100 Day Project - 50+ Days Done

I'm at the halfway point for my 100 Day Project - a controlled improv hand quilted whole cloth quilt!  (I officially started on April 7 but you can start your own 100 days of creativity anytime you want.)

This project is impossible to get a good photo of! 

The texture feels amazing and I enjoy running my hands over the piece.

I am a little concerned with the bumps and puckers you can see.  Some of this is just wrinkles as I handle the quilt sandwich every day - it is linen afterall.  They should go away once the quilt is blocked. 

Some of them though may be because the thread is being pulled too tight? 

This next picture gives you an idea what it looks like at the halfway done point!

Just a few basic rules to guide my 100 day journey.

Rule 1: The pattern each day is chosen for me by a roll of the dice - each possible combination from 2 through 11 has a assigned pattern.  A lucky roll of double sixes give me free choice!  My only other rule is I can't quilt the same design 2 days in a row.

Rule 2: The 'block' I'm quilting needs to connect to a previously quilted area in my basket weave like grid.  Each rectangle is 1 1/2 '' x 3''.  To get started, I sewed a 1 1/2'' grid over the linen fabric to frame out the daily areas to quilt.

Rule 3: Enjoy it and don't sweat the details.

Have a wonderful day! Patty

Book Club - Elizabeth Link-up

Welcome to the week 9 link-up for Book Club - A Hand Pieced QAL.  We are so excited to see what you have made!  Read more about Elizabeth and the book behind the block.



This link-up will be open for two weeks - until June 11 (4 am ET/1 am PT).  You are welcome to share any and all of the blocks you completed this week.  When this link-up closes, a new one will open (magic!) so please don't worry if you fall behind.

This week’s sponsor is Quilters Dream!

One lucky winner will receive a Quilters Dream 100% cotton, queen size batting.

Quilters Dream Batting uses the finest fibers and state of the art manufacturing to bring you quilt batting of unsurpassed quality and consistency.  They use the softest silkiest high-quality fibers so that your quilt will resist shrinkage and stay soft yet strong and wonderfully drapeable.  Each batt is hand cut and carefully inspected.  Made with pride in the USA.

Photos can be shared from a blog, Flickr, or Pinterest and much include a  link to Elm Street Quilts or Simple Handmade Everyday.  Photos can also be shared via a public Instagram and must contain the tag #handpiecedqal and/or #bookclubqal 

Don't have a way to share?  You can also email them to handpiecedqal at gmail dot com.  Need instructions on how to link-up?  See the tutorial!

Blocks shared must follow the guidelines below to be eligible to win a prize.

We hope you take a few minutes to visit others and make new friends!

Please note - sharing a photo in the link-up gives Elm Street Quilts and Simple Handmade Everyday permission to feature a photo of your block on their sites.  Full attribution will be given.

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Guidelines:

• Blocks must be entirely hand-pieced.  
• Block must visually match a block to the Book Club - A Hand Pieced QAL pattern.    Blocks can be made a different size.
• Finished blocks can be shared in any link-up but can only be shared once.  Duplicates will be disqualified.
• Multiple blocks created by one quilter may be shared in the same link-up.
• Winners will be chosen randomly and notified via email.  Winners have 72 hours to claim their prize - if we don't hear back, we will draw another name.  Once winners have claimed their prize, this post will be updated with the winner's name.

For more information on the QAL including catching up with any tutorials you've missed, please visit the main event page - Book Club - Hand Pieced QAL.   

You can also join our Hand Pieced Quilt Along Facebook Group and / or subscribe to our newsletter so you'll be among the first to know about new block tutorials.

Haven't yet purchased the pattern?  Get your copy here!

Have a wonderful day! Patty

Hand Pieced QAL - Elizabeth

Having fun hand piecing?  It's time to get started on our block #9 - Elizabeth.  (And it is hard to believe  this is the last block!)

Elizabeth has more pieces than our last two blocks but the curves are easier to piece than our last block.  Take your time and enjoy the stitching!

