remember, if you choose to do your blocks on point you will need a thirteenth block.  I kind of have an idea of a block in my mind to offer you, but I'll have to test it out first. 

Remember...share your work on Instagram using the hashtags #tqgmodernbom, and #twilightquiltersguild.

You can find the link to the Twilight Quilters' Guild blog post for our April block, in which you will find the link to the instructions for this block...HERE

Have fun!!

Modern BOM - Block 2 - Bordered Star

Happy Spring! What beautiful weather we've been experiencing. I hope to finish my work early today and get out to soak up some of this sunshine!

Our second block this month is called Bordered Star and I quite enjoyed it. There are a few segments to complete, but by just concentrating on one at a time you'll find it all comes together nicely in the end.

First, of course, is to cut all the pieces you'll need. I suggest you make a note on your pattern as to which fabrics are your Colour #1 - #5. This will help greatly in keeping everything organized. 

 

The first step is easy enough...actually none of the steps are difficult, it's just a matter of doing each step carefully. 

Here you can see I've sewn the 2 large squares together and sliced them on the diagonal...

I will be using two rulers that I find useful...keeping in mind that neither of them are necessary, you can easily complete the pattern with the technique you are familiar with. 

The first ruler I am using is the Bloc Loc, which I sometimes use for squaring up HST's. There is a slight "ledge" under the ruler that sits nicely on your seam. The trick to this ruler is to remember that the "letters" on the ruler, sit on the "lower" fabric (both start with the letter L)...

The next step is to snowball the corners...sewing on the dotted line that I have shown...

This is actually where I am using the second featured ruler, The Simple Folded Corner ruler. I quite like this ruler and use it whenever I can because it gives good results. Again, not necessary, of course, to use this ruler.

Next up is making flying geese. Again, this is where I sometimes will use my Simple Folded Corners ruler...and again, not necessary, but it does give good results. Make 4 flying geese using your background fabric and Colour #1

Then we make 4 more flying geese...being very careful about paying attention to your colour positioning.

This is the point that I will give you a little tip to have success at blocks with many different elements. Take the time to make sure each step results in an accurate size. For example, your flying geese should measure 2.5" x 4.5", unfinished.

Here I show all the segments of my block, ready to be sewn together...including 4 HST's...

Lay your units out carefully according to the picture in the instructions. 

Sew your flying geese units together, being careful of placement, as well as the centre HST's. For this I pressed my seams open to reduce bulk, especially since I am using Shweshwe fabrics, which are thicker than your normal quilting cottons. What you have now is basically a 9-patch to sew together.

And there you have it, a beautiful Bordered Star block! I really do like this block.

I did check with Lana at Quilt Junction...she does carry both rulers that I mentioned, although at the moment she only has a smaller sized Bloc Loc than what is needed for this block. I have no affiliation with the rulers, just passing on techniques that I find helpful. 

Please remember to post your blocks on Instagram if you can, using the hashtags #tqgmodernbom and #twilightquiltersguild. It's also nice to see a group picture of your blocks that we've done so far. 

From here on out we will go back to releasing one block per month. 

You can find the link to the instructions HERE at the blog post for the Twilight Quilters' Guild.

Modern BOM - March, block 1 - Starburst

Another new block already!

As stated before, we are doubling up on blocks a bit to fit the 12 blocks into 10 months. 

We will have a second block in March. Again, I figured this made sense as it's still not "sitting in the garden" weather, and we are still somewhat limited in going out and about as of yet.

This month is a paper-pieced block called Starburst...

I will be your cautionary tale...please check the size of the paper-piecing units in your photo copy...it should be 4.5". I have never had a problem with the sizing on a photo copy, so I just went ahead, and when I got to this stage of the block...

...my block measured 8" square, instead of 8.5". I checked back with my photo copy and the units only measured 4.25".

If you happen to make the same mistake as me, you can fix it easily. I just made the background strips wider. I cut them 3" wide and in the end just had to slice a sliver off the block to bring it to the required 12.5"...

In fact, maybe it's a good idea to make your background strips a little wider anyway in case your block comes out a bit wonky, then you can square it up nicely in the end!

Here are a few more tips for you...

When cutting the paper units apart, don't cut on the cutting line just yet, leave a bit extra all around as you can see marked in red in my picture. You will trim the unit to 4.5" once all the fabric has been sewn on....

Usually when doing a paper-pieced block you would leave the paper in until the whole block is pieced together. For this block I chose to remove the paper after the 4 units were completed. Up to you!

