Yesterday I worked on getting caught up on the nine patches for the One a Day Quiltalong at crazy mom quilts. The goal I think is ninety blocks and I'm almost there. I put all the finished blocks on the wall to take stock of what I've done and I'm pretty pleased with it. Just a few more will get me to ninety. I've used a lot of bright, mostly kid prints. If you want to see what lots of other bloggers are working on, check out Judy at Patchwork Times. Each Monday she hosts a "What's on Your Design Wall" post.
The nine patches won't be up there for long because this morning I started sewing together the blocks for my blooming nine patch. It's going together really fast, but I need to use the wall to keep track of all the blocks as I go.
This afternoon I worked on getting the Mexican Star quilt sandwiched and basted. I really dislike this part of quilt making, which is the reason why I have a box full of quilt tops waiting to be basted. Today I tried something different. It didn't make it any easier, but at least it went a lot quicker.
My usual method is to tape the backing down on the floor, layer the batting and flimsy on top, then use a needle and thread to baste the whole thing together. The problem is that it's really, really hard to push the needle down through the layers and then get it turned around so it will come back up.This time, I tried a spoon. I think I must have read about it somewhere. You push the needle through the sandwich as if you are taking a big fat quilting stitch, then push the bowl of the spoon down and into the fabric just ahead of where the needle should come back up. The point of the needle magically reappears over the top of the spoon and it's easy to grab the tip and pull it through. Once I got into the rhythm of the motion, I was able to zip along pretty quickly.
Now, once my back recovers from crawling around on the living room floor all afternoon, I can start hand quilting!
8 comments:
I would love to see a picture of the Blooming 9-patch you are working on . . .
I LOVE it! Your squares and color combos turned out so much better than mine, but then I was using just scraps.
OH my goodness, I could never crawl around on the floor to baste anymore...wouldn't be able to walk for a week! Great job on the 9 patches!
Have you ever tried one of those curved upholstery needles that are shaped like a C? that might be easier. I use 504 spray for basting but if you don't like the sprays that needle might make work!
I could never control those curved needles. But I do use a spoon when pin basting. I had hubby grind a 'V' out of the tip of spoon so it will grab the pin/needle better. Like Kathy, I would not be able to walk for a week so I raised a banquet table 6" and use it for basting.
Beautiful! Sharon Schamber has a pinless, painless basting method that works like a charm...you might want to give it a try! Check out the video instructions here... http://sharonschambernetwork.com/free_area/videos/basting/index.html
The 9-patches look so great!
I also used a spoon when basting my latest quilt.... and like you it took a day or two for my back to recover. Love this project that you hand quilted.
~bonnie
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