The Wedding Quilt: Labels!!

Labels, labels, labels!!!  I have a thing for labels. I think that not only do they provide a nice way to "document" your quilt, but they also provide a type of history of why the quilt was made. Especially for something like a wedding quilt. I added two labels to this wedding quilt.

One label simply provides my name, it is the same type of label that I use on garments. You can have these made from an online service and I probably have these from years ago. Simply hand stitch onto the back of the quilt.

The other label is one that I had made from a vendor I found on Etsy. I wanted something embroidered that documents the wedding. And since I don't do embroidery I enlisted the help of someone else! She did a fabulous job and the entire thing only cost me about $25. Now some have mentioned that this label is rather "large". It is. And I like it that way. I wanted to have this very cute saying on the quilt and although the label is larger than normal, it will document their wedding!

The last part of the quilting process is well, in process!  I go over the quilt for any mistakes and loose threads, then wash and dry the quilt. Why do I wash it? Well, it does several things. It removes all the pencil marks that might have been left on the quilt. It also removes any batting fuzz or potential dog hair (yes that happens!). But probably the main reason I wash/dry it is to shrink it. It gives it an "antique" look that I like. I do preshrink the fabric before I quilt it but the batting will shrink somewhat as well. When that happens it give the quilt a type of "lived in" look that I like. And of course washing and drying it makes it pristine for the presenting of the gift!

Stay tuned for more quilting madness!!!

The Wedding Quilt: Home stretch!!

Ahh the home stretch of the wedding quilt! Yay! I have been working hard to finish up the quilt so that the family coming to the house on Christmas will be able to see the finished product. I wasn't sure who would get to see the quilt once I send it to Meghan in Berkeley, so I want to have it done soon for all to see "live".

So we are basically done with the quilting part and starting on the binding. I like to use a narrow binding and not a really wide one. The wide bindings remind me of the ratty blankets that kids drag around when they are little, with the wide, satin bindings and I don't care for that look. It's just me, if you prefer wide bindings by all means, don't be offended! Now you can make your own bias binding in any color or fabric you like, but I actually prefer to use pre-made binding. It is easy and there are many different colors available today.

My preferred type of binding

I like to use extra wide, double fold binding and then open it up and press it flat. Then I fold it in half and re press it and it is the exact size that I like for my quilt bindings. It is easy to work with and if you need to make it longer then just stitch another package length to the first one. I think that I like this because once I finally get to the end of the quilting process, I want it to be done and over with. So easy is the way to go!!

Now there has been much discussion (at least I think there has been much discussion) about how to round the corners of your quilt so that it looks right. My favorite way to do this: use a dinner plate. Yes, a dinner plate! It is the perfect round-ness and you simply trace the edge of the plate with your pencil and you never miss! You can use a saucer for small baby quilts, a salute plate for twin quilts and a larger dinner plate for the larger quilts. Plate: not just for meals anymore!!

Trace along the plate with your pencil!

Now once that is done, you simply cut along your tracing lines and then stitch the binding to the edges of the quilt. I machine stitch. I find I have more control that way and it holds better. Then I hand stitch the edge of the binding to the back of the quilt. It may take a while but it gives the front of the quilt a nice, clean look and allows you to manipulate around the corners.

Hand stitch the binding to the quilt

After that you are basically done! I have a few more tips and tricks for the final steps which will be on the next post. I like to go over the quilt to check out any "mistakes" and also put on labels and wash the quilt. Stay tuned: more to come!

Trip to San Francisco!

So this past weekend I headed off to San Francisco to visit Meghan and do some "wedding planning". Actually I headed to Oakland International airport and then traveled to Berkeley where she lives, but same difference!
The plan has been to try on multiple wedding gowns with the thought to decide on a style which would suit her tiny frame and then design the dress from that. She already had a style in mind, we just wanted to make sure that the one she thought she wanted would look good on her. She is very short and we all know that the fashion magazines tend to have 6'7" models in them who weigh collectively 42 pounds. Not the normal woman. Not even Barbie. But I digress....

One of our stops was the fabulous Britex Fabrics, on Geary Street in San Francisco. It is not far from the Union Square shopping area and is a SF landmark and caters to the local design stores as well as people from all over the country. If a fabric store could be orgasmic, this would be it!! It has a total of 4 floors and each one is amazing! If you are ever in the SF area, a trip to Britex is a must! Even if you don't sew, your senses will become alive with the fabulous fabrics and the extremely knowledgeable salespeople. Don't have the cash flow to spend $300 for Armani wool? No worries, head up to the 4th floor where they have a great selection of remnants for everyone! I myself have purchased remnants up there that have turned into wonderful garments!

See picture of the outside street level of the shop:

Britex Fabrics

We looked at many types of silks, chiffons and satins for the potential wedding gown. I didn't take pictures inside the shop because it just isn't the kind of place one snaps pics with your iPhone. I suppose that some people do that, but I felt uncomfortable doing so. Besides, we were talking with the clerk about wedding fabric, not trying to be tourists!

