I've been seeing the most adorable fox, cat, and owl quilt blocks gracing my Instagram feed lately. And I wanted one. BAD. Only I didn't know how to do it. But then our quilt club assignment this last month was to try paper piecing, which I did not in any way understand.
Turns out, that's how you make those intricate blocks. Who knew.
Oh wait, everyone but me knew.
At any rate, paper piecing basically means that you print your pattern on paper, arrange your fabric on it very strategically, and then sew right on top of the paper along the lines. No math skills or intricate fabric cutting required.
Check out the image below. This is the back of that fox block.
You absolutely have to watch several You Tube videos to figure this technique out. You're basically sewing a mirror image of what you want your block to look like, which kind of hurts my brain. I found this video tutorial to be helpful. There are many different methods; you just have to find the one that makes sense for you.
Using a plaid fabric was not my most brilliant choice. Trying to match the plaid pattern when you're mirroring objects is challenging to say the least. But it mostly worked out.
I made this pattern myself because I'm cheap a designer who has to figure out everything for myself. The good news though is that you can buy this pattern along with instructions on how to assemble it into a quilt here. These are the gorgeous blocks that inspired me to take the plunge. The fox with the glasses, it slays me.
And paper piecing isn't just for furry creatures. There's lots of modern and traditional geometric patterns that this technique is great for.
Quilt Club met last night to look at everyone's work, buuuuuut I had to leave early to go tuck in babies, so I don't have photos. So sorry! But I'm sure they were awesome.
6 quilt club blocks down for my ROYGBIV sampler quilt. It's going to be a hot mess, but I love it.
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Nice job with the paper piecing! I struggle with mirror image things so I place fabric on the front of my paper piecing pattern & stitch from the back - which requires the ability to see through your paper piecing paper.
ReplyDeleteTry it sometime :)
Paper piecing is great for blocks with odd sized pieces that would be difficult to cut accurately - it's a great skill to have in your bag of tricks!
Thanks Belinda! Missed you. Interesting take on it, placing the fabric on the front. I might need to give that a shot.
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