Bloggers Quilt Festival Hearts Infatuation

It is time again for the Bloggers Quilt Festival at Amy's Creative Side!  I think this is my 7th time participating.  It is so fun to see all the quilts and I even won some thread once.   This year we are to identify which category we want to be listed under.  This is both hand appliqued and hand quilted.  But since I like the prize better for the hand quilted category, please nominate me for that one if you are so inclined.

This quilt started way back in the spring of 2011.  I even created a tutorial on back basting applique while I was working on the first block, which is now the bottom left corner.

The pattern is by Esther Aliu and was a mystery quilt along called Heart's Desire.

Month 2 was supposed to have 4 circle wreaths that surrounded the motif above.  After the first 2, I decided to wait to see the rest of the quilt.  My "Desire" was starting to wane.  Eventually, I put them together in a completely different way.

What had intrigued me from the start was this particular flower.

So I started adding a whole lot of them.

And then some up the left side.

All the elements, leaves, hearts, even the triangle border are all part of the Heart's Desire quilt of Esther's.  I just put them together all wrong.

I created the green border from all the green batiks I'd gathered for the leaves.

I used a variation of trapunto for the center where an extra layer of lofty batting is attached and outlined by machine with wash away thread and the excess cut away.  I went back and hand quilted the design.

Then added rows of straightish lines for fill.

I outlined all the applique.

And added veining for the leaves and some curley q's in green thread.

I was stumped for a long time on the background fill.  I ended up with this sashiko inspired diamond, quilted in fuchsia.

Which I have to say was the right
choice.

Hand Quilting

I am now about 30 hours into this quilt.  The background dragonflies took by far the most time.  I'm now working on the border diamond grid.  This is complicated by the fact that my center is an odd measurement.  I have been working on making a fairly even grid and counting on fooling the brain into thinking that my spacing is even.

Skirt Cont...

I do believe that I left off having finished this panel and debating about background fill.

The comments left about stippling detracting from the design reminded me of this practice piece I had done.  It did, indeed, detract from the central design.

I problem that I resolved by keeping the background fill linear.

So I decided to try that on the skirt panels.  I did switch to a grey thread and a walking foot.

To bypass the marking issues, I tried using freezer paper templates.

Didn't really work.

I would be outlining nicely, then the paper would become un-fuzed and I was either running the foot under the paper, or it would randomly run over one of the pointy tips.

The result was 2 side panels that look more like cousins than twins.

After a hot wash and dry, they have some nice texture to them.
Since I don't hate them at this point, I shall continue on.  I've managed to make the whole project more difficult by adding a pocket detail that wasn't in the original skirt, a separating zipper, and a new waist detail.  I am absolutely certain that my plans exceed my abilities.   Stay tuned.

Clean

And this pause brought to you by the process of cleaning and purging.




This blank space is my imaginary empty spot in my perpetual clutter.

On Monday (my day off) I was going to sew on that skirt project like nobody's business.
But while I was waiting for the stores of my planned errands to open, I started to re-arrange, re-organize and re-cycle the items in my living room.  Short version:  I removed 51 spools of thread from the living and dining room, vanquished to the bins in the sewing room where they were SUPPOSED to be.  (Editor's note, I have only had a sewing room for about a year since eldest daughter moved out, and it has only been functional for a couple months since her belongings which filled half that space were removed.)

For the first time in...forever...the only sewing items in the front half of my house are 1 quilt in lap frame, 1 spool of quilting thread, 1 thimble, 1 pair of scissors and a newly revised mini version bag of emergency hand-quilting items.

My evenings this week have been filled with the processing of the stuff I moved from the living room to alternative spaces.  Bedroom is looking good. There are 4 bags/boxes of items to donate.  Sewing Studio half managed.   Need to sort and send some bins of fabric back to the garage so I have room to work.

I WILL get back to sewing.  But only after the clutter is under control.

Skirt Update

I do have some progress to show, but it was not without it's challenges.  

After daydreaming about this project all week, I woke up Saturday morning jazzed (chuffed...psyched...) to get started.

I had decided that plastic templates would be the way to go since I would be making 2-4 repeats of most of these designs.

I was so careful to cut them out just inside the tracing lines so I would have accurate templates.

But then I hit a point when I realized that my FMQ is so if-y that it was unlikely to follow those lines very well anyway.

