Tag Archives: Sunrise Over Nanning
My Quilt is Published in a Magazine!!!
Oh! I almost forgot to tell you guys! I got a quilt published in the latest issue of Machine Quilting Unlimited. My “Sunrise Over Nanning” is on the bottom left of page 29 in the March issue. I was so excited to see it!!!! You can pick it up in your favorite quilt shop. Happy quilting!
Sunrise Over Nanning – Finished Quilt
It’s finished… in time for Christmas, despite the setbacks. It was too large for the walls in my studio, so I took it to a local fabric shop to hang on their wall. That’s all.
Sunrise Over Nanning – Interesting Label
I wanted to do a special post to highlight the quilt label I made. I thought the history & translation for the quilt should be a part of the quilt, but I didn’t want it to detract from the actual design. So I made a fabric “envelope” for the label to encase it on the back: I used a 5-petal flower which hides the hooks that keep the envelope closed. When the envelope is opened, it reveals a very detailed label to describe the quilt’s meaning: I really love the way this turned out. Behind the label I have also included extra fabric in case the quilt needs to be repaired at a later time – that way the fabric has been through the laundry & washing. Hopefully it doesn’t turn to a crumpled ball and make the quilt bulge in an unsightly way. That’s all.
Sunrise Over Nanning – Quilting & Finishing
All of the quilting is complete. This picture is a sample of the quilting patterns. Incidentally in this photograph, you can see the block I replaced on the left. All the letters & the goldfish were outline quilted – the thread matches each block, so the quilting lines cannot be seen in the photograph. Each pink block has a red fan that was transfer quilted. The yellow flowered blocks were quilted in red with a large free-hand flower, and the turquoise blocks were stipple quilted in red. The outside red border has 6 parallel lines running the length of the border. Finally, the outside corner squares also have a free-hand flower in each. The double french-fold binding (black) has been attached to the front of the quilt & is being hand-stitched to the back. Overall, it’s a very stunning design & I’m pleased with the way it turned out. It will be delivered on Wednesday.
Sunrise Over Nanning – Something’s Wrong
Something is terribly wrong, and now is not the time to discover it! Two things – I thought it would be great to quilt around the letters in a contrasting thread in free-motion. I’ve done about 4 complete characters and I hate it. What’s worse, some of the stitches are so close together that I need a magnifying glass to pull them. I’m debating on whether to pull out all the stitching and start over with matching threads instead… and decide to do it. Better to do it now than hate it when it’s too late to do anything about it. However, the absolutely worst thing to have happen – and the worst time to discover it – is that I have actually appliqued one block with the characters in the wrong order, and this I have discovered after my brilliant decision to redo the stitching around it. My mistake is not only sewn in – but quilted in. It doesn’t matter that the recipient nor her family read Chinese… I don’t read it either, but I know it’s wrong simply from the research I’ve done & the printouts I have of the translated words. Somehow I have to remove this block from the quilt AND replace it with a correct one, without anyone knowing the wiser. Welcome to Quilt Restoration 101. First, I have to make an identical block, with the letters in the correct place. Then, I have to pull out the quilting stitches, and the stitches that attach it to the surrounding blocks. I neglected to take a picture of the “hole” left behind by removing the block. I then inserted the replacement block, and use a monofilament thread to quilt very close to the edge of the surrounding blocks to reattach the block. This repair was so nearly invisible that I couldn’t even tell that I’d done it – even upon close inspection of the quilt. *Phew*. Now I can get back to quilting instead of unquilting.
Sunrise Over Nanning – Applique
The goldfish have been added to each corner! This fabric for the fish was an amazing find; it really resembles fish scales. I bought the last yard of it and haven’t ever seen it again. The backing has been pieced; not much to see there except a huge piece of turquoise fabric. Basting & quilting will begin this evening.
Sunrise Over Nanning – Borders
The quilt top has been completely pieced, complete with borders. The only thing remaining to be completed on the top is the goldfish in each corner. Next up is to piece the backing fabric (the turquoise print), cut the batting, and baste the layers for quilting. This will be the last full-sized photo of the quilt until the quilting is complete. Future photos will be close-ups of the quilting detail as it is completed. The quilt top measures 65×97; I expect it to shrink about 1/2″ inch or so as the quilting detail is added.
Sunrise Over Nanning – Piecing & Assembly
This is a photo of the actual quilt as it is being assembled. Note this is the interior of the quilt before any borders have been applied. The quilt is assembled first into long strips. Once the appliqué is complete (lettering), the strips will be stitched together to form the completed interior. Borders will then be applied to bring the quilt up to its final size.
Sunrise Over Nanning – Design
This is an image of the final layout of the quilt. The characters represent (clockwise, from top): Nan ning: Nanning, the capital city of the Guangxi Autonomous Region in southwest China (red, top) Gao ming: Smart; clever; wise; brilliant (yellow, top right) Dun: Kind-hearted (white, center right) Hao qi: Curious; inquisitive (yellow, bottom right) Guang xi: Guangxi Province, China (red, bottom center) Shen zhong: Cautious; careful; prudent (yellow, bottom left) Jie: Older sister (white, center left) Cai si: Imaginative power; creativeness (yellow, top left) Mae: Name of recipient (red, center)
Sunrise Over Nanning – Second Project Meeting
Project Description: This quilt is a custom design for a client based on qualities & personal characteristics of the recipient. It features authentic Chinese characters in both the Traditional & Simplified text style. Finished Size: 65″ x 97″ (approx.) Fabric Selection: Asian-print fabrics in complementary designs, with solid colors of fuschia, yellow, white & red to accent. Lettering is done in solid black with a satin stitch. Customer was presented with a new sketch of the quilt. Personal details have been obtained, and based on the new information, the layout was modified to accommodate the information while keeping the design balanced. This is a twin-sized quilt to be delivered in time for Christmas! This is definitely crunch time.
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