Two Retro Drunkard's Path Quilts

Some of my favorite fabrics have been the Japanese quilting cotton from Lecien, which sadly closed in 2020.  Luckily I had enough of their Retro 30's Child Smile 2016 to make two identical quilts for two sweet sisters.  

All the information on how to make these quilts: the AccuQuilt die, the sewing, trimming - as well as the diagram I made to assemble the blocks are HERE in February's post:  Modern Layout of a Drunkard's Path Quilt.

Today's post shows the pretty finished pictures to maybe inspire you to make a smaller Drunkard's Path Quilt using either the AccuQuilt die or any of the other methods available. 

There are many different sizes of plastic templates and lots of tutorials on how to make your own template out of cardboard and how to sew curves.

If you are hesitant to try curves - start with a larger curve and know you can trim down a block smaller to 'erase' edges that come out wonky.  (That's what I do.) 

While I am not buying much fabric and using my saved stash -  I do enjoy picking different color minkys and bindings to match my current projects.   Hawthorne Supply Co.  is my go-to shop as they have a wealth of minky colors and samples that make the whole process a lot of fun!

An added bonus is that Hawthorne Supply Co. has oodles of coordinating designs printed in these very colors to match their minky.  While these little quilts have just a white minky backing -  Hazel likes purple so her binding is Lilac, while Mia likes pink, so her binding is Begonia -- both in the collection called "Candy Stripe."

All quilting was done with a walking foot in a wavy line stitch.  The joining seams are quilted with either a pink or purple color - and white thread for the lines in between.  

I learned something making these quilts.  Usually a universal #14 needle worked out great for most of my minky quilts - but this time I had lots of skipped stitches.  My sewing machine repairman (and many quilt bloggers as well) suggested trying a top stitch needle - it worked out perfectly.

So that's it for April - sewing up pretty fabric, learning about a new needle - and sending these little beauties to their new home 

Materials:

Retro 30's Child Smile 2016 / Lecien

AccuQuilt large Drunkards Path 7" Finished Die (#55034)

Hawthorne Supply Co. - binding in Candy Stripe Begonia & Lilac printed on quilting cotton 56" wide and white minky

Aurifil 50wt. thread #2425 (pink) #2526 (lavender) & #2024 (white)

Warm & White batting

Size: 45.5" x 45.5"

April 2021

Modern Layout of a Drunkard's Path Quilt

On the layout board is the first of two identical Drunkard's Path quilts being made for a pair of little girls. It's so much fun making pretty quilts!  My garage lighting isn't the best for pictures but Lecien Retro 30's Child Smile 2016 fabrics never disappoint in color or pattern.

Nicely ironed and starched fabrics work like a breeze with the AccuQuilt large Drunkards Path die - but hand cutting with templates would work just as well. The most important part for me is the ability to trim after sewing.  No matter how many times I have sewn curves - they never come out consistent.  So, rather than fight a losing battle - I trim to a smaller, but consistent size. 

 This loosey goosey method will not work when following a rigid pattern.  But success is within your reach if you have a consistent sized block and make the layout any way you like.  I chose to trim all blocks to 7" x 7" - putting the ruler on the 6.5" marks of the curve (shown by the red arrows). 

That way all curves will match when everything is sewn together. 

Below is a very rough layout of how I made this 49 block / 7 blocks across by 7 rows down quilt which measures 46" x 46" finished.

Ready to iron and trim the blocks for quilt #2 and then assemble with white minky on the back, lavender binding for one, pink for the other - and matching threads!

Materials:

Lecien Retro 30's Child Smile

Hawthorne Supply Co. binding in candy stripe/ Begonia & Lilac

White dimple dot minky from Hawthorne Supply Co.

Warm & White batting

Aurifil 50wt. #2425 (pink) & #2526 (lavender)

AccuQuilt large Drunkards Path 7" Finished Die (#55034)

February 2021

Vintage Drunkard's Path Quilt (#65)

This Drunkard's Path quilt was really fun to make.  I used the Accuquilt large Drunkard's Path die which is like being at craft camp - who doesn't like to turn a handle and see things get cut out.  I watched & read every video on how to sew curves, only to find my own way worked fine.

Drunkard's Path Notes: 

1) Starch and iron fabric before using any Accuquilt die.

