The Splendid Sampler 2 - My Grandfather Clock

Happy New Year! I am so excited for all the fun we are going to have this year, who's with me? To get this party started we have this "Grandfather Block" I was asked to design for Pat Sloan and Jane Davidson for their Splendid Sampler 2 book. It was so much fun to design this foundation paper piecing block in Electric Quilt using the EQ8 program, and then add some embroidery and needle turn applique. So if you have ever wanted to try a little bit of everything in one block, I'm sharing some of my tips below...so here you go! 

These are the fabrics (all fat quarters) I was sent from Moda Fabrics along with some Aurifil threads. I wanted to share with you my process for selecting the fabrics so as you are considering fabrics for your Grandfather Clock, you'll have the best outcome.

As tradition calls for it, I used a pure white for the face of the clock and built it out from there. I selected the two tones of beige for my "wood" coloring. One as a lighter color as if it has light shining on it and one darker for shadows. I did the same for the blue. The darker blue allows the clock to have the "inside" feeling while the lighter blue helps the pendulum to sit forward. The red helps the face to pop but I added the tiny touch of blue in the center with the fussy cut tulip to balance out the blue in the lower half. So as you select your colors, know that using two tones for wood and two tones for the blue areas would work best.

To transfer the face of your clock onto a large piece of white fabric, use a strong light source (like the Daylight Company Wafer 2 lightbox) and a water soluble marking pen (mine is from Prym/Dritz).

Place your white fabric into a hoop to embroider the face. I used the 8782 Blue Wool 12 thread from Aurifil so it would be thicker and only require a single stitch per line. Because I used Roman Numerals, it made stitching it so quick (because no curves!), but feel free to change yours to numbers if you prefer.
Be creative with the "time" that you stitch on your clock. This can be a personal number or memory with a date or time reference. There are 4 members of my family (hubby and 2 daughters) and I have 8 siblings so I have my 'arrows' (hands) pointing at the 4 and 8, which would be 4:40.

When putting your clock face together and attaching it to your foundation paper pieced block, be sure to use a pin in the center of each pattern piece to align them properly. These center points are marked on the pattern pieces specifically to help align them. Transfer those center points onto your fabric and use the pin technique shown above.

When your Grandfather Clock is all put together, you can then flip over your block and carefully cut out the excess fabric to reduce the bulk if you choose to do so.

My Paternal Grandfather had 6 Grandfather Clocks in his house. I think my uncle now has them all in Connecticut, but I will always remember them scattered about and chiming throughout the home he built in Maryland for his family. The block we designed was supposed to represent "I'm living my best quilting life when....", and for me that is when I am spending time with my family and living a balanced life. Time passes so quickly and it's so important to not miss what is in front of you at any given time. So I designed a clock. But not just any clock, a Grandfather Clock, to add in that important element of family and history and making memories. Do you have a Grandfather Clock memory or story? I'd love to hear it. Please feel free to share it below or find me (Kid Giddy) on Instagram and Facebook to share your story there.

You can get a copy of the Splendid Sampler 2 book by clicking through to the Splendid Sampler website. Thanks so much for visiting!

Disclosure: I received the fabric and thread to help create my block and also received a copy of the book for having made my block, but the opinions and comments provided are always my own. There are no affiliate links. Thank you.