The altar frontal progresses
Progress on the patchwork altar frontal has been chugging on diligently backstage in spite of no mention of it on the blog. People have delivered a few stars and I have only a very few embroidered flowers still to do. But this village is so active – both because of village events and also because of the many active grandparents and the increasing number of their grandchildren (4 more expected on and around Christmas) – that meetings recently have been impossible.
The joining up continues
Nevertheless the quilt almost covers a double bed – touching the floor on one side and to the edge of the bed on the other which means it should be ready for sandwiching with batting and lining early in the New Year. I am concentrating on getting it to this next stage which means I am sewing in plain black stars to be embroidered in situ when all the piecing has been done. It is at that ‘so nearly there’ stage which feels as if the end of piecing will never come – so small are the pieces and so many (and why didn’t I make them that bit bigger?).
10 Comments
Hello Mary – Such a happy dazzle of beautiful twinkling stars on your altar quilt today. Hours and hours of work I know but to such a wonderful effect – the Church Altar will fairly glow!
Thank you Lydia.
Mary, this is absolutely stunning! Piecing over papers my first love and so happy to be back with it at the moment. Was this a community project?
Very glad to hear you like it Lynne. I too am a bit of a purist about patchwork over papers. As for hand quilting, it wins every time – I find the harsh furrows of machine stitching very unattractive. (I get nowhere near your 6 stitches to the inch – let alone the 9 you mention).
The quilt is a community project but meetings have been difficult to arrange recently as people have had other commitments. We must have a big push after Christmas.
Good to see it making such progress, even if it is at that “can I see the end? can’t I see the end?” stage which is so infuriating!
I would have liked to have photographed the whole thing but it’s getting too big for available floor space now – and the lawn’s a no brainer at this time of year. Glad you can see progress is being made, Rachel.
That is very very lovely and I appreciate how much work has been invovled to this date, never mind the basting and quilting and binding still to come. I am starting my first english piecing with the traditional hexagons and wondered if the double axe quilt you made was also pieced by that method? I have thirty plus years of scraps, some quite large, and I think that pattern would make at least a small dent in the pile.
Anne
Such an encouraging comment, Anne. Thank you
Hexagons are great with lovely big angles so there’s no problem with lots of folded fabric in a small point as with our diamonds
The double axehead was also over papers and once you’ve got the fabric on paper with appropriate clipping of curves it progresses very quickly. Because of the curves it uses up a great deal of material which is great as you’ve got lots of fabric to get through – in fact ideal.
I recognise that orange floral fabric that i brought back from Vietnam. I love that fabric, will have to see if i can find some more before i leave!
A very good idea, it’s absolutely lovely. I can think of so many ways to use it.