I am quite satisfied with what I achieved yesterday, which was Day One of finishing up my pending blocks of my free BOM Quilt, Round the Year! I probably could do a bit more, but am being careful with my back.
The blades, spikes and wedges of Block 8 Spiked Dresden are joined together!
The Dresden ring is pieced! Now for the centre…
Pixellated Centre – Post 1
I have also started working on the centre, which I plan to piece like this!
I am employing a method which uses one sided fusible webbing – this is slightly modified from what I learnt from a tute by Elizabeth Hartmann. It is a great technique for doing any pixelated quilt/ block!
Just in case you decide to piece your centre like mine, I am showing you how I did mine!
I have to piece a 7″ diameter block with 1/2″ ready squares. If I add a seam allowance of 1/2″ ( a larger seam allowance is always good when appliqueing circles) – I need an 8″ circle… Okay, I know not everyone loves the Maths like I do, so, without getting into too many calculations – let me show you what I did!
I started with:
4 shades of blue fabric – 6″ x 10″ each. I did need a few 2″ x 1″ strips more. You can add those as you need them.
Sheet of one-sided lightweight fusible webbing about 19″ square.
Fine permanent marker pen
18″x24″ cutting mat
6″x24″ ruler ( you can take any ruler 18″ or more in length)
Paper tape
Step 1. Draw a grid
The first step, is drawing an inch grid on the stabilizer sheet, and this is what I did a bit differently. I had planned to print the grid on the sheet, but my sheet had wrinkles. As I decided to draw lines manually, a brain wave struck! Why not use the inch grid on the mat as a guide to draw the grid ? then I don’t have to worry about getting the squares truly square!
Here is the story in pictures.
I placed the stabilizer sheet on the cutting mat. You can see how wrinkled it looks, and you can’t iron away those creases either. The sticky side is down.
I placed the fusible stabilizer sheet on the cutting mat…the inch grid is visible through the sheet.
Tape the sheet to the mat at the edges – smoothen as much as you can. The paper tears when you remove the tape, so I was glad I had the foresight to take a margin of an inch plus all around.
I taped the edges to the mat.
I used my long ruler to draw grid lines on the sheet, using the inch grid visible below the sheet as a guide. I drew lines on either side of the ruler before moving it to the next inch mark. you could use a lead pencil instead of a perma-ink pen, anything that is visible from the other side and does not smudge is fine.
Using the inch grid as a guide,I drew lines on the sheet with a perma-pen.
That was quick! Now the other side…
Draw perpendicular lines to get your inch grid.
Note to self – I could have drawn a grid any size with this method, only skipping the inch lines appropriately.
I marked the centre with a cross. This will help me in placing the fabric squares.
Mark the centre with a cross. (Use a pencil instead of the pen I used here)
Step One is done!
Step 2. Cutting the fabric
Here are my four rectangles of fabric 6′ x 10″ nicely starched and pressed. Do not spare the starch, the success of this method depends on it!
My four shades of blue – 6″ x 10″ each – starched, pressed and ready to cut!
I cut 42 squares from each of the fabrics – using 6″x 7″ of the fabric. I kept aside the 3″ x 6″ strips
I cut 1″ squares from the fabric, except a 3″ x 6″ strip.
Step 3 Pixellating
As I started off, I realized that an 18″ square was going to be difficult to handle, so I cut it into twoalong a grid line just above the centre row.
I now arranged my inch fabric squares on the grid. This will be a circle, so I did not bother to add any fabric on the corners, where it will be cut away in any case. The centre line of the proposed circle ( top row here) has 13 squares and the middle column has 7 squares. At the edges, I placed 2″ x 1″ rectangles. ( I cut these from the 3″ x 6″ fabric I had put aside earlier)
I want a bigger seam than the 1/4″ we use for our quilt piecing, so I have placed 2″ rectangles at the edges! This will mean one less seam line at the edge. We will know tomorrow if this worked or not!
Arrange the fabric squares on the sticky side of grid
Once the squares were arranged to my satisfaction, I pressed them down. This is the trickiest part, because squares as small as these like to move around and even fly off!
