I Did It!

I just finished machine quilting my massive Moda Building Blocks quilt!  After just about having a stroke over it six weeks ago (my normal response when I first start machine quilting anything!!),  I walked away from it and hadn't touched it since.  I finally sat down and ripped out the initial four 4 rows of stitching Friday night, then started in on it yesterday (instead of tackling some customer work I should have been doing!), and realized it was going to be doable after all.  

Initially, I was all whacked out wishing I hadn't attempted straight-line quilting such a large quilt (84x96"!) on my domestic machine; I've done a number of smaller quilts with no trouble before, but a quilt this size is a different story.  It didn't make sense at that point to take all the safety pins out and send it to Kathy O. after I had spent hours on the kitchen floor pin basting it.  I knew most long arm machines have a lock that allows the rows of stitching to be perfectly straight, or are computerized, giving a consistent result.  Knowing that, and knowing that I could have had it long arm quilted, I was afraid I wouldn't be happy if my stitching lines weren't straight.  And, I was afraid the rows would get more and more distorted as I went.   Also, I was concerned that since it was such a big quilt, the pressure of the walking foot would cause the top layer to shift and distort after each 96" row of stitching.  AND, I knew that maneuvering that big of a quilt with my walking foot wasn't going to be easy (FMQing would have been much easier).  And, I knew it would take me 4.ever!!

I can drive myself NUTS and totally paralyze myself!

But, I reduced the foot pressure on my walking foot, and that seemed to do the trick.  I spaced the rows about 1/2" apart by using the edge of my walking foot.  I was able to keep the rows fairly consistent and straight, for the most part, thanks to the block design of the quilt that provides a natural plumb line here and there throughout the quilt.  I marked an initial plumb line in the center of the quilt with blue painters tape to get me started, then worked out from there.  It got easier and easier to maneuver the bulk of the quilt as I got to the sides.  The stitching isn't perfect of course, but as always, I have to remind myself that nothing looks perfect when you have your nose  right up to it.  And, I have to remember - perfection isn't the goal here! I want something hand-crafted, not factory made.  All those little imperfections are what gives a hand-made quilt its charm.  Bottom line, it just feels right being able to say that I did both the piecing and the machine quilting.

I love the texture the straight-line quilting gives!  Ever since I saw Camille's version, I knew that's how I wanted to quilt mine.

And, I love how it looks on the back, especially with this funky backing fabric that is a perfect match color-wise for the front.  :)

OK, I just need to add the binding, then it's ready for the fair in a few weeks!  I may rip out a few wonky stitches here and there and redo them, but other than that, it will soon be finished!

Note:  Next time I think I'll use Warm and Natural batting vs. the Hobbs 80/20 just to be safe - the 80/20 has a bit more loft and does cause more shifting. 

Did I Bite Off More Than I Can Chew??

I'm not sure!

I debated and debated about having Kathy O. long arm quilt my Modern Building Blocks quilt top.  I knew she could fly through it and the stitching would be perfection, but in the end I decided I should tackle it myself, especially since it's simply straight line quilting with my walking foot.  And, I plan to enter it in our local fair in August and really wanted to be able to say that I pieced and machine quilted it myself.

I'm stitching the rows 1/2" apart.

I've stitched four rows so far - this is going to take me 4.EVER!

(Kathy, I guess it's too late for you to bail me out????)

I'm not 100% happy with my stitching, so I may rip out those first four rows....  

I'm using Hobbs 80/20 batting; it's a bit thicker than the Warm & White/Natural that I often use, so I think I need to adjust the foot pressure so there isn't as much drag.  Since this is such a big quilt (84x96!), there's a bit of distortion by the time I got to the bottom of the quilt.  This is the biggest quilt I've done the straight line stitching on; I've never had any issues with smaller quilts.

I've been keeping a card file for each machine quilting scenario I've done (both FMQ and walking foot), noting the batting, thread, needle, stitch length, and foot pressure.   It gives me a good starting point every time I tackle a new project.

As you can see, this is one BIG quilt - much bigger and I wouldn't have been able to baste it on my kitchen floor!

A Few Quilt Top Finishes!

I took a quick break from my Modern Building Block quilt and stitched two Big Wonky Star quilt tops.

At my quilt guild's retreat earlier this month, Gloria showed me one of Jenny Doan's Block magazines that had this this pattern in it.  I couldn't get it out of my head, so I went home and stitched not only one top, but two!  It's a really quick quilt to stitch up. In fact, it took me longer to select, cut and then refold my fabric than it did to stitch it!  So, if you're using a layer cake, you'll have this together in no time.

The pattern calls for 10" Layer Cake squares which I didn't have, so I pulled some fabrics out of my stash and cut them into 7" squares since the scraps weren't big enough for 10" blocks.  At approx. 40 x 46, it makes a nice size baby quilt.

