Saturday, March 1, 2014

A New Quilt Started...



Fans of "The Big Bang Theory" show will get the song reference in the cartoon above!  LOL

For the last several months, my 3.5" scrap bin has been full and overflowing to where I can't get the lid back on.  I've been looking for a pattern that will use up these scraps, but hadn't found on that "grabbed" me.

Then this week, Bonnie Hunter revealed her new 2014 Leader/Ender challenge..."Lozenges"...and it calls for 3.5" strips!!  She wrote the pattern based off of an antique quilt she saw.


Stained Glass, 1890. Made by Rs. Frances Clarke Westergren. Boston. From the book Massachusetts Quilts, Our Common Wealth.

Oh my lucky day!!!   Love those scrappy quilts!!!

Since I have some major 3.5" strips to move out, this will be more than just a "leader/ender" project for me and I will spend quite a bit of time working on it to get that bin cleaned out!

Last night I did some cutting and began sewing the blocks...



Because I am trying to keep optimum contrast between the corner units and the printed strips, I'm trying to keep the neutrals very light.  For that reason, to help tone down some of the prints on the "lights", I'm actually using the BACKSIDE of the fabric.  You can still see the print show through slightly to give some "interest" to the quilt, but the print is kept to a minimum to maximize the contrast.

In this picture I've circled those fabrics that I've used the back of instead of the front...


We pay for the backside of the fabric as well as the front, so we might as well use it when the time is right!!!  This isn't the first time I've used the back of fabric instead of the front.

A couple of years ago I needed a backing for a feed sack quilt.  I had a king-sized sheet, but the stripes were too bright to go with the faded feed sack fabric.  I ended up using the underside of the sheet as the outside backing for the quilt and it was just the right intensity of color!


Loretta

3 comments:

  1. I recognized some of the small triangles of fabric!

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  2. I "need" Lozenges too! I am going to play along also! I love flipping fabric to add interest, and have done so several times. Great minds think alike!

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  3. Too funny.....instantly I 'sang' that little poem to Soft Kitty! LOL We love Big Bang here! And I was thinking to do the lozenges, as well......can't decide if it will all be the thrift shirts, or maybe use up those Florabunda fabrics! Hmmmmm! And I use the backside of fabric all the time......and ALWAYS when I'm using the white on white fabrics. I hate that gummy/yellowy printed side, but the back gives just a shadow of the print.....I like that! :o)

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