Meditation on Swoons

Swoon Top
Swoon Top

Perhaps I should have called this post “Second Guessing Myself”.

Back in January I finished the Swoon top and a short time later I sent it to the quilter.

I got it back last week. As usual, she did a fantastic job. I am merrily sewing down the binding, generally enjoying my cheerful Swoon in all its pink and orange loveliness.

THEN.

Camille Roskelly, the designer of the Swoon quilt, posts a new Swoon she has just finished.

Sigh.

I love her work. I love her fabrics. I would probably love her if she were a friend. But this newest quilt makes me wonder if I should have made the background all the same so the Swoony motifs float. I thought I was being so clever making the blocks different. Now I don’t feel so clever. I feel like I did it wrong. 🙁

The post is making me wonder if I should make a Swoon out of the Joel Dewberry Notting Hill fabric. I do love that fabric. Perhaps this all isn’t so bad after all.

More Swoon

All Swoon Blocks
All Swoon Blocks

I pretended for a long time that I was just playing around with blocks, but after posting Swoon Block #13, I had to admit that this was a project.

I decided that I would finish up the last few blocks, put them together, make a back and see what would come next.

I am pretty pleased with the way the blocks have come out. I don’t know if this will be the permanent arrangement. I am considering and will have to see.

 

I am hard on the heels of bordering this quilt top. I had hoped to have the border, the back as well as the back for the Spiderweb done by the time I go back to work tomorrow, but I can see that isn’t going to happen. Life interferes. I have to eat, play chauffeur, spend time with DH. I am fortunate that life interferes. It is work I could really do without, as long as they would pay me not to show up. 😉

Swoon with Framing Border
Swoon with Framing Border

The first thing I did was put a framing border on the top. The variety of colors needed to be contained and the pinky orange did a good job.

Next on the agenda, which I know is going to cause me problems is the larger outside border. I am taking elements from the Swoon blocks (the corner piece, the house shape, or as Sarah calls it: the Turkey Butt) and making them to insert in the corners and middle of the borders. I am pretty sure I don’t have enough of the border fabric, so we will see how that works out.

Lack of planning with rending of garments or design challenge?

You can read about preventing sickly sweetness in the last post about this project.

Swoon #15 & 16

Swoon #15
Swoon #15

I sewed the last two blocks. They look great, I think. I did have some challenges picking the fabrics for the last two blocks.

I had picked out a certain crop of fabrics for these blocks. I didn’t want to add in any new ones that I didn’t have to add, because they wouldn’t be in the rest of the quilt.

If you zoom in you might see that I pieced some of the fabrics to make sure I had enough. That odd piecing doesn’t really show even in person, so I am happy.

Swoon #16
Swoon #16

Block #16 was a bit of a challenge, because I couldn’t decide if I wanted to use more of the blue Sophia fabric that kind of started me on this journey.I finally decided that I liked it enough to use it. I also decided that it wouldn’t scream out of the quilt that I had used too much of it.  The blues are relatively strong in this piece, but I don’t think they overwhelm it. I think the blues keep it from being too sickly sweet with pink.

Now I am done with these blocks. I have decided that 16 is enough.

The last post was about the other Swoon block I made recently.

Swoon #13

Swoon #13
Swoon #13

I have never counted this as a project, but I think I have to admit that it is. I now have 13 blocks, this one being the latest. I also have #14 on the Design wall.

I decided that I would make the last few blocks and sew this piece together. I have had my fun and would like to finish this piece.

I don’t hate the process, so it won’t be a chore or anything. I just want to move on, especially with the Star Sampler looming.

I guess I also have to admit that, while I am pleased with the progress I have made on clearing out old projects, I want to clear out more lurking projects. I don’t want anymore 10 year+  projects hanging around.

You can take a look at Swoon blocks 11 & 12.

Swoon #11 & 12

Swoon #11
Swoon #11

I am calmly making these blocks one after another. I refuse to think about whether they will be a quilt or whether they will turn into anything at all. Of course, they will be something. What? I don’t know. Some kind of quilt, I am sure, but for now, I am just making blocks.

You all liked this blue, so I made another block using it. The pink is the block is a little different from the pink I selected and used in Swoon #7. I didn’t have enough of the smaller dot (that I could find), so this one is a suitable stand in.

I am pleased with the way the piecing came out in this block. If you look at the blue wings on the star, you will see how the vine looks like it continues from the middle out to the wings, especially on the left. I wish I could say I pieced it that way, but it was the luck of the draw.

