The Double Wedding Ring is a beautiful, traditional block that is associated with love, romance and of course marriage. For fabric lovers, this is such a fun block to play with, plan layouts and stitch! This is a bucket list block, one that all quilters will recognise and want to sew. It works wonderfully with either traditional or modern fabrics and is open to lots of variation within the pattern. I have made two blocks, one English Paper Pieced and one hand pieced (they are two different techniques) and will be demonstrating both methods in my upcoming online class. I had so much fun stitching the blocks and want to share my process here. Keep reading to see my two very different versions of the block...
The first is EPP, for this one I chose modern fabrics and decided to chose warm and cool colours for contrast. I used paper pieces from Lina Patchwork and then experimented with glue and thread basting to get the neatest finish - I will be sharing what I found in my class so that you can find what works best for you too.
The central part of the block is actually quite big, the finished block is 12", so you can really have fun with bigger prints or fussy cutting. I will also be sharing some ways you can use patchwork and other techniques to change the look of the block... there are so many possibilities that really excite me!
One of the magical things (like with other blocks) is how cool the blocks look when you put them together. I haven't had time to stitch this many blocks but was able to mock up what it would look like:
The placement of colour really impacts the finished look and with this combination the blue and orangey/red petals pop. This version has a modern, bright beachy vibe and I like the scrappy effect of all the prints used.
Fabrics:
Terra Kotta, Capsules by AGF Studio - thank you Jess!
For the next block, I decided to hand piece instead. Hand piecing is without papers and is (probably) my favourite method. It's quicker than epp and I feel as though I have more control. At first it seems strange but you quickly adjust to stitching just two layers of fabric, it opens up a lot of design possibilities too.
I was lucky enough to receive a fat eighth bundle of Liberty's The Artist's Home collection from The Quilter's Den, which I used to make this block. Check out their beautiful selection of Liberty quilting fabrics (currently on sale!). They kindly sent me two bundles, one for a giveaway I recently had on my instagram - if you're not following me over there click here to do it!
Rather than recreate the block in the same way, I adapted a curved section so that it was one piece rather than six. This creates another look and offers more variation, like the two layouts below. Originally my plan was to stitch it as on the right but then I changed my mind when I moved the pieces around.
I fussy cut the Painter's Vase print, which adds a nice little detail in the corner pieces and this block has such a pretty garden vibe. A mix of more modern florals, like the central Sketchbook Bloom, and designs revived from the Liberty archive.
You might also notice that I arranged the small outer curve pieces from light to dark, this helps create subtle movement in the block and you see the impact of this in the mock ups below.
Ready to make a Double Wedding Ring block with me?
In this class you will:-
Explore different placements of colours and fabrics to create the block
Glue basting and thread basting the various shapes
English Paper Piecing - how to sew the shapes together, plus an alternative hand piecing method using the paper pieces as templates. You can use either method!
Other ways to use the paper templates
How to adapt the block design to create different looks
Stitch one block or many - no pressure, this is a calm class!
Click here to book your place!
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Wow!! That orange and blue is stunning...great job!!