Gotta love skill building Block-of-the-Month programs...
So month 4 really builds upon the skills introduced in the first three months combined, plus adding a new skill There's four very small nine-patch blocks in the main block. It's crucial that the sewer's quarter inch be very accurate; a skill first talked about in month one. Pressing matters! And the pressing/ironing instructions are very important in this month too. You'll also find half-square triangle block and the Drunkard's Path block make an appearance.
The new element this month is paper-piecing.
Oh, how I love paper piecing! And the block is a very simple Triangle-Rectangle block (seen in the horizontal accent strip). Perfect block to introduce someone to paper-piecing since there's only 3 pieces, and 2 seams.
There are many tips and tricks for successful paper-piecing. The most crucial however, is using a small stitch length. At the end of the piecing your block, you'll need to tear off the paper. It's much easier to tear away the paper with more perforations, thus more stitches per inch. So set your machine's stitch length to something smaller than 2.0. I like to use 1.6. (Or roughly 16 stitches per inch)
I'm also a big fan of the Add-A-Quarter ruler when doing paper-piece blocks. You can see me using it in the Scrappy block video listed below. A link to the ruler is also listed below.
Once again Scott, the designer gives an alternative to the paper-piece block by suggesting a pieced version using the EZ Tri-Recs ruler. (link below)
Here's the batik version and my scrappy version of the block:
Please check out my Scrappy Month 4 video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N54xf06yj9w&t=17s
And if you'd like to see me speed through another paper-pieced block, check out this video:
I'm a third of the way through this BOM. Can't wait to see how the next months turn out. I hope you'll join me on this adventure.
But I gotta get back to my quilt lab now to prep for it. TTFN!
Cynthia
For more information on the Illusions Sampler and designer, Scott Flanagan, please visit the Northcott website:
Ruler Add-A-Quarter Plus
6-Inch Tri-Recs Tools
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