String Explosion

Onto the next scrappy project!

This time I'm working through my leftover strips of fabric.  I found a pattern than I liked, modified it a bit, and then proceeded to trash my sewing room.

Just look at the mess!  There are bits of material covering the table and every single chair.  I wade through scraps of fabric and paper whenever I cross the room.  There are little pieces of cloth tracked all over the house.  And I'm hosting a tea on Sunday.  Ack!

My goal was to get rid of the scrap material, which is a slightly backward approach.  The focus was on the block rather than the final quilt.  I cut paper and the black middle strip for sixteen squares, thinking I should have enough material to cover that.  After sewing together a few blocks, I calculated that there was enough scrap to make about 48 blocks.  The quilt grew from wall-hanging size to throw-quilt size.

I googled a lot before starting this project.  My favorite string-block photos featured colored diamonds, created from four blocks.  When I expanded the size of this quilt, I plotted out what colors I wanted and marked it on each piece of paper.  Even having carefully mapped it out, I sewed two of the blocks with the wrong colors.  How did I manage that?  I was able to swap them out with a couple of blocks further down the quilt so I didn't have to rip out my stitching.

As I get further along, I've been dreaming of borders and backing.  I'll be curious how this all turns out!