How Not to Make Curves

So much time has passed since I completed the top to my king-sized Storm at Sea quilt. I had originally hoped to have the quilt done by Christmas of 2008, and here we are two days away from Christmas of 2009, and I still don't have the backing pieced together. I blame my real job, the one that brings home the bacon. It has been sucking up 10 to 16 hours a day of my time this past year, leaving me very little time to finish quilting projects.

However, now that I have a few days off from work, I had hoped to at least finish piecing the back before returning to the office. I put together what I thought was a simple pattern of curvy waves, however once I started sewing from memory, I realized that it wasn't as simple as it seemed.

I was taught to sew when I was in middle school, 30-some years ago. I remember my teacher having us put the right sides of the fabric together, double-stitching the seams, and then cutting out notches her 1/2 inch, like this:


However, what I forgot was that we were making pillows at the time, not quilts. When I tried to turn the fabric with the right-side up, I found that no amount of ironing would get this curve to sit flat. It's great if I want a bumpy quilt with 3-dimensional waves that actually stick out with stuffing, but that might be uncomfortable to lie on.

So, out came the quilting books that discuss the art of sewing curves into flat quilts. I know it's not rocket science, but I still don't get it just looking at the pictures and diagrams. I'm actually going to have to take some time to read these books. I have so many other things to do this week that having to give up time to read through some books seems so daunting right now.

From what I can tell, it looks like I'll need to use freezer paper, iron over the seams and do some top stitching like with applique. This project is going to take a lot longer than I anticipated. What do you think? Should I abandon this project temporarily and shoot for finishing it for Christmas of 2010?

Forming Waves

I'm embarrassed to say that it took me ten months to start on the backing for that Storm at Sea quilt I've been constructing for our California King-sized bed. The majority of that time was just spent hashing over ideas on what to do. I don't like to just slap a few solid pieces of fabric together for backing. I want to do something creative, but not as time-consuming as it took to make the front of the quilt.

I thought waves would be appropriate, but am worrying that I may not be able to sew curves together without any puckering. If I have a hesitation over any part of a project, everything comes to a standstill until I wait for a better idea to come along. I tired of waiting after ten months and started tackling large pieces of previously used fabric to cut them down into rectangles. These pieces had odd shapes since I had cut out smaller pieces for the top using templates. I worked with two layers of fabric at a time, pinning them together. I then divided the rectangles into three strips.

Then next step will be to sew the three strips of each fabric end to end to span the width of the quilt. I will then pin two strips of different fabrics together and cut out a wave shape. At that point, I suspect I will thoroughly consult some of my quilting books on curves, then begin sewing. Hopefully, all the strips will add up to the length of the quilt once they are sewn together in waves. If not, I'll add a sandy beach.

I'm planning on making the backing several inches wider and longer than the top, so that I can wrap the borders over from the back to the front. That way the border will have waves too.

Knit One, Purl Two

I've taken a break from the Storm at Sea quilt. You might say I have quilter's block. First, I couldn't make up my mind on how to piece the back. My daughter suggested I connect the blue fabrics in strips with curves to make it look like undulating water. I like that idea, but haven't been in the mood to work with such large pieces of fabric. The mere bulk of the project has discouraged me. We definitely need a new bed quilt before next winter, though, as the two quilts we've been using are both falling apart at the seams.

In the meantime, I still needed to do something with my hands while watching TV. I can't do embroidery, cross-stitch, or needlepoint while watching TV, because I have to keep my eye on the pattern. Cross-stitch, in particular, requires a tremendous amount of concentration, because you have to keep count of your rows and placement of colors. At least with needlepoint I can follow a color pattern that is stamped onto the canvas. Embroidery can be difficult because I have to cross-reference with the instruction booklet as to which colors, stitches, and number of strands I should be using.

For me, the ideal solution for a simple, mindless craft project that isn't too bulky, is knitting.

I have had this basket of yarns sitting around the house for years. I think I collected the yarns for art projects when I was homeschooling my kids. However, my oldest is now in college and my youngest in high school, and somehow we never used up all that yarn. I felt it was about time that I pick up the knitting needles and put all that yarn to use.

My grandmother taught me to knit when I was very little. I remember getting frustrated learning how to cast on, so my grandmother had to do the first row for me, and I did the rest until it was time to cast off. Then Grandma came to the rescue again.

The problem is that was so long ago and I didn't remember the first thing about knitting. I saw that a bookseller had a knitting kit that included a book, yarn, needles, felt, and ribbon for sale at a very affordable price, so I ordered it. At first I was completely baffled by the book. It showed so many different types of knitting techniques, and I just wanted to remember the one that my Grandmother taught me. I ended up searching the Internet for knitting videos, which are much easier to follow than illustrations in a book.

I first learned how to cast on using the long-tail technique. I think I had to watch the video six times before it clicked. I'd do a row, be dissatisfied, unravel it, start over... However, the hardest part was that second row. My cast ons were so tight that I couldn't get a needle up through the loops. I finally figured out that the knitting technique my Grandmother taught me was the English knit method. Once I did six rows of that, I worked on learning the English purl method. Now I have three techniques under my belt and can start getting more creative.

I'm relieved that I was able to relearn it on my own, because I really didn't want to have to start taking classes in town. I don't need one more appointment on my already very busy calendar. I know what you are thinking: If I have time to knit, how busy can I be? Well, believe it or not, I am outrageously busy and I watch TV just before bed as a way to relax. However, I'm still too hyper to just sit there, so I have to be doing something with my hands. Thanks to these bamboo needles, I now can watch TV and use my hands to create something without actually having to look at what I'm doing.