Just Stuff: Just Quilting a Quilt

I have a friend named Mo who gave me a bag of UFOs. (For non-quilters, UFOs are UnFinished Objects.) Included in that bag was a selection of little bags inside a slightly larger bag. Imagine my delight when I discovered a Block of the Month - with all the parts! One copy of the instructions, one copy of the final layout, and written on the back of the final quilt layout, the fabric requirements for the two borders.

The only problem with the Block of the Month was that all the blocks were the same. They were all HSTs (Half Square Triangles) I think Mo must have found them boring - she had put together one month's worth of units - 16 of them. And had cut out another package's worth, and then I think her enthusiasm must have waned.

The directions suggested cutting out the squares, measured to the 7/8s of an inch. (I NEVER do this. I have a pretty accurate 1/4 inch seam, but I just can not seem to get HSTs to come out exactly right unless I paper piece them...) And then the squares were to be cut in half, and those triangles were to be sewn together - on that stretchy bias. 4 of Mo's already sewn together squares did not measure 4 1/2 inches. And when I sewed some of the already cut triangles together, they did not make 4 1/2 inch squares either. So I did what I always do with HSTs - I cut the rest of them 1/8 of an inch LARGER and drew the diagonal line, rather than cutting them. Then I sewed two seams on either side of that line. I cut the two HSTs apart, pressed them open and trimmed them. Takes time but I end up with accurate units.

I think there are 196 HSTs in it. I could see not being excited by the second or third package of fabric. However, doing it in a short time, it was quite pleasant. (And you couldn't put it together as you went along, because the units were supposed to be mixed sort of randomly around the quilt.) Anyway. I had the two border fabrics in my stash, and I got backing and batting and put the whole thing on the frame.

Mo's Block of the Month

And then I thought about it for a week or so. I want to finish this quilt for a man who lives at my Dad's senior residence. And he likes the seaside, so I decided to go with that theme. (Yes, even though the border fabric that I used has snowflakes on it...)

So I doodled first.

Water-y type things

Sailboats from a Craftsy class

Sand dollars, starfish, clam shells, lobster claws, periwinkles and pebbles

Once I had some thoughts in my head, I put the needle down where I wanted to start in the border, pulled it up, took three stitches in the same spot, and then off I went. Sailboats first.

Free motion sailboat, on snowflake fabric (yes, I know...)

I did a row of sailboats and waves underneath and didn't take any photos of them... Don't know what I was thinking. In the corner top and bottom, I free motion quilted a sun - also no photo... I'll get one tomorrow... And it wasn't very long before I ran out of bobbin thread! I use cotton thread when I quilt and I use ALOT of it as I tend to quilt quite densely. I clean a fair amount of fluff out of the inside of the sewing machine each time I change the bobbin.

My two paint brushes that I use to de-fluff Big Martha

The bobbin case

De-fluffing the bobbin case

Where it belongs! Make sure it clicks when you put it back!

I try to clean in here very very thoroughly each time I replace the bobbin

Fluff

The bobbin was taken out, de-fluffed and refilled. The inside of the machine was dusted out and de-fluffed as much as possible. The bobbin was replaced, everything was put back together, and I got ready to quilt some more.

I decided that I would quilt the sailboats on the two long sides of the quilt, with a sun in each corner. Along the top and bottom of the quilt, on that border I would quilt the pebbly pattern with the shells and so forth in it. And on the lighter diagonals I would quilt the pebbly pattern too...

What I discovered was that my thread, which showed very well (perhaps too well) on the borders, doesn't show up at all against some of the beiges in the lighter diagonals. So. I have this great LED flashlight. I hold that in my left hand, low so that I can see what I am quilting and I move the machine with my right hand. This works fairly well. (I will leave the dark diagonals unquilted, so they will be puffier, if that is the right word)