Killed it :: And Not In A Good Way!

After all these years of quilting you'd think the 'don't rush' lesson would be seared in to my brain by now.  It should be something I don't have to remind myself to do and should be second nature!  Wish that were true!

Was it really back in February when I went on our guild retreat?!  (Retreat Packing) Seems like a lifetime ago.  Besides a couple large quilt projects that I brought along, I also included some small paper pieced projects to break up the tedium. 

7 1/2" x 7 1/2"

I made a pink 'J' using the Geometric Alphabet from Quiet Play.  It was hanging quietly on my design wall for months.  Just waiting and waiting and waiting.  I had just finished quilting a large quilt the other day and with a bit of time on my hands I thought I could knock this out once and for all.



Because it was small, and you would think it would be a quick quilting finish, I decided to free motion quilt and use these threads.  I've had them for years and frankly just looking at them was good enough for me.  But in my moment of weakness I decided I'd use the shiny pink and the metallic silver for something different.  It was going to be quick...right?!

First I'll say this, the pink thread was not a problem.  It worked like just as it should.  I did use a 50wt thread in the bobbin which was about the only thing I did right.  The metallic thread was horrible!  I've knew enough to about metallic thread to adjust the tension, but even that didn't help me!



I used the pink thread first and flew through the sections with that I wanted pink.  At that point I was thinking that I had it nailed!  I'd be done in no time now!

Then the metallic nightmare began.  I'd start free motion quilting and it would break.  At the beginning I was trying to do things properly by picking out the stitches and starting again.  I quickly grew frustrated and threw that idea out the window!



Break, start again, break, start again...I finally just snipped the thread where it broke and kept going.  I didn't care that it may unravel.  I didn't care that it wasn't going to be perfect or properly done.  It was a tiny quilt that would live in my sewing room and was for my pleasure only!  

By the time I was near the end, what skill I had in FMQ had greatly declined!  I was so glad it was over by the end!  I don't care what anyone says...I will never use metallic thread again...it's going in the trash!



Thankfully I used a fabric where you can't see the quilting!  That's usually the best place to see quilting detail and I'm always happy to show it!



For those who use metallic thread successfully, I'm in awe!  It just didn't work for me!  I feel like I've been traumatized from the experience!  

  

Other than that, I love my 'J'!  I'm totally good with the imperfections.  I wonder if I'll look at it and have flashbacks!  PTSD?!  Well, that's a little too dramatic!

Have you been ever been frustrated by a project to the point of not caring how it turned out?  Or did you take a deep breath and made it work?

If this was a large project (and not metallic thread) and I was having issues, I most certainly would have adjusted what needed to be adjusted, ripped out what needed to be ripped out and made it work.  I didn't feel the need to do that with something that was small and seemingly inconsequential.  

I could have never shared this screw up and no one would have known how I let quality control go by the wayside.  But sometimes things don't go quite as we planned and you have to either adjust, give up or do the best you can and work with what you have.

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