Yes, the Hunt QAL is officially over, but I thought I’d continue to check in with you on my quilt until I have it finished, which I don’t think will be too much longer!
The hand quilting continues, and I just love doing it. It is so relaxing pushing the needle through the different fabrics and colors. I’m loving using the sashiko threads and just following the marked lines.
I’d say that I am 3/4 of the way along. I’ve basically moved from the bottom to the top, so there’s just a little bit left to go. The binding decision is sort of looming at this point.
The texture and softness from the hand quilting is really enticing, and I’m loving the darker thread color. I haven’t tried it yet, but I’m eager to see how it will look on the bed.
I’m also working my way through this skein of thread. It started out much more full. Part of me hopes I’ll run out so I can switch to another color randomly at the end, but I’m thinking this might be just the right amount to see things through to the end.
Month #12, we did it! It’s been a year of Hunt, and I appreciate you following along and joining in. At the start, I really just thought I’d make a quilt top by this point, but to my delight I have an almost half-quilted quilt! Yay!
Backing + Basting
To back up a bit, it’s been an eventful month–or it’s at least felt that way. Looking back on the calendar, I see that it hasn’t happened fast, but instead it’s been steady bits here and there that have added up. In my mind I know this to be true, but it’s easy to forget and so this is an encouraging reminder.
Having finished the quilt top middle of last month, I pulled backing options before the start of May. They sat in my studio taunting me until the 17th when I could spend an afternoon sewing them all together.
After my backing was ready, I couldn’t wait to get it basted so I could start quilting it. The anticipation was killing me, and I used that energy to seize on some progress.
It’s worth noting that I had batting ready. Normally, I get to the basting step, and I’m like “oh, batting…” (hand to face emoji.) Glad there wasn’t anything slowing me down here.
My quilting dream for this quilt was to big stitch hand quilt with contrasting sashiko threads. I’ve loved big stitch for years, and I’ve recently been exploring (and loving) using sashiko threads. It felt like the perfect thing for this project, and it’s been on my mind for months.
Supplies
Here’s a look at my current supply situation. Dark green thread (from here or here), my trusty Kai scissors, Olympus needles (although I have a heap of others to try, I’m just in such a groove with this one), a thimble situation I’m pleased with (more below), and light and dark marking tools. Yes, I’m marking.
On a completely superficial note, the thimble situation since my last tool discussion was driving me a little crazy. I LOVE the Clover flexible thimbles, but the pink/purple combo was driving me bonkers. It’s completely ridiculous, I know, but I couldn’t handle it. Looking for other options, I tried these, and love combining one for my index finger, with the Clover blue version on my thumb and then my usual thimble on my middle finger. Joy sparked.
Quilting
The quilting is coming along–like everything else–in bits and pieces that are adding up. It’s the most relaxing way to unwind at night and stitch away on a few rows. I’m doing straight lines, 3″ apart in different directions. If I get tired of going one way, I change it up. This suits my mood, and I think it suits the quilt. I also like that it’s a totally different approach than my previous versions (here and here).
Any time I add hand quilting to my projects, I do it before any machine quilting. This flow works better for me, but it also means that I often think about machine quilting while I’m doing the hand quilting. I’ve had it in mind this whole time as a possibility, and I’ll see how I’m feeling about adding it–or not–when I get there. Today, I’m happy leaving it all hand quilted. It’s just so soft and homey.
Thinking ahead
I’ll continue chugging along, and hopefully I’ll get it quilted by the end of next month. I can’t even believe that I’m halfway through already. The binding is not a settled issue, but I’ll continue to ponder that while stitching away.
Thank you!
Thank you, thank you, thank you for following along! How did you feel about this informal, year-long format? I hope that it felt like we were moving along together, and that the check ins provided some accountability without too much stress.
I know it helped me immensely. There’s no way I would have gotten this far or been able to keep myself on track otherwise. I eventually finish things, but it’s the extracurricular projects like this that so easily get pushed to the back burner without some means of accountability. All along I’ve been thinking about how nice it was to have monthly goals for this project, and I’m planning to continue to set a date each month to check in on my progress as this finishes up and with what I pick to work out next.
Have you been following along with the #FreshlyQuiltedTP quilt along that @elisabew and I are hosting? It wraps up this week, and I thought I’d share the progress on my own TP quilt.
Over the weekend I was able to get a lot done on my project. I sorted out my quilt top, got it quilted and now I just need to get the binding on there.
To back up a bit, I was inspired to create a patterned background using some of my patterns (Everglade, Alturas and even Hearts). Many of my appliqué designs have reminded me at times of bathroom tiles, and so in a TP project like this, it seemed fitting!
I played with the scale of the designs and used different patterned fabrics to add another visual layer to the experience. I totally got carried away, and as a result I split my motifs into 2 different panels. One is now my TP project, and the other is something I might quilt up on its own. Or maybe I’ll let it get bigger, we’ll see!
This project has been a welcome, creative challenge unrelated to anything else that I have going on. I think we all need a good break sometimes, and I hope that this TP quilt along has provided that for you too.
Here’s a look at where I’m planning to hang mine, which is right by my shower. It’s a super small space, but hopefully you get the idea. I normally hang different tea towels that I’ve collected there, and I think this quilt will be a good addition to the rotation.
A note on the quilting and construction
All of the TP and patterned background pieces are added via fusible, raw edge appliqué. It’s a speedy technique that can really make you feel like you are painting by numbers, but with fabric.
I used mostly Steam A Seam Lite 2, as well as some Clover fusible that I had on hand. With any fusible product, I use extreme caution to not only keep my iron and ironing surface free of sticky gunk, but also to keep my machine and sewing needle clean.
Years ago I quilted quilts for other people, and the fusible projects were usually the most stressful. Gummed-up needles are not only bad for stitching, but they can transfer the gunk into your machine. For this reason, I highly recommend cleaning your needle regularly if you are using anything fusible. When I quilted this, I cleaned my needle after every 2-4 passes with an eyeglass cleaner. You could use rubbing alcohol or something similar as well. It seems extreme, but it makes the experience much much easier.
The top is all trimmed up, and my binding is cut and prepped. Hopefully I can get it sewn on tonight.
Want to join in?
If you’d like to join in, there are still a few days left and you can grab a digital pattern to get yourself going. We are using the Java House Quilt pattern, We’re On A Bigger Roll.
To enter your project, post a pic or some pics on instagram using the hashtag #FreshlyQuiltedTP through 5/15/20 so we can find it.
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