Going Traditional

As well as working through the Farmer's Wife 1930's sampler blocks, I also taken to making a Baltimore Album block because the Bourne Quilters wanted to make some blocks I have, reluctantly, joined in with this. I bought the Album book by Mimi Dietrich from Amazon the same time as the Farmer's Wife one and have read through some of the book while on my daily commute on the bus.

Before I attempted my first block, at Bourne Quilters we had a go at making a ruffled flower, the cream one on the right.  I had another go with the pink fabric.  The ruffled flowers are made with a long narrow strip of fabric with gathering stitches made in a zig zag and pulled up. The gathered strip is coiled and stitched in place to hold it together.

Then I made a start, first of all the strips going across the middle (should be used to that having made all those small narrow strips for Jacquie's quilt).  Then using freezer paper shapes, cut and turned the seam allowances on the appliqué pieces with the help of some Sewfine glue.

In my room is a bed settee, so clearing a space there and placing a couple of cushions on the floor I had a small cushion on my lap to rest my sewing on.  I'm finding so far that I'm enjoying hand stitching, but I can't work on it for too long, so I put the sewing down and do something else, then get back to it later, which I find works best for me.

My equipment.

A bit more sewing and a small bag of appliqués ready to see

In the book it suggests making a block a month for 12 months so that you end up with enough to make a quilt.  Hmm, have to wait and see if that happens, but enjoying the experience so far, which is surprising me, as I dint think it was my thing.