This...
I finished up some crumb hearts earlier this week. Two for purple month, and two yellows to catch up so that two hearts are made for each of the RSC colors.
Here are all the hearts I've made with their bonus HSTs, too.
And then I had to play some more on the design wall. What about crumb hearts and wonky stars?
This could be a fun combination!
Then...
I had a little "Drop Everything and Make It" moment this week, and decided to make a tiny pincushion out of this Crabapple Hill Studios design. It measures about 3.75 x 3.25. I wanted a little something positive to give to a friend who's going through a bit of a tough time right now.
How about that tiny purple flower?!
A little bit of this green made a great backing for the pincushion. What kind of flowers do you think those are? I think they look like water lilies!
Sharing at Sandra's DrEAMi link-up at mmmquilts.
So that was the extent of my sewing this week! But, one more thing - I'm looking for some advice. I was poking around in a closet a few days ago and found this pretty purple fleece blanket that was a gift from a 5th grader quite a few years ago.
I think this measures about 48 x 60.
I'm wondering about using this as the backing for a quilt. Would you use batting with it? (It's pretty heavy weight.) What about basting - pin or spray baste? How would you quilt it? If you have used fleece as a backing fabric, please tell me how it worked out for you! And thanks so much!
Sharing at SoScrappy for ScrapHappy Saturday and at
Quilting is more fun than Housework for Oh Scrap!
31 comments:
Your pincushion turned out so cute, and I love all your purple goodness. Great idea on using that purple as backing and what a nice message on it. I have no advice for you though. ;)
I love the crumb hearts and wonky stars together! Very cheerful. I would use the fleece as a backing without batting. Depending on the top, you might want some flannel inside for body and "cushioning." Why not try it? People use minky on the back all the time, so this can't be that different. No advice on basting, though, sorry! :)
Fleece feels wonderful as a backing. I have used it a time or two. What I found was that without batting it feels a little wimpy. If you add batting it needs to be thin and even then it adds quite a bit loft and weight. So the verdict is till out there for me. So I wasn't much help was I, LOL
I don't recall seeing the hearts before they look good with the stars
Love that tiny purple flower. Adore the colorful hearts - so cute!!! Of course if you heart stars then it is a natural combo. Identifying real plants/flowers is a challenge for me but sure water lily sounds right. Spray basting is my go-to. The batting can be done without for a light summer quilt. Have a great weekend.
Those hearts are looking great and love the little pin cushion. No advise on the backing - but the saying is oh so true!
Absolutely use that blanket on the back of a quilt you will be keeping for yourself. I follow too many bloggers to know what machine you quilt on. If DSM, I would do a light spray baste to keep it smooth. If a mid or long arm, no. If you want a heavier blanket use a batting. (I love a heavy blanket or quilt as opposed to a lightweight that requires 2 in the winter).
Everything about those crumb blocks is adorable! Mixed with the wonky star, even cuter! I honestly have never made crumb blocks but these hearts may push me to give it a try.
That pin cushion is so cute! I’m sure your friend will appreciate your thoughtfulness. And the hearts and wonky stars are just so happy together. I would use a piece of flannel as a third layer/batting. A little added stabilizing without too much weight or bulk. Stretchy backings like fleece and milky are problematic for me. I tape/clip them down and pin the living daylights out of them. Give them no mercy or opportunity to stretch and wrinkle!
Your tiny stitchery made a perfect pinnie! I wish I had some advice about the fleece! I hope you can use it somewhere! I had a long armer that did just Minky on a baby quilt it was very cozy and drape- able.! My FYOP is at a different long armer now, and she wanted batting! I’m sure it will be more stable and quilt like. ps: I think the crumb hearts and wonky stars is a great choice!
I've done that before without a batting and I regretted that part. I would recommend a thin batt to give it more substance. I heavily pin basted and it was fine.
PS I adore the little Shine pincushion!
Love the hearts. They look pretty cool with the stars, too. If the fleece is heavy I'd go without batting (but I wonder how much give it has?).
