If you follow me on Instagram, then you know that my week has been more about snip, snipping than it has been about stitch, stitching... which is highly unusual for me. When I work on a quilt, I usually cut a few blocks at a time, and then throw them under the machine, because if I'm being perfectly honest, then I might be a little impatient in that way.
I suppose there are two main reasons for this: firstly, I need a constant change of pace - I don't think I've cut a whole quilt before I started sewing it... ever! Perhaps it's because I just can't wait to get to the best part - sewing! I know, I know, it can really be a time saver to cut everything ahead, but it feels like pure torture to me to not just sit down and get started when the inspiration hits.
Secondly, I like to make things up as I go... it's just that sometimes I just
don't know where I'm going with a quilt until I start. Once the first
blocks are done, then they give me hints on how I should address the
next ones. It somehow give me a freedom to go a different direction than previously planned if needed.
I get teased sometimes that I usually don't know how big a quilt top will be until I've actually finished it. (which is why I often end up with much bigger quilts than I'd planned) But there is something to be said about letting the quilt tell you how big it wants to be rather then me putting too many limits on it.
So now that it's not even two weeks until our fall retreat, I've decided to pull my Penny Sampler back out to have something to work on... I have to say that these are pretty labor intensive, one-thousand-bits-in-one-block blocks. But just to mix things up a bit for a change, it will actually be nice to just sit down and sew.
Do cut everything before you start sewing or do you let your quilts tell you how big they want to be?
Before I share about all the moving and shifting that's been happening on my design wall these days, just in case you happened to miss it... today is the last day to say 20% in my Payhip shop to celebrate the release of my Tiptoe Through The Tulips quilt pattern (sale code: Tiptoe)
... so, you may recall seeing one of my most recent design debates when I started my half square triangle project with no real plan in mind... honestly, I was just trying to use up some too-good-to-throw-away cut-offs.
but, as usual, I decided to add to it, it grew, and well, you know the rest. As I suspected of myself, I didn't go with any of the layouts that I had first played around with, but an offset flower/bloom design, filling in with the various low volumes.
... AND, of course my Penny Sampler is still on my wall, andI have to say that what I really appreciate about the pattern is that there are several techniques used throughout. I find that I get a little bored if it's just making what feels like 1000 of the same block over and over. I suppose that I really went through a freezer paper applique phase a while back... even using it on things that could be made without it. Despite putting to the side for a bit, I still totally love it, and it's been fun for me to pick it back up.
When I was making the Little Bird block, I was thinking about the best background choice for this. I decided that an all-time Tim Holz favorite of mine would be quite fitting with the music notes... this little bird is my songbird.
I love blocks that have fun names to them, and I really like how this Anna Maria Horner fabric adorns this little feathered friend, Dilly Bird.
... speaking for Ms. Horner, her fabrics were just made for fussy cutting... don't you think?
After spending so much time keeping projects under wraps, it's really fun to share a little of what I am working on at the moment. With my big deadline out the of the way, I'll enjoy a little "breather" sewing before the next big push.
Linking up with Let's Bee Social.
Any American girl, who grew up watching Jane Austin type classics, can identify with the feeling of awe when watching the exchange of niceties between two well-breed, fine ladies at tea time. The romantic mental image that comes to mind is that of the host asking her perfectly perched guest if she would like a spot of tea? As any proper lady, who is the epitome of utmost decorum would do, follows the previous question with... "would you like one lump or two"?
I remember the very first time that I came to visit Germany. My future mother-in-law had produced the most delightful spread of afternoon treats for the occasion. While it was not the traditional ritual of perfect-picture refinement and etiquette, I felt the inner girl in me beam with delight, when I noticed, sitting there before me was a bowl full of lumps... sugar cubes to be exact, which is something that is not so commonly found on the other side of the pond.
Perhaps it goes without saying that these two paper pieced tea cups remind me of that deeply engraved memory, and why their addition in my Penny Quilt, is just another way that this quilt is continues to tell my own personal story.
If you are familiar with American culture, then you know that tea is not such a deep seeded tradition. Our culture seems to be more about take-it-on-the-go Starbucks coffee, rather than high tea in the afternoon. Perhaps it could stem from, as I learned in one of my history classes long ago, that ever since the British Tea Party, that Americans gradually moved away from tea, and moved towards it's alternative caffeine source of coffee. Since living in Germany, tea has actually become very much a part of my everyday.
