Diving In

The fact that it took only 45 minutes to steam-press yardage and design an underwater scene from the fabrics auditioned in the last post (the fish and turtles had already been cut out) just proves how desperately change was needed. I dove in headfirst, cutting the plants lickety-split with a rotary cutter, and making myself quickly pin the fish and turtles to the quilt top at random, instead of taking an hour or two to think about where to put each one. That was a first for me.

Everything is only pinned to the board here.

Also for the first time, I plan to quilt the entire background before adding all the applique (I usually fuse/glue everything down and quilt around it all), using the dual feed foot instead of free motion to make the quilting easier on my neck and shoulders. The plants will also be edged in satin stitch using dual feed, while the fish and turtles will be quilted in free motion.

Meanwhile, the third triple-arch window quilt now has satin-stitch on the arch edges, and the wall is underway. It will probably take another two afternoons to finish outlining each stone. Then it's time to block, trim and bind the quilt. Hallelujah!!

You can sort of tell which stones are outlined and which aren't yet.

Have a great weekend, and for the U.S. a meaningful holiday as we remember those who have died while serving our country.

Linda