Sunday, December 11, 2011

Forest Lovey: Quilted!

I got the borders all mitered up, but really struggled to get a decent picture for some reason. I have a fancy flash that is supposed to make a big difference with indoor photos, but I think it isn't up for fabric in all cases. Below is the only decent photo I got, and it's of the worst of the four corners. My biggest problem was with getting the inside corner in the exact right spot. The best one was the last corner of border that got sewed on, where I could sew all the way up to the other border piece. Still, they look passable, and I'm really proud that they are mitered at all.

I quilted everything in the ditch with a walking foot and clear Sulky thread. It was a dream. It went so fast and I got really great results!


I had checked out Guide to Machine Quilting by Diane Gaudynski from the library, where I got a lot of confidence and the invaluable suggestion of turning one's top thread vertical. When I had the spool horizontal as per my normal sewing arrangements, the thread just spiraled off of the spool and didn't spin the spool at all, creating a twisted mess. Turning the spool veritcal on the bobbin winder was effortless and solved the problem instantly!

My only issue was where the stitching line strayed onto the upper fabric. After I did it once or twice, I got a lot better about making sure it didn't happen again.

With the gridding quilted in, it was time to tackle the free-motion designs from Quilting Designs from Nature by Lone Minkkinen. This was my first time ever doing free-motion quilting, and it was nerve wracking! I copied the designs onto Stich 'n Wash Disolving Foundation Sheets from June Taylor, Inc. that I had picked up at Joann's. I pinned the sheets directly to the quilt and stitched away.

I was sweating bullets by the time I was done with the two squares, but I was so pleased with the results. I definitely found that I got better results when I relaxed a little and got into a bit of a flow. However, as I got towards the end of the second design (the hawk/eagle), my arms were getting really tired and I got a little sloppy.

The view of the stitched designs from the back.


Unfortunately, the paper did not completely dissolve despite thorough soaking and vigorous agitation with a very soft toothbrush. *sigh* As you can see in the picture below, there are lots of little white bits when you look close enough.

From even a little bit of distance, however, it's almost not noticeable. And, I don't think my 16-month-old will mind. I'm thinking I might just chalk it up to experience and let it be.

All I have left to do on the lovey (once it dries!) is sew on the border. It should be done in time to give it to my son for Christmas!!

One of the driving forces behind creating this mini-quilt was to test out ideas for a bed-size quilt without creating something that I knew I was going to toss (and thus stealing my motivation to work on it). Some lessons learned for the big quilt:
1) The corduroy is way to thick to expect it to fold back unless absolutely necessary. I went into this project with the idea that the corduroy should get folded back whenever possible so that the dark fabric would not be under the lighter fabric. However, the corduroy didn't hold a 1/4" crease no matter how much I pressed it, and I was reluctant to press it too much and smash it's lovely velvety feel. These unruley seam allowances caused all of my problems with stitching in the ditch as well. On the bed quilt, the seam allowances will be pressed away from the corduroy as much as possible.
2) Obviously I need to do something different with the free-motion quilting. I might try a different transfer paper. Or I might try tracing it directly onto the fabric with a dissolving pen. I'm a little reluctant to do that because I am exceedingly slow at making progress and am a little concerned that I would get too far ahead of myself on the tracing, leading to permanent marking. I've also considered quilting from the back, since I would care much less about the paper bits on the back of the quilt. However, I wouldn't be able to use the clear thread in the bobbin, I'm almost sure of that. The fabric on the back of this quilt is the same as the cream squares on the front, and I love the way the back looks. So I could always use that cotton thread in the bobbin and stitch from the back.
3) The quilted designs on the cream blocks are perhaps a bit too subtle. I love how the designs came out so much that I am very reluctant for them to be so minimalist. I'm considering using a contrasting thread for quilting those designs on the bed quilt. That will be a tough call to make. A green would be one option. Or I could go with a slightly darker cream/tan color for something not too dramatic.

Friday, December 2, 2011

Border On, Mitering to Go

I cut out of work a little early and actually found some time to sew today during the daytime! I finally got around to re-cutting the border strips for the mitered border. They went on really well, I think, and now they are ready to be mitered. I was surprised by how quickly I went from cutting to assembled.
I sewed each border piece to 1/4" from the edge. I dug up several tips for mitering borders from Quiltmaking Tips and Techniques. The one I decided to use involves folding the miter with the fabric right-side-up, ironing the crease in well, then folding the whole thing on the diagonal and sewing from the back with the right sides together. I'm hopeful that it will work well!
Up close, I'm a little concerned that the border fabric and the focal fabric are too similar. When I look at it in pictures, I don't mind it nearly as much. Still, for the bed quilt I might figure out a different kind of fabric for the border, either a different color completely or something in a value in between the focal fabric and the background fabric. I have to find a different fabric, regardless, since I don't have nearly enough of this fabric for a bed quilt.

After the mitering is complete, all I have to do is sew on 2" strips of the background fabric, which will end up under the binding, so no need to worry about mitering. Then it's time to put it together and get it quilted!!