Loaves and Fishes

 

 

    I have come to the conclusion that anyone that denies the accuracy of the biblical story of the loaves and the fishes, has obviously never made a scrap quilt.  Normally I would stay away from topics like politics and religion here on the blog, but my last project seems to have proven the impossible.

    There is no denying that I have a substantial "stash" of fabric.  Including everything from tiny scraps, fat quarters, one yard cuts and yes, even bolts.  Although I have enough fabric to last a lifetime, that has never stopped me from adding more when I find something I like.  Other additions to my shelves and bins come from the work I do for fabric manufacturers.  The best way that I have found to keep my stash under control is to keep sewing.  Luckily that's my job.  

    A few of my scrap bins are sorted by style.  This particular bin holds my assortment of what I call Kim Diehl fabrics.  Kim is a designer with a specific style and color pallet that I enjoy.  My bin contains fabrics from a variety of designers and fabric companies, not just Kim. But all of the colors and prints play well with Kim's designs.  The shades are warm and toasty.  I think of them as "decorator" colors because they are easy to live with.  These colors and fabrics fit well into our house in Pennsylvania, but are a little dark and subdued for Florida living.  That doesn't mean I have given up this color pallet or style but I do think it is time to clean out that overflowing bin.

    Next up on my things-to-do list was the filming of the video class for the Baby Chains project in the Summer Fun Bundle program.  If you aren't familiar with the Fun Bundle series, the program works like this: You purchase a bundle of fabrics, patterns and notions from a participating shop.  Your bundle includes an invitation to a private Facebook group where you can watch a video lesson on how to make the projects.  The videos include lots of additional info that is not included in the original patterns as well as step-by-step instructions filmed by me.  Baby Chains is a scrap quilt, and I think it is the perfect place to clean out that bin of fabrics.

    Here is a quick snapshot of the blocks that I made for the step-by-step video. The blocks are arranged on my design wall so that I can show how I assemble a quilt top working both horizontally and vertically.

    I admit that this isn't a huge quilt, but I did clean out all of the scraps of black background Kim Diehl prints that were some of my favorites. I used up lots of the red and rust colors from the Henry Glass groups that were the most recent additions to the bin.  This quilt also contains the last bit of a favorite blue fabric I have been holding on to for years.

The materials list for this quilt includes a total of just over 3 1/2 yards of fabric.  It stands to reason that after making these blocks there would be 3 1/2 yards missing from the afore mentioned bin - right?   Three and one half yards.  That is equivalent to a length of fabric one hundred and twenty six inches long by at least forty inches wide! A total of 5040 square inches of fabric have been removed from that bin and assembled into the quilt top.  There should be lots of empty space in that bin.

    That is not how scrap quilting works.  

    Even after my attempt to refold the small scraps into slivers so that only the edge shows. it became clear that what came out of that bin was going to have a tough time fitting back in.

    How is that possible?  I have no idea.  What I do know is that it is time to buy a larger bin.

If you would like more info on how to participate in the Summer Fun Bundle program email me at Karen@thequiltcompany.com and I will be happy to send you a list of the participating shops with links to their websites and/or Facebook pages.