Seminole Stripping: Not Done in the Nude

Kathleen McCormick From Cambridge Quilts

We've talked about cutting strips and resewing them to make intricate patchwork.






The Seminole Indians have always been the masters of this. Seminoles were a tribe in the Florida cypress swamps. The people who had come to Christianize them also taught them to sew quilts as well. But they were developed a form of  strip patchwork that involved stitching, cutting and restitching.

 Vintage Seminole Skirt From/Miss Farfalla's Etsy Shop

Traditionally they made clothing with their piecing. This is a traditional Seminole skirt. They also made jackets, shirts and other garments, as well as quilts.

Seminole Pieced Apron from Ms Sews It All

It's easier to understand how this piecing is accomplished by seeing the back. It's all strips, cut at different angles and resewed.




Here are several construction diagrams. 

From Lakeview Stitching

From Creating So Many Colors

Seminole Tutorial

Karen Pior has this fabulous tutorial on her page at Sew Well Maide.

Contemporary quilt by Niki Valentine Vick

Seminole piecing is quick, very intricate and beautiful. 

Traditionally it's done with solids, but traditions, like rules, are made to be broken.

If you'd like to add amazing pieced detail to your quilting, Seminole pieces is an easy way.

Bargello U: Easy Bargello Piecing

We've talked a bit about how to make things in strips that look so much harder than they are.

Bargello piecing is so impressive looking. All those little pieces, done square after square. And it took you, how long? 
Don't be silly. We don't do hard here and we don't do time consuming. Bargello piecing is lightning fast.
These great fabrics are all part of the same fabric line and they're in stock in the store. You can sew along, if you want.

Take a number of strips. Sew them together. 
Cut them into segments.
The segments can either be the same or graduated in different widths. There's really no wrong way to do this.


Sew the segments at each end to each other to make a ring.This is the part my photo shop skills can't quite master. Would you please imagine I can show you that?

Sew the segments together moving up one square at a time.  

If you do different sized segments it looks like this.
Cut across all the segments to make it one bargello piece.

Tada! That wasn't that hard. It looks like a mountain of bits sewed together, but since we started with strip it's fast as a flash.
Things to remember when sewing strips:

• Even counts. Keep your seam size as accurate as you can. It doesn't matter what it is, just be consistent.
• Use a sharp rotary blade. Always. Actually it's much safer.
• Trim you strips to straighten them up. They will get funky after several cuts
• Press with steam when you're done, from the front. You'll want to make sure all the seams are flat and open.
• Do lift and press rather than running an iron over it.
• Seams in the back can point any way they like. It's better if you press to the dark side, but if they're inside your quilt making comments, squish them out. 

Sew up some seams and start cutting and stitching. It's endless fun and you'll find yourself amazed.

Great Strip Quilts from Painted Panels

We love this new kind of print. They're not really panels, but they do feel like a panel. They're a yard long repeat of a painted image. But how do you make them into a quilt?

Here's a great idea.

If you cut them into strips and separate them with another fabric it looks like light shimmering through.  

Simple. Stunning.
This quilt was made with different width strips, but you could use the same width for a realistic look. The changes in size make a more contemporary feel.
There are all kinds of these painted panel quilts available. Imagine what you could do with these?

And, it's the easiest quilt you'll ever piece. Come into Threadbenders and see the great painted panels that could be your next masterpiece.