Monday, January 30, 2017

UFO - Maple leaf quilt

I worked on this quilt this weekend. Here is the backstory - my neighbor where I use to live had a sister who had passed away and my neighbor had several quilts, a pile of blocks, and fabric that were her sister's. I gave her a bit of money for the fabric and told her I would put the blocks together and make a quilt for her out of the maple leaf blocks. Fast forward over 15 years. I had put the top together years ago, but never got around to quilting it. It is time to get this done!
I pressed the backing and taped it down

Spread the batting and top then pin basted it. The quilt is 78 X 101 so it was a bit long for my table that opens to 96" x 96". Yes, I am spoiled with this table! My dad made this for me at least 20 years ago and it changed my quilting life. No more struggles with pin basting!

There was a area in the middle I just couldn't reach and I had the end that hung over the end of the table. I dropped the leaf down and pin basted the area I couldn't reach. I then took the tape off the backing, pulled the quilt to move the end onto the table, retaped the backing, and finished pin basting it.

After winding a bunch of bobbins I started machine quilting. I am not doing anything fancy - I just want to get this done. I am meander stitching the white areas and for the maple leafs I am putting in a swirl then outlining the leafs. The applique stitching is not very good. It would be better if I blanket stitched the leaves, but I don't think I want to devote that much time to this. I have 34% of the quilting done so that's a good start.

Years ago I made sure I cut the binding out of the fabric that was her sister's so it would match the quilt. I picked this paisley print. It is folded in half and as you can see it only measures 18" so this dates this fabric to the 70's when cotton prints were only 36" wide.

Here is my sewing area. My Dad had made the cabinet for my machine, the two tables surrounding it, and I set up two TV trays that he also made to support the weight of the quilt.

I got to work early to get my walking in and here is what it looked like. I have no idea how much snow we are suppose to get.

3 comments:

swooze said...

So sweet of you to finish this quilt. These are the kinds of projects I love!

Glen QuiltSwissy said...

I hope you didn't WALK to work today! You might have to be skijoring home!

Love those maple leaves. I like your leaf swirl. Don't you live it when anquilt has a great story?

Exuberantcolor/Wanda S Hanson said...

I remember those maple leaves from a pattern in a magazine in the late 1970s or early 1980s. It was probably in Family Circle.