After studying it for a while,

... I wondered if the stars would stand out better if all the fabrics were of a medium value vs. some lights, so I stitched another one out of  my Denyse Schmidt stash.  This time I had enough fabric to cut 10" squares.  BUT, I like the first quilt better!!  I like the larger prints and the interest created by the various fabrics and values.  I think the DS fabrics are better showcased in smaller blocks or more intricate piecing.

Using 10" blocks, this quilt measures approx. 58" x 67".

When I laid my quilt tops out together to photograph them, I was surprised to discover that the Bella Solids from the Modern Building Blocks kit coordinate perfectly with the Denyse Schmdt fabrics!  SO, I got the idea to stitch yet another Wonky Star quilt out of the scraps from my MBB quilt and use it as the backing!  :)

Of course, this is after I already purchased some yardage specifically for the backing - this kind of thing happens to me all the time!!  :)

I think I 'll be happy with the Denyse Schmidt version once it has some interest to the back and it's quilted with a wavy stitch.

I do love how these fabrics look so beautiful together!!

Finally, here's a photo of my finished Modern Building Blocks top - I LOVE it!!!!

I'm kinda sad to be finished with the piecing....

:)

Quilt Retreating

I had a lovely two days of quilting with my quilt guild at a retreat center in nearby Carlisle.  It was so restorative for me....  Most of the time I carry a lot of shame and guilt re: my love of quilting.  None of my close friends or family members are quilters, so I feel like such an oddball.  I rarely share that piece of my life with them because many of them they just don't get it, and even if they can appreciate quilts, I still fear being viewed as what..., I don't know.  So often, I'd rather hole up and sew because of how beautifully it nurtures my soul and spirit, but then I feel guilty - guilty that I should be getting my wreck of a house in order, guilty for not keeping up with the outside work,  guilty for not putting more effort into meals, or guilty for not reaching out to someone who might exhaust me.  And then, there's always the guilt about the money this wonderful hobby sucks out of from my bank account.

But, after sewing for two days straight with these dear ladies who love and think about quilting as much as I do, I felt revived, restored, more normal, more OK with who I am and what I love.  I didn't feel an ounce of embarrassment for a change.  And, I felt God's pleasure as I did the "good works He prepared in advance for me to do."  

I came away with a renewed determination to shut down these feelings of guilt and shame related to my love of quilting, and to make this amazing process of creativity a higher priority in my life.  As I've attempted to get back to physical health over the last few years with little success and a lot of money getting flushed down the toilet along the way, I'm wondering if the answer has been lying right under my nose all this time.  Is is possible that the creative process is the very thing that will bring the most healing for my body, will bless others as they look on, and will most honor and glorify God as I savor and share my love of quilting?

I've also been contemplating Jen Kingwell's approach to quilting, and was again inspired to simply enjoy the process and not be embarrassed that I love to make quilts that tend to be more intricate and time consuming.

OK, Enough reflecting!!  Here's a few photos of what I accomplished:

I finished piecing the final 20 6" blocks of my Modern Building Blocks quilt - whoo hoo!  It was so nice to plug away at them while chatting with my quilting buddies.

I couldn't resist taking them outside for some photos since the weather was so lovely:

I also stitched the binding on my "Canning Jars" quilt:

And, I assembled the rest of my basket blocks:

A quick trip into town to the local quilt shop yielded this retro print from the sale table: 

It will make a great quilt backing!

(The fat quarters are compliments of Narda's stash.)

:)

Finally, I stitched away on some more "Ugly String" blocks that are hopefully destined to become this quilt.  

With Gloria's encouragement, I decided to forgo the foundation piecing.  (When I made string blocks for this quilt, I had stitched them onto paper.)  I simply used a paper template to gauge the length of the strings needed, stitched the strings, then trimmed the blocks down to 8 1/2" square.  Certainly beats picking all that paper out of the seams!

We're talking about a lot of strings!!

This was my Juki's first trip to a retreat, and she flew through these string blocks!

Thanks, ladies, for a wonderful time stitching together!

I even woke up and was motivated to do some Pilates this morning - who would have guessed?!!

:)

Modern Building Blocks, Blocks #18-28

Ooops - the sun is a bit bright here!  Had to wait a bit until the light softened....

I'm on the final stretch now; I have ten of the 6" blocks done - just 20 more to go!  Some are really intricate, and some are quite simple.  It's still fun!  But I have to admit, this is about the time in a quilt project that I stall out, eager to start something new.  This time I'm determined to keep going and finish this up, mainly because the larger blocks will need to remain on my design wall until this baby is stitched together because they are simply too big to stack on a WIP pile.  And, because I'd really like to finish it in time for the big Etown fair in August.

Enjoy a few more pictures!