This quilt - 144 HSTs in a variety of colours - was inspired by my friend's rug / mat for her new conservatory:
and I said I'd make her a quilt to match it ... as you do! After painstakingly selecting the right fabrics, matching the squares, making the 144 HSTs and trimming them all down to a precise 5.5 inches, I figured it would be a doddle to sew them all together into a finished top:
First mistake - I don't do random ... so I spent ages deciding which blocks sat best next to each other. Next step - an easy one, just sewing the pairs together. Second mistake - I am such a fussy perfectionist ... there you go, I've said it out loud. So, after a little bit of unpicking when my points didn't quite match, I had 72 pairs to start placing together in rows of 4 x 12 ... I remind you of my first mistake; this - again - took me ages.
Having decided (finally) on the order, I decided to throw my usual caution to the wind and not pin! The first few blocks were displeasing on my eyes :( So, that was my third mistake - do not stop doing what you know you have to do when you are a perfectionist - so I pinned, pinned and pinned:
And last night, I finished the top ... yay! Do you know what? After all of the hours cutting, arranging, pinning, sewing, unpicking, pressing ... it is NOT PERFECT! Some of my points are not exactly 100% and some of my colours repeat too close together. But does it matter? The overall effect (I think) is delightful and I know that Mandy will love it when it's all complete:
I need to chill out a bit - less than perfect is okay, hey? I'm probably the only one who notices 'the mistakes' and it can stop me from enjoying the overall result. This hobby gives me an enormous amount of pleasure so from now on, I will be less perfect and more pragmatic - and you can (please!) hold me to that.
Linking up with Amanda Jean @ Crazy Mom Quilts and Sarah @ Confessions of a Fabric Addict. Hope you have a good enough weekend :)
I will hold you to that, Jennifer. Your finished quilt top is perfect in my eyes and matches the rug of inspiration perfectly. You are so wise to recognize that you are robbing yourself of the joy of the craft in being too 'picky'. Hahaha! See what I did there?!! 144 is certainly a lot of hst's. They look fabulous together!
ReplyDeleteI just did an HST quilt - my advice, use GLUE! I hate pinning. . . I've tried so many things but glue works best for me. And if you are ironing to the side and not pressing those seams open - even better! I had to press open due to the bulk and sometimes I went a little heavy on the glue. . . a little dab will do ya :D haha
ReplyDeleteI'm with Lorna, it looks fabulous and perfect!
It's perfectly lovely!! I just finished a half triangle quilt, too, and some of the points aren't as good as I want them to be, but it is the way it is. She will love it!!!
ReplyDeleteIt is absolutely gorgeous! Seriously, grab a glass of wine, step back and look again ;-)
ReplyDeleteI promise that I will do my best to let you know that this is a fun and relaxing hobby!
ReplyDelete-We are not computers and there will be some small misstakes and thats OK!
I just LOVE your work!!!!
But I can tell you that I wouldn´t take long time to think about the placements.
I´m not that kind of "girl";-)
Looks really good to me!
ReplyDeleteI was so like you, Jennifer. It's taken me a long time to learn to let go of absolute perfect sewing. I think your quilt is wonderful. It's interesting how sometimes I see pinwheels, sometimes I see 4 triangles making a square, sometimes 2 triangles making a square, and sometimes, almost, envelopes. There's so much to hold my interest in this quilt. I'm sure your friend will love it.
ReplyDeleteI have spent lots of time arranging and rearranging on my design wall. Do you know what I learned? No one else even notices. They can't tell that all my trees grow upright, or that there aren't two blues by the green... So I have learned to not stress over placement. Glad you are learning the same thing. I'm happy to remind you any time. :D
ReplyDeleteI think this quilt looks fabulous and will be much loved.
Wow, this is lovey - it turned out great! I think sometimes I am too random...... I am not very matchy and just tend to make things work. I don't have a design wall (other than the living room floor, so often I get lazy and just start sewing stuff together!) Then I look at the finished product and wonder why I put this fabric next to that one, etc. Great job! :)
ReplyDeleteWowzaa... I love it. You silly, silly one. Your mistakes would make my perfection look bad. I have to agree, there are times when pinning is the answer. It's kinda like pressing the seams open, I prefer it old school most of the time.
ReplyDeleteLooks pretty awesome. Nice.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing your perfectionist struggles when it comes to quilting. You are right that the quilt looks beautiful and that no one but you will notice any microscopic mismatches in points. I allow myself to pick something apart up to 2 times and then I must leave it be. This allows me to attempt perfection but then to settle on good enough. Done is better than perfect the older I get!
ReplyDeleteI love it Jen! I have a rule - you unpick twice and after that it has to stand. I think at times I am a perfectionist and then other times I just let it stand as it. Sometimes I think we are our worst critics and that needn't be. Your quilt is great and looks perfect to me. Your friend will be more than happy to have that in her home. Great job Jen!
ReplyDeleteLovely quilt Jen. I've been reading through the comments and it seems that a few of us are in the unpick twice camp and then it has to stand as is!! I've also realised that once the quilting is in place this also takes the eye away from slight mismatched points - not that I could spot any in your top!!
ReplyDeleteI think it looks wonderful! So bright, bold and striking! I would never know there were any imperfections at all. Beautiful work, as always Jen.
ReplyDeleteI love how your colors play together! I can't tell you how long it took me to get away from viewing my quilts under the 'microscope' and stepping back to see how the colors blended as a whole. Oddly, it's those things that we think are imperfections that give the whole quilt motion. It needs just that bit of asymmetry. A quilt that is too controlled just seems to lack some kind of spark. Glad you decided to let go a little. I think you've done a great job!
ReplyDeleteWe can't help it, really. We want our creations to be perfect! As long as you can let it go a bit, and realize that you really are the only one who notices the little imperfections, all will be well. Sometimes it's better to just have it done! That being said, this quilt is going to be stunning, imperfections and all. Well done!
ReplyDeleteJen, you are your own worst enemy! I love it !! It looks perfect to me, but I know how you feel - we only see our mistakes and that makes us grumpy. Its good to aim for perfection, but don't let it spoil the journey. A good mantra for life as well, but one that I'm better at preaching than doing!!
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