2) Since it was my first time sewing curves and I didn't know how many blocks I would mess up -  I sewed similar colors together (reds with reds, etc.) and went with 'random' as a design plan.

3) When sewing, I put the 'pie' shape on the bottom - using a pin at the beginning, middle and end to join the two shapes - and tugged with a pair of craft tweezers the bottom 'pie' shape while I sewed ... it worked great with this large block size ... but the quilt police would not give me any kudos for technique! (When I tried this method for a smaller drunkard's path block - 4.5" - the 'pie' shape worked better on top - go figure!)

4) I did not trim or iron any seams until after the layout was finished.

Do not iron seams open.  One seam is pressed towards the pie shape and the block next to it has the seams pressed towards the 'L' side. The seams will now nest.

 5) At first I was trying to make this block perfect right out of the sewing machine - WRONG - you trim and then get the perfect block. 

 Line up your template ruler at the same seam points and everything will meet to make a smooth circle after trimming & sewing. 

 I picked the 6.5" mark on the curved seam (see arrows) and trimmed the block to 7" unfinished. You can pick any point on your template ruler to trim this block smaller - just be consistent that both measurements are the same on the seam line. 

Lastly, white minky backs this pretty quilt. I used a #14 needle to quilt with Aurifil 50wt. in Veriegated Lemon Ice #3910. Straight line stitching (3.5)  on either side of the seams - and then diagonal lines through the circles - perfect every time.

Retro Child Smile Spring 2015 by Lecien
Hints of Prints by Darlene Zimmerman
Red Binding/ A Walk in the Woods by Aneela Hoey
Dimple dot minky / white
Warm & White Batting
Aurifil 50wt. white # 2024 & Veriegated Lemon Ice #3910
Accuquilt Drunkard's Path die 7" finished
Size: 57.5" x 70.5"
January 2017

Fancy Fox Quilt - Retro Style (#46)

I loved making Elizabeth Hartman's Fancy Fox Quilt with Riley Blake Shades (here) - but it was time for a whole different look and feel: beautiful coordinating  Retro 30's Child Smile from Lecien was perfect.

It took a while before I settled on these medium to small colorful prints from Lecien - I had my heart set on the 'Joie De Vivre in Beryl' by Frances Newcombe and Essex black yarn dyed linen. 

After making a few blocks, I felt the large floral design distracted from the simple beauty of the fox face. 

Fabrics like this lavender Dot to Dot Mixmaster (Robert Kaufman) look great however, as do cross hatch and burlap textured looking cottons from Carolyn Friedlander, Timeless Treasures & other manufacturers.  

1.5" sashing in Essex denim linen was sewn around every side of the fox block and trimmed to 8x10" unfinished, not much waste at all.

Lots of ironing & starching made the cotton & linen easy to handle - and using a scant 1/4" seam is a must with the different fabric weights. All seams are ironed open.

All piecing & quilting was done using Aurifil 50wt. Dove #2600.  A wavy serpentine stitch follows the larger seams, and the wavy stitch again into a 3" diagonal diamond pattern overall. I changed needles twice to keep everything sharp and the thread worked beautifully through the heavier Essex linen and the delicate backing. 

Not being a free motion quilter, following the seams and doing a grid pattern looks rather simple when compared to intricate FM designs that add lots of pizzazz.  But, every time that Aurifil looks so consistent as it sinks into any weight of fabric - I do a happy dance.

Lastly, a nice binding is this Hatch Basic in Graphite by Timeless Treasures - not heavy looking like a flat black but dark enough with a hint of texture.

There are 64 foxes so a 4" border all around allows them space to float and not run into the edges.  A beautiful rainbow of foxes made with a fun pattern that works every time.

Materials:

Retro 30's Child Smile Spring 2015/ 2.5" sushi roll / Lecien

Essex Yarn Dyed Linen in denim (Robert Kaufman)
Far Far Away 2 (Unicorns in Blue) / Heather Ross
Hatch Basic Graphite /Timeless Treasures (binding)
Fancy Fox Quilt Pattern by Elizabeth Hartman

Aurifil 50wt. Dove #2600 & Medium Grey #1158

Warm & White batting

Size: 65" x 81"

December 2015