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Wednesday, October 12, 2011

My WIP Wed #23 - A good week of "Listening" & a cutting tip



I had a good quilt week around my studies. Got all forty diamonds finished! 


I am certain this was the most intricate, fussy sewing I have ever done. I do have the ability now to let go of the pursuit of perfection, but this time I really wanted those diamonds to be pieced spot on. My seam ripper and I were best friends, although I needed her less and less often by the time I finished number 40. And I'm so happy with all those perfect points!


Part of getting them perfectly lined up is meticulous cutting of the strips you sew together for each column. Here's a tip Jacqueline uses that I've never thought of doing: Tape the strip down to the mat. It seems fussy at first, but trust me: It really makes it easier.  


Once you've taped it down, you can use the 45 degree lines on your ruler to easily measure your cross cuts in a way that keeps your angle exact.  

(If you just figure out the first 45 cut, then line your ruler up on the cut edge for each next one without using a grid every time, you'll lose that perfect 45 degrees fairly quickly, and that will mess your points up.)


So, tape your strip down, then use whichever ruler is the best match for size, diagonal markings, and measurements you need. My pineapple ruler was the perfect handling size for this task, and since I needed 1.5" strips, I didn't need smaller measurements. Otherwise, I would have had to deal with my 24" ruler.


 I just put the tape bits on the side to use again with the next strip. Yeah, you cut through them sometimes, so they multiply and get smaller (sometimes too small). I used about as much tape cutting all my diamonds as I would have on a Christmas gift, so it's really not wasteful.




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A big "Thank you!" to Lee at Freshly Pieced for hosting WIP Wednesdays and to Esther at Esther's Blog for hosting WOW.
It really keeps me motivated to keep those UFOs going! (Go check out what everyone else is doing - there are some really neat projects out there!)


Also, Check out my BOMs AWAY Mondays regular link-up.  



This week's stats: (unchanged)

New Projects – 0    
Completed Projects This Week -  0  
In Active Progress - 1    (Listen with Your Eyes)
UFO Firing Range - 31.333          
Finishes for 2011 - 24  

Completed tops awaiting quilting:
One charity wheelchair quilt
Center of Marissa’s Moment of Freakishness
Marissa’s Moment Pillowcase panel
Dreamy Unicorns
Wagon Wheels West #2
Be Attitudes
We Love Kelly
Devon's Silk Spinners
Kelly's Thirties Hand Quilter
Kelly's Calico
Poor Forgotten Orphan from 15 Years Ago 

30 comments:

  1. Wow love those diamond! beautiful colors!

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  2. The colors are incredible! I agree with you that there is a time and place for perfection, and this project requires it. It wouldn't have the same visual impact if your points didn't match.

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  3. Beautiful diamonds! Thanks for the great tip of using tape. Do you ever use painters tape? I find it to be easier to remove from the fabric and anything else it sticks to.

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  4. Gorgy Diamonds and thanks for the cutting tips. I am interested in doing a Radiant Star and haven't done the 45 degree cutting yet. This was the perfect visit to prepare!

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  5. Your diamonds look beautiful, you are inspiring me!

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  6. I haven't been temped to do diamonds before, but you may have changed my mind!

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  7. Thanks for the tips on cutting. They are really pretty diamonds.

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  8. That looks AWESOME! good tip for cutting too, I would have never tried taping it down but I bet it does really help. Cant WAIT to see this finished.

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  9. It's looking fabulous! I'm so excited for you!

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  10. I'm sure it was very intricate. I love the colors. Can't wait to see it put together.

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  11. This is looking wonderful! The tape idea is a great idea- much less distortion.

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  12. this is fantastic!!! I hope to someday be able to get a grip on angles, as I'd love to learn to do that nice of work. Love,Love, Love the colors.

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  13. This is looking crazy good! Love it!

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  14. This is looking crazy good! Love it!

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  15. Your diamonds are amazing and I really appreciate the tips you shared!

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  16. Thanks for the taping tip, and the points are great!

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  17. Wow, your diamonds are amazing! Thanks for sharing the tip. What a great way of improving accuracy when cutting.

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  18. Thanks for sharing the tip to tape down the strips, I hadn't thought of that but it makes sense: the less you get stuff moving under your blade the more precise your cuts.

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  19. Those are amazing! I love watching this come together!

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  20. Your diamonds look fabulous, thanks for the cutting tip.

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  21. I'm drooling over your diamonds. Thanks for sharing the eye candy!

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  22. lovely diamonds. Can't wait to see them all together.

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  23. Great tutorial and very nice piecing! It's satisfying to set your mind to getting those perfect edges and then working at it until you have it.

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  24. LOVE THIS! Wow is this beautiful! :)

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  25. Love your diamond,spectacular!!Can´t wait to see them together.

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  26. Your diamonds are gorgeous!! I've been watching your progress and that quilt is going to be gorgeous when you are done!!! A real stunner!!

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  27. looks like a peacock. So awesome!

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  28. So beautiful! What is your ruler? It looks soooo helpful. I have a quilt I started with diamonds and "got" those fairly well. It is the pesky "Y" seam that kicked me in the knees. ha! Hugs!

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  29. oh wow - those diamonds are beautiful - can't wait to see it all together

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