Auditioning fog

Test auditioning the fog fabric.
Drafting the template

Now that the leaf portion of the tree for Lorr’s quilt is done, I’m working on the background fog.  I don’t want it to be all one foggy piece of fabric, I want it to be more in keeping with the rest of the quilt, more random color and texture.

I’d been searching for over a year to find enough foggy batik fabrics for this part of Lorr’s quilt, but they just aren’t out there. Progress was at a halt.

Our Guild had a fabric dying workshop with the fabulous David Christensen.  I dyed 10 yards of batik quality fabric trying for perfect soft shades for the fog.  Some of the pieces are too dark, but not too many.  Overall, the result was a nice collection of soft greens, blues and grays with enough texture to be interesting.

I had originally intended to use one of the Dance template sets for this portion of the quilt, but I’ve since changed my mind.  I’m going with a machine sewn honeycomb block.  Sewing this block by machine isn’t for the faint of heart.  I’ve developed a technique that gives me accurate placement of the pieces.  I’ll try and get a tutorial together showing the technique.

I drafted the 2″x4″ template for the honeycomb block on pallet slip sheet cardboard.  I get this at the local feed store.  It’s a 4’x4′ sheet of thin cardboard that’s waxed or plasticized which makes it a little difficult to write on, but it makes great templates . . . and it’s free!

I used my cutting fabrics using cardboard templates technique so as not to damage my template.  The only adjustment I made was to not move any of the fabric for the second cut as it preps the end of the strip for the next template placement.

I think I’m going to like this block and fabric for the fog.  The sewing’s a bit tedious and nearly every seam is a Y seam, but I think the end result will definitely be worth the effort.

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