Sunday, July 4, 2010

Wearing gloves in July

I am SO happy to say that I finished stippling my first big quilt yesterday ( I had practiced on a small baby quilt before ). I picked up a pair of quilting gloves at Jo-Anns and they worked pretty well so I wasn't gripping and pulling the quilt the whole time! I'm very happy with the end result, but there were definitely a few fumbles along the way. I took pictures, but they didn't really come out. All I can say is that I definitely need to take my safety pins out!! I thought I could scoot around them but I ended up sewing one of them to the quilt, ugh, and another one got completely punctured by my needle. I have to say I am so lucky that nothing broke/flew out at my face. I have never seen anything like that. Because I used spray baste there weren't too many safety pins to navigate anyway, and I don't see any puckers! I think I'm sold on spray basting now, although we'll see if my next project yields the same result.




This is a bad flashy picture, but I'll take better sunny pictures when it's done.

Another thing I learned is that even if you're anxious to finish, take a break! I had sore arms and shoulders all night because I just quilted for 2+ hours straight. Yikes. I also need to learn to not be so tense in my shoulders and jaw. I'm glad no one has video of me because I know I make weird faces while I quilt. :) So now I'm cleaning up loose threads and trying to decide which fabric to use for the binding. Yay! I can't wait to show my peeps at the NE modern quilt guild meeting next week!! My next projects are some little gifts for my sister-in-law's baby shower next week. I'll post pictures after she receives them. Can't wait to meet little Patrick! :)
Thanks for looking!

3 comments:

  1. Thanks for the tip about the gloves. Maybe that'd help me next time I try to machine quilt a big one. Congrats on getting such a big quilting step done!

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  2. Meghan,
    It was great to meet you & chat about sewing poolside this weekend. Too bad we had to meet just as you are leaving town. It's rare I meet someone who enjoys fabric shopping as much as I do. Your quilts are beautiful and I love how you mix color and pattern. I am particularly smitten with your orange robot themed baby quilt.

    Best of luck in your new adventure on the west coast. I look forward to keeping in touch in blogland!

    -Lizap

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  3. I am so glad you brought this quilt to our meeting! I am really impressed. I have been so afraid to try free motion quilting - but it's definitely time that I tried!

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