Lesson 1 begins with the realization that you don’t get to sew yet, much less actually quilt.  The quilting is way at the end. If we’re lucky, we’ll get to that part before it starts snowing again.
Lesson 1 – The one in which we learn to cut strips.
I have the fabric. Some of it, multiple yards. So, yes, it’s long. We start the project by cutting out the strips that will be used many weeks from now in the borders and sashing.  I’m not quite sure what sashing is yet.
Lesson 1 is actually accomplished on Easter Sunday. During a bit of down time between church and dinner, I decide to attack the project.
I’ve already washed all the fabric to pre-shrink and hold off the possibility of colors running into each other during future washes.  I begin to iron. I hate to iron, but it’s definitely more fun if it’s for crafting purposes versus clothes.
First obstacle: The Very Light Background fabric. I went with a very pale purple/lavender. I couldn’t iron it; the iron sticks to it, like it’s going to melt. Crap…maybe I should have double checked what the fabric is made of when I went to that other section of bolts in the store.  It’s not very wrinkled, so I decide to let it go. I don’t iron it. I won’t need it for some time (I think) and I may decide to use a different background fabric later.  Every piece gets ironed at some point… I need to be able to take an iron to it.  So, later I’ll have to decide: find a substitute for the background fabric or iron with a towel over it to protect it.  Like Scarlet O’hara, tomorrow is another day…
I amaze myself at my ability to iron large amounts of fabric, so I move on to Lesson 1.   How do you cut a strip of cloth 104 inches long when your cutting board/pad is just 24 inches long?  The answer: carefully…and slowly.  Two hours later, I have:

• 2 strips 3″ x 104″
• 2 strips 3″ x 100″
• 2 strips 3″ x 90″
• 4 strips 3″ x 56″
• 2 strips 9.5″ x 104″
• 2 strips 9.5″ x 90″

 

I also have a chart to remind myself which fabrics I’m using for which parts.