From the Sewing Room ~ Kaleidoscopes

Not much has been happening in the sewing room for awhile since I've been taking some online courses that keep me pretty busy, but I did finish a project today that I had hoped to have done earlier in the week so I could gift them. Still going to do that, just a bit belated.

These are potholders done in a kaleidoscope design. I fell in love with kaleidoscopes a few years ago when I was studying Psalm 119 and came across something that Charles Spurgeon had written. It ties together my interest in quilting and my love for God's Word. The triangle sections that form the octagon in each potholder are from the same piece of fabric, carefully planned and cut. Just as the mirrors in a kaleidoscope reflect an image, each triangle in the kaleidoscope quilt block reflects color and pattern to create a unique design. Such is Psalm 119.

Psalm 119—A Kaleidoscope of God’s Word

This psalm is a wonderful composition. It deals all along with one subject only; but although it consists of a considerable number of verses, some of which are very similar to others, yet throughout its one hundred and seventy-six stanzas the self-same thought is not repeated: there is always a shade of difference, even when the colour of the thought appears to be the same. Some have said that in it there is an absence of variety; but that is merely the observation of those who have not studied it. Its variety is that of a kaleidoscope.

In the kaleidoscope you look once, and there is a strangely beautiful form: you shift the glass a very little, and another shape, equally delicate and beautiful, is before your eyes. So it is here. What you see is the same, and yet never the same: it is the same truth, but it is always placed in a new light, put in a new connection, or in some way or other invested with freshness.

~ Charles H. Spurgeon

PS~To see a few other kaleidoscopes that I've done, just click the image above.

From the Sewing Room ~ Twilight Kaleidoscope Quilt

I finished the Twilight Kaleidoscope Quilt top today. Woo Hoo!! Going to take it to the quilt shop next week for quilting. This is the largest quilt I've made (63 x 89), and I don't think I'm up to trying to quilt it on my home machine right now. Don't have the time with getting ready to move to slow down and give it a go. This is the first quilting that I've had someone else do, so I'm hoping I like the results.

The Twilight Kaleidoscope Quilt is from the Quilted Kaleidoscopes Craftsy class taught by Marilyn Foreman. Love those Craftsy classes! I've made a few octagon kaleidoscope throw/baby/tablerunner quilts, but had not been very interested in four patch kaleidoscopes until I saw Marilyn's class on Craftsy. I thought her Twilight Kaleidoscopes was beautiful and the kaleidoscopes looked so much easier and took less fabric. And I love the way she has them set into the quilt.

I had been wanting to make a quilt for a friend before I move, and I thought this would be the one. So I had her choose from some large prints in my stash for the main fabric, and then I added other fabrics to bring it all together. She likes a red/black combo, so I used black as the background and red as the inner border. The backing is the same fabric as the inner border. If I do another quilt like this, though, I think I'll have each star block to be a different color. I chose to do three red star blocks because I wanted to highlight red, but I think more variety might have been a better choice since I added the red border and red backing.

Here are the fabrics that I used, mostly from my stash. I did purchase the wide red backing, so I didn't have to piece it. I cut some from it for the inner border. This is an after photo, and I didn't have much of the large floral left. It was a good choice for the kaleidoscopes.

 A couple more pictures.

My friend and I have been walking partners for several years, trying to connect with each other each week or so. I call it our walk/talk time, as we point one another Upward and Homeward. We've been friends for about 25 years. I'll truly miss those walks and talks with her.

I hope you have someone, too, who points you Upward and Homeward.

Linking up with Amanda Jean at crazymomquilts.com for Finish It Up Friday. If you're into sewing or quilting, head on over there for lots of wonderful inspiration!

If you've stopped by from Amanda Jean's, I do hope you'll linger awhile here at Homeward. 

Unitil next time!

From the Sewing Room~Kaleidoscopes

Almost finished with the blocks for the Twilight Kaleidoscope quilt that I'm working on, following along with Marilyn Foreman's class on Craftsy. I've worked with octagon kaleidoscopes before, but hadn''t really been interested in four-patch kaleidoscopes until I saw this class on Craftsy from Marilyn and her gorgeous kaleidoscope quilts. Such beauty from a four-patch beginning that I never imagined! This is Marilyn's quilt. I'll show mine soon. I hope it's as gorgeous as hers!

I have only three small star blocks to finish up, then I can sew all of the blocks together and have the quilt top finished. Here's what the blocks and sashings are looking like.

And there are a couple of 12.5-inch blocks for the center.

 

Here's a strip of the main fabric for the kaleidoscopes. It's a line from Blank Textiles, but there's no name given to it, just pattern #5271. I'm making the quilt throw size as a parting gift for a friend, and I had her choose the fabric from my stash. Her favorite color combination is red and black, so I'll be using red for the backing.

 

Barb and I walk together frequently and point one another Godward as we walk and talk. I'll definitely miss her kindred spirit when we move.

Keep looking upward, dear one, and I hope you, too, have a friend who points you there.
~ Vickie

The Simple Woman's Daybook

Today I join with others in The Simple Woman’s Daybook group, a weekly journal page that focuses on simple thoughts and simple living. My leads are somewhat similar to others in the group, but somewhat different as well. You may also like to read what some other simple women are saying and doing these days. Hope you can stop by again soon!

