I love my stash of fabric. I love to look at it. I love to rummage through it. I love the memories that so many of them hold within their fibres. But I don't like it when my stash becomes too much for me! In January of this year I had a massive cull of my stash because it had simply out grown my space and quite frankly my taste had changed over the years. We cleared out so much, donating bags filled with fabrics that I know will have found their way to other very good homes. I can't tell you how good this made me feel. As much as this process was cathartic ... trust me ... I don't want to go back to that place again any time soon! This doesn't mean that I don't want to collect fabric ... because I do! I just need to manage the use of the fabrics that I collect.
This past year I've started 'triaging' my fabrics as I cut them for various projects. This triaging process involves categorising the 'leftover' pieces of fabric ... what do I want from these remnants? I ask myself these questions;
Is this piece a precious piece - do I especially love it and want to keep it to use in another specific project?
or
Is this just a regular piece that isn't 'shelf worthy'?
If it slots into the first category then it's folded, categorised and stored away, however, if it fits into the second option I spend a few extra minutes cutting it into predetermined set cuts ready to create a scrap quilt once I've collected enough pieces to create a quilt.
We've already covered three simple projects in this series of Remnant Busting Quilts. If you missed these you can find the links to their related posts below;
Today we're going to take a look at another great Remnant Buster, a Square Inside a Square. This simple little block was one of the very first quilts I ever made so it holds a special place in my heart! To make this project you'll be collecting 6.5" squares. This is a great cut particularly if you tend to buy 20cm minimum cuts. A 6.5" square is easy to successfully cut from a 20cm piece.
To create these fun blocks you'll need to start with two 6.5" x 6.5" squares carefully set out on top of each other so that you can cut the two blocks at the same time. Cut a 1.5” strip from both sides of the squares.
Cut a 1.5” strip from the top and the bottom of the centre rectangle
Swap the centre squares to create your block. Piece the two short strips to the top & bottom of the centre square.
Piece the two long strips to the left & right side of the centre piece.
Square up your block trimming to a 5.5" square
You can find the simple instructions to create a cot sized quilt top using this block below;
I find these that strategies work perfectly for me because I tend to select fabric in coordinating groups so when I cut the remnants they easily slot into a scrap project. I love the way that I'm ending up with a coordinating quilt or pillow sham from the fabrics I have left over. I feel like I'm kicking goals and in the year of COVID you'll find me rejoicing in any win ... no matter how small!
Now, all I need to do is decide which thread I should use for the quilting ....
If you make one of these quilts please include these hashtags when sharing to social media
I can't wait to see what you create!!!
Cheers
kellie