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Member since 7/3/10
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Posted on: 4/8/14 5:20 PM ET
so, my second quilt is nearly done (just need to get some multi coloured thread from sister in the Netherlands) and have got a final little bit of quilting to do.

I'm considering a design for my third. I've been inspired by roman mosaic patterns and have copied a design I saw a photo of. The idea is that it has a pale cream background, and then has thin strips of fabric in different colours running over it.

My sister (an experienced quilter) has warned me it would be hard work. I thought I could take some sheeting fabric of the size of the quilt, draw the design on it, then cut out the lines (leaving seam allowances) and then add the strips.

Would love some honest thoughts, am I overreaching myself? This is the design (the small squares would be solid, the lines would be thin strips).

  
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Posted on: 4/8/14 5:42 PM ET
I think your sister is correct.
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OLD CHINESE PROVERB: I HEAR & I FORGET; I SEE & I REMEMBER; I DO & I UNDERSTAND.
  
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Posted on: 4/8/14 6:38 PM ET
To me this appears to be quilting lines, not blocks to piece. I'm not sure how you would do it unless you manage it in blocks somehow.
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Posted on: 4/8/14 6:46 PM ET
It depends on how you approach it. Like your describing it now you would probably have a hard time. But you need to break the drawing down a bit into blocks - or at least that's how I would look at it. What is your finished size - how many blocks or segments. You've got to break it down a bit more once you do that then it's do able. Think about how you create the shape with fabric as well as piecing. If you love the design then it's worth trying. If you can't break it down then give it a miss because that sort of tells you, that your not clear on the construction and frustration awaits. But if your idea of the quilt actually gets clearer as you break it down to segments then you can manage it
  
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Posted on: 4/8/14 6:50 PM ET
thanks for the feedback and thoughts. I've had a few more of my own.

I think this might work better with reverse appliqué. The quilt would be 2 meters by 2 meters, then a small border round it. That would make each block 1 meter by 1 meter.

To test out how hard it is to do, I could try making a (to scale) cushion cover. It if works, great - I have a new cushion cover and can go ahead. If it doesn't, not much fabric wasted.

  
Member since 5/2/09
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Posted on: 4/8/14 8:50 PM ET
In reply to rmusic1
A think anything is doable, but some ways more easy than others. I think the design would look neat for a quilt top. If I wanted to do it though, my first thoughts are to maybe make it applique instead of of a whole bunch of sew together pieces. I think it would look neat with the squares within the squares being appliqued on there, and then for all the more "greek key" looking lines on it, you could use bias tape or even just straight strips of any narrow fabric appliqued onto to it.

I've seen that bias tape already made up just for quilters too, they use it rather like the lead in stain glass windows, for quilts looking like that.

I think if you want to make it all of cut out same size pieced together squares instead, then you got to copy it onto some graph paper or something that has same sized squares on it, to see how to get that to work though.
  
Member since 4/12/05
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Posted on: 4/9/14 1:30 AM ET
I wish I could color this and show you the design better. I see patterns and colors in many places in this design. It would drive me nuts, but it also would be a lot of fun to do something like this.
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Currently working on a boys quilt. Sized 40 x 40 inches. It has chickens, chicken eggs, cows, fish, sea life, afield with water, Dachshunds, mini sailboats, and many colorful other fabrics. The blocks are a 4 x 4 finished size, so many of them are needed.
This my 4th quilt in 7 months.

Bernina 630, Bernina embroidery module, Pfaff 2036, Bernina 1200DA serger, Unique Sewing Cabinet 450L

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Member since 6/22/07
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Posted on: 4/9/14 10:01 AM ET
I think it is doable, but you may need to break the design, so that there are seams in the fabric, that join the same colour together. It is not seen in the finished design, but it is a way of getting the pattern with just machine piecing.
For sure, doing the design in colours will make it easier to understand. My mom used to colour the linedrawing with pencil crayons before she started with the fabric.
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Member since 1/21/10
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Posted on: 4/9/14 10:21 AM ET
I would approach this project as a whole cloth quilt top and put in the design using self-made cross grain tape. Instead of making bias tape you can make cross grain tape using your trusty Clover tape maker and cutting the strips across the of the width of fabric. Make the tape just as you would if using bias strips by pulling the strip through the tape maker and pressing as you go. Try it, it works amazingly well and may just be the ticket for your fab design idea!
  
Member since 1/29/13
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Posted on: 4/9/14 10:29 AM ET
I could see doing this as a pieced work, quite easily, actually. But I'm not sure about "thin strips" ... that might be more than I would want to tackle.
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