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Origami Quilt

From "Simply Quilts"
episode QLT-606

Fiber Artist Rebecca Wat shows how to translate the ancient art of paper origami to fabric, creating beautiful three-dimensional flowers for applique. Combine this technique with contemporary or traditional patterns to create one-of-a-kind quilts.

Materials:
sewing notions
flower fabrics: 3/8 yard of 11 colorful print fabrics
background fabric: 1-2/3 yard of white fabric and 1 yard of green fabric
border and binding: two yards of floral fabric

Origami flowers units are utilized in nine patch blocks, making the most challenging part of this quilt the flower folding. Once this technique is mastered, this quilt is easy, according to origami quilt designer and book author Rebecca Wat.

Steps:

Origami flower

Figure A

Place a six-inch square of fabric wrong side up and fold in half. Finger press to make a crease (figure A). Open up the square and fold in half in the opposite direction and make another finger-press crease.

Figure B
Open square up and turn the square at an angle and fold each corner toward the center—basic origami folding. Repeat for all four corners (figure B).

Figure C
Turn this folded square over (do not open up) and fold each of the four sides toward the middle or center of the square and finger press (figure C). At this point you should see a square indentation in the center of the block when the block is opened.

Figure D

Figure E

Figure F

Bring two edges up forming an ear-shaped flower petal (figure D) and tack down by hand (figure E), repeat for each corner, tacking only the petal (figure F).
Fold the petals in and steam-press them flat. You'll unfold and open the petals up after the quilting is complete in the next section.

Nine-patch blocks

Figure G

Cut three-inch wide strips from the green and white fabric and strip piece together. Alternating the green and white strips. Cut the strips into three-inch squares (figure G) and piece together to create green-and-white nine-patch blocks. Cut 48 sections that include two white strips with a green strip in the middle and 24 center sections that have two green strips with a white strip in the middle.

Figure H
Alternate-stitch together the folded flower squares and three-inch white fabric squares to create units for the nine-patch blocks. Each block will need three of these units—a top and a bottom unit with folded flower squares sandwiching a white square and one center unit consisting of two white squares sandwiching a folded flower square (figure H).

Figure I

Figure J

Figure K

Arrange finished nine-patch blocks in alternate order—one folded flower nine-patch block with a green and white nine-patch block and stitch together (figure I). Press seam allowances and stitch rows together (figures J and K). This project features 25 nine-patch flower units and 24 green-and-white nine-patch units.

Figure L
Attach flowery borders (figure L).
Baste stitch the batting, backing and quilt top together.

Figure M
Open up the flower petals (figure M) and tack down—tacking serves as a quilt tying technique. For stitch-in-the-ditch quilting, do not open the petals until quilting is complete, then tack the flower petals in place.

RESOURCES :
Fantastic Fabric Folding
by Rebecca Wat (ISBN: 1571200851)
Click here to order this title.
C & T Publishing Inc.
Toll-free: 800-284-1114
Website: www.ctpub.com