Monday, May 30, 2016

What Do You Think?

I finished the quilting on this little HST quilt.

Some of you had asked to see what I brought home from HMQS. Well, here is the haul--a couple of bloc-loc rulers, some silk thread to attempt quilting on some very tiny quilts, little bits of fabric and LOTS of Primitive Gatherings patterns. Then there is that 1" clamshell stencil, which I put to use on this quilt.

The clamshells look upside down to me in the first photo, so here you get the proper viewpoint. : )
Now for the binding, and that is where I need help. I wanted to use that orangey-coral color to bind it (give it a little pizzaz, right?), but I have no yardage of any of it. These HSTs were gifted to me, so I have no more of the fabric than what you see here. I searched the repro stash and was surprised to see that I couldn't match it.

What next? I pulled out  a couple of scraps I had of one of the blue prints in the HSTs, but there wasn't enough. I had no other blues that seemed the right shade for this, unless I went almost navy, which I didn't want to do.
I found a brown that blended well enough, but appeared rather blah.

If I pieced every scrap I have left of the border fabric, I might be able to bind it in the same fabric, but that would foil the plans I had for those leftovers.
As a last resort I went to my non-repro stash and found the perfect color, but in a rather large print for the scale of this quilt. It is across the top. Would you do me a favor and enlarge this photo and tell me what you think? Is it too much? Should I go with the blah brown? Or should I keep searching? I am so ready to finish this and move on, but maybe I need to be patient. I would appreciate your input.

Come to think of it, I have moved on--I have been ditch stitching on this basket quilt whenever I have a few minutes and can stay awake to stitch.
This quilt was made with scraps from one of my Mom's quilts.
I can't wait to put feathers in those setting triangles, and I think I might put feathered wreaths in the setting squares.

My blogging may be hit-and-miss for the next couple of weeks because these two happy people are arriving tonight and will be spending two weeks with us. I am so excited!!
They are making a cross-country move from New Hampshire to Oregon and will be stopping with us along the way.

The only down side to this is that I will most likely not be meeting up with my New England blogging friends again, but what a blessing it was to meet Vic, Grace, and Cyndi. There were others I had hoped to meet on future visits, but since I don't get out much, other than visiting family, the odds are against us now.

Now if you live near Eugene, OR, there may be someone knocking on your door sometime, wanting to meet you, and it may be me. : )

I drew a name from those who had asked to be included in the drawing for the snowman patterns and Janet Drennan came up as the winner. Congratulations, Janet! I will be waiting for your snail mail so I can send the patterns your way.

Until next time, 
Janet O.
(In the meantime, enjoy the view.)

43 comments:

  1. I like the color of the print on top, and I might have something in the stash in a similar shade, I'll check the stash and send you a photo if I find it. Having your daughter and grandbaby visiting for a couple weeks is the best way to start the summer - enjoy!

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  2. That print is the right color but waaaay too busy for the binding . I wouldn't have given my opinion but you DID ask. Your quilt is awesome, love,love, love the quilting. Your like quilts are really so pretty- I'm jealous!

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  3. I'm glad the Grand Daughter will coming to see you in Utah with her mom. The bindings just don't do much for me, I would keep looking for a blue that matches better in color. Love the Rainbow. When you come to Oregon maybe we could meet at the Sister's Quilt Show???

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  4. Looks like some nice family time ahead. Beautiful little quilt, pretty quilting. I was wondering if a more 'solid' red would look nice to frame this quilt? OR........A blue with a small red peeper! Yeah I like that idea.

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  5. I like the red print. I think it brings the red and white of the flowers out. Warning! There are lots of great quilt shops in Oregon. ;o)

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  6. Oh,of course, I like the red for the little pop! I'll miss your visits, too, but I'll think of you on Saturday at the Keepsake Annual Tent Sale, when I'll be driven there by one of my quilting students from the Senior Center. Cool clamshells and an even cooler rainbow photo!

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  7. I like the red have you though to maybe use a thin border of the brown between the red and blue which might break up to two larger prints?

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  8. Well, the red color is my favourite ! But is it for you ?
    Lovely quilting as usual on this cute little quilt !
    Enjoy your time with your family and friends in Oregon !

