Wednesday, March 18, 2015

One Day Closer to Another Finish


I started this lovely quilt just about a year ago.
I'd made several for other people, and decided
I wanted one just for me. Something a little
vintage-looking, feminine, sweet maybe.

I started it one day without a pattern, and soon
found myself in a pickle in how it was all
put together. I was pretty new at this yet.


I loved the fabrics, and I was already drawn 
to the simplicity of a cross block.


It was about a week until the top was done, and 
time to start quilting. This was the very first
quilt I ever started FMQ on, and I was using 
my classic Pfaff with a 7" throat. It was like
Big Time Quilt Wrestling. It sat until I had 
a bigger machine, and that's when I found
my Janome that I use now.

Fast-forward to a few weeks ago.
The top was done except for half a 
dozen crosses or half crosses.



My quilting is not perfect, but this is neither a show 
quilt nor a commission. I'm still learning!
There are place you can tell I stopped, small 
differences in where I was learning this motif
at the beginning to how it smoothed out toward
the end, and I figured loads out about tension
issues. This picture is where I'm ending the 
motif, and probably going too fast. I will
do some ripping today to fix it. Not a biggie.


I finally learned how to meander. For the life of
me, it was the hardest part of FMQ I had to learn.
I also figured out to draw a path on the quilt so
I could tell where to go next. It's hard to see
this when you're dealing with so much bulk,
even with a larger home machine.


Each individual motif needed to 
have the threads buried. Cheater
needles are your friend!


Yesterday I went to my first Bee Day at the guild
I've joined, and I finished the motifs then started
the border. I have a much harder time following
lines than free-wheeling the design. 
The leaves suited all the flower fabrics.


The last border was started, but I ran out of 
energy. I took a break to just socialize. I think
that's what a Bee is actually all about, right?
What a wonderful group I've gotten 
myself in to!


The texture is the high point for me, and
I think it has a lot to do with the batting. I've
used a 50/50 bamboo and cotton. It's luxurious,
and adds more loft and poof than my normal 
Warm and Natural all cotton. I will definitely
be keeping this in stock.

The sewing and quilting group meets up
tonight at our local JoAnn's. If you're 
in the New Philadelphia, Ohio, area
be sure to drop in to say hello.

Come on, Doxie Girls.
Let's go sew.



14 comments:

Lisa in Port Hope said...

I love the different motifs you have used. Remember, finished is better than perfect.

Mari said...

The quilting looks great! I don't see any mistakes. We're our own worst critics. This will be a very sweet quilt. How fun to keep one for yourself!

Debra said...

Very pretty colors.. and the quilting is great. Love your quilting pattern choices. very nice to have one of your own!

Julierose said...

this is a very pretty quilt--and you are so brave to do something other than what I always do--straight quilting--and to meander. I tried it on scrap fabric and got all turned about...I just cannot get the hang of it! Anyway--I love those crosses....nice work hugs, Julierose

Laura Chaney said...

Your quilting looks lovely! I need to spend more time practicing my FMQ.

Yvonne from Quilting Jetgirl said...

I found learning to make the curved, meandering stipple to be the hardest thing to learn to FMQ as well. Good luck getting it finished up! :)

Cathy said...

That quilt is absolutely gorgeous!!! I love the vintage vibe and your quilting...just wow!

Shauna said...

Ohhh I think it is beautiful, I love the colors and all those issues you pointed out are for your eyes only. I would not have seen them if you hadn't told me they were there.

MegsAnn said...

I love it! The quilting is lovely and it's great that it was a learning project too. A machine with a bigger throat sure does make a difference. :) www.quiltartbymegan.com

Val's Quilting Studio said...

ALways love your color combinations! This quilt is just so pretty.

sophie said...

"This is neither a show quilt, nor a commission" ... sometimes it seems like we need a reason to be imperfect, try new things and have fun, doesn't it?

Muv said...

Hello Julie,

What a fantastic quilt! Doing FMQ on a large quilt can really heavy going, coupled with the fact that you were working with so many patterned fabrics. You have packed in so many different FMQ designs - I love it!

Thank you for linking up with Free Motion Mavericks!

Love, Muv

Unknown said...

I love the top and all those quilting patterns. I am always glad my quilt are no show quilts. I do not need to rip out so often and I can enjoy the quilting with imperfections!! Hope you had a lot of fun with the fmq.
Love from Amsterdam

Anonymous said...

What a great start to FMQ. The motifs look great. I hope you continue to have fun with it.