The Farmer's Wife 1930s Sampler Quilt
Showing posts with label The Farmer's Wife 1930s Sampler Quilt. Show all posts
54 blocks ~ Farmer's Wife 1930's Sampler Quilt
It has been a little while since I laid out my Farmer's Wife 1930's Sampler Quilt blocks. Admittedly I haven't made many more, it's one of those projects I'm doing in between other things. But this is a fun way to see how it is growing.
This isn't the final layout, though they will be set on point. I'm pleased with it so far. It definitely needs more Liberty fabric and I think I might take that Daffodil block out, or add in more splashes of green? What do you think?
Classes and happy, lovely thoughts ~ Bea and Hope
This is a mixed bag post... some news, some sewing and some life stuff!
I managed to complete a couple more hand pieced Farmer's Wife 1930's Sew-along blocks this week:
#11 Bea - This letter reminded me of the Diane Von Furstenberg quote, "Feel like a woman, wear a dress!". I have done this many times, just got dolled up for no reason other than to cheer myself up and I agree it "it's funny how different things look". I went with fun prints from Good Hair Day by Kim Andersson, perfect for "the Queen Bee in the hive!".
#43 Hope - I used to be a complete perfectionist about my house, cleaning and organising. After having my son I had to abandon a lot of my OCD tendencies and now I have 3 kids you would never think by looking at my house that I cared about cleaning!! So I'm all for the idea to "skip some of the daily tasks and make them weekly tasks, and enjoy my family while I still have them with me". I picked the brown and the gingham because they feel homely and represent the "home in spick and span order". The bright dots print is because "they don't care whether things are shiny spotlessly clean if they can have fun and see a happy face and hear mother join in on their jokes".
Saturday 2nd April is SALE DAY at Patchfinders and there's 20% off everything! I am working in the shop, so come along and say hi!
I've also updated my classes page, click here to see my upcoming classes - bookings are being taken at Patchfinders from Monday 4th April and places fill up fast.
For the first time myself and Jayne (dressmaker extraordinaire) are hosting evening sewing sessions and will be able to help people with sewing projects or offer advice for beginners. Perfect for everyone that can't make the day time classes! Check here for dates.
It's been a really lovely day today. I managed to sneak in a little quilting time, working on my watermelon Stitchy Pie needlecase:
I got an upgrade on my phone and opted for the new iPhone SE. I like having a small phone, I've had the 5s for a while and get on well with it so a more powerful phone that's the same size suits me perfectly! I went for the rose gold and will probably spend the rest of the evening setting it up.
Today there was an Easter service at church, it's so nice being able to go to kid's events and the whole school was there. Lois was dancing around to the organ music because she couldn't read the words to sing along with the hymns! Very sweet. The older two really like singing 'Lord of the Dance', which was one of my Grandad's favourite hymns.
At the end we waited for everyone else to go back to school and went to look at the flowers and display created by the children at the front of the church. On the way out we saw a little ladybird on the steps, we sat down and watched it and Lois giggled as it crawled on her finger. Those moments are so peaceful and wonderful. I am literally taking time to smell the flowers and live in the moment with my little girl before she starts school.
fun fables ~ Priscilla
Along with Dolly I finished one more block for my Farmer's Wife 1930's Sew-along quilt this week and because it had bigger pieces I decided to do English Paper Piecing.
#86 Priscilla Fabric was an easy pick for this block and I enjoyed the letter! The way she stopped her younger brothers protesting about helping do dishes by telling stories "so exciting that dishwashing became a pleasure". I chose the dotty grey for the boring task of washing dishes and the Fibs and Fables print because it so beautifully represents a fairytale theme.
I taught a beginner's patchwork class today and had such a wonderful time. The ladies were all so creative and enthusiastic. They made some beautiful blocks and really inspired me! As much as I am enjoying all the hand sewing I have been doing recently I am now itching to get back to my sewing machine. Hopefully I will find some time this weekend!
Linking up to finish it up friday at crazy mom quilts.
a group of ladies ~ Aimee, Nancy, Jewel, Patience, Patricia and Grandma
It seems I'm far better at making these blocks than blogging about them! I'm currently about 10 blocks behind the Farmer's Wife 1930's Sew-along and fear that gap will probably increase. I'm plodding along and hand sewing the blocks, enjoying every slow minute! Most of these were hand pieced and a couple were English Paper Pieced.
#2 Aimee The letter by Bookworm refers to "a round blue jar" on the bookcase, which she collected money in to save up and buy books. The blue and navy fabric is for the jar, the brown for the pennies and the Playing Pop print is going to pass for books on a shelf! I have always been a bookworm - as a child I read late into the night under the duvet with a torch and I recently joined my first book club. I agree there is nothing quite like bring able to "escape for a few minutes into a make-believe world where [my] spirit may be eased".
