Arranging the Pieces.
But to get to work. We must think out a little scheme of how we are going to arrange the pieces. Whatever you do, don’t put the dark ones on one side, or throw them away, because they are just what you will want to show up the light ones nicely. We will decide to have our design in squares. A little square of the pink flower could come in the centre. Then to show it up, a dark square with leaves and a bunch of grapes could come above, below, and at each side of it. You might have four little spotty patterns at the corners between two dark bits, and above the top and below the bottom dark piece might be a little fancy pattern. At the four corners left, we will put a rose or rosebud. Look at the picture of a patchwork quilt, and you will see how we have arranged them all. Then we might have a border of the unbleached calico.
Before we go any further, do you know what makes this so attractive and pretty? It is the dark pieces—the pieces you wanted to throw away—and the plain border. These darker pieces throw up the pretty light designs, and make them look even more pretty, whereas, if you put all light together, you could not so easily pick them out.
Tacking the material through the paper square. An old letter has been used here.
Covering and Joining the Squares.
If you haven’t done any patchwork, you will wonder how to get the little squares even, and to join them together. This is how it is managed. You want 15 squares of stiff paper, each measuring 1½ inches each way. Stiff old letters will do beautifully to cut up for this. Get a piece of cardboard, 1½ inches each way, and cut your papers by this, taking great care that they are perfectly even and true. Cut out your 15 pieces of material in squares, which should measure 2 inches each way. That will allow you ¼ inch on each side for turning the end over the paper to make it neat. Tack a piece over each square of paper, as in the picture. When the 15 squares are covered, join them all together on the wrong side with oversewing stitches, arranging them as we decided. You will see how to do oversewing on [page 28].
This shows the right side of the square. The tacking threads are afterwards cut away and the paper pulled out.
How to Manage the Border.