Let's see how you like Elizabeth compared to her friends -
Evelyn, Jane, Penelope, Louisa, Cathy,  Jo,  Emma, and Claire,  Curved piecing (IMHO) is much easier to do by hand than it is by machine.  (See the tips for hand piecing curves.)

Still need the pattern for Book Club for the Hand Pieced QAL - grab yours now!  Book Club is a 9 block sampler and two block setting to make either a wall hanging or a throw sized quilt.  Did you miss the QAL announcement?  You can find more information here!  If you have any trouble ordering the pattern, please don't hesitate to email us at handpiecedqal@gmail.com - we'll be happy to help!


Tips & Tricks

There are six shapes needed to make our Elizabeth block, all of which need to be cut with templates.  Make sure you mark all your stitching lines on the wrong side of the units.  The Perfect Piecer makes it easy to mark sewing lines even on curves.   Please consult the tutorials for Using Templates and for Marking Stitching Lines if you need some tips.

Once the pieces are cut and prepped, keeping a visual layout in front of you will be key to success.  The fan wedges (shown in orange, blue and gray fabrics below) come from 3 different templates.   It is easy to get them confused so consider sewing those first! (I am using my wonderful wool pressing mat to keep everything organized.)

One technique when handpiecing small or complex curves is to cut a 1/4'' larger on all the straight edges in the template.  Mark your seam lines where they are supposed to be and sew on those original seam lines.  (See more tips on hand piecing curves.)

Sew the wedges together first.

Sew the quarter circle to the arch shape.  Always sew with the concave curve facing up.

Fold the quarter circle unit in half to mark the center and then aligned it with the seam between the two center wedges.  (If you look carefully, you can see the fold in the photo below.)

Note that the gold quarter circle is overcut on the straight edge - the white arch piece is not but only because I forgot to do so when cutting. The excess will get trimmed away at a later step but it gave me some piece of mind when dealing with small curves.

When you are sewing the fan wedges to the arch, pass your needle through those seam intersections!

Repeat the fold and crease of the outside concave piece and align with seam lines between the two center edges.   This curved seam is a little trickier to sew because you need to keep the concave piece on top while also making sure you sew through seam allowances (and not over them) at the bottom.  To make it work, I flipped the piece over each time I need to sew through a seam allowance.

The concave outer edge was also cut larger on each of the straight edges.  Once the block is pressed, align the 45 degree marking on your ruler and trim the block to 9 1/2 '' x 9 1/2 ''

The link-up for Elizabeth (or any blocks you make this week) will open on Thursday, May 28.  You can also add your blocks to the currently open week 8 link-up which closes Thursday right as the week 9 link-up opens.  If you share on IG, please tag your photo with #bookclubqal and #handpiecedqal.

Make sure you go visit Kristen and see her Elizabeth block!

The Book behind the Block

We are first introduced to Elizabeth as she arrives in a small wilderness town in NY to become a school teacher.  The year is 1792.  Elizabeth soon meets and falls in love with Nathaniel, a white man who grew up as part of the Mohican nation.  Their story (and that of their children) unfolds in the six book Wilderness Series by Sara Donati.  Into the Wilderness is the first book.

I enjoy this series of books for several reasons.  First, I love generational stories - they are my favorite!  Second, I also love stories where familiar characters from other novels are woven into the narrative.  Claire (our previous block) from Outlander shows up a few times.  Nathaniel himself is the son of Hawkeye and Cora, first introducted in the novel Last of the Mohicans by James Fenimore Cooper and then dramatized in the movie (made in 1992).

We chose to name this block Elizabeth to represent how the story begins with Elizabeth and then flows out through time as her family grows.  (In fact, the author has started a new series - the first book is the Gilded Hour - which picks up in 1883 and feature grandchildren and great-grandchildren of Elizabeth!)

Stay in touch and join our community so you don't miss a thing! 

• Join our Hand Pieced Quilt Along Facebook Group.  

• Subscribe to our newsletter 

• Follow Simply Everyday Handmade and Elm Street Quilts on Instagram

Have a wonderful day! Patty