Oh boy! I got the letter that my quilt,
"Pi E2 [Exponentially Embellished]" was juried into the
Georgia Quilt Show. This is exciting news.
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"Pi E2 [Exponentially Embellished]"
46.25" x 46.25" |
This quilt started off as a sample to showcase
Blank Quilting's Sisley fabric collection. The pattern is a modified version of
"Easy as Pi" by the
Franklin Quilt Company. You may remember this
earlier post when it was in the quilting stage.
The fusible appliqué of the stylized prints, bright blenders and postmodern triadic color scheme (red-orange, turquoise and buttery lemon yellow) begged for something more than a mere zigzag or cliché buttonhole edge stitch. Bring out the threads! 40 wt., 30 wt., variegated... in the full color gamut.
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| Time to play with all the threads! The variegated-er... the better. |
Then it was time to play around with the gazillion decorative stitches (you know, the ones that come standard with your sewing machine from which you use only three) and mess with the stitch length and width.
Who uses the default settings, anyway? Yaaawn. Here is my stitch test swatch.
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| Experimenting with stitch length and width. |
So, "Pi" (the top) traveled around with me for a cycle to show off Sisley to shop owners on my Fabric Rep Trek. Here is a detail of the fusible raw-edge appliqué with the decorative stitching.
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| Decorative stitching on raw-edge appliqué. |
I like the dot fabrics in this collection.
(Mini-Pi's?)
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| Variegated threads, decorative stitching on Sisley fabric collection. |
As if the decorative stitching wasn't enough... the solid chocolate brown background fabric craved some
"show off" quilting... and I was in the mood for it. When you see the close-up shots, you'll understand why it's called
"E2 [Exponentially Embellished]." (
I don't know how to get the superior "2" figure using HTML. I found the code!)
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| All free-motion quilting done with my Janome 6500. |
The chalk marker got lots of overtime on this quilt top. I used bits and parts of several quilting and painting stencils, as well as free-hand drawing, to chalk in the guidelines for the free-motion quilting.
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Free-motion quilting using the piecing, stencils
and hand drawn chalk line for guides. |
I rather like that lime-green (almost neon) thread in the middle ring. Juxtaposed with the deep rose pink thread (hmmm, another complimentary color scheme?), it gives it a little zing, don't ya think?
Pi Stats:
Unquilted top: 48" x 48"
Finished size: 46.25" x 46.25".
38.5 hours of free-motion quilting on a domestic sewing machine (Janome 6500). 7.5 bobbins of 60 wt. poly (
Bottom Line by
Superior Threads).
Threads include: 30 wt. cotton (
Blendables by
Sulky), 40 wt. cotton (
YLI, and
King Tut by Superior), 50 wt. cotton (
Tutti and
Konfetti by
WonderFil,
MasterPiece by Superior, and
Aurifil), and 60 wt. poly (
Bottom Line by Superior) in the bobbin and for the background stippling. The quilting was completed and the binding and label attached at the end of July.
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| Detail of "Pi E2 [Exponentially Embellished]" |
In a recent conversation with the VP of Sales at Blank Quilting, Cliff G., he asked me if there was something I liked most about quiltmaking. I enjoy many aspects of the process: choosing the fabrics, designing with color, print and texture, and seeing the composition come to life. Lately, I'd have to say I really look forward to the quilting—and find myself creating areas in the quilt top specifically for the free-motion quilting to shine in its own glory. For me, the quilting is quite therapeutic and zen. This quilt is a testament to that.
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| Acceptance letter from the Georgia Quilt Show |
The Georgia Quilt Show is
September 19-21 at the Cobb Galleria Centre in Atlanta, GA.
Good luck, Pi!
