Foundation pieced strip quilt / tutorial

Next!
This quilt is my latest answer to how to use up the scrap strips that pile up when I cut squares for the kits from fabric donated to the Linus Connection.  It reminds me of fruit stripe gum for some reason.  I'll donate this at the next meeting along with more kits (And you know what that means.  More scraps.  Argh!!)

I made one before but it was problematic because I didn't know how to deal with the thick seams.  Now I've got it -- leave an overhang of fabric 1/4 inch over your foundation!!  The diagonal strips use up a lot of scraps.  Not the best if you are living through the Depression and need every inch of fabric I bet -- but here in the land of fabric-by-the-pound -- cheap!, it's cool. 

Anyway, do you want to learn how?

First - do it straight.  Unless you TOTALLY get it, you might want to try it this way once.

Straight foundation pieced strip block

1.  Cut a square out of muslin or any light colored scrap of cotton fabric.  Mine was 6.5 inches.  Gather a bunch of scrap strips, any width, and longer than your square.  It helps if they are ironed, but they don't need to be cut straight or all the same or anything.
2. Lay the first strip down RIGHT SIDE UP on your square positioned so that it overhangs the left edge and the top and bottom by more than 1/4 inch. 
3. Lay the next strip down on top of the first with RIGHT SIDES TOGETHER.  Go ahead and make the edges of these two pieces even just for yucks.  Make sure it overhangs the top and bottom by at least 1/4 inch. Now, it helps if you use a pin to hold all three layers together to move it to the sewing machine.
4. Sew a 1/4 seam on the right side of these strips, then press the top piece open flat.
5.  Now it is just about repeating.  Lay another strip RIGHT SIDE DOWN on top of the 2nd strip.  You'll note that you don't really have to align the right edges with this technique.  You can sew it at any angle you want.  Just make sure the pieces always hang over the edge by more than 1/4 inch.
6.  If you do sew a piece on at a wonky angle you will most likely want to then trim away the excess in the seam allowance so there aren't 3 layers of fabric.  Trust me, this quilt will already be heavy enough.
7. Keep on a going until you've filled up your square, making sure the last piece overhangs by at least 1/4 inch.  It is up to you whether you actually use an iron to press each seam open as you go or whether you "finger press."  I've been known to do both.
8. Definitely press it all flat at this point.  Now, flip the square over so you see the original square foundation and use this edge to guide you to cut your new square 1/4 inch bigger on all sides.  *It is more important that your final square is square so if you foundation has shifted at all during the process, you might have to fudge your 1/4" on some sides.  You'll see.
9. Now you are done.  :-) 
I do think it is nice to learn the technique with the straight on method but I don't think it is necessarily required to do straight strip sewing with a foundation.  If you plan to do a lot of wonky seams (as described above) then it would be good I guess, but otherwise I think you could just sew a bunch of strips together and it would be good.  If you want diagonal on the other hand, I think the foundation is very helpful, so read on.

Diagonal foundation pieced strip block   

This is the same method, just diagonal.
1.  Start with the muslin square. 
2. You start out at one corner with a right side up strip (or even a square as shown) that overhangs all sides by 1/4 inch or more. 
3. The next strip is tricky! Watch out - it needs to overhang the square not just where it starts but also where it will end once flipped over.  You'll probably make a few mistakes like I did before you finally get this into your skull.  Basically, make it longer than you'd think.  Sew it on.
4. I found that with the diagonal block it really did make things nicer to press in between each seam.  Breathe.  It helps if you do an assembly line - sewing one strip on a ton of blocks and then pressing each one open for the next strip instead of jumping up and down from the sewing machine to the ironing board each time.  Good exercise though.
5. Remember to trim away excess seam allowances as you go.
6. Keep going until you have your square covered.  Press.
7. Use the rotary cutter and ruler to cut your new block 1/4 inch bigger on all sides.
8. Done.
9. Repeat.  When you sew your blocks together you'll just sew the overhung edges together and not really sew through the foundation squares.  You're seams will still be bulkier than normal, but it is pretty managable (if you aren't hand quilting I guess.)  As you could guess, this top is twice as heavy as a normal top (duh) but you should keep that in mind for how you plan to finish it and use it.