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  9. me encanta el color rojo que as elegido!!
    disfruta de tu hija y nieta,
    saludos

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  10. I like the pinky colour but not the print so much, a little too busy. The brown would suffice but doesn't give the pop you're after.....sorry, not much help from me. The quilting however, is stunning! Love the way you used the little clamshells idea, I may well pop that one away for future consideration. Enjoy your special visitors.

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  11. Love the tiny clamshell quilting!!! I hope you can find the coral fabric you are looking for!! Enjoy your babies!!

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  12. The quilting is wonderful! Icing on the cake.

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  13. I really like the brown, it enriches the quilt. Use it, it is right.
    Your quilting is wonderful.

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  14. I LOVE that quilting!!! And I prefer the blue at the lower edge--softens the edge to me. Anything you choose will be lovely.

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  15. Oh Janet I love the quilting in your quilt. It is beautiful. Can't wait to see how your quilting turns out on the basket quilt. Have fun with your visitors. Hugs

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  16. Can you use the back of the orange? What about red? The brown didn't do it for me. I guess keep looking. Loved the clamshells!

    Mary

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  17. I love the red and I like busy so that one really checked the boxes for me. Because of the scale of the print it reads pinker than a less busy red and I think that is a good choice for your quilt. I like your purchases and look forward to what comes out of your sewing room. I want to find one of those little tiny flying gees bloc loc rulers. I had hoped to get to the Chicago show in April and find them there but that trip fell through. I want to see them in action before I buy yet another gadget.

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  18. Ok, no blah brown…..and I'm kind of fence riding on the other one. It would work though. Of course I LOVE your little basket quilt, FABULOUS!

    Have fun with your visitors!!

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  19. I think I like the blue best. We have a son that will be moving to Oregon in a few weeks! He got a RN job at the hospital in the town we live in!!! So, we'll be going to FL to help them move in a couple weeks. At least your daughter will be a lot closer to you. If you ever come near McMinnville, let me know and we can meet! Very exciting news! Have a great visit!

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  20. I like the coral ... since the binding won't be very wide, will there be enough area to reveal that the scale is too large? I love the quilting you did ... especially those clamshells!

    Have a wonderful time with those two precious ones!

    And congratulations to the "other" Janet!

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  21. The scale of the red/coral one seems fine to me, and looks good, but only you can know if it will work where you plan to use the quilt. The blue is not enough (in my opinion) to frame the quilt. The brown is a good match, but it will be a much "quieter" quilt. The brown brings out the blue, whereas the red seems to bring out the browns, so it really depends more on what you want to see when you look at the quilt. Did you try a lighter shade of brown/tan? (I'm not really sure if that would be an improvement--just curious). Your quilting is marvelous! Absolutely perfect for the quilt!

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  22. Well, I do like the large scale print, but if you have your heart set on the darker red I'm betting that I have a piece I could send you. Is it from the same "warmth" line as the blue border print? Or you could e-mail me a close up of the one you like and I will see if I have it (there's a pretty good chance I do). And I am happy that your daughter is moving closer, but sad that you most likely will not get to Maine again. Maybe Cyndi and I will have to come out some time! my e-mail address is gwreed15 - at - comcast.net

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  23. I wouldn't use the brown. It just doesn't work. I probably like the blue the best of the three. Wish I could convince you to come and look in my stash for something. Maybe you could do a shout out for someone with fabric matching what was used in the hst. Did you try black. What a dilemna! Love the clamshell quilting. It's amazing.

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  24. Both your quilts are beautiful, and especially the quilting on the first one! I think I like the blue binding best, but I also think the red shown would be just fine. (I love R/W/B!) The rainbow in that last picture is gorgeous! Thanks for sharing that! ---"Love"

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  25. I love your little quilt and I think you should wait till the right binding comes along. The clam shell template and quilting are perfect.

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  26. Well congrats to Janet! Your quilting looks wonderful -- the feathers are such fun! All your PG *goodies*! Yay!! Janet, what a fun two weeks are ahead of you!! I'm going to guess that they'll be a lot closer now and you'll be able to see them more frequently? Have you heard about the new route to Oregon that goes directly through North Alabama??!! Hahaha! :)

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  27. First, I love your loot from the show and the clamshell pattern was a perfect addition. The quilting is fabulous. What did you use to mark the design? Secondly, I like the orangey coral color, but not that particular print. Don't add something you don't like or you'll always be disappointed at the finish. I'm so happy that your family and your darling granddaughter will be coming for a visit and will be closer for more visits. Enjoy your time together.

