Sampler Quilt – betukbandi

The ‘Totally Mads’ Nearly Insane Quilt —Completed!

This quilt, popularly known as the ‘Nearly Insane’, is based on the 1860s quilt by Salinda Rupp, with 98 blocks measuring 6” square. The block patterns are available on my store patchworkofmylife.

Continuing to update my blog with the quilts finished over the last few years, comes the one that drew me to quilting in the first place.

This quilt was the background theme of my quilting life for over ten years, before I finished it last year. So after yet another year, here finally are the pictures of my completed quilt. Also enjoy some trivia about the original quilt, made by the Pennsylvania resident, Salinda Rupp in the 1860s, which came to be known as the Nearly Insane Quilt and which launched a thousand quilts!

Do you know that this quilt (not mine, but the original Salinda Rupp quilt) actually has at least two poems inspired by it? One of them you can check out here. Despite all my research on the net, I could not discover who wrote the other, titled ‘The Geometry of Grace’, so am not sure if it would be fair to share it here.

As for my quilt, which I call ‘Totally Mads’ , the colours were inspired by Jaipur blue pottery.

Jaipur blue pottery ( image not mine— from the web)

The average number of pieces in each block are between 35-40

It has over 5600 pieces, including the borders and sashing!

The most intricate block has 229 pieces in a six inch square!

Most people prefer to English paper piece it or piece it by hand, because the pieces are so tiny. I decided to draft patterns to foundation paper piece it by machine.

When actually quilting it, I used the quilt-as-you-go (QAYG) method, best suited to my sit-down Husqavarna Viking Topaz 30. Because the squares are on-point, I had to be innovative about the panels. I decided on a total of nine panels, but had to add four for the borders because of the way blocks joined up…

The quilt back! The centre blue square actually has 5 QAYG panels. The four yellow corners are again separate QAYG panels.

The original quilt finishes at 88” x 88” but I added and extra border to increase the size.

The extra border and the flanged binding.

I have used a double batting, one a bamboo and the other cotton. The quilt weighs a ton now! Lesson learnt— never again, especially for a quilt where the top is already so heavy because of the enormous number of pieces. (This also explains why I have no full frontal picture of the quilt!)

The other thing that irks me ( but I refuse to do anything about it) is that the borders are not as heavily quilted as the rest of the top, so they kind of ‘hang loose’.

This video might give you a better look at the quilt.

A closer look at the quilt…

Hope you enjoyed that!

P.S I have realised that my block-wise record of the quilt was also not completed, so I shall do that in subsequent posts, for those of you who want to jump into this extremely soul-satisfying (and yet at times exasperating) project.

Like I mentioned, the patterns are available on my store!

Nearly Insane Quilt…Blocks 53-59 Row 9

More Insanity recorded!

How I have enjoyed piecing this quilt, originally made by Salinda Rupp in the 1860s! Salinda’s quilt is not all perfect and symmetrical like other quilts of that era! Whimsical blocks and use of whatever scraps she had in hand make this such a lovable creation.

So, here comes Row 9 in my series of posts on my version of Salinda’s quilt, which became popularly known as the Nearly Insane Quilt. The blocks are all set on point, with 7 and 6 blocks in the alternating rows.

The blocks are 6″ square and, except for a few, foundation paper pieced by me. I drafted all the patterns for FPP on the free Quilt Assistant software, based on patterns in Liz Lois’s book, which contains only line drawings of the finished blocks.

Most of the fabric used is Summer Breeze 3, with a fat quarter bundle of matching solids by Moda Fabrics, and the Dutch Garden 2 Collection by Boundless Fabric. I also used a couple FQs in blues and greens plus a jelly roll of yellows I had in my stash.

Nearly Insane Block 53

Number of pieces: 29

Level of Difficulty: Easy

Technique: Foundation paper pieced (FPP)

Nearly Insane Block 54

Number of pieces: 41

Level of Difficulty: Another easy one. Looking at it now, I wish I had used fussy cut flowers for the other two cornerstones in the centre too!

Technique: Foundation paper pieced

Nearly Insane Block 56

Number of pieces: 72

Difficulty Level: Easy! Squares in squares and flying geese become really pretty, with sharp points and also simple to piece when you use foundation paper to piece them! The centre pinwheel is made with regular piecing.

Technique: Foundation paper-piecing and machine -piecing

Nearly Insane Block 55

Number of pieces: 49

Level of Difficulty: I think Salinda used up all her scraps to piece this one! Probably one of the last ones she pieced.

Technique: Foundation paper-pieced.

Nearly Insane Block 57

Number of pieces: 49

Level of Difficulty: Easy, but so pretty! This was one of the first blocks I pieced!

Technique: Foundation paper pieced.