When it came time to sew 2 units together, there is a lot of bulk in the spot that will become the centre of your block. I found it especially so using the shweshwe fabrics that I am using as they are a bit thicker than regular quilting cotton. In this next picture you will see that the unit on the right has some wonky sewing where I've circled...

The circled area shows where my sewing machine struggled to get over the bulky bit.

I remembered a tip I'd heard for getting over the bulk of seams while hemming jeans. The tip was to get your presser foot propped up to the same level as what the bulk is. You can see in the picture below that I folded a piece of cardstock a couple of times and placed it under the presser foot. It worked like a charm, as you can see by the seam in the picture above that is not circled. I've been told that some machines do have a foot that helps for this sort of thing...for Pfaff it seems it's called a "hump jumper"!

When it came time to sew the final seam I couldn't figure out why I was having trouble getting over that last "hump"...then I figured it out...

....I'll take it as the sewing gods reminding me that it's been a very long time since I changed my needle.

I then proceeded over that final hump very carefully, manually making the stitches one by one, raising the presser foot and moving my block along with each stitch. Hopefully you won't have a probably if you are using regular quilting cotton, but do be careful.

And so I have my block finished. Of course, the white background strips are wider than they are supposed to be....but only you and I will know, right???

One last tip....if your centre doesn't turn out as well as you might hope, do what I would do, applique a circle over it and it will be beautiful. If you do choose to do that, maybe carefully snip away the bulky bit behind the applique. A little strategically placed applique cures all!

You can find the instructions HERE on the Twilight Quilters' Guild site. 

Remember to post your blocks on Instagram using the hashtags #tqgmodernbom, and #twilightquiltersguild. If you don't use Instagram but would like to share you can send a picture of your block to me and I'd be glad to do it. It's also nice once in a while to include a picture of all your blocks that are completed so far.

Have fun!

February Modern BOM - Block 2 - Curves

 The block for this segment of the BOM is called "Curves".

It is a good introduction to sewing curves. If the thought makes you nervous, just push that thought aside and dive in. I promise the block will be nice in the end, even if it turns out a bit different than the one in the instructions....which is what happened to me!

It wasn't the curves that gave me a problem...I really don't know where I went wrong. I thought of re-doing the block, but then realised that this is a good lesson in itself. My block looks fine and no one will ever know that it isn't "as it's supposed to be". This is supposed to be our hobby...and be fun...it's not worth getting our knickers in a twist about it.

On that note, the following is how constructed the block, and how I "fixed" it. By the way, Stephanie Sinden has made this block, and it did turn out...so it can be done!  (I think I may have jinxed myself on the previous block, when I said it was my favourite, and nice and easy to do!)

Here are my fabrics cut out as per instructions. I ended up needing more background fabric to fix my block, so make sure you pick a background fabric that you have extra of, just in case you find yourself in the same boat!

My fabrics all sewn together...

Here is where I've marked my first curve. 

...and then cut that curve...the white bit on the left is discarded, the white fabric on the right of the curve is what we are sewing to the printed fabrics...

We are not going to use pins to attach the two...trust me!...

Slowly sew the two together, bringing the edges together as you sew. I would say if this is your first time trying this just sew an inch at a time, pause, then bring the next inch together. I find that using the "needle down" feature is useful for this if you have the option on your sewing machine.

These next pictures show my progress. Somewhere in here I've gone wrong....and I feel bad that I can't advise you better than I am. All I can say is follow the directions and see how it goes (sorry)...

So....at this point the block should be done!....but mine came out too narrow, not even close to the 12.5" it should be. I think it was more like 10"!

So, to fix mine I flipped the block around 180degrees and repeated the process with another white strip. I think I used a piece 4" wide to make sure that I had a block big enough.

I used my 12.5" ruler to cut the block to size...

...and here is my finished block. It is not like it's supposed to be, but it's a nice block nonetheless...

So this month's lesson is to not be uptight about perfection....I know that in traditional piecing we have to worry more about being precise, but that is not the case in most modern piecing, and especially true for this block!

Please remember to post your finished block on Instagram using the hashtag #tqgmodernbom and #twilightquiltersguild. I can't wait to see your blocks! It's also nice to see pictures of all the blocks you've made so far.

To access the instructions for this block, we are going to try something a bit different. You can find the instructions through the website of the Twilight Quilters' Guild...HERE. Just scroll down that page and you will find a link to the Curves block instructions.

P.S. Please don't let my difficulty with this block scare you off, obviously I'm missing something, just not sure what it is! If it makes you more comfortable, you can always do a test block first.