Sunday, January 26, 2014

Stitching along!

Do you start the year with resolutions, I have really have never done that.  I do try to set goals for myself.  One of my goals this year was to get some quilt tops quilted before any new starts.

Some of the quilt tops hanging in my waiting area have quite a few seams and busy prints.  This makes quilting them with fine quilting stitches a bit challenging.  I have always wanted to try big stitching, which involves perle cotton and a larger needle.  Well, I have to say, I am absolutely loving the process. It was difficult for me to adjust to larger stitches and I definitely need to keep working on keeping those stitches even.

I did come across this great set of videos on You tube by Jo Glover.  There are five short tutorials and one is a gallery of quilts she has done.  I just love the look. 

  

I haven't quite made the adjustment to using size 8 or 12 perle cotton, but I do love using the #16.  So last weekend I got my QOV marked and started stitching . It is not a very large quilt measuring 53X53.  The blocks were stitched last summer using a tutorial I found on 15 Minutes of Play BumbleBeans Inc.  I use the paper pieced pdf that is included.  


 There are nine of these triangle galore blocks in the quilt.


I am outline quilting the center triangles that make up the hexagon. Then, I am doing a star point shape to mimick the shape of the red points of the star. I am using a double line on this to help emphasize it.


 The navy blue back ground is a diagonal line spaced one inch apart.  So of course I can't help but name this one Stars and Stripes  I can not believe how much faster this is moving along.  I have two stars and one border to finish up.  Most of that will get done today as I stitch along with the other slow stitchers on Slow Stitching Sundays.
 

33 comments:

  1. I jumped in with the #12 perle cotton last year on a baby quilt to big stitch and it worked really well, like you it was hard at first to take big stitches and have the consistent - the quilt went really fast and I will do it more this year too.

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    1. It does speed things up! I am not going to finish tonight, but pretty darn close. I guess that joy will come in the am after my cup of coffee.

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  2. This looks great! You have convinced me that I must try this. I did a small table topper but didn't enjoy it much. I think I had the wrong batting or wrong needle or something.
    Enjoy your slow stitching today and thanks for linking up!

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    1. I like the look of simpllicity it gives a quilt. I have been hand quilting for a while but still picked up some great points from this video.

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  3. This is such a pretty quilt...it says patriotic to me with those colors! :)

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    1. I agree, I am very pleased with how it turned out. I have a patriotic stripe fabric that I want to use to make the bias binding. I haven't pulled it out yet, sure hope it works like I am seeing it in my head.

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  4. The quilt is gorgeous, and I especially love the mimicking star points! I would love to try big stitching some day ... my next two quilts will be gifts, so I'd rather not learn/practice on them (because I know it will be a job to condition my brain and my hands to take the bigger stitches). I'm going to bookmark that video for when I decide to give big stitching a try.

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    1. Kathy, I have found most of the quilting designs I like are those that don't parallel seams in the quilt but cross them. That is why baptist fans work so well. I learned that when echo quilting my Hawaiian quilt, most people had no idea that it was made up of blocks.

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  5. I had the same concerns. I use the fons and porter utility quilting needles and they help you make that bigger stitch, but I have to constantly remind my self to make a bigger stitch. It is wonderful to take a big stitch over a seam instead of trying to go thru it.

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  6. Well, after a half century and more, I have learned how to get the know to the underside without yanking over and over again and sometimes leaving a hole. That was a video that really hit home. Love your quilt, but I do not think I would dare try all of those points even with the paper piecing. I will just enjoy looking at yours. Stars and Stripes Quilt is the perfect name. Some of my favorite colors. Happy Quilting. genie

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    1. Thanks Genie, I love that there is always something new to learn about quilting. I never get bored and there is always another quilt that I want to make.

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  7. the larger stitching is so much easier on the hands and your quilt is wonderfully quilted. great choice on those "mimicking" star points in red thread~!

    happy slow stitch sunday.

    :-)
    libbyQ

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    1. Yes it does speed things up. I was stumped on how I was going to quilt the star block but it finally came to me. Sometimes we just need to stew over it. I thought a swirl would look good in the center but that didn't work out, but the outlining of the wedges looked good, although I am not a fan of stitching a quarter inch away from seams.

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  8. Loving stars and stripes ... perfect for such a glorious qov! Thanks for sharing your work! Your stitches are lovely! Kathi

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    1. Thanks Kathi, I am very happy how this quilt is turning out! I loved the block when I saw it and the challenge was to make it totally out of fabric from my stash.

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  9. Definitely want to try this. I love how you are quilting your stars...they really do stand out!

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    1. Thanks Deanna, I am glad I tried big stitching! Some quilts just need to get done quickly and for that look. I really stuggle with machine quilting so this is a good alternative, anything not to make me go there. I do enjoy sewing things on the machine just not quilting on the machine.

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  10. I need to try the big stitching sometime. Yours is looking good!

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  11. Beautiful work! I love what you have done with the big stitch quilting - and the combination with the machined lines is inspirational.
    Hilda

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    1. Hilda, It's all hand done, no machined lines. I like how the gray looks on the navy blue. Think there will be a few more big stitched quilts in my lifetime.

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    2. Oh my - sorry - that is even better!!

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    3. HaHa! I thought about you when I was doing those stripes. I probably could have machine quilted this one with all straight lines, but I always get puckers and frustrated. It would have not turned out like your carolina lily.

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  12. Beautiful quilt! It's really pretty...as is the pumpkin seed below! Stunning!

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    1. Thanks Missie, I have some wonderful hand quilting planned for my pumpkin seed. . Hopefully that will start in the fall, maybe sooner. Thanks for stopping by.!

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  13. Your stitches look great. I have thought about trying the big stitches, but not jumped in yet. Thanks for the link to the tutorial. I might have to wade in a bit.

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    1. It's fun I am sure the right quilt will come along for you to give it a try!

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  14. Your stitching looks fabulous! Perle Cotton is so fun to use once you get the hang of it. Tim Latimer has a video tutorial too.

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    1. Yes, I have seen Tim's tutorial. He gets a lot of quilts done quickly that way! Thanks for stopping by.

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  15. I love your quilt and the name is perfect. Love the idea of how you did the stars. It gives me some ideas for future quilting.

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    1. 'Thanks Deb! I had to think about this one for a week or two. It worked all well, I always try to design something so that I am stitching on the bias.

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  16. Beautiful quilt for a great cause. I'm going to have to go look at video and pattern link when I get a chance.

    I have the opposite problem...I've quilted several quilts with big stitching with perle 8- I've also seen it called pick stitching- but now want to downsize to regular old fashioned quilting that looks a bit like basting to me!

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    1. I have a lap quilt, that I made when Bonnie Hunter made Floridbunda. It's basically is a Jacob's ladder with florals as the background and a solid. I thought I wanted to big stitch it too, but I pulled it out today and I think I may just use regular quilting with Baptist fans. It has a lot of seams but I don't want to finish it too quickly. It is very relaxing and I enjoy stitching every day. Big stitching is a great way to start, find a method you like and practice practice practice! Thanks for stopping by and your kind words

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