oksewglad

If you have an ugly fabric, the smaller you cut it the less ugly it becomes! Working with the small stuff teaches you about thinking in light, dark and medium rather than specific hues (colors). Smaller pieces allows us to focus on the bits that make the overall design.

booklady

Haven't checked in lately and very surprised to see 55 on the list! Great numbers! Missi, I wish I was closer to help. THANKS! for doing this!

beautress

Three or four of the squares in my group came from fabrics found in a large plastic bag an antique store lady had sold me for $20. The pieces as I found them were miscuts from a shirt factory back when. They have the weird colorings like the 30s, but they're all cotton, having passed the match test. (cotton burn on edge crumbles; blends edge burn is hard like plastic).

If you should luck on to some great deals on fabrics at a "previously-owned" good stores, you want to test them. Be sure you have a crucible--a piece of pottery or old corning ware to collect the ashes. Place the lighted match to an edge of a small strip of the fabric. Blow it out right after ignition. Then run your finger over the cooled edge. If it flakes off, you have a natural fiber. If it hardens, you have the bi-product of the oil industry that polyethylene is.

I recently bought a fabric at a discount house that I thought was labeled "cotton." I set it aside for a few weeks, but the last time I was cutting strips, I wasn't paying much attention, I guess. Anyway, by the time I made it into a postage stamp and it got its first pressing, I swear the darn piece shrunk 1/8" because it wasn't the same size as the other pieces cut in the same layer. I ripped it out.

I bought 4 sacks of unused fabrics from an estate sale a couple of years ago, and sat in my sister's kitchen, match testing literally hundreds of fabrics. Over half of them had poly in them. The estate was from a lady who did every craft except quilting, and her work was highly artistic, plus she left enough handmade items to host a church bazaar, which her daughters were selling to clean out her country house. The good thing? For $8.00 I got about 35 good pieces of unique cottons, including a lot with small chickens, hens, roosters, and chicks. There were a lot of small flowers, stripes, and dots, and they were a cheerful addition to my stash. My sister loves crafts, too, but she doesn't quilt, so I gave the blends to her. She has a network of friends who craft both for church bazaars and gift making. It was fun.

Hope the edge burn hint helps at least one person here who didn't know how to tell if they really had their hands on a piece of cotton or some yukky fabric like the one I had that literally shrunk away from its parameter I had so carefully cut to measure 1.25" after sewing quarter inch seam allowances for the endless postage stamp map quilt I'm working on right now. Oh, yes, and the map part is worked as a charm quilt area, which means one fabric, only one piece in the quilt. You can see why it's taking a week to do 6 25-patch pieces of charm squares. At least the border is in the same dark blue fabric. :)

Momma_K

WOW Beautress, thats a real eye opener!! Thanks for the story and info, I'm sure it'll help all of us that didn't know this!

beautress

Thanks, Momma K. with the beautiful daughter Jessica.

Momma_K

Oh thank you!! Years ago people mistaken us for sisters!! Ahhh, the good ol days! Ha!

KarenBarnes

Hope the edge burn hint helps at least one person here who didn't know how to tell if they really had their hands on a piece of cotton or some yukky fabric like the one I had that literally shrunk away from its parameter I had so carefully cut to measure 1.25" after sewing quarter inch seam allowances for the endless postage stamp map quilt I'm working on right now. Oh, yes, and the map part is worked as a charm quilt area, which means one fabric, only one piece in the quilt. You can see why it's taking a week to do 6 25-patch pieces of charm squares. At least the border is in the same dark blue fabric. :)[/quote]

Beautress,
If you haven't posted a pic of this quilt, please do! If you have would you share the link?

Keepmelaffn

@Beautress...thank you for that bit of info...I had heard about this test a long time ago, but completely forgot about it til now. What adventures you must have scouting around for fabric! I think it's about time I start visiting local thrift stores around here...maybe I'll run into some great finds too.
@Momma_K...she's beautiful! :thumbup:

oksewglad

Missi, my squares went out today.

MommaDorian

I PM'd you this afternoon. I have already started cutting them out. :)