In what is surely a sign of the Apocalypse, I finally, finally, FINALLY finished this quilt.
Are you as amazed as I am? You really should be.
Here's the front in all its red, white, and blue glory.
And here's the back. I've been debating about whether or not I wanted to quilt the stars around the border, but I thought that was maybe a little bit too ambitious and then the quilt really would never get done. So after nearly a year of planning, prepping, sewing, and stewing, I'm declaring this quilt officially done.
David has been after me for many many months to finish the quilt. But, as with any large quilting project, I grew really sick of looking at the dang thing. I didn't love the fabrics anymore, I made too many mistakes. There were things about it I wanted to change but just couldn't. I wasn't sure how I wanted to bind it and I had had one too many fights with my sewing machine over quilting the center squares. So it sat in my tub of fabrics for many months, imcomplete and untouched while I had a baby and pursued other sewing projects.
But since my goal for 2011 was to set aside time every week for sewing, I knew I couldn't start a whole bunch of new projects (of which I have many ideas) before I finished the ones I'd already started. And since I like to make arbitary schedules for myself, I decided that Sunday would be my sewing day. With David off at work and a moderately well-behaved baby playing on her mat, I set to work this past Sunday binding the quilt. I was so energized by that successful endeavor, that I spent the majority of Monday morning finishing the actual quilting of the blocks. I got into a good groove, and before I knew it, I'd finally accomplished what had been eluding me for months.
And what once filled me with disgust, now fills me with profound joy. I finished something. Sure, there are things I still don't love about the quilt, there are things I wish I had done differently, but ultimately, now that the finished product is in front of me, I can't help but marvel at what I created. There is real joy in the process of creating--and finishing--something to be used and loved by my family.
A few things I learned along the way:
- Be patient. I often wanted to cut corners or speed through certain steps and would then be disappointed by my less-than-perfect output. When I actually slowed down, and took my time, my results were always better.
- Don't worry about perfection. I am a classic perfectionist and it is often difficult for me to accept results that are less than stellar. But now I look at my quilt and all its tiny flaws, and enjoy them because they were my mistakes and no one else's. Meaning, I made this quilt; I didn't buy some mass-produced product. And so every flaw is a testament to my work and effort and I can see very clearly how I improved as I went along.
- Plan ahead and visualize the finished project but don't get so caught up in that vision that you can't accept when changes must be made. The finished project will always be different than you imagined, but no less amazing once it's complete.
- It's okay to walk away when you are frustrated. You won't hurt the quilt's feelings.
- Use fabric that you love. Even if you love it when you start it, you'll find yourself hating it while you're making the quilt but when it's done, you'll love them all over again. But the fabrics I only moderately liked still have not grown on me. And now I will forever have to look at them and wish I'd picked something different.
- And always remember: the intended recieptent is going to love it, no matter what.
I also wanted to practice free-motion sewing. Luckily, this fabric has a pattern built right into it, and I quilted along the road. Unfortunately, my free-motion quilting (with the feed dogs covered) didn't go so well, so I reverted back to the feed dogs, but I think if I buy the right foot for my machine, it'll go much easier with practice.
The binding was a pain but I think with more practice, I'll get much better at it. I machine sewed the entire binding, and I think in the future, I'll hand sew it which will leave me with better results. But, this is only the second time I've bound a project this way and I can already tell I've improved. Luckily, my sister-in-law is pregnant and I'm planning on making her a baby quilt as well so I'll get more practice soon.
