Thursday, April 28, 2016

Sugar and Spice is Oh so Nice

 Whats not to love?  It has everything in a quilt that I love.  Pretty fabrics, flowers, applique and that level of cuteness that makes me smile everytime I look at the adorable blocks.  


You might remember in a earlier blog post my frustrations with this pattern/kit.  Well I found another issue.  It's not an error,  more of  a personal preference.  Let me explain.  In the block below you see the Dresden as it finishes before the yo-yo's are attached.  The pattern calls for a large circle to be placed over the hole.  The large circle is just big enough for the 16 yo-yo's to cover the edge.   After attaching the large center circle and yo-yo's I'm supposed to applique the Dresden to the background fabric that is the same print as the large center circle....what?  


So here was my pattern alteration(because I can never follow a pattern to a "T").  I sewed my yo-yo's together, then centered them on the Dresden and glue basted them in place.  Next was to do some seam ripping from the bottom of  the dresden wedge seam.  The extra fabric on the blades will be cut away before attaching the Dresden to the background fabric.  Wish I had made a test block before cutting and sewing all the Dresden wedges.  I learn something new with each quilt.  LESSON LEARNED: Always make a test block.  The little cut offs would have added up to some nice sized  scraps.


Here's another lesson learned quite by accident.  A few years ago started using Roxanne's glue-baste.(on the right) to hold applique in place instead of pins.    Well I read somewhere on the vast internet...."Roxanne's glue baste is nothing more than washable school glue."   So when my large bottle (on the left with the big brown glob) was empty I refilled with the school glue you see laying to the side.   The big brown glob is school glue.  Why is it brown?  I've no clue why it turned brown, but if it'll turn brown on the bottle when it sets for awhile, what's it going to do in my quilts!?   Now I know what your thinking....It's washable school glue, just wash it when you finish the quilt.  True..but what if the one quilt I use it in becomes a UFO, lays around for weeks,months or years?  LESSON LEARNED: Some internet quilt tips are actually bad advice, do your research.


 So back to those cute yo-yo's.  Remember I told you I stitched them together before attaching them with glue baste.  Well hold on to your hats....it's machine stitching holding those yo-yo's together.   A tiny little zigzag.  Can you see it?


Here lets zoom in and take a closer look, can you see the stitches?
Invisible!  This was so much quicker than  handwork.  Making the yo-yo's by hand has been a real chore(bore).  So anything to speed up this quilt is worth a try.


I know my loyal followers are tired of hearing about Superior Threads MonoPoly  thread but it really can't be beat when it comes to invisible thread.  It doesn't show on a quilt, it doesn't melt under a medium heat iron, and it won't melt in the dryer.  I've put this thread through several test and it holds up very well.  It can take more heat than suggested by the manufacturer.  It can also be used for the actual quilting.  If your making a quilt with darker fabrics it also comes in a Smoke color.    At about $10 a spool it won't cut into the quilt budget to bad.   I've made several quilts with this one spool and will probably be able to make one or two quilts with the same spool.   Let me also say my blog doesn't make money for suggesting a product.  My blog makes no money ever.  It's just me doing what I do...quilting.  


~ Lea Anne ~
Pin It

20 comments:

  1. loving those yo yos with the mini dresdens it looks super, good tip re the thread not tried superior threads and wil remember about the glue if I ever go to glue any project thanks for the useful advice

    ReplyDelete
  2. Oh, my goodness, just as cute as a button! I never jumped onto the glue wagon, but if I do, I'll heed your advice. Love your fabrics!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Thanks for the heads up on the school glue. You are creating another beautiful quilt at your house! Can't wait to see the whole top. Love the one block. :)

    ReplyDelete
  4. I suspect that the metal tip has something to do with turning the school glue brown. I use plastic fine tip applicators and haven't had a problem with school glue turning brown. I really love how you used the yo-yos; I'll have to try this!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Love your fabric colors and prints on the Dresden. Not all washable school glue is the same. I have used Elmer's brand and it works well. I think you need to test for sure whenever you use a product. I love that Superior invisible thread too. it really is the best I have used and not as stiff as others.

    ReplyDelete
  6. That is sooooo cute. Appreciate the process sharing. Another delightful quilt in the making. You are so clever, Lea Anne.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Beautiful work and thanks so much for the tips! I can't believe that glue turned brown! Your little zigzag stitches are truly invisible

    ReplyDelete
  8. I was blown away by this idea. I just love those yo-yos around the inside of the dresden plate and would have never guessed that you folded the excess "blade" length behind. Very cute and extremely clever! Thanks for sharing.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Most adorable Dresden ever! I always try to remind myself to make a test block--seems those times that I forget to do that is when things go terribly wrong--haha!

    ReplyDelete
  10. I love your yoyo dresden - perfect. I use Superior's mono-poly and think it's the best, too. Thanks for letting us know your experience with school glue. I've also heard that it's the same as Roxanne's but recently on the net I'd heard about your 'brown' experience. I will stick with my Roxanne's.

    ReplyDelete
  11. You've put all kinds of good advise in today's blog - thank you! One of the reasons I love reading your blog is I am not harassed by all those pop-ups! Geez, that gets on my nerves. Thanks for that! Your pictures are as pretty to look at as your writing is informative.

    ReplyDelete
  12. So pretty, what a good idea. You are full of them, Girl. Thanks for sharing them.
    Hugs

    ReplyDelete
  13. It is lovely, beautiful colours, it looks so delicate. I have some school glue (different make) but I've never used it, don't think I will now, thank you for that.
    Smiles
    Kate

    ReplyDelete
  14. Love the colors and those little yo-yo's. It's beautiful.

    ReplyDelete
  15. A creative use of the yo-yo's.

    ReplyDelete
  16. I have a quilt I did back in 2001 that I used Roxanne's glue on the appliques. It had a steel tip, and there is brown all near the edges where I had applied glue. It is just the top, but I am afraid to put a lot of work into finishing it if the brown won't come out. I stopped using Roxanne's.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Meant to tell you I love the yo-yo idea!!

      Delete
  17. This is adorable and makes me want to give it a try, even just one block for a wallhanging would be lovely.

    ReplyDelete
  18. Never had that brown glob problem with ELMER'S school glue. Love the idea of Dresden and yo-yos together. We have a Dresden challenge in September. Hmmm........ think I have a new idea.

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for stopping by and leaving a comment. At this time I can only respond to comments in the comments section. So if you want to see my reply to your comment check the notify me option in the bottom right corner of the comment box and blogger will let you know when I respond to your comment. Thanks for understanding!

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...