Quilted Blouse Yoke

BACKGROUND:
A couple of years ago I was at Joann's during one of their red dot sales. In case you are not familiar with these sales, Joann's has a discount table where marked down fabrics are piled. Usually there is nothing wrong with the fabric. They must have a system of some kind. I usually find a lot of bargains. When they have a red dot sale, they charge half of the marked down price.

At any rate, I found a dyed fabric that was also stitched all over into squares on point to the grain. The piece was big enough to make a top. Now I haven't sewn much since I did a layette in 1964. However, I decided I would design it myself so that it didn't have any button holes. Well it was a bit strange. I wore it a couple of times, then it went to the back of the closet. Then about a year ago I happened upon this gorgeous flower fabric on the red dot table during another sale. This time I bought a pattern. It required several buttons. I already decided I would just sew the front up and make a placket so as to eliminate most of the buttons. I really hate doing button holes. The only reason I was finally able to make these is because of a tutorial on how to finish a small quilt using cording by Terry Grant. She still has this wonderful tutorial on her blog. Thank you Terry.

I used McCalls pattern M5587 style B without the belt. To me the idea of a BIG shirt is to flow over the stomach, not emphasize it. For quilting the yoke, I put a thin fabric, then a piece of flannel, and then the flower fabric on top. I think I learned a lot about my machine while trying to follow the flowers. Hopefully, I've gained a little skill. One thing that I found really frustrating was using the black thread on the black background. I had to feel to see if I had totally stitched an area. For me, black thread on black fabric is really had to see. However, if you look at the difference between the quilted yoke and the unquilted fabric, there is a difference. The quilted flowers become even richer and most lustrous than the original gorgeous fabric.


Blouse Front


Blouse Back

Close Up of Blouse Back showing thread detail.

My New Car

I obviously need a new car. Everyone tells me this. However, if I were to buy a new car, I would have NO money for other things, like quilting. Instead of buying a new car, I decided to get my old car fixed. Thus I would use the money to buy a quilting machine. My friend Alex took me to see the machines at MQX in New Hampshire. Before I went, I researched on-line, read all the views from QA as well as went through a check list. I had narrowed the affordable field to 2 machines. However, when I went to the show, I discovered a new machine, the Innova. The second day I crossed off one of my original choices. The people were not helpful [busy talking with each other] AND gave NO show discounts off the price on-line. This made the machine the most expensive for the amount of quilting space. I crossed that one off.

It took me two more days to decide on this machine. It was neck-in-neck with the APQS Lenni. Both dealers were very helpful. I felt I could rely on both for support. I know a lot of folks who are happy with APQS machines. The Innova is rather new to the market. I don't know anyone who owns one. Major decisions involving a lot of money. I wasn't going to get a second chance. Finally at 2PM on Saturday, Alex said she was anxious to get on the road. I needed to decide IF I was going to buy a machine. It was a hard, chancy decision. I really knew nothing other than the ads. However, the Innova has the best frame I've ever seen. I could get 26" on the Innova versus 20" on the Lenni. The Lenni dealer is in Maine AND her husband works on the machines. The Innova dealers are in upper New York state. I really liked the Innova handles; hate the Lenni handles. I remembered a quote, "Just do it!" I did. I know I made the best decision with the knowledge I had at the time. Whenever one buys something in this technological age, it will be improved before we get it home. Several things I did NOT notice about either machine: spot lighting, holder for spools, adjustment how-to's, and more I have yet to discover. However, sometimes it is good to , "Just do it!" In the end, my journey may not be perfect, but it sure is interesting. I think this will add a lot to my ability to create. I'm sure I will use it more than my car. I am also sure my dining room will get a lot more use than it did before. Plus, I can still seat 4 people at the counter.


Old car parked in front of a garage shared with the house next door.


New Innova 'parked' under my 'fabric garage'.


New Innova out of the 'garage'.

Old car viewed from the side.


New Innova front-side view to the kitchen showing dining bar.

Old car view from the back.

New Innova view from the back showing balcony, china cabinets, and stair.

Old car close up showing 'fender patch'.

New Innova far view from the stair showing work table behind.

Extra feature, the bobbin winder.

Innova with the spot lighting it came with. Not very bright and lots of shadows.

Innova with my added clamp on light. It really brightens up the area.


Front of my blouse yoke. After many, many practice sessions, I decided to try and complement the design on some fabric I purchased a couple of years ago for a blouse. This would give me a chance to try different threads and see how well I could follow the designs.

Back of my blouse yoke. Another practice session.

It is far from perfect. However I learned a LOT. Hopefully some day soon I'll have a new blouse that will be very unique. I'm enjoying this journey. What more can we expect.

On Point

The colors [one color and the rest neutrals], in this little quilt reflect the Fast Friday Fabric Challenge for May. The size is to meet the requirements of the 'Little Gems' sale that will go on in August. The proceeds of this sale will go towards establishing a Guild Museum and Gallery in York, England. If interested in learning more, try this link.

http://littlegemquilts.wordpress.com/

So far they only have one quilt from the USA. Perhaps you might have time to make a contribution. I'm sure it will be appreciated.


This is a new product I tried. It makes a bead on the fabric. I was hoping it would block the ink. Unfortunately, as you can see it didn't work well for that. It is easy to use and guarenteed permanent color.

"On Point" is approximately 8.5" x 11.625". As you know, if you have followed this blog for a while, I LOVE ballet. Now I'm just an observer and recorder, but I still love that mode of expression.
I can still remember my first time in toe shoes. Surprisingly they really didn't hurt much. However, they were very awkward to walk in. I am continually amazed by the beauty and grace of ballerinas.

Fabric Interrupted

This small quilt was made for the Genesee Valley Quilt Club's Quilt Festival, "Garden of Quilts". The object was to showcase the challenge fabric. I found my check today [dated 6-19-08] and decided it was time to put my entry on my blog. I would love to hear from others who entered this challenge. I have no news of any results yet.


Fabric Interrupted 15.25" x 23", April 2009

Beauty is in the Eye of the Beholder

The finished quilt: "Beauty is in the Eye of the Beholder"

I have finally finished this FFF challenge 27 which was due December 6. The challenge was to depict something either really really close up OR really far far away. I chose close close up. We were encouraged to follow our chosen theme as well as use a variety of values.

Although I had the center done and quilted on time, the quilt finishing was a challenge. I decided to make mitered borders. I ripped them out so many times I had to get more material. Finally I glued them in place and stitched on top. I hate to say 'never again', but it is so far down on my list of things to do I think I would have to dig down a few feet to find it. Then I did the machine work for the facing. The hand sewing was so painful that I only did a little at a time. With Mom's 93 birthday on April 16, fast approaching, I had a goal to meet. Hope to mail it tomorrow.

Background.
My dear cousin Tom had arranged for my Mom to meet her latest Great Grand child. He also took a few photos. This one caught my attention because of the look between my Mom and this toddler. Mom was tied to a wheel chair because her left side was paralyzed after a stroke almost one year ago. My sister Mary was actually holding the baby on Mom's lap. However, through the magic of 'paint' and hours and hours of work, I cut out Mary's hand. Then I faded the photo so only the 'GOOD' stuffed showed. Not the greatest editing job. However, one thing that is so rewarding about making things for my Mom, she LOVES everything I make or do for her. Can't beat that for pay back.

For the puzzle lovers, a different cut.