Saturday, October 24, 2015

Pop Stars for Halloween


"Pop Stars" 
Pattern from Material Obsession 2 
by Kathy Doughty


This has been one of my lingering projects, and has had a voracious appetite for my sewing time. I've sewn every spare minute for 4 days to complete these last 4 stars, square them up, and sew all together. It's become one of the most delightful quilts I've ever worked on.
The actual piecing has been rather simple, but the act of choosing the fabric based on value close up compared to the image when viewed from a distance is amazing. The secondary pattern of webs that develops is mesmerising! I find myself just staring at it.


Photography Problems

I've been struggling to show both the fabric details, and the true colors. I imagine the change of natural light as we move toward winter is partly the issue. 



This accidental shot on my ironing surface shows the true colors better than any. Sometimes another color in the photo will help it as it did here.



I've been following my mantra of, "Keep your head down and quilt." A thermos of hot tea, good music, and sun at my window has made for a soothing week of work.




This flock takes the time to stop by my window several times a day on their journey in and out of the woods.




I hit this point late one morning, and decided it was a good place to stop. The top measured 63" x 63". I had all intentions of using a woven fabric backing, but then I wondered how luxurious a Minky backing would be. I was disappointed to realize that Minky came in 60", but thrilled to find a few selected colors in 90", labelled as extra wide. To top it off, my LQS had 2 yards of the 90" in charcoal.



I ran for the Minky, and came home to immediately start piecing another row. My Minky was 72" x 90", and a 63" x 84" top would center on that just about perfectly. Instead of a square lap quilt, this will be an amazingly long quilt for even the tallest member of the family, or perfect for sleeping under on the couch. It may be a slightly unusual size for most, but there are no Quilt Police, right? Do what makes you happy.



This is my weekend project, and I have hopes of having it pinned into my frame by tomorrow. I still have plenty of time to come in under the wire for Halloween. I'm inspired! I hope you have an inspiring project yourself. If you don't, then find one. It's good to feed your own fire. There's not a thing wrong with repeating, "Keep your head down and quilt."

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

10 comments:

  1. It's .... it's .... just fantastic, spooktacular, haha, Julie!! I came here to link back to you in my post, which should be published in a few minutes, and saw the finished flimsy! Being near-sighted has its advantages, and this is a time when I can pop off the glasses and ooh and ahh over the web effect secondary pattern you've got. How COOL that Minky is available in 90"?! Good to know as I have lamented the 60" since I did think about using it on a bigger quilt. And charcoal to boot. Doesn't it feel so very very good to keep your head down and just do what you love and what brought you to blogging in the first place? :-) Are those turkey buzzards or wild turkeys? We have both here.

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  2. The flimsy looks great. How lucky you are to have that great view out of your window xx

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  3. I love this! I haven't seen any quilt police lately and they better not be stopping at my place either...lol

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  4. Keep your head down and quilt. I love that! I'm gearing up to do just that this winter. Your quilt is perfect for those tall people in your family, or just to snuggle extra comfy! Happy Halloween!

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  5. Good luck with your progress. Don't worry about the quilt police -- do what makes you happy!!!

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  6. Stunning is too short a word for this quilt! Your piecing so precise and the color mix wonderful--congratulations on an idea brought to maximum. Personally, I prefer rectangular quilts over square. I bought extra wide width Minky online and it is yummy. My sister-in-law calls it polyester lithium :)

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  7. You and I have the same sewing machine. I love it and will be very sad if it ever dies. Love your Halloween quilt. Halloween is my favorite time to decorate.

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  8. Love your version of this pattern.

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  9. Those blocks do take a lot of stitching. Hope you have it all ready for Halloween. It's fun and gorgeous. I'm sure there will be someone on the couch cuddled under it by next weekend.

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  10. I like how this quilt is turning out. I just might have to add it to my "to do" list. I also sew with a Pfaff Creative 1475 machine and just love it. Last month I ordered a sewing extension table so it better last for a long time yet. I also have wild turnkeys in my yard. A couple weeks ago, one of them got one of the 6 apples that survived the blossom freeze in May but not the wind storm we had the night before. One of the turkeys picked it up from the ground, ran with it for awhile, stopped to look for the others-his mother, siblings, aunts, and cousins numbering 19 in all-and then dropped it. As they got closer, he picked it up and ran again. This game continued for 10 minutes. It was wildly hilarious to watch a real natural game of "catch me if you can." Karen

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Thoughtful comments are Honey to My Heart! Thank you for taking time to leave such words. Feel free to email me directly with any specific questions at julie@pinkdoxies.com
Julie
Pink Doxie Mama