SewKatieDid

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Half-Square Triangle Tutorial

Some Stitching

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My Value Heart Quilt has spent more time in the past couple of weeks being shuffled from one corner of the house to the next, than being stitched.

I’m hearting it though and I thought I’d share a little bit of process before yet another week walks away from me.

sew katie did | seattle quilting and sewing studio

Last week I did managed to start this post, and sit long enough to turn one corner of the binding.  I don’t know about you, but I always love that moment when you can spread it out and admire even just one bound edge.

Saturday, I spent the most lovely day with the Bainbridge Island MQG and managed to finish all but one side while traveling on the ferries.  I usually get out of the car deck and head upstairs to the cabin, but the King size kept me warm and car-bound.  I also had a pretty sweet viewing spot to watch rainbows over Puget Sound.

Let's just say there's a lot of life happening around here, and

Many scraps ago I bought this Sevenberry print, and I had the most wee bit of it left.  When I noticed they reprinted it, I got it in my head that it was the one and only binding fabric that would do.  Definitely a ‘treat yourself’ moment for someone that could certainly bind a million scrap quilts from her stash.

I have OBD (over basting disorder) and a similar problem with wonder clips.  Some tools once discovered are hard to live without.  Using its clever risen dots to align all the binding to the same seam measurement is a game changer.  You really only need a few, but I like to see it all clipped back like that and you feel so accomplished when you get to start removing them.

Even width binding!

Value Quilt Hearts | Sew Katie Did | Seattle Modern Quilting and Sewing Studio

I’m sure Jefe is seriously happy that we’re now going to be sleeping under a scrappy heart quilt, but I love the brightness and cheerfulness it brings to the room.

I’m hoping to finish it up and snap some photos of it next week for a workshop that focuses on how to optimize the use of color value in your quilts, but in case that doesn’t become reality I’ve listed some class dates.  Come get your value on and use up some of those lovely prints in your stash;)

  I know some of you Monday-Friday peeps tell me you like a holiday of sewing, so I added one for you.

sew katie did | Seattle Modern Quilting and Sewing Studio

I know you’d miss all the examples I have to show you how value works, but if you can’t make it here you can still make your own with my Value Quilt Tutorial and some scheduled time with your design wall.

Well, since somebody might have had a little accident and there’s no transmission in the car, there is car hunting in the near future.  This will also be the last photo of the bedroom with the Pure Periwinkle in my dream weekend.  I think I feel some new pillow covers coming on with the paint transformation, plus I’ve got another quilt quilted and ready for some binding, so out I go to visit my stash.

Hope your future is full of something inspirational.

Happy week Peeps!

::Warm & Cool Hearts Color Value Quilt::

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I’m not quite sure what happened to January, does anyone know where it went?  Apparently time flies faster than I sew.

I spent much of the month happily digging through my stash, cutting and piecing in an attempt to showcase my Warm & Cool Hearts Color Value Quilt LONG before Valentine’s Day and here it is a week and change away.

SEW KATIE DID:Warm and Cool Hearts Value Quilt Tutorial Full

Lately, I’ve become obsessed with heart shape blocks and appropriately, L-O-V-E best describes my feelings for my new quilt.  I haven’t bothered to asked Jefe how he feels about it yet.

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Revisiting my Color Value Quilt Tutorial and workshop using the heart shape has been on my bucket list.  I’d been asked to place it on the teaching calendar, but adding a new sample to demonstrate how value works in this quilt’s design was necessary to keep teaching the workshop fresh for me.

SEW KATIE DID: Warm and Cool Hearts Value Quilt Tutorial:Close

Certainly the hearts can be a mix of colors (see early morning iPhone photo below), but consolidating them to a single color created a more cohesive and visually appealing shape to my eye.  The challenge of finding the perfect tints and tones for each heart slowed the process down, but made it more enjoyable.

SEW KATIE DID:Warm and Cool Hearts Color Value Tutorial mix

It was also a good exercise in ‘seeing’ what color values my stash lacks or is abundant in.

I reached out to quilty friends for an additional here and there square and some light values for the background.  I recommend a swap if you find some holes in your stash.

SEW KATIE DID:warm and cool value quilt hearts

Value is relative, but for the most part I stayed away from what I considered medium values with the exception of the turquoise and mustard blocks.

SEW KATIE DID:Warm and Cool Hearts Value Tutorial

I spent a great deal of time staring at my design wall and moving things around before piecing them.  Keeping the value focused on darks for the hearts and light for the backgrounds was a good exercise in what your mind’s eye thinks works and reality.

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 This became especially apparent when I stepped away.   My view into the studio from the kitchen was an extremely helpful tool for determining whether the value of the background blocks was working for or against my heart blocks.  We’ll cover useful tools like this in the workshop.

SEW KATIE DID:Warm and Cool Value Quilt Tutorial Hearts:row

I didn’t piece the quilt together by rows or columns, but worked by completing each heart block into its background and moved them around for the final layout.  I’m not a preplanner or a drawer in general, so this process suited me.

I think the best part of a Color Value Quilt is gazing at all those fabrics I was drawn to for whatever reason in one quilt.  Especially those that don’t exist in my stash anymore.  I just love print.

