Shades of Black

I have been doing my best to make more time for sewing and quilting...and setting aside a little bit of time to try out the newest AccuQuilt dies - specifically, the dies in the fall "stash buster" collection. There were twelve new GO! dies in the last release and one of these dies is the GO! Equilateral Triangle (4.5" sides - 4.25" finished). It seems equilateral triangles are currently 'all the rage', so I was excited to have a little time at my sewing machine to play with this versatile shape. Last night, I decided to grab some black and white fabrics from my stash (Shades of Black by Me & My Sister Designs for Moda) and started cutting triangles...I was cutting without a particular project in mind, but quickly decided on a pillow cover. I cut 42 triangles, but ended up only needing 32 for my pillow cover...the rest I will use for another project. The GO! 4.5" Equilateral Triangle die makes things extremely easy by cutting off the dog ears and placing notches on two sides to quickly line up your pieces for sewing.

I was able to sew the triangles into rows with lightning speed...and in no time, I was quilting my patchwork. I used fusible fleece instead of batting...and using my presser foot as a guide, quilted zig-zag lines about a 1/2" apart, covering the entire piece - giving the quilting a chevron look. I then used a fun floral print (Sun-kissed by Michele D'Amore Designs for Benartex) to make an envelope back with a Velco closure.

....and the results were exactly what I wanted - a beautiful pillow cover in just a couple hours. I used a 14" pillow form, although the cover was slightly larger (I didn't want to cut off the tops and bottoms of my outer rows of triangles). This die is definitely a winner and I can see using it for TONS of future projects! I am just thrilled with the results and plan to send this beauty off to a good friend who LOVES black & white color combinations...

As I have a chance to work with the other AccuQuilt GO! dies in this collection, I will be sure to share the results with you...I have a plethora of fun ideas and hope to do a little more fabric cutting later today...fingers crossed....