Mariner's Compass - DONE!

Drum Roll, please!

 This is it! The 5th and last entry on this 'long-term' project, first shared with you in 2011. I've put links below if you want the full background before reading the finale!

 May 2011

July 2011

 January 2012

 March 2015

You may recall that I purchased the packet of reproduction fabrics, c. 1840, in 2007. They sat in lovely stacks for a few years before being put to use!

I made a concerted effort to stick with the hand quilting over the winter and that made a big difference. I set a goal to have it done this year; to use it on my bed this fall.  Or else!

I had decided early on that I would put my name on the front of the quilt. The two outermost bottom corner 6" blocks are plain with that in mind.
Deciding how I wanted to do that took some time but I'm happy that I didn't rush it. I wanted it to be just the right thing.

I knew I wanted to repeat the circle of the central Mariner's Compass and small blue circles in the corners of the checkerboard, seen in the view above.

                       I found this design in Antique Quilting Designs by Roberta Benvin.

It was used as the center quilting motif in a feathered wreath on the plain setting blocks of a c. 1840 Double Nine Patch quilt; a circle and the required four places defined to embroider my information. 

 That fit well with the date of the reproduction fabric I used as well as the frame style layout.

Bingo!

I enlarged the design and slipped it under the corner over a light box to trace.

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I combined embroidery with complimentary quilting.  I used double strand blue thread for the chain-stitched circle and to outline leaf shapes.

 The data itself required using a single thread.

The label on the back contains a few more details but the basics are on the front for all to see. I don't want someone have to 'discover' it by accident in 100 years....or  worse yet, NOT discover it!

At last I was ready for the  final step. Binding.

I had run out of the mottled neutral background which probably would have been my choice if I'd had enough so I'd been carrying around a piece to get a good coordinating tone. I wanted the binding to be understated letting the sharp triangle 'pennants' stand out.

I found a large print that had the right 'tone' and I thought it would work when folded 'skinny' and be interesting. I made yards and yards of it, starting sewing it on and didn't like it.


 Rip. Rip. Rip.




I didn't want to get stuck this close to the end! Luckily, a fabric that came with the original fabric line worked and I had enough of it.

The last few stitches - Had to record them!

TA -DA!

Facts:

Size:86" W x 94" L

Hours to hand quilt: 140

Batt: wool

Original Design

I hope you are all well and enjoying your quilting adventures. I have been AWOL from writing this blog for some time and hope to be much more regular now. I have acquired quite a few new 'old' quilts I'd like to share with you and have finished lots of smaller projects, too.

 Please check back and send your comments to keep me honest.

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Progress - Mariner's Compass Medallion

Lately I've  been working on a very long term project. I am hand quilting what may very possibly be my last large bed quilt. I am determined to continue even though it got to 88 today in Phoenix and it has wool batting! I work in the early part of the day or in the evening. And of course, I skip some days.

When I finished my 'stint' today I threw it down on the floor to admire it - always fun to see progress - and noticed that the light was perfect for for a few shots that capture the quilting.

I didn't crop this photo so you can get an idea of the size of the project


After quilting 1/4" from seams on the Mariner's Compass I did concentric circles, gradually increasing outward over that whole section, including the Flying Geese. I started with single parallel lines in the blue setting corners but it just didn't seem to be enough - so I doubled them.

The cable shows nicely in this one. You can see I have it placed it over two plain borders.

Here is a section of the back. I wanted you to see how I am quilting the hourglass block border.
 It is the section with triangles next to the toile where the straight lines alternate directions.

Here's the front showing the hourglass blocks.

 I didn't want to just outline along the seams and this, though not very visible, does quilt the area down with a consistency I like. I like to do designs that ignore the piecing.

Simple X's in the checkerboard borders.

I begin to think about my possible quilting designs even as I am piecing the top but I don't mark the entire quilt or really make many decisions until I am ready to quilt. I sketch out ideas, start in the middle and frequently get new ideas as I work. 

I am keeping track of my time on this one, just for fun. I use a small spiral notebook...here's one page

Hours so far: 103

Two Tops Done; #3 and #4

I was really in need of 'machine' time so I got out my shoe box full of rectangles and odds and ends that I had removed from a vintage top. I've written about that process and shown the first two small quilts I have made so far in a series of blogs. ( the first one is  here)
 I was eager to continue in the 'series'.

I had decided to do a checkerboard next but as I looked over my leftover pieces I realized that cutting 3" squares would use them most advantageously. That was bigger than I wanted for the checkerboard so that's how I ended up making two tops at once!

Wanting to keep to a smaller scale for these little quilts I cut 3" squares and stitched down the diagonal making two identical triangle squares.

This one is very 'orderly'

I arranged them on my design wall and moved them to the machine on my fleece covered plastic tray.











For the checkerboard I cut  2.25" squares from the original rectangles, leaving ends large enough to use for quilt #5 and maybe #6! I decided to make 4 patch units and join them rather than just arrange the squares at random.

This vintage quilt of mine is constructed that way and I think it is interesting.

In my doll quilt you can see a hint of organization but it's random enough not to be predictable. Then I added a single row of squares down the right just to throw it off a bit more. Do you see the 4 patches?

I admire the randomness seen in so many vintage quilts. Working with a limited group of fabrics, as I am for this series, requires you to make choices you may not make if you have unlimited fabric to choose from. In my opinion this makes for an interesting quilt that invites you to look at it a bit longer.

Vintage doll quilts

Checkerboard - 4  patch  construction

Triangles - random setting

I've chosen the backing for each top and will prepare then for hand quilting over the winter. I like having small projects to work on.

