My First Tiny Home

This past Monday, I took a Tiny Homes workshop from Laura Wasilowski.  It was a really fast three hours and I learned a lot.

This is my first Tiny Home quilt, approximately 18" square.

Laura supplied the kit, which contained prefused fabric, embroidery thread and embroidery needle.  There were two pieces of fabric: one graduated color scheme of pastels and one of brights.

It was really intimidating to start cutting into the fabric.  The first thing she had us do was cut whatever shapes we wanted.  I stalled right away (What kind of shape?  How many?  How large?  Which fabric should I cut them from?  What were they going to be used for?)  There were no right or wrong answers, so I just jumped in.

We learned to cut and fuse bias strips to get nice curves.  We tried out decorative blades.  We built mini collages, then applied them to the background.

When overlapping fabrics, like on my horizon line, always place the dark color over the light.

If you place something too close the the edge, add an extension piece, like the stripes on the right.

After everything is tack-fused together with a dry iron, steam iron it to batting.  (This assumes you're using Wonder Under #805 which she strongly recommends.)  Before using the steam iron, she recommends covering the quilt with a thin dish towel in case your iron spits. 

Not thinking, I used a dish towel with a waffle weave, and the texture is now embedded in my quilt.  You can sort of see the vertical portion of the waffle in the pink sky.  It's quite visible in person.  Although unintended, I don't mind it.

This was a slapdash effort, just to learn all the techniques.  You can see another gorpy collage under the peak of the roof.  

For my next Tiny Home, I'll be able to think ahead of time about what I want, and make something I'm happier with.  But for a proof of concept, I guess this one isn't too bad.  Some things in life are a means to an end, and some things are an end.  This project was the former.  

For the next step, you're supposed to do hand embroidery, then put a back on it and do machine quilting.  I just decided this minute that this tiny home is at an end.  Why spend hours and hours embroidering something I don't really like?  I'll wait until I make my next tiny home.