Outside my window....

Light snow falling and birds at the feeder site outside my kitchen window. We do enjoy watching the birds feed while we have our own meals. A constant reminder that if God so cares for the sparrows (and cardinals, towhees, tufted titmouses, chickadees, finches...), He cares even more for all of us.

Thankful for....

A warm home. It’s a verrrry cold  9 degrees this morning!

Noticing the sound of ….

The furnace. My Beloved had the electricity off for a little while working on the generator wiring. (Making sure all is reading in case we need it!) Sooo good to hear the furnace back on!

Looking forward to….

Hearing from my mother about her doctor’s visit today.

Learning…
I tried to put music on my blog. Couldn’t figure it out, and learned, anyway, that it competes with other links that I might want to include in a post. Decided against it. Still trying to learn why the formatting goes wacky on my posts sometimes. Arghh!!

Pondering these words....

“There's no way to be a perfect mother and a million ways to be a good one. “
        ~ Jill Churchill
(I think the same would be said of a grandmother or a mother-in-law.)

A Peek Into My Week…

My sewing room, where I spend some afternoon hours.

Looking to the ways of my household....
Changing bed sheets today. Ironing pillow cases. Sometimes I like to iron the upper half of the top sheet. (Don’t want to give time to the lower part that’s under the cover, though.) Think I’ll do that this morning. Nothing like a freshly changed bed to crawl into at night!

Reading.... 

Just finished The Quilter’s Daughter by Wanda Brunstetter that a friend gave me. Light reading for winter evenings. Encourages me to quilt on! 

The fruit of my hands …

I finished hand-stitching some kaleidoscopes this week for a throw quilt and got some of the corners done. Lovely! I’m hoping to finish it all in hand-stitching, including the quilting. It’s going to be a gift, and I want it to be extra special.

Growing…

I want to continuing growing in what true love is—not the gushy kind and not the lusty kind. Still pondering the 23 Things That Love Is.

Thinking…

Praying that everyone stays safe on the roads today. We're under a heavy snow warning here. My Beloved went out in the truck earlier this morning to run an errand. More folks than he expected were out. 

Kaleidoscope Quilt Blocks

From the sewing room

I’ve started working this week on blocks for a kaleidoscope throw-sized quilt. Thought I’d share a brief tutorial today on making kaleidoscope blocks from squares. They’re really easy to do. Once you get the basic measuring and cutting the strips done, you’ll move quickly through cutting and sewing the blocks. You'll have quite a lot of variety from just one single fabric. 

I suggest that you read through the steps before beginning, to get the overall picture of where you’re headed.

I used some fabric from my stash, and as you think about what fabric to use, choose fabric with medium to large motifs, with minimal solid background. Small motifs won’t give much variety, and a lot of solid background won’t give much of a kaleidoscope effect.

This fabric would give lots and lots of variety and color to the blocks, if you're going for a wow effect.

The fabric below is what I chose to use for my purposes. I'm making this throw to match a bedroom, so I'm looking for a more subdued effect.

(1) To cut the fabric for your blocks, first measure the repeat (like wallpaper) from one motif point in the fabric to the same next motif point. You’ll need a repeat of at least 8 inches. The longer the repeat, the more fabric will be needed. As the picture to the left shows, I measured from the beginning of a flower petal to the beginning of the next same flower petal. This fabric has a 14¾-inch repeat. I rounded up to 15 inches to make the math easier.

(2) I needed 60 (15x4) inches of fabric. I cut a couple of inches extra for some wiggle room, measuring at 62 inches. (My cutting mat starts with "1 inch" on the right, so I measured from the right, cutting on the left edge as the picture below shows.)

(3) Cut all the way vertically across the fabric, from the selvage to the fold.

(4) Then I snipped the fabric at the fold line and tore it in half lengthwise. You can cut down the fold if you choose. Tearing gives the straight of the grain and is faster, but it really doesn’t matter whether you cut or tear for this step.

(5) Iron the fabric.

(6) Cut fabric strips at your repeats from the selvage to the top. My cuts were every 14¾ inches. Yours will be whatever measurement your repeat pattern is. You should now have 4 pieces of fabric strips as wide as your repeats, all the same repeat pattern.

(7) Stack the four strips on top of one another, selvages together. 
  
 





(8) Choose a point about a ½-inch to an inch from the edge and stick it with a pen that will be your guide as you go. 






(9) Stick the pen through all four layers, making sure it enters each fabric layer at the same point on your motif.

 




(10) Choose another point with another guide pin and stick it through all layers. Stand the two pins vertically and smooth the fabric. 

 
(11) Anchor beside those points with additional pins. Slide the pins in at an angle so as not to scoot the fabric as the pin goes in. Flathead pins are a good choice here so your ruler will lie flat as you straighten the edges in the next step. Continue pinning all around the perimeter of your 4-layer fabric strip set.

(12) If the long edges of the fabric set are uneven, trim them so they will be even. I'm cutting from the back side of the fabric in this picture because my shortest piece was on the bottom. When I trimmed the other side, the shortest piece was on the top, so I trimmed from the front side of the fabric.