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  28. Oh! How wonderful to have your daughter and little granddaughter coming to visit! And also wonderful that they will be living closer. Such a beautiful little quilt with beautiful quilting! I like the last binding choice the best. It will be narrow so maybe the large print won't matter, just the color?

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  29. I love this! I never would have thought of using the scallop quilting design but it looks great! I always love your borders. Do you mark the spine of your feathers? Use a ruler/template/pattern? They always curve just right and are perfectly symmetrical. Thanks for any help! sew4given(at)aol(dot)com

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  30. Such a Blessing to have them moving closer to you. I absolutely love your mini clamshell stencil. I love it.
    Blessings...Kristie

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  31. Wow to the tiny clamshells! I'm not a fan of the brown but what about an olive green of a medium shade? Have fun with those special people!

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  32. Send me a picture of that fabric that you are trying to find and I will see if I have some. So excited that you are having such cute visitors - have a GREAT time! LOVE the new postcard - what a view - beautiful!

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  33. Enjoy your wonderful company. Oregon is a great place to live.
    I like the red binding - too many options to go blahh!
    You will like fine machine quilting with silk thread. Enjoy!

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  34. What a sweet quilt!!!! Love your quilting on it as always - it just takes your beautiful piecing over the top into gorgeous! None of those options really tripped my trigger ... I'm hoping someone here has one of those coral/red fabrics to share with you, as I really think that's what you need. Hope you have a lovely time with your special visitors!!

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  35. Those tiny clam shells are adorable! I think the large print would be a fun binding--much happier than the brown and it looks so pretty with the border print (which I love, BTW!).

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  36. Janet, you neglected to mention HOW tiny those hsts are... Just curious.
    And I'm sure I have some of that light corally fabric, or something close... DEFINITELY not the blah brown!
    And your daughter is moving to Eugene??? Seriously?? You'll be just over the hill from me when you go visit so do be sure to let me know in advance so we can schedule a visit!!! YEAH!!!

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  37. Oh my gosh. It is beautiful.
    Kathleen Mary
    https://kathysnest32.wordpress.com/

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  38. I think the fabric along the top would be fine. If it were going to be a border, maybe not, but because 1/4-1/2" of it will be seen on the front or back of the quilt, it I don't think it will overpower the quilt nor draw attention to itself.

    Those clamshells are so tiny -- and adorable. I love, love, love the basket quilt.

    Lucky you to have those two happy people visiting you for a while. The little one is cute as a button! Have fun.

    Beautiful rainbow. Thanks for sharing the photo.

    --Nancy. (ndmessier @ aol.com, joyforgrace.blogspot.com)

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  39. I hope you have a fabulous family time Janet - in fact, I kow you will! - Is their new place closer than where they were living before? I love your HST quilt and I think the red border will be great - it's the colour I thought of when I first saw it...! And your baskets are lovely too - SID on your domestic? I decided to train myself to do it on the sw16 but it is pretty slow, sometimes I wonder at my sanity! Have a fun precious time :-)

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  40. What a fantastic photo of your girls! So glad their little family will be closer to you. What is the distance between you and Eugene?
    What a darling little quilt! I absolutely love the clamshell quilting and how it gives pizazz to those little hsts. I think the non-repro (is it a red and tan?) fabric would work for the binding but if you are unsure maybe let it sit for a while. Love the border fabric!

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  41. You must be doing a happy dance to have daughter and sweet granddaughter visiting! I have to agree with many of the comments - let it mellow for awhile...I tend to play it conservative so probably not much help. What about binding same as border...it is such a pretty print and would focus on the wonderfully tiny piecing. I also go to stripes and checks frequently for binding, liking the movement and accent it gives. That mini clamshell stencil is incredible - as is your quilting!

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  42. I adore your little HST quilt! Your clamshell is a perfect fit! I do not think the red is too large scale for the binding. It will be so tiny on the edge and will look just fine. We always second guess ourselves too much. Fun days ahead with family!

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  43. I like the red. I often mix repro with non-repro. To me its about the color and scale. I bet by now you have decided!
    How wonderful to have your family moving near by! Sorry we didn't meet in NE.
    xoxo

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