And the back showing the Jingle Bell Dance panto. I used Permacore Eggshell thread and Hobbs 80/20 batting.
When I started quilting in 1999 everything I learned came from an AOL quilting site. I knew that I was supposed to use double fold binding, but wanted a way to attach it that was quick. All my quilts those first couple years had the binding sewn on the machine - both sides of it. I stitched in the ditch from the front and caught the very edge of the back. No glue or anything like Sharon Schamber shows us now. At some point after I joined a local guild I started hand sewing the back of the binding on.
With each quilt, after the quilting is finished, Dan always asks me, "Are you going to sew that down by hand?" 90% of the time I say yes. I think he likes there to be less work for me and we both tend to go for that instant gratification. But, I find hand sewing the binding down to be very relaxing and there is usually a quilt draped over the end of the sofa waiting for a few more stitches.
OK, back to the Christmas Porch, which is so named because the inspiration for it is an Eleanor Burns quilt called Summer Porch (thanks Kim) that I saw in an ad in Quiltmaker Magazine and the fabrics are all Christmas prints. A co-worker asked me the middle of last week if I would make something for her son's school fund-raising auction. I didn't make a quilt this year for Lafayette Transitional Housing's Bingo Night or the March of Dimes Culinary Stars Auction, so I thought this would be a good thing to do. But, she said, "The auction is on October 18th." That's OK, I can have something done by then. Last Friday she came to my desk and said, "Ruthie, I have some bad news. They will need the quilt by the 10th." I had already cut the squares and sashing strips for the quilt, so I thought, I can do this. I assembled the quilt on Saturday evening while Dan was with the band and quilted it on Sunday. Yesterday, she called me to say that they don't have school on Thursday or Friday, so they really need the quilt on Wednesday. I have a guild meeting tonight, so I knew I needed to get the binding on last night. Now, I can hand stitch the binding on pretty quick, but I knew that doing it on the machine was even quicker, even if it is a whole lot more work.
Ta-da, here it is, the last corner of the binding being hand-stitched closed. And if you want to see the process of attaching the binding this way, I have picts here.
6 comments:
Amazing! I do well with most deadlines but not when they get moved up by a week! Wow! I love to hand stitch the binding, too, but just tried my first machine sewn ones using the SS method on two tablerunners.....better on the second one so like most things, practice will help.
Ruthie..you do awesome work! Wow! That was a rush job for sure and you came through wonderfully!!I am in the process of finding a quilter in my area. Most are in Williamsburg or Va Beach.I too like sewing down the back by hand.
Oh yes SHAME on you for posting a comment on my Candy Corn blog post about adding peanuts!! YUMMO!!! Sweet and salty ,great mix! I tested it with some roasted nuts we had done over weekend.
What a beautiful Christmas quilt. Your quilting is most wonderfu. I enjoy hand sewing the back of my binding on also. It is relaxing.
This quilt is really impressive - I can't even imagine how you got it done in that length of time. I can work under a deadline but that one, oh my. blessings, marlene
Great Job Ruthie! I find sewing the binding by hand is relaxing also. I think you work well under pressure.
Lovely Christmas quilt - I like how the cream sets off the red and green!
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