Alphabet Quilt Along Progress

Alphabet progress

Here’s a look at my progress for the week. I got my Sunshine letters sewn together. I added extra fabric for spaces and decided not to add any fabric between the rows.

Small Letter Tips

My Alphabet pattern includes 3 letter sizes–2 1/2″, 5″ and 10″ tall. I made this using the smallest letters, and so I thought I’d share some tips for working with such small pieces. These letters are really cute, but because of all of the different pieces coming together in such a small area, you are having to manage your bulk.

Use a smaller stitch length. I like using a 1.5mm length for most of my piecing, but especially in this situation. The smaller stitch length makes for a tighter and stronger seam that can hold up well against pressing, paper removal and using a smaller seam allowance if you decide to trim anything away.
Press your blocks well! One of the best ways to improve your ironing is to use a wool pressing mat*. The wool holds in heat so your block gets sandwiched with heat from the top (iron) and bottom (wool mat). It makes such a difference.
If needed, remove the paper earlier. I love leaving the paper template on my blocks as long as possible in order to keep them flat and clean. However, on a project like this with such small pieces, it can be helpful to remove the paper earlier to reduce overall bulk. On my Sunshine project, I took the paper off after sewing the blocks into rows and before sewing the rows together.
Instead of sewing the block rows together as is, consider adding sashing. Giving space between your rows can be visually pleasing, as well as provide space for the bulk of the blocks to be pressed without having to compete with another row of blocks.
Because of the size of these blocks and the number of pieces needing to come together, there will be bulk. You can’t avoid it. Take your time and use your iron to get it as flat as you can without overly stretching or manipulating anything.

Shirts Progress

I have some new Shirt blocks in the group as well.

This includes one that represents a new dress that I made last month. It’s the Mica by Closet Core in Cloud9 Modal Rayon. It’s breezy and just right for summer. Plus, it has pockets!

Mica dress in Modal Rayon with a matching Shirt block

Week 3 Video

In this week’s video, I walk you through my progress for the week, share tips on small letter piecing, talk about feedback from you and answer some of your questions.