Monday 18 March 2013

Splashy Stars Quilt

On Sunday morning, I got up bright and early.  Under the cover of clouds threatening the first rain we've had in weeks, I set off on a secret mission.  You see, I have been admiring this wall for a while, and thinking that it is the perfect place to photograph a quilt.  But, it's right next to my local supermarket.  The embarrassment factor is high.  However, this quilt, this wall - it was too good to pass up.  (And yes, people did look at me very strangely, but I didn't see anyone I know - win!)


So, as you've probably worked out, I finished my wonky stars quilt (you can see my initial plan for this quilt here and the quilt top before quilting here).


I free motion quilted pebbles and swirls in the blue and green background, so I am calling it Splashy Stars.  Just a little bit of straight line quilting in the white wonky stars helps define them and keep the quilt slightly flatter.


Seriously, isn't this wall great?  It's the side of a cafe, and I have to say, I think the wave and swirling sea is a vast improvement over concrete blocks.


So, this quilt is finished.  I originally made it for my sister's friend's baby boy, who was born (a week or so earlier than expected) last Wednesday.  I'm just not sure what to do with it now though - the FMQ looks good on the front, but the back is a hot mess.  I used a cotton poplin print with the perfect colours (you can catch a glimpse in the second photo above), but it did not agree with free motion quilting.  I'm going to think on how to deal with this issue for a little while - any suggestions (other than ripping out the quilting!) are welcome.

So, I have to know, where is the most embarrassing or strangest place you have taken quilt photos?!

Quilt Stats
Finished Size:  Approximately 40 inches by 49 inches.
Fabric: Assorted blue and green Kona Cottons from Robert Kaufman, FreeSpirit Designer Solid in Arctic White.
Backing: Prints Charming cotton poplin from Spotlight.
Binding: Kaffe Fasset dot.
Pieced and quilted by: me, on my domestic sewing machine.

This quilt is the fourth of my first quarter goals for the 2013 Finish-A-Long - four down, five to go!

she can quilt

Linking up with:

Plum and June Better Off Thread Fresh Poppy Design

and, of course, Finish it Up Friday at Crazy Mom Quilts.

38 comments:

Rachel said...

The quilt and the wall look amazing!! Definitely worth an early Sunday morning! I've managed to avoid embarrassing photo shoots so far, tho I do remember holding a quilt of my mum's up at a very public beach in Auckland, that was ok, it's not my town :) My house is close to my kids school so I don't take quilts outside at 3pm!:)

Jessica said...

Fabulous! I LOVE the quilt and I think the wall is the perfect photography place :D most of the time, my sister and myself stay in the backyard and frotn yard, but recently we ventured to a park. We definitely got some crazy looks but I bet none as crazy as yours ;) go you!

Leanne M said...

That quilt looks amazing against that background. I haven't taken any stealth photos with my projects, this makes me very tempted to do so :).

Heather said...

What a shame about the problem with the backing, because the quilting on the front looks amazing.

Sil said...

La pared y el edredón son fabulosos! Buen trabajo, felicitaciones!

Sil said...

The wall and the quilt are absolutely fabulous! Good job, congratulations!

Erica said...

Oh my gosh I am laughing right now. Every time I try to photograph a quilt it is an embarrassing experience, so I can totally relate! I frequently take them in front of my husband's office building because there is quite a bit of room and the lighting is really nice, but it embarrasses my husband so much. I live an apartment (which is quite dark inside) so that really isn't an option. And there isn't really anywhere around me that isn't public so I have taken pictures at the park, the beach, in front of my building on a busy street, etc. I just hope that I don't run into anyone I know!

The quilt is GORGEOUS. My only advice is that it might look better after you wash it (if you haven't already).

Kirsten said...

Love the fresh colours of the solids and your quilting is amazing! The wall is fabulous too!

arncar said...

This quilt looks beautiful and the FMQ is very effective. I do agree that wall is amazing and worthy of a quilt photo. I know the feeling - looking around to see who is watching, doing it quickly - I try and go on my own and pretend there is no one else around. Actually I think you are more conscious of it than anyone else because I have taken a few in a childrens playground and all the mothers and children just keep doing what they are doing, occasionally someone will comment but most take no notice.

Depending on the overall state of your back you could hand stitch some blocks(stars) onto the back to disguise the stitching. Or if the problem is all over you could take off your binding, put a new back over the existing one and then ditch stitch around the stars and rebind.

I discovered your blog recently and enjoy reading it.

Kristy @ Quiet Play said...

Love the quilt and admire your daring at taking a photo next to the supermarket!! It is a beautiful backdrop for a quilt photo!

Your quilting looks amazing around the stars - hope you can find out a suitable solution for the back!

Susan said...

That is amazingly beautiful! How wonderful does that circular/pebble quilting look!!!!!! I photographed my Bricolage out in the middle of a big open field! It's still a favourite photo of mine! Your shots are great!

JHNickodemus said...

