Update on The Star and Leaf Quilt.

Star and Leaf quilt 

I had said that this blog post would have an update on one of my long term projects.  Most of my projects so far this year have been textile projects.  It seems like I have been working on the Star and Leaf Quilt project for a very long time.  I ran into a problem, and I had to set the quilt aside until I was able to fix it.

The problem was that I was in a hurry at one point and when I went to snip a thread, I snipped the fabric on one of the leaves.  I was so mad at myself!  Wouldn't you know it, that was the one fabric that I did not have enough of to make another leaf.  I tried to repair it, but the fix was worse than the snip.  I considered trying to cover the snipped area, but things just were not working out right.  I finally decided that the only thing to do was try to order new material.  That way I only had to replace one leaf.  Fortunately, I was able to find some of the exact material online.  Now that the material has arrived, a leaf has been cut out and appliqued onto the quilt.  I must say it was much easier to applique a leaf on a single layer of fabric.  Trying to applique it on a quilt that is already sandwiched together and pinned is much harder.  I think it took six or seven hours just to get that leaf back into place.  To me, it does not look as nicely done as the other leaves, but I am not sure that anyone else would notice it.

A friend of mind had suggested that before she went to all the trouble of replacing a leaf that she would have sewn a bumble bee on it or something.  I had considered it, but decided that it would have changed the focus of the quilt from leaves to bees.  Because one bee, would have just been a bit weird.  Sometimes I want what I want, even if it is inconvenient.

After some time off, for traveling, I am back to quilting.  The 12 inch squares are large and it takes a long time to quilt them.  I figure at least six hours of quilting per square.  I have completed seven squares so far, so I am about a third of the way through.   I hope to be able to complete at least two squares this week.  Slowly but surely the quilt is coming together.  I hope to have it completed by fall.

The quilt is not my only quilting project.  I have the top of a smaller quilt almost completed.  When I go to my quilting guild's sit and sew I need something to work on, so I have been  putting together another quilt there and quilting on the Star and Leaf quilt at home.  (It is too much trouble to drag my quilting frame around.)  Pretty soon, I will have another project that needs to be quilted.  I think I will have that quilt top completed this week, so I may have another quilt to show you soon.

I am also making progress on my spiral paper vase.  I will have new photos to show you on the next blog post.