Tuesday, December 8, 2015

Cool and Comforting

Believe it or not, I finished a quilt (okay, not so hard to believe)!  What is hard to believe is that I free motion quilted much of it.  Maybe the design is simple, pretty basic and not mind blowing, but I actually did it!



Good old woven stripes!  It hung on my wall for a while and then lingered over the rail while I went about my business.  I looked at it on occasion, thinking 'I really need to finish this', but quickly moved on to other things.  I just wasn't ready to take it on.    



I'm a big fan of woven stripes.  All colors, all sizes, all the time!  I was drawn to this beautiful stack because of the colors.  Beautiful blue, aqua, green~along with violet, burgundy and purple.  Cool colors with just enough warmth sprinkled in.

The grey is one of my new favorite 'go to' colors.  Kona Shadow.  It's light, airy and works perfectly with so many colors.  I especially love it with these blues!  


63" x 87"
I went big with this one!  Which is one of the reasons I held off on quilting for so long.  It's hard to maneuver even on my machine.  By this time I knew I was going to FMQ this one. The prospect of that, the size and my limited experience with FMQ, it was easy to push it aside!

Backing & Binding Kona Breakers
Eventually the time came to 'you know' or get off the pot...I began ever so slowly.  Simple wiggly lines or fingers for the stripes.  (I said simple!)  The wiggles are not hard at all.  the tough part was twisting, turning, pulling and tugging the quilt along with me!


Once I finished free motion quilting the woven stripes, I had to decide what was best for the grey.  Had I more confidence, skill and patience with FMQ, I would have taken advantage of all that blank space.  Alas...I went with straight lines, with a meandering curve line from top to bottom.  


You know what I'm going to say next.  Everything looks better after a wash and dry!  At least in my mind!  


The little hiccups, inconsistent stitches...magically disappear!  I try not to be so hard on myself with my FMQ skills or lack of skills.  We are our worse critics!  I'll leave it at this:  I'm pleased, relieved and can't complain!


Sew Mama Sew will be holding their biannual Giveaway day on Wednesday, December 9th! I have a giveaway planned, so please stop back for all the details!
  
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24 comments :

  1. The meandering curves in the Shadow that make wishbone shapes are so smooth and invite me to look around the quilt a bit. Lovely finish!

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    1. I wanted to give the straight line quilting a twist and I think I achieved it!

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  2. This quilt makes me want to get out my bag of stripes and make a quilt. I really like this one and your quilting looks great!

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    1. If we only had the time, right?! I don't know about you, but the holidays are always way to crazy! Maybe after the new year you can bust out those stripes!

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  3. It amazes me how much you get done. Beautiful quilts as always.

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    1. It's a job I love! To be honest, this quilt sat around for a while before I could finish it!

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  4. I love the quilting you chose for this quilt. I agree with Yvonne, that the curves add a movement to the quilt that allows your eyes to move from section to section. But I also like the back and forth curves in the striped fabric sections...it's like curved stripes. Great job on your finish!

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    1. I know I don't have much of an imagination when it comes to FMQ designs, but the wiggly lines work for me…and they are easy! Thank you for such a sweet comment!

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  5. Oh you have done a wonderful job with this one! I love it! I have yet to FMQ even once, but maybe 2016 will be my year,there are times I really feel constrained by my lack of it!!!

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    1. I can say FMQ has become a lot easier with time, even though all I ever do is easy, simple designs! I hope you get to delve in to it one day. I totally get where you are coming from!

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  6. No "alas" necessary, Jayne! Your quilting on the stripes is just terrific, and the curve is a great contrast among the straight lines. I would never have thought of piecing different stripes together--genius! But--I just cannot wrap my mind around wrestling this mammoth quilt for FMQ and ending up with such a great finish--you've got talent AND muscles, lady :)

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    1. Well you certainly made me feel better Karen! I really am pleased with the quilting and like I said, any little imperfection is erased with a wash and dry! Than in itself gives me much more confidence to keep going with my FMQ journey!

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  7. I think it looks great. I think you made the right quilting choices. Kudos for a large finish.

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  8. What a beautiful quilt both in the fabric chosen and the quilting. It IS hard to tug and pull a quilt of that size around a domestic machine. My hat is off to you.

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  9. I think the quilt is wonderful and you are right, a wash is the perfect finish! I love the contemporary look. Enjoy!

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  10. Fantastic job with the quilting! I'm with you on a washing to soften and crinkle it all.

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  11. Ooh, I love woven strips too and you have worked with a lovely selection here. Great quilt!

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    1. The colors alone are beautiful, but the stripes along with the color…perfection!

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  12. See - was that so bad?? It looks lovely Jayne.

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    1. It really wasn't, maybe a little bit! I always know that eventually I will get something done and in the end…it usually is worth the wait!

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  13. A good washing always does wonders, not that anyone but you would have seen any flaws. We are our own worst critics. Beautiful finish. Great job on the quilting, looks great!

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  14. What a great big beautiful finish! You should be very pleased! The quilting looks fabulous and you overcame your reluctance to do the fmq on such a large piece. This is me.... Giving you a standing ovation!

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  15. I love buying things for my kids. But more so i love making presents for everyone

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