As I was cutting them out I had a tragic realization.  I ALWAYS have yards of black Kona Cotton hanging around the house.  Um. Not today. $#^+!   I'm willing to shift gears, but soon realized that of the 1000 yards of fabric in my stash, I don't have a single piece over 2 yards in a color that A) I will wear B) I can imagine in this design.  And JoAnne's Fabric on Saturday morning is worse than a root-canal with no medication.

After a brief period of panic, I decided that Hancock Fabric might be less painful.

Turns out that I was right.  Quilting cottons 50% off.  As were zippers and Coats & Clark thread.
Instead of a stash buster project, I added 6 yards for this project and 9 yards of white-on-white - my standard quilting background. HOWEVER, I am using stash fabric and batting.  (And if I make it to the red/black version, stash thread.)

And then there was the Marking Saga.  I don't mean to be a drama queen...but really?  I can't find anything that really works on a mid to dark fabric.  I had an insanely expensive white Clover marking pen that I am totally hoping I can find the receipt so I can return it.  I bought it last week for this project thinking I'd be marking on black, and it was an absolute piece of crap.

I pulled out the water soluble blue marker thinking it would work.

Kind of did as long as I had full day light, overhead light, desk lamp, focused LED lamp and the machine light.  And reading glasses.  Double normal strength.

Here is the center front panel of my new skirt.  Since this is a major experiment I am also playing with thread.  I am using a Sulky embroidery thread on the top (with and embroidery needle), and the Coats & Clark on the bobbin.   [this panel has whatever was already on the fuschia bobbin...but the rest will be C&C.]

I did outline stitching on this panel so I can wash them all and get the shrink and texture that I want before I cut out and attach the panels.  I am using Bamboo batting (stash).

My current quilting dilemma is background.  I am thinking that I need to add some sort of stippling so the design will stand out.

So, anyway, welcome to my new 3-D quilt project.

William Morris Skirt?

The most recent sewing debacle  got me thinking that I really needed to start with some baseline of success.  This 6-panel skirt that I made this summer was my first attempt to make a muslin, adjust, and save the muslin as a new master pattern.

For some bizarre reason (unknown to me), I have started getting a fashion magazine called InStyle.  Ironic since I buy about 4 items of clothing per year.

I was flipping through it and ripping out inspirations when I saw this!  A QUILTED mini.

Even though I have great gams for my age, as a public service, I choose not to wear anything this short.

But the concept got me thinking.

I was imagining something quilted in  Baroque style leaves...

but then, it occurred to me that Michele Hill has some great William Morris style floral and leaves already in a handy format. In a book I happen to own.

And they are on my "to do" list.

This would be my FMQ template drafts of the front panels of my new skirt.


Only remaining debate: What color?

Wadder

V1302 is officially a disaster.  Using the sewist's vocabulary, it's a wadder (as in wad it up and chuck it out.)

I knew it would be questionable since the pattern calls for charmeus, silk jersey or shantung, and I was using a t-shirt knit.

This view is the best part of the whole thing.  The waistline ruching doesn't look too bad.  The upper part of the zipper, if I would be inclined to finish it, would need some hand stitching because the bulk makes it too much for the machine.

I lengthened the underarm seam by nearly 2", making the arm hole smaller.  This is a problem area for me that creates gaping in multiple spots at the neck and arms. That was a good call as the armhole depth would be perfect once the arm holes were finished.

 My other clever moment was when I realized that since I wasn't adding a lining to the dress, I could use the foundation piece as a lining and I finished the back and front neckline as I was basting on the the gathered panels.  That would leave just the arm holes to finish with a bias binding.

Here's where things start to fall apart.

The pattern review that I read warned about it being too tight and made for high, small, perky boobs.   It is snug.  Which causes the wearer to decide if gathers should go above or below the breasts.

The connecting point of the cross-over wrap made it pull in nicely at the narrow part of my waist.  But that made the front ruching go all catty-wompus.

The length of the raw hem is where the finished length is on the photo.

Even when it was still hanging  and not attached to the back, I had concerns about the shape and location of the ruched panels on the front.

What to do now?
I had considered removing the ruched sections and just making the base dress.  Unfortunately, the empire waist is also not right for my body and the seam is right across the nipple line.

Maybe I'll try to save the skirt and add a waist band.  Or maybe not.