I similarly `pixellated’ the other cut of the stabilizer and pressed the squares in place. Here is how the two halves look!
Ready for the Hasina!
The centre piece is now ready to head to the sewing machine. And this is where I called it a day!
I hope you will be back tomorrow to see how this goes!
Patterns for half of the sixteen blocks for the Block of the Month Round the Year quilt have been posted…
…and as I counted yesterday, I have made only three and a half of the Dusk colourway and two of the Rainbow version.
I know many of you are probably in the same boat; I had a few requests for not posting a block on December 15th, so that everyone could catch up! I do think this is not such a bad idea after all. That means that Block Nine will now be posted next year, on January 1st!
So I have designated December as Catch- Up month! I have to make 11 odd blocks in 22 days beginning from today 🙁
I shall post an update everyday, here as well as on my facebook page “Patchwork of My Life”. I hope you will also share your progress with the rest of us!
So this is where I was this morning on the Spiked Dresden block, which I plan to complete today!
Half pieced Spiked Dresden
Do watch this space tomorrow to check what I manage to accomplish today!
We are already halfway through in this Block of the Month quilt!?! This Spiked Dresden is the eighth of the sixteen blocks that will make up the Round the Year Quilt. The block is 18″ square with a 15″ inset circle, like the other blocks of this quilt,
When I was designing this quilt, I wanted to include all the blocks that I loved, but was too lazy to make a whole quilt with. One on that list was this Spiked Dresden that I encountered on pinterest. When drafting the block for the quilt, I modified it a bit, including the wedges on which the blade points rest. I also thought this was a great block to introduce you to foundation paper piecing with freezer paper. You can also piece it with regular foundation paper and even without a foundation paper piecing template. Complicated as it looks, this particular Dresden needs only as many seams as a regular Dresden! The blade, the spike and the wedge are all attached in one go. Those of you who are still apprehensive of attempting these blocks – this really is a piece of cake! This block was tested by fellow Desi Quilter Caroline Nagar and she had a lot of useful suggestions, which I have tried to incorporate here! Thanks, Caroline!
The downloadable Template files ( two this time) and the Instructions File can be found at the end of this post. So here we go!
Fabric requirement ( For Orange petalled Dresden)
Fabric
Blades
Spikes
Outer Ring
Centre
Background**
#1 Dark grey
11” x 13”
#2 Light Grey
11” x 13”
#4,5,6,7 Blues
4” x 10” each
2” X 17” each
8” square
#8,9,10,11 Yellow, gold, light orange, deep orange
5” x 18” each
**For background – Use 11” x 25” if using single fabric.
You could also use a 19.5” square ( will be trimmed to 18.5″ after appliquéing circle).
Cut all fabric strips from width of fabric.
Step by Step Instructions
Templates and Printing
Print the Instructions file.
Print the two templates files at 100% or actual size in portrait mode on A4 size freezer paper.
For printing on freezer paper, refer to this link.
Template File 1 :
For the Template A Circle, please add an additional ¼” seam allowance to make total of ½” seam allowance.
For the Template B (Pieced Dresden quadrant), cut exactly to size. Use a scale and score lines on the printed lines on the semi circular template with a paper knife or any sharp edged object, to get sharp creases at each seam. I used my trusted friend Jack (the Ripper) for this. Take care so that you do not tear the paper. Sobana of thequiltbug.blogspot.com recently used the freezer paper method for piecing the Dresdens in her quilt. She recommends needle punching the seam lines – I am quite happy with creases!
Important! We piece this Dresden using the freezer paper technique. If freezer paper is not available, regular foundation paper piecing may be done, in which case, you would need to print/trace the Template B to get 4 copies of it.
Template C (background) glue the two parts of the template on edge as indicated. You need four fabric pieces using this template.
Template File 2 –
Contains the templates D ( blade/ petal), E (spike) and F (outer ring piece).
