What's the deal with Seminole Piecing?

Have you tried Seminole piecing? Maybe you're an expert who is already incorporating this vibrant technique into your garments, quilts, or other creations? If that's the case, you might want to jump straight to the photos section of this blog post.

But if you’re new to Seminole piecing and wondering what makes it so special, read on!

Originally developed by Native Americans, the Seminole patchwork technique involves sewing together strips of fabric to create striking geometric designs. Depending on the fabrics used, the strips can be very colorful and are great for small quilts, wall hangings, accents to brighten up a garment or, as seen in several of Rachel's garments, they can become the very fabric of the garment.

Although some of the multi-color/fabric bands may seem impossibly complicated it's really just a matter of following the "recipe". Each band is just a series of steps, -folds, seams and layout done in the right order.

Some simple as well as some more complex Seminole bands. Note that using solid fabrics is not a requirement when doing Seminole piecing. Patterned fabrics can produce especially interesting bands.

Rachel teaching a class and demo-ing some colorful Seminole bands ranging from a simple two fabric band on the left to more complex arrangements on the right.

Rachel building a simple two-color Seminole band. One nice thing about Seminole piecing is that it can be as simple or complex as your experience and interest level allow. Below are some examples of Rachel's Seminole notes, "recipes," for building more elaborate and multi-color bands:

So what can you do with these bands? Nearly anything you can imagine!

From a simple two color border or accent to a showcase of different geometric designs and a festival of color! There's as many combinations and possibilities as there are fabrics.

And if you are feeling extra bold, you can do something like this: