Can you believe it’s already Week 3 of our Terracotta Fiori Quilt Along? Last week we cut our fabrics and this week we’ll work on making all of the triangles for the quilt. Next week is a free week, so if you just received your fabric there’s still time to jump in and catch up.

Foundation Paper Piecing vs. English Paper Piecing

The Terracotta Fiori Quilt is a Paper Pieced Pattern, also referred to as Foundation Paper Piecing. This is very different than English Paper Piecing. They all sound so similar, which can get confusing. 

Paper Piecing is when you sew your pieces onto a sheet of papeer. The paper has a diagram on it and all of the pieces should cover the section of the diagram. The fabric seams face the paper and the right side of the fabric faces the opposite way from the diagram-side of the paper sheet.

English Paper Piecing is when you have a piece of paper cut to the exact shape you want to create. The fabric is wrapped over the shape so you can base stitch (or glue bast) it in place. When you have a few of these prepared, you can hand stitch them together to create your quilt. If you would like to read more about the differences between the two techniques, click here to read about english paper piecing or paper piecing.

Have you ever paper pieced?? What do you like about it? What do you dislike about it? 

I love how exact it can be. You can work with pieces of fabric that are oversized and misshapen, but when put in the right place, the finished product turns out perfectly every time. The thing I don’t like about paper piecing is when fabric slips or folds without me knowing. To prevent some frustration, I’ve put together some tips and tricks on paper piecing.

 Use Small Stitch Lengths

The most important thing to do when paper piecing is to make your stitch length smaller. The smaller stitch will perforate the paper more, which comes in handy when you are ripping the paper off of the triangle. A smaller stitch will also stay together better when you are ripping the paper out. A longer stitch will unravel at the starting and stopping point.

Also, hold onto your seams when you are ripping the fabric out. This will help you keep the shape integrity.

Stop Fabric Slipping

How can you stop your fabric from slipping? I like to chain piece — most of the time I don’t pin my pieces. This saves a lot of time…However, if your fabric slips, you could have less than ¼” of fabric for your seam allowance. If you don’t catch it, it could turn into a time disaster. Taking out seams takes longer than usual with tiny stitches.

My first tip would be to do what I say, not what I do: pin your pieces in place. My pattern tester glued her pieces together before she sewed them in place. I haven’t tried this, but I’ve heard good things about this technique.

Double-check your placement. After you flip your fabric over, you can fold the paper up to reveal the seam. I like to position the fabric that is being added onto the template so I can see a tiny line of that fabric.

Verify You Have Enough Fabric to Cover the Area 

For this, you can use a lightbox, a window, or just fold your fabric over while holding the 1/4 “ down.

When it comes to trimming, I love using the Add-A-Quarter ruler to trim the perfect seam.

Next week is a catchup week, so you have two weeks to sew your triangles together! 

Are you ready to jump into paper piecing?? 

Start by trimming your templates so you have about a ¼” after the last line. This helps you see that your fabric has reached the edge of the template. 

Start at section 1 on your Terracotta Fiori templates and work your way through the numbers, adding fabric to each section as you go. After you have added a fabric, iron it open, fold your paper over on the next line. This will expose your fabric and let you trim it ¼” away from the fold. An Add-A-Quarter ruler helps with that, but you can also use a regular ruler.

After you have template 1 and template 2 made in the same color, trim them down. Then sew them together.

If you have any questions, please let me know!

For your convenience, here is the timeline for the Terracotta Fiori Quilt Along: 

Oct 8th – Picking Out Fabric
Oct 15th – Cutting Fabric
Oct 22nd – Paper Piecing Tips and Tricks

(sew day on Oct 23rd at 9:30 am AZ time)

Oct 29th – Catch Up
Nov 5th – Sewing Top Together
(tentative sew day on Nov 7th)
Nov 12th – Spray Basting and Quilting
Nov 19th – Binding
Nov 26th – Grand Prize

Here is a peek at this week’s gift.

Instagram Giveaway Reminder

You can see everyone’s photos on Instagram by clicking here #terracottafioriqa. You can also use the link to check and see if you used the right hashtag. Remember, I won’t be able to see your photos if your account is private. If I can’t see your photos, I can’t choose you as a winner for one of the prizes. After the quilt along has ended, feel free to change your account back to private. If you have any trouble doing this, please let me know — I would be happy to help. 

If you missed the beginning of the quilt along — don’t worry, you can join in at any time. Get your copy of the pattern in my Etsy shop by clicking here.

Drum Roll Please… And the Winner is

Susan Wells congratulations!! Send me your mailing address and I will mail you your goodies. If you remember, the gift is a rotating cutting mat, rotary cutter, and Add-A-Quarter ruler. 😉

I hope you have a wonderful week!!