Back in 2017, I signed up for Sarah Fielke's block of the month, Down the Rabbit Hole. Inevitably I lost momentum, not least because of the shear volume of neeedleturn applique - I was still working on the second month in October. But that hasn't stopped me signing up for this year's Block of the Month, Coming Home. Mum has been making not-so-subtle hints about wanting a quilt for a while, and she liked this one.
It's pretty important with this block of the month, that I keep up to date with it throughout the year. That may become harder as we go along, but for now, I have achieved that with month 1.
When picking the fabrics, we actually started with the background. Mum loves fabric that have "light" to them, and when I saw this Grunge by Moda fabric, I knew it was perfect. Luckily Mum agreed. And then I proposed my standard rainbow and Mum (and Dad - he got a small say in events) approved it!
I am aware that this quilt will also have a fair amount of needleturn applique, and I know it's something that scares me. So in preparation for this quilt, I tried a new product: applique paper by Helen Stubbings. Revolutionary! It's so good. It's a stiff interfacing that irons onto the reverse of the fabric. You then use a glue stick and turn the fabric round the edges of the interfacing so by the time it comes anywhere near a needle and thread, the turning part of needleturn has already been done! I did a practice piece (which will eventually become a hoop for Jessica), and I've even picked Down the Rabbit Hole back up and added some applique. Whilst the interfacing is quite stiff, it breaks down when you wash the quilt - I haven't tested this part yet!
Month 2 has been released, and it involves some applique so time to put this new skill to the test!
It's pretty important with this block of the month, that I keep up to date with it throughout the year. That may become harder as we go along, but for now, I have achieved that with month 1.
When picking the fabrics, we actually started with the background. Mum loves fabric that have "light" to them, and when I saw this Grunge by Moda fabric, I knew it was perfect. Luckily Mum agreed. And then I proposed my standard rainbow and Mum (and Dad - he got a small say in events) approved it!
I am aware that this quilt will also have a fair amount of needleturn applique, and I know it's something that scares me. So in preparation for this quilt, I tried a new product: applique paper by Helen Stubbings. Revolutionary! It's so good. It's a stiff interfacing that irons onto the reverse of the fabric. You then use a glue stick and turn the fabric round the edges of the interfacing so by the time it comes anywhere near a needle and thread, the turning part of needleturn has already been done! I did a practice piece (which will eventually become a hoop for Jessica), and I've even picked Down the Rabbit Hole back up and added some applique. Whilst the interfacing is quite stiff, it breaks down when you wash the quilt - I haven't tested this part yet!
Month 2 has been released, and it involves some applique so time to put this new skill to the test!
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