It's time. These hand pieced bow-tie's are saying they want to be quilted. So what's a girl to do?
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| Hand Pieced Bow-Ties |
These are the only hand pieced blocks that I have made an entire quilt out of so far. I mostly hand piece when {and where}
the block seems to be better off for the effort. Like these bow-ties. I just really, really had to have a bow-tie quilt with the original, square looking center. Looking at my work as I pinned the quilt made me realize how desperately lacking my piecing skills are though. Galloping horses, people. Just pretend you're on a galloping horse while you're viewing my quilt!
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| Looking a little closer |
And then because I have gotten into the habit of pinning two quilts in one session, here is
String Play, a mostly out of the scrap bin effort. I am aiming to machine quilt this big monster of a quilt and ooooh, I am nervous about that.
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| String Play |
I totally forgot to take a picture of the quilt top before the pins were added, so you can see where I intend to stitch long vertical lines. The goal is to completely stitch the top with organically {ha, ha, all my lines are organic} straight lines. Not sure how closely I'll end up stitching the rows, but these will be my first 'reference' lines.
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| Almost ready to get started! |
Hope my machine is up for this like the repairman said it would be! Crossing my fingers on that. I'm determined to get in the mode of at least
trying to machine quilt the occasional quilt top instead of sitting on my chicken-hearted fears and letting the quilt room practically explode with unfinished quilt tops. If you only knew how long I sat and
stared at this quilt top imagining how wonderful it would look with hand quilting....
Linking up with
Nicky and
Leanne for Scraptastic Tuesday! I haven't been sewing anything from the scrap bin lately {except my circles}, but this quilt was an 'all-in' effort from the scrap bin back when I made it. Definitely makes me think it's time and past to dig in and try another. There's nothing quite like seeing an entire quilt top made from
scraps! Everything inside me just sort of melts and I'm like a proud momma. See here? Look! This is good stuff!*wink
They are the best quilts aren't they! Hope it will soon be finished whether by machine or by hand! Thanks for linking up to #scraptastictuesday!
ReplyDeletelove Bow Tie quilts, so nice and simple and old fashioned too
ReplyDeleteLOVE, love those scrappy strings! Stay calm and quilt on!
ReplyDeleteStunning colours on your Bow Tie quilt ! Good luck for your machine quilting ;-)
ReplyDeleteScrap quilts always seem to melt my heart, it's the utter chaos that just makes sense. Face your fears my dear, no breakthrough ever comes without a little uncomfortable start. Now where do I find a galloping horse.....lol.
ReplyDeleteNo galloping horse needed for your bowties, that's a mighty fine looking top! String Play definitely looks like it would be difficult to hand quilt, it'll be much easier to machine quilt (I think).
ReplyDeleteSome quilts need hand quilting and others, like String Play will be happy with machine quilting. One is not better than another, just what's best for the finish of a particular quilt. Have fun.
ReplyDeleteI like String Play. They are one of my favorite ways to make a quilt and I've been mulling over another one myself.
ReplyDeleteSo fun to see String Play again! Organic lines will be perfect. Can't wait to read Stephie's article about your process! It's so interesting to compare notes. :D
ReplyDeleteWow, you hand pieced that whole top? That's amazing and I love the turquoise set against the other colors, it adds a wonderful zing to it!
ReplyDeleteOh I really like this bow tie...the colors are perfect for spring! :) And look at all of those pretty strings. Enjoy quilting on both.
ReplyDeleteWell I'm not on a galloping horse but your bow ties look fine to me: hand piecing an entire quilt really is a labour of love! Good luck with String Play: you are a braver woman than I am. :-)
ReplyDeleteLove the turquoise background on your bow ties. Totally get the sewing room exploding with quilt tops. I feel the same way and sometimes think a computerized long arm would be nice but where's the fun in that?
ReplyDeleteGood morning Audrey, here is a link to see Mary's vortex quilt and how she quilted it. I really like her straight line method and recently used it on my nickle quilt.
ReplyDeletehttp://country-threads-chicken-scratch.com/uncategorized/a-big-finish/
One thing to keep in mind when prepping a top, if the pins are all going in the same direction, your quilt will shift in that direction while your stitching. It's best to rotate pins often. However, if you're using cotton batting, there should be little shifting. Thanks for sharing. Love your scrappy quilts.
Love these quilts, especially string play. I struggle with the volume of hand quilting too....I guess I will try machine quilting one day but I'm not that brave yet!
ReplyDeleteHave fun with both quilts! Will be interested to see progress.
ReplyDeleteAwww, such glorious scrappy quilts! Even riding a horse at a slow walk would show the excellence. 8)
ReplyDeleteI've got a quilt I have to machine quilt, too, and I'm scared to death I'll mess it up. My plan is to quilt Garden Party as a practice run, then tackle the stars. I'll pat your hand through the process if you'll pat mine...
How clever of you to always pin 2 quilts at a time!! I remember when you started your bow ties so it's fun to see that one ready for the hoop. Machine quilting makes me nervous too so I'm cheering you on with quilting your string top.
ReplyDeleteI love these quilts...love the turquoise especially...Thank you for your tip on my Cotton and Steel scrap quilt...I had come to that conclusion finally and am grateful for your input.
ReplyDeleteSeriously, will be needing my mailing address for when you finish either one of these quilts. I would be happy for just the tops! I! Love! Both of them!!!!!
ReplyDeleteThe string quilt has so much going on it is a good candidate for machine quilting!!
ReplyDeleteI love how the creams and golds move through this quilt. The placement leads my eye through the quilt and then back around to look at the other colors. I think your several different gold perle cottons would be perfect for this quilt with such a variety of colors.
ReplyDelete--Nancy. (ndmessier @ aol.com, joyforgrace.blogspot.com)