Michelle Marvig – Pieceville
http://www.pieceville.com.au
@michellemarvig120
The lament of every quilter that I
have ever met, or know, is that we all
struggle with lack of discipline when
it comes to buying fabric. We all have
plenty at home and tell ourselves “no
more”, but we still buy more when
temptation is in front of us! We just
can’t help ourselves. We also have left-
over bits and pieces from projects that
we have completed. Our storage areas
may be busting at the seams. Does this
sound like you? It certainly accurately
describes myself. Fleur Maddern, of
Little Desert Quilts, has designed a
template set to help work our way
through our stash; she has designed
the Kaniva Template set for making
her original design block — Kaniva. This
block measures 5¾in x 11½in completed.
The template set comprises three
acrylic shapes. Two different-sizedtriangles are offered in lime green,
with seam allowance marked, junction
holes and grainlines. The third
template is a rectangle with the same
markings, but in red. This template
does double duty. It is not only used
to cut the fabrics, but to also grade
the fabrics. If you are unsure about
the value of a chosen fabric, use the
box in the pattern sheet provided.
The fabric is placed next to the grey
printed rectangle. You look through
the red template at your fabric. If it is
lighter than the grey rectangle viewed
through the template, the fabric is
used as a light in the design. If it is
darker, it will be used in the dark side
of the block. Fleur suggests that if you
are still unsure, do not use the fabric.
So what the red template does is to
show you the value of the fabrics. Thisis useful for all quilts. You can lay out
your selection and then look through
the template. The values will shine
through, not the colours. This is very
important in some patchwork designs.
The two triangles are used around
the edge of the block and following
the grainlines on the templates is
important, as this places the straight
of the grain around the edge of
the pieced blocks. The use of the
standard lime green allows you to
see through these templates if you
wish to fussy cut a design. But how
to use these templates?
Fleur has designed an original block
that she has called Kaniva. It was
originally designed to utilise scraps
and left-overs, but you can also use
limited-colour palettes and change
the look of the quilt. Fleur has givenKANIVA TEMPLATE SET
BY LITTLE DESERT QUILTS
Driven by Michelle Marvig
Road Test