Sunday, September 11, 2016

Fun with Plaid


Now that the centre of my version of Brinton Hall is done (see here), it is time to start work on the first border. Leigh Latimore's design calls for 20 squares of dark beige backgrounds, 8 appliqued with hexagon rosettes, and 12 with eight-pointed stars.

Although the pattern does not say so, I could see in the photos that some of those hexagon rosettes were fussy cut. That seemed like a good plan to me too!


But, the Kaffe Collective fabrics that I used in the centre tend to have a long repeat, and I didn't want to make small holes here and there in otherwise good yardage.

I needed a fabric with a short repeat, and I thought of these printed plaids. They are the Mix It Up collection from Connecting Threads last year, and I bought quite a few! I love plaid.


The centres, though, are Kaffe's Zinnia design, which I had for something else but then didn't like. But, it is perfect for this! I cut 8 hexagon centres for the hexagon rosettes, and 12 circles for the centres of the star blocks.


As I played around with the plaids, I realized that I could cut some of them to make an interior star. It is subtle in this olive green plaid...


...but I hoped it would be clearer in this red. And, I thought I should take some photos to show how I do it.

I have a homemade cutting template that includes a 3/8" seam allowance. It is important to do the exact same thing 6 times in a row, so make sure you have enough time to do it all at once.


Then something felt wrong when I started basting the fabric to the papers.

Oh no! They don't make stars at all! They go in a straight line!

Why? Because I distracted myself by taking photos, that's why. Pride before a fall...


Fortunately, the seam allowance is so large that I can just turn the paper the way it's supposed to be and baste again.


Here it is fixed. You can see that I still baste with the thread entirely on the back of the paper. I leave the thread in, and just pull out the paper once it is stitched all around. The thread is ancient gritty polyester thread, and it holds really well.




This fabric looked so good that I used it twice.


In fact, I'm loving all these plaids. Even the grey!


And these are the stripes from the same collection. This is the rosette I was starting last Sunday.


I know I have more of these plaids somewhere in my stash. So, I've decided to skip the eight-pointed star blocks completely, and make 20 of these hexagon rosettes instead.

I could even re-purpose the circles I cut for the stars, and baste them to hexagons too!

Here are the first nine rosettes:


Cute, eh? Three more are cut and basted, and then I will have to start digging through the boxes in the basement.

It will still take me a while to finish the rosettes and do all the applique. But, this is the end of the handwork for the quilt, because I'm changing the last border too.

In the meantime, though, please check out all the other hand stitching happening for Slow Sunday Stitching right here at Kathy's Quilts. Happy stitching!

20 comments:

  1. These look wonderful, I love plaids & florals together! And you've used them very effectively!

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  2. Wow! Those plaids just sparkle when you put them all together. And the trick to making a star. . . genius!

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  3. I haven't been a fan of plaids, but you may just have changed my mind. Thank you for posting the photo tutorial.

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  4. These are fantastic. I love the combination of mathematics, aesthetics, imagination and precision required to get the effect. Such a good idea.

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    1. Thanks, Jillian! I'm excited to see how it all looks together. The colours are in range, so it will be interesting to see the effect!

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  5. How fun! I love using plaids but I've never been so careful about how I cut and place the lines/intersections. I love the striped hexagon rosettes, too.
    --Nancy. (ndmessier @ aol.com, joyforgrace.blogspot.com)

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    1. When I first started EPP a few years ago, I swore that fussy cutting the hexagons would be a step too far for me. Now, here I am! I think you just always want to push yourself a little more on each project. :D

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  6. Wow, those are wonderful. Can't wait to see the final product!

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  7. Wow! Wow! Those hexagons absolutely shimmer with those secondary patterns. I did chuckle about your comment about fussy cutting. Seems like never comes sooner than we think!--Terry

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    1. Thanks, Terry! Yes, you are quite right. I even thought I was done with EPP, never mind this kind of fussy EPP. But sometimes you just have to see...

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  8. Oh gracious -- I adore your plaid hexies!! What fun they are! Seeing them all stitched up is quite a treat. :)

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  9. Very cute! I love the structured plaid with those poufy flowers, and the secondary patterns are great! Nice work!

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  10. Those hexies are fabulous. Never say never. Fussy cutting those plaids made terrific patterns. I'm going to have to work in some plaids into my next hexie project.

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  11. Oh, yes! Makes me want to make some...especially since I have some of the same plaids when they went on sale for less than 3.00 per yd! I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE these. They would make an awesome quilt all by themselves but they are also perfect for your Brinton Hall border.

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  12. Gorgeous hexies. I love that the fussy cutting makes each one look a completely new shape.

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  13. So sweet! Love that fabric used like that!

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  14. I always like plaids. Making stars from them is lovely.

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  15. I love these, Monica. The plaids are such a clever way to use them too. Every so often I wonder about EPP and then talk myself out of it, but you are making me think again.

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I'm told Blogger has been bouncing some comments, so if it happens to you I'm sorry! But the settings look right so I can't explain it. In any case, thanks for reading!

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