Seminole quilt
November 21, 2009
Last January I started sewing two different quilts. One is a calendar quilt: every month I would sew 30 or 31 (or 28 !) pieces of different materials, according to the Season. The twelve months are ready, I just need to figure out how to put them all together.
The second quilt is made with Seminole patterns. The art of patchwork created by this Indian Tribe of Florida always fascinated me. The extreme precision needed in sewing together those various patterns prevented me to make more than a few small pieces in a sampler, for instance.
The instructions for this quilt were well explained in the Austrian Patchwork and Quiltjournal. One different stripe and pattern each month of the year. I used fabrics left from previous quilts. 2009 is a “scraps-year” for me, both quilts are made of scraps and I barely managed to finish the twelfth stripe of the Seminole. I had to cheat a little bit… you will see this later 😉
There is still a lot to do ! Black coton will separate each coloured strip, top and bottom. To avoid having too much “dark”, I will sew a narrow stripe of a colour of my choice – and still in stock ! – between the two black parts. A border will be added, of course. Only then will I start the hand quilting, mainly in the black parts.
The colours I used are not those proposed in the Quiltjournal but they were the ones I had in stock: turquoise green, dark blue, dark red (burgundy), pale yellow, pink and a mixed pattern with some of the other shades. I am quite happy, I think they blend in nicely together. What do you think ?
Precision was very important all along the sewing, not exactly a talent of mine 😦 A few millimeters too much or less did make a visible difference, unfortunately !
Needless to say there are “visible differences” in my quilt !
Some patterns were much more tricky than others… in this picture the last stripe gave me a headache…
All of them were a pleasure to discover once the different colours were assembled in a stripe. I learned a lot all year long. But please, don’t ask me to sew another Seminole quilt next year !
Isathreadsoflife's Blog 
What a beautiful quilt! I especially love the leaf section, and am in awe of anyone being able to quilt in such detail.
This blog is beautiful. I’ll definitely have to spend some time here! (And from your photos, I feel I must travel to Fribourg!)
I posted the Irish brown-bread recipe. I hope you can make it work!
~ sandpapers
Wow this is a beautiful work. You must have a lot of patience.
This is such a creative idea, to make a calender quilt. I hope you will post a photo of it, when you have finished the last part. I guess it will take some time to make the handmade part. Probably more time, than in the old days without computers and TV. – And blogs 😉
The Seminole Quilt pieces are fabulous. I admire
you for having the patience to piece together all
those complicated angles. Wow! : )
The colors are perfect, just beautiful!
Thank you sandpapers, salalao, giiid, ancientcloth for your encouraging comments. My patience is easily motivated because I want to see how my quilt will look once finished. Angles look complicated but all strips of fabric are sewn vertically. Then those stripes are cut in 45° or 60° angles and put together again… and that is where patience is needed !
This is the kind of quilt that fabric lovers/ textile collectors / quilters will rave about years down the road – your color selections, your attention to detail. I have tried Seminole piecing; it is NOT easy! MIne always comes out a little wonky. Yours looks amazing. Well done!
Thank you very much, worldquilter, I really appreciate the warm comments of a quilting friend. Seminole is not easy but so wonderfully surprising once finished.
When things quiet down I want to take some time and read through your blog. Just a quick note to say how beautiful your Seminole quilt project is. I have seen some photos of the calendar quilt. I love the entire concept and especially how you made your seasons different. I look forward to future photos of both of these quilting adventures you are having!
So nice to read you here, quiltedthrifted ! I am inspired by your own quilting and will post soon the completed pieces of the calendar quilt. I still have to figure out how to put them all together in a quilt… different sizes and shapes. I loved doing it and will sew another one next year, a bit different. Focusing more on a day to day project and events. Wish me luck;)
hola tendra los patrones y medidas para poder realizar seminole gracias
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