Monday, December 10, 2012

A Pressing Situation ~

so...
here is that little quilt that I've been working on ~ in progress still.
as you can see by the pics below, I have gotten 'better' at lining up my points and corners.
I say 'better', but this is as good as I'm sure I will ever get...
and I don't mind one bit.
 
 
tiny triangles measure a scant 1" x 1 1/2"
 I'm pressing the quilt with my craft iron ~ notice the iron has the word BAD! written in permanent sharpie on the side of it? ...that's because 'someone' used this same iron one time to iron her white curtains and this iron's surface has years of crusty stuff built up on it from ironing stained fabric.
so as not to confuse her again, she wrote GOOD! & BAD! on her irons...
(no judging please, but you may chuckle if you wish)
and my pressing cloth is just as bad...it is actually clean ~ fresh from the dryer ~ but is so stained!!
 Now I can think about fabric choices for the backing & binding...
and the hand-quilting ~
I'm not sure what color thread to use for the hand-quilting....
these are Gutermann Threads in my favorite colors.
aren't they pretty?
 should I choose one of these?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


or these?
 
 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 or ~ one of these??
any suggestions?
they all look good with the fabric colors, don't they?
my trusty little scissors ~
little storkies, about 110 yrs old ~ wonder how many snips these have made through the years ~
 and of course, after choosing the thread color and backing/binding fabric ~
i need to figure out how I will actually stitch the quilting part...I want to do something different, as usual for me, so I'm thinking I'll trace a repeat pattern of one of my early cookie cutters and echo that design ~ star or pinwheel?
pinwheel would be cool ~
 but the star would be easier...

decisions decisions ~ !
 
let me hear your suggestions ~ would love to hear what you think!
Happy Monday to you ~
Blessings from the Farm
Lori

20 comments:

My Colonial Home said...

Hi Lori,
Well you are doing a fantastic job. For some reason I just can't get into quilting...IT LOOKS SO HARD and if I tried it I'd have NO POINTS...lol
I love the idea of the vintage cookie cutter as a design.
Karen

Aritha V. said...

Wow, never seen such quilt. Its amazing. You mmust be very creative!

Doniene said...

Lori, what a wonderful little quilt! The fabrics are "scrumptious"!! I love the gold thread the best and the repeating star would be my pick! But then, I love, love, love stars - blocks, patterns, in the sky etc etc.!! LOL

What ever you choose - it will be an heirloom for sure!

Blessings

jennifer768 said...

Lori it looks fantastic!Love the fabric!Oh but I can't wait to see it quilted.Hugs,Jen

gracie said...

I think it looks great.

Robin Leuschen said...

Looks so awesome ! You are tackling every art medium, gal !!!
I had to do the same thing with my scissors, but because some naughty folks in my family have taken my good fabric scissors and cut plastic, wires, etc.....AHHHH ! so, big sharpie letters GOOD, are written on them now !!
Robin

NMK said...

Love your quilt !!!! The colors are So pretty ! My mother made beautiful quilts & her corners and points were matched perfectly....so I have been afraid to try making my own....after the holidays I Will give it a Try !!! And ,I won't show her ! I Love your irons, Good & Bad !!! And your ironing cloth !!! I love to see others favorite well used aprons & painting clothes !

susiedele said...

I like that rusty mocha color thread in the last thread photo.(top spool)
Your fabric choices are yummy. Love that 1 little rusty dot one.
I'm not a quilter either but I've made some small things like hot pads and small pillows. I just bought some papers called THANGLES for making half square triangles. They make it look so easy in the tutorials.
Can hardly wait to see it finished.

Kathy B. said...

Love the quilt - half square triangles are so difficult for me as well, but that's what makes them interesting. Thanks for the idea of using cookie cutters as templates. I just collected a bag full, more for the colored wooden handles, now I have another use for them. (I am a terrible cookie maker, so now I will have a real use for them.) Any of the thread color choices will be great - love your designs (I'm a member of the Prim Sisters Club!)

Heartsdesire said...

I like the thread on the right side in the first picture, and I think the star would be easiest and would look excellent on your sweet little quilt. Picking the fabric to use in these small quilts is always fun, but the finishing always takes time to come up with just the right thread and design.

Martha said...

Your little quilt looks great...can't wait to see it finished--sure the star will make a great stencil for the quilting. Love your choice of fabrics; are they available from your shop or on etsy?

Martha (4theluvofprimitives)

Dorothy said...

I just love the little quilt and I would like you to use the chocolate coloured thread. I'm a 'brown fabric' type of person. The cookie cutters are devine. Love them both.

Barbara said...

Hmmm...I like the thread (CA 02776-I think 6 is the last #) Also like the star cookie cutter...the pointed ends sort of match the sharp corners of the rectangles. BUT, no matter the color of thread, etc., it will be awesome when you get it all done. I envy your being able to focus on all the wonderful things you create...Blessings

Valerie the Pumpkin Patch Quilter said...

Oh your stork scissors are gorgeous and the thread!!! Oh thread has just stolen my heart lately. Any of those colors would be lovely on your little quilt - I bought some of that Gutermann on sale at Jo Anns - have you tried the silk? I have heard such good things and am anxious to try it for myself. :)

Heidi Kuijer said...

Hi Lori! Your little quilt is so sweet. My favorite quilts are doll quilts now. It seems years of quilting have made me go for little piecing. I would lay out the thread against the fabric to see which color works best. A single thread can look very different than seeing it on the spool. Are the threads waxed quilt thread? If not, they might fray as you quilt. You can use short pieces to avoid more fraying but it will be lots of starting and stopping with the quilting. Using a cookie cutter is fun to create the pattern.

I am working on one of your stitching patterns now for over the Christmas season and loving it.

Hugs from Holland ~
Heidi

Linda said...

If I might borrow a word from my grandchildren, awesome! I love little things. Pick whatever color you like. Stitches will show one way or another, and it's better you enjoy what you're doing. Same with the stitching design. Don't be afraid of curves - they're only a series of straight lines. I love that you used checks and plaids. I was told many years ago one should never use either in a quilt. Well phooey to that! And just about every project has had one or the other. Can't wait to see it finished!

Sea Witch said...

First...love love love your Christmas header. What an adorable old photo of a boy and girl and their sled. Had to laugh, I mark my "equipment" too when it is good vs evil. Hate to throw any tool away if I can still find a good use for it. Now on to your tiny quilt piece. Just lovely and I admire your zeal to use tiny quilt pieces and better yet, the antique cookie cutters for quilting patterns. What fun.

CodmanPoint said...

Just gorgeous...I think the middle thread choices allow the fabric to remain the primary visual interest and make the colors sparkle subtly. JoAnn's (or any independent quilt store) sells Dritz "Iron Off" and it works like a charm to remove caked on junk from irons {I learned the hard way after irretrivably scorching some antique linens}. Another quilting hint- you can trace the cookie cutter (I vote star)onto Freezer paper and press (gently iron) onto the quilt to stitch around [freezer paper has a backing that bonds with heat, but leaves no residue]. It can be reused a few times, and it requires no marking on the top. Sometimes I pin the design so the edges stay secure, but as long as you don't manipulate it too much it also "works like a charm". Will you back it with one of the fabrics you designed?

Anonymous said...

Try ironing on an unused dryer sheet with your heated "bad" iron.I do this when my iron gets coated with undesirables.I hope this helps!

Anonymous said...

I am interested in your quilt patterns. are they designed to be patterns or cookie cutters. I find them cute and think a collection would be so fun.

Lizzie