Are you ready to sew Surfacing?
Preparation week for the Surfacing slowalong
New year, new quilt! While some of you might have spent the holiday season sewing up a storm, I had some time away from my machine so I’m now ready to ease back in.
I’m doing that with the Surfacing slow sewalong, which kicks off on January 25. Over the coming weeks, we’ll cut, piece, and finish the quilt – all at a relaxed pace.
Surfacing is perfect for quilters looking to develop their skills in curved piecing and seam matching. Its modern layout provides a chance to explore colour placement and contrast, making it ideal for experimenting with new palettes.
If you’d like to join us, you can find the pattern below.
In preparation, I thought I’d share the fabrics I’m going to use to make my throw size Surfacing quilt. First though, I’ll let you know a little more about the slowalong.
Yes, we’ll be going slow
Unlike a normal sewalong with weekly posts, mine are published fortnightly (or sometimes even with a three-week gap). Let’s face it, we all have other things going on in our lives besides sewing and this way everyone can keep up.
While the sewalong won’t cover every single step of the process – that’s what the pattern’s for – it will cover extra tips and hints and I’ll be here to answer any questions you might have along the way.
Keeping up to date
To know when the latest post has dropped, it’s a good idea to either sign up to my newsletter or follow the blog through your preferred blog platform.
I’ll also be trying something new for this sewalong and setting up both a Facebook group and an Instagram channel for you to ask questions or share your progress.
On to my version
You may have seen over on Instagram, that I’ve raided my stash to find every blue through to lime colour that I can.
While I’ve provided a number of colourways for this quilt and marked up specific placement for them in the pattern, there’s no reason to be wedded that approach.
With the throw I’m making for the slowalong, I’m going to try an alternative strategy and see if I can use a different fabric/colour for every bubble in the quilt!
Another approach might be to use read-as-solid fabrics with non-directional patterns like the example fabrics below.
From left to right: Sun Print 2024 Woodland in Teal by Alison Glass; Spark in Moss by Ruby Star Society; Dazzle Dots, Confetti Drop Lime/Multi by Christa Watson.
The last thing I’m doing differently for my throw is trying a dark background instead of a light one, and I’m using a thrifted sheet for the purpose.
After washing it, I’ve noticed that one side of the sheet has a sheen, so I’ll have to be careful to make sure I always piece that to the back. I invariably make my life more difficult than it needs to be!
Are you joining us for the slowalong? If so, I’d love you to share what approach you’re taking. Are you making a queen, throw or baby quilt? What colour palette are you thinking of? Are you using a light or dark background? Sticking to solids?
Pop the answers below!
