January 2023 Snowflake Block
Snowflake: a flake of snow, especially a feathery ice crystal, typically displaying delicate sixfold symmetry.
It’s a fact…Jack Frost is the original artist of all things “snowflake”. Who doesn’t like to view his magical artwork on their windows, no matter the cold temperatures that make it possible. January seems the perfect month to celebrate Jack Frost with his own BOM design. Couple this design with Hawaiian quilting and we have our own unique creation, possibly a Hawaiian snowflake!
A snowflake. Who hasn’t made a paper snowflake…or a dozen? The surprise and serendipitiness of opening your creation once cut is what has us folding the paper in the first place.
But did we fold the paper to create a 6-sided snowflake? The best video I’ve come across on this method is on YouTube and hosted by Craft Daily. Click on the link to view and practice with paper a few times before using your fabric. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nIt5fAqScwc
Folding and cutting several layers of fabric can be tricky as the fabric tends to shift. I’ve discovered a product that makes the process more foolproof.
Terial Magic was created in 2012 out of frustration in working with limp and fraying fabrics. Creator Terry McFeely found a solution with an organic natural compound that makes almost any fabric more paper-like and stable yet not too stiff to cut or sew.
As per their website: Terial Magic is a spray-on fabric stabilizer that you spray to saturate for a firm, fray-free fabric that is perfect for raw edge art and sewing.
Follow the instructions on the bottle or click on “Terial Magic” under “Tips, Tricks & Techniques” to view the process.
This is the point where you decide whether to create a 4-sided or 6-sided snowflake. It makes a difference because I had a great deal of difficulty in cutting a 6-sided snowflake with precision due to the number of layers. I was successful in cutting a 4-sided snowflake but felt it lacked the special beauty of a 6-sided flake.
Here are the steps I chose to follow:
- Watch the YouTube video mentioned above to fold a piece of paper for a 6-sided snowflake. Draw your preferred lines. Cut. (Karen K. Buckley scissors work especially well in cutting several layers as one of the edges is serrated which helps to hold the fabric in place as you cut. )
- Fuse Steam-A-Seam 2 to the back of your snowflake material and trace your paper snowflake onto the paper side of the fusible. Cut.
- Fold your background material in half each way to identify the center of your square.
- Fuse your snowflake to the center of the block.
- Use a small zig zag stitch to secure all edges of the snowflake to the background material. I prefer to outline the snowflake to help it “pop” into the foreground. Here is where you may choose to use fancy threads.
- You may choose to free motion the background or echo quilt it to resemble a Hawaiian quilt block.
No two snowflakes are alike. Imagine a quilt designed with a variety of snowflake patterns along with a windy free motion stitch in the background. Not sure if it would make me feel warmer when I wrapped in it!
I’d love to see what you create! Email me a photo of your snowflake(s) if you’d like to see your creation on my site. Or if you’re a member of the CT Piecemakers Quilt Guild bring it for Show & Tell at the next meeting. If you’re not a member yet, you can join at any time!
Stay warm friends!