Swoon #12
Swoon #12

Swoon #12 (middle photo, right) uses a yellow flower print, which is ok, but not great. It has all the right colors, but there is something about it that is just a little off for me. In this block, the orange of that flower print makes some of the points of the star drop out. I didn’t notice until I was done with the block. I think there was some yellow still showing before final sewing, but when I sewed those parts together, the yellow was taken up by the seam allowance. I thought about unsewing it and making the wings over, but I couldn’t be bothered. Perhaps it will make viewers come closer to the quilt to see what I was doing? For all of these little things that are not quite right, I think about antique quilts and how there is a often a fabric that doesn’t go or a botched piecing job. These quilts are charming, so I will think of these little things as adding charm to my quilt. 😉

And Then There Were Twelve

Twelve Swoon
Twelve Swoon

It is so interesting for me to look at all of these blocks together. Different parts of them stick out, which is all about the fabric, of course.

Some of them look like wreaths and some of them highlight the stars.

Making these blocks is turning into more of an intellectual exercise than I thought it would. Very fun.

Swoon #10

Swoon #10
Swoon #10

I like this one and I was able to do a little adjusting of the colors. I really like the blue print in this piece. Again, it is from the Sophie line by Moda.

I didn’t, however, want to have part of the block drop out because the pink flowers would blend with the dots. What I did was, where possible, I would put the pink flowers in the part of the block that would get cut off. For example, there are many places where I place a square over a corner, sew on the diagonal and then cut off the remaining triangle. I made a big effort to place the flower part of the blue fabric in the location that would be cut off. I think that the effect is of more blue in this block than pink. The larger dots really give these blocks a different look.

Nine Swoon
Nine Swoon

I think the blocks are starting to look like a group. There are some fabrics I need to use a second or third time, but I am getting to the point where I might want to stop making blocks.

Swoon #8

Swoon #8
Swoon #8

It took me awhile to get back to the Swoon blocks. I keep the latest one on the design to remind me to do it. It has been awhile since I made the last one. I think, after reading Landscape Lady’s comment from last week, I am in transition. I am trying to be in transition.

I spent last Saturday making blocks. It is kind of meditative work, but also clean up work in a way. I made some blocks for the A-B-C Challenge. I also made the Swoon block.

It is funny when I make Swoon blocks. I make one and then I want to make another, but I put it off, because there is so much cutting. Then I have to learn to make the block all over again. I made some notes when I made the last one and it was easier this time. I hope not to put it off so long until I make the next one.

8 Swoon Blocks
8 Swoon Blocks

Since I had cleared the design wall, I put all the blocks up and took another picture of them all.

One thing is that I think I will add sashing. Yay! I get to go through the drama of picking sashing fabric all over again. Perhaps I should take my time making more blocks? 😉

I think the look is pretty good. I will make more and then see how I want to proceed.

Swoon #9

Swoon #9
Swoon #9

I quickly made up this next Swoon block on Monday night.  I was blatantly avoiding my regular household tasks. I found it to be an intellectual challenge to keep the background lined up so that it didn’t look strange.

I am pretty happy that I did such a good job. I am also pleased that I was still able to use Deb Tucker’s technique to make the Flying Geese and the Triangle Technique to make the Triangle Squares.

Now I have to decide if I am going to make more blocks or if I am going to stop and put these together. I have an interest in using the pink dot on white for the background in another block.

We’ll see.

Swoon #7

Swoon #7
Swoon #7

As I mentioned the other day, I worked on small projects on Memorial Day. I had cut the background for this Swoon block a couple of weeks ago, but hadn’t cut anymore. Then I cut a bunch of 2.5″ squares before I remembered that I use the Triangle Technique to make the half square triangles and didn’t them. I added those pieces to the donation block pile and the Super Secret #3 project pile. Duh!

Even though I was tired, I was able to get my act together and figure out how to make this block again. I made some notes, so perhaps it won’t be such a drama next time.

I also took a photo of all the blocks I have made so far. Not a great photo, but I wanted to see how they would look together. Fun, huh?

All Swoon - May 2012
All Swoon - May 2012

I thought I would make 2 more and have a nice even 9 blocks, but am thinking about making 9 more blocks and making the piece larger. I’ll make two more and then I’ll see what I think when the Corner Store is off the design wall and I can look at these blocks on the wall.

Do I say this every time I make a block? I really like these blocks. YAY! Camille Roskelley!

Swoon #6

Swoon #6
Swoon #6

I told you I was going to finish the Swoon block. 😉 Here it is.

This is more of the look I was going for when I made Swoon #5. I love this block. It is one of my favorites. I love the combination of that bubble gum pink and that certain tint of turquoise/aqua. It is so cheerful.

I am thinking I will make 3 more and call it good, but we will see.

I thought I should cut out the next one so I could start sewing right away, but I didn’t have it in me.