The Continuation of the Pixelating Quilt.

I've cut all my squares now.  I need quite a few.

I needed 133 blues, 45 gray/blues, 111 light yellows/tan, 78 yellows, 111 golds, 174 light browns, and 183 dark browns.  As stated in a previous email, there is a great program that figures this out for you, so I was so happy for this.  You take what it produces, put it as a background picture in excel so you can calculate how many squares you need of each colour.  See this link for an explanation and the name of the link.  It's really not that hard to do, but it does take some time.  You can also edit your picture to change some of it so it's clearer in your mind.

On a note, for me, cutting one strip of material at 2.5 inches equalled 18 squares.  So I will use that measurement to figure out how much material I'll need.  To be safe (better to have more material then less), use 16.  

Section 1

Once done, I use very light weight interfacing, and following my excel sheet which works like a map, I now place the correct amount of squares in the right position.  You don't have to work the full length of the quilt, you can do it in sections.  I work in sections of 10 squares or 15, then place them together.

Tomorrow sewing the squares.  Will fold the sections horizontally, sew up and down, iron it and clip between the vertical lines, and then sew vertically.  Will take pictures of this process tomorrow so you'll understand better.  But for now, the cutting took over 3 hours, and the placement of these two sections too approximately 45 minutes (it is very important to double check all your placements before you iron your squares down on the interfacing.  Note that when you place the squares on the interfacing, you place it on the sticky side (that means the sticky side is up).  Also please note that when you iron it, you do so with a dry iron, and you just place the iron straight down, then lift it, move to a new section, and place it straight down for a few seconds, then straight up and move it again, etc.

Section 2

Both sections together.

Is it not starting to look like a sunflower?  This is still not the full width of the quilt.  I still have some to go.  But as states, you can do it in section.

I've put a grid on my excel/map to it's easier to follow when I put it away and then come back to it.  Take a look.  Having the grid lines organize your setting easier.  The quilt in the end will be 29 squares by 28 squares.  After sewing every thing, that's 29 * 2 inches = 58 inches by 56 inches.  Then I'm thinking of putting the dark brown fabric around it (a 3 inch border maybe) or just the binding.  I haven't decided yet.  

Keep following to see the process of this quilt.  ;)

PS - wouldn't you know, I see sunflowers everywhere now