I know, I know...the blog has been neglected. It has been 3 weeks since the last meager post. It is not that I don't have a few things I could post, but I have just "not been in the mood", said in the words of mt eldest son. Truth be told, issues on the homefront have left me uninspired and lazy. I know I need to motivate, but it is not easy.
Here is a client quilt that just went home today. It has a wool batt and is quilted with mostly YLI polished poly thread.
She did a nice job of leaving open spaces for quilting. This is a double edged sword though -- large open spaces are pretty for doing creative designing, but usually the client's budget does not support the time required. Times like this I have a few things I can quilt quickly, like feathers and fills.
It is pretty, and she was happy when she picked it up this morning.
The last couple weeks have been all about getting ready to go to MQX. I thought I was ready, but have managed to find the need to quilt off a couple more samples. This is part of one done for my grid-based fillers. I love to do the Sashiko fills, and realized that my samples lean towards those. I wanted to have something else that shows some fills that are of another flavor.
I will be teaching this class again at MQX Midwest in September, as well as Quilt Odyssey in July.
I am leaving in 2 days for MQX in NH. I have 2 quilts there -- my new purple wholecloth as well as one I started 4 years ago and opted to finish this year. Neither are expected by me to be "big hitters". In fact, I will be surprised if the carpenter's star even ribbons. It's kind of mundane IMHO, and I sense that this category has some really good quilts.
Illuminations, 2016
The quilt has moments of greatness, with points of "eh, not so greatness!". That's the way it goes. I know that my skills and my style have evolved over the last 4 years. This does not directly reflect my favorite look. None the less, it is better to finish it than to sell it off for a couple hundred dollars.
What better quilt to try out a new binding on than one you consider an experiment anyways?! I did a double-piped scalloped binding. It actually turned out pretty good I think. I'll scrounge up the points wherever they are available.
Here's a closeup...
Ode to Spring is my other quilt at MQX. It was at Mid Atlantic last, earning a 3rd (bested by one of my other quilt, and another whole cloth). I wondered if it would received comments about the painted dragon flies there, as it did at Road to CA, but it did not. That's a good thing, as I like these.
This must be the year of the dragonfly since they are on both of my quilts. That may be a dead give-away if a judge at MQX caught that they are identical, just different sizes! I love this lavendar (the color on the next photo is just not right) whole cloth. I think the design is intricate and clever. I had issues with the backing that I fully expect to bite me on the backside. Maybe I shoulda named it "Best viewed from the front".
Here are some other detail shots. I don't think I have shared these here.
It is quilted with pink Glide thread and several shades of silk for the dense fillers.
Again, seeking the creativity points for my binding...A plain straight binding is not enough. Ok, that is boring!!!
It was immensely time consuming to hand ruche the trim, but it gives it an interesting finish. Again, we'll see what the MQX judges think of this one. There are a couple other whole cloth quilts in this category that I know are well done, so again, we'll see how Ode to Spring fares.
My hand-pieced hexagon project is coming along. It's not like I need a new project just yet, but I am not so good at just finishing things before moving on either. The hexies are 3" on a side, so there will be less piecing, and more creative fabric cutting on this one.
Block #1
Block #2 is all cut out and ready to take on my Paducah trip in 2 weeks. There should be ample airport, bus and sitting time to make some headway. FYI - these blocks are loosely based on the book by Katja Marek (Milliefore). I have used a couple of her patterns, but this will not be a Milliefore, as those are way too popular, and I need my quilts to have my own flair.
Off to get ready for me trip. If you are also going to MQX in Manchester this week, stop in and say hi!
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4 comments:
Your hand ruched trim is beautiful. Lovely detail. The hexies are so interesting.
Your client did an amazing job with the piecing of their quilt and choosing the colors. I would be thrilled if I had a quilt and came back with the quilting you put on it. Good luck in the show. I'll be interested to see how it turns out. I know the competition is fierce. I guess that has to be a good thing or you would have to quilt everyone's quilts. Double piping and ruching on the other. I think both should get you extra points. Both of those quilts are fantastic.
1. You have my permission to start new projects before finishing others. It helps me justify the fact that I do that, too.
2. I love every single stitch you're showing in this post. That whole cloth quilt is perfectly amazing. I don't know if I'll be able to get to any big shows this year to see it in person. Maybe if you show it next year, I'll get to see it. Your quilts are always one of the highlights of a show.
Carole S.
I have to say your quilts are stunning. I have been quilting for 45 years and even though I still love to hand quilt, I can see the beauty in your machine quilted pieces. As I don't know much about machine quilting, I was happy to see you background sample ideas. To be honest I didn't even know that there were classes on machine quilting happening at quilt shows. Yes I am old fashioned, but the cost of a quilting machine prohibits me from purchasing one.
Your comment that you don't want to make a milliefiore as there are too many being made interesting. I am always looking for ideas and I understand that trends catch on easy, but I like that you are adding some of the ideas to your piece.
I am looking forward to following your blog.
Bonnie
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