The quilting equivalent to watching paint dry...


These are very poor quality pictures that I took late last night before going to bed following a long afternoon and evening of hand quilting.  I thought I would show you where I am in the process of quilting my "Contentment" quilt top.


I am outline quilting every little piece, then echo quilting as a background fill. The quilt just seemed too busy to me to try and do anything more organized like background gridding or lines.


It will look better after a good pressing...I am quilting on a hoop and have the top all wadded up in my lap as I make progress. I tried stretching it out on top of the TV table I am using to take these poor pictures.


I started with the big 16-inch center block then proceeded into the twelve 10-inch surrounding blocks, heading toward the borders.


It is a lot of stitches!  I have almost burned through my first spool of YLI hand quilting thread (#002 Ecru) and several layers of skin on my right thumb and left index and middle fingers.

It is pretty boring quilting until I get to something larger like the stork...then I can play with further quilting designs.  THAT is really fun.  My next project is going to have bigger motifs, LOL!


It seems like forever since I hand quilted something substantial, but fortunately the process is like riding a bike!  I may not quilt today due to the heat...it is supposed to be 80 degrees!  (And I have procrastinated so long that we have ZERO clean clothes.)  If anyone has seen my winter season, please send it home!  It is actually supposed to be 50 degrees tomorrow...better quilting weather.


I like hand quilting around the individual flower petals...the subtle loft of the quilt batt gives them an almost 3-D, slightly stuffed appearance.  

I love running my hand over the surface of the quilt as I work.  The feel of hand quilting is just so darn satisfying to me.

Last night I worked on the following block...I was actually hand quilting on a block of me hand quilting...it was like the Twilight Zone.


If I can keep this pace going, I will get it done before the Sauder Village Show in NW Ohio, which also means I will make the deadline to submit it to the juried AQS Grand Rapids show...yippee!

Thank God for DVD's...I just finished watching the second season of "Poldark."

In stitches,
Teresa   :o)

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