Many styles of quilting require that the quilter sets up a large quilting frame and pieces the blocks together and then adding the battening and backing to the entire quilt. However, in early days of American history that was not always the case. The quilt-as-you-go style was developed by the pioneer women, who had many long hours to pass while traveling by covered wagon, a great need for warm blankets to face the cold winters, and absolutely no way to set up a large quilting frame. So how does the quilt-as-you-go technique work? The name is meant to be taken fairly literally. The strategy is to complete one whole piece, complete with backing and battening, before you move on to the next piece. The blocks are generally 12”. Once you have enough blocks done that you can easily cover a bed then you are able to join and bind the blocks. This is still an extremely handy way to quilt, especially for those living in apartments or without a good working space in their homes to set up large quilting frames. Your blocks in the quilt-as-you-go style can be any number of patterns and fabrics. You can make a scrapbook quilt, a sampler, or go with a theme of certain flowers. Whatever suits you, although it is advised that the backing have a small pattern because it is easier to hide stitches that way. Experts recommend that each finished block have a 2”sashing sewn around them because it will make it easier to join with other blocks, if this is your first time trying out this quilting technique.
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