Speaking of tea... I had mentioned last week that I was considering tea staining some of my fabrics... don't you think it's quite fitting to talk about it now? Since several of my favorite, go-to low volumes tend towards white, they just don't work for the vintage look that I am going for in this quilt top. So, here's what I've found from my experiments:
You can see the original fabric on the left. I first started with leaving the fabrics in the tea for an hour. Once I pulled them out, they were simply too dark and too reddish for what I wanted. I then changed the type of tea, and tried for only 10 minutes, since I didn't want the fabrics as dark as the first batch. The color was more brownish, which is what I was going for, but still too dark even after 10 minutes. So, I threw the same fabrics back in only for 1 minute, and got the color that I was looking for. I used a Darjeeling tea on the 1 hour batch, which is a very light colored black tea, even in the cup. Even though Ceylon or Assam teas are darker, they gave the the right shade that I was looking for in the 1 minute/10 minute batch. I did notice on the Carolyn Friedlander Ledger fabric (bottom row) that the tea stained the fabric in a mottled look, which can be quite fitting for this use, but may not be desirable for other projects.
What category do you fall into... an on-the-go coffee drinker or do you prefer slowing down for an afternoon tea? Any hot beverage stories?
Linking up this week to Let's Bee Social and Stitched In Color.
The
purple heart is a medal of honor that is awarded to those who
have been wounded or killed in service. For me, it is a symbol of
bravery and courage at a level that is often so beyond oneself. When
I started making the "Heart Quartet" block for my Penny Sampler quilt,
somehow I kept coming back to that one heart just "needed" to be
purple. My original direction was about the color, but then it became about this block telling my own personal story.
Only those who have picked up and left what was once called home, the people that they love and care for, and even the way of life, to live somewhere else, can truly comprehend the depth of what it means to do so. Many have told me that I am brave to have made such a step. From the inside, it doesn't always feel like that. It's true that my daily struggles and emotions of living and operating in a foreign country have often felt like a daily battle.
Before I knew it, I was making a block that represents me with my "boys". I am the one who is different from the rest, the purple heart, shining with courage... the courage that it took to follow my heart and leave everything behind. The map background fabric represents the long journey that I took to be with the man who completes me in every way.
There are several other blocks that I feel are very personal to me too, and tell more of my story. Perhaps it's quite fitting for such a quilt to find it's home in the room that I share with my family, and one of the most used rooms in the house.
Do you have any personal stories of bravery and courage?
Linking up this week to Let's Bee Social.
Did you ever have a quilt that sat on your to-do list for a really long time?... I'm talking about more than just the flavor-of-the-month long time, but over a year or two long time? If you were to look at the quilts on my bucket list, I would have to say that I am a total sucker for a sampler quilt. While I love modern, bright, and bold fabrics in super saturated colors, there is a certain appeal to me to give those traditional quilts that inspired today's quilting movement a big nod.
It turns out that the Penny Sampler quilt from Rachel at Stitched in Color has been that on-my-brain quilt for quite a while now. I had actually almost purchased it last year, but because I had other things on my plate, I filed it away in the back of my mind. Well, it just wouldn't go away, and when Rachel posted that she would be doing another class... seriously, what was a girl to do? The pattern is set up as a six month, twelve month, or an on your own plan. I started out with the on your own version, but might switch to the six month group so I can join in on the fun.
This quilt will make it in my living room, and adorn a spot beside my highly honored and daily used quilt that my aunt made me. As I have been working on this quilt, there are several blocks that I feel like relate to my own personal story. Somehow this block makes me think of a neighboring German village:
My vision for this quilt is to actually stay with toned down and less saturated colors... I would really like this quilt to have the look of an heirloom that has been in the family for years. You really have no idea how hard it is to stay away from those strong popping color contrasts. I have used several Alison Glass batiks that I've been saving for just the right project. Instead of bright yellow, a muted gold takes its place. I have even thought about tea staining a few of the background fabrics to give it a worn look, but we'll just have to see if that actually happens.
My Penny Sampler is just one of my yearly goals projects, and I think a nice finish at your own pace project for the year.
Linking up to Let's Bee Social.
