QAL

Modern Blocks Quilt-a-long

I love sewing and quilting, and was excited to find a virtual quilt along organised by Amy at And Sew We Craft, using the book Modern Blocks. I love it because it is a modern take on the traditional, sometimes slightly fuddy-duddy quilt blocks. Each month we are given a new block to sew and post our blocks online for a linky party. Each person chooses their own colours but makes the same block. I chose red, white and blue as I had heaps of fabric that I wanted to use up in these colours. After 12 months we can put our blocks together for a sampler-type quilt.

Block 6- Best Friends- October 2013

This block was the simplest by far, it took me an hour to cut and sew. I'm not entirely happy with my fabric choice, especially the centre square, but I'm sure it will look fine in the finished quilt. Today is only 4th October so I am impressed with myself for getting it done so quickly.

October- Best Friends
This month I also ordered the Modern Blocks book which I'm sure will be a great resource for future quilts. It was a lesson in patience, taking two weeks to be delivered from the UK. A carrier pigeon would have been faster, but it was well worth the wait (and the postage/ pigeon was free)

Block 5- The Escalator- September 2013

This block was a little tricky to put together but the outcome is quite good. I made a little quilting booboo and somehow cut a triangle piece but left a bit of selvage on that piece. Hopefully it won't be seen in the finished quilt.

September- The Escalator

This month I got my quilting mojo back and I am again looking forward to the rest of the year and future blocks. I can actually visualise the completed block now that I have five of them.

Making a quilt over a year is quite a good idea if you don't want to spend much time on it, sounds contradictory I know, but it only takes about 2 hours to complete a block, or slightly more if I struggle with fabric choices. It takes about an hour to choose the fabrics that suit the block and cut out the pieces as directed. I usually do this after dinner before bed when the kids are doing their own thing and unlikely to interrupt me. Then, the following day, I piece the block together, ironing each bit flat as I go. I don't do it all in one night, because I'm more likely to make mistakes later in the evening. So really, it only takes two hours over two nights. Blogging about it and putting the photos online takes almost as much time as piecing the blocks!



Block 4- Quatrefoil- August
Now I will be honest and say that I did Block 2, 3 & 4 in one go because I got behind and a little bit unmotivated. While I loved the first block, Block2 the Spool was a little disappointing in its simplicity. Unfortunately it did not keep my interest and I started wondering if the quilt would be a disaster since I had no idea what the coming blocks would look like. I started wondering about my colour choices, specifically the dark blue background. Initially I chose the plain blue because I had a lot of it in my stash and was never going to use it, and I thought a mystery quilt such as this would be an excuse to use it up. I also thought a traditional red whites and blue block would look good, with a plain background allowing the reds and patterns to stand out. 

By the time September came around I had missed two months, or two blocks, but I also had a new motivation to actually finish what I started. I have so many unfinished projects, I had an "aha" moment and suddenly realised that I should really finish off what I have started before I embark on new projects. That said, I quickly got back on track with the missed blocks.

August- Quatrefoil

Block 3- Megan's Star- July 2013

July- Megan's Star




Block 2- The Spool- June 2013

I'm not too keen on this block, I think its a bit simple and am not sure it will go with blocks to come (not that I know what they are!). hopefully future blocks will be a little more complex and show off the fabrics a little more.
June- the Spool

I have made a few quilts over the years and recently decided to take part in an online quilt-a-long (QAL) for a block of the month quilt. It is co-ordinated by And Sew We Craft using blocks from the book Modern Blocks. Its such a great concept as you don't have the hassle of going to a class, you can do it in your own time and link in with others via twitter or facebook.

Each month a new block will be released on the relevant websites, and using fabrics of our choice we put it all together. This months block is "Follow the leader". I had a whole lot of reds in my stash so I decided to do a red, white and blue quilt. Here is my block for this month.

May- Follow the leader
As the months go by I will post each block, and hopefully this time next year will have completed another quilt..

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