Saturday, May 17, 2014

Spring Forward!--2014 Spring Bloggers Quilt Festival

Spring Forward is my first entry in the 2014 Spring Bloggers Quilt Festival. I started this quilt a couple years ago as part of a 9-patch series I was working on.
Spring Forward
As I continued working through my series quilts, I had to go back to this one (the first one) and add in some extra borders and of course, character. It ended up being kind of a tongue-in-cheek laugh at my awkwardness at dealing with Daylight Savings, thus the clumsy looking tulip and appliqued words.
The 9-patch blocks centerpiece
All the applique was done in the freehand style, although I did draw the letters on paper first before a quick re-draw on the fabric. As usual, I used my favorite method of needleturn applique. I've tried several different applications, but keep coming back to needleturn as it just seems to have less overall prep time involved and I'm all for getting right to work when I'm in the mood to be doing some hand work.
A bigger view of Spring Forward
This quilt was entirely hand quilted using a combination of regular quilting thread, size #8 Perle Cotton and also #5 Perle Cotton. If you've been following along with my posts, you'll know that the #5 thread was quite a challenge for me. Now that this quilt is done, I can confidently say that I will be using the larger #5 thread on future quilts, but very selectively. It's definitely not for every quilt! But oh... the texture..... It really is incomparable!
Loving the texture
Spring Forward came out of the dryer at approx. 68" x 77", a great lap sized quilt. For those of you who expressed concern over the Perle Cotton shrinking unattractively, no worries! I only 'half'' dried my quilt in the dryer as I do with all my quilts, then I laid it flat on the floor to finish drying. I am so in love with that just (freshly) washed and dried look that I can't resist petting my quilts for a little bit right after.
My big awkward tulip
I thought the binding would be a lovely blue color, but the correct fabric never materialized. You know how it is when you have something particular in mind and then nothing works out properly. I found wide strips of this light pink toile languishing in the fabric totes (leftovers from a quilt backing) and impulsively gave it an audition. Hmm...  Love how it lightens the entire quilt in a very subtle but positive fashion.
And the cheerful birdie...
Still so amazing that these quilts on my blog are actually made by ME!! Woot woot! After years of trying to learn how to do my own thing, I can finally see the pieces starting to fit together in a way that makes sense and more importantly, seems to have a way of building and/or flowing from quilt to quilt.

Very fun to have a couple quilts in this festival and also get an opportunity to check out the many wonderful entries! There's a lot of enviable talent out there people! And it's such a great way to find new blogger friends and find inspiration too. A big thanks to Amy for all her hard work in putting this together!

18 comments:

  1. I love this quilt every bit as much now as I did when you first posted it as finished.

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  2. Love the close up of the 'awkward tulip' - looks wonderful quilted and the colours are marvellous!

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  3. I loved reading the story of this quilt and the "awkward tulip". You just can't help but pat quilts especially when it has all that texture.

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  4. Just lovely!
    (and I know what you mean about having to pet your quilt! ;)

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  5. This is a wonderful quilt!! It's fun, clever and beautiful to look at, I wish I could pat that lovely crinkliness too.

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  6. my perle cotton hasn't shrunk at all - i didn't know it could :) lovely quilt as always.

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  7. I love the crinkly antique look that quilts get after their first wash ...

    This quilt is just lovely – in my book you are the Queen of Applique and of hand quilting. It’s just brilliant.

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  8. Great job, and I love your experimental use of various quilting threads. Will have to try the larger perle cotton soon.

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  9. I love how excited you are at being able to enjoy this wonderful craft of creating quilts ! Strive on, you do beautiful work !

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  10. This is such a fun quilt! I love love love the texture your wonderful hand quilting created - wish I could touch the quilt! And you're right - the pink binding looks great! Just goes to show - a quilt is never really finished until you find just the right binding fabric!

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  11. This is such a great quilt, I loved and still love that bold, pink flower! And the rest of the colors in this, especially the choice for the last border, that color really finishes the quilt off nicely and kind of brings the whole quilt together, because of all that pink in the centre.

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  12. It's just fun (not awkward)! I love all of the quilting too - such a great little quilt!

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  13. The texture looks amazing and I think the tulip is really pretty!

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  14. Another beautiful quilt - the quilting looks wonderful!

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  15. Love the look of this happy quilt. I need to make a tulip

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  16. Yay for you!! This is a great quilt.

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