04 October, 2018

By Wisdom...

Check out this Clover hoop; my new favorite!
With the clamp covered there are no more tangles.
This past summer I finished all the hand embroidery on twelve quilt blocks that I have been working on for a VERY long time. Well, I haven't actually been working on them, which accounts for the number of years that it has taken to get this project moving forward! I believe that I began on these around 2001 and picked them up sporadically. The patterns are by Indygo Junction: "By Wisdom A House Is Built". 

I strayed from the pattern, making mine less primitive. Instead of fraying the edges and using applique I set my blocks into sashed borders. I changed the text font too. After all these many years, and thousands upon thousands of miles in the car (which is where I do my most productive handwork), I had the top set together last month. Each pattern can be finished and bound separately. I liked that look and decided to mimic it with one pieced quilt; inserting 3/4" strips of black (finishing to 1/4") between the blocks. Binding it with black will finish it off nicely and add continuity.
By Wisdom A House Is Built ~ 60" X 64"
It has hung on the design wall ever since; challenging me! How to quilt this? Machine embroidered elements aside, however would I quilt over all that hand embroidery? The patterns suggest very minimal quilting, by hand, in a primitive big-stitch manner. Okay, that wasn't going to happen. Each and every day I studied the quilt and considered options. I considered a panto; maybe I would load it onto Snowbird and thread it up with a monofilament and just go to town. Nah. Then I thought about cross-hatching the entire piece. Nah. A friend suggested channel-quilting it, long parallel lines of quilting over the entire piece. I considered that but rejected that too. I was stumped-- and yet, my mind kept working.
The other night I grabbed a marker and auditioned some quilting lines in the background. I liked what I saw with the whimsical, free flowing shapes. I decided that this might look good with cross-hatched borders. After that, things began to happen! I loaded up the quilt and got to work. Yes, this time I really did begin working in earnest, these blocks have languished long enough! 
Here we go! "By wisdom a house is built", 
by a little determination and some dedicated time-- a quilt is finished!
Life is Good!
 

11 comments:

Jacqueline said...

Beautiful

Quilting Babcia said...

Sometimes you have to think long and hard before committing to a design, and in this case it really paid off with beautiful results!

Janet O. said...

I really like what you have done with these blocks. It has come together beautifully.

Lindah said...

Yesss, this is beautiful. I agree that quilting on this type of quilt is hard to "figure out," but this is looking good.

cityquilter grace said...

so beautiful tho long time to finish....excellent quilting and just right!

Little Penpen said...

I love your version way better than the original pattern. This is just beautiful!!!

Quiltdivajulie said...

I agree -- I really like your interpretation of the design and I LOVE your quilting decisions.

Terry said...

I started this quilt, too, at about the same time you started yours. Your post has inspired me to pull it out and work on it again. Maybe I'll get it finished this time. Yours sure is beautiful!

45th Parallel Quilter said...

This series of patterns are some of the very first ones I got as a quilter. My ambition has always been greater than my actual output ... but ... having seen your results I'm determined to get back on track and at least do SOME of these. Have always loved Indygo Junction patterns/designs. This one is a particular favorite. Thanks for the push to restart my engine ;-) Linda

KaHolly said...

Pretty awesome! Have you made cookies lately?

Tanya said...

Great quilting solution! I have been stumped for quilting ideas on embroidered blocks too before.