Sewing Scientist: February 2022

Week ending February 27, 2022

This was a short work week for me with a holiday on Monday and I took Friday off. I have been working on a pattern test for Frannie B Quilt Co. and almost finished it by the end of the day on Sunday. Here are my star points. This was the second quilt I've made using templates. I arranged these in an attempt to show my login in selecting the fabrics. I started with the Octopus fabric and went in a circle from there going clockwise.

The Nanette Quilt from Kelly Renay was released this week. See my previous blog post for all the details.

I got photos of the Perfect Place Quilt I tested for Lifting Limits Quilting and am so in love with how it turned out. Here's a sneak peek.

The quilt I'm testing for Frannie B Quilt Company is different than other's I have tested. The design seems traditional but I'm giving it a modern vide with my fabric choices. I made a lot of these blocks and took the extra step to make them no waste. I now have a bunch of 2" half square triangles.

Making progress. You can see by bonus hafl square triangle in the upper left of the photo.

Finally have all the pieces laid out.

My 2 youngest kitties, Smaug and Nia, celebrated their 4th birthday. Smaug love to cuddle under quilts so I made a kitty quilt sleeping bag. It's probably the most ridiculous thing I have ever made. But SMaug loves it and I'm probably going to make him another one, but slightly deeper.

I think he would prefer that we not see him when he's inside it, but it hasn't stopped him from using it.

I got all my subunits sewn together and after this photo, I got the rows assembled. I still need to finish sewing the blocks, then I can assemble the quilt.

After I make all the blocks for my test for Frannie B Quilt Co., I plan to put them aside temporarily to work on another quilt pattern test. Assembling the Quilt top will not take long and is something I can finish in just an hour or two.

Nanette Quilt - Pattern by Kelly Renay

This is the second quilt pattern that I have tested for Kelly Renay. The first one was a block test only and I have been slowly working on finishing it completely. I'm about halfway done with it. This time, I signed up to do a throw size and I actually finished it completely before the pattern release date! This is the Nanette Quilt!

When I went to select fabric for this quilt, I wanted to use the Natures Treasure design by Laura Van Horne for Robert Kaufman Fabrics. I had bought this colorful print years ago in the Dallas fabric district. The print reminded me of beautiful agates and I have waited for just the right project for it for way too long. I now know that you never know what the "perfect" project is and you should just use the fabric instead of staring at it on a shelf.

Since I really wanted that beautiful fabric to shine, I paired it with some subtle prints. I'm not a huge fan of solids and love to go wild mixing and matching prints. First I knew I wanted to use this mustard print to pull out the mustard tones in the print. Then I saw that this navy with reddish pink polka dots that I bought at Jo-Ann's would look great as the background. This was a discount find, and at $3 a yard - I bought all they had left and have zero regrets. Then as I scanned my shelves for a fourth and final fabric, I saw this blood red fabric with a subtle scattered dot print. I liked that all my prints had dots or a circular pattern in them and just knew they would be perfect together.

This pattern looks complicated, but was not hard to assemble at all. There is a lot of strip piecing and cutting involved. You definitely have to be extremely consistent with your 1/4" seams or you will have issues. I did have to redo one part because I forgot to move my needle to the spot I normally have it in to get the perfect 1/4" seam. The end result is so worth the extra effort. The Nanette is truly stunning. I didn't really see how beautiful it really was until I had the top finished and you then see the pattern that is created by the alternating blocks.

I had a backing picked out for my Nanette quilt, then realized it was not wide enough. I went to a local quilt shop (Urban Spools) for their 5th Saturday Sale. If you buy a 5th Saturday bag, you get 20% anything you can fit in it. I always use the 5th Saturday as my opportunity to buy wide quilt backs at a discount and to treat myself to a few new fabrics.

There were 5 Saturdays in January and I had just finished my Nanette. I picked up 2 wide quilt backs from Urban Spools. Both quilt backs were Ruby Star Society Speckled - one in Navy and one in Turquoise. The Navy looked so good with my Nanette that I quilted it that day. I didn't do a fancy quilting. I just did some simple straight-line quilting with my walking foot. I quilted it using my trusty yellow thread and love how it pops on the back.

I decided to do the binding in the golden yellow print. I wanted to do the Natures Treasure design, but didn't have enough. I happened to make a post on Instagram about looking for more of the print and wishing I had bought more. Laura Van Horne commented and offered to send me digital files to print the fabric at Spoonflower! I got the files from her, but did not have the one for this exact fabric. But I am so excite to now be able to print fabric that is very similar. I got my proofs already from Spoonflower and need to tweak the size a bit and then will order a few yards for a future quilt.

Be sure to grab a copy of the Nanette Quilt. It's available as a PDF or printed copy. Also, sign up for Kelly Renay's newsletter to get a freebie quilt pattern.

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Week ending February 20, 2022

I worked on the Perfect Place Quilt for Lifting Limits Quilting and got it finished!

I did a lot of chain piecing of my pieces.

Here are all my pieces pressed and ready to sew together.

Here's what my two blocks look like. I'll share photos of the completed top closer to the pattern release date.

I got this fun Octopus fabric from Minerva and will use in in a pattern test for Frannie B Quilt Co.

These are all the fabrics I'll be using.

I got all my pieces cut out and started sewing on Sunday.

I'll be working on this pattern test, then starting another I already have lined up.

Week ending February 13, 2022

I started my week selecting fabric for a quilt pattern test. I'm testingbthe Perfect Place Quilt Pattern by Lifting Limits Quilting. I decided to use some of my designs from my Spoonflower shop.

