Sunday 2 August 2020

the magic of fabric

In a mad effort, I finally got back to sewing something this week. I've been trying to focus on finishing off older quilting projects when I go into my sewing room during these winter days… and so I picked up my string 'spiderweb' blocks, which I started, hm-m-m- well over 2 years go.
 
I'm using a pattern by Kathy from Material Obsession, her 'popstars' quilt, which is a lively colourful quilt in her book Material Obsession Two. And there is also a great tutorial here by Marit from quilt-it. 
My blocks are foundation pieced onto a thin calico, and it's a great way to use up small strips of fabrics. The extra stabling fabric keeps the bias from stretching, and while it's feeling a little heavy, I'm sure if I use a low loft batting, it'll be fine 🤞.


I actually had started out using a very different teal blue itty bitty print for the background 'star' sections and a greater selection of brighter strips too, but when I relooked at it I wasn't happy . . . so it was back to the drawing board.



There is one great Kaffe book on my bookshelf that I enjoy a lot, 'Passionate Patchwork' which was published in 2001. It features lots of vintage quilts, they really are quite spectacular. The next pic caught my eye, the gentle blues of the vintage plates, pillows & a quilt, pastels punctuated with a little warm red and a few darker shades.



I put my earlier blocks to one side and started again, using these pages as my inspiration. I also recalled seeing somewhere out in blogland a spiderweb quilt {sorry for no link but I can't remember where I found it}, where the background was a light spotty fabric rather than the all-out brights in Kathy's pattern, so I tried substituting a white & blue Kaffe spot for my background too. 
It looked great, and suddenly, I was back digging deep into my scrap basket looking for more pastels, excited to move forward with this. Here's a few progress photos . . .




I'm using Jodi's 'project planner' to get me back on track, you can find it here @ Tales of Cloth
- it's a nice feeling to tick a few things off








 I'm also making my blocks a little bit special by adding some pretty selvages too . . .









String quilts are a great stash buster, don't you think? I love that the rings have turned out just a little bit wonky, if you look closely you can see that they don't line up all the way round {Mr D hates the fact that they don't all line up!}. 
I love those great big pastel spiderwebs, and the soft blue dotty star too! 
But... the best thing is that it's a real snapshot of fabrics I have used in many different quilts over many years, resulting in a magic mix of fabrics happening right now. 

I made up nine 20" blocks using mostly 1 1/2" strips, not wanting to go too big with this as it's been sitting around for too long & I want to get it finished now. I notice there is some bulkiness at a couple of the majors joins, but I'm hoping they will ease out with the quilting. And so here's my finished 'spiderweb in pastel' quilt top . . .









For a glimpse at a few other quilters also doing things with strips just now, check out Chris' link here @  #afullenglish  and check out here at #em'sscrapbag where Emily is currently doing a series of strip busting block videos on her YouTube channel. Also pop over to  #bebquilttreasures where Beth uses new and recycled fabrics in her quilts. Julie from quiltdivajulie here on ig is mid flight making a bright version too, using different bright spots for her backgrounds, and it's looking great! 

Linking up this week with Cynthia for 'oh scrap' here.
Until next time Linda

13 comments:

Susan said...

Wow, this is special Linda! I love the spotted centres and the colour palette of the strips! You have an amazing eye for making very 'pleasing to the eye' quilts!

Sue Rostron said...


i love this

Suz J said...

I so much agree with your decision to alter the background fabric and tone down your scrap selection... it really is a beautiful mix. Surprising how restful so many fabrics can look. I imagine some of those seams are really lumpy... especially those with selvedges.

Quiltdivajulie said...

SO SO SO pretty - I love it when inspiration appears where we least expect it (especially after we have a plan in place). My spiderweb is back in action again - several more blocks to go but it is finally starting to assert its personality.

cspoonquilt said...

I really love the revised color scheme of your spiderwebs! It's so light and cheerful! A delight to the eyes and spirit!

Cynthia Brunz Designs said...

Beautiful color palette. I have a quilt like this in my bucket list. Thanks for sharing with Oh Scrap!

Ann said...

It's beautiful. There is something so satisfying and calming about a light-colored quilt in a bedroom.

Julie said...

Definitely like it better with the lighter background. You must have a great stash of yardage for such changes.

Karen S said...

Well done for digging out the UFOs. It is fascinating to see the difference made when colours and fabrics are changed about. Lovely result!

Astrid said...

Beautiful colours and quilt! It feels good to finish UFO's, doesn't it? Spiderweb quilt has been on my bucket list for years, your quilt is inspiring.

Cynthia@wabi-sabi-quilts said...

I think it was such a good idea to switch to the light blue dots. I found myself looking at this post a long time - just love the look of your scrappy fabrics together. You must have an enviable stash! Also love the log cabin blocks you showed earlier. Really happy to have found your blog!

audrey said...

This looks fabulous! I love when something clicks and all of a sudden there's momentum on a project once again. Great feeling.:)

pandchintz said...

Great fun!