I've been at this quilting thing for 4ish years now, and all this time I've stared at my 6.5"x24.5" ruler at the 45º mark on it and wonder what on earth I'm supposed to do with it. I know I'm not the only one, I've heard time and time again about people getting intimidated or confused by how or why to use that line. Well, I found a reason to use it and you know? It wasn't difficult. Like, at all. Once you get the hang of the first cut or two, it's cake!
So I decided to do the Spirals Tabletopper by
Designs to Share with You. It's looks way more complicated than it is, and it doesn't require a ton of fabric to make...so, perfect!
Here in Oregon, Summer has been an elusive beast this year. And even though it's just barely starting to feel summerish, the tree in my front yard is already donning it's fall colors. Yes, in July, and no, the tree isn't sick. And at the shop, fall fabrics are starting to arrive and people are gearing up for their fall projects, so I decided to (even though all of me wanted a bright, summery tabletopper) go for a more fallish theme. These are the fabrics I chose:
The turkeys are a lot more vibrant than they appear here, and that dark fabric is actually a very deep black-green, with a hunter green speckle. It doesn't photograph well, but it matches up with the turkey's feathers very well (in real life).
So until after I got my basic pieces cut, I didn't realize I'd need a little bit of 45º know how. I don't know what I was thinking I'd be doing method-wise to put it together, but I guess it just didn't occur to me that a 45º cut would be a possibility. Siiiiiilly me.
See? When it's broken down (the above is the first round) you see the definite need for a 45º cut. So, how on earth did that work out using that line? Because, I mean, I'll be honest, my method was to just eyeball it until I read through the instructions. Imagine that. But all you have to do to guarantee your cut is on that 45º and correct for the next round is get that 45º mark on your ruler lined up with your seam, and then line up the corner of the rule with the edge of the fabric the cut will need to equal. Then all that's left to do is hunker down and take the cut. Easy peasy. See?:
So here's Round 2. Maybe I'm one of those "looking for faces in clouds" people, but uh, is it just me, or at this stage does it look like a swastika? The pattern stops here with a note that says if you want it bigger cut a few more strips. ....I went out into the living room after I got to this part and asked JOhn what he thought of it. He said he liked the colors, and I asked if it reminded him of anything else, perhaps...and he immediately said, "Swastika." Soooooo....there you have it:
So I went ahead and added the third round. I like it MUCH better. I wish the colors photographed better, but I assure you, it's very fallish and it really does match.
The pattern itself leaves a little to be desired in terms of instruction, it's not always clear as to how to put it together, but on the other hand, it wasn't difficult to figure out. Once I got my fabrics cut, piecing the whole thing too all of maybe an hour, hour and a half. So it's a quick and reasonably simple pattern to make, so if you need a quick bit of decor to freshen up your seasonal home or a quick gift for someone...this is a good bet!
These paper pieced blocks are awesome! Even if paper piecing isn't your method of choice, you have to admit....these are cute! I have to say, I do like the precision of paper piecing and the pumpkin is my favorite with his huge toothy grin. These, and so many more, free paper piecing patterns are found at 
