Frigid Piecing – Free online class
In the early days of the internet (1996) I held an ‘online’ class that used email as its mode of communication. There were hundreds of students, eager to learn a new technique. It was published in 4 steps. I have put them ‘all together’ as this is really just a piece of history that was dug out of my archives.
I developed my use of Freezer Paper to allow me to piece irregular shapes with a modicum of sanity. The freezer paper inspired the name Frigid, and the rest is history. Others have used this for pictorial quilts and for precision piecing. I am just showing you MY take on its use.
To get started here is your supply list:
- FREEZER PAPER
- Rotary Cutter, Mat, and Ruler with a 1/4″ marking
- Iron, Ironing Board
- Sewing Machine.
- Thread
My quilt will be a take off on the ‘tumbling blocks’ style of quilt, as it is my favorite.
You will need Fabrics that fall into the LIGHT, MEDIUM, and DARK categories. Quantity is up to you… one or many colors.. a 1/4 yd piece of 9 fabrics will do just fine.
Workspace
Clear a place to work…this means a flat surface. Empty? .. Yes EMPTY !!!!
Now you will take a “hunk” of Freezer Paper to draw your QUILT on. This time you will use the DULL side of the paper UP.
To be “Do-able” keep your size SMALL. (any paper can be used at this step, but the FP should be handy.)
The Freezer Paper is about 15 inches wide so make it 15×22 or 12 x 15 or whatever size you feel you want to conquer. The edge of the freezer paper can be the edge of the quilt (before borders) or you can make it smaller than the paper, just draw the edge, or plan to use the edge of the FP. I tape two sheets of FP together to make a BIG wall hanging.
Consider making a place mat, small wall hanging, or table runner. THAT small.!!
Design
Now, using your ruler and pencil, you will draw Triangles. Try to not have more than 3 or 4 come together at the same point. What you do to avoid this, is extend the line so the next triangle will be LONGER than the one it touches. You may not have NON Triangles except for the edge..(well, you can, but I am not going to tell you how to piece them).
Try drawing ONE line on a slant, and then use that line to be the side of several triangles. Note that IF the triangles all converge at one point, you will not only have a big bump of fabric there, but you will have created a STAR, not triangles.
The edge can be triangles that would END somewhere beyond the edge, so the lines should be convergent. (coming together … eventually, just beyond the edge of the quilt.)
NOT TOO TINY. the Minimum size should be 6″ on a side, and the Maximum is 15″ They should be not too Thin either.. at least 5 inches across the middle
I understand you will not get too many triangles on your piece, THIS IS OK, as it is a Class Sample… just to learn the Technique… even if you draw ONLY ONE you will piece only one Triangle!!! It is more of a challenge to get three triangles to come together to meet along the Side of a Fourth longer triangle.
Lesson Two!
A Discussion of “Light Source”
The next step is determining the LIGHT SOURCE, and how it will affect the triangles you have drawn. I usually use the TOP of the quilt as the LIGHT … that is, I think of the Sun Shining down from above. If each one of these triangles is lit from above, which Side will be Light? Which side will be Dark (the face is AWAY from the light). The other side is partially lit, therefore Medium.
So, for an exercise, look at the largest triangle, and label each EDGE. The one that is facing your LIGHT SOURCE, is Light, usually the Bottom/Right is what I use for the DARK and I label the bottom right corner DARK. then the bottom LEFT is the Medium You will now label each edge … L M or D.
(as you get used to this, the labeling step is not necessary, but for now it is a thinking process you need to get used to)
Labeling the Triangles (or shapes..)
NEXT, you will give each triangle a NAME (Betsy, Fred….. no!!!) I generally label them A B C D E… and this should be done, either in a different color pen, or with a letter INSIDE A CIRCLE so that you do not confuse Triangle D with the shading for Dark. gee, that makes Betsy sound like a good idea!!
Tracing a Pattern
Some of you over achievers will want to know the next step.. so here it is *YES WE WILL TOUCH FABRIC SOON* …. Take your Freezer paper out, and this time WITH THE SHINY SIDE UP, you are going to Trace Triangle A. You must ‘Rip off’ a new sheet of FP to trace the triangle on. My method of Tracing is to hold with one hand, and trace the < (corner and center angles) of the three angles, and then connect them using a ruler. That way I do not have wavy lines. Cut it out using a rotary ruler/cutter. You will then transfer all the markings to the DULL side of this tracing. CHECK the markings when you lay it back on the triangle…. SHINY SIDE Up … that the LIGHT edge is marked.. and the MEDIUM edge is marked.. and the DARK edge is marked.. Put the triangle NAME “A” in a circle, on each edge.
