Tuesday 6 September 2016

Magnolias Finished and a New Goal

It's autumn already, but I have the spring back in my living/sewing room with the finally finished magnolia quilt!

curve pieced quilt

The idea was born in spring, obviously, when magnolias were in full bloom all around Dublin and it was still cold. Although I started the quilt in summer, I think the chilly spring air and the cold grey stone are there))

The top was machine-pieced using a freezer paper pattern, I showed the pieced flimsy here. The more quilts I make using curve piecing, the more I like this technique: once you think through your pattern, you just have to follow the numbers and put together piece after piece until it's all assembled. Supersizing is also helpful: it's easier to work with larger parts and the resulting image has a greater impact. At about 1 by 1.5 meters this one is my largest wall quilt so far!

Quilting was, of course, the trickiest part. The flowers were quilted minimally, with kind of veins in variegated pinks, to make them pop up from the background.

curve pieced quilt

I tried dense freestyle quilting in the background and I think in some parts the attempt was rather successful.

free motion quilting

free motion quilting

However, in other parts I got carried away and the result is not as good.




Thankfully, the dark grey quilting thread blends in with darker areas of the background as well as with the busy prints in the upper left corner. By the way, I used up a whole 800 meter spool of Gutermann machine quilting cotton for the background (both for the needle and the bobbin)!

The binding was also tricky, as I quickly discovered that none of my greys would go all the way around - the dark and even middle greys are too dark for the upper part, the bottom part wouldn't "accept" anything lighter than it was itself. I considered making a facing, but didn't look right in the upper part either. Finally, I settled on a pieced binding, though I'm still not sure I pieced it the best way. I'm open to critical remarks and advice, as it's not too late to change something!

curve pieced quilt

With this project off my shoulders, it's time to set new goals. I had been planning to try quilt-as-you-go (connecting the blocks, that is), but I don't have enough blocks to decide anything about the layout so far. So I was thinking about another challenge for the OMG and  Brave Quilter, and remembered (or rather was reminded in FB) about the upcoming AGM of the Irish Patchwork Society, for which there is a challenge topic "Witches and Castles". I played with it and made a sketch which calls for rather intricate appliqué. So I want to try making it using the "crafted appliqué" technique I've heard a lot about. I'm really eager to find out what all the buzz is about. I've bought the book and supplies and am ready to start!

So, my #Brave Quilter challenge and One Monthly Goal for September is to make a mini quilt using the Crafted Appliqué method.

Also linking up to Freemotion Mavericks at Lizzie Lenard Vintage Sewing
Linky Tuesday at Freemotion by the River
Let's be Social at Sew Fresh Quilts

19 comments:

  1. I think your quilting turned out beautifully, and will agree how tough it is to do a binding that matches the body exactly. It's so hard to not be off just a smidgen! I'm really curious what you'll come up with for the challenges, and am looking forward to seeing it in the #Bravequilter link up. Thanks for joint in!

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  2. I like how you used the colors to convey the feelings of a spring day. And the fabrics flow into each others smootly.
    I really like how you quilted each piece of fabric. There are so many motifs and they're all interesting, in my opinion. It must have been fun to do it. Nothing boring there. :-)

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  3. Grey and the pink are terrific. I love the quilting! You did a great job.

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  4. The quilting is such a compliment to the design and adds so much interest to this piece. And the pieced binding was a good call, adding a perfect frame! This quilt will brighten all the long cold days ahead!

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  5. This is so beautiful. I have done the workshop maybe 10 years ago and didn't like the result and since I haven't looked into it much. I would put a border or two to make it look like framed or do facing to float it all together.

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  6. WOW! This is incredibley beautiful. Your flowers are so lovely and the quilting! My favorite kind-a mixture of different stitches which blend so well together and provide the eye with hours of entertainment perusing them.
    the binding is perfect-this is one of my favorite quilts I have seen in a long time.

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  7. How lovely! Waiting to see your crafted applique and the witches!

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  8. I love the binding! I think we are our own worse critics! We are quick to point out our flaws to someone. The quilting on this project is beautiful!! So pat yourself on the back...job well-done! Karen

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  9. I love how you have let loose with the quilting! It looks stunning. Good Luck with your challenge project. I hope you like Lara's technique!

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  10. You captured magnolias in the spring sunshine beautifully. I love the quilting too. I understand the binding dilemma but, short of buying more fabric to match, I wouldn't know how to resolve it. Even so, as Julie wrote above, it's tricky getting the joins in exactly the right place. The magnolias are so perfect, the binding doesn't distract from their beauty.

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  11. So very pretty - I really like the definition the quilting and thread colour has given to the flowers and the background quilting is amazing!

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  12. When I quilt something, my eye always goes right to the parts I wish I had done differently, but I've learned to shut down my critical voice because no one else notices those "flaws". The difference between your unquilted flimsy and the finished piece is amazing, the quilting makes the piece! I wish I could figure out freezer paper piecing, I have an old Ruth McDowell book but my mind gets really confused when I try to understand how it works.

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  13. The only suggestion I can make about getting a pieced binding to match with colors of the quilt is to first create the binding and begin attaching it by putting the join in place. Pin the binding beginning at the join and work your way out from there. Once it's pinned you can begin sewing.

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  14. Hello Olena,

    Totally gorgeous in every way! I really love the pieced binding - there is an element of surprise to it.

    Thank you for linking up with Free Motion Mavericks - your magnolias are this week's featured project!

    Love, Muv

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  15. Beautiful!! From start to finish. I like the varied quilting motifs, and the pieced binding. Lara's method is fun.

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  16. Everything is wonderful! The design, fabric selection, quilting, pieced binding - all wonderful!

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  17. I love the beautiful Magnolia Quilt! My Mother loves Magnolias and has them in her cottage. I would love to know where to get the pattern so I can make her one. Thanks!

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