“I suppose that I should have kept the zinnia for the last flower since it comes last alphabetically, but I am so fond of the stocky, sturdy blossom that I had to put it in sooner. Zinnias always make me think of autumn luncheons with decorations in the warm, soft tones. There are the dull old yellow, the faded pinks, the sooty purples and lavenders and the burnt orange shades. As you can see I have suggested petals by scalloping the edge. And the gradation in color is made possible by the four sets of circles on top of another.”
“How would we appliqué those circles, Nancy? Should we have four complete circles with an upper layer always superimposed upon the lower, or shall we cut for scalloped discs?”
“You will find it easier to appliqué and keep in shape if you cut the four circles and then lay one on top of another. Of course, that means that there will be four thicknesses of cloth at the center of the flower but that is not serious.”
The members had pieced the lower half of the diamond-shaped block. It made the urn to which was seamed the upper triangle of white. On this was appliquéd the zinnia with its stem and leaves and the two birds. Some of the members appliquéd the birds ahead of the appearance of the flower. They had spare time and could do it easily. These women usually used the same material for all the birds. But those who changed the coloring of the birds to match or contrast with the coloring of the flowers waited until the new pattern appeared.
In every case the urns were all made of the same colored material. This gave a repetition in the quilt which made for beauty. The pattern as given in today’s paper was cut, along with its accompanying directions, from paper.
Then a light tracing of the design was made on the white triangle. This helped to place the pieces correctly when they were ready for appliqué. Next a tracing of design was made on light-weight cardboard. This was cut into its pieces and laid on the color fast materials which are used for the pattern. The zinnia petals were made darker toward the outside. That is, four shades of the color chosen were used. Plain color is better for this flower than a figured pattern material. In cutting the pieces of cloth a quarter inch allowance was made on all sides for turning under of raw edges. These were turned, basted and pressed. Then they were laid in place on the traced outline on the triangle, and the pieces pinned in place. They were appliquéd with slanting, invisible hemming stitch.
Sometimes Nancy advised making the flower stem a little longer than shown here. This raised the flower above the birds’ heads. Because of the limitations of size in the paper it is impossible to make the stem quite as long as Nancy would like to see. Bias tape is used for stems.
The members were so enthusiastic about the zinnia they wanted to make another one, but Nancy said no. She promised them a phlox for the next flower.
I haven’t been able to work on my Zinnia block so I don’t have anything to show off. I will update this when I do get the chance!
Do you have any Garden Bouquet Quilt blocks to show off? Leave a link to your blog post about it in the comment section or email me a photo at heathers_custom_sewing{at}yahoo.com so I can share with everyone!
I hope you are enjoying this series!
~Heather
Quick Links to:
Month 1: Beginning Instructions, Urn, and Basket Instructions
Month 2, Part 1: The Tulip
Month 2, Part 2: The Saucy Bird
Month 2, Part 3: The Meek Bird
Month 3: The Cactus
Month 4: Lily of the Valley
Month 5: The Wild Rose
Month 6: The Trillium
Month 7: Canterbury Bells
Month 8: Nasturtium
Month 9: The Pansy
Month 10: The Tiger Lily
Month 11: The Primrose
Hand Appliqué
Machine Appliqué
Alternate Method of Appliqué Tutorial
Biased Binding Tutorial
“How would we appliqué those circles, Nancy? Should we have four complete circles with an upper layer always superimposed upon the lower, or shall we cut for scalloped discs?”
“You will find it easier to appliqué and keep in shape if you cut the four circles and then lay one on top of another. Of course, that means that there will be four thicknesses of cloth at the center of the flower but that is not serious.”
The members had pieced the lower half of the diamond-shaped block. It made the urn to which was seamed the upper triangle of white. On this was appliquéd the zinnia with its stem and leaves and the two birds. Some of the members appliquéd the birds ahead of the appearance of the flower. They had spare time and could do it easily. These women usually used the same material for all the birds. But those who changed the coloring of the birds to match or contrast with the coloring of the flowers waited until the new pattern appeared.
In every case the urns were all made of the same colored material. This gave a repetition in the quilt which made for beauty. The pattern as given in today’s paper was cut, along with its accompanying directions, from paper.
Then a light tracing of the design was made on the white triangle. This helped to place the pieces correctly when they were ready for appliqué. Next a tracing of design was made on light-weight cardboard. This was cut into its pieces and laid on the color fast materials which are used for the pattern. The zinnia petals were made darker toward the outside. That is, four shades of the color chosen were used. Plain color is better for this flower than a figured pattern material. In cutting the pieces of cloth a quarter inch allowance was made on all sides for turning under of raw edges. These were turned, basted and pressed. Then they were laid in place on the traced outline on the triangle, and the pieces pinned in place. They were appliquéd with slanting, invisible hemming stitch.
Sometimes Nancy advised making the flower stem a little longer than shown here. This raised the flower above the birds’ heads. Because of the limitations of size in the paper it is impossible to make the stem quite as long as Nancy would like to see. Bias tape is used for stems.
The members were so enthusiastic about the zinnia they wanted to make another one, but Nancy said no. She promised them a phlox for the next flower.
I haven’t been able to work on my Zinnia block so I don’t have anything to show off. I will update this when I do get the chance!
Do you have any Garden Bouquet Quilt blocks to show off? Leave a link to your blog post about it in the comment section or email me a photo at heathers_custom_sewing{at}yahoo.com so I can share with everyone!
I hope you are enjoying this series!
~Heather
Quick Links to:
Month 1: Beginning Instructions, Urn, and Basket Instructions
Month 2, Part 1: The Tulip
Month 2, Part 2: The Saucy Bird
Month 2, Part 3: The Meek Bird
Month 3: The Cactus
Month 4: Lily of the Valley
Month 5: The Wild Rose
Month 6: The Trillium
Month 7: Canterbury Bells
Month 8: Nasturtium
Month 9: The Pansy
Month 10: The Tiger Lily
Month 11: The Primrose
Hand Appliqué
Machine Appliqué
Alternate Method of Appliqué Tutorial
Biased Binding Tutorial
