Use Your Scraps, Part 7

In previous blog posts I have given you suggestions for strips, squares and triangles.  If you have sorted your scraps, you have probably found fabric chunks that do not fit into any of those categories, and you might be wondering what to do with those.
An easy solution is to create your own fabric from them by sewing them together.  You can combine the colors randomly or sort so that you are only using neutrals, only greens, only reds, etc.  The most important "rule" when creating your scrappy fabric is to make sure you are joining STRAIGHT edges.  This will insure that your finished fabric will lie nice and flat.  So, once the fabric chunks have been pressed, trim a straight edge on each scrap and pair up the scraps according to the length of the straight edge.  Stitch with a 1/4" seam and press the seam allowance to one side.  Trim a straight edge on this pair of scraps and add another scrap to it.  Continue to add pieces in this way until your new fabric is large enough to cut your desired shape from it.
Leftover pieced units from previous quilt projects can be worked into this fabric in the same way as other fabric scraps.  I like to sort my scraps into "large" and "small" before beginning to create my fabric.  I piece the small scraps together when I know that I will be making small blocks.  I piece the larger scraps together when I know that I will be making large blocks. 
For more detailed instructions on making scrappy pieced fabric, check the "How-To" tab on my website:  http://carolsscrapquilts.webs.com.  
Have fun creating your own unique fabric!   

Magazines Sorted

While sitting in front of the TV this weekend, watching football, I sorted through quilting magazines. I am happy to say that I have a 7" high stack of them ready to go out the door. Hopefully other quilters will find them interesting. I've come to the conclusion that, for me, the old (I mean REALLY old) magazines are more interesting than the current ones. The old ones will definitely stay in my collection.
As I went through the magazines, I bookmarked some designs that I thought would work up well into scrap quilts. I sketched out those designs on graph paper and added notes for how I would "scrap" them. I also bookmarked a few interesting articles which I will photocopy at the library today.
This was time well spent while the games went on in the background...I knew the Lions/Saints game would end up the way it did, but there's always next year for our local team. Guess I'll cheer for Drew Brees as the playoffs continue.

Magazine Collection

I'm feeling good about the progress I've made--all the little odds and ends are in their proper places right now. The next steps will take longer, however. I've decided to postpone the fabric sorting for now--seems every time I have a piece of fabric in my hand, I start dreaming of the possible uses for it. Not good!!!
So, I've decided to attack the stack of magazines. Time consuming, because I'm flipping through them for scrap quilt ideas (as if I need more!!!), but also interesting. The old saying "everything old is new again" keeps coming to mind. The newest edition of APQ magazine advertises a book on big-stitch quilting. Well, guess what? A 1997 magazine features a pattern that is big-stitch quilted, with instructions on how to do it. And, even before that, I did big-stitch quilting on a Blizzard Quilt that I made in a class at my local quilt shop. Definitely not a NEW technique (but fast and fun...have you tried it?)
Going through these magazines will take me several days, but it's a fun thing to do while sitting in front of the TV. I'll be watching the Lions tomorrow night, hoping that they make a good showing against New Orleans (but I'm a Drew Brees fan, too).
PS: The magazines I no longer want will be passed on to fellow quilters.

Signs of Spring

I am enjoying my time in Oklahoma. I took my granddaughter for a walk the other day. All around us were signs of spring: the birds were singing, the sun was shining, the pear trees were in bloom, other trees were leafing out and the temperature was about 70 degrees. Just perfect! I know that I will have Spring Fever in a big way when I return to Michigan next week. But just looking at all of the Easter things for sale in the stores, I'll be reminded that spring is not far away.
Quilt shops, too, are pulling out the brighter, "springier" fabrics. And the latest issues of quilt magazines feature pastel or floral projects. Have you seen the new "Quilter's World" magazine? It is hard to miss with the beautiful pink, green and white quilt on the cover. And if you open it to page 56, you'll find a table runner designed by ME. :) The Goin' Green runner is a fun project, that could be made in any color you like...doesn't have to be green! It is easy to piece, and makes good use of the cut-away scraps. Give it a try!

Have You Seen It?

If you are a member of NQA, you should have recently received the fall issue of The Quilting Quarterly. Have you read it yet? Check out the pattern on page 33!
When I sent a copy of my book, Start With Scraps, to the editor for review, she asked me to design a project for this issue. I had the perfect project sketched out in my notebook and this was the perfect time to bring it to life! (Actually it wasn't really the perfect time. Most of the work on it was done while I was at my daughter's in June, helping with the new baby. It was a challenge to work with the sewing machine of someone else and in the workspace of someone else. But the project turned out the way I wanted it to and was to the editor on time!) I hope you will give the pattern a try!
Tonight I'm showing my scrappy-piecing technique to a new group of quilters. Hopefully they will have fun with it and get hooked on this way of using up scraps!
I'm taking along my patterns and the samples for my newest ones. If you haven't yet seen them, go to http://carolsscrapquilts.webs.com and check them out! It's a great time to make some "Little Pink Houses"!