Cutting Instructions
We cut:
6 petals/ blades from each of 4 fabric strips (5”x 18”) using Template D= Total 24
6 spikes from each of 4 fabric strips (4”x 10”) using Template E = Total 24
6 outer ring pieces (wedges at base of petal point ) from each of 4 fabric strips ( 2” x 17” ) using Template F= Total 24
Placing the freezer paper template to cut fabric…
I cut 4 layers of fabric using the rotary cutter. I pressed the freezer paper template to the top layer and cut the fabric so…
Cutting through four layers of fabric – 6 times to get 24 spikes
You could iron the freezer paper templates D, E, F (for the petal/ blade, spike and outer ring piece) on card / stiff paper and cut it out to make sturdier, reusable templates.
Glue or iron the template to thisk card paper.Cut out the template accurately.
Or you could use template plastic to trace and make stencils!
For the Spikes
Use template E and cut like you did the petals. Press the pieces into half lengthwise, right side outside.
For the inner circle
A reminder! Cut a circle from the 8” square – use template A, add an additional ¼” allowance all around – the template gives only ¼” allowance and cut circle.
Template A – remember you need a 1/2″ seam allowance instead of the 1/4″ given here!
Background.
11” x 25” if using single fabric.
You could also use a 19.5” square ( will be trimmed to 18.5after appliquéing circle).
Fold the petals lengthwise, right side inside and sew ¼” seam along the top edge.
Fold into halfway and sew 1/4″ seam to form the pointed blade.
Remember to lock your stitch when you begin and end each seam, if your machine gives you the option, or you may end up with what happened here.
Unlocking equals unravelling!
If your machine does not have the locking option, reduce the stitch length. I do not recommend a back-stitch, as it adds bulk.
Reduce stitch length to prevent unravelling.
2. You can chain stitch all the petals at one go!
I chain stitched the blades/ petals……and garlanded my old Singer (circa 1935) with it!
Clip apart the blades. Trim the seam to about 1/6” and clip the `pointy’ corner.
Clip seam and point to reduce bulk and turn inside out
Turn inside out. Use a toothpick or even your embroidery scissors to get a nice point.
Use a toothpick to get a nice, neat `point’!
5. Now comes the last step in getting the blades ready for piecing. Press them to ‘centre the point’. Lightly crease the blade on the vertical centre line as shown and align the centre seam line with it. Press ( not iron). A bit of spray starch does great here.
Align the `point’ with the centre line.
Preparing the Spikes
Fold the spikes along the central vertical `spine’, right side outside, aligning the longer edges. I do not recommend using your iron, you do not want a crease down the centre.
Piecing with Freezer Paper Template B
Arrange all the petals, spikes and wedges in a circle for an auditioning. I am sorry I forgot to take a picture of this stage!
Mirror Image of the block to aid in freezer paper piecing.
Any kind of foundation paper piecing can be confusing, as the final picture is a mirror image of what you began piecing with! I had this mirror image of my block to help me along the way!
Decide on a starting point, label the Blade#1, and start piecing anti-clockwise, if you are looking at the mirror image.
2. Now use the freezer paper template ( also used earlier) to piece the Dresden quarters. I find that using a template takes out the guesswork from piecing a Dresden – I needed sometimes 21 and at other times only 18 petals for a 20-petal Dresden, when I did not use paper piecing. The block lies flat and neat with this technique!
3. Place the fabric pieces in this order on B1 section of the piecing template. First – Template E #1 right side up at outer edge of template. Press down to freezer paper.
Press wedge piece #1 on outer edge of B1. I have used a rectangle – you will be using Template F to get the pieces
Second – Blade #1 right side up, aligned at inner edge of template. The blade point should be about ¼” inside the edge of paper, at the final seam line.
Press on to freezer paper.
Press Blade#1 on place on B1
Third– Spike#1. Aligned at inner edge of template. The spike will stick out beyond the paper edge by about a ¼”. Pin to hold in place temporarily.
Spike #1 in place on B1. The upper edge of the spike `sticks out’ beyond the paper edge about 1/4″
Fourth – Blade #2 face down, aligned over blade#1. Repin as shown.