IF ANY TRIANGLES WILL INTERSECT ALONG THE SIDE… it is a good idea to transfer that information in the form of a small hash mark on the dull side…(I usually write it on the shiny side, and then flip over and trace it on to the dull side… When the Triangle is on the paper the shiny side is up. When the dull side is up, the triangle probably will not fit in the space…
You can then do triangle B… Triangle C… do a few that will connect … but do not do all of them.!!!!
Sub Cutting
If you have a few freezer paper triangles traced, you can pick a random CENTER of the triangle. Choose a point at least an INCH in from each side, and put a DOT (on the dull side is fine). Then draw a line to each tip of the triangle from that dot. IT NEED NOT BE IN THE CENTER. Now be sure that each sub triangle is labeled… A Light, A Medium, A Dark, B Light, B Medium B D, C L, C M, C D etc.
Only cut one triangle apart at a time, so you don’t get confused..
Now you will IRON the shiny side of the Light freezer paper triangle on to THE BACK of the light fabric, the Medium triangle is ironed on to the back of the Medium fabric.. the Dark Triangle on to the back of the dark fabric using the shiny side against the fabric… it SHOULD stick.
I usually align the OUTER edge of the triangle with the straight grain of the fabric, less stretching….
Now go to your cutting board and Using a Ruler with a 1/4 inch marking, you will use your rotary cutter and cut 1/4″ away from the FP, giving you an accurate seam allowance….
Assembly of Block
Lay the fabric triangle, fabric side up, checking the L/M/D arrangement with your original drawing..(if the triangle was a real ‘regular’ i.e. equal sided one, you could easily put it together with the wrong edges together)
Analyze the triangle. the center has three angles. The one with the least Sharp, or the Most Flat triangle will be the ‘set in’ one. (Sew the shortest seam first, is also a good rule here) Therefore pick up the OTHER TWO and put them Right sides facing, and using Two Pins, poke through at the tips of the FP, and see that the seam should lay perfectly, and the Edges should be nice and neat, because you cut such nice 1/4″ seam allowances..
Now, SEW right next to the FP, 1/4″ from the edge, SEW ONLY FROM THE TIP OF THE FREEZER PAPER, TO THE OTHER TIP. Do not allow your seam to go beyond the cut tips of the FP. (I do backstitch one or two stitches but do Not sew into the seam allowance ) Press that seam OPEN, and leave the FP attached.
Set-ins
You will again lay the triangles out face up, with the third triangle in its place, I usually have the “assembled triangles” on the bottom, and the third triangle on the top. Flip the third Triangle down, so that the seam you will sew will be aligned with the triangle on your right. Pin the tips as you did before, and sew the seam from tip to tip.
Now, you can take the unit out and align the last seam. The FP will be RIGID, but you can fold it or crease it without worry, and use the two pins, sew the seam. These seams may be pressed FLAT, they do not need to be pressed open.
You now take the triangle back to the ORIGINAL drawing, and Pin it into place to the drawing.. Now work on the next triangle.
If you make a mistake, you can always just trace one more set of FP to try again, you have not ruined anything….
Oh, this is fun…! isn’t it?
Assembly
You may be working on shapes other than triangles. I think this technique would work well for a Mariners Compass, or a Grandmothers Flower Garden. I hope to play with those to make some ‘distortions’ to see how I can create something new… But for now, we want to get your pieces assembled into a top!
Final Assembly Step –
OK folks, back to some basic geometry concepts. When you are assembling, you want to deal with shapes that are REGULAR. A Regular shape is one that does not have any Indentations (think of a belly button) For example a square and a circle and a hexagon are all regular shapes. the formal definition of a regular shape is ” one that can not have a line pass through it and intersect the edges more than twice.” or some such thing… (it’s been a lot of years) An IRREGULAR Shape might be a Monitor on a Pedestal. there is an inward area under the monitor, and then the Pedestal comes back out.. A set of Mountains would be irregular, as the tips have an Indentation where the valley is.
When two triangles are assembled, you do not want them to be shaped like a W .!!!!!
You do know how to inset triangles now, so SOME of that will be tolerated…
However, if you find that a bizarre intersection has jumped into the middle of your random design, consider the following possible fix.
Do not sew the entire seam… sew from the “regular edge”, but do not complete the seam… stop about 2″ short. Then attach whatever needs to tuck into that space, and then later complete the seam. I do this a lot, just so that the partial design is attached.
You should work from one area, maybe the center or the corner, sewing groups of triangles into REGULAR shapes, and finally assembling all of them together…
Naturally when you are done, you may remove the Freezer Paper.
At this point there may be some edge trimming, if you want to have a rectangle.
You may choose to add a border.
For a small piece you may do a pillow case, and then add binding…
This is one L-O-N-G post. I hope it got you interested! There was an exhibit at the Lancaster Quilt Show of all the quilts made during this ‘online class’. They came from around the world!