Getting Serious

If I'm going to get serious about doing some quality work then I need quality tools.  I'm not thrilled about working on things on the floor so the solution is to get a work surface.  I got these tables at Walmart for only $38 and no shipping charges for Site-To-Store.  They fold up, fold in half, and have a handle to carry.  It's 6' x 7.5' in this setup.  That's big enough for many things but still not big enough to block a queen sized quilt.

In order to make this serve several needs:
For blocking quilts, cover the foam boards with a sheet, taped to the back.

For marking designs and applique, a large light box.  A few 2x4's, some plexiglass, about 2'x3', and a couple of under cabinet lights will work. 

For a large pressing surface a 4'x8' sheet of OSB, some batting and some canvas.
 
Another tool I need is yardage of clear vinyl/plastic for drawing quilting designs and with the light box I can transfer them to the quilt.

Been doing some testing with the longarm and different threads.  Some were a disaster of snarls and loops, some where very inconsistant, and some were just right.  It seems that my machine gets along so much better with 50wt threads.  I order some Magna-Glide pre-wounds and Glide thread this morning to try that.

Sometimes I feel like my efforts and attention is all over the place, different quilt patterns, types, etc. and been feeling that I need to concentrate on one thing for awhile.  Don't get me wrong, doing lots of different designs has taught me a lot about piecing and applique, different fabrics and colors.  I feel that if I am ever to become really good at something then it needs my full attention.  Kind of a "jack of all trades, master of none" thing.  Working on the lace quilt is something that VERY much appeals to me.  I'm a traditional quilter and I like feminine designs and this just seems to resonate with me.  A long time ago an older gentleman at work told me, "do what you love, the money will come."  That's been true in my working career and I've come a long way in terms of professional accomplishments and salary by working in this field for 20 years.

Something else that appeals to me is vintage elements and embroidery.  I got this table cloth on eBay and imagine the four motifs in a quilt, set on-point, pieced with beautiful orange, purples, and blues.

Lasers are coming in handy

I just got two of these laser levels to help with squaring up and blocking and really glad I did!  I'm lining up the center and the furthest leaf in the design to keep it all straight.  I also measured out both sides from the middle to keep them the same since it's very easy to stretch out the lace.  It measures 21 3/4" on both sides so that gives me a place to start thinking of quilting designs too.  Just plan on 44" square as a starting point for around the center and my first idea is to make an on-point square frame around it.

After struggling with the entire tablecloth I decided to cut out the center.  It's much easier to lift up each "arm" of the design and tac it down with glue as I work out to the end.  After this is done I can use the lasers to attach the border of the tablecloth.

I found some folding tables at Walmart that are 30" x 6' so I ordered three of them.  They fold up into a square with a handle so they can be stored under the bed.  Much better than working on the floor!

Whole cloth and pearls

I've sewn most of the first section on and cut away a little of the netting to see what it looks like.  I'm fairly pleased with it. :)

I have 1000 Swarovski pearls to sew on all the little swirls in the design and the flower centers. 

Been thinking about "Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue."  Not sure if I want it all in white and cream or maybe add a touch of the lighest blue and there are some pearls that are very pale blue that might go nicely in certain areas.

This is one of the corners and the ribbons have little swirls along one edge that I colored in blue in the picture.

Beginning the whole cloth

I started out with laying out the top and starched it.  I then layed the tablecloth over it.  Using a laser level I lined up the center and the first "point".  First thing to do was to use Liquid Stitch to repair areas where fabric had come loose on the applique.  This tacked it down to the tablecloth and to the fabric underneath.

I then peeled back sections at a time and applied tiny dots of Liquid Stitch on the applique, layed it on the fabric and heat set it.

I moved everything to my sewing machine and started in the middle and a tiny zig-zag stitch, following the lines of the applique to sew it down.

I don't think this is going to work very well for a few reasons.  I think that the center motif needs to be cut away from the rest of the tablecloth.  I'm concerned that things are going to get out of alignment because of trying to deal with the entire thing at once.  If I am just glueing down the center it will be much easier to handle and more accurate. 

Secondly, it is very intense work to do this on the sewing machine!!  I'm going to cut out the center, starch and glue it down all at once and then load it on the longarm machine.  I'll use that and the smallest stitch to sew it all down.  Sounds like a much better plan to me.

Need a bigger design wall!

Next time I'm at a department store I'll look for a big vinyl table cloth with a flannel backing.  I read that they're great for a design wall. 

I haven't sewn the outer points to the center and I'm kind of waiting on delivery of a circle ruler that goes up to 17", which is exactly the unfinished size that the center needs to be.  I've been reading the forum for this BOM and people have had problems with the center being too small so I didn't trim the dark blue outside ring to the trim line yet.

The star points have more of a green look than I intended it too.  The green points exactly match the green in the darker points that also have turquoise blue, which is the color of the dark frame.  It just really has an overall GREEN look.  I guess I posted about that already too!!  I can live with it and the next section that has a dark frame will be in the dark blue of the center so maybe it will all balance out.

Tablecloth Quilt

I've been thinking a lot about making a wholecloth quilt and I happened to be browsing vintage linens and found THIS.  It's a vintage tablecloth with applique done on netting.  Beautiful!!  So... I bought it.

There are a few problems with it, some small holes in the netting and some of the applique is loose. 

I can just imagine this set on top of the white cotten sateen that I got for the wholecloth.  Not exactly sure how I'm going to use it, will have to see more when I receive it.  It could be layed over the sateen just how it is and then quilted.  Could sew it on with 100 wt silk thread on all the lines, cut away the netting, then quilt it.  Could even put it under a thinner top with a color (Tiffany Blue) behind it like shadow trapunto.  Even simply use it as a pattern and trace around it through the netting onto the wholecloth.

Lots of possibilities but it's so pretty that I just had to get it.

Little progress

Haven't done anything on this for a few days, been too tired after work and now I have to work late tonight and this weekend.  :-(

I'm wondering though if there is too much green, not enough blue, in this section.  Maybe I should keep the green/blue dark print but change the lighter green to a blue.  The outside fabric looks very green but it's actually a dark turquoise. 

The second picture is more true to color than the first.  It's funny how things can look so different in pictures.  On the first picture the 1/4 circle is the same fabric as the light small circles but it doesn't look like it is.  One looks white and the other looks green!