I had a huge bag of muslin scraps and cut uncounted 2.5" x 4.5" rectangles plus have 30 of the 4.5" by 12.5" pieces. I've used all the scraps now and do have a larger piece to cut more from if needed to finish the back. The next round was pulling out my scrappy squares to cut down the 6"-ers to 4.5" squares for the color families.
This particular 6" size isn't one usually called for in patterns, so there were a lot of choices to be had in it once they were trimmed. Right now, its a cut-as-you-go in order to use scraps.
The first round of piecing was to join a small muslin piece to a color. Then there is a pattern of three-together, what I have is pinned in threes and will be joined and pressed. Next, that part gets pinned with the larger muslin rectangles. Even though it is a beginner's pattern, there is a lot to do with it.
I really didn't know a lot about muslin and wasn't sure what to do with the small scraps I had, and so did some research. It gets its name from Mosul, Iraq, where it was first manufactured and was imported to Europe for much of the 17th- and early-18th centuries. It was heavily manufactured in Bangladesh as a handwoven material and to this day is made with varying weights and widths. It is surprising how many uses there are for it depending upon the weight and weave.
What I had was made for quilting and pieces were both unbleached or natural, and bleached to get more of a white (shows up in the photo). It all coordinates so I just cut and cut, pinned, pieced, unpinned and pressed. Up to now, I have not bought muslin myself and have a new respect for it as an addition to quilts where a white is needed in a pattern. Guess this is still a test.
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