Hard to go wrong with hearts and stars. Never used fleece so I'm no help.
Love the heart blocks with the triangle squares on the borders. Your crumb blocks looks awesome.
Oh I love your Crumb hearts and HST cut offs. So pretty and combined with the Wonky stars I think that’s a winner! Never used a fleece for backing so have any advice for you I’m afraid.
What a cute little pinnie for your friend. I'm sure she'll appreciate it. I use spray baste with minkee or fleece. If I remember right, it was a little tricky to get it to stick well. I used batting with it and thought it gave it a nice weight.
Love the crumb heart blocks on their own, but the wonky stars add even more sparkle!
I make quilts for my grands with fleece. no batting, QAYG style... sort of.
I find approximate center of piece of fleece, place a block there, right side up, put another block on top of it, right side down. sew 1/4 " seam down one side of block, flip open, smooth it out. Add more blocks, or strips of fabrics, round and round until fleece is covered. bind if you wish. I usually just sew a few rows of stitching all around outsides. kids drag them around, make forts, picnic outside... etc. they love them.
I love the hearts and stars together.💚⭐💚
I'm not usually a fan of crumb piecing but your hearts have turned out beautifully! I have used a fleece blanket before without batting, and the project turned out well.
I've never used any kind of fleece for a backing so I'm no help at all. I'll just be over here still admiring your hearts and loving on that sweet little pincushion!
What a great idea, to have wonky stars with your crumb hearts! How kind of you to make a nice gift for a friend who needs a little uplifting. I don't know anything about fleece backing, sorry, but preserving the lovely purple blanket with the saying about teachers might be more than just cozy.
I love your crumb hearts!
So! both of my boys made quilts and backed them with fleece. One used batting the other did not - the batting one has a little more stability, and it heavier. It was easier to quilt. the one without batting - we had to baste it more to quilt it ( both on a longarm) and he loves that it is floppy and cooler that with batting... hope that helps ;-)
Crumb hearts are so cute, Diann.
And I love your tiny pincushion, Smile. ♥
I can't help you about the fleece backing. Never used.
hugs
Why are crumb hearts just so much more enticing than crumb squares? These are so stinkin’ cute. And then with the HSTs or stars. Love ‘me. I haven’t used fleece but am curious about what other people will say. Lovely shade of purple, though.
Love your crumb hearts, stars and triangles! I have used Minky fleece as quilt backing before, with a thin batting between the layers. If your fleece blanket is really thick, you can totally skip the batting. You would want to have prewashed all of your quilt top fabrics in HOT water and HOT dryer, though, because that fleece stuff will not shrink at all. I learned this the hard way, when I did not shrink my quilt top fabrics enough ahead of time and the backing fleece sagged away like wrinkly elephant skin once the quilt was washed! Second challenge is that quilt batting sort of sticks to cotton backing and top fabrics to keep things smooth and pucker free as you're quilting. Not sure if your quilt top will stick to the pile of your blanket fleece as well, so you may want to either use spray adhesive along with pins for added basting security, or more pins than you'd normally use. Oh, and one more potential challenge -- a couple times with Minky fleece backing that had a long pile like your blanket, I had an issue with my needle thread catching on the fleece pile and pulling it up through the needle holes to the right side of the quilt, which looked awful. That was happening with a cotton quilting thread. When I switched to a slick, slippery invisible monofilament thread, the problem disappeared so I think it was those little fuzz fibers of the cotton thread catching on the Minky that caused the problem. Other slick threads like Glide or Isacord would be good options, too.
Love the crumb hearts and yes to adding the wonky stars! This is going to become a very happy and bright quilt one day!
Love your crumb hearts and wonky star block combination. I don't have any insight on the minky blanket.
Your blocks are gorgeous!
When I used fleece as a backing, I did not use batting. It was already quite heavy. It wasn't minky, so I don't have any advice on that part, but I did like the fleece for a quicker finish.
Crumb Hearts & Wonky Stars is so cheerful! Winner for sure!
Every time I see your heart blocks, I want to start some of my own. I love them with the star blocks.
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