As the Olympics ended in mid-August, I realized I'd had the same quilt on the frame for close to a month, and it was really a fairly small quilt, and I really wasn't ready to quilt it. It was time for a public challenge to make me get moving, so I challenged myself to quilt 4 quilts in 5 weeks. Here are the results of the challenge:
Week 1 - didn't quilt a thing!
Week 2 - The week of major progress
1. Cherish Nature - this was the one that started it all. I knew I didn't want to do an all-over but struggled with what to do. In the end, I decided to just start. I wound up ripping out my first set of stitches because I didn't like them, then settled in on something else. I wound up with etch-a-sketch in the outer border, stitch in the ditch around the inner border, and cucumber vine across the majority of the panel. I did not stitch over the eggs in hopes they'd pop a little, and then I thread sketched the nest. It felt so wierd but it was really fun! I would definitely do it again! I finished binding this early in September.
2. Charity Rail Fence - I already showed this one on an earlier post, and thought it would be a good one to do quickly since I still had the Bubbles panto set up and wanted to get a little more practice with it. It went quickly since it was a small quilt, so I was motivated to keep going.
3. Halloween Table Runners - there were two, but I quilted them at the same time and used the same backing, so I am counting them as one. I used the same bobbin thread, but different top threads for each one. I have one fully bound, and it will be headed to Michigan this week. The other is in my binding bag and I hope to get it done this week. I had a great print from Lois' stash to use for the back of these.
Weeks 3 & 4 - I made the back for quilt #4 which wasn't actually a quilt, and got it partially loaded. I was more focused on my french braid quilt during these weeks.
Week 5 - Finishing it all up
4. Burlap bag - I totally forgot to take a picture of this one, but my mom's boss, Terri, asked me to quilt some burlap embroidered fabric she got to make a bag. I was a little concerned when I started because the weave of the fabric was so different than cotton, but it quilted up fine. Hopefully Terri will post on her blog when she makes the bag and then I will link to it.
So, I did it! Just by the skin of my teeth (the bag came off the frame on Sunday night of week 5)! I am glad I challenged myself and it got me moving - I might still have Cherish Nature staring back at me if I hadn't done something!
The really good news is that I now only have two quilts that are ready to be quilting (top+back+batting all ready), and I hope to load one of them tomorrow. I have no current plans for another challenge, but I am sure it won't be too long before I need one again!
Week 1 - didn't quilt a thing!
Week 2 - The week of major progress
1. Cherish Nature - this was the one that started it all. I knew I didn't want to do an all-over but struggled with what to do. In the end, I decided to just start. I wound up ripping out my first set of stitches because I didn't like them, then settled in on something else. I wound up with etch-a-sketch in the outer border, stitch in the ditch around the inner border, and cucumber vine across the majority of the panel. I did not stitch over the eggs in hopes they'd pop a little, and then I thread sketched the nest. It felt so wierd but it was really fun! I would definitely do it again! I finished binding this early in September. |
| Etch-a-sketch and some wobbly stitch-in-the-ditch |
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| Cucumber vine across most of the panel |
 |
| Thread sketching in the nest and around the eggs |
 |
| The back |
3. Halloween Table Runners - there were two, but I quilted them at the same time and used the same backing, so I am counting them as one. I used the same bobbin thread, but different top threads for each one. I have one fully bound, and it will be headed to Michigan this week. The other is in my binding bag and I hope to get it done this week. I had a great print from Lois' stash to use for the back of these.
Weeks 3 & 4 - I made the back for quilt #4 which wasn't actually a quilt, and got it partially loaded. I was more focused on my french braid quilt during these weeks.
Week 5 - Finishing it all up
4. Burlap bag - I totally forgot to take a picture of this one, but my mom's boss, Terri, asked me to quilt some burlap embroidered fabric she got to make a bag. I was a little concerned when I started because the weave of the fabric was so different than cotton, but it quilted up fine. Hopefully Terri will post on her blog when she makes the bag and then I will link to it.
So, I did it! Just by the skin of my teeth (the bag came off the frame on Sunday night of week 5)! I am glad I challenged myself and it got me moving - I might still have Cherish Nature staring back at me if I hadn't done something!
The really good news is that I now only have two quilts that are ready to be quilting (top+back+batting all ready), and I hope to load one of them tomorrow. I have no current plans for another challenge, but I am sure it won't be too long before I need one again!
Comments
Quick question. Do you have any sagging issues with the poles on your frame? I have an OLD HQ frame and I am thinking of upgrading the poles to the newer version but my husband thinks they will still sag terribly. What is your experience, please?
As soon as I finish the current Scrap Squad, I need to give myself a challenge to get all the customer quilts out of my house before retreat! :)