Loopy Loo
Thank you for sharing your fantastic ideas for possible next steps on my latest improv quilt! I was drawn to so many of your suggestions for that left border such as using blue for sashing, adding a pop of orange or playing with the border width. This is why there are so many quilts to be made! And why all of you need to be making them!
Today I am quilting, so you'll have to wait until this one is finished to see what I did with the border design, which won't be much longer by the look of things! I hope you won't be disappointed that I didn't end up going with any of your ideas because I tried something subtly different and fell in love. Oops.
I've just sat down at the computer to give my arms a break from tracing loopy loos all across the quilt. In the spirit of improv they don't all go in the same direction. It's a playful, easy peasy quilting pattern, once you have a feel for free motion quilting.
Today's simple loops remind me of the much more controlled continuous eight design. It's a pattern I've quilted on so many quilts, starting in 2013. In fact, both of my kids' bed quilts are quilted with continuous eights. Unfortunately, that quilting hasn't held up too well. There are breaks in the quilting all over both quilts, even though the fabrics themselves look fine. I don't know why the quilting would be fragile since the tension looked/looks perfect on both sides. Any ideas? Maybe it's just my kids being kids or maybe it's my thread?
Anyhoo, I am trying the loops again now that my machine's just been doctored. I love the texture and personality they give to a quilt, especially one so "minimalist" as this. Here on the back you can see the large patchwork of linen I've used for a backing. I had a stack of Essex linens in grays and blues that I won't use for patchwork for practical durability reasons. With prewashing, a tiny stitch length and extra-wide seam allowances, I'm convinced the linen will do well on the back in large cuts. It certainly gives the quilt a nice weight too!
Well, back to it.
Today I am quilting, so you'll have to wait until this one is finished to see what I did with the border design, which won't be much longer by the look of things! I hope you won't be disappointed that I didn't end up going with any of your ideas because I tried something subtly different and fell in love. Oops.
I've just sat down at the computer to give my arms a break from tracing loopy loos all across the quilt. In the spirit of improv they don't all go in the same direction. It's a playful, easy peasy quilting pattern, once you have a feel for free motion quilting.
Today's simple loops remind me of the much more controlled continuous eight design. It's a pattern I've quilted on so many quilts, starting in 2013. In fact, both of my kids' bed quilts are quilted with continuous eights. Unfortunately, that quilting hasn't held up too well. There are breaks in the quilting all over both quilts, even though the fabrics themselves look fine. I don't know why the quilting would be fragile since the tension looked/looks perfect on both sides. Any ideas? Maybe it's just my kids being kids or maybe it's my thread?
Anyhoo, I am trying the loops again now that my machine's just been doctored. I love the texture and personality they give to a quilt, especially one so "minimalist" as this. Here on the back you can see the large patchwork of linen I've used for a backing. I had a stack of Essex linens in grays and blues that I won't use for patchwork for practical durability reasons. With prewashing, a tiny stitch length and extra-wide seam allowances, I'm convinced the linen will do well on the back in large cuts. It certainly gives the quilt a nice weight too!
Well, back to it.