S.W.A.K. Revealed (Piece and Quilt with Precuts Blog Hop)
S.W.A.K. is the 4th quilt in the Piece and Quilt with Precuts book by Christa Watson. I am so happy to finally be able to share my finished quilt after all the sneak peeks on my Instagram!
This quilt uses Charm Packs for the half square triangles (HSTs). So keeping with the spirit of the precuts theme, I decided to use Airmail (quantity 2), Modern Background Ink (quantity 2), and Bella Solid White (less than 1) Charm Packs. Here is the first lesson: Not all Charm Packs are the same size! Seriously. You'd think they should all be 5" square, but with the pinked edges the square is sometimes larger or smaller.
I used my Frixion pen to mark the diagonals on all the lines and centered the two pieces the best I could. However, it didn't help with the finished size of the HST. The pattern calls for 4-5/8" HSTs, but mine were so inconsistent due to the charm pack size that I made the decision to trim them to 4-1/2". So I then started my long process of trimming all 168 HSTs.
I used my design wall to lay out the entire quilt before I made the blocks. I realized with the Red and Blue blocks I could make the fun Xs and Os in different colors.
Because I trimmed my HSTs, the final version of my quilt is slightly smaller than what is listed in the pattern, but it's crucial to have consistently sized HST to have a square quilt! I tried spray basting this quilt for the first time! Christa gave a demo of spray basting in her Start Up Quilting Craftsy class, and I was definitely intrigued. I must say, I think I have fallen in LOVE with spray basting. It makes quilting so much easier without having to take out pins all the time. I followed the square spiral walking foot quilting instructions in the book, and I can only imagine how hard that would have been if there were pins!
So what are my overall thoughts about the pattern and the book? It's a great book that goes from piecing instructions to how to quilt that specific design. Christa has great instructions and great tips throughout the book to help build your skills.
You can purchase a signed copy of the book from Christa's Shop or you can purchase a copy using my Amazon Affiliate link.
Don't forget that the blog hop continues through August 30 so be sure to check out all the other amazing designs and quilters!
Last but not least, since I spent all weekend migrating my blog to be self hosted and now can have Rafflecopter giveaways… Here's a giveaway for an E-copy of Piece and Quilt with Precuts! The giveaway is open until the Midnight CDT on August 31. Good Luck!
*Beautiful!*
I love your choice of colors!
I trim my HSTs with a square ruler that has a diagonal line.
(I’d like to try the loc bloc ruler that so many say they like… But I’ve been happy with my creative grids square.
Sherry, what is your favorite way to trim???)
Thank you for sharing your process!
Pat T.
Pat – The jury is still out on my favorite method. I think I really like to trim prior to ironing, so I’m a fan of the new Clearly Perfect Slotted Trimmers even though I think I may cut myself >_< It's going to be interesting tallying everyone's comments up at the end to see what this small sample size likes the most!
Love your blog…thank you for the giveaway!
I like to use the Blok Lok ruler to trim my HST’s.
Awesome look with the color blocking!
I use a square up rule to trim my HSTs.
This quilt looks lovely. It is so interesting how the choice of color makes such a difference.
I trim with a small, square ruler and rotary cutter. And after the third one, or so, I hate trimming! 168 HST??
Janet – I knew fairly early on that the charm packs were slightly different and just optimistically hoped that it’d be okay. Wishful thinking! I trim while listening to some podcasts of music so the time went by quickly. I also did them in groups so not all of them at the same time! I’m like you I hate trimming! Thanks for stopping by!
I love your colour choices, it just shows how colour can make identical patterns look so different
I love how quilters can always find ways to make “differences” or “mistakes” work and get an amazing end result.
I like the Quilt in a day rulers, 2 sides and trim dog ears, and done.
HI,I trim my HSTs with a square ruler (Creative Grids) that has a diagonal line. Thanks for sharing!
I have a ruler (The Tucker Trimmer from Deb Tucker) that I use for HSTs and it works great.
I haven’t seen the Tucker Trimmer before… I’ll definitely need to check that out! Thanks for the tip!
Love your quilt. I like to use a small ruler with a diagonal line.
I don’t know if I’d call it my “favourite” way to trim HSTs (so tedious) but I use a square ruler with a diagonal line — just like my teacher taught me!
The Tucker Trimmer works great – use it all the time with my HST. Your quilt is beautiful!
I bought a bloc-loc ruler and I quite like it. Does not work if you choose to open the seams through. Thanks for sharing your fabulous quilt. Love the greys.
I do it the old fashioned way with a square ruler and rotary cutter. Your quilt looks great- I’m not usually a fan of gray, but in this case, it really makes the red and blue pop!
I trim with a square ruler. Grey is becoming a favorite of mine, it looks stunning with the blues and reds.
djcutting2(at)gmail(dot)com
After making the block, I trim it up using a square ruler to try to get it as close to perfect as possible. Your quilt turned out very nice, by the way.
I trim with a square ruler! Hate having to trim, but do like a square quilt. I will trim to a smaller size if needed to so the quilt will work. I have a bunch that are waiting for me to put them together!