From Small Things: Episode 2: Scrappy Stars

[@jaynecarreiro5005]

Love your orphan block quilt. Thanks for slowly showing us all the treasures.

[@fromsmallthings509]

I'm glad you enjoyed it-- I just love orphan blocks.

[@pennyh8996]

Oh I love the quilt you put together with the mix and match blocks!! Masterpiece!!

[@fromsmallthings509]

Thanks so much! It's a lot of fun to use orphan blocks.

[@stitchann]

Love your channel and ideas. I am binge watching your videos to get up to date. I took a bus trip once to Pennsylvania to a quilt show and we stopped in so many quilt shops I am still going through the stash of fabrics. We stayed in Intercourse Pennsylvania and visited many Mennonite shops and lovely places to eat. I am so enjoying your quilts. Thanks for sharing. Hi from Canada.

[@fromsmallthings509]

You came to the right part of Pennsylvania to see some of the best quilt shops! Lancaster county has a long history of quilting tradition. I'm glad you enjoyed your visit!

[@pamchurch63]

Oh these blocks are really beautiful!

[@gretchenmctavish7823]

I so appreciate your videos and have been doing a bit of binge-watching in between and along with my own scrap piecing. Love the frugality and originality.

[@fromsmallthings509]

Thank you! Being frugal is a big part of my process.

[@sandyvotel3484]

Wow. Your embroidery is beautiful

[@fromsmallthings509]

Thank you so much!

[@cynthiabeamon4198]

Love those little embroidered flowers, and I have some of those flower hankies and I'll HAVE to incorporate them in something soon ❤

[@lorettahenderson8979]

Sue...thanks so much for the lovely posting...best wishes ❤

[@bbymks5]

Those little animals give me all the feels ❤

[@carolthomas9924]

love, love, love this

[@abigaildolinger2754]

I loved seeing your orphan block sampler quilt and hearing the story about each block. Great tip about quilting borders perpendicular to the quilt body. Thank you!

[@fromsmallthings509]

Thank you! Orphan blocks have become one of my favorites in recent years.

[@vikkirountoit497]

I think it is time for me to start a 1" square star project for all my "little bits." Like you, I love scraps and don't like to see usable fabric go to waste. Your star quilt is going to look amazing. I'm particularly fond of and inspired by your use of a single fabric design for the smaller stars to bring the whole project together. I have 2 friends that buy beautiful fabric and send their scraps my way - can't wait to laugh when I see the look on their faces when tell them I'm looking for 1" bits too:)

[@fromsmallthings509]

Haha, they may laugh at the request but I'm sure they will be impressed with what you turn those scraps into! 1" is as small as I'll go, unless there's a foundation paper piecing pattern that requires something smaller.

[@vikkirountoit497]

@@fromsmallthings509 Well I love your star project so that's my goal:) I have never precut any of my scraps but that is changing due to this project.

[@patstutzman7506]

Also just found you. Please let us know how you put your scrap star together. I think we are sisters….I’m 78 and have been sewing and quilting for over 30 some years, can not throw away any scraps! Love collecting men’s shirts. When my husband passed away three years ago I made a Bonnie Hunter scrap quilt of half square triangles, mostly out of blue plaids, a few red put in. It hangs in my bedroom.,all from his shirts.

[@fromsmallthings509]

What a meaningful treasure you have made from his shirts. I recently made one for a friend whose husband passed away, also. It's such a wonderful thing to keep near you.

[@kimberleygirl7533]

Same same but different. Cannot believe how many quilts I made had a piece of my late husbands shirts in them, and I still have tubs full. Love your style.🇦🇺

[@ragdollyally]

I love that - what a lovely quilt to have in your room.

[@Hazel-r9p]

Thanks to Brenda from Conquering Mount Scrapmore, she gave a shout-out to you and your channel and I found you! Wishing you blessings and good fortune.

[@SarieDuToit-m7s]

Thanks to Rachel from Stitch with Rachel I have found your Instagram account and then your KZbin videos. I really enjoy the way you work. Your quilts are beautiful and creative. Looking forward to see lots more.

[@fromsmallthings509]

Thank you!

[@tokyorosa]

Your quilts are amazing! :D Would love to see a video "trunk show" of your work! (And maybe hear about how you label your quilts.)

[@fromsmallthings509]

A trunk show would take quite a long time! We are thinking of filming mini bed turnings once in awhile. I labeled my quilts in the beginning, but I've stopped doing it these days.

[@ptoves8181]

I Love your videos! So happy to have found you!

[@cynthiajones1461]

I'm so glad I found your channel today! I have already subscribed, hit the bell, and shared. I'm looking forward to future videos!