Nearly Insane Block 58

Number of pieces: 48

Level of Difficulty: intermediate, with lots of points to match, unless you do FPP, like I did. This is one of the blocks that makes Salines’s quilt so special! What went on in her mind? Did she decide to just use up all the extra HSTs she had at hand to sew the centre?

Technique: Foundation paper pieced

Nearly Insane Block 59

Nearly Insane Quilt Block 59

Number of pieces: 36

Difficulty Level: Easy. I made the centre 4-patch first and then built the block around it. The corner triangles were foundation paper pieced.

Technique: Machine-piecing and foundation paper-piecing.

Here are the links to the previous seven rows!

Row 1 ( Blocks 1 to 7)

Row 2 (Blocks 8 to 13)

Row 3 (Blocks 14 to 20, with a couple missing)

Row 4 (Blocks 21 to 26)

Row 5 (Blocks 27 to 33)

Row 6 (Blocks 34 to 39)

Row 7 (Blocks 40 to 46)

Row 8 (Blocks 47 to 52)

The Foundation Paper-Piecing Patterns for the blocks of the Salinda Rupp Nearly Insane Quilt are now available on my store!

Nearly Insane Quilt…Blocks 47 to 52 Row 8

If you are as entranced by tiny piecing and antique quilts as I am, you have got to have seen the Salinda Rupp quilt! I have been brave enough to attempt to recreate the quilt and am sharing my version here!

The blocks are all done and the quilt is now being quilted. However, after an absence of several months, I decided to update the record of the blocks. So here comes Row 8 in my series of posts on my Nearly Insane Quilt, based on a 19th century quilt by Salinda Rupp... The blocks are all set on point, with 7 and 6 blocks in the alternating rows.

The blocks are 6″ square and except for a few, foundation paper pieced by me. I drafted all the patterns for FPP on the free Quilt Assistant software, based on patterns in Liz Lois’s book, which contains only line drawings of the finished blocks.

Most of the fabric used is Summer Breeze 3 (with a fat quarter bundle of matching solids) by Moda Fabrics, and the Dutch Garden 2 Collection by Boundless Fabric. I also used a couple FQs in blues and greens plus a jelly roll of yellows I had in my stash.

Nearly Insane Block 47

Number of pieces: 36

Level of Difficulty: Easy

Technique: Foundation paper pieced (FPP)

6" Salinda Rupp Nearly Insane Quilt Block by patchworkofmylife — Block 47 Nearly Insane Quilt (wrongly captioned as 84)

Nearly Insane Block 48

Number of pieces: 29

Level of Difficulty: Another easy one. Doesn’t all the fussy cutting make it pretty?

Technique: Foundation paper pieced with handle of the basket appliqued.

Nearly Insane Block 49

Number of pieces: 108

Difficulty Level: One of the more difficult blocks to piece, especially as the borders have pieced rectangles instead of squares.

Technique: Foundation paper-piecing

Nearly Insane Block 50

Number of pieces: 29

Level of Difficulty: One of the more difficult ones, but was not as complicated as I made it! First I cut the diamonds in the wrong direction and then I joined one of the yellow oblong pieces wrong. And then all those points…

Technique: English paper-pieced. This block would be impossible to piece otherwise.

Nearly Insane Block 51

Number of pieces: 37

Level of Difficulty: Easy, but so pretty!

Technique: Foundation paper pieced the centre strips and English paper pieced the stars.

Nearly Insane Block 52

Number of pieces: 30

Level of Difficulty: Easy! Salinda was also trying to use her leftover scraps, just like me. Makes the block look busy, but…

Technique: Foundation paper pieced

Salinda Rupp Nearky Insane Quilt Block by patchworkofmylife — Nearly Insane Quilt Block 52

And here are the links to the previous seven rows!

Row 1 ( Blocks 1 to 7)

Row 2 (Blocks 8 to 13)

Row 3 (Blocks 14 to 20, with a couple missing)

Row 4 (Blocks 21 to 26)

Row 5 (Blocks 27 to 33)

Row 6 (Blocks 34 to 39)

Row 7 (Block 40 to 46)

Breaking News! The Foundation Paper-Piecing Patterns for the blocks of the Salinda Rupp Nearly Insane Quilt are now available on my store!

Nearly Insane…Nearing the Finishing Line…Blocks 40 to 46

It is Row 7 today, in my series of posts on the progress of my Nearly Insane Quilt, based on a 19th century quilt by Salinda Rupp... I have now less than 20 blocks to finish! The blocks are all set on point, with 7 and 6 blocks in the alternating rows.

Nearly Insane Block 40

Number of pieces: 29

Level of Difficulty: Easy. This is one block where I made some changes from Salinda’s original block, adding those diagonal strips in the corner pieces. Now I wish I hadn’t.

