Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Workshop report

Patricia Pepe, the inventor of the very clever X-Blocks cutting tools, was our guest speaker at this month's guild meeting, and also taught the day-after workshop.  Her lecture was enjoyable and inspiring, and we left the workshop brimming with ideas and suggestions.

I started with a very simple cutting variation at the workshop to get the hang of the X-Blocks tool, but I'll certainly be exploring the technique further!  I cut and sewed up this block set in less than an hour and a half, and that's including the extra time necessary to use different fabrics for each one.  A quilt plan involving just a few controlled fabrics would be even faster.  The idea is to sew basic straight-edge pieces, and then use the cutting templates to achieve complicated blocks with angles and points.  Seam allowances are included in the cutting shapes, so everything matches perfectly, even the corners that aren't 45* angles (always challenge for me!!).

I don't often use special gadgets for quilting, because my quilts are usually just plain-old traditional utility quilts, but this tool will be a real time-saver -- the complicated has been made simple!!  If you happen across it at a shop or a show, check it out.

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GRATITUDES

1. The pearly light in the sky before dawn
2. Juicy plums
3. Shea butter lotion

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5 comments:

Diane said...

I have this ruler and made a little table runner with it. It's a very cool little tool for sure.

Quilts And Pieces said...

Very fun! We had a demo on it from a quilt shop and it was a big hit!

AnnieO said...

Pretty color combo! New techniques are always a fun challenge. Looks like you enjoyed your foray into this new tool's land!

Suzanne said...

Thank you for the product review. I always see tools at the shows or in catalogs and wonder if they are really worth the price.

Evelyn aka Starfishy said...

It certainly makes a lovely block and would be a nice way to bust some stash with a beautiful quilt as the end result! Thanks for sharing. Cheers! Evelyn