I am loving my clamshell project just because it is hand piecing I think. I enjoy just using the most basic of equipment and skills to make something that would be tricky to make as accurately on the machine. There is a perverse satisfaction in that.
Although I can hand piece pretty quickly I feel that I'm working at a more leisurely pace and that is pleasing too!
So how do you piece clamshells ? There are several methods - machine piecing (mine are a bit small for me to piece accurately that way), EPP, appliqué and handpiecing.
I think handpiecing is actually the simplest way and I am making to more so by gu-estimating my quarter inch seam. Otherwise I would be marking it around with a pencil and checking while stitching that I was following the line.
I'm stitching my clamshells in diagonal rows - just half a clamshell at a time under each ark.
You do have to be careful that you align them all the same way! I made that mistake once and was attentive thereafter.
Next I stitch the rows together making sure the points and valleys are matched accurately (after all that is the point of the hand piecing) and stitching up to the seam allowance so that they can be pressed either way or indeed pressed open!
And there you have another panel finished.
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I will piece another and stitch them together. Then stitch the combined panels to the one I have prepared earlier.
Not sure how big I am going to make this....maybe I'll keep going until I have exorcised my clamshell demon...
Although I can hand piece pretty quickly I feel that I'm working at a more leisurely pace and that is pleasing too!
So how do you piece clamshells ? There are several methods - machine piecing (mine are a bit small for me to piece accurately that way), EPP, appliqué and handpiecing.
I think handpiecing is actually the simplest way and I am making to more so by gu-estimating my quarter inch seam. Otherwise I would be marking it around with a pencil and checking while stitching that I was following the line.
I'm stitching my clamshells in diagonal rows - just half a clamshell at a time under each ark.
And the same with the next one...until I have a row of eight!
You do have to be careful that you align them all the same way! I made that mistake once and was attentive thereafter.
Next I stitch the rows together making sure the points and valleys are matched accurately (after all that is the point of the hand piecing) and stitching up to the seam allowance so that they can be pressed either way or indeed pressed open!
And there you have another panel finished.
I will piece another and stitch them together. Then stitch the combined panels to the one I have prepared earlier.
Not sure how big I am going to make this....maybe I'll keep going until I have exorcised my clamshell demon...
Looking fab!
ReplyDeleteThat does look like a common sense way to piece them
ReplyDeleteThankyou for the tutorial!
wowza! I don't think I've seen these pieced together, I always see them appliqued. way to go,
ReplyDeleteI think hand piecing is definitely the easiest way to tackle these shapes!!
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing your method. I think it may be less complicated and easier on hands than EPP.
ReplyDelete