Twister in Progress

Cutting out the Blocks

My husband and I recently watched this twister tutorial from the Missouri Star Quilt Company.  He thought it was really neat and encouraged me to make a twister quilt.  I knew it would drive me crazy to sew a quilt top only to cut it up and make a smaller quilt top, so I tried to figure out a different way to do it. 

I first drafted a twister quilt on graph paper. 

Then I drew large squares on a big paper and tried to figure out a different way to cut out the blocks.  I realized that instead of cutting a piece out of each corner leaving a square in the middle, I could just cut a square in quarters making them equal in size.  Kind of like a crazy 4 four patch.  There is minimal waste doing it this way.  (Just when squaring up the blocks.)

I decided to use some of my pink fabric to make the quilt. 

I pulled out 17 fabrics, but only ended up using 16. 

I cut four 10 inch squares out of 15 of the fabrics for the middle, and I cut twenty 10 inch squares out of my border fabric.  (3 of the border squares will be for the center of the quilt.)

I wanted to add that when pressing the fabrics, I used some Best Press spray starch.  I knew I would not always be sewing on the straight grain and didn't want the pieces to stretch.  I am so glad that I did!

Then I made a template out of paper and taped it to the bottom of my 12.5 inch ruler.  The template was made from a 10 inch square with a diagonal from 2.5 inches on top to 7.5 inches on bottom.  I did a test cut to make sure it was accurate.  I learned from similar quilts that you must make sure all fabric is right side up so the blocks will all twist the same way. 

I carefully stacked 4 squares on my rotating mat and made one cut. 

Then without moving the fabric, I rotated the mat 90 degrees and made a second cut.  After making the second cut and separating the pieces it looks like this.  All four pieces are the same size, and what you see is enough for four blocks. 

Then I cut out all the squares this way.  I separated it into piles so that I could distribute it more evenly on my design wall.  There will be 63 center twists plus the border half twists.  I really like doing all the cutting before I do all the piecing. 

Then the fun part of playing with my design wall began.  I think I really like this layout.  (I realized once I put it on the design wall that my twists are going the opposite direction of my drafted pattern.)

I am excited to get sewing the blocks together.  I will sew each block together carefully like a four patch.  Then I will sew columns.  Then the columns together to make the quilt top.  I am estimating that the quilt will finish at 72 x 90 inches, if each block finishes at 9 inches. 

After sewing a few blocks, I know that they will finish at 8.75 inches.  I square them up at 9.25 inches.  So the quilt will finish a little bit smaller, about 70.5 x 88 inches. Click here to see how I pieced the blocks together, and click here to see the finished quilt.  

I just wanted to add that I think that the normal way for sewing twister quilts is really cool, and the rulers are an excellent design.  I just know that this will work better for me.  :D

XX,
Jasmine

P.S.  I will be linking up with Let's Bee Social at Sew Fresh Quilts,  Needle and Thread Thursday at My Quilt Infatuation, and Can I Get a Whoop Whoop at Confessions of a Fabric Addict (I am totally dancing for joy that I can make the quilt this way).