The stash created from the original top IS slowly going down - I have just these two stacks and a bag of smaller strips and odd shapes left.

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Now to get on with some holiday sewing!

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I'm still here!

Hello again dear blog readers!

I apologize for disappearing after a busy March...and now April is over. I won't make any excuses although I do have some great ones, trust me...but I'll just show you a few things I'm working on.

Here's my Scottie Dog crib quilt in progress. ( Full view of the top in this previous post.)  I am hand quilting in a plaid design with rust thread. I wanted the quilting to be part of the design element of the quilt and I'm happy with how it looks. When each stitch is so visible I find it easier (and more important!) to concentrate on 'even and straight'. I hope to improve as I go AND I hope to be showing you the finished quilt soon!

32" x 37"

I also put together a little quilt top for an upcoming baby shower. I will baste and machine quilt this one as it needs to be done soon!
I found the pattern in Quilt Along with Emilie Richards. She writes the Shenandoah series of fiction with quilt related themes and has put out pattern books for the quilts in her novels. I adapted the border.

14.5" x 22"

Then one day I washed a little doll quilt I found on my travels. Sometimes I look for things to avoid doing real work!

c. 1900   Machine quilted

I decided I just had to have it clean. I knew the brown stains would be unlikely to be improved but it was filthy. I hand washed with Orvus soap, spun in the washer and then laid flat to dry outdoor with a light cotton dish towel over it. I put it in the dryer for 10 minutes on low to fluff it a bit after it was dry. Considering it was made about 100 years ago I think it turned out fine...risky but I did it.

Here's the back - a printed patchwork some call 'cheater' fabric but I learned at an AQSG seminar that 'printed patchwork' is a more descriptive and appropriate term..and I agree.




I am wrapping up my appraisal business and finishing up work from the Northfield and Mankato quilt shows in Minnesota. I hope to have MORE time to sew and share my passion for textiiles and quilts with you very soon.

Thanks for stopping by!

"Flower Power" - Baby's Blocks Quilt Completed

17" x 21"

Here's my completed tribute to the 1970's. This time period was my March theme choice. See that post here.


It's hand pieced and quilted. 
I used poly batting which would have been typical of what was being used at the time and I like the effect in this design because the blocks do puff out a bit giving them more dimension. 


I have to say I didn't like quilting it - the needle slides too easily after being used to working with cotton or at least 80/20 blend.

I debated on how to finish the edges. I didn't want to just cut them straight and add a 'slab' border. I wanted the piece to really be a one-patch. Yet I felt it needed something.
The choice of the solid blue partial blocks at the top and bottom was influenced by......

this one patch top which I shared in a post last April.  Partial solid blue lozenge blocks were used for a straight edge at top and bottom.








...and by this quilt I made in 1976. Some of these same fabrics are in Baby's Blocks!


That blue just seemed to work in both cases. Of course, this fabric was a poly blend. Not much in cotton solids to choose from as I recall. 

 Oh. Good news to report. My Alzheimer's piece is SOLD!

Who's Your Poppy?

Sorry - couldn't resist!  (I should have timed this for Father's Day)  I mentioned some time ago that I would show you my new poppy quilt and I just realized I never did!
(Do not hesitate to 'remind' me about things like that!)



Browsing an antique shop in Arizona, this striking poppy applique caught my eye. I  got a very good price on it, probably because it had one small hole needing repair - but even with that it was a steal. I love the gentle wavy edges. 

Rosie Werner, of Quiltkitid.com has thirty-two different poppy kit quilt applique designs on her website -  not including this one!

What company produced it?
What publication was it in?

A friend found this image in her files and it is exactly like mine. Sold as a kit, the white fabric would have been marked to indicate where the appliques should be placed and the kit would include stamped fabrics in dark red, light red and green to cut out and place as directed. Fabric pieces were numbered to correspond to the numbers stamped on the white ground fabric.The design for quilting stitches would also be marked. The maker would provide the backing and the cotton batting

Reading the details and directions on old patterns gives us information about how things were done in the past. In this case,  "No 50" thread was to be used for the quilting....the weight of regular sewing thread. 

These are examples from a different, unfinished, kit top. The poor construction on this one means it will never be finished; not by me, anyway.

Advertising of the day assured women that it was simple to make a quilt with all the pieces prepared for you ....sort of like 'paint by number'. By the way, kits drew criticism from some that creativity had gone out of quiltmaking.)

Many women who didn't even know how to sew were persuaded to give it a try but all were not successful!  Many projects were surely abandoned in frustration, like this one! 

My quilt is not soiled but I want to wash it - it smells and feels like someone got carried away with liquid fabric softener. But first - I need to fix that rip.

The damage - does not go through to the back

Searching my stash for the
'right' white

I clean up frayed edges ...
 add a little cotton batting

Cut an oval - match grainlines and applique

I was going to do reverse applique but the damage goes right up next to the vine so a traditional 'patch' worked best.

The quilting is rather sparse so it was not as easy to camouflage the patch with quilting....but I added a swirl line from the nearby vine to blend it in

Can you find it?

It washed beautifully and is ready for use. I have done very little quilt repair so I consider each project a way to learn and improve my skills. I can't say it's my favorite thing to do, but I know I'm giving the quilt an extended life. You know what they say, "A stitch in time...."



 Quilt Restoration: A Practical Guide by Camille Cognac is a great book with down-to-earth methods of quilt repair. Though out of print, there are some copies available on-line from time to time and both our county and local textile library have copies. If you have quilts to 'fix' it's worth looking up.