Have found time to finish a lap quilt made up from blocks completed as part of the Intermediate Patchwork course I finished recently. The course was great fun!
I have always loved the Hearts and Crosses coverlet in the Quilters' Guild collection and have made two previous quilts with more than a nod to the original. This time I wanted to make a 'modern' version using the same dimensions as the original. When I look at the original (on the cover of the pattern), I can see that the maker sometimes changed fabrics part way along a strip. How 'Improv'! I guess nothing is new. I wanted to use Improv crosses (slash and Insert) rather than the Victorian style ones on the original. I moved the hearts to the cornerstones. Their appearance is more subtle than in the original. I left the sashing plain as the quilt is already very busy. The eye needs to rest somewhere! So, what do I think of it, so far? In retrospect, I think that using more pale strips would have been easier on the eye. I am not used to adding random colours to a quilt. I am a planner and always coordinate the fabrics I put to...
I have finally finished my 'Daisy' quilt - otherwise known as the Hertfordshire Quilt, pattern by Carolyn Konig. The pattern is inspired by the Billings Coverlet in the UK Quilter's Guild collection. About three quarters of the quilt was hand pieced. Parts of it are well-travelled, as little baggies of cut shapes, needle, thread and scissors travelled with me on every holiday. I made some changes to the outer border. The original had 2200 small honeycombs to be English paper pieced. I used my Sizzix to cut the honeycombs. They are larger than the original pattern. I English paper pieced each motif and then appliqued it to the border background. This reduced the number of honeycombs to about 600. I machine quilted in the ditch over nearly every seam in the quilt. None of those hand stitched seams are going to fall apart. I did some stipple in the outer and one other border. With a quilt this busy, fancy FMQ is a waste of t...
Not much progress to report this week. I was inspired by the ferns in my front garden to draw some ferns unfurling and then to attempt to FMQ them. I used a fat quarter yard of Kaffe Fassett shot cotton and Isacord thread. I used a dark green thread for the ferns and regretted it. The thread looks black, rather than green against the shot cotton. I used Patsy Thompson's method for doing trapunto for the first time. It does make the ferns pop. I intended to leave the piece with just the thread - like a wholecloth, but to my eyes, it looked pretty dull, so I used my Inktense pencils lightly to add a little dimension. I think the piece would have looked better with some hand dyed backing...maybe next time. I get frustrated with myself at times, but I learn from each and every mistake. :) A fern in my front garden
I love the wedding photo with the crazy quilting. I haven't got the guts to try it yet, but one day!
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