I was a bit short on description last night because I have hurt my back and couldn’t sit for very long…Last night miniature block measured 1 1/2 inches square and is one of the blocks from this miniature quilt which measures 3 1/2 in x 4 1/2 in and is a miniature of
my first quilt Hearts and Flowers.
Miniature crazy quilts do not need to be made to any strict scale, when the fabric patches and stitches are tiny the eye doesn’t see that the lace and beads are oversized.
I piece my miniature blocks on a foundation exactly the same as I piece full sized block…the secret of piecing small blocks is to work down to the size, that is make a 4 inch block, then make a 3inch block, then make a 2 inch block by which time you will be ready to tackle a 1 inch block…A trick for manageing the tiny sized block is to cut the foundation several inches bigger and draw the finished size block in the middle and cut yourself a window template for the finished size and hold it over the block so that you can see the piecing that falls within the the block without being distracted by all the extra fabric in the seam allowance.
The embroidery is mostly single thread and whilst stitches that small might look daunting they really aren’t and can be easier in the sense that as you make each stitch it is worked exactly the same as the full size stitch but instead of making 1/4 inch stitches you pick up just a few threads and the few threads can be easier to measure by eye than the full size stitch.
For the embellishments I use the smallest laces, braids and beads that I have…since making this miniature I have accumulated quite a collection of suitable bits including miniature charms…The tiny basket of flowers I embroidered over a tiny basket that was printed with white on the cream fabric…
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September 16th, 2006 at 1:32 am
OK… this is something I am going to have to try… I’ll probably be blind by the time I finish, but I definitly have to do it!