IMQG March Challenge

Snippets & Threads Catcher

Here are the rules for the IMQG March Challenge: 

1.Use ONLY two Fat Quarters, of which one should be solid, and one print.
2.Repeat - The ENTIRE project should be made from JUST these two fat quarters. And threads, of course!

 I found this adorable project on http://robinquiltsetc.com/files/Snippets_and_Threads_Tutorial_1_.pdf.

Snippets and Threads (A Foldable/Portable Catcher)

Following Robin's instructions, I made myself a plastic template of an equilateral triangle.  In order to get more than one catcher out of the two fat quarters, I reduced the size of the triangle from 12 inches to 10 inches on all three sides.

Plastic Template of a 10-inch equilateral triangle

I then picked out my two fat quarters, one solid and the other a print.  I pinned them together and traced the template three times.  Twice with the base of the triangle along the bottom edge, and once in between the two with the base on the top edge.  The markings are barely visible, but they're there.

Two fat quarters RSF (right sides facing)

All four sides were pinned and transferred to the sewing machine.

All four sides are pinned

The three triangles were sewn, leaving a gap at the base of each triangle.

The three triangles are sewn

The triangles were segmented and the corners were snipped away.

Segmented with corners snipped

Each triangle was turned inside out and the corners brought to a point with the aid of a 'gizmo'.  It was pressed along each seam and sewn all the way around with a 1/8 seam allowance. 

Turned inside out

This was the most challenging part of the project - turning the corners down .  My first attempt was to fold the triangle in half, turn the corner down and measure 2-1/2 inches from point to fold.  Oops, I did that on the wrong side.

Measuring a turned-down corner of 2-1/2"

 So I tried it on the folded side.  I then pressed the fold, opened it up and folded it down, but it wasn't the right measurement.  It just didn't look right :(

Second attempt at turning down a corner

 If at first you don't succeed, try, try again!  The third time worked like a charm.  I measured down on both sides of each corner and inserted a pin.

The third attempt worked its magic :)

 The triangle was turned over with the inside facing up.

Triangle was turned over

  Each side was folded in half and sewn from the fold to the pin.

Left fold is sewn to the pin

The other two sides were sewn down in the same way.

Other two sides were sewn

 The corners were turned down and attached.

Placed a catcher on my ironing table

Placed one on my cutting table

And the third on my sewing table

They lend a personal touch to my sewing room

And they're useful too!

Thank you, Robin C. Gallagher of Seal Beach, California!

Cheers, everyone!