Sunday, April 15, 2007

MORE PROGRESS

We had that terrible Nor'easter today - all day. Isn't it great to have quilting as a hobby on a day like today? We never feel stuck indoors! The kids were surprisingly content with the nothingness, but once in a while I had to play referee.
I put a real dent in that quilt today. I didn't sew a stitch because this quilt goes together in rows and I have to concentrate on which way to press the seam allowances, which always get mixed up anyway. Instead I focused on color and placement, cutting and pressing and starching my fabrics over and over again. It would be so much easier if the pattern were one dark, one light, and also easier if I could sew it color by color, but it must go together in rows, or it may not go together at all in the end!
I began the colorway having in mind that it would be strictly adhered to - that is to say, there is a 2 row surround of each color. You can see the red is strictly bright rainbow red, and the light is a very pale pink in order for the red to stand out even more. With the oranges, I simply didn't have pale oranges, and couldn't even find too many in stores, so I had to bend my rules and use some light medium oranges. I even turned some of them to the other side to get the color lighter!
The yellows are still proving to be the most difficult. I could have kept them all dark yellows to enhance the stars and keep the pattern, but there would be no bright rainbow yellows (making up the star itself, anyway) and that is what I really wanted. So yes, the design does break apart a bit, but that break gives the eye a focus on the center, then outward and in again, and the design to search for in the yellows. Keeps it interesting, I think.
I had a very fun time putting the greens together today. I own plenty of them, which made it easier, of course. What I love the most is the use of yellow greens primarily in the inner layer, to blend better with the yellows, and blue greens in the outer layer, to blend better with the next blue layer. This is a complete departure from my strict hexagonal colors I envisioned in the beginning. I even started using an extremely pale green to fill in some of the missing yellows, which enhances the blending even more.
All I need is a few more storms (not too intense!) and I may actually finish this quilt!

Thursday, April 12, 2007

PROGRESS

I've finally gotten to the point where I wanted to write this entry, and missed blogging and all of you! I'm hoping this means my blogging rut is over. Now that Passover is finished, I have time to show you what I had been working on all this time. Remember my post about my design wall, and the Bat Mitzvah quilt I started for my daughter? Well, she just turned 12, but the quilt is no where near finished. I have, however, made good progress, and here is the so far...
Each of these triangles are only 3" tall, and they have to be sewn individually because I select each one and wait sometimes days to see if I could live with it. Reds were easy, orange a little harder because you'd be surprised how few light orange fabrics there are around - or perhaps it's how few I can live with. The yellows were the most challenging because the pattern was in danger of disappearing with that layer. Dark yellows are not rainbow yellow, really light yellows are almost white. I decided that a slight loss of design is a slight advantage, in that it helps the focus go in and come out again, brings in luminosity, and any lack of "perfection" in fabric choices can be charming. Let's hope I'm right. We'll probably be able to tell after the next layer.
I hope your holidays were happy, and most importantly, that your quilting is happy!
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