Yay or Nay

As I shared in a previous post, this project had a confident beginning, a debatable middle, and finally, I can tell you now, a satisfactory conclusion. Can't complain about that, now can I?

It all started with a yard of fabric from The Denim Studio by Art GalleryFabrics. I'd bought it on a whim a while back, and reached for it when I needed a new project, even though I didn't really have a plan at that point. I perused my Pinterest boards a bit, hatched a beginning of a plan, and went back to the stash looking for a solid I could pair with the denim. And that would be Kaufman Kona Cotton Solid in Silver, which just might be my new favorite gray. And that denim? Delightful fabric. It is so soft - just an all-around delight to work with.

Anyway, I started with an 18" x 28" length of the denim, sliced and inserted 1" strips of the silver, and created my first over-sized 'block'.

I loved it so much, I created another, cut them both up, sewed them back together again, and started in on making some improv X blocks. 

And this is where my dilemma really began. As I debated yay or nay on the Xs, I knew (dare I say, "in my heart?") that I wanted them and more. And in the end, that's exactly the way I went, adding an improv square offset 'border' with both of the blue denims, and then finally, adding a simple border on the opposite sides. My thought was to decrease the density  and mix up the fabric combinations as I traveled from section to section. 

For quilting, I used Aurifil 50wt #2600 (light gray) and did a very dense organic grid, dense meaning 1/4" to 1/2" between lines. Eight bobbins for a 48" square dense. oh yeah. 

I'd kept the backing simple, since I found a perfect stashed silver gray metallic print from the Steel Collection by Gerri Robinson/Planted Seed Designs, and boy did the quilting and subsequent texture show up well there.

So, for not knowing where I wanted to end up, I'm really happy where I've arrived. It was definitely worth heeding Karen Lewis' words, "Don't be afraid of getting it wrong." I'm glad I wasn't.

Linking up with Finish It Up Friday!

A Webinar and a W.i.P.

This post is two-fold in that I wanted to tell you about something, yet before I managed that, it inadvertently affected something else, also worth telling.

So Sunday morning, the Seattle MQG experienced a first. Our Vice President of Programs, Allison, somehow managed to arrange a webinar between us and Karen Lewis, screen-printer and fabric designer of Blueberry Park. Now I don't really expect to take up screen-printing anytime soon, but I thoroughly enjoyed the webinar just the same. It's always interesting to hear the story of a crafter's journey, and Karen's was no exception. In fact, she was really inspiring. She talked about her screen-printing process and how hard work pays off ..... the fact that there are no short-cuts to building skills - it takes practice, practice, practice. She talked about how she sometimes minimizes her response when asked what she does by answering simply, "I make things." But what really struck me was her encouragement to "never say never, and don't be afraid to change directions" and most of all, "don't be afraid of getting it wrong."

Which is exactly what I was afraid of that morning. I'd shared a work-in-progress on Instagram the night before, honestly hoping for some clue if my project was headed in a good direction, or totally 'off'. It was met with mixed reviews, and I kept debating with myself where to take it next, or whether to just stop, or at least stop for now.

But after Karen's "don't be afraid of getting it wrong" statement, I think I actually said out loud, "I'm just going to do it." Meaning I was going to keep those improv X blocks I liked so much, sew them onto the improv lines block I was afraid I'd ruin, and see what happened.

So for better or worse, I moved forward with the design that was simmering in my mind. Karen had reminded me that whatever it became didn't need to be perfect. It didn't even need to work at all. With this project, on this day, I just needed to do it.

So I've since added a third 'border' of improv squares and then some, and I hope to start quilting yet this week. It's been an uncertain path. But sometimes you just have to make and see where it takes you.