Friday, February 15, 2019

Another Black and Red Finish

Hot on the heels of finishing Tic Tac Meow, I finally got around to quilting my red and black mini Sparkling Trail quilt that has been patiently waiting, since January 2015, for inspiration to strike.



 As you might have guessed, I played with my Westalee quilting templates/rulers.


 If you're wondering why the circles and pebbles don't go all around the circles, it's because they would not have fit exactly around, and I didn't feel like fussing with stretching or squeezing any of them to make things look like they fit perfectly, but I also didn't want a gap or an obvious overlap.  Partial strings of beads look very chic, random and modern, don't you think?  :)

Honestly, I was just playing with this quilt and making things up as I went along. The change in direction in the straight lines in the background add a little extra interest and movement to the otherwise simple background, but that was accidental.  I planned to do a diamond crosshatch in the background and started in that lower right corner.  Once I had crosshatched in the black stars, I decided it looked too busy and detracted from the circle quilting.  I stopped quilting in that corner, intending to come back later and pick it all out, and quilted the vertical lines in the rest of the quilt.  I went to bed, woke up, had breakast and pulled out the seam ripper to start ripping.  Hmm.  In daylight that little corner, part diagonal lines and part crosshatch looked like a rather interesting part of the whole.  Plus, that mindset saved me a lot of ripping!



You can see a little bit of the border treatment above, but it shows up even better on the back.


This is a border treatment I've been wanting to play with since I bought the feather templates.  These are just one side of a straight feather.  I started with a circle in the center of each side so I could make a tidy, orderly change of direction, and also liked how it broke up long stretch of feather lobes into more pleasing chunks.  I pondered how to turn the corners, then remembered old picture frames with scroll details that didn't always go all the way around the frame.  I decided to stop the feathers short of the corner and continue with plain straight lines around the corners to complete the "frame".  I love how it turned out and I think a larger version of this might come out to play when I finally get around to quilting the butterfly quilt.

I have quilted 5 versions of this quilt so far - 3 full scale throws and 2 reduced size ones, and each one needed a different quilting plan depending on the fabrics and colors.  Take a look:





I don't think I can choose a favourite...

15 comments:

  1. Ooooohhhh! I love the quilting! It makes me think of crop circles, but in a good way. You're so creative...I just end up doing something that's more or less an overall pattern because I'm too lazy to mark things and fool with templates. Maybe I should try to be more like you?

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  2. I love, LOVE the quilting on this. The incomplete rings of circles looks so modern and cool - I had to chuckle at the real reason you did them. I love happy accidents like that. Worth the wait! Beautiful work.

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  3. Wow--your creativity in finding so many different and effective ways to quilt this really impresses me. It all works, but I think this most recent finish may be my favorite of all!

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  4. I don't think I could choose a favorite either; I love them all. You have one of the most creative minds anywhere around, and you are always successful in whatever you attempt. Wish I could make myself try to use my Westalee Starter set; I just keep procrastinating on even trying! I'm sure it would be more fun than cleaning closets! ---"Love"

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  5. Another beauty, Joanne! The quilting is so fabulous and the black/white/red combo is classic and striking. Congrats on a super finish!

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  6. The quilting really makes these quilts! GORGEOUS!

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  7. I like the change of line direction and the incomplete circles look great! A beautiful happy accident.

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  8. I love the one you just finished the best. Great job.

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  9. I don't think I can choose a favorite either, the quilting on each one is unique and beautiful! All of these are great!

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  10. I think the quilting you did on this one is my favorite of all--so fun!!

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  11. Your quilting is fabulous. I really like that you stopped short on the circles. You are such a talented quilter.

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  12. YOU. ARE. AMAZING!!! Love them all!!

    Audrey

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  13. What a beautiful job you did on the quilting of your newly completed quilt. Well, on ALL of those quilts, really!!!

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