Cheryl is still plugging away trying to get caught up on community quilts. Here is her latest.
Cheryl writes:
Hi Jo, Since you like color, you are going to love the last quilt I’ve finished. This one was made by Sandra M. from in Veradale, Washington. I have quilted several tops pieced by Sandra M., and each one is a work of art.
I use the “float” method for longarming — just let the end of the batting and top hang onto the floor. This method didn’t work so well when my Bostons were puppies, but at the age of 12 years, they no longer play under the longarm (or shred the batting), so I am free to leave a quilt in process like this overnight.
Sandra M. used a square or rectangle with a triangle for the center of each unit. From there she used the Courthouse Steps method of adding rounds to the center piece.
The rounds are of different widths, and eventually all the blocks for any given row were trimmed to the same size. The rows do vary in size.
Another center piece with the triangle corner. I remember taking a class with Bonnie Hunter in making a wonky quilt, and she said, “You start off with a rectangular-ish piece. . . “ It looks like Sandra M.’s blocks started the same way.
Wrinkles? I don’t see any wrinkles. “It will all quilt out” said no longarmer ever. Just kidding, I smooth out the quilt top every time I finish a row and roll it up on the intake reel.
Quite a bit of excess batting on this project. I will cut it off and put it in my Batting Bin to use in piecing smaller quilt battings.
The quilting pattern is an edge-to-edge design called “Zoiberg Feathers” by Barbara Becker and is available at UrbanElementz.com. I use this pattern a lot as I am drawn to feathers. I think it softens all the rectangular fabric pieces.
I laid out the quilt on the floor and pondered how to go about trimming it. I usually rely on a border for guidance in squaring up the corners and trimming the batting. But, without a border on this quilt, I had to come up with another solution. So, I consulted that source of all knowledge: the Internet, and came up with a solution.
I ordered this new toy from eBay. This is a Stanley S2 Laser Level Square that beams two lines in a 90 degree angle for the side and bottom of the quilt.
I used my chalk marker to trace along the laser’s beam.
Then, back to the cutting table to do the trimming.
I wouldn’t want to use this laser method often for trimming quilts because it is awkward to use (awkward for me), but when there are no other landmarks on a quilt, I’ll go with it.
Come to the backyard and see Sandra’s finished masterpiece. The quilt is now 75” x 94”. I consider that a generous twin-size or a full-size quilt.
Big feathers in this Zoiberg Feathers pattern.
Below, you can see I used a light pink fabric for the binding. A batik would have been a better choice, but would you believe I don’t have a single piece of batik in my stash?
The backing was a batik in light blue with darker blue wheat print. Sandra supplied the backing — so appreciated!
Sandra’s quilt is going to Joy Meadows, a foster care facility, near Kansas City, Kansas. It is sure to be selected by a teenager who loves the color explosion.
I enjoyed working on Sandra’s top, and I’m continually amazed by the excellent quality of tops Jo’s readers send my way. I am limited in the number of quilt tops I can finish now that I have some health problems. Some days are better than others, and on those good days, I’m in my quilting room.…