Improv + Paper Pieced

I mean, why not?!  We combine peanut butter and jelly, eggs and bacon and rum and coke! Some people might think those combinations are weird and shouldn't be done...I'm just saying, let's have an open mind here!

In all honesty, I'm sure I'm not the first to use paper piecing and improv.  Is there anything new out there?!

Approx. 18" x 27"

It seems to me it's been far too long since I took on some thing wild, crazy and improv. Maybe a set of pot holders or two, but nothing larger.  I've been immersed in cute and normal for so long, I almost forgot how much I enjoy improv.  So, when I was asked if I could make a piece for an end table...you betcha...I jumped!  There's no better way to get back to it than a custom quilt!



While I usually don't plan my improv, this time I had something in mind.  I wanted to have the outside of the quilt to be more of a structured, controlled improv. Not the way I usually think of improv.  I had a paper pieced block I designed for my 'Art With Fabric' Blog Hop quilt and decided it had all the elements I was after.  



My intentions were to cut up the paper templates and with reckless abandon, add pieces of fabric without worrying if they would fit.  You can see that A5 is a bit short...



No problem, add an extra piece!  You might notice that there isn't a stitch line across A5. Well, that's because when I folded the paper back to line my extra piece up I decided I didn't have to stitch through the paper.  I'll adopt the freezer paper method and stitch next to the fold.  



Because I just want the basic shapes included in the template, I was able to play around with the technique of paper piecing.  It was rather fun paper piecing and not worrying about having everything line up!



These are a some of the paper pieced shapes I was going to work with.  Border before center? Kind of a crazy way to do this, but that idea...surly it'll work?!



We'll find out!  But first I needed to clean up my scraps for round two.  It's surprising how much carnage happens when improv and paper piecing comes together.  



That's better and more acceptable!  It doesn't matter what size your work space is, it's never big enough!



And we have a border!  I added a strip here, a triangle there to fill out the border to the predetermined approximate size (18" x 27").  Now on to the center.  



My method of madness when it comes to improv is piece a bunch of pieces, then add more and more until I'm left with a pretty little stack.  After which I'll start combining the first stack of blocks to make bigger blocks.  It's not complicated, but you do have to be able to set aside your perfection tendencies.

Unlike normal piecing where along the way you can see how perfect a block is going to be, or how exact your points line up.  Improv to me, doesn't always give you that 'oh this is going to be perfect' feeling along the way.  Many times I have my hand planted on my forehead wondering what I was thinking!  I've learned through the years not to give up.  You never know how it will turn out until it's finished!



This didn't come out as I had originally planned or how I saw it in my mind.  I was wanting more definition between the center and the border.  I'll get it next time!

I hope to get it quilted in the next few days.  I'm thinking a lot of straight line quilting would be appropriate!  

Improv can drive some people 'InSanE', are you one of them? Or maybe you have to have a little CraZY in you to love improv!

LINKING:

Oh Scrap

Main Crush Monday
Freemotion By The River

Let's Bee Social

Needle & Thread