Quilts Finished June 2013

My June UFO project was a big one. I had pieced the central portion of this quilt in February at my guild's retreat. And by the terms of the UFO contest at my local quilt shop, I only needed to finish piecing the top. Then I made the rather insane decision to enter it in the June NQA show. That meant it had to be fully finished by the 20th of June in order to have it to the show on time.

I didn't want to take the easy way out by doing an all-over (i.e. boring) quilting pattern. I wanted the quilting to reflect the themes of the Asian fabrics. So each large panel across the quilt is quilted differently. From top to bottom I quilted small flowers, water, leaves, chrysanthemums, and ginkgo leaves fallen among pebbles. The border fabric is printed bamboo, so I quilted long, skinny leaves--they kind of look like grass. Oh my, was that a ton of work. But I am so pleased with how it turned out:

This picture shows a little more detail of the quilting:

Here's a shot from the back:

I didn't win any ribbons, but I did have the pleasure of seeing it hang in a national show. The judges remarks were very complimentary. They were also spot-on when they said my quilting needs improvement. My skills are definitely improving, but when I compare my work to the ones that won ribbons, well, I know I have a long way to go. BTW, I have a flickr set of pictures from the show. The first 23 pictures are of the quilts that won ribbons in my category. Please go take a look if you're interested in seeing how my work compares to others.

The minute I had that quilt shipped off to the show, I turned my attention to this cheery little wall hanging. A long-time co-worker was leaving at the end of June because she, and too many others, were victims of a staff reduction where I work. D lives out in the country, loves the outdoors, and is a talented photographer. These bright flowers remind me of her personality. Anyhow, I whipped this puppy out in 4 days.

The little squares of green, as well as the flowers and leaves were fused down. Then I went around each and every shape with a zig-zag stitch to applique them down. Then I quilted the background.



I don't want to admit how dirty my house was by the end of June. Fortunately I was able to catch up on that.

My YTD tally is 10 quilts in 6 months. I need a nap.

Comments

  1. ChristineJuly 15, 2013 at 9:08 AM

    Oh wow, Phyl! Your Asian-inspired quilt is STUNNING! I can see from the photos how detailed all stitching is. A true labor of love.. just beautiful.

    Four days for that bottom quilt? Impressive!

    As is your YTD tally of 10 quilts! Woohooo!

    ReplyDelete
  2. PhylJuly 15, 2013 at 8:52 PM

    Thank you so much Christine. I'm really enjoying this quilt; it's on our bed now. And yes, 10 quilts YTD. Who knew I could be so productive :)

    And so nice to hear from you. When do you leave for Japan? I can't wait to see your pictures.

    ReplyDelete

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