I got the Winter Blues Quilt sandwiched and pin-basted on New Year's Eve Day. I can't wait to get this one finished and ready to use. I LOVE the colors!
I was hoping to have this one pin basted back at Thanksgiving when I had a week off of work, but the backing fabric hadn't been delivered in time. Mail deliveries have been slow due to Covid, and political machinations. It was worth the wait -- snowflakes.
My first thought for batting was to use the fat wool batt we got from The Courtney Woolen Mill (Appleton, WI) back in September. But when I opened it up, there was a lot of debris and vegetable matter in it. More than I was comfortable enclosing in a quilt to be used on our beds. I should have opened it in the parking lot before I left, but I didn't ever think it would be an issue. I've never had a problem with wool batts like that before-- and I've used about 5 or 6 so far. I think I'm going to take it back there and ask for an exchange for a cleaner batt.
I was very disappointed and had to completely change my plans. Using a fat batt like that requires a different technique -- enveloping a quilt is a different process.
I looked at what other batts I had in my stash:
- Hobbs 80/20 Cotton - Not appropriate for a winter quilt who's purpose was warmth and a higher R-value.
- Hobbs Wool - A good option (blessedly CLEAN compared to the Courtney batt). Not quite as thick, but it needed some time to relax out the folds from being bound up in the bag it came in. It was better the next day.
- Hobbs Silk - YES! This is the one I eventually used on the Winter Blues Quilt. It's creases fell out with a little time in the dryer. It's supposed to be nice and warm, but light, which means, I should be able to stitch it. I won't have to tie it as was the original plan.
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The Copper Canyon Quilt
While I was at it, I sandwiched a second quilt. This is the same pattern as the Winter Blues above, using a jelly roll with 2-1/2 inch strips in coordinating colors. I love this pattern so much, it's becoming my signature go-to pattern for patchwork.
I used the Hobbs wool batt on this one. It looks a little wrinkled still. I decided to add more pins at the corners of the purple sashing to help hold it in place until I can get to stitching it all down.
Here's a detail shot of the pin basting.
Here's a shot of the back side where you can catch a glimpse of how the quilting might look.
I think I'm going to be be very happy with this Hobbs Wool batt.
In case you are wondering: Is my dining room table really that big?
No -- My husband brings up a 4-8 foot sheet of plywood that gets laid over the table specially for the task of sandwiching quilts. Then I top that with a vinyl backed table cloth large enough to cover it all. This protects from slivers and snags, and allows the fabrics to slide easier on the plastic during the process.
Here's another one I sandwiched back on the summer -- maybe around the 4th of July? Still waiting to be quilted and finished.
I think this was also Hobbs wool batting.
And The Ugly Stashbusting Quilt, made when my mom was still around last spring. Not such a priority -- until someone gets sick and needs support during treatment.
There are other quilts that still need to be sandwiched:
I need to get an appropriate batt for this one. Cotton isn't warm in winter. Maybe a twin-size wool batt?
I made this scrap quilt while my mom was dying last summer. I don't have the heart to look at it now. Give it some time. I'll get back to it some day ... with time and distance and perspective.
Still needs some work picking the stabilizer out of the back (though I'm starting to think that might not be necessary in a wall quilt), adding dragonflies, and choosing an appropriate batting since it will likely be hanging on a wall part of the time. I need a batt that won't sag while it hangs. Will wool work for that? [Leah Day says yes.] I am not a fan of Warm n Natural as there is zero loft to it. I want the stitching to stand out, and puff the layers and give some definition, but not too thick. WnN won't do that.
There are multiple other quilts still on the pile already sandwiched and needing to be quilted, or otherwise finished:
Made to celebrate my 20th wedding anniversary (now it's 2 years later!) The center star is all done, but I stalled on quilting the black backgrounds on surrounding the center star. It just feels like I spent hours on those backgrounds, and I don't seem tobe making much progress. And it's hard to push such a large quilt around -- very physical work.
This one has been waiting for more than 10 years! I have since added a nice chicken wire border. I keep toying with the idea of possibly including some yoyos for added dimension.
A Log Cabin quilt kit from Connecting Threads years ago. I've been stuck as to WHAT to quilt on this one.
Oceanica made with In the Beginning fabrics designed by Julie Pashkis. I love her folksy / fairy tale / storytelling style. I got this years ago as a kit and worked it up in 2011. Apparently this fabric and the kit were quite rare. I saw just the unfinished panel selling on esty for for $60! Sometimes, I'm at a loss as to HOW to quilt something. I guess I'd just trace around the main characters here ...
This concludes the inventory of quilt sandwiches on my To Do pile. Not quite as bad as I thought! Since my husband set up a magic quilt lift system for me, I really have no excuse NOT to work on these. Except that it's very physical work pushing around these quilts and it can't be done in the summer when it's too hot. And I haven't been to the YMCA to lift weights since last March. I am week, but we'll see how it goes. Baby steps! I am motivated to work on the Winter Blues quilt.
Now get cracking!
1 comment:
I can't believe you had a big silk batt on hand! I've always looked at those with a sigh because of how expensive they are and I have quite a bit of other batting on hand. That should make up into one luxurious quilt that will be easy to get through the machine.
I also can't believe how many tops of various kinds you have ready to be quilted - it looks like a lot of productivity! If you've peeked at my resolution word post, you know that sussing out my own ufos and getting them finished feels like a real priority this year, one I look forward to . . . or at least the results!
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