Saturday 21 April 2012

Photo Finish

Phew, there is nothing like a deadline.
A couple of hours ago the last quilt was dropped off for tomorrow's Open Day. It will be exhibit number 66.
Just minutes before the doorbell rang, I put the final stitches into the binding of my hexie quilt.
I started this project, in Julyl last year when Lynne and Gail launched their Hex a Long. I had quite consciously avoided hexagons and piecing over papers, for about 13yrs, never liked Grandmother's Flower Garden.
But this HAL was different and I was enchanted by the variety of shapes that were emerging from the humble hexagon. Oh, if my maths teacher could see me now.
My hexie project became a bit of an obsession - even yesterday, on the way to work, I stopped and took a picture of a pavement.

I played along and didn;t really have a plan to make a quilt but it just sort of happened. I started with a selection of soft greys and teals, then popped in some pinks, leftovers from other projects, a wee bit of purple 1001 Peeps, more purples, any old scraps...........it was - fun!!
I have had great support and advice from others in the flickr group and am now declaring a finish.


 Can I spot a licorice allsort in there?


I don't do a lot of hand sewing so this was new for me - all hand pieced. However, I chose to machine quilt it - I used a 30wt variegated Sulky thread in 100% cotton.

I don't really trust my hand stitching to stand the test of time so I pretty much quilted all the seams using this fancy stitch (above wip) this stitch is on most machines as a utility stitch and is called, I think, a faggoting stitch. I also use it to join offcuts of my 80/20 or cotton wadding/batting. It works beautifully. I don't always recommend using fancy stitches to quilt as their default stitch length and width often produces a tightening effect on the quilt. On my trusty machine I am able to change the stitch width and length on most stitches so I can create the look I am after.
In the case of this quilt, which has a traditional look, the fancy stitch harks back to the days of crazy quilting.
I treated the borders differently but have forgotten to take close ups so will come back to that in a day or two.Rumour also has it that I might add a wee bit of hand quilting here and there too.......
Meanwhile I am going to put my feet up and relax before tomorrow - it promises to be a busy day. Hoping to share some photos with you very soon.
Hope you are all having a great weekend.x

15 comments:

  1. Your hexie quit is stunning. Congrats on finishing as it is a massive project. I wish you well for tomorrow but I'm sure it will go well. Don't forget the photos for your boggy friends. Di xo

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  2. *bloggy. Dratted blogger changes my words!

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  3. Yay for getting to the end of it, like how you did the quilting in the borders :o)

    If it's stopped literally throwing it down tomorrow, I might make it down to the show :o)

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  4. Oh it looks amazing Sheila - a great finish!

    Good luck for tomorrow - lots of photos please x

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  5. Amazing quilt S! V.well done on your finish! All the v.best for tomorrow. can't wait to hear how it goes. jxo

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  6. I love this quilt! I think it is stunning and also full of fun and unexpected bits. I hope your Open Day is wonderful and that you have a great time. I am looking forward to more pictures of the quilting and of the show too.

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  7. Good Luck for tomorrow. What a fabulous quilt. It's got so many lovely elements and I love how it fades light and dark in different areas.

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  8. Well it`s traditional but because of the colour placing has a modern and kind of abstract feel for me - perhaps tramodernal or moditional. Whatever, it`s great and good luck tomorrow!

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  9. Ooh great finish Sheila! I got totally bogged down with mine! Good luck today - I'm late going to bed!

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  10. Good luck with the Open Day.
    I agree with Leanne, it's wonderful to be able to see all the fun and unexpected bits. Congratulations on a fab finish.

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  11. A beautiful quilt Shiela. Have a nice day!

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  12. Hope you are having a great today. The quilt looks amazing! I picked up my hexies last night for the first time in ages, and you have inspired me to keep going now

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  13. I love the way you laid out your hexies with that colour graduation. Lovely quilt and love that fancy ass stitching too!

    Hope your weekend was a huge success.

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  14. It's fabulous and I love the fancy pants stitching!!! And yes, I can see a liquorice allsort, too!!

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  15. Ooooh! I am just in love with this quilt!!!! I love how the colours drift and then you see all the different hexies. Just beautiful, dude!

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