One More Weave :: Small Scale

After trying my first weaving project (Fabric Weaving) I was pretty much hooked!  Not in an obsessive way, more in a curious way.  I'm excited to try new ideas and see what I can come up with.  

With my first project under my belt, and the desire to use as much of my 'undesirable' stash as I could, I had some scraps that needed to go away.  But go away in a good way!  So I thought I'd put them to good use in a small wall hanging using 1/4" bias strips.  

MINI WEAVE WALL HANGING
11 1/4" x 11 1/4"

Sometimes a simple thank you isn't enough when someone goes out of their way to do something nice for you.  This quilt will be sent off to its new home and I hope that it will surprise and delight the new owner.  The only thing better than surprising someone is being the one who is surprise...don't you think?!



To make the 1/4" strips I started with 1/2" strips and ran them through my bias maker tool.  I can't imagine making so many strips without that tool!  I'm sure I would never have tried weaving if I didn't have it!



This is only my second time weaving, but there are a couple things that I've learned along the way.  Since I have only tried using prints, I've learned that you need to group more rows of the same fabric together in order to see a distinctive pattern.  And have them go vertical and horizontal.  Darker fabrics will obviously stand out more.

Another issue I came across, and this might be more for humid parts of the country, after making the bias strips I found if you let them sit around for a couple days they start to loose the crispness of the press.  I had to run the iron over many of the strips before I could weave them through.  

The good news is I learned a way to prevent that.  After I had a layer of strips ironed, I would lay them on a board and then place another board over them and repeat. And to make sure they stayed crisp I added a little weight to the top.  I used foam board and heavy cardboard for mine.  Whenever I was ready to weave, they would be ready to go!



I don't really think something this small needs to be quilted, but quilt it I did!  I think I mainly did it so that there was texture and a design on the back.  That's kind of weird when I think about it!  Simple straight lines was the answer...again!



A combination of Aurifil pink, yellow and orange thread was randomly used.  As you can see, the lines created a grid and with that...texture!

Finishing it off with a pretty pink binding, my second woven project was in the bag!  I can't wait for wefty weave #3!  I really want to try it with solids, but I'm trying to use my print stash...what's a girl to do?!

Have I nudged you even closer to trying the Wefty Needle for weaving yet?  Maybe my next project will tip the tables for you!

LINKING:

OH SCRAP! ● MAIN CRUSH MONDAY ●  MONDAY MAKING ●  LINKY TUESDAY 
LETS BEE SOCIAL  

MIDWEEK MAKERS ● NEEDLE & THREAD  ● TGIFF ● CAN I GET A WHOOP WHOOP

Ultra Violet :: Weave

I've been itching to make this quilt!  After I designed it I realized very quickly that I didn't have enough variation of colors to pull it off.  Perhaps that was an excuse to buy more beautiful fabric especially after seeing the bundles online.



It isn't exactly finished.  I have to stitch the binding on, but it's so close!  My goal was to get it to this stage and take it along on our beach trip!  Monday...I cannot wait to leave!



Look at those colors!  Purple is one color that I don't have a lot of in my stash.  When you look at your stash I would bet there is one color that is much smaller than the others!  

My intention was to put as much Ultra Violet and purple in this quilt as I could.  Thinking about the Pantone Color of the Year challenge!!  I'm not sure this quilt will qualify!  

I purchased the fabric on Etsy at Stitch Stash Diva, and couldn't wait to get my hands on it.  It couldn't get here fast enough!  And I'm going to say, I love it when fabric (especially solids) comes labeled!  It makes it so much easier!



I still had to figure out which colors I would use and where.  It was fun, but it took a while!  I needed to get just the right gradient from light to dark, from pink to purple.  I got pretty close to perfect!

The colors I ended up using were:

Light Pink, Kona Carnation, Kona Candy Pink, Kona Pomegranate, Kona Valentine, Kona Sangria, Kona Cerise, Kona Bordeaux, Kona Thistle, Kona Pansy, Kona Dalia, Kona Crocus, Kona Purple, Kona Hibiscus, Kona Nightfall, Free Spirit Deep Violet and a couple others to fill out the list. 

It could have been a big confusing mess getting each color in the right place, so first I wrote out a detailed sheet with what goes where.  After cutting, I placed a label with the name of the color on each stack.  It helped with the chaos, or with what could have been chaos!

It also helped to have a big design wall!  I laid out all the pieces first.  Having several 'firewalls' in place seemed pretty important!

It's not that the blocks were difficult, you can see it's basically a Plus Block, I just needed to ensure I could keep things in order.  Row by row I pieced each 9" block.  Over and over...and I can tell you that my OCD nature worked almost flawlessly...I only messed up two blocks!  

As much as I wanted to quilt it to death, I used restraint!  There was a lot of starting and stopping because I wanted each 'ribbon' to have a continuous flow.  In between the woven colors I stippled...the best I could do...but I like it!

Hopefully I'll have it finished while I'm at the beach and take advantage of the beautiful surroundings!  

Here the computer generated version that got me excited about making this quilt.  I didn't exactly get the colors the same in the quilt, but I like it just the same! 

Are you joining in the Pantone Color of the Year Ultra Violet quilt contest? You can get all the details here:  Bryan House Quilts or No Hats in the House.  

LINKING:

Oh Scrap

Main Crush Monday

Let's Bee Social
Mid Week Makers

Needle & Thread

TGIFF

Finished or Not Friday