Before I could begin testing, I wanted to finish my Scenic Detour Quilt - Pattern by B in the Studio. To do so, I needed to finish my back.

I then got a package in the mail from Spoonflower of proofs of some designs I want to use in a quilt. Laura Van Horne allowed me to use some of her photos of her artwork to make fabric! She designed fabric I used recently and when I posted that I wished I had more, she offered to send me files so I could print some! It was so kind and generous of her.

I did finish my Scenic Detour Quilt and need to get some photos soon. Smaug had to supervise.

I finally got to start on the Perfect Place Quilt and love how my designs look all cut up.

I was off early from work on Friday and got a lot done and was able to get all my flying geese made on Saturday.

Sunday I was able to trim everything.

And got to sewing the units together.

I'm hoping to finish my Perfect Place Quilt this coming week and then I'll be starting on a new pattern test for Frannie B Quilt Co.

Week ending February 6, 2022

The majority of my week was spent working on the Scenic Detour Quilt Pattern I'm testing for B in the Studio. I'm using my Jaftex Ambassador fabrics from Studio e fabrics.

Some dolphins and urchins from the Seas the Day collection by Diane Eichler.

I also was able to post about the Sibiu Top from Itch to Stitch - see my prior post for more info.

I was also gifted a set of thread from Aurifil. I've never used Aurifil thread before.

Some more block components.

4 blocks for my Scenic Detour Quilt. I finished the top and will post more about it closer to the pattern launch.

I used my half square triangle scraps to dress up my Seas the Day panels.

Here are 4 of my fancy panels.

My Sunday night ended with me piecing my quilt back with the panels. It looks so cute!

I'm hoping to get some photos this week of my completed top and then get it quilted. I'm also starting a new pattern test.

Itch to Stitch Sibiu Top

It's been a long time since I tested a pattern for Itch to Stitch (or any non quilt pattern) and the Sibiu Top was just the perfect pattern for me to test. The Sibiu Top is a very simple to make top that is the perfect addition to me work from home wardrobe.

The Sibiu Top is a batwing top. The name Sibiu is in the Translavania Region of Romania - you know, home to Count Dracula. The Sibiu is the perfect pattern for a beginner as there is nothing to hem! Everything is finished with a band.

This was my first Sibiu Top that I made during testing. I made it using a cotton jersey that's been in my stash many years. The print is of tarot cards and I think they are fun to look at. I made this one a straight size 8 based off my bust measurement and thought if I shortened it - I shortened this one by 1", that it would hit at my high hip which would fit in a size 10 and it would work. Well, it fits, but it is a bit tight at my hips. Since I made this one 3/4 length sleeves (1.5" removed in length), it works great when I wear it with leggings for days that I do yoga.

After making my first Sibiu Top , I was eager to make another. Since this pattern works great with a variety of knits I decided to make another using a cotton jersey. Many patterns don't do well in cotton jersey as they don't have a beautiful drape, so I always love a pattern that works great with them. This cotton jersey is custom printed and is of a photograph I took of a slab of a Sequoia tree.

For this version, I went ahead and reprinted my pattern and graded out to a size 12 for my hips. I left the length as is in the pattern, but I still removed 1.5" from the sleeve length. I did long sleeves for this one and really love the tall cuffs. I can easily fold them up in half for a 3/4 sleeve.

This one has a more relaxed fit and is so comfortable to wear. But looking at the photos, I do think I need to remember to remove length from the body as I think the shorter length looks better on me.

I made one final Sibiu Top in testing. I decided to break the rules on this one while trying out the sleeve inset option in the pattern. The pattern is written for knits with 4-way stretch. I used a 2-way stretch french terry - it's very light weight - my first broken rule. I do wish I had used some cotton jersey instead and this french terry tends to be a bit clingy and makes me feel a bit more self conscious of my belly. I can't tell you how many times I retook these photos as I did not like how you could see where my jeans stopped on my belly.

Then I made my insets and broke the rule again. Since I have been enjoying quilting the past 18 months and quilt clothes are making a huge fashion trend, I decided to give the Sibiu the Quilt trend treatment. I made a bunch of half square triangles, sewed them together, then sewed them onto a scrap piece of cotton jersey. Then I cut my inset pieces from this quilted piece.

I absolutely LOVE how it turned out. It is so uniquely me and something that I can wear that shows both of my sewing passions. The quilted part may not have as much drape as other knits would, but it didn't affect the fit or wear-ability of my Sibiu. I actually have thoughts of making another one (or more) like this using some 12" quilt blocks.

I honestly had a hard time stopping at making only three Sibiu Tops. Since I am working from home - and hope to continue to do so permanently, I am trying to be more mindful of what items I make. Working from home means that my needs are much different and I have less need for variety in my wardrobe. The Sibiu is a very fast sew and the fit is so comfortable that I could easily wear one every day of the week. I made my versions fairly casual as I pictured myself wearing them while I work from home and still being comfortable wearing them while I go out for a walk at lunch. While I did make a "fancier" version in the french terry with the quilted insets - it is something I've been wearing on days when I know I'm not going out for a walk - rainy cold days mostly. But that is why I did make it with a cowl. I knew it would be my warm and cozy top. I've worn all three regularly since I made them and can attest that they are very comfortable, even to wear on walks and doing yoga. The Sibiu is on sale for 20% for the initial pattern launch. Be sure to check out the Itch to Stitch Blog to see all the tester versions.