Blade #2 comes next, wrong side up. You can see the blue spike sticking out from under the blade on the top.
Fifth – Wedge #2 comes face down, aligned over wedge #1.
Wedge #2 , wrong side up, aligned on Wedge#1 makes the fifth piece to line up on B1.
Pin to hold everything in place. Fold away the freezer paper at crease ( seam line beteen B1 and B2) line, turn over.
Repin from this side, if you like. You will have ¼” seam allowance visible beyond the paper.
Sew in 1/4″ seam allowance visible beyond folded freezer paper template.
Sew just along the edge of the paper, taking care not to stitch over the paper. Trim the seam to ¼”.
Trim the seam to 1/4″ (No, the fabric did not change colour – it is a different piece!)
.Peel away the freezer paper and press open the seam.
You would not be able to press open the seam if piecing with regular foundation paper; this is one of the advantages of freezer paper piecing that I love!
Peel away freezer paper and press open seam.
Now press the pieced portion back on to the freezer paper. Press the spike open, so that it is centred between the two blades as below.
We are now ready to add the next pieces.
Note: If not using freezer paper, just sew on seam line on printed side of paper, as usual (without creasing, folding away the template.)
4. Place Spike #2 in place – it has to stick out beyond edge of paper!
Pin spike#2 in place on Blade#2
… Follow with blade #3 aligned with blade #2. Pin in place…
Blade #3 aligned on top of Blade #2, right sides together.
…and finally wedge #3. Flip around and sew.
Sew along paper edge as for the first two blades.
Again trim and press open seam. Press down on freezer paper.
5. Join the next three pieces – Spike #3, Blade#4 and wedge #4.
6. Join 2 more sets, till Spike #5, Blade#6 and wedge #6.
Blades# 1 to 6 pieced and ready. Note there are only 5 spikes. Label nd put aside Spike#6.
7. Press and trim all sides to size, before you remove the freezer paper Template B totally.
8. Pin a post it note on Spike #6 with its name, and set it aside!
So one quadrant is pieced!
9. Now , we are ready to piece the 2nd quadrant. Proceed as for Quadrant 1. Before removing the freezer paper, sew Spike #6 in place between Quadrant 1 and Quadrant2, to get a semi circular ring. Put aside Spike #12
The freezer paper template is reusable. But if you are piecing with regular printer paper, you need fresh templates for each of the other three quadrants.
Halfway stage in piecing the Dresden. Note the two spikes set aside ( in centre). They will join quadrants 3-4 and 4-1 respectively.
10. Similarly piece Quadrants 3 and attach Spike# 12 between Seme-circle1-2 and Quadrant 3..
11. Finally piece Quadrant #4 and add spike #24 between the last blade (#24) and Blade#1 from the first quadrant to complete your ring!
Assembly
Applique the ring to your background.
Finally add the centre circle in place. The simplest way to do this is: Machine tack ( largest stitch setting) about 1/8 to 1/6” inside edge of the fabric circle, leaving a long length of thread on either side. Trim your template B to the seam line and iron it to the centre of the fabric. Now pull the thread to gather the fabric nicely over the paper circle. You have a perfect 7” circle. Pin in place over the centre of your block and appliqué by hand or machine. Trim away the background fabric behind the centre, and remove the freezer paper.
Here are the downloadable .pdf files with the instructions and templates. You need Adobe Reader (available for free online) on your computer, to be able to view these files.
1. Instructions Spiked Dresden Block08 of the Round the Year Quilt
2. Template File 1 Spiked Dresden Block08 of the Round the Year Quilt
3. Template File 2 Spiked Dresden Block08 of the Round the Year Quilt
You can access the links to the other blocks from this quilt here.
Please note that the downloadable patterns with paper piecing templates and instruction files for the Dreamcatcher Round the Year quilt blocks are being migrated to my store MadsPatch and will not be available for download for free from 15th November 2020 onwards.
Which quilter does not have the Mariner’s Compass on her bucket list?
I have been in love with the block for ages; I had to include it as the seventh block in the Dreamcatcher Round the Year Quilt!
