Thursday, July 31, 2014

Sewing Online


For this month's posting, I thought I would share a recent online sewing project that I completed. In all honesty, the actual sewing did not occur online, but the process of receiving instructions over the course of about two and a half months did.

This online project or "sew-along" was hosted by Pam Buda of Heartspun Quilts. This past January, I had the opportunity to take a class from Pam (see my January 2014 posting). She shares my love of reproduction fabrics and prairie style quilts. When I learned that she would be starting an online "sew-along" this spring, I decided to participate.

The "sew-along" took place over about 10 weeks. Each week, we completed a new 3.5 inch quilt block or set of blocks that would be included in the project. We didn't receive a pattern of what the final quilt would look like. We just waited eagerly for each Friday to receive instructions for the next block or blocks. 

Week 1 began with just one single block - a square in square. It was easy to sew together, and I was restless to receive the next week's instructions. Here is the first block.

In the next two weeks that followed, we added two additional sets of 3.5 inch blocks. They are shown here on either side of the first block.

As the weeks went by, we completed half square triangles featuring different combinations of light and blue fabrics.

Then came some pinwheels and nine-patch blocks in reds and lights. (I love these classic blocks and the fabric choices that were part of the kit.)

By the end of June, we had completed a total of 49 blocks to be included in the quilt. We had to wait until the 4th of July to see how they would all fit together.

Once I had the final pattern, I began sewing blocks together into strips of seven blocks each. Here are two of these strips. Are you wondering what the final design is going to look like?
Here are two strips that have been sewn together. You can begin to see the pattern taking shape.

Here, at last, is the completed quilt top. I was quite pleased with the final design and have to admit that the blocks were organized in a pattern that I hadn't anticipated. I had tried different combinations of arranging them but did not come close. The one thing I did "get right" was to place the gold and blue square-in-square block in the center. My next task is to get this quilt machine quilted so that I can display it in my home.  
In case you are interested in making this quilt for yourself, kits are no longer available, but a list of the fabrics you will need is on Pam's blog. You can follow along with the weekly instructions beginning with her April 25 posting.

Just as we did not have the full instructions and vision for this quilt at the outset of this project, in the Christian walk, God often chooses not to reveal His plans in their entirety all at once. Our role is to follow in obedience by faith those instructions or plans that God has chosen to reveal to us at the given time. This faith is not fleeting wishful thinking but a confident assurance. As we continue in faith, He then reveals more and more, and the larger pattern becomes evident and is one that far exceeds our greatest expectations. The writer of Hebrews provides us with this perspective on faith:
Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. Hebrews 11:1

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