Tag Archives: big stitch hand quilting

Boro Bags

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I teach big stitch hand quilting in my boro bag class at Village Fabric Shop.  It’s a great way to learn the technique without investing a huge amount of time.  You also end up with an awesome little bag.  The pattern is from noodle-head.com.  Best bag patterns ever.  IMG_0452

These boro bags belong to Ann (left) and Jean (right).  Ann used Essex linen and did some piecing to make her panels.  Jean used a fat quarter of the same fabric.

Same bags.  Different sides.  Jean quilted squares.  Ann used different thread colors.  Most of the threads were #8 perle cottons.

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Debbie’s.  Front.

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Back.  Beautiful.  Just the right amount of quilting.

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Paula’s front.

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Her back.  She used Anna Maria Horner’s wovens and we all loved the result.

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Jan’s blocks BEFORE assembly.

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After.  Front.

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Back.  Variegated thread.  Sulky 12 weight.  Check out the little embroidered heart top right.  So sweet!

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Linda’s blocks.

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Front.

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Back.  Such a great use for orphan blocks.

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Kay’s blocks before she made her bag.  Kay is a very good hand quilter and we loved her patterns.  Unfortunately I didn’t get a shot of her finished bag.  Sorry Kay!  It’s sitting right in the middle of the display below…

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How about that rainbow?

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Styled by Amy.  🙂

The Improv Quilt

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This winter I decided I wanted to TRY to make an “improv” quilt.  I have lots of respect for original design work; it’s not easy!  I used Jacquie Gehring’s book, Quilting Modern as my starting point.  This picture shows the first blocks I made.  I put them on a background of Freespirit’s Arctic White; it’s my most favorite white.  Amy keeps it in stock at Village Fabric Shop just for me.  🙂img_0070Didn’t like all that dark so I removed those blocks…
img_0075and ended up with this.  I used a nice collection of shot cottons and of course I had some Amy Butler fabrics that worked very nicely with them.

img_0088I arranged them sort of like I wanted them and then I started to sew.

img_0091I ended up with this.img_0123I bought a beautiful piece of voile for the backing and a spool of Sulky 12 wt. variegated thread because I decided to hand quilt it.

So I pin basted it and got started.  My phone dates this picture February 15.  I love deadlines.  I decided this project would keep me sane while I watched the NCAA basketball games.   We get a little crazy at our house with the tournament, brackets, etc.   My goal was to have it finished by the championship game on April 3.  That gave me about six weeks.  I echo quilted it.  I quilted around each block until the quilting ran into the next block and then filled in the “holes.”  That’s about a 3/8″ gap between the lines…more than 1/4″ but not quite a 1/2.”  No need to mark.  Just eyeball it.

It got to travel too!  It went to Florida for a baseball spring training trip and here’s a picture of it at Lake Norman…right before the Final Four games started.

I really like how it turned out. 

I finished it the WEEK of April 3.  🙂  UNC Chapel Hill won the championship so my Tarheel son was very happy.  Big stitch hand quilting does take time.  I think I had about 35 hours in this one.  It’s SO WORTH IT though.  It’s hanging at Village Fabric Shop.  Just give it a squeeze the next time you are there…so very soft.