Seams Sew Gay: FIRE ISLAND HOSTA

Since I have been taking over the 52 Quilters blog this week, I figured I could post my posts on both so everyone can see them.

Well it is probably not a surprise by now that I am a fan of paper piecing. I took my first class a few years ago and was hooked then and there. I have projects that I have bought the fabric for and started the cutting process but then they have been put back into a box for a later date, I have some that are partially finished and then there are those that were completed and are out for me to enjoy.

This year Ben and I decided to take a technique of the month class. It ran from June to Dec, for a total of eight classes. Quiltworx has some patterns that only certified shops or certified instructors can sell. I talked to the instructors about maybe straying from the path and trying out a different pattern. I just loved the centers of some of the patterns with the curved leaf shapes and thought it had a lot of techniques that I had not done yet. They told me it wouldn't be a problem, so I decided on the Fire Island Hosta Queen pattern. I started by just looking at the batik section to find an inspiration for the main color theme of the quilt. I tend to lean toward cooler colors and wanted to do something different from what I had done in the past. I decided on an orange color palette to start. I spent over two hours in their classroom with stacks of bolts of fabrics. Having done quiltworx patterns before, I kind of knew how to look for the colors, where they were going to go and how to play off of other colors that were already in the quilt. I worked my way from the center out, first picking the leaves, how they would flow together and so on. I decided I wanted to end the quilt in a darker color, something that would almost frame the center. This is what I came up with.

My color pallet

Pattern

We got home and I started to do the cutting. Quiltworx has such specific cutting instructions that it makes cutting a breeze. I made a little color chart, so I know which fabric went with which number, I precut my pieces and put them into their respective bags. After all of the precutting was done I went back in and cut out my template pieces for each bag and everything was ready to start being put together.

Pre-Cut Pieces in their 18 bags

My class kit box, everyone

We had our first class and I worked on 1/2 of the first leaf. There were only 4 leaf halves and it took me all day to do this. I tend to get in a zone and things go pretty quick but this was just not happening, turns out that each individual leaf had almost 40 pieces and that is why it was taking so long. I wasn't having it, so I got home and finished that leaf and started right onto the next side. Before the next class two or three weeks later, I worked and worked. There were some areas I wasn't quite sure on, so I skipped those and moved onto techniques I had done in the past. By the next class I had almost all of my pieces completed. I talked to the instructors about piecing things I wasn't sure about and they were a HUGE help with different ways they were taught to do it. This quilt was a little different, as it was constructed from the outside in, so we talked and I worked. When I got home I finished the center and started to put on the final borders. By the time the next class rolled around I came with my completed quilt. I was so excited to share it and everyone was shocked that I was done so fast. I just couldn't stop working on it. Lucky for me, I had another Quiltworx kit ready to start with some new techniques I had not done yet either, so I started on that one. I just so happened to finish this one up the day after Thanksgiving, leaving me with my Indian Summer quilt to complete. Our last class is Saturday and I am hoping to get most of it done then.

This quilt was quilted by Susan Miner at http://www.trendythread.net, SHE IS AMAZING. She has worked on two of my quilts and I might have cried each time I got one back. It's so amazing what a long arm quilter can do to enhance a quilt but not take away from the design. Here are some pictures of the process and the final product. I am just getting the binding on, so it's not all the way completed but it has a bed to lay on when it is done.