[@fromsmallthings509]

Thank you for watching, I appreciate it!

[@ragdollyally]

I’m going to very much enjoy your channel!!! I’m really hoping you’ll show us some mens shirt quilting in those blues you talked about, and perhaps show us some ideas with those because I’m new to quilting and am a very adventurous and enthusiastic beginner who has a lot to learn from experienced quilters - I could listen to you all day as you’re very engaging and I love how you don’t notice imperfections- that’s SUPER encouraging for me to hear haha! I too am very frugal and thrifty, lots of my stash is charity shop shirts and cotton dresses I’ve collected to learn to quilt with 😊

[@fromsmallthings509]

I love to hear you're using thrift store finds! Have fun. Just be prepared to learn from mistakes, because they happen to all of us. I love that you're jumping right in to quilting! There is a men's shirt quilt in the episode called Turning Shirts Into Fabric. I'm sure there will also be others in future episodes! I made one with red and black shirts, which is one of my favorites.

[@leaannebrummett9159]

Just as I was thinking "I bet she's a Bonnie Hunter follower" you mentioned her name. I'm enjoying watching your videos. Looking forward to more!

[@fromsmallthings509]

Yes, her use of scraps has been an inspiration to me for years! I like her attitude toward scraps, and have embraced the same attitude in my own way.

[@leswilliams4022]

The orphan block is a trezdure!

[@skyartsmanagement]

I'd love to see you disect a shirt for use. I'm sure you have found an efficient way to do it by now.

[@fromsmallthings509]

I just came home with fourteen new shirts-- maybe next episode...

[@gloriamcphail4589]

How did you construct the star block?

[@fromsmallthings509]

I didn't follow a pattern, and had to figure out something that worked for me. I don't think I'll be able to show the construction soon, because I have finished those blocks. But I'll keep in mind that this would be helpful in the future!

[@susanelliott1970]

Would you do a trunk show of your quilts made from mens shirts?

[@fromsmallthings509]

Maybe one day-- many of the ones I've made have found new homes, but I could show the ones I still have. I'm planning on doing a bed turning video featuring all the quilts I've made this year-- maybe this January.

[@GlendaNorris-qx3in]

My friend saves/collects buttons. She has clear jars full of buttons displayed around her special room. If she gives you a shirt for quilting, you can bet she has snipped off the buttons., 😉

[@fromsmallthings509]

Haha, there is something so cute about buttons. I could never throw them away! I found a craft organization that would like to use my buttons, so I'm going to donate all of the plain white ones.

[@marciaclark7619]

I would love to see the red and black quilt you made with men's shirts.

[@fromsmallthings509]

I'll be glad to share it in the future, it's one I'm very happy with.

[@ShadowMoonFarms]

I post my quilts on Instagram too. Checked out yours and am following you. Thanks for sharing

[@francespiquemal8813]

I hope you get to show us the process of how you put the triangle block together from the 1 inch squares. Thank you very much sharing.

[@fromsmallthings509]

I didn't use a pattern for the stars, I just winged it! I don't think I could show the process this time because the star blocks are finished. I'll keep in mind for the future that it would be helpful to show my process. Thank you!

[@donnanonne8612]

Love the quilt! I'm so jealous that you have access to such treasures! Do you embroider your blocks before or after you make your quilt sandwich? Thank you.

[@fromsmallthings509]

Generally I do embroidery beforehand, though I have gotten out old finished quilts and added more embroidery to them.

[@ruthchurchwell324]

Do you keep all your quilts

[@fromsmallthings509]

Some have been sold to friends, or friends of friends... some have been donated to charities... some my daughter has claimed... but I have a LOT at home still, and I use all of them. Even the really special ones.

[@lyndakling901]

That horizontal striped shirt is a really ugly shirt but it’ll be a great quilt!

[@fromsmallthings509]

Haha! If you cut it small enough, anything can work!

[@nrsicindy]

How do you make the star points? Do you do a square and make half square triangles out of it? Thank you.

[@fromsmallthings509]

It's difficult to describe! I started with all 1" squares, and put them together sort of as steps... 3 on the first row, then 2, then 1. Then I cut off the "step" points, leaving 1/4" seam allowance, and sewed on the white triangle.

[@nancyshaner8548]

I am wondering how you make the points of the stars on the scrappy bock. Do you sew squares together then but triangle shape? Did you follow a pattern from somewhere?

[@fromsmallthings509]

I didn't use a pattern; I used all 1" squares, and just trimmed down leaving 1/4" seam allowance before sewing on the white triangle.