It’s Day One of our At Home Sewing Retreat! We have been watching a few ladies going to different sewing retreats over the past few months, travelling, buying an assortment of fabric, sewing different blocks, getting gifts from each other and sharing that with everyone. We can’t go anywhere to attend a retreat, so what better than to have our very own!?!
We haven’t sewn in a while and have a bunch of fabric and projects on the go, so what better way to finish those projects (or start a new one because really, who am I fooling!?!) than to have sewing days!!! Of course I thought that gift giving on our sewing days was such a great idea! We decided to have some sewing fun from the comfort of our home! So, for the first time my daughters and I decided to do an at-home sewing retreat. And I’m looking forward to it!
“Sewing is like magic, but with fabric.”
— Unknown
Each day we will sew a block and then work on our own projects. My daughters each found a block they wanted to sew as did I. We will teach that block to each other. It will be so much fun, and a fabulous way to learn new quilt blocks!!
Retreat is never complete without a few goodies! So we made each other sewing goodies. I made my girls and myself a sewing journal, so we can write the blocks we made, how to make them and how we enjoyed it plus anything else we want to make note of.
My daughter ‘L’ made us a set of 3 fabric weights to hold down fabric or a pattern while ‘H’ made us a hot cocoa bomb and a pin cushion bracelet — so handy to have pins nearby!
Here’s my goodies up close!
A cute sewing quote makes a lovely start to the retreat!
And of course, there needs to be goodies! We have an assortment of treats to snack on while we sew, along with our hot cocoa station! Yum!
Let’s get sewing!
While my youngest was working on her quilt top which was a kit we bought a few years ago, my oldest daughter, “L” made a few blocks and then we all made the block she picked which was this square in a square exploding quilt block.
This block has a few steps, but is a lot of fun to make and looks different depending upon how you arrange the fabric colors. I chose these fabrics by Moda for my blocks this week. I like the color combo because it’s different from what l’d normally choose but still has that vintage feel that I like.
Square in a Square Exploding Quilt Block
First, to cut the fabric. We need 3 colors. We will cut 2 squares at 5” and one at 6-1/2”.
Here’s one of my 5” squares.
This will be my other 5” square.
Here is my 6-1/2” square.
Here’s the three squares. Time to sew!
I keep the fabric folded so when I cut the fabric, I’ll get 2 sets.
Place fabric good side to good side.
Sew all around the outside. No need to leave any openings.
Draw an ‘X’ in the centre. Carefully pull fabric away and cut on the X. Be sure to not cut the other square.
Fold the sides open and iron.
This is what it looks like now. Cool, right!??
Next, we are going to place the larger, 6-1/2” square on top the square we just sewed, good side to good side.
Sew all around the edge again on all 4 sides. I use the presser foot as my guide.
Draw an ‘X’ from corner to corner on the large square we just sewed. Cut along the X. Open it up and iron.
The block is now complete!! I really enjoyed this block! I got 2 blocks from the fabric I cut.
Our projects we worked on today:
My daughter ‘H’ worked on a quilt kit with the pattern “Serengeti” and she finished it. She cut the fabric, ironed and sewed it all today. I just helped her a bit by ironing the seams for her. It finished a bit smaller as she cut the squares a bit smaller than the pattern asked for, but it still turned out great!
And that’s Day One!! It was a fabulous day and we actually accomplished a lot! Onto Day Two!
enjoy from Our City Homestead to yoursCreative people don’t have a mess, they have ideas lying around everywhere!
— Unknown
