The Man in the Wilderness Quilt Pt. 1

In the spring of 2012 I had this crazy idea. Driving through the country on my way home from work, through a misty rain I saw the brown and ochre landscape slowly giving way to the new bright green buds of the season. It was breathtaking. I knew I wanted to capture this color impression in a quilt.

 And then, on top of that idea, I had been listening to the Natalie Merchant album, Leave Your Sleep. On one of the tracks, Natalie puts music to the Mother Goose poem, The Man in the Wilderness. I loved that poem as a child and Natalie does it more than justice with her musical arrangement. Those colors and that poem were a match made in heaven for me. So I began my design.

Putting my graphic design skills to work, I laid out an arrangement of different sized blocks to fit within the constraints of the queen sized quilt I wanted to make (76" x 90"). I had no idea what was going to go inside those different blocks so I had to research beginner type quilt blocks that would fit in each space. I also specified six big patches to use for embroidery/applique of the poem.

This is the quilt's baby picture.

Now this quilt idea was crazy mostly because I had never really made a quilt and this quilt was going to be so big and include so many different kinds of blocks. As I learned, I thought I would share my knowledge with you as my scrappy log cabin, pinwheel, staggered strips, applique, and propeller quilt block tutorials. I'm so happy about the popularity of these tutorials because my intention was to help beginners like myself tackle some basic quilt blocks with as few tears as possible.

I took my time (obviously by the finish date on this project) and really tried to do things right as I went along. There were some frustrations and self-doubt but surprisingly few regrets. I loved the process and have already started my next project.

I did make the choice to have my quilt professionally quilted by our good friend Stitchlilly. Best. Decision. Ever. I chose an overall stipple pattern except for the applique areas. Those I did by hand with 6 strands of embroidery floss and no set-in-stone pattern. I wanted it to be a little more free-form and playful.

My next post will highlight some of the small details of this quilt an hopefully some better photos. New discovery of mine: photographing something so large is not easy!

–Cassandra

PS-I will admit, for a moment, as I was sewing up the colorful scrappy blocks...there was some small panic. Was this going to be too colorful? Obnoxious even? But I pressed on with fingers crossed. Did it turn out to be too much? Hells yes. But I love it anyway!

Staggered Strips Quilt Block

Hello crafty friends,

Today I have another quilt block tutorial to share with you. I'm calling it the Staggered Strips Block. The effect is a stack of different bright patterns framed by a common background. For my blocks' background I chose a tree bark pattern, but you can definitely use a solid with fun results. This tutorial illustrates how to make a 6x10 block. However, because of the simple construction, you can alter these directions to make blocks of any size.

I tested quite a few ways to construct this block before I found the simplest steps to get the random design I desired. For those of you who tend to be more uptight about pre-planning your blocks with exact measurements, this process might be a little uncomfortable. But, try it anyway. The outcome is worth it. And, sometimes, it's good to get out of our comfort zone. Plus, this is a great remnant buster - get rid of those little bits of fabric that you have left over from ancient projects!

Here are the directions for making one block:

Begin by cutting your background fabric (A) into 1.5" strips and 2.5" strips.

Trim the 1.5" strips into eight various lengths from 2" to 4". (For best results try to get some really random lengths in there like 3.25" or 2.75".) Set those aside. Do the same for the 2.5" strips but you only need six lengths of that one.

Take your bright pattern fabrics (B) (great place to use random scraps if you are looking for something funky) and cut them into 1.5" strips and then trim four pieces random lengths from there in the same manner you did with the background strips.  Repeat the process making three 2.5" wide strips.

At this point, organize your 1.5" and 2.5" strips into piles. Take your pile of 1.5 strips to your sewing machine. Choose a colorful pattern (B) strip and grab 2 lengths of background (A) fabric that will go on either side of it.

The idea is to come decently close to the 6.5" horizontal measurement that you will need in the end, but an inch or two on either side that will need to be trimmed on your strip is all part of the process. You might want to choose a long background strip for one side and a short one for the other mixed in with strips that are more evenly distributed. You want your center row of bright blocks to playfully stagger up the middle.

An example of how you would choose the proper lengths. To make a finished strip that is close to the measurement you want.

With a 1/4" seam allowance, sew the two A fabrics on either side of the B fabric.

You can definitely use the faster chain piecing technique when sewing a bunch of these strips together. How I would recommend doing that is to get your pieces all matched the way you would like them and then make them into stacks in the correct order so you will ensure that your strip in the end will be long enough or, on the flip side, not too long.

Repeat the process for the 2.5" strips. Press the seams to the side of the darker fabric.

Now you have the strips you need to construct your block. Each block is made up of four 1.5" strips and three 2.5" strips. (On my quilt I wanted the order of these to be random so each block is different, but you could do it more orderly if you'd like.) Take your strips and lay them out in the order you think they look best.

Please Note:

• Keep in mind that the design should look like a wonky stack of colored blocks up through the middle. 
• Take special care when pinning your two strips to sew together that you match up the fabrics where you want them. You are most likely sewing together two strips that are different lengths.
• Make sure you have a clear vision of the desired width of your block when putting your layout together. You want to make sure that you leave yourself enough background fabric on the sides to be able to seam to the block next to it on your quilt and leave enough of that background fabric so that it doesn't look strange.

Stitch your strips together with a 1/4" seam allowance.

Press your seams to one direction. Like this:

Wrong side of finished block. You can see the seams are all going upward.

Now it's time to trim your block down to size. Use your rotary cutter to trim down the sides of the block to the 6.5". Make sure you have a good idea where both sides should get trimmed for best balance before you cut. This will help to ensure your finished block looks like you imagined.

Mine is wonky and woodsy!

Good luck and happy sewing!
–Cassandra

P.S. For more quilty fun,  please check out our pinwheel block tutorial and scrappy log cabin block tutorial.