Wednesday, February 26, 2014

Japanese Bag Pattern from 'Japan Quilts' Magazine

I think Japanese quilts and quilters are the best! Hands down, Japanese quilters are some pretty sophisticated quilters. I admire the detail, precision and skill that is japanese.  Japanese magazine subscriptions are pretty pricey but well worth it in my opinion. I ordered a subscription to Japan Quilts and recieved my first installment #155. I literally did a happy dance out by the mail boxes for all the neighbors to see. I was a little disappointed by the first few pages since it was all Christmas crafts (my family doesn't celebrate Christmas). I am really impressed by the intricate quilts they were supplying patterns for. I drooled quite a bit and  decided to start slow by making a purse.

Here are a few glimpses of  Quilts Japan 11 of 2013






Tuesday, February 25, 2014

English Paper Piecing vs. American Piecing

When it comes to choosing between the two methods, I am very biased, and it isn't because I'm American.
Hand piecing is slow enough, why drag it out with the extra step of cutting out exact paper pieces (yes, I realize you can buy them) and then sewing hundreds, if not thousands of pieces of fabric to or around thousands of pieces of paper.  That takes a huge amount of time, before you can even begin sewing your quilt together. I am a local quilt guild member and every chance I get I am demonstrating the simple old American method. Cut your pieces accurately, draw your seams accurately (or stamp them on, or print them, or trace them) and sew on the line. It's SO much faster.
Did I mention you can drop the entire paper step?
I made a super short tutorial video demonstrating the basics of the American hand piecing method. http://youtu.be/JMYHDZlrWI4 Then I continued it with a few more super shorties...http://youtu.be/4cugqRLbWNU  and here  http://youtu.be/avbSn6oe7WQ.


This quilt was done using the old fashioned method of american hand piecing, not english paper piecing, just stitching on the line and not sewing into the seam allowances.