Posted on by agilejack

Cutting Fabric for a New Project

I’m so happy that our ice has had a bit of a melt. Enough that I was able to get Rico, Bender and myself out for a nice 2 mile walk before pickleball today. There are still some icy patches on the roads but it’s easy enough to pick your way around the neighborhood on bare pavement. It feels good to see the light at the end of the tunnel with all this ice.

We were all happy to get outside, even it it was during a light rain. We went four days without those dogs being outside for more than a pee! They’ve been good boys but they need some activity.

I played pickleball last night with my club at a large indoor facility and really had a good time and feel really good about how I played. Especially since it had been so long since I last played. I’m scheduled to play several times this week. Fingers crossed the weather cooperates. It doesn’t look very likely. We have a wet ten days coming up but at least the temps are rising.

After dinner I decided to head into my sewing room. I thought I might make the backing for my Fresh Start quilt but I just didn’t want to do it. I really don’t like making backings. so I decided to dig in and start cutting fabrics for my new project. This quilt.

The instructions wanted me to fussy cut all the blocks. I’m not a huge fan of fussy cutting. It’s a pain in the ass and it wastes a lot of fabric. Plus, I really like the organic feel of fabrics that are randomly cut. So I decided to fussy cut about half the fabrics and just cut freely on the remainder. Here’s some of the results.

And this last set was cut randomly.

See how pretty those big prints are when you just let the blooms fall where they may? I love them cut in this more casual way. I think this will be a good mix between the formality of the fussy cut pieces and the random blocks.

I used an 8 inch curve ruler I bought several years ago to fussy cut these blocks.

This pattern is from the new Kaffe Fassett book called Quilts by the Sea.

I almost always buy the Kaffe books when they come out, but I’m not sure I’ve ever made a quilt as it appear in one of the books. I find them to be great sources of inspiration and I get all kinds of ideas for fabric combos — even if I don’t feel inclined to make a quilt. I look at his books over and over and see new things with every turn of a page.

This book is my favorite of the last few Kaffe books. There are actually several quilts in here that I really want to make. And I love the one on the cover. Look how pretty that is!

I’m marking up this book with a pencil as I’m cutting these fabrics. The fabric names and numbers are listed on one page, and the page with the cutting instructions only has the number so I have to keep going back and forth between pages. I did get confused once for twice but didn’t actually make a mistake.

I got all the squares for the quilt cut tonight. I haven’t started cutting the borders and sashing. I won’t actually start sewing on this until my friend arrives in February so I’ve put all my cut pieces into one of my project boxes to keep it all organized and unwrinkled.

The large squares in the bottom of that bin are the squares that will later be cut in four pieces diagonally for the setting triangles. I won’t cut them until I’m ready to put the quilt together because I don’t want to expose all those bias edges just yet.

It was dark when I left for pickleball last night so I didn’t notice something pretty horrifying on my outing. I noticed it when I headed out for pickleball this afternoon.

A house about three blocks away from me, just across from the park where I walk my boys, had a huge tree fall and smash the back side of the house. I’m assuming this happened the same day that I lost power.

You can see the root ball of the tree and the broken roof.

You can see how broken the roof is from this view. and you can see the top part of the tree extending up and to the right from the middle of the roof.

There is a ton of damage to that house, but the Christmas lights on the front were shining bright today. I have no idea if anyone is in the house of if anyone could even inhabit that house now. That must have been so frightening when it happened.

I wish I had a bit more weekend. I could really use another Saturday and Sunday.

23 Replies to “Cutting Fabric for a New Project”

  1. You are truly a whirlwind! So much energy and so much going on at one time. I admire you!
    I especially love the new quilt you will be making with your friend! Can’t wait to see the fabrics you choose for in between the squares. For some reason I am not a great fan of K.F.’s plaid fabrics but the one used on this quilt just really ties it all together and the black makes it pop.
    Love reading your posts too!

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    1. I wasn’t a huge fan of the plaid fabrics but it’s one of the things I really love about this quilt! Isn’t that funny how it’s hard to love a fabric until you see it used well.

      Anne

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  2. Glad you are able to get out with the boys now. It must be hard for them to be idle for such an extended period. I’m loving the cuts for your new upcoming quilt. You sure have oodles of energy Ann.

