Sunday 30 October 2011

Another opportunity....

I'm linking up with Amy's Bloggers Quilt Festival because the opportunity to again roll out 'Jewelled Promise' was just too hard to resist - I know I'm hammering this quilt but I still look at it and can't believe I made a quilt by hand.  Apologies to those who have heard this story before ;>



I was never all that fussed about the craft - I'd sewn for years, mostly clothes and curtains - and I used to think my SIL was daft as she sit and sewed by hand, "where's the fun in that?", "it's too slow"....I was all about finding a pattern, buy the fabric and get it made ready to wear that night....

But then, one Easter - about 5 or 6 years ago -  while we were away camping, I really liked how she could get out her sewing, pretty much anywhere.  So, in a nearby town, we paid a visit to the LQS and I bought my first quilting fabric.  Robyn said she'd sew a quilt top for me, by machine (patience isn't one of my virtues) using the fabrics I just bought (I still wasn't anywhere near ready to sew one myself - and certainly not by hand).  While the fabrics weren't exactly awe inspiring (think those dull country colours), she duly made the top and it sat in my UFO box for several years.  It's finished now (I bought a Gammill long-arm and it's one of the first quilts I loaded) and I love it because Robyn made it for me - and she lit the fire.

Every time Robyn and I got together, we visited quilting shops, or shows and my interest (and stash) grew - the fabric ranges got more diverse, more colourful (I fell in love with Kaffe Fassett), the patterns less fussy and twee - really started to see the possibilities.  Quite a few machine pieced quilt tops ensued.

Fast forward to May 2010.  Lloyd (my husband) and I planned a 4WD camping trip across the Nullabor from home to Western Australia - so I needed a project I could do by hand, as we weren't always guaranteed powered sites - notwithstanding my dear husband flatly refused to allow me to pack my sewing machine.  So I cut out all the pieces using a template - lots of Kaffe and other brights from my stash (like Fossil Fern), as well as a vanilla background, and packed them all in the trailer for the trip.

I think I made maybe 2 or 3 'melon' shapes while we were away and I thought it might lanquish in the
UFO box for a while.  However, within a month of our return I had the opportunity to transform my life - which gave me lots of time to get this beauty finished. 

The quilt is hand pieced, hand quilted and the binding (proper bias binding!) is both hand dyed and attached by hand.  The only parts sewn by machine was piecing the back (2 large pieces of fabric, straight down the middle) and sewing the binding together.  I love it - and smile every time I see it!

Thanks for stopping by.

30 comments:

  1. Oh. Wow. All by hand! I grovel at your feet. So beautiful!

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  2. That is really an amazing quilt! I would LOVE to do one of these someday.

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  3. Wonderful story and fabulous quit!!! Hand sewing scares the wee willies outta me :o)

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  4. That is a truly amazing quilt Kay - all hand sewn is just brilliant - well done sweetie xxx

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  5. Wow! ALOT of handwork in this beautiful quilt - hand-dyed bias binding even! Very cool.

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  6. That is a stunner for sure! So beautiful... WOW.

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  7. I still love it. The colours make it sing!

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  8. Bella davvero, bella anche la storia che l'accompagna
    Ciao

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  9. You deserve to be proud of this beauty, so go ahead and show it off as much as you want.

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  10. Nobody will complain about seeing this beauty again.

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  11. YOu could never have too much of that quilt!

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  12. Greetings from Hungary. The colors are beautiful. Very nice work. Fine in stapled

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  13. Oh wow. This is a gorgeous quilt! :o)
    You did a beautiful job!

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  14. You should show it off every chance you get because its stunning!

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  15. I haven`t seen it before and am so happy you decided to share it in the BQF. It`s incredible!

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  16. I love this quilt and I'm getting more & more interested in taking on a hand piecing project myself. Thanks for sharing this again.

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  17. Yay! We get to see your wedding ring again. Such a wonderful quilt. Congrats!

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  18. Lovely! And the fabric choices are amazing coupled with the traditional pattern. I am inspired (but not by hand...lol)

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  19. Awesome! A wonderful Double Wedding Ring! Lots of work went into that one! Good for you! 8-)

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  20. Amazing! Amazing that you hand pieced and hand quilted it! And true bias binding is the only way to go, wouldn't you say?
    I love it!
    I recently blogged about a similar quilt, but yours is much prettier! It's under Quilts and their history, if you're interested, it's the Sept 29th one.
    I totally understand your pride!

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  21. This quilt is beautiful and something I would like to create one day. I can't get over the fact that you made it by hand -- but now you have such fond memories of working on it while camping - how fun. thank you for sharing the story and your quilt, it is stunning.

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  22. Your quilt is outstanding and I'm having a hard time wrapping my head around the fact its hand sewn, you Rock! (With a capital "R") :D

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  23. what a wonderful story and quilt. it's just lovely. love kaffee, too. so impressive to do it by hand...no wonder you smile!! thanks for sharing and have a great day

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  24. That was a big project to do by hand. I love the selection of color beyond the usual double wedding ring quilts I have seen.

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  25. Congtrats on a hand-made stunner. :)

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