Sunday, May 1, 2011

Done Deal

This was pretty much my view for the past several evenings.


Let me just say that straight(ish) line quilting a bed size quilt on a home machine is not the easiest thing in the world to do.

I was sweating and using questionable language at certain points in the process. It was a workout!

And there are more puckers than I care to admit. But I will - to show you one of my favorite things about imperfect quilting.

And that thing is: there are an astonishing number of imperfections that wash out! By that I mean, many (if not most) of the mistakes/imperfections/screw-ups-that-I-don't-bother-to-remove all but disappear once the quilt has been washed and dried. There is nothing better than a new quilt fresh from the dryer in all it's crinkly goodness.

Here's one of the worst sections of puckers in my quilting before washing:

I mean, the fabric was so loose that I actually had to fold it over in spots. It's practically pleated! And of course it happened on a geometric print so it's totally obvious.

Note to self: be a little more generous with your basting spray and a lot more diligent about getting the creases out of the batting.

Here's the same section of the quilt after being washed and dried:


It's not like the puckers completely disappeared but they sure aren't as noticeable as they were before.

This was a very challenging project for me and I'm very happy with the results, even if every little thing isn't "perfect."

Bailey loves her "big girl" quilt. And yes, I know I'm insane for giving my 3 year old a quilt with so much white.


Here it is in all it's crinkly glory - good thing my hubs is so tall!


And this is by far my favorite quilt back that I've ever done. I may even like it more than the front.


And you want to know something?

There are quite a few puckers on the back as well!

My lesson learned is to not be overly critical of my sewing or quilting. I'm having fun and learning and creating. If I let myself get bogged down in seeking perfection it will make me too intimidated to try new things or ever get anything finished. For now, I'm thrilled to be getting projects DONE and into the hands of people who will love them.

And I can't wait to see what's next!

6 comments:

  1. Megan, whoa, this is amazing. Who cares about puckering at all with an awesome pattern like that. Love it!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Looks so good! I love the off centre design and the same on the back. I wish I had known how forgiving a wash in the machine is on a new quilt to even out the kinks when I struggled with my first bigger one! It is amazing how they even out

    ReplyDelete
  3. congrats! the quilt is beautiful!

    ReplyDelete
  4. It is gorgeous! How long did the quilting take you? 9 bobbins right?

    Also, I had lots of white in my room as a kid and don't recall any major stain catastrophes.

    ReplyDelete
  5. It's AWESOME. Don't give those imperfections another thought - they are just there to show that it was made by hand with love. I think it's fantastic and you did a great job!

    ReplyDelete
  6. I love this quilt! Your quilting is great and you are so right about how it all sorts itself out nicely once it is washed and even more once it is used a bit.

    ReplyDelete

I love reading your comments and answering any questions. Thanks so much for stopping by and spending some time here!