This off-centre Mariner’s Compass is a variation of the block, which is traditionally hand pieced or English paper pieced. However, this pattern employs a number of techniques, including foundation paper piecing, machine piecing and appliqué. It finishes at 18″ square, with a 15″ pieced circle. The printable pdf files instructions and templates for the block are now available on my MadsPatch store on Ecwid.
The learning and inspiration for this block cane from this workshop…
This is the Dusk colourway, the rays of the setting sun lighting up the needles on the right, as the darkness gathers from the East on the left. The name of the block came about as the pattern originally had a circle of geese , recding in size, flying upwards from both sides – I dropped them to simplify the design.
Fabric Requirement
Fabric Colour Code – Block Seven Southward Bound
Four shades of the main colour (blue) and four in a contrast colour way – yellow, gold, light and deep orange – are used here.
The fabric requirements given here are quite generous (according to me!), but you may want to cut fabric as you go along.
Fabric Code
For templates A to H
For templates I to P
Wedges Q to X
Centre YZ
Fabric #1
Deep blue 6″ x 42″Cut more as you need it.
6″ squares for the two large wedges at D4 and E2.6″ HSTs and QSTs can be used for the other wedges.
Cut QSTs from two 6″ squares. Alternatively, you can use scraps.
Fabric # 4
Blue 5″ x 35″
Cut strip 5″x 25″ lengthwise to get 2 strips 2.5″ x 25″
Use (freezer) paper templates to cut the wedge pieces
Fabric # 5
Light to medium blue 5″ x 35″
Cut strip 5″x 25″ lengthwise to get 2 strips 2.5″ x25″
Use ( freezer) paper templates to cut the wedge pieces
Fabric #6
Pale blue 2.5″x 18″3″ square
18″ x2.5″
Cut circle using template Z
Fabric #7, 8, 9 and 10
2.5″ x 17.5″ strips each
2.5′ x 15″
2.5″ squares of each
Fabric # 1 and 2
For background cut 10″ x 19.5″ of each. Join along 19.5″ length to get a square 19.5″x 19.5″
After you buy the pattern, download the files from the links you receive in email in .pdf format. You would need Adobe Reader, available free online to read these files on your computer. The files downloaded will include three files, as follows:
Instructions File – contains these instructions including the fabric requirement, piecing order and Master Template to be used as a guide for assembling the block.
Template File.1 containing paper piecing templates A to P . Print at actual size or 100% in portrait mode
Template File.2 containing templates Q to X and Z . I suggest you print these on freezer paper, if available, at 100% or actual size. These are odd shaped pieces with circular edges, and I personally like to use freezer paper for accuracy for cutting these.
For printing on freezer paper, cut the freezer paper to your regular printer paper size (A4 or letter – approximately 8.5″ x 11″). Iron just the edges of the freezer paper (about ¼”) to a regular printer sheet, so that they are joined evenly, without any creases. Print as usual, taking care to insert the joined sheets in the printer so that the printing is on the freezer paper.
Place freezer paper, sticky side down on regular printer sheet. Iron about a 1/4″ on all edges. Print the double sheet as usual.
You also need to cut a 2″ radius/ 4″ diameter circle on freezer paper/ stiff paper/ card ( for template Y).
Note : The background template AA and AB are not given for this block, as the circle is appliquéd on to the square.
Master Template – Southward Bound Mariner’s Compass Round the Year Quilt
This diagram is the Master Template that will help you in assembling the block – remember this is is a mirror image. It shows you how your block will look from the printed paper side, not the fabric side, when assembled. It is included in the Instructions File.
Piecing
The block is partly foundation paper pieced. I have blogged about the paper piecing patterns for this quilt earlier, and also given a few paper piecing tips here. In case you are too lazy to go through those ( I would be, I know!) here is a quick checklist before you begin!
Paper Piecing Checklist
Have the fabrics been colour coded?
Has the machine stitch length been reduced?
Are the templates in order specified in the instructions?