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Some flannel of course for the back.  I’m still trying to stick to my stash when it comes to shopping for backing.

I’ll run this workshop and my Free Motion Fundamentals/Nesting Baskets through March.   Reserve your space by simply emailing me at sewkatiedid@gmail.com or calling and I’ll reserve you a spot.  (the website is sooooo close to done).

 Open Studio dates have also been updated.

SEW KATIE DID:Charm Squares

The Value Workshop is a great opportunity for cutting into your growing stash and use all those fabrics you love that haven’t found a place in a quilt yet.  I’ve dug into my stash and have a load of pre-cut squares for sale to supplement your designs or we can dig through my stash and cut.  Keep up on my Instagram and/or Facebook for a major destash of these.

As usual, once finishing a quilt top of a traditional/classic design I’m itching for something improvisational, so look for something of that nature for workshops next month.

Happy week(end) Peeps;)

:: Color Value Quilts Tutorial ::

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SEW KATIE DID:Value Quilt Baby

SEW KATIE DID:Value Quilt on point
SEW KATIE DID:Boy Value Quilt zig zig

SEW KATIE DID:Warm and Cool Hearts Value Quilt Tutorial Full

Value quilts are some of the first quilts I ever made.

Most of us addicted to fabric will find this style of quilt a great display tool for your fabric stash.   Baby quilts, wall hangings, bed quilts, or a favorite blankie to cuddle up in on the couch, make it any size you want.

No worries on making fabrics match, we’re going to think in values, or the degree of lightness or darkness of a color.

Close up you won’t notice a design so much, but from a distance your eye will pull it.

Work with a design wall or other tools like the black and white option on a camera phone.  A vertical surface is an essential tool that helps you determine how the values of your fabrics are working to create contrast, and thus design and form.  I have some tips on making your own design wall here.

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-CUT YOUR FABRICS SQUARES:  

I used 6-inch squares, but you may go smaller or larger.

-SORT YOUR SQUARES:

Divide them in piles into light, medium and dark.  (For the heart shapes make one light and one dark pile).

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Our eyes tend to like Mediums.  Most of your stash is likely made up of this value.  Try to direct your fabric buying obsession to Light and Dark values too (that’s right, buy more fabric!).

Some fabrics are deceptive and you won’t immediately know into which pile to place them.  Not to worry, the questionable squares will be sorted out in the next step.  Because value is relative, one square will always be lighter or darker than another.

-PAIR (2) SQUARES RIGHT SIDES TOGETHER:

Now forget about light, medium and dark.  One square just needs to be lighter in value when compared to its mate.

Pull a square from one of the Light, Medium or Dark piles and match it with another value (lighter or darker), until you have one big stack of pairs.

  • *If the pair seems questionable in their value difference put them up together on the design wall.  Value is best determined at a distance so step back if the contrast in values isn’t obvious.  
  • *I generally stay away from large scale prints due to the fact that they generally have many values to create the design on them.
  • *You might have to rearrange some of your squares at the end.

 

-DRAW THE LINE:

Now draw a diagonal line with a pen or pencil across the wrong side of the mated squares.

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-SEW:

Sew a quarter inch seam on each side of that line.  I generally chain piece a few at a time.

Set your seam with a brief press.

With your rotary cutter, cut on the penned line to make two squares.

Then press the seam open or to the side.

-TRIM YOUR SQUARES SQUARE;):

Not everyone cuts their squares down, some only cut off the dog ears.  I think it’s time well spent.  In the end your quilt should come out completely square and points should match if all your squares are the same size.

I find the easiest method is to buy a template a 1/2″ smaller then the originally size of your un-sewn squares (i.e. I cut all my squares 6 inches, so my squaring up template is 5.5).”  Line up the diagonal of the template with the diagonal of your block and cut around.

If you want to use the original template (in my case 6″) try this:

Using your template, line the diagonal line of the template with the diagonal of your hst block.  We’ll square these up to be 5.5.”

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Square up two sides, cutting as little off as possible. See how I have the template to the edge, and the diagonal lined up?  Now you know those two sides are square.

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Flip the hst block (not the template), line up the triangular corner of the template with the squared side of the hst block (5.5″ in this case) and square up the second side.  Now you have a perfect square.

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Now is the time to arrange them on your design wall to see what looks best.

Here are some examples starting with a light and a dark center.  You can also pinwheel, off-set, zig zag, place them on point….

You will want to give yourself some distance from your monitor to really see the how values make the design take form.

LIGHT:

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DARK:

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Once you have your design, START SEWING!

Hopefully this little lesson will help with your quilt design in general.

SOME TIPS FOR DESIGNING WITH VALUE:

*Use an assortment of light, medium and dark to create contrast.  Darks and lights together will create “high contrast” and mediums mixed in will give your design a softer edge or feel because mediums “soften” the contrast.

*If you’re not really thrilled with how a quilt turned out, it probably has to due with a problem with value.

*For a successful design, value is more important than color.  Same goes for duplicating a quilt you see.  Match the values and proportions, not the colors/fabric for success.

If you end up making a Value Quilt I would love to see it, and have created a Value Quilts Flickr Group.