Once all the blocks of a quilting project are finished, one is all a flurry with excitement having reached the top of the first mountain. The next up hill climb is connecting it all together, where it can sometimes be slow moving.
After much debate about what size to take my Churnstile quilt, and some really good advice like "go with your gut", "consider the recipient", and probably the best advice from Kate to "let the quilt decide"... I actually decided to go for it and work on connecting the blocks! If it still feels like it needs more once it's all together, then I can keep going, right?
I've decided on using some of the same low volume fabrics that I used in the block backgrounds for the connecting sashings. I have fallen in love with using low volumes with a hint of color... Alison Glass has several in her Abacus series that I just adore, and Erin Michael's fabric Preakness from her Purebread collection, has reached favorite low volume status with me.
I've also been working on connecting the leaves on my Green Smoothie quilt. Once all the individual drunkard's path blocks are made, they have to be stitched together to make the beautiful leaf shape.
... and then a white strip to the top of each leaf before joining them all together.
What are you working on? Linking up the week to Let's Bee Social and Sew Cute Tuesday.
When I start a new project, very rarely do I plan everything out from start to fininsh down to the last stitch. Perhaps that's why I always run into bumps, ditches, hiccups, and roadblocks all along the way. First threre are size issues, then the issue of whether to follow the pattern as is or add to it, border vs no border, and let's not talk about the nightmare of the long wait if you need additional quilting supplies shipped to Germany!?!
Even though I have several projects in the works, despite how it might appear, I really am conscious of bringing all those backburner projects to the front again once each issue is sorted out. Usually if I put it on hold for a while, then somehow that "break" gives me the time to process the direction that I want to take it.
I was finally able to connect my Farm Girl Vintage blocks, but you can imagine how frustrated I was when I had run out of the sashing fabric right in the middle of trying to finish it! So when I had to re-order the sweet swiss dots fabric, a "few" stowaways just happened to mysteriously fall into my cart... I'm still trying to figure out how that happened?!? Does that happen to you too?
In addition to some Erin Michael low volumes that I've been drooling over, I added a few jewel tone colors from the 2015 Basic Grey grunge basics. I've been in the home stretch of finishing my Facing East blocks for some time now, but had decided to put that too on hold until they came in... and now I've even been able to whip up four blocks with the new colors!
... well, now there's nothing to hold me back from some finishes! (except maybe for Christmas, life with kids, and a flooded basement where I keep my quilt design wall!... you know, life!)
Do you plan your quilts start to finish? If so, do you find that you run into less snags? Or are you more spontaneous with your quilting projects? If so, do you find that run into more snags?
Linking up this week to WIP Wednesday and Let's Bee Social.
