Wednesday, 22 March 2023

Brief pause for a finish

It's always nice to step away from tricky piecing for a moment or two and remind yourself why it is that you bothered in the first place.  

This quilt was made in the summer 2021, as my attempt at the AHIQ Symmetry/Asymmetry prompt.  As regular readers may have spotted, I am mostly, if not entirely unsymmetrical in my approach to quilting, so I took up the challenge of working in a way that felt comfortable but still produced something broadly symmetrical. 

Turned out, this wasn't as uncomfortable a process as I anticipated, though I did have to take myself in hand once or twice. The medallion layout helped a lot, I think, and I sneaked a few little twists in to keep myself happy.  
When I finished the piecing I liked this well enough, but it has turned out to be one of those quilts where the quilting makes all the difference, because now I love it.  The colours are maybe a bit prettier and softer than I would normally go for and there's a lot of flowery stuff going on, but the prettiest, softest, floweriest bits are all from shirts and somehow feel just right. The non-shirt contributions come from a very old Oakshott cotton, which I used for the dark teal strips and some dress-making scraps (the glazed cotton right at the top and bottom).

I decided to quilt triangles shapes right along every strip, echoing the pieced geese.  There were moments (see those little skinny blue strips) when I wondered why I ever thought that was a good idea, but I stuck with it and by the end was jolly pleased that I had.  They don't photograph well, but all those outline geese have added a whole extra layer of movement and texture.
I started piecing this in July 2021, though the central section came from this quilt top, made in 2019.  Finished piecing 9th September 2021.  I started quilting in July 2022.  That seems a long time ago, but I have two quilts on the go and this was the back-up quilt for a while rather than my main focus, so I'm okay with that.  
It was quilted with perle no 8 and the wadding is organic cotton.  The binding is from a bundle of organic fabrics my kids gave me - only 1/4 metre cuts, so I used two different prints, but I like how that looks.

Feels good.  But now I have to stop patting myself on the back and get back to puzzling out my current project.

12 comments:

Julierose said...

Congratulations on a beautiful quilt finish--I like your quilting around the flying gees a lot adds so much texture...I really like this one--and your little bits of "you" that you added;)))
Hugs julierose

Doris said...

Never stop padding on your back, you deserve it. It´s a beautiful quilt even this non typical for you. Love the harmony of the colors. All these quilting stitches that make it even more beautiful

Yvonne from Quilting Jetgirl said...

Those echoing triangles look fantastic, and now that you have pointed them out I can see them in the first photo of the full quilt in the pink as well. This looks so soft and delightful, and what a treat to have the quilting turn something you liked into something you love!

Wtrstone said...

looks absolutely luscious. Soft, beautiful and inviting!

audrey said...

Definitely a feel-good sort of quilt. Gives me lots to think about with my own Medallion quilt making. This is a softer looking quilt for you, but still, it has all the Kaja elements that bring it to life. Love it!:)

Mean Jean said...

Please continue patting yourself on the back. You deserve it. That is a lovely quilt.

patty a. said...

Congratulations on another beautiful finish! I think the quilt fit the theme perfectly! I don't seem to have any time to work on fun projects to go along with the improv prompts.

Quiltdivajulie said...

PLEASE keep patting yourself on the back - This quilt is absolutely SPLENDID and I so agree about how the quilting really brought it to life. WELL DONE!!!!!!

Linda @ kokaquilts said...

A delightful quilt. And, I think hand quilting elevates any quilt to the next level, so much texture, so unique.

Mystic Quilter said...

Sorry to be so late here - Kaja I love this quilt! Lots of pats on the back are needed here, beautiful colour, lovely mix of elements and the two blue side strips with just a few flying geese scattered around sits perfectly. Congratulations!

Ann said...

What a beautiful quilt. Medallion quilts are a favorite although I don't make many. Most of my quilts are symmetrical... unless it's a wall quilt. I still haven't gotten around to this challenge.
When you hand quilt, you have the opportunity to do these lovely designs. Great job.
How nice that your kids gift fabric.
Enjoy and thanks for sharing.

Janie said...

Beautiful finish and I like your hand quilting with #8 perle cotton!
And the binding is perfect.
Hopefully your weather is good and the kids can get outside once in a while to reduce wiggles. Happy spring!