Random Perfection

May 5, 2015June 30, 201513 Comments

Birds fly.

Over the Rainbow, why then, oh why can’t I?

If happy little bluebirds fly beyond the rainbow, why oh why can’t I?

—Over the Rainbow, Lyric by E.Y. Harburg, Music by Harold Arlen

One of my goals for 2015 was to finish my yellow hexagon applique quilt. The yellow hexagons led me to thinking about The Wizard of Oz musical which I saw last summer and the song, Over the Rainbow. I took the words and used hexagons as musical notes.

I hand appliqued the “notes” and added green and orange hexagons to my rainbow. I machine stitched them using the method I saw on Modern Handcraft.

I added orange for the binding and it looked fabulous.

Then I washed it!

I noticed that sides of the appliques were not stitched down and were coming out. This was caused by the way I folded the hexies. See in this photo the way the fabric was folded straight down. The stitching across the point of the hexagon did not catch the fabric. Some of the fabric caught and some didn’t.

I fixed some of them. But, man, what a chore.

I’m looking at it and wondering, “why can’t I just embrace this?”

I took off all the hexies which weren’t nailed down — 303 hexies to be exact.

And, I loved the outcome:

I would not have placed these hexies in this configuration, but it feels better than the pre-washed quilt. That’s Random Perfection.

Finding home in the random,

Wanda

Yoga Sling Tutorial

April 28, 2015June 30, 20157 Comments

I just started yoga at a local studio and of course in the middle of meditation practice I had an idea — I needed a way to transport my “yoga quilts” to class. They make great bolsters, by the way. I didn’t want to make a bag because taking the quilts in and out of the bag would just add stress to yoga. I needed a sling.

I searched Pinterest and the web for ideas and only found yoga bags or straps to carry a yoga mat. I needed something different. I’m sharing this tutorial in case you want to make a yoga quilt sling to carry your quilts and/or your yoga mat. It would also make a great sling for beach towels.

I had these wonderful pieces I had made in my Liberated Quilting Group. The wavy piece (shown above) was made by the group leader, Betty P., during a class on “portholes” from the book, Improv Quilts, by Lucie Summers. Betty thought my red fabric looked good with her piece. I like how organic and happy it is. The perfect piece for a yoga quilt sling.

Let’s get started. Continue reading →

“Mama Bear” 2015 Pantone Quilt Challenge, Marsala,

April 17, 2015June 30, 201514 Comments

Once upon a time, there was a little girl whose mother read her the story of “The Three Bears.” And, she said, “that’s just like us: Mama Bear, Papa Bear and Baby Bear.” That little girl insisted her name was “Baby Bear” and her mother was “Mama Bear” and her father was “Papa Bear.”

A year went by and the little girl insisted her parents call her by her given name and not “Baby Bear,” but her mother and father continued to be “Mama Bear” and “Papa Bear.”

I struggled to find the right design for this quilt challenge. I had sketched a quilt called “The Three Bears” with three bear’s paw blocks, but settled on a quilt celebrating my love of my name, Mama Bear, and my love for quilting. You can read more about the design process here.

The quilt measures 54 inches by 54 inches. I’m entering it in the 2015 Pantone Quilt Challenge, Marsala, hosted by On the Windy Side and Play Crafts.

Mama Bear

The Bear’s Paw block is typically made with a square as the paw of the bear and the half-square triangles as the “claws”. I machine quilted “paw” prints, instead of pieced squares adjacent to half-square triangles. I chose prints in paisley, feathers and geometric circles for the “claws”.

The Marsala color was the perfect choice for this quilt.

Close up of the free motion quilting. The bear paw footprints are surrounded by pebbles and pea pods.

I made a one-half inch binding, instead of one-quarter inch. I used scraps of Marsala inspired fabric. Love and Kisses on the binding is just — serendipity