Julia would have asked for more details, but they had entered the classroom, and an urgent, whispered conversation would have drawn too much attention.
When everyone had taken their seats, Gretchen welcomed them back to class and announced that they would now begin assembling their completed Nine-Patch blocks into a top. “If you look closely at our diagram,” she said, gesturing to the illustration on the easel, “you’ll see that our quilt is made up of eleven rows framed by an outer border. But there are two different types of rows: five rows of Nine-Patch blocks, and six narrower rows of sashing between them.” She indicated the different rows as she described each type. “Sashing refers to strips of fabric that separate the blocks of a quilt. Cornerstones are squares of fabric that join sashing strips together.”
“Both are entirely optional design elements,” Maggie added as she walked down one aisle and up the other distributing fat eighths of a dark blue reproduction print, one piece for each table to share. “You can have sashing strips without cornerstones, or you can dispense with sashing altogether and simply sew adjacent blocks to one another with nothing in between.”
“Exactly,” said Gretchen. “The layout of a quilt is one of many design choices a quilter makes. Sashing can separate complex blocksso each one is more distinct. Sewing adjacent blocks together can create interesting secondary patterns. Whatever you choose, do so with intent, whether it’s to create a certain artistic effect or to express a mood or theme.”
Julia was pleased to see the other Patchwork Players following along with interest, some of them nodding. Jason appeared to be taking copious notes.
“There’s another, more pragmatic reason to add sashing to a quilt,” said Gretchen, smiling. “It allows you to increase the size of your quilt without all the work of making additional blocks. And since we’ve made only twenty blocks for our Nine-Patch quilt, and we have less than a week—” She spread her hands and shrugged. “Adding sashing seems like an especially good idea.”
As her classmates nodded or chuckled, Julia studied the diagram thoughtfully. To her, the sashing and cornerstones seemed to be an essential part of the design, not a cheat code for enlarging their quilt. Even so, Gretchen made a fair point.
“This morning we’ll begin by cutting sashing strips from your muslin and cornerstones from the dark blue fabric Maggie handed out just now,” Gretchen continued. “First, I’d like you to cut three rectangles from your unbleached muslin, each three and a half inches by twelve and a half inches. The actual finished size of our sashing strips is three by twelve inches. Can anyone figure out why we’re cutting our rectangles larger?”
“Margin of error?” Jason guessed.
Gretchen shook her head. “Sorry, no, that’s not it.”
Paige’s hand shot into the air. “Seam allowance,” she blurted when Gretchen glanced her way. “We’re adding a quarter-inch seam allowance to all four sides, so that would add a half inch to the length and width.”
“That’s exactly right,” said Gretchen. “If anyone needs a refresher on how to make a template, let me or Maggie know.”
Two people tentatively raised their hands, but everyone else setthemselves to work, chatting and bantering, as always. They were still at it when Gretchen addressed the class again. “After you cut your rectangles, cut two three-and-one-half-inch squares from the dark blue,” she said, as she strolled the aisles observing their work. “These will be our cornerstones.”
“Two squares per piece of fabric?” Olivia asked.
“Two squares per person. We actually won’t need that many squares for our layout, but I want everyone to practice making them.”
Soon thereafter, when all of the sashing strips and cornerstones were prepared, Gretchen instructed each student to sew a sashing strip to their Nine-Patch block. “It doesn’t matter which edge you choose since the blocks are symmetrical,” she said, as Maggie demonstrated with her sample block. Edna finished her seam before Julia did, so she sewed a sashing strip to the additional block Maggie had asked them to make.
“Next, table partners should sew their blocks together,” Gretchen told them when everyone was ready. “This time itdoesmatter which edge you choose. Be sure to sew a Nine-Patch to a sashing strip so that you make an alternating row like the one in the diagram. Whatever you do, avoid sewing a Nine-Patch to a Nine-Patch or a sashing strip to a sashing strip.”
“Sounds serious,” Jason remarked. “What happens if youdon’tavoid that?”
“The quilt police will arrest you,” said Dylan.
“Nothing so dramatic as that,” said Gretchen. “You’ll just have to pick out the stitches and do it again, correctly.”
Fortunately, everyone followed the instructions and did it right the first time, checking their work against the illustration and seeking help if they weren’t sure how to proceed. Julia sewed her block to Edna’s, while Edna sewed the block they had made together to Maggie’s block.
Next, Gretchen told them, the students at two tables would pair up and sew their segments together, taking turns wielding the needle.Between the two of them, Julia and Edna had enough segments already, which worked out perfectly since there were an odd number of tables. Afterward, each group sewed a single sashing strip to the remaining unsewn edge of the fourth Nine-Patch to create a full, four-block row. As each group finished, they took turns carefully pressing their blocks, then strolled the aisles admiring their friends’ work.
When all five Nine-Patch block rows were finished, Gretchen explained how to make the sashing rows in a similar fashion, sewing dark blue cornerstones to a short edge of a sashing strip, then joining those units into pairs and sewing another cornerstone to the end to make six sashing rows.
So the morning passed, with the Patchwork Players sewing and chatting together, sometimes switching seats to join a different conversation or to better encourage or tease a friend. With everyone working together, even with occasional breaks for coffee or tea, to stretch their legs or rest their fingers, they managed to finish sewing and pressing all eleven rows just in time for lunch.
As the enticing aromas of Chef Anna’s latest culinary marvels beckoned the company to the banquet hall, Julia fell in step beside Ellen, who was frowning pensively. “Something on your mind?” Julia inquired. “Working through a particularly tangled plot development in a new script? You can always bounce ideas off me.”
“Thanks, but that’s not it.” Ellen halted just inside the doorway. “Even with all eighteen of us working diligently, and with Maggie pitching in her sample block, it took us all morning to make our eleven rows. We’ll need the entire afternoon to sew them together, and that’s if we keep up our current pace.”
“And that’s unlikely,” said Julia ruefully, massaging her hands. “My fingers are already feeling the strain, and I’m sure I’m not alone. We’ll all need to take more frequent rest breaks as the hours go by. Maybe not Edna. She’s used to sewing all day long.”
“But let’s say we do manage to finish by dinnertime. We won’t be able to start cutting and attaching the borders until tomorrowmorning. Those are long seams, and only one person can sew at a time.” Ellen paused to think. “Maybe two people could sew borders to opposite sides, but that would be awkward.”
“Awkward, but not impossible.”
“True, but even then, I don’t see how we’ll be able to finish the quilt top, layer and baste it, put it on the frame, and begin quilting before Friday. We will have spent several days on piecing, but only a few hours on quilting, which is the skill we need most for the camera.”
