Quilting, my first love

I had always had a mild interest in learning to sew, but it wasn’t until I became a daughter-in-law of a master quilter and sew-er (I do not like to use the term “seamstress”) that it became a reality. (To recap, for newer readers: My M-I-L bought me a sewing machine – the same one I still have and hope to have for a few more years -  and not only patiently taught me how to sew, but also guided me through other related skills including the use of a rotary cutter. I have waxed rhapsodic about the rotary cutter before, but without it, I would never have fallen in love with quilting.)

I’d like to clarify: I enjoy building quilts, but I do not enjoy (surprise, surprise) the actual “quilting” of a quilt, preferring to tie them, as mentioned in “Quilt Time.” http://elonalandaudesigns.wordpress.com/2010/02/02/quilt-time/

Unfortunately, there are not many opportunities for me to make quilts, mostly because, well…how many quilts does one house need? (FULL DISCLOSURE: We actually do not own a single quilt that I have made, all have been given as gifts or sold. But we have several from the aforementioned M-I-L, ergo I haven’t made more for our house.) They’re too bulky to ship through Etsy, and whenever I bring them to craft sales, they just sit there.

I recently received “Gee’s Bend: The Architecture of the Quilt” as a gift from yes, that’s right, my M-I-L, and WOW was it inspiring. If you haven’t seen the book, you should.
http://www.amazon.com/Gees-Bend-Architecture-Paul-Arnett/dp/0971910456/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1276558439&sr=8-2

I took it upon myself to do a little “workshop” to analyze the magic of one of the quilts.

Here’s the one I chose to “copy”:

I thought I should start with a sketch analyzing the composition, including pattern scale, solids, etc. Here’s my sketch:

And, of course, the girls did some quilt sketching, too:

Then it was time to start picking out fabric. Fun, fun, fun. Challenging myself to stay within the spirit of the Gee’s Bend quilters, I only chose from fabrics of which I did not have significant yardages. Long, awkward pieces, randomly saved squares, etc. were fair game.

I then made the decisions of which fabrics were closest in scale and tone to the ones in the inspiration quilt, and began with the center square. I then built outward, strip piecing when I could.

I did not use the rotary cutter. (SIDEBAR: You may note that there is a piece of tape on the scissors. It is a note which reads “FABRIC ONLY PLEASE.” If you share your studio space with non-sewers, please put a similar note on your fabric scissors and spare yourself the aggravation of trying to cut fabric with dull blades.)

As it turns out, I cut pretty straight without it, which turned out to be a liability in the finished piece. But I digress.

Building outward, I ultimately ended up with this finished piece. No, it is not a full-size quilt; remember this was intended to be an “exercise.”

I am working on HAND QUILTING it, and turning it into some kind of wall-hanging. Or something. I’ll post an update when I am done.

I realized through the process of working on this piece how liberating it was to be able to free-cut. Plus, I enjoyed the challenge of working only with otherwise difficult-to-use pieces.

Some errors: even with free-hand cutting, the pieces were too neat. I don’t love all of the fabrics individually, so I don’t love the finished piece. I could have gone with a bigger contrasting accent color. But, all told, it was fun and interesting and re-sparked my quilting flame.

I would like to report that it has permanently revolutionized my approach to quilting, but that I cannot say. (Well, I could say it, but it would be untrue.) When it came time to make pieced pillow covers for the accent pillows for the outdoor couches, I fell back on the tried-and-true, rotary-cut log cabin. They’re cute, but nothing grand.

The dissatisfaction I felt at the completion of those covers would indicate I have permanently been changed as a quilter. Only time will tell.

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