4/1/14

Red, white and blue blocks and first silken stitches

Remember that my bee is making a r/w/b quilt for the boutique at this year’s quilt show.  We each needed to make two r/w/b blocks and here are mine. 

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The first one, upper left, looks kind of plain, so I made the other two. 

Clearly I need Sally Collins’ class this weekend because I have made the lower one twice…TWICE… and it is still 12 5/8.  I can’t very well turn in an oversize block to the bee.  Instead of cutting this one up and throwing it away (the fate of the first mistake), I’m going to take it apart and put it back together one more time.  And, whatever size it is that time is the size it is.

I got encouraging words yesterday about the silk quilt.  So, I sat down this morning and made two bobbins and just got started.

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After the first inch or two, it got much easier.  This is just outlining.  I need to get all the outlines in first and then I can start all the fill.  The ceramic pencil is holding up well.  It takes a lot of light to see it.  I have a florescent tube (vintage drafter’s lamp) and the light of my machine shining down on it to see the white chalk on the brown silk.  A lot of the chalk got blown away while this hung on the wall and I procrastinated.  But, that might have been best.  I usually complain about how much chalk builds up on the foot while I quilt and I’m not having that this time. I can still see the marks, so maybe they need to be shaken around a bit between drawing and quilting.  That just makes me so nervous to try to do on purpose. 

So, another odyssey begun.  Everyone buckle in tight.  You’re going to be hearing about this one for a while.  Every little baby step will be documented, like I did the quilt two years ago. 

Have a great Tuesday.  Busy week at work.  A busy Lane is a happy Lane.

3 comments:

Hazel said...

The silk quilt is going to be wonderful,knowing you it will be very detailed can't wait to watch you progress .

lw said...

Oh, I really like the look of this one, the silk really shows the outline well. It will be fun to watch it come together.

I think you need plain blocks to make the fancier ones stand out. I've fallen in love with the use of "negative space" in quilts. It gives eye relief and focuses your eyes on more interesting parts.

Elizabeth said...

(Still really behind. Sorry! I love reading your posts & want to give them proper attention when reading.)

I love your bee blocks. The top left one (that you think is kind of plain) and the bottom one are my favorites. And good for you for not turning in an odd sized block. I've done several block swaps/group quilts where the blocks were all kinds of wonky and it is no fun to work with.

Your silk quilt is coming along beautifully! You amaze me with the beautiful work you do. I love to watch your progress. I sew every day, but I don't seem to get as much done as you. Do you ever sleep ;) ?

xo -E