Sunday, April 29, 2018

Skinny Strings Scraps {Tutorial}

(Edited to add: see the finished quilts HERE)

Back in January I cut my string scraps that were less than 2.5" down to a uniform width of 1.5". Since then they've been aging in a couple of large ziploc bags. This weekend I decided the time had come to do something with those scraps!  As many scrap quilts have made I remain amazed by how many quilts can hide in a scrap bin.


Scraps are irresistible to me. Much more so than yardage.  I had an idea in my head for what I wanted to do with these strings and I decided to photograph the process for a tutorial.  I started by sorting out the cool colors, which probably constituted half of the strings. (I *might* have a problem with the color blue... the "warms" pile was pitiful by comparison.)


I sewed the strings together at their short ends to make one looooooong string.


Locate both loose ends, put them rights sides together, and start sewing down one long side toward the middle.  When you reach the middle it will probably be all twisty. Cut it and complete sewing the two strips together.


Press your string pair, then repeat the process. Find both loose ends and start sewing your pairs into a four. Press and repeat, sewing your 4-string string into an 8-string. This takes a long time if you started with a lot of string like I did. The bright side is that every time you fold it in half and sew, it ends up half as long, so as you go it gets easier.


Keep going until you have a long panel 16 strings wide.  I considered stopping at this point and just making a quilt top out of horizontal strings, but I decided to continue with my original plan.  I sub cut the panel into squares, each 16.5" square. I put these up on the design wall alternating directions, this would make a cool quilt, too.


Then I did the same process with my neutral colored strings.  I took the neutral and cool colored squares and turned them into HSTs.


I marked the line with a sharpie and pinned the blocks so they didn't shift while I sewed on either side of the line.



If you put the squares together with their strips running the same way, then in the HST they will turn.  If you put them together with their strips perpendicular then in the HST they will run the same direction.



I chose the first method so the two different colors run at different angles.  With my blocks turned into HSTs the options are limitless... Any layout that can be made with HSTs.  I haven't sewn these together yet, still auditioning layouts to find my favorite. Which do you like best?






Linking to Oh Scrap!

45 comments:

  1. LOVE THE AFFECT I LIKE THE FIRST LAYOUT BEST hjrogers@sympatico.ca

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  2. Great tutorial, boy, you had a very long strip ;) I love the 1st, 3rd and 5th layout. Your blocks with red are stunning!

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  3. Love the effect of those strings made into HST

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  4. They are all great, but I think I like the 1st one the best.

    I have done the jelly roll race before but never thought about treating it as "made fabric".

    Thank you for a great option.

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  5. Oh wow, I just love this! The first and last layouts are my favorite.

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  6. Amazing! How fun and simple is this...yet the finished piece looks so complicated? :-) I think I like the first and third layouts...difficult to choose just one! :-) Thanks for sharing your process...I'm sure there will be many of your readers giving this a try sometime soon! :-)

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  7. I like them all but I think my favorites are the first and last. I like the squares and also the effect with the red. Great job. That was a lot of sewing (and pressing)!

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  8. Love all your play with strings. Thanks for the ideas.

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  9. I like the first and the third layouts.

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  10. I have a weakness for string quilts. All of your layouts are amazing. Thanks for sharing with Oh Scrap!

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  11. I like them all! You can't go wrong with any one of these layouts because they are so full of scrappy goodness. Must resist pulling out all my strings now... :)

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  12. What an absolutely fantastic idea. Since I have a good couple of 'STABLE'(s) in my sewing room with a ton of neutrals, I can see a few of these quilts being put together. The color combinations are beginning to boggle the mind. :)

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  13. O you brave soul! I would have stopped after cutting the strips into the 16" squares and set them Rail Fence style. The triangles are so much more dramatic though. Personally, the first layout is my favorite.

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  14. Oh my, I love every single layout! However, my favorite is the first one. What a brilliant idea for strings!

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  15. Love the technique. I'm a scrap addict myself must try. Love the first layout. Thank you

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  16. Beautiful and a great use for those "too small" pieces. I love the little pieces too.

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  17. I really like the first layout. However, I think that my favorite is the third layout. It's just different and I like that.

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  18. Wow, I love all the layouts! I like the mixture of warm and cool colours best -very dramatic. Third layout is very eye-catching too. I wonder hitch in you chose? I use strings a lot but never seen your idea before on how to sew them up.

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  19. I like one and three~ so fun, I will try it. I have done a jelly roll quilt before so this is similar except more interest.

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  20. I love this idea. And I have lots of 1.5" strips. Anything smaller gets dumped. Lots of 2.5" as well. Thanks.

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  21. I love your creativity! I especially like the first layout!

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  22. First layout and LOVE the idea!!!!

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  23. Also first and third are my favorites

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  24. Oh my! I love scraps too. These are awesome ideas!

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  25. These are all cute and unique but, I think #3 is my fav. Actually a quilt made with all of these different block’s would amazing.

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  26. I love the look of the narrow scrappy strips. And the first layout is my favorite.

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  27. Love them all!! What a great idea. Thanks for the tut!

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  28. Great idea, except that the leftover’s all need to be the same width. I do the same, but sew mine together side by side. Then I can cut them into square, triangles, blocks etc. and design like I chose. Various width also create interesting designs.

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  29. Wow, what an interesting technique. Loved the detailed tutorial and the different combinations. Thanks so much for sharing your creation.

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  30. Great ideas! Great way to use up those scraps too.
    I like the first and third layouts the best. Which did you choose??
    AhHa! So the third one made the cut.. Love it.

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  31. I hope you will show the finished layout. The 1st & 3rd are my picks but the red is super cool! The tutorial is great-I might actually be able to do that(and that's saying a lot)! Thank you!

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  32. Did you know that there are a total of 256 different ways to lay out a Four Patch block using half square tiles? These beautiful examples are the tip of the iceberg!

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  33. When you sewed the strips together, how did you deal with the difference in width (2.5" to 1.5")? Was it hard to iron them flat?

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  34. How lovely!!! I usually just crochet with mine! :)

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  35. I really like this idea, and it seems like so much fun and a good way to use scraps. I wish I were so organized. I think I am the only one who likes the second one best. I was drawn to the dark squares.

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  36. You are so clever! I can’t wait to dig into my stash of 1 1/2” strips that I’ve been saving for “future” projects. Your piecing technique is so fast and easy. Thank you so much for sharing your ideas.

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  37. Thanks for taking the time to make the tutorial - I saw your idea on pinterest. What a fun idea to use up scrap stash and really good idea to take the time to separate color families!

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  38. Wow - I like them all. Which did you pick for your quilt. Is it posted already?

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  39. I love it. The last ones with the blues against the neutrals looks like they lie on a wooden floor.
    I love it. Both coincidental and planned. Great contrasts! Thanks for sharing!

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  40. Adorei tua idéia de usar as faixas de tecidos, vi no Pinterest e fiquei encantada. Vou tentar fazer para m também. Gostei de todos, mas o primeiro é o vermelho são os meus preferidos. Um abraço aqui do Brasil e grata pelo tutorial!

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  41. I would love to do this in a chevron pattern :)

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  42. I love scraps too. The posibilities are endless. My favourites are the 1st & the last. I have one in progress with strips but mine is a combination of self quilting and quilt as you go. It is so much fun.

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