Wednesday, January 16, 2013

Something Sweet and New



One thing I want to do on the blog this year is show more of the process. Take things slower, make the time to show the unfinished and the small decisions along the way. I always like reading those kinds of posts when other people do them, but I guess I never think to take the time unless I have something shiny and finished to show. But the truth is, unfinished is much more true to my life and has much greater potential. 




So this what I've started this week. A new quilt for a very old friend who is having her first baby. I started with sweet pinks and aquas and golds, then added a couple black/white and gray prints for an unexpected edge. I used almost entirely scraps, but also cut into a couple of fq's from my new bundle of Lizzy House's Pearl Bracelets. They just make everything better. Everything.

I've been wanting to do a more traditional dresden design ever since making my Old World quilt a couple months ago. And it seems perfect for the vintage feel I want here. They are really fun to put together and relatively fast once you get all the blades cut. (You were right about that Maureen!)



The quilt will be about 45" square and have four large dresdens. I have 2 done and 2 more sitting in these very appealing stacks. They are screaming at me to finish them. Tomorrow I'll take one of the finished ones into work and pick out a background, a backing and binding. As one would expect, it's very convenient to work in a fabric shop for many reasons.

We have a couple new low-volume prints in that might be just the thing for the background. The colors would have to be just so to work with these, so we'll see if I end up defaulting to white. Maybe a very pale pink if I go the solid route? More of that floral Liberty print might be really nice for binding. Can't wait to show you the finished product!






17 comments:

  1. Love the Dresden's I have made 2 quilts with Dresden in them and they are lots of fun. Thanks for sharing the process.

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  2. I love the colours you've put together! And thanks for the reminder! I want to write about the process a whole lot more too. :)

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  3. Love those fabrics, Jess! You are a quilting master!

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  4. Gorgeous fabric pull (so many of those are sitting in my stash!)

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  5. I love the idea of seeing the process. I agree with you that seeing the process of certain types of creative projects is much more inspiring than just witnessing the whole. These are lovely!

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  6. Yes, I really like to see the process too, Jessica. It allows us to learn and share in a way that the finished product never does.

    Also love the dresden plates!!

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  7. So nice! And great idea to show more of the process, too. I don't do that enough. Do you a special quilting machine or use your regular sewing machine? I'm working on my first quilt now, and find it challenging to stitch while pushing through all the fabric. Any tips would be super helpful, thanks!

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  8. Love that you're sharing process pictures!!! So- Dresdens. I bought a template at Sewn last month but it doesn't have a pointy top to it. Do you just cut out each cone shaped piece of fabric and then fold the top over to have the point?

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    1. Kara, I can show you how at the sew-in! And Jessica, love the idea of showing the process...bet you can do more posts that way too. Cheers!

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  9. I like it. I like it a lot. Especially for quilting projects, since they're multi day/week/month projects more often than not. If I spend 5 hours on a swoon block, i want to show JUST the block as an accomplishment in and of itself, dammit! ;)

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  10. I love Dresdens...and these are so pretty.

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  11. The colors you chose are gorgeous. And you're right; pearl bracelets make everything better!

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  12. It's way more fun to see a finished quilt or other involved project when you've been watching the progress.

    Can't wait to se what your quilt looks like when it's done! I would stress too much over any background but a solid, but I'm sure it helps to get to drag your stuff into work and hold it next to different options!

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  13. I love the idea of a very pale pink background!

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  14. I love seeing in progress shots! Especially when they are this gorgeous. :D

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  15. i love these dresdens and i love the fabric so much!!! it is gorgeous and the pink is perfect!

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