#76 Nancy (English Paper Pieced) Another bookish letter, this time I used a sweet print with capital letters on it and the pink/gold print reminds me that books can be "a treasured possession".
#46 Jewel (English Paper Pieced) I loved this letter! I chose the Liberty flower print and the soft polka dots to represent the humbleness the farmer's wife feels and her realisation that she needs to listen more.
(skipping #90 Sara for now - I might go back and do it if I decide I have to do them all!)
#79 Patience This was a "down" letter. I went with the muddy colour for the work and the (lack of) money, and the blue for the hauling of water. There is also hope in the block though, the strong blue running across the middle, standing strong. "I am down, and down bad. But I'm not out even yet".
#80 Patricia Hilarious! I think all mothers know how important it is that we get rest, especially when you have babies and very little children. I could never nap when mine were small but eventually I realised that just sitting and doing nothing was as good as and helped keep me "fresh and strong"! I chose the starry print for sleep and the low volume print to symbolise the peace that results. "There could not be not'ing happen dose children worse dan I not get my von little naps".
#39 Grandma It feels like there is lots of movement in this block, spinning and jagged. The "ups and downs" of family life, the children "fly[ing] away" and the need for "bravery and brightness". Gingham always feels homely to me and I mixed it with a dark, busy print and a swirling print to capture the reflections of the letter.
Have a happy weekend everyone!
Linking up to finish it up friday at crazy mom quilts
just plain human ~ Lily
Today I am again guest blogger for the Farmer's Wife 1930's Sampler Quilt Sew-along and I hope you won't be too disappointed with me.
Before I choose fabrics for each block of my 1930's Farmer's Wife quilt I always read the letter first, then pick fabrics based on the words / theme / feeling of the letter. When I come to write my blog post I read the letter again. When I reread the letter for block #51 Lily I had to laugh... it is titled 'Just Plain Humans' and it made me think about being 'only human'.
You see this is not the most polished of blog posts, I failed to get some great photos - actually I failed to get any photos of my progress at all because I have been sewing at night and I just relaxed into it. I don't have a special way of constructing this block and only a warning of bumpy backsides... I do have a pretty block though!
#51 Lily
I focused on the natural things the family enjoy; the "beauty of the wildflowers and the greening of the greasewood and sage" and the marvel of "lacy snowflakes".
Even my one good picture has a stray thread on it!
Notes:
- I do wish I had used the From Marti Mitchell templates for this block. All the small triangles and angled seams have caused a jumbled mess on the back and I found it really hard to press. The templates help reduce bulk a lot.
- When you are hand piecing small pieces that have mirror image shapes it is crucial to make sure you cut the correct number of each shape because they only fit together one way. I find it helps to lay my pieces on top of the diagram so I can keep track.
Despite the lumps I did enjoy sewing this block, I followed the block assembly in the book and came across no problems.
I hand pieced this block and I do have a hand piecing tutorial for you to show you my methods (at least I have something to offer!), click here for the tutorial.
I will be doing a catch up of my blocks soon as I have quite a few I haven't shown yet. Go ahead and subscribe to my blog to see more and there are other patterns / tutorials coming too!
hand piecing a quilt
I am going to show you how to hand piece patchwork, this is my favourite method for making my 1930's Farmers Wife blocks. It is great for small pieces of patchwork, perfect for 'on the go' sewing or relaxing on the sofa sewing!
Please read through the whole tutorial before you begin and if you already do hand piecing then leave a comment with any extra tips you have, I enjoy hearing them! This isn't a tutorial for a particular block, I am just showing part of a block I made in order to demonstrate how to hand piece and how to build your patchwork.
To begin hand piecing you will need templates or a printed version of your block. For the 1930's Farmer's Wife quilt I print out the diagrams from the CD. I am fortunate to have a LightPad, which I use to trace the lines on the diagram onto fabric (in the same way you would trace an embroidery pattern). You could use cardboard, freezer paper or acrylic templates to draw around.
My five top tools for hand piecing are:
1. 1" x 6" ruler - perfect for tracing and drawing smaller shapes
3. black Frixion pen (and I was excited to discover recently you can get refills!)
4. a long thin needle
5. a quality fine cotton thread, I use Aurifil 50wt.
I prefer to use the water erasable pen most of the time but if it doesn't show up on a blue or dark fabric then I use the frixion. As you are drawing on the back of the fabric the black always works well even on very dark fabric but I can't bring myself to use it on white!
Once you have drawn your shapes onto the fabric you need to cut them out leaving at least 1/4" around each side. I often use scissors for this step but for the 1930's Farmer's Wife I have the From Marti Mitchell templates, which allows me to rotary cut. I like using them for triangles, that's why you might notice the corners have been cut off the triangles in this tutorial.
