Thursday, December 2, 2010

Practice Makes Perfect

You hear the statement "practice make perfect" all the time...and when it comes to quilting, I have definitely found that saying to be true! I started this Maple Leaves project well over a month ago, with all intentions of finishing it before Thanksgiving....well, obviously that didn't happen, and it has been neatly sitting on my sewing table waiting for the binding to be attached for several weeks. Now that I am trying to schedule an hour or two a day to work on holiday gift projects, I decided to finish my autumn project in an attempt to clean off my table for the holiday rush. As I attached the binding today, I realized just how much my sewing skills have improved over the last year - my bindings are getting much better, my seams are matching much better, and my project sizes are starting to be more exact - I was thrilled when all the pieces of this tiny quilt (12.5 " x 12.5") seemed to match up and it was indeed 12.5" square (as it should be). I have also gotten quite a bit better with tiny pieces...and that is a wonderful thing, as we all know how much I like miniature and tiny projects! I felt a little guilty spending the time finishing this project today with all of the things on my to-do list right now...but it was quite enjoyable to have a complete little quilt. It was also my first time adding a "sleeve" to the back of the quilt for hanging - I have to admit, I was a little intimidated to add sleeves to my quilts - I'm not really sure why - I guess I had never had it explained to me and I was afraid I would make a mistake...but, truth be told, it was super easy and I am so glad I tried it out! I am not saying I did it properly - as with most of my sewing skills, I am self-taught - I kind of did it my own way without any instruction - perhaps I should do a little research on the subject. In any case, I finished a quilting project today and tried something new...and it made me smile!

11 comments:

  1. Its beautiful! Now I want to go to my room and sew!

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  2. What a lovely piece....very nice.

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  3. Congratulations on your small quilt finish, Belinda! What beautiful colors! Glad you took the time out to quilt!

    Robin

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  4. Good for you! It's a beautiful quilt.

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  5. Congratulations on a project finished.
    Don't think of it as not getting it done before Thanksgiving at it being finished late...just think of it as it's finished for next year early. And the most important thing is that it is finished and it is beautiful.since life always seems to be able to get in the way somehow, I try to just celebrate the projects that I finish.
    Dream about how you are going to use it.:)

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  6. Good job! I like it when quilters/stitcher's just try things on there own. Sometimes a lesson can help, but it can also limit you to get new ideas.
    Love the little quilt, great colors and fabrics.

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  7. I love those colors! I hardly ever get things finished on time. I just so Oh well it'll be ready for next year.

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  8. Boy, if you've only been quilting for a year your points sure match great! I have quilted off and on for many, many years and still find that the more I do, the better I get and I have learned something new on every project I have done. Beautiful!!

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  9. What a pretty little quilt! I love the colors and it will look great when you bring out next fall.

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