Well - be warned - Quilter's discretion is advised - for this post.....
I have been busy working away on the Flowers in the Sun quilt. All of the strips were cut. The templates were traced and the curved pieces cut out. The curves have been sewn. And all those blocks were trimmed square. All the HST's were assembled. I have finished making the total 192 - 5 1/2" squares, which make the 12 flower/leaf blocks. Here is that pile o'fabric!
<<<<NOW>>>>
Last warning - If you can't stand the sight of fabric scraps - Look away now!
This pile is the result of all the trimming, including selvages and squaring up the yardage in preparation for cutting the strips.
Now, I can't see paying good money for fabric, cutting it up, and then throwing it away. But this is a queen size quilt. And I adjusted the size of the templates to ensure there was as little waste as possible. I also made certain the templates were laid out on the strips to the best advantage.
What to do with this mess now? I have given it a little thought... And am setting this outside, beneath the cedar trees. The robins have returned. I seen them yesterday while I was dutifully doing the dishes. And I am confident they will make good use of these bits, building their nests.
For those who were brave enough or just plain curious... I must ask.... Would you be willing to use a pattern that required the wasting of fabric in order to achieve the design you desired? Do you consider this amount of scraps to be a waste? Love to have your feedback on this!
7 comments:
Those trimming are a great start to some confetti quilting. I am drooling.
Those lovely trimmings are going to make some very pretty bird nests in the area! I am always careful how I cut things out. My mother taught me to use my fabric to its fullest. On the other hand if I had a specially intrigueing pattern then I would try to make it work and do something with the leftovers.
Well, I usually end up with a bit of scraps. Anything that I don't think is usable, I toss...the rest, I put in a bag. There's a charity quilt guild locally...so they take scraps. I've also heard that if I saved my scraps, someone uses them to fill animal beds for the dog shelter. I never think about it...but probably should have a trash can for those set aside.
Love your blocks.
Oh I wouldn't have any problem throwing those away. I do think giving them to the birds is a great solution. And like you I try never to waste fabric. But once I get to the point of not using it - I'm okay with letting go.
I don't mind making scraps and throwing them away. I think it's better to use your stash than to have it sitting in the closet. If my scraps are big enough, I'll save them for another project. Big to me is 2 1/2" plus. I love that you thought of the birds - they are going to have some fancy nests!
I save all my little trimmings to use as stuffing for pillows and such. Bigger scraps go in my scrap box for scrappy quilts. No, I don't mind making scraps, but then, I don't toss them either.
I generally have a lot of scraps, maybe that is because I am not an extremely experienced quilter... IDK. I used to throw away anything that was greater than 2 inches, but then I saw some ticker tape quilt blocks and have started saving some of the smaller strips and bits. I will throw them away if I don't think I will use the scraps, it doesn't really bother me.
I love the quilt. It is beautiful.
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