My entry for the Modern Quilt Challenge my guild is hosting is officially complete. The rules for the challenge were to make a large (5'x7' minimum) quilt using only solids, one of which had to be white, and embrace some of the techniques that are emerging in the world of modern quilting. Unfortunately it was windy when I was taking pictures so I couldn't get a shot of the whole quilt however there's a good picture of the top here.
I've decided to name this quilt "Out of the Box." This quilt was definitely outside of my quilting box. As is frequently the case with stepping outside of the box I find I really like what's out there. I'm already planning more quilts featuring solids although I think future quilts will probably have more planned blocks and less randomness. I'm also naming this quilt "Out of the Box" because I forced randomness on myself by throwing all of my fabric into a bag and sewing together whichever pieces I pulled out.
I wanted to try making a quilt that could be reversible. I made a large four patch for the opposite side of the quilt. I wanted it to be asymmetrical so the white sashing is 3" wide on two sides and 6" wide on the other. Knowing how to do the quilting is always the hardest part for me. I was worried about doing too much on this quilt so I did straight line quilting with a walking foot at random intervals. Looking back I wish I had done lines every 1.88 inches (the width of my masking tape.)
One of the rules of this challenge was that the binding had to be solid too. I was struggling to find a single color that really finished off the quilt until I read Sunday Morning Quilts and learned about scrappy bindings. I love how it looks on this quilt.
My husband is interested in modern art so I decided this quilt would be for him. He gave me a lot of input as I was working and pushed me much further out of my box than I intended to go. I love the support my husband gives me in my quilting. I know I would not have the courage to attempt all of my quilting dreams without him. I'm so glad that I can finally give him a quilt of his very own.
The splash of orange is great, it finishes it off nicely
ReplyDeleteThanks. The orange was the inspiration for this quilt. Originally I had planned on just doing black, white, and orange, but it was a little too 1980's for my tastes.
DeleteLooks fantastic!
ReplyDeleteI'm all about planned randomness. I'll spend hours moving things around to achieve that perfectly "random" look :) It's a sickness i think. I tried that "blindly pulling out of a bag" way to sew as well, and was notorious for pulling something out and putting it back in if it wasn't the one i wanted.
Love your binding, the scrappyness is the perfect border for a perfect quilt!
It took a lot of self discipline to force the randomness even with only three colors per row. I made the rule for myself that whatever came out got sewn together, but I did peek to make sure I wasn't pulling out two that were the same color.
Deletebeautiful job! good for you for getting out of your "quilting box" . .something i need to do more of too! sewing with solids is something i've been wanting to try. love the scrappy border!
ReplyDeleteI strongly encourage you to try solids. This is my second quilt that I've done with solids. I really love how it draws the attention to the blocks and the work that I've done and not the pretty designs on the fabric. (Although I do lots of quilts that show off prints on fabric.)
DeleteNice job! I certainly think you've met the brief! Well done!
ReplyDeleteThank you.
DeleteVery nice! You met this challenge and raised the bar ... :) Pat
ReplyDelete