improv quilts

Another Little Finish

I have another little finish to share with you today. Once again I was distracted while going through bins as I settle into my new quilt room. I came across some leftover strips from a quilt I made before I even had a blog! I have moved and shifted those strips for so long, it was time to either toss them or do something with them. So I stitched them all together into a little mini quilt top.

Red, white and tan improv quilt with blue strips for the binding - piecefulthoughts.com

I didn’t give much thought to sewing the strips together. The 2-inch-ish strips are leftover from a Buggy Barn quilt pattern with gold stars and red and white stripes. Anyway, I just flipped the strips this way and stitched them together.

For the backing, I grabbed a couple of scraps sitting on my table that happened to be just the right size and color. Two more scraps used up – yay! A scrap piece of Warm & Natural batting, just the right size, and I was ready to quilt.

Photo shows a pieced quilt back for a mini quilt of a tan fabric and red fabric - piecefulthoughts.com

I thought a little wavy quilting would be fun. I planned to use either tan or red thread, but I decided to experiment a bit and used an unusual color of thread, Aurifil 40 wt thread in Desert Dawn. For the bobbin, I used a 50 wt thread in a deep russet (also Aurifil, but don’t recall the name). When I do wavy quilting, I start a little off center and sew three lengths, dividing that half of the quilt into thirds. Then I go back and add in more waves between those lengths, if that makes sense. I repeat for the other side. Doing that helps me get a balanced look, and also helps me keep the waves fairly straight.

I used blue strips for the binding, adding a little bit of a patriotic look, but not so much that the quilt can’t be used for other occasions. The blue fabric was just enough for the strips, with a bit leftover for my smaller scrap bin.

Another little finish using up scraps is always a good thing, right? This little mini measures 14 inches by 22 inches. No idea where I will use this wonky little quilt yet, but it sure looks nice with the flowers, don’t you think?

Small red, white and tan mini quilt with blue binding and a vase of colorful flowers - piecefulthoughts.com

Happy Wednesday, everyone!

Wendy

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