Farmer’s Wife Quilt Along, Block #43 Hope

Welcome to the tutorial for Block #43 Hope, from the Farmer’s Wife 1930’s Quilt-Along! This project involves sewing 99 blocks within one year- starting September 2015 and running through September 2016. Members (and there are over 7,000)! are encouraged to follow along, but also sew at their own pace and enjoy the process. This Quilt-Along is hosted by Angie of Gnome Angel, and sponsored by Fat Quarter Shop and Marti Michell.

I have been MIA from this blog for several months- due to a cross country move last summer- and then another move across town. I’ve been buried in boxes and organizing, and we’ve thrown ourselves into school, activities, church, etc. To top it off, I’m pregnant with our fifth baby! All this is WONDERFUL and I’m grateful for where my life is at. But, I’ve sincerely missed blogging- and more so- quilting! I’m so grateful that Angie from Gnome Angel asked me to participate as a guest blogger in this amazing quilt-along. She has done an amazing job organizing this world-wide quilting event. It gave me a reason to lay aside my unpacking and organizing for a morning and get back to my long lost hobby. I don’t think I’ve ever enjoyed sewing a quilt block as much as I did Hope. It came together easily, and helped me realize that while sometimes its necessary to put aside our passions for a time and season, that if they motivate you and make you happy, then they are worth pursuing. I can’t wait to get back to more regular sewing.

My color scheme for this entire project is a mixture of my favorites- aqua, navy, red, pink, and white. I’m using fabrics designed by Tasha Noel, Camille Roskelley, and Pam Kitty Morning, and using Aurifil thread in white, 50 wt.

To get started, decide how you’ll be sewing this block… Hand Sewing or English Paper Piecing, Foundation Paper Piecing, or Machine Sewing. I decided to machine sew, so that’s how I’ll present this tutorial.

Here’s what you’ll need:

~the book, which can be purchased here– The Farmer’s Wife 1930s Sampler Quilt

~printed paper templates found on page 202 of the disc from the book

~3 different fabrics

~the norm- sewing machine, thread, cutting mat, rotary cutter, ruler, iron, etc.

Step 1

Choose your fabrics. I used the image of Hope in the book as my inspiration. I used a dark solid for the larger triangles, and lower-volume print for the middle square and smaller triangles, and a darker/bolder print for the perimeter of the block.

Cut out the fabrics. I used the paper templates as my guide and cut with my rotary cutter and acrylic ruler. Arrange the pieces to make sure everything is directionally correct. I fussy cut a few little strawberries for my center square.

Step 2

Divide the block into 5 different sections- the square + four rectangular units.

Step 3

Let’s begin sewing. *Place fabric right sides together at every seam. I use a scant 1/4 inch seam, usually press my seams open unless otherwise noted, and I always backstitch at the beginning and end of each seam. Please assume the I press and backstitch for every seam. I do not pin my seams but you certainly could!

Tackle one group at a time, or tackle one step and repeat for each group at the same time.

Sew the smaller triangles together at the hypotenuse.

Next, sew the larger triangle to the smaller set to create a square.

Now attach the rectangular piece to the square.

Repeat for each of the 4 sections in this block.

Step 4

In this block, we get to try a fun and handy technique, one that attaches the middle square to the rest of the block. The technique is called a partial seam. I will explain it in this tutorial, but also check out this helpful partial seam post from Marti Mitchell. It also contains information on conversion charts.

To begin, use the bottom left unit, and place the small center square aligned at the top.

Place it right side down on the rectangular unit, and sew a sea just a little over half-way down the side.

Now, finger press the square open. Rotate your work 90 degrees. Place the original top left unit at the side and line up the edges.

Place right sides together, and sew a complete seam. DO NOT press this seam open; press it up toward the rectangle.

Your work so far:

Now rotate 90 degrees to the left and take the original upper right unit and place next to the edge of your work.

Place right sides together and sew a complete seam.

Rotate 90 degrees to the left and put the last unit in place.

We will finish the partial seam in this step. You will need to move the bottom unit out of the way in order to line up the seams of the current unit.

With the bottom piece moved out of the way, sew a complete seam from top to bottom.

Last, place right sides of the unfinished seam together. You will sew from the outer edge of the block to the middle of the square to complete that partial seam.

Et voila!

Here’s a look at the back of my block.

I trimmed my block using Marti Michell’s 6 inch “My Favorite Squaring Up Ruler.”

And there you have it! Done!

Not only is it a fun and relaxing process to create the Farmer’s Wife blocks, but what I love most is the history behind the quilt.

To create the blocks for this quilt, you’ll need a copy of the book.

The Farmer’s Wife 1930s Sampler Quilt: Inspiring Letters from Farm Women of the Great Depression and 99 Quilt Blocks That Honor Them by Laurie Aaron Hird for Fons & Porter/F+W; RRP $28.99

Click here to purchase.

To see other tutorials by guest bloggers for the month of March, check them out below!

Sunday Link Party

Don’t forget if you’re making blocks as part of the sew-along please come and link up on the Sunday Link Party at GnomeAngel.com.

FAQ’s

The page with all the Frequently Asked Questions (and answers) in relation to the sew-along can be found by clicking here.

#hashtag

The hashtag for this sew-along is #FQS1930FarmersWife and #fw

Facebook Groups

The public Facebook Group can be found by clicking here.

Flickr

The Flickr Group can be found by clicking here.

Once upon a time…

I started a blog. This is a tale of my projects, goals, and dreams. Thank you for taking a moment to stop by. I hope you have a beautiful day.