I'm a newbie. I hope this is right. I can remember my Grandmother And my mom talking about using newspaper. Kind of sewing strips of material to the paper. I'm not sure. Does anyone know about this. I do scrap quilts and she always told me about this but it was not very clear. :?:

I have a spider web top that was done in the 1930s. The newspaper is still there and legible, which is how I know the date. I guess plain paper was scarce or expensive, so they used what they had on hand. If I get a chance tomorrow, I will add a picture of it.

http://en.allexperts.com/q/Quilting-...-newspaper.htm

This little Q and A mentions it.

I saw an episode on Simply QUilts about the newspaper quilts.
I learned that if you are going to use newspaper as your foundation to sew strips quilts, you must allow the newspapers to sit for at least two weeks ... apparently, it helps the ink to set and the oils to dissipate or something like that.

Hello there,
I just had my Mother, who is 85,
tell me that when she was young
she used pages out of a Look
magazine to sew her blocks on!! :D
Sure wish she still had a few of them.
:D :D :D :D :D

I've done two string quilts on newspaper. Cut your newspaper about half an inch bigger than you want your blocks to be. Lay your first strip across the diagonal right side up and the second one right side down. Sew one edge. Flip open, iron and continue to cover the paper in one direction. When the first half is covered turn it around and cover the other half. You can use any size strips and they don't even have to be straight. When the paper is covered turn the block over and using a large square ruler trim the block square. Sew the blocks together and add the first border before you tear the paper off since all block edges are bias edges.

Since I'm not a beginner when I did my string quilts I did half the blocks with all dark fabrics and half with all light fabrics and then cut them in half on the diagonal. I cut the dark blocks across the strips and the lights with the strips and then sewed them back together.

Recycle, reuse and have fun with newspaper or magazines, or whatever is at hand. Newspaper is especially good when you want larger blocks. Just do remember to use newspaper that has aged. Fresh newspaper inks have a tendency to transfer to your hands or whatever is near!

Nice tutorial, Scissor Queen.
I do strip quilts on old bedsheets or very thin fabric ... never thought to turn them over to cut them ...
a few months ago, someone had a magazine with the same pattern you just taught us, and let me tell you! It was taking the person following that pattern FOREVER to finish one block. Yours is so much easier!
Don't know how big the telephone books are in your areas, but I think they are made on newsprint paper also.
I have heard that in the "old days" they just left the paper inside for added insulation. Of course, they didn't have washing machines to throw a quilt in to wash it ... probably just soaked it down and let the spring breezes dry it ...

Thanks for the tute. It helps it all make more sense. I guess back then they used whatever was available.

something else to consider ... the strips do not have to be one piece to go across ... you can sew strips end to end and if the "strip" changes in the middle of a line, no harm, more charm!
One of my friends goes through her scraps, cuts three sizes, 1", 2", and 2.5" ... and sews like-sized strips together, rolls them up into a jelly roll.
When she has a bunch, she starts a strip quilt, and just mixes the sizes of the strips from time to time to create "movement" and interest.
Helps gets those scraps in control, and creates a project that can be added to as time goes by.