Disappearing Hourglass

 Created for Project Quilting 15.4 Hourglass challenge.

Sometimes I see these challenges and need to let them incubate a bit before and an idea forms in my brain. This one I just greeted with a smile. I have been contemplating disappearing blocks for a project in my near future. For the Project Quilting 14.3 I made a 54 40 or fight block disappear. Fun! I was looking at pinwheel or hourglass blocks as future as possibilities. So, thank you, Trish, for making the challenge match the idea in my head. 

I started by string piecing half square triangles, then assembling them into hour glass blocks. Why string piecing? Because my basic philosophy is “Why would you use 5 fabrics when 50 will do?” Please note, tis is the hourglass in my project. It's harder to see it later because I made it disappear.

My unfinished blocks measured 9 1/2”. I lined up the 1 1/2” line on my ruler with the center seam and cut, then cut again 3” from the first cut. This left 1/4” inch waste at the edge and I discarded it. I rotated the block and made the same cuts on all 4 sides.

Next up, I needed to decide how to “disappear” the blocks. I tried 2 different layouts. The first was by rotating the middle piece on each side so the pointing out parts pointed in. 

For the second choice I rotated the corners and the center. I think both are interesting, but I went with option 2.

Created by Diane Lapacek near Poynette, WI.

15” x 30”

New Life on the Outside

 Created for Project Quilting 15.3 Inside Out challenge.

When I saw this challenge my first thought was a simple rag quilt. After all, I had a stack of flannel squares already cut and I'm trying to use up all that random stuff.  And it fit the challenge. I even started it, but after a couple of hours I was bored. I reminded myself that Project Quilting was created to inspire all of us to do something special we wouldn't have done. So I dumped the rag quilt and decided to honor the challenge.

I have lots of things INSIDE baskets and boxes and drawers that I thought I might take OUT someday to be part of a quilt that would make me happy. Things that were too cool to just throw out, because, hey, I've made some pretty special quilts in the past using things any normal person would have thrown away long ago.

I decided to start with this one. It's an old picnic basket with selvages and shreds, which are strips of  fabric too skinny to be sewn in with a seam. Basically, anything less than 1 inch wide. I thought I could make a background. I cut squares to use as foundations, then took selvages and shreds that were "white" from INSIDE the basket and brought them OUT to live forever in my quilt. I made a decision to not iron or clip the loose threads from anything that came out of the basket. After all, I was looking for a very casual, raggedy look.  I laid them on one at a time and used one line of stitching down the middle of each, then sewed the squares together rail fence style.

I chose more pieces form the same basket, but decided I needed a little more pizzazz, so I went to my dresser full of treasures.

 

Yes, It's a dresser. But only the top 2 drawers are full of cool things. Fibers and ribbons and miscellaneous trims. Anything I thought was interesting enough to possibly use in the future.

That shiny red thing on the right is the foil bag from the Smithfield ham we ate last week. Don't judge. It might be something really cool in a future PQ quilt. I took miscellaneous stuff from INSIDE here and brought them OUT along with more selvages and shreds and created the vine running down my quilt, then wound pieces around my fingers and stitched them down to create the flowers. It's starting to make me happy! Now for some leaves.

  

I chose a collection of greens from INSIDE both the basket and the dresser and brought them OUT, then cut them into shorter pieces and sprinkled them on a piece of a damaged vintage tablecloth that I had previously dyed green. I laid a piece of solvy (water soluble stabilizer) on the top and used lots of free motion stitching to hold the pieces in place, wet it down to dissolve to solvy, and cut out leaves.

After stitching the leaves to the quilt, I figured I was getting close. Maybe some viny things. Pieces of fibers and ribbons curved around and scouched down. Almost there. 

I found another box with lots of flowers and yoyos and whatever that I had previously made. I usually have an idea and just start making parts. I preview them on the quilt and decide what stays and what does not. Often pieces are left over. 

I found a few little flowers INSIDE this box that wanted to come OUT and be added as the final touches on my quilt. Kind of like little flower buds .For some reason this closeup is upside down and for some reason I can't turn it right side up and it's my bedtime. :)

So, in the end, I have a quilt that makes me happy. I used some of the things that have been languishing INSIDE my sewing studio and brought them OUT where they can be enjoyed. 

Created by Diane Lapacek in rural Poynette, WI

16" x 32"