A Couple of Finishes

I have finally managed to finish a couple of quilts over the last couple of weeks.

The first is an old embroidered tablecloth.  I started quilting this one last October.  Initially the quilting was done using a matching Wedgewood coloured thread.  I found that the quilting underwhelming and the motifs were very difficult to see, despite using two layers of batting - one layer of Hobbs Tuscany wool and Hobbs Polydown.  What did I learn?  I should have used trapunto!  The two layers did not allow the quilting to 'pop'.  I used a dense scribble stitch as background quilting.  I found that the coarse weave of the linen top made it difficult to get the effect I wanted.  I put the quilt away for 5 months, but I HATE giving up on a project.  I finished the quilting and used Jacquard Fabric Paint and Derwent Inktense pencils to colour the motifs. I used a different finish at the edges.  I folded the backing cotton to give a quarter inch hem that met the edge to the tablecloth exactly and slip stitched it down.   Lastly I hot-fixed some crystals to add a bit of bling.  I'm still not delighted with the quilt, but feel that I have done all I can with it.

My second finish is a Spring Colours wallhanging.  I am creating several wallhangings using seasonal colours for my sitting room, so I can change them regularly to suit the season.  This was a quick and fun project to sew.  The pattern is by Susan Briscoe and was published in Issue 6 of Today's Quilter magazine. 

I made some minor changes to the pattern.  The original used 2.5 inch jelly roll strips,  I cut each of my strips in half lengthwise, so I have three quarter inch finished strips instead of 2 inch finished strips.  I also decreased the width of the outer border from 7 inches to 4 inches, so that the finished quilt would fit my hanging space.

I have had a Moda Folklore jelly roll sitting in my stash for some time and was beginning to despair of finding a pattern I liked enough to use it.  Susan based her design on the 19th century Hearts and Crosses Coverlet in the Quilter's Guild of the British Isles collection.  I admired the original for ages, so was thrilled to see Susan's pattern! 

The quilting was very straightforward, but time consuming, as I stitched in the ditch over every seam.  The sashing was quilted on my mechanical Bernina 1008, using a Westalee ruler foot and ruler.  I used a variety of fills to give some light and shade in the triangles.  I used Hobbs Polydown batting and am pleased with the 'puff' it has given to the quilt.  I had a few little scraps left, so incorporated them into the binding.

I am SO tempted to make more of these.  There are so many fabrics that would work with this design - scraps, autumn colours, Kaffe Fassett brights or pastels or shot cottons, Christmas fabrics etc.  Increasing the width odf the sashing and adding some applique would also work.  My quilt finished at 58", but as the measurements are given at each stage in the project, it could easily be made larger or smaller.  I LOVE this pattern.