Wednesday, November 7, 2012

WIP Wednesday - Polaroid Rainbows


I was part of Kristy from Quiet Play's Say Cheese Polaroid Block Swap, and while she's just sorting most of the polaroids now, I was lucky enough to get mine a few days early because we are in the same real life quilt group together, so she brought my swaps to the meeting.


Can I just say first that I Spy prints are waaaaaay cuter than they ever used to be. Just looking at these cute little fussy cut morsels had me giddy with delight!When I cut my 50 squares for the swap I cut myself an extra set and then crossed my fingers I wouldn't get any doubles back, with a plan to having 64 blocks to work with in an 8x8 layout. I also decided I was going to rainbow strip my background, and while I have a zillion other things I could be working on, I couldn't help but start playing with these cuties right away.

And I am so, so in love with the results (which are looking a little fuzzy here, but I took a zillion shots and none of them were completely in focus. Waaah!).

Check out some up close polaroid goodness:





We used this tutorial to construct the polaroids, and when I got them back I just trimmed up the sides. I was totally lazy and didn't even measure them to make sure they're all the same because I knew I was going to frame them again and precisely cut that block. 

But just in case you need some tips on wonky framing, here's a mini-tutorial. 

You will need about 18 inches of 1 to 1 1/2 inch wide sashing to border each block. This is a great opportunity to use up little scraps you've had around for ages. While I used solids, I totally think this would work in tone on tones or blender prints - think background paper for a scrapbook page if you will. 


So take your 1inch (rough cut) strips and chain piece them to either side of your blocks. I like to chain piece as much as possible, chain piecing is your friend! It doesn't matter if you go top and bottom or left and right here. I actually did half each way for easier piecing down the track. Cut them apart and press open.


Trim your sashings to the edge of the white. Now chain piece the other two sides and press.


I have just got myself a 4 1/2 inch ruler and it is soooo handy, and perfect for this job. If you don't have a square, then you can cut a template for one, but this is a great investment. They're also useful for squaring up components of larger blocks.

Say hi to my cute little foxy friend, whack your ruler on top in whatever wonky shape your heart desires, and trim. Tip: If you do this standing up you're more likely to be able to do all four sides with your dominant hand and no tricky block turning.


Now pair up your squared up blocks. Make sure the wider polaroid piece is at the bottom. This is where the alternating directions of sewing on the sashing comes into play - if you did this then you'll find you have four vertical strips that are all one piece which will go through the bottom layer of your machine easier. Totally not compulsory, but it does make a wee bit easier.

Chain piece your row together.



 Then stitch your finished row to the rest of the quilt. And of course you can totally leave that to the very end and sew all the strips together at once, but that's my least favourite part, so I prefer to do it as I go.

Now, in exchange for that maybe useful tutorial, I need YOUR help. I have basted and we are ready to quilt. But I have NO idea how to quilt it! Any suggestions would be much appreciated!


I'm linking up with WIP Wednesday over at Freshly Pieced.


25 comments:

  1. Awesome! Definitely the coolest Polaroid quilt I have seen.

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  2. I agree. This the best polaroid ever! Love it!

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  3. This is fantastic!! I'm sorry I can't help with the best way to quilt it. I'm sure it will be great no matter what you decide.

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  4. Oh my gosh, this is so darned pretty!! As for the quilting, maybe some simple echo stitching around the polaroids would be nice. Good luck deciding!

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  5. So cute! Love these blocks! It will be hard to decide how to quilt it - good luck!

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  6. A great use of the polaroid blocks : )

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  7. I have evidently been living in a cave recently, because I had never heard of the Polaroid blocks,but now I must make some!

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  8. I like your polaroid blocks very much. For me it´s the new way of I spy quilts. Children will love to spy the photos.

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  9. how fun, love all the different backgrounds. Thanks for linking up to WIP Wednesday.

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  10. I love this idea for an i-spy quilt so much. Yours is beautiful!

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  11. Polaroid and rainbow?? Awesome.

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  12. Ooh, a 4.5" ruler... I want a few square rulers in different sizes! And I love that one of my little polaroids made it to you!! (The Brrr! one)

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  13. I love this layout so much, I seriously may copy it ;) They do say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery and I'm most sincere in saying I love this!

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  14. This looks awesome! Can I post it on my blog fb page?? (one of the full quilt top photos with a link to your post)

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  15. Hey. this turned out so FANTASTIC!!

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  16. i absolutely love this. it is great!

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  17. Found you on WIP, really great project, love the rainbow colours behind the polaroids. I wonder if quilting around each polaroid would work well so that you don't actually go over the 'photo' sections and detract from them, but I think it'll look fantastic whatever you decide :)

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  18. Yes the solid strips make those polaroids 'pop' baby! Very very cool. Thanks for the tutorial as I was wondering how to make the block wonky. I bought one of those little square rulers at Yamba and have used it a lot in just six weeks.

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  19. Oh how cool! I have a ton of these from Debbie's (A Quilter's Table) swap. I love the rainbow setting!

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  20. Oh so cute! The rainbow background works perfectly. No wonder you got to work straight away, it looks great!

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  21. I am IN LOVE with this quilt. I am totally going to do this when I get enough scraps built up. Along with the million other fabulous quilts I have found recently...lol.

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  22. I love the setting you've chosen. It really showcases your fabulous blocks.

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  23. wow, this is fabulous, I want one!

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