That quilt is great! I love the way the quilting turned out! Also I love the wall! How fun to take pictures of a black and white quilt in front of it!!
I take pictures of my projects everywhere. And usually it's not me who's embarrassed but my husband who is often doing the quilt holding in the unusual place. Once we drove 20 min to a dinosaur museum to make it look like the Dino's out front were holding the quilt.
Another time I took an argyle quilt to the prestigious golf course my husband was a pro at to take pictures of the quilt on the green. And it started raining. But I wasn't leaving without my picture. So then I stood on the pro shop porch draping the quilt and posing it and taking pictures while golfers stood on the porch watching me and waiting to see if the rain would stop. No shame haha. My poor husband probably wished I had woken up early to avoid the crowd at that moment!

Amy's Crafty Shenanigans said...

Gorgeous :)

Fran said...

Fabulous!! Everything - the patchwork, the quilt, and the wall, what a combination!

Catherine said...

It is so beautiful - you have a great eye for colour and photo opportunity! I haven't made many quilts but I photograph them in my tiny front garden, or on some of the doors leading out to the street down the road. It's not really quilt-making central and I wonder if my neighbours think I'm being very pretentious! Could you get away with turning the edges of a piece of fabric just big enough to cover the back up to the binding and then handstitch it down? Maybe with a few tiny invisible stitches all the way through to tie it and stop it moving around.

Sewing Mom said...

GORGEOUS! and I love the backdrop too! So creative.

junacreationsuk.blogspot.co.uk said...

Wow - that is gorgeous and the wall is perfect for those lovely bright colours. Do you qult on a normal sewing machine or a long arm? I don't seem to be able to do the pebbles on my machine... can't quite get into a rhythm of it... with the stippling free motion quilting I start off by moving myself side to side to get a rhythm going, but I cant see myself hoolahooping at the same time as quilting :o)

Alison V. said...

Absolutely beautiful! :)

sarah elizabeth :: {no} hats said...

This is so much fun! This quilting is fantastic, so definitely don't rip it out! Maybe you could hand stitch a second backing (that doesn't show through to the front?) if it bothers you that much? But then you'd have to rebind it...

Lia*s Handmades said...

beautiful work, love the colours!

Julie said...

Lovely colours - really makes the stars POP. Your quilting looks great too.

✾Jamie Lee Cooley✾ said...

Well, it looks a-maz-ing from the front! I just love the pebbles and swirls!

My only suggestion is I can't tell if you've washed it yet, but sometimes washing and drying can make it wrinkle up a little to almost absorb the stitches on the back. I'd use a color catcher for sure with this quilt!

I've taken photographs everywhere and had many different people hold them up. I'm never embarassed and I love the wall on the side of that cafe. Hope you'll be back there to take more photos in the future!

Thanks for linking up!

Cynthia Brunz Designs said...

Beautiful quilt! I think I would be taking lots of photos against that wall! The two together ... wow!

Erica at Sew So Crafty said...

Your quilt is oh-so-gorgeous and the colours amaaaazing! Dropped by your blog via "Busy Bee's Link Up" and am definitely joining your site! Would love to know what the passers by were thinking watching you photograph your quilt on the wall :-)

Camilla said...

Looks fantastic! And well worth the embarrassment for such a great location. I really didn't find it too embarrassing! Ha ha! Downer about the back, is it really as bad as you think? Or are you a bit close do you think? If it really ruins it for you you could make a new back to sew inside the binding edge and do a tiny bit of quilting her adn there to hold it?

Christine said...

It looks so amazing! Would someone who doesn't quilt think the back would be that bad? I think only quilters look at the back anyway.

Leanne said...

This is a beautiful quilt, and a wonderful place to photograph it. I love, love your quilting and congratulations on the finish too!

Renee said...

Your embarrassment was worth it--those photos are awesome! I love your colorful quilt on the black and white. And your quilting is beautiful! You should have shared a photo of the back though, so we better understand how to give advice for the problems.

Pomegranate Quilts said...

This quilt is so amazing, you COULD have photographed it on concrete and it would still look like a million dollars. Awesome!

Jill said...

The colors are wonderful - the background you selected is perfect. I love the quilted pattern you applied. Colorful and textural.

Nic said...

The wall is gorgeous. And you're right, the perfect backdrop for this quilt

Amira@littlemushroomcap said...

O i love the background... Its worth to go through a bit of embarassment...your quilting look gorgeous too...

Rachel said...

Wow, I love those pictures. Great colors in the quilt and that's a really cool wall! I too would probably risk embarrassment in order to take those pictures! :) Very nice all around.

elle said...

Amazing photos. The wall, the quilt, the quilting!

tusen said...

So great that you decide to take the photo of the quilt against this wall - it makes a perfect background for the quilt.
The quilting looks beautiful, too, so I hope one of the solutions suggested above works for you.

Jodi B. said...

Ditto on the wall comments. That is a great wall, and the black and white really make your quilt on top, pop! I love the pattern and colors. I'm not sure about your quilt's future. Is the back really that bad? The front is amazing. You could make another for the baby's first birthday, and buy something for a baby gift.

Kelly said...

I love this quilt - such yummy colors and quilting details! I've pinned it to my "Quilty Goodness" board on Pinterest (with proper credit, of course!). Feel free to follow me if you'd like: http://pinterest.com/lipglass/quilty-goodness/

gibbygoo56 said...

I adore this quilt! The colors are yummy. I want to make this quilt in a throw size for my sunroom. Its PERFECT!

I hope I can replicate this quilt without the list of solids you used. Beautiful quilt!