The First Block

Quilting experts will tell you that you should plan your quilt carefully.  Yes indeed you should but in this case I just want to get myself in gear and get going.  I've been away from sewing too long.  Sometimes it's good to think ahead and have a vision of the end product but sometimes it's good to go with the flow and forget the rules. This is what I'm doing with this quilt.

If there are any quilt police out there reading this - please stop! - please don't go any further, quilting in my eyes is for fun.  Everyone has to start somewhere on their sewing journey and I would not want to put anyone off by saying 'that's not the correct way to do it'.  We all find our own way of doing things in life and quilting is no different.  I always said to my boys as they were growing up that they should listen to advice from others, you may not agree wholeheartedly with what they are saying now, but someday it may be of use to you.  Yes there are rules, but in my view rules can be bent to suit the circumstances, as long as no one gets hurt.  I am all for sharing tips and ideas and am happy to do so, if you have any questions, just ask and I will try to give you an answer, or point you in the right direction. In life we all learn by our mistakes and yes we do all make mistakes. Quilting is no exception, you will make a few slips along the way but the fun part is covering them up and creating something else, having artistic licence or just adapting the pattern to suit.  Nothing is set in stone!

The first of my baskets contains, red, orange and pink scraps so that's where I started.  Keep it as a muddle or separate them?  Ok I separated the colours again and settled in front of my machine.  I am lucky enough to have my cutting board on my left side of my table next to my machine and a pressing board and iron on a table on my right. Squaring, trimming and pressing being essential to producing sharp blocks.  Press every seam as you go and square and trim up each time.  



In the garden

Hey presto this is the first block!    It measured up to 13 x 14.5 inches approx and I trimmed it down to 12.5 inches square - only because any bigger the blocks get clumsy in my view, but mainly because I have a 12.5" square ruler ideal for squaring blocks!  What do you all think?