Technique: Foundation paper pieced (FPP)

Nearly Insane Block 41

Number of pieces: 31

Level of Difficulty: Moderate. This basket block was another which would have been easier to English paper piece or even machine piece with nesting seams. But it gave me a great opportunity to use up that pretty soft blue, lage floral for the background. All in all, a very pretty block!

Technique: Foundation paper pieced with handle of the basket appliqued.

Nearly Insane Block 42

Number of pieces: 120

Level of Difficulty: Difficult…hmm…moderate? 120 pieces in a 6″ x 6″ block and so many points! I love this particular block and have made it into an 18″x 18″ cushion cover too!

Technique: Foundation Paper Piecing

Nearly Insane Block 43

Number of pieces: 88 pieces

Level of Difficulty: Difficult, as a lone star block is. So many y-seams and then the 8 seams meeting at a point in the centre…I tried (unsuccessfully) fussy cutting the strips for the diamond pieces, succeeding only in the centre.

(Arguably) the prettiest block in the quilt!

Technique: Strip pieced the eight bigger diamonds and then machine pieced them together. Also machine pieced the 4 corners and the triangles to the star.

Nearly Insane Block 44

Number of pieces: 84

Level of Difficulty: Truly insane block! With four 8-point stars and 32 y-seams! And to add to my woes, I kept losing the pieces, despite doing my best to keep track of them.

Technique: Foundation paper pieced the centre strips and English paper pieced the stars.

Nearly Insane Quilt Block 45

Number of pieces:44

Level of Difficulty: Moderate, because of the huge(!) 1″ pieces.

Technique: Foundation paper pieced (FPP) and machine pieced.

Nearly Insane Quilt Block 46

Number of pieces:37

Level of Difficulty: Easy–another log cabin block, this time with a star in the centre! (Compare with Block 11 and Block 76)

Technique: Regular machine piecing

Would you say this was the prettiest row so far? In case you have not seen my earlier updates, click the links for each row below:

Row 1 ( Blocks 1 to 7)

Row 2 (Blocks 8 to 13)

Row 3 (Blocks 14 to 20, with a couple missing)

Row 4 (Blocks 21 to 26)

Row 5 (Blocks 27 to 33)

Row 6 (Blocks 34 to 39)

Breaking News! The Foundation Paper-Piecing Patterns for the blocks of the Salinda Rupp Nearly Insane Quilt are now available on my store!

Nearly Insane…Nearing the Finishing Line…Blocks 34 to 39

In my series of posts on the progress of my Nearly Insane Quilt, based on a 19th century quilt by Salinda Rupp , here is Row 6. I have now less than 20 blocks to finish! The blocks are all set on point, with 7 and 6 blocks in the alternating rows.

Nearly Insane Block 34

Number of pieces: 33

Level of Difficulty: Easy star block. Salinda has a number of these; however, she added interest by sewing up different centres for each. On my part, I did some fussy cutting to prettify them. (The temptation to substitute these blocks with more interesting and complicated ones was great but I did manage to resist it).

Technique: Foundation paper pieced (FPP).

Nearly Insane Block 35

Number of pieces: 64

Level of Difficulty: Moderate. I do not like to foundation paper piece hour-glass QST blocks ( nor pinwheels, for that matter!) They are much easier to machine piece with nesting seams.

Technique: Foundation paper pieced.

Nearly Insane Block 36

Number of pieces: 79

Level of Difficulty: Hmmm…moderate? 79 pieces in a 6″ x 6″ block! The four-patches are also easier machine-pieced than foundation pieced. Lots of triangles and lots of points to match.

Technique: Foundation Paper Piecing

Nearly Insane Block 37

Number of pieces: 97

Level of Difficulty: Moderate. Though it has 97 pieces, not too many points to match; it is quite a pretty block too.

Technique: Foundation paper pieced (FPP)

Nearly Insane Block 38

Number of pieces: 45

Level of Difficulty: Easy, easy! The fussy cutting and high contrast make it quite a delight to look at!

Technique: Foundation paper pieced (FPP)

Nearly Insane Quilt Block 39

Number of pieces: 29

Level of Difficulty: Easy and whimsical! Another one where I used up my larger prints.

Technique: Foundation paper pieced (FPP)

I think I may be able to get back to quilting pretty soon. My sciatica seems to have improved dramatically with the Kerala Ayurveda Oil Treatment I am taking! In the meanwhile, in case you have missed my earlier updates, click the links for each row below:

Row 1 ( Blocks 1 to 7)

Row 2 (Blocks 8 to 13)

Row 3 (Blocks 14 to 20, with a couple missing)

Row 4 (Blocks 21 to 26)

Row 5 (Blocks 27 to 33)

Breaking News!! The Foundation Paper Piecing Block Patterns for this quilt are now available for sale on my store!

Tag: Sampler Quilt

The ‘Totally Mads’ Nearly Insane Quilt —Completed!

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