Now on to the wedding gown:
Well, there has been some discussion about me not making it at this point. Reason being, Meghan may have tried on the "perfect gown" in a bridal shop. It was something that I would be unable to duplicate, with an allover embroidery on silk and just the most amazing style and fit on here. She is deciding so stay tuned as to a potential change in plans. Since it is all about the bride, I am comfortable with whatever she decides! Stay tuned!!!

The Wedding Quilt!

So it has been a while since I've worked on the wedding quilt. Work travel and life in general have had the quilt sitting for far too long. Since I had a long weekend to myself (Ed was visiting our daughter in the Bay area), I spent the majority of the weekend in front of a warm fire quilting away!

Now we have progressed to the border, and you can see from the pictures that it is a simple flowing wave border, although I have added some hearts in between. Very cute!

We are moving right along! I hope to get more quilting done this week as my travel schedule permits because we are fast approaching the holiday season (can you believe it?), also I want to have this done by the end of December because then I will be starting on the wedding gown!

Stay tuned!

After some of the quilting: I have added hearts to the wave border!

The border simply traced on to the fabric!

Navy work skirt!

So I have not been working on the wedding quilt this weekend. But my plan is work on it this evening while I get caught up on the stuff on the DVR. Until then, here is Sunday's project!

A new navy skirt for work. Something just quick and simple that I whipped up today (took about 3 hours, including cutting out the fabric). I have a fabulous tweed suit jacket from Ann Taylor that I wear with navy pants but I didn't have a navy skirt to go with it. I like being able to mix and match for work because it makes packing easier and allows me to get more use out a piece in my wardrobe. Enter Vogue 8835. I chose version #2, shown below.

Vogue 8835

Now I only used a navy crepe-type suiting fabric that I found at Joanne's fabrics, nothing special. I just wanted something simple that could coordinate with the jacket. The one difference to the pattern that I made is to line the entire skirt, the pattern only calls for just the yoke to be lined. I prefer to line the entire thing because it A) slips on and off easier and B) allows your fashion fabric to last longer, thus extending the life of your garment.

I have finished everything except the hem on the skirt. I normally like to let my garments "hang" for at least 24 hours before I hem them. (Normally this is only done on bias cut skirts, but I prefer to do it on just about all of my garments). So my plan is to hem the skirt next weekend when I am home from work travel!

The skirt is kind of a mock wrap skirt, the wrap part is stitched up about 1/2 way down the skirt on the left side. These are not the best pictures. Unfortunately, my dress form is the one that I have had for about 25 years. It is much smaller than I currently am so the clothes don't fit as well on it as they should. I don't understand why that dress form "shrunk" as much as it did. Maybe a manufacturer's defect?!

All in all a satisfying project. I will probably use the pattern again with other fabrics. It seems to coordinate well with suit jackets so it will extend the choices of my current suits to make additional outfits!

It's not hemmed yet, that's for next weekend!

Look, I'm lined!

The skirt with the Ann Taylor jacket I wanted to match up with it.

The Wedding Quilt

I have been trying to work on the quilt in between work travel and normal "house stuff". I am currently working on the part in between the medallions which is the "filler" part of the quilt. (Don't know the technical term, I say filler)  I was going back and forth as to what design to use and finally decided on just a straight line. The main reason is that I wanted the feathered wreath medallion to be shown off. I find that to be a beautiful part of the quilt and I wanted it front and center.

These pictures are a little hard to see because of the late afternoon lighting, but you can see the straight lines filling in the design. I think that it looks really nice because it doesn't take away from the central design but simply adds to it.

Working hard and coming right along! That's a good thing because before you know it I will be working on the wedding gown! My trip to San Francisco is booked for middle November to meet up with my daughter to try on wedding gowns! We are going to have her try on several styles that she likes (that she saw in magazines) and then decide on what type of style to design for her gown. We will also visit the ultra-fabulous Britex fabrics, located in San Francisco. It is the orgasmic version of a fabric shop and a must-see for anyone visiting the Bay area! 4 floors of fabric heaven!!

Stay tuned for updates on the quilt as well as wedding gown updates and my upcoming trip. Finally a trip that is not for work but simply for pleasure!!!

Straight lines fill in without taking away from the design.

Hard to tell it's navy colored but it is!

The Wedding Quilt!

So I have been rather MIA lately with work travel and the long weekend and all. But I wanted to share the really cool label that I ordered from someone on Etsey. I was wanting a label for the wedding quilt that was personalized and different. It turned out really nice albeit rather big. I don't mind because I did want something different! The woman I ordered it from did a wonderful job, exactly what I was looking for!

A little large but I really like it!

I have been working on the quilt somewhat this weekend but no new picture to share yet. But here is a picture of the great label that I will use. More quilt pictures to come as I progress on!!