Sunday, 22 January 2017

Two New Year's Resolutions Fulfilled

Cathedral Window



This year I have resolved to do a bit more hand sewing and also to try out more stitches on my new Brother machine, which I bought to take to workshops. Yesterday I achieved a little of both, with varying degrees of success.

We had our first Studio Quilters Saturday meeting of the year and, as I had finished piecing  Bonnie’s Mystery quilt, I was ‘in between projects’ and very happy that Susan had planned a demo on ‘Cathedral Windows’. She went over the basics of the traditional hand piecing method first. (I have already resurrected a project that I half started several years ago- making 2 ½” squares – which I will keep strictly for hand piecing in ‘at home’ meetings).




Then Susan showed us a quicker way of doing it all by machine, using the blind hemming stitch to neatly catch the edges on the ‘windows’. After much fiddling with the setting on my Brother I eventually abandoned that stitch. It seemed illogical – I could shorten the stitch length but not the width and it wouldn’t do it in mirror image to go round the other way where it might have been easier. I tried a few other decorative stitches but nothing seemed to follow a neat curve easily.

When I got home I replaced the window insert, now ragged from so much unpicking, and got it right first time with the equivalent stitch on the Bernina which seemed to do everything that the Brother couldn’t! As I had to join the two panels into a little pin cushion, I found I couldn’t do the back window under the machine, so had to do that one by hand.


Long story short – cute little cushion with tiny buttons – too pretty to stick pins in!!!!










This weekend I have picked up 3 tops to be quilted so I’d better get up in the loft now. The ‘En Provence’ quilt has already slipped down the list.
Happy Quilting Everyone!
Janet

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