 

(13) At 3½-inch intervals, cut the fabric into 4 strips, from the selvage edge to the top. You may need to readjust the pins so as not to run over them with your rotary cutter.

 

 (14) Trim the short edge of each strip set. 

(15) Choose one strip set and put the others aside for now. Cut the strip set at 3½-inch intervals, which now will give you 4 layers of identical 3½-inch squares.

  

(16)Take one set of squares and lay them out so that a particular part of a motif is pointing toward the center.

(17) Rotate them a quarter turn to see the change. Do that for 4 (or 3 if you count the first layout) rotations and see which one you like best.  

I chose the first rotation above for my block.

 

 

(18) After choosing the rotation you like, sew the top two squares together with a ¼-inch seam allowance. Press the seam allowance to one side. Then sew the bottom two squares together in the same manner and press. 

 

  
(19) Sew these two units together, being sure to keep all four motifs pointing toward the center. Press the seam. (Click here for some ways to press your seams. I like to press the seams away from each other to reduce bulk in the center.)

You’ve just completed one block!

Continue making as many blocks as you want for your project. I like to lay mine out as I finish them so I can try to get as much variety in new blocks as possible.

Sometimes a block just might not be one you’d want to use, like the one on the left. I think there’s just too much white in the center for a kaleidoscope look. But I’ve got plenty of others to choose from.

Check back next weekend, and I’ll show you what I’m doing with my blocks this coming week. I won't be finished, but you'll see the progress I've made on it. That will encourage me to set aside some time during the week to get back to the sewing room. :-)

Kaleidoscopes and Psalm 119

I've loved working with fabric as long as I can remember. It goes way back to when I was a little girl and got my own miniature sewing machine for Christmas. My mother usually made her little girls' clothes when we were growing up. One of my sisters is three years younger than I am, so we often got clothes made alike. I remember the lavender dotted swiss dress with a short white jacket that Mom made for us for Easter Sunday. I can still see the burgundy box-pleated skirt and matching floral blouse she made for me in junior high school. And how I twirled in my broomstick skirts! I made much of my own clothing later until fabric become so expensive. It would follow that I would find great pleasure in making pretty things for my own two little girls. Such fun!

I've had a recent revived interest in sewing that has turned toward quilting. I enjoy choosing the fabrics and wandering through the sale aisle of quilt shops. There are so many fun and beautiful designs to select from. Sometimes I just buy fabric because it calls to me; I'll work it into an upcoming project or put it in my stash.

Thought I'd show you a wallhanging I made from kaleidoscope blocks and recently gave as a gift. I discovered this technique a couple of years ago and have made several of these beauties since. The patterns that emerge are endless, all cut from the same piece of fabric. Each of the octagons you see was made from identical triangles cut from the fabric shown on the back of the quilt. Just as different designs come to light as you turn a kaleidoscope, varying designs materialize as you move a single triangle randomly across a piece of fabric and play with the colors and shapes. The fabric is the key element; repeating an image is the key technique.

It's fun to find where each kaleidoscope came from on the backing fabric. It's like playing Where's Waldo. I plan to make one for Elijah when he's ready to play. I could do a safari themed fabric for his room, or maybe monkeys (he's his mommy's little monkey!) and call it "Monkey in the Middle!" The name of the fabric I used for this wallhanging is "Miss Lucy's Violets and Lace," a nice name I think for the wallhanging as well.

Kaleidoscope blocks have a special meaning for me, as they were borne from my study of Psalm 119. When I give a kaleidoscope quilted piece, I like to include a card with the following greeting.

Psalm 119—A Kaleidoscope of God’s Word

My interest in kaleidoscope quilt blocks came during a study of Psalm 119, when I came across the following quote from Charles Spurgeon. It ties together my interest in lap quilting and my love for God’s Word. The triangle sections that form each octagon are from the backing fabric, as the repeated patterns are carefully planned and cut. Just as the mirrors in a kaleidoscope reflect an image, each triangle in the kaleidoscope quilt block reflects color and pattern to create a unique design. Such is Psalm 119. May this labor of love for you be a constant reminder of God’s gift of His Word.

This psalm is a wonderful composition. It deals all along with one subject only; but although it consists of a considerable number of verses, some of which are very similar to others, yet throughout its one hundred and seventy-six stanzas the self-same thought is not repeated: there is always a shade of difference, even when the colour of the thought appears to be the same. Some have said that in it there is an absence of variety; but that is merely the observation of those who have not studied it. Its variety is that of a kaleidoscope.

In the kaleidoscope you look once, and there is a strangely beautiful form: you shift the glass a very little, and another shape, equally delicate and beautiful, is before your eyes. So it is here. What you see is the same, and yet never the same: it is the same truth, but it is always placed in a new light, put in a new connection, or in some way or other invested with freshness.

~ Charles H. Spurgeon

The blocks to the right are from a table runner that I gave to my sister. I call it "Morning Sunflowers." 

Want to see more kaleidoscopes?

Click on a kaleidoscope for a link to more visual delights.

 

 

Sewing Image by Macrovector via freepik