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My apologies to those who got lost on my last tutorial.  You'll probably get lost here too then.  I'm kind of rushing through these tutorials with less than perfect photos and quick instructions -- but I've been wanting to share this for a while and this isn't my day job... 

Anyway, for those of you who get it and who have overflowing scrap baskets like me, I can't wait to see your scrap quilts!!  Let me know if you make any!

Comments

[laeroport]

Wow! LOVE the diaonal! Ohh. More things to try!

[meg]

I have plans to start mining the scrap heap today, as a matter of fact. Thanks for the extra incentive!

[moki]

I am already finished with my top from your last tutorial!!! Still need to finish it, but now I want to get started on this one!!! Tip to those that get lost in the tut. read very s...l...o...w...l...y. It's easier to process all the info :)

[ginny]

love it! thank you for the tutorial, i am so excited to try this.
xo
g
ps. you have a wonderful eye for color! great job using up all those scraps for such a worthy cause.

[Mama Urchin]

You are such a generous quilter. Thanks for the tutorial.

[Ali]

Amy, your tutorials crack me up, because they're all 'oh just fling it together' and I think 'I could do that' and then I look at your amazing, amazing controlled finished items and think 'never in a million years'.

Just goes to show, the techniques may not be difficult, but there is a huge dollop of artistry in those quilts of yours.

[Reethi]

What a great, happy looking quilt. My scrap quilts tend to be a lot more scrap, this one is just too cute!

[Amber]

Such a beautiful quilt. The colors are delicious.

When I was fully into quilting, I looked into participating in the Linus Project---it's such a great concept. I still would love to do it.

Have you ever seen the book by Valorie Wells called, Stitch and Flip? She's somewhat of a local to me since I grew up near Sisters, Oregon, where her mom has a regionally famous quilt shop, The Stitchin' Post (every year they host the Sister's Quilt Show). Anyhow, it's a great book for this same foundation piecing concept.

Have fun with your beautiful colors of scraps!:-)

[Nikki]

What a beautiful quilt. That's the first one I've seen that makes me want to give quilting a try. I love the diagonal and the like colors in a diagonal row. You rock strip quilts!!!!

[feli]

wow thanks for posting this tute. I am just starting to make my own quilt and wanted to try something different. Thanks :*)

[Mom]

Such a bright and cheery quilt! And it's finished!!! Congrats!

[Tami]

That's a very happy cheerful striped quilt. The colors are amazing. I like it a lot! Your tutorials look great too. :-)

[Céline]

I love it and I will try to make one soon !!! Thank you !!!

[Jennifer]

Thanks for the tutorial. I wondered when I saw that one how it was pieced. Great use for scraps.

[Randi]

As usual, a great tutorial! Thanks for taking the time to do this, I will be trying this at some point---first i have some projects to do!

[Christine]

Oh my word! The colors are stunning! Love the tutorial and the Fruit Strip reference. I'm a dork, my scrap stash is sorted by color and I've been thinking of a crumb pieced variation. I should get on that. Thanks for sharing!

[amisha]

i saw this quilt on your flickr and loved it so much... and then i pop over here to see this amazing tutorial... you rock!! the quilt is beautiful. and i am so excited about both of these tutorials; looking forward to a long fun sewing session this weekend! thanks lady!

[Dina]

Your blog is beautiful. I, too, would have to charge $6 to just look at the vintage quilt. What a score!

[Susan]

I've tried this method using old phone book pages for the foundation, sew your strips onto a page, cut to the size you'd like and then tear off your paper. Creates less bulk and saves the muslin for another project! Beautiful quilts!

[Vicki W]

Just found your blog - what a cute quilt! Will visit again for sure.

[Sarah]

LOVE it! What a wonderful tutorial as well, thanks for doing both the straight and diagonal.

[nuttnbunny]

Another one! I want to do them all! You're killing me :-)

[Michelle]

I hope that I remember to make something like this sometime.

[Lauri]

Fruit Stripe Gum! You are so right!

This quilt is beautiful-I love all the bright colors!

[amandajean]

thanks for the tutorial. I have been planning a string quilt (as some call them) but it is nice to have some good tips going into it. for instance, I wouldn't have thought to have the foundation 1/4" smaller than the rest of the block, but that makes a lot of sense. I do like the idea of a heavier than normal quilt top. I also have a bunch of scraps to use, and this would be a great way to bust some of them. Your quilt is lovely!