Thursday, August 16, 2012

I've Been Pretty Crafty Lately

One of the things I look forward to in the summer is having more time to make some of the projects that I just can't find time to do during the school year.  But, my sewing room gets really hot after noon, and many days, it's way too humid to even think about touching fabric, so I really don't get much accomplished!

Last week, I posted pictures of my denim quilt.  That was in my mind for years and years and years and finally, I got so sick of tripping over the pile of old jeans on the stairs, I broke down and made one.  It's on my etsy if you are so inclined.

We have a wedding to go to this weekend and I had a quilt pattern floating around in my head that I really wanted to try.  For  many, many, many weddings, I have made queen or even king sized quilts as the wedding gift.  I use a lot of log cabin arrangements because the log cabin pattern is easy to do and lends itself to lots of different arrangements.  I've done others, but that is kind of my default.

Most people make a really big deal about the quilt (except for one couple who have NEVER even acknowledged receipt of it but who did receive it because someone asked them for me- and we see them all the time and never so much as a 'got it!') and I kind of got tired of the hoopla people would make.  Because I never did it for the hoopla.  I did it because I thought it was the best way for me to come up with a gift that wasn't all that expensive but was unique and would last forever.

And then I started noticing that people would put them on the guest room bed.  Or keep it away because they said they were afraid to use it.  And it made me start thinking maybe that's not the best gift idea.

Because if you gave me a large bed quilt, I absolutely would not use it.  I don't use bedspreads or top sheets.  Just duvets and covers that I wash with the rest of the linens.  I don't even like to have a top sheet and bedspread when I stay in a hotel or at someone's house.

Plus, it is highly unlikely that your choice of colors and the layout would be something I'd fall magically in love with and want to see on my bed every single day until it falls apart.  Yes, it would mean I would always think of you, but really, it's not something I would use on my every day bed.

So, if I had a guest room, that's exactly where it would go.

And all of that thinking just made me mad.  All of those quilts I'd made just sitting in closets not being used?  Not being liked by the couple I gave it to?

At least with baby quilts, if they hate it, after 1.5 million washings, it will fall apart and they can just "oopsies" it right into the trash.  So, I'll always make baby quilts.  Plus, they are fun to make because they are whimsical.

But wedding quilts?  Maybe no more.

I really, really wanted to try this What Knots? quilt pattern that my mother showed me.  And I realized it wasn't a full bed size.  So it was like a throw.  Everyone will use a throw.  Even if it doesn't match, they will likely use a throw.  And if it get dirty, they'll be more likely to throw it in the wash because it's smaller than a big quilt. 

So, maybe the throw is what I should be making for wedding gifts.

There is really not a lot of material to buy for this pattern and it's only 4 colors, so how hard could it be?  And it doesn't have crazy triangles or weird points to match up, so I figured it would be easy.

Try finding 4 pieces of material that do exactly what you want them to do while standing at Joann fabrics.  I went through like 5 different color schemes before finally giving in out of sheer boredom to these.

 
I really love how the knots intertwine.


And it was really easy to put together.  I chose the darker green for the back and wrapped the edge over as the binding.  And I tied it because quilting isn't so easy for me!  Hmm, easy seems to be the word of the day today.




But, the whole time I was making it, I kept thinking that green really isn't in her house at all.  She has a navy blue couch.  And the last thing I wanted was for this to be relegated to the guest room.  Plus, it's too small for a bed.

So, I went back to the fabric store and found these.



I think these are much more in keeping with her living room.  And I could look at yellow and blue all day.  In a quilt, yellow and dark blue trump pink any day! 

And since I had already made one, the second one just flew together for me.  Which was good because it was exceptionally humid the week I chose to work on this one!

And the green one is now on my etsy too.

Linking here and here and here and here and here and here and here and here.

5 comments:

  1. Oh how I can appreciate what you are saying!! Being a quilter myself I can know what goes into making a quilt. My sewing room is surrounded by wall quilt hangings that are cheery and bright I love going into my sewing room.

    I've been quilting like a mad woman these past two weeks as my son and daughter in law are expecting twins and we are taking a trip to see them.

    I gave them a wedding quilt, more of a snuggle lap quilt to use while...snuggling! Ha!!

    Your quilts are beautiful don't ever stop!!

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  2. I totally understand your thinking, and I have one or two out there that didn't get acknowledged. But, hey, I had fun doing them, even if they don't enjoy them. I need to look for this pattern. I get too bored with squares all the same. Thanks for sharing.

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  3. I can't believe you made such large quilts as a wedding gift. Those non quilting couples have no idea how much time and work went into it. I agree, a throw will get used so much more. I make baby quilts as gifts, but other than that, I just can't commit to such a large project. I would love to try out that pattern. I'll have to search online.

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  4. When I googled it, I got nothing, so my mother gave me the pattern. It was a mystery quilt along thing where you didn't know what you would have until you were done. I should scan it and put it up so people can find it because I couldn't find it anywhere!

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  5. Those are gorgeous! If someone had given me a handmade quilt for my wedding I would have been amazed! I can imagine it would be frustrating to feel like all of your hard work wasn't put to good use. The throws are a great idea, and I think most people would love to have one.

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