Preparing the pieces for sewing is probably the most time consuming bit and my least favourite part, so I try to get two or three blocks ready for sewing and keep them in small zip lock bags.
Preparing the pieces for sewing is probably the most time consuming bit and my least favourite part, so I try to get two or three blocks ready for sewing and keep them in small zip lock bags.
So you have your shapes cut out and you want to start piecing them together now. I recommend referring back to the pattern at this point to ensure you have the right placement of your pieces and check the order in which you need to sew them together.
Take the first two pieces and place them right sides together, make sure you focus on which line needs sewing - it is really easy to sew along the wrong line (I have done that more times that I would admit!). You might find it helpful to use a clip or pin to indicate which side you are sewing.
Take the first two pieces and place them right sides together, make sure you focus on which line needs sewing - it is really easy to sew along the wrong line (I have done that more times that I would admit!). You might find it helpful to use a clip or pin to indicate which side you are sewing.
Thread your needle and tie a knot at the end of the thread. Put your needle through the corner on the line and come out at the corner of the other piece. At first this might seem tricky, if you find it hard then just do one side at a time, push the first fabric further down your needle and the wiggle the needle around to come out in the right place on the other piece of fabric. You want to be as precise as possible to make sure you are starting at the end of each line (in the corners).
Make a small stitch and once you pull that through do a little backstitch to secure it. Then begin a simple running stitch, you can do one stitch at a time, load a couple of stitches on your needle, or more than a couple if you feel comfortable.
Every few stitches (about every 1-1.5") you should do a backstitch. This helps secure your work. Having had to do some unpicking I can tell you that it does work so it's good to remember and will make your quilts stronger.
As I sew I look at the front and the back of the line of stitching, it's important to keep checking you are straight and on the lines so everything matches up.
Once you reach the end, backstitch and then tie a knot.
So that's one piece done, now you need to add another piece. Here I have joined two half square triangle blocks.
Treat it just the same way, sewing one piece to the other. When joining corners that already have a seam, try to get your needle in the middle, right in the corner, so your points will match nicely.
I repeated those steps and now I have two sections that need joining...
Before I begin stitching I use wonder clips to hold the final corner and the middle seam (I work right to left so keep that in mind if you work left to right!). This means they will stay in place and line up when I reach them.
I begin sewing in the corner (on the right in the picture above) and stitch all the way to the middle - backstitching occasionally if needed. Once I reach the middle I make sure my seams are moved out of the way and then do a backstitch. You do not sew through the seams, you need to keep them out of the way!
To get past the seams I either sew diagonally through the centre of the seams or pass through the seams on one side. Basically you want to start stitching on the other side of the seams without sewing them down.
You want to come out at the corner of your next line:
Then do another backstitch and continue sewing:
When you reach the end be sure that your corners line up so the needle is passing through the corner on each side. Finish with a backstitch and knot.
Keep sewing your blocks together until you are done! I do not press my seams as I go along, mostly because you need to move them as you are sewing, I just give them a good press once I finish each block. If you are joining sections together to make a larger block you could press each section before you put them together to make it less fiddly. I let each block dictate which way to press and try to reduce the bulk as much as possible, whether that means pressing some seams open or make spinning seams - see Cassandra's helpful tutorial here.
EDIT: click here for more tips on block construction for hand piecing!
I hope you find this tutorial useful and are encouraged to try hand piecing. I will try my best to answer any questions if you leave a comment below and you are welcome to share any tips or advice too. Happy hand sewing!
My thanks to Helen for all her great advice and for helping me start hand piecing :)
playing catch up ~ Granny, Jenny, Addie & Margaret
It's been a while since I blogged about my Farmer's Wife 1930's blocks. I have been making them, just at a slow pace and to be honest I'm very behind but hoping to catch up over Christmas.
Here are four more finished blocks:
#41 Granny
The fabric choices were easy for this one because I chose prints that remind me of my late Granny. Elegant yet still familiar, pretty and busy!
#45 Jenny
This letter is so true of my kids, they love being with me and doing jobs around the house. They often get involved in whatever I'm doing and I tell them we can get those things done faster if we do them together (most of the time, occasionally I need them to get out of my way!). A nice reminder to enjoy the kids and make time to play. I picked the viewfinders and pandas as a result.
#1 Addie
This one was sort of a random pick of fabrics... the dots look like rows in a field, the Liberty print is for the "worlds of wildflowers" and the deep blue Carkai fabric for the "beautiful Columbia River". The letter wasn't as poignant for me as others have been but the block does make me happy!
#57 Margaret
My mum's name is Margaret and the letter really made me smile! I had the perfect Liberty print (thank you Molli!) to create a "whole menagerie", Liberty Tana Lawn, Theo in B. Another ideal print is Fragile, Zephyr by Rashida Coleman-Hale for the family sitting down for dinner. I only had a square of that fabric from a charm pack so couldn't fussy cut as much as I wanted - I might get more because the bowls and spoons are so cute! The other colours used and the placement of the fabrics were to suggest "Outside there was rain, wind, darkness, but indoors there was warmth, light, food, shelter, Home and Love".
