It is the start of a new month so that means yet another scrap quilt! You would think at some point I would run out of scraps but between classes, friends, and the finishing up of other projects, the scrap bins are just as full as ever.
So what do you say, are you up for another Scrap-A-Palooza quilt.
My scrap quilts are usually inspired by a bag, drawer or bin that is over flowing. Due to some recent great sales where I picked up some large cuts of fabric incredibly cheap, my dresser where I store backing fabric is crammed full. So....
One of my favorite ways to start a scrap quilt is to begin with the backing fabric! This is about a 5 yard cut and I love the colors so it will be perfect.
My absolute favorite scrap quilt to make are string quilts. Minimal cutting, mindless sewing and the variations and colors are endless. I can't believe it has taken me so long to sew one up as part of the Scrap-A-Palooza series. Looks like this is the month to change that!
My vision for this month's quilt is to make a multi-colored string quilt in colors that go with the above backing fabric.
Now that I have my backing all picked out, I dug through my scraps and pulled all the piecess that were close to the colorway of the backing. I pulled solids, prints, batiks, linens...anything that would match. I also found a bunch of old multi-colored fabric that was printed on black cloth. I can simply use the back of the fabric as the right side and it will make some great black strings for this project.
When you are pulling fabrics, try not to disregard the "unloved". I have this old fabric that I will be working into my blocks. If you cut it small enough and use it sparingly, you can start to move it out of your stash. String quilts are a great opportunity to do this.
I am not sure I have enough scraps so I always like to pull a little backup fabric from my stash in case I need more. All of these fabrics are smaller than a fat quarter and I am more than happy to see them used in this project.
(If you are curious how I store my scraps, I wrote about it here.)
As I was pulling scraps, I realize a number of them were older Tina Givens fabric and I remembered I had a large cut in my stash. I may find this will work for the binding.
It would be nice to see this one go too!
I do sew my strings onto a fabric foundation. While I usually use inexpensive muslin, I do cut up yucky fabric and simply use the back to sew the strings on to. As this project's colors are pretty dark, I will be able to use a lot of these up.
(I have stacks of these foundations pre-cut to various sizes so they are there when I need them.)
If you have never made a string quilt and want to see some examples of some I have made in the past, you can go here to see a compilation I put together or here to see a fun string baby quilt I made recently.
In about a week, I will share how I sew the blocks.
So if you are sewing along, over the next week you will want to get your scraps together. Look to see if you already have a backing and try to pull colors that will work. You can make your quilt a single color, multi-colored or anywhere in between.
If you haven't sewed along in
the past, maybe this is the quilt that will get you involved. If you do
join in, let me know so I can share your project. And if you want to
share with your readers what you are up to, there is a button to grab
there on the sidebar.
Thanks!
Remember, if you have any questions, don't hesitate to contact me.
So start digging in that scrap bin!
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