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    1. they were good boys but they do need physical activity. We’re all happy when we get some activity. I was getting pickleball but they were getting essentially nothing!

      We’re all happy the weather has turned!

      Anne

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  3. Anne I wish I could send you two extra days! I love, love the idea you have of fussy cutting *some* of the KFC florals, and letting the others fall where they may. Brilliant. Cannot wait to see how that looks but I am positive it will be a wonderful way to interpret this quilt. I did the Seed Packet quilt from the kit and the fussy cutting while lovely did leave me with enough scraps to pretty much make another quilt, albeit crumb style! I did enjoy the fussy cutting though…such pretty fabrics are a real joy to spend time with. I too have the QBTS book as I attended the Kaffe/Brandon lecture in Snohomish last summer…that book was included in the ticket price. I will sit down this morning and look through it! Wowza on the house photo!

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    1. So interesting that you enjoy fussy cutting. I really don’t love it. It’s too fussy!!! so they named it appropriately for me!!! I can’t imagine going the seed packet quilt. I would not be a happy camper!

      Anne

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      1. I too was not sure it would be enjoyable, but the floral fabrics were soooo beautiful I actually enjoyed choosing which I would cut. I am with you in not usually loving fussy cutting (or the result), but this was one exception!

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  4. I’m glad your boys finally got outside for a good walk. Hopefully the weather gets better all over the US, this cold spell has been awful. I’m like you in not enjoying fussy cutting, I have one of Kaffe’s patterns I need to fussy cut and I’m not looking forward to it. When I start a quilt, I photo copy the pattern completely. Then I read through it and mark it everywhere where I need to pay attention. I usually piece quilts in spurts of time and have overlooked key things. I’m 78+ years old and have definite memory loss due to Covid and 2 small strokes. Having a paper copy in front of me helps a great deal. I’m looking forward to seeing you construct this beautiful quilt.

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  5. Seeing the fussy cut next to the random cut was so helpful.
    I have to agree with you, I definitely prefer the random, spontaneous look. Organized chaos.🙃

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    1. It’s going to be fun to make, especially since my friend will be helping me. the fabrics on my table look quite different from the photo from the book, which reads really blue to me. It will be interesting to see it done in person.

      Anne

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  7. <

    div dir=”ltr”>Hi Anne – just out of curiosity, did you buy the fabric amounts for the queen-sized quilt to make this quilt lap-sized. If not, wh

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    1. I knew I was going to make a smaller version and that I wouldn’t be fussy cutting everything, so I bought mostly half yards and have plenty left over. The one that you need a lot of fabric for is the Embroidered Shawl because I knew there would be a lot of waste after fussy cutting that one. I didn’t fussy cut more than half my fabrics so didn’t have all that waste. I did buy the recommended amount of the border and sashing fabrics. They are generous amounts and I will surely have a lot left over, but I know I’ll use it some day.

      Anne

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    1. That’s a good idea, but I actually like seeing the pencil marks in my book. It gives me a sense of satisfaction, accomplishment and makes me feel more connected to the content in the book. It tells a bit of the story of me making the quilt.

      Anne

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  9. Hello from the deep freeze called Virginia.😁 We should start warming up today but are also expected to get rain for a few days. I am so glad we didn’t get as much ice and wind as you had. We did get a lot of snow and since the highs haven’t been above freezing it is still here and very slick.

    I really like the quilt you just finished! The one you are cutting fabric for now looks like it will also be spectacular!

    Keep the eye candy and dog pictures coming! They both brighten my cold days.

    Lydia Gay Zigler

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  10. Whoa… that is a horrific scene, huge tree 🫣. I will always remember a big wind storm in Bellevue Washington kept us in and staying late at school in Jr. High. So scary when those huge trees come down.
    Super yummy colors you are choosing for that next quilt! I am with you about following directions. I bought a KF jewel kit and added my own twist on it and I love it! I think KF would be happy that we put our own touch on them and make it our own creations with a bit of his guidance 😄. Happy days ahead for you and the boys 🥰.

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    1. it was really a scary wind storm. you can hear branches crashing down all over the place. I’m so glad it’s over.

      I always like to add my own twist. I rarely read and make a pattern exactly as it exists. That approach doesn’t make me very happy.

      Anne

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