After 6 months of doing Slash the
Stash, I've decided to mix things up a bit.
I'm still trying to sew the majority of my projects from my stash, but I wanted to
open things up a bit for all of those who aren't trying to work from the stash
this year like I am. This new link-up is
simple--no button, no big requirements.
Just link up your favorite finished project for the month that you are
so excited to share. For those who are
wondering what this is all about, check out the beginning of this post for the"hallway" story about my friend's mother.
At the end of my hallway this
month is my finished Flea Market Fancy quilt!
I really wanted to sew something simple with this line. The prints are just too pretty to cut up into tiny pieces. I stuck with large HSTs. These blocks are about 7.5"
finished. I chose to use up some 100%
linen I had on hand. This stuff washes up so nice and soft, but it's a beast to work with. I starched it three times before cutting the
blocks, but after working with it for a while the starch starts to wear off a
bit. As it softens it gets harder to
work with again. I knew what I was
getting into because I used the same fabric on my Innocent Crush diamond quilt. I admit I'm glad I used it. It was nice to
continue using fabrics from my stash rather than running out to buy something
different, but I don't know that I'll be using it again on a quilt.
I also ventured out and tried
some new quilting on this one. Several
months ago when I was back home for my Grandma's funeral, my mom introduced me to
one of my dad's cousins who is a long-arm quilter. Dawn, who calls herself the Pajama Quilter, has actually produced a couple DVD tutorials on quilting. She offered to
send me copies of her videos and workbooks.
I really debated. Her vidoes are
more for long-arm quilters, and I didn't want her to send me anything I
wasn't sure I'd use. Finally, I decided to give it a
try, and she shipped me her DVDs. She has
some really fun pattern ideas and teaches them on a white board in each clip. I
was watching the Retreaded video one afternoon while my twins actually napped. Miss C was entertaining herself with a craft
project. When she saw what I was watching, she quickly sat down next to me
to watch the quilting videos and even asked me to pause it when she had to go
to the bathroom. I made copies from the
workbook for her to color while we watched each clip. She loved it and was so excited to "learn"
to quilt.
I chose one of Dawn's patterns (sort of a swirly flower) that I felt fit the fabric and started sketching. It really did help to practice drawing the
design over and over. Then I practiced
on my test fabric. Finally I jumped in
and started on my actual quilt. The biggest
challenge I didn't plan on with trying a new quilting pattern was the fact that
my thread perfectly matches the linen. I
literally couldn’t see where I had stitched and frequently found myself stitching over my pattern. Also, the texture of the linen hid my stitching making it even more difficult to see. I was sad my pattern didn’t show up much, but
at the same time it was a great project to test a new pattern on. It was just fun to try something new and finally get out of my rut a bit. Thanks so much to Dawn for letting me try out her DVD's and techniques!
I’ll be sharing the quilt back later this month when I participate in Ali’s Festival of Hexagons (which should give you a good clue what might be on the back)!
Oh, gosh, Kati, it looks so lovely, just all of it - the fabrics, the blocks, the quilting, wow! Love the quilting, and the idea of you and Miss C watching the quilting DVDs together is just adorable. Your quilting stitches look absolutely fabulous :)
ReplyDeleteThat is such a beautiful quilt Kati! I love those prints paired with the linen and the quilting looks fantastic! I'm excited to see the back!
ReplyDeleteLove this quilt & your new quilting pattern is awesome! Good job!
ReplyDeleteGreat job! Your quilting looks beautiful. I really like that pattern too! Congrats on venturing outside of loopy quilting! I call it a success for sure.
ReplyDeleteI think FMF and linen were made for each other. Your quilting is beautiful and the finished product is fabulous!
ReplyDeleteI love your quilt, it is such a beautiful way to use those lovely fabrics.
ReplyDeleteI am in LOVE with your Flea Market Fancy quilt! I also can't believe that you machine quilted that design with your little machine. You did a great job! I love seeing all the quilts that you come up with. You inspire me! :)
ReplyDeleteAmy @ The Happy Scraps
Great quilting job lady!
ReplyDeleteLove the super fancy quilting, and I love that your daughter made you pause the video while she went to the bathroom lol We'll have to keep an eye out for her in the future as a rising quilting star :o)
ReplyDeleteI LOVE this new stitching pattern! Bummer about it being the same color, but when you're wrapped up in a quilt, no one says, "wait a minute, this stitching is off!" :) They are just thankful to have it! :) Hugs! (no baby yet. She's overdue now! Only by two days but I am SO ready to hold her!)
ReplyDeleteThis is a lovely quilt!
ReplyDeleteI LOVE this quilt Kati! So true about that untamed linen!! The fact that you got such lovely, clean HST's with it is admirable... :-)), yet not at all surprising! Love the quilting lines too. Great finish!!
ReplyDeleteThe quilting looks incredible, Kati!
ReplyDeletegreat quilt and wonderful quilting, Kati! you inspire me to try freemotion quilting again..
ReplyDeleteKati, your quilting is lovely - I can't wait to give this pretty design a whirl! Did you see the video quilting tutorial that Judi at Green Fairy Quilts posted today?
ReplyDeleteSo beautiful!!! Linen in quilts is my latest obsession, it's so soft & cuddly: )
ReplyDeleteKati, your quilt looks gorgeous! I love the HST pattern and swirly flower quilting. Thanks for sharing! :)
ReplyDeleteI love this idea, and I really 'get' the idea of hanging in the hallway, most things I made in July were gifts or commissions so there is no time to enjoy them before they go out the door. But I made a baby quilt for a sample which I love and am keeping for now!
ReplyDeleteKati, it's beautiful! Kudos to you for trying a new quilting pattern. It looks great!
ReplyDelete