All of these blocks were hand pieced (I intend to post a tutorial on that - we've all had winter lurgy recently but I will get to it soon!) and I do find it easier than English Paper Piecing when it comes to the smaller shapes. I will just use both techniques as and when, depending on the block and my mood!
I've been thinking about my blog a lot recently and would like to get back to writing more and chatting to everyone or no one at all. Life is always busy but I love this community and the friendships and it feels important, not just to show what I've done but to share the journey and document all that goes along with it.
Have a happy weekend!
Linking up with crazy mom quilts for finish it up Friday
excitement
There's an awful lot going on in my world. I feel like doing a Bill and Ted, shouting 'excellent!' and playing air guitar... well I would if the kids hadn't totally worn me out ;)
I have a lot of upcoming sewing related things and plenty to do, so I have been trying to crack on with getting my WIPs done. First 'to sew' on my list is my Star Crossed Quilt. I had my pieces already all cut out and sitting on my desk and today was spent chain piecing:
This is a great pattern and should come together quickly.
I also finished up an Etsy commission this week. It was a custom order for a very special and personal embroidered cushion, I didn't ask permission to share so here's a peek of part of the embroidery:
I had an exciting delivery today, The Farmer's Wife 1930s Sampler Quilt book:
Having seen the book all over social media I thought I had an idea of what it would be like but I was blown away. This book is STUNNING. I haven't really had time to sit and digest it yet but even a quick flick through impressed me. The colours and fabrics are beautiful and the blocks are fabulous. And hello?!! A block with my name! If you don't have a copy I would highly recommend buying one or seeing if it's available at your local library.
* edited to add - see my FREE TUTORIAL on hand piecing, it's so easy and how these blocks were sewn! *
I am thrilled to be part of the upcoming Sew-Along with the Fat Quarter Shop and Gnome Angel as a guest blogger. I will be sharing my blocks and, most likely, either hand sewing or English Paper Piecing them.
* edited to add - see my FREE TUTORIAL on hand piecing, it's so easy and how these blocks were sewn! *
I am thrilled to be part of the upcoming Sew-Along with the Fat Quarter Shop and Gnome Angel as a guest blogger. I will be sharing my blocks and, most likely, either hand sewing or English Paper Piecing them.
You can read all the details here and discover all the guest bloggers here - I'm in amazing company and it's really worth checking out everyone's blogs and social media for inspiration. There is also a very active facebook group; it's supportive, inspiring and fun to see where everyone is from!
The Sew-Along will begin 28th September so there's still plenty of time to get a copy of the book and join in.
Of course a new Sew-Along was a good excuse to get some more fabric so here's what I got...
These are going to be my basis for the colour theme, I will throw more colours in but I'm going to try and use these in most of the blocks - at least that's the current plan!
I have a heap of repro 30s fabrics that I'm using for my green tea and sweet beans quilt so I will likely use some of those but I really want a mix of modern and repro. I'm doing the same with my gtsb but this time I will use more modern, mostly Cotton and Steel, fabrics. Based on that I ordered these beauties:
left to right: White on White Polka Party, Lakehouse Favourites by Holly Holderman; Dotty Blossoms in Blue, Gracie's Schoolhouse Classics by Judie Rothermel; Strawberries & Cream in Coral, Hello Darling by Bonnie & Camille; Symmetry, Charleston by Revive and Grid Plaid in Sea, New Bedford by Denyse Schmidt
left to right: Row by Row in Lit, Cultivate by Bonnie Christine; Score Card in Ivory, Lucky Strike by Kimberly Kight; Domino Plaid in Navy, Lucky Strike by Kimberly Kight; Lucky in Royal, Lucky Strike by Kimberly Kight; Paint Dot in Cloud, Paper Bandana by Alexia Abegg; Paint Dot in Indigo, Paper Bandana by Alexia Abegg and Panda Bebe in Pearl, Paper Bandana by Alexia Abegg
Since the blocks have some little pieces I couldn't resist getting a Zephyr by Rashida Coleman Hale charm pack as well.
Undoubtedly this will be an eclectic mix of fabrics but then that's kind of become my style and I'm happy with it! My general way of working is to look at each block and decide on the fabrics as I go along, rather than an overall scheme or specific plan, then find a way to pull it all together at the end ;)
And that's about all the planning I have done. There are some great resources on the facebook group and fabulous ideas for prep and organisation. I still need to decide the best system for me but I'm sure a folder and plastic wallets will be involved.
I'm excited to get started!
Are you joining in or have you ever done a sampler quilt like this? Do those of you that did the original Farmer's Wife have any tips?
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