Have you picked up the correct fabric pieces or strip/s? The fabric code number is printed on each piece position. It is a good idea to check that once in a while.
When you start, is your piece #1 placed on position #1 on the templates?
Is the wrong side of the fabric piece touching the paper?
Is the incoming piece placed right sides touching the previous one?
If strip chain piecing the templates, have you sufficient space between one template and the next?
Now to begin with the piecing!
For best use of fabric, piece templates in the following order:
D. E, F, G, H, I, A, B, C.
Beginning with the bigger templates, you will be able to use the trimmed off scraps of fabric #1 (deep blue here).
Piece templates I, J, K… to P.
Attach the wedges Q to A, R to B, S to C…. X to H using the Master Template below as guide.
Piecing the inner circle YZ: Use the 2.5″ squares of fabric 7, 8, 9 and 10 to make a 4-patch
Make a four patch. Dont worry about accurately matched centre.
Fold the fabric circle Z twice to find the centre. Match centres and applique it to the centre of the 4-patch, using your favourite method.
Applique inner circle on centre
Place card template / iron freezer template on wrong side of the fabric. Trim to size – remember to add the seam allowance! This makes the inner circle YZ.
Place card template, add 1/4″ seam allowance
Trim.
Assembly Instructions
TemplateAssembly Checklist
Have you a print out of the Master Template in front of you?
Avoid removing paper pieces before your template is ready to actually go under the machine! Arrange the templates, printed side up, using the Master Template as a guide.
If you do remove the paper, ensure you have the template (alphabet) name pinned to wrong side of the pieced template, to guide you during assembly.
At all times, keep the printed/ wrong side up, pick up the templates to be assembled, (remove the paper, if you wish to) sew them together. Put back in place, wrong side up. Go on to the next. At all times, remember to keep track of template names!
For this particular block, assemble the outer circle A to X and then attach it to the background square AA-AB. Applique the inner circle YZ last.
Refer to the Master template at all times during assembly to ensure all is in order! Reminder: If you take off the paper before assembly, remember to stick a post-it note or pin a piece of paper with the template name on the pieced template.
Assemble as follows:
AQ to I; BR to J; CS to K…and so on, till HX to P.
Join the adjoining wedges, anticlockwise when looking from the wrong/ printed paper side as follows:
AQI to BRJ to CSK
DTL to EUM
FVN to GWO to HXP
On flipping over to right (fabric) side, this is how your partly assembled templates should appear.
Complete the assembly to form a ring…
Applique to the background square. Finally, appliqué the centre circle YZ and trim excess fabric from behind the appliqued circle if you like.
And we are done – the Mariner mastered!
Before I sign off, here is a look at the Rainbow version of the block. Remember, the templates and instructions can be purchased from my Ecwid online store Madspatch!
Please note that the downloadable patterns and instruction files for the Dreamcatcher Round the Year quilt blocks are being migrated to my store MadsPatch and are not available for download for free from 15th November 2020 onwards.
My doctor says I still cannot get back to my sewing machine for another week or so at least! What could be worse? But, at least, I am allowed on the laptop for longer hours now. So I thought I would sit and chat with you and share a bit more about the evolution of the blocks for the quilt Round the Year. ( I did tell you I use a free software Quilt Assistant to design blocks for my quilt, didn’t I?)
Here are versions of the card trick block I tried out before settling on the one we finally made for the Round the Year Quilt!
Don’t you think the circular cards blocks are pretty? Perhaps this will still make it to the final sixteen for the Block of the Month Quilt…
And here is an eight point star…
…which became this Sapphire Block…
Jaya Parker made this stunning Block 4, inspired by the colours of Swarowski Aurora Borealis Crystal
The Ribbon Star was designed because I so wanted to try out a hexagonal log cabin.
But it was abandoned in favour of the Venus , also pieced like ( half a) log cabin.
Do you know I still have all the templates for these blocks? Not tested, though! They are more difficult than the blocks we are making for the Round the Year quilt.
I hope you enjoyed looking at them. Once I am done with this BOM, perhaps I will try these too and share the patterns with you…
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