At first I was feeling protective about this project. It was rejected from QuiltCon 2018 (boo!), and although I wasn’t upset about that, I was surprised. I thought it was a strong submission. As the months passed, however, I began to wonder whether it was indeed a finished quilt.
Here, for your consideration, is my Circa 1870 ...
The inspiration for this quilt originated during a walk in the small New England town I call home. I saw some hexagonal siding shingles, bordered by elongated ones, on a house that was built in 1870 and decided to transform them into a quilt design. When set on an angle and rendered in a palette of periwinkle, gold, and salmon, the architectural details on that old house become distinctly modern—I love that!
I pieced this quilt by machine, using the lessons I learned from my Happy Hexie Baby Quilt (see the related tutorial). I accentuated the project’s minimalist feel by quilting simply, along both sides of some seam lines.
BTW: The palette was swiped from the amazing floral print on the back, designed by Rifle Paper Co. for Cotton and Steel. The front is done in mostly Kona Solids, including Butterscotch, Gold, Salmon, Marine, Periwinkle, and Lapis. The color that photographs almost black is Kona Indigo. The deep pink is an orphan from my stash. The pieced back also includes fabrics from Lizzy House, Tula Pink, and Christopher Thompson.
Right now you’re probably thinking that it sure looks like a finished quilt. I’m fixated on the quilting, though. Does the simple machine quilting beg for some hand quilting to accompany it, or should I submit the project to QuiltCon 2019 as is?
I have had the pleasure of taking a handwork class with Anna Maria Horner (more on that some other time!); I’m sure that experience is playing into my doubts. After seeing what she can do with a needle and some Aurifil 12 weight, there is untapped potential here. What do you think?
Linking up to Finish It Up Friday, Let’s Bee Social, and Needle and Thread Thursday ...
Your quilt is amazing. I would have chosen it for QuiltCon. ☺ I think the quilting is fine as is. But if you feel the "pull" to do some hand quilting, then go for it.
ReplyDeleteI do love quilting on a quilt, so I am definitely of the suggestion to go for it and add some more. I do think hand quilting would be a lovely compliment to the design.
ReplyDeleteIt is simple enough that you could add some embroidery, but in its simplicity without any fuss it strikes me as a more modern quilt. If you want to embroider I am sure your vision for this quilt will be amazing.
ReplyDeletewow!!!! that's gorgeous
ReplyDeleteI think if you add a bunch of hand quilting it would be awesome. The design is a strong one. I would only heavily quilt the hexies.
ReplyDeleteWe just had a talk at guild about submitting to a juried show. She said that the number of submissions relative to the number they can hang is high. For example, in Quilt Canada they get 450 submissions for 150 spots! She also said the number of submissions that get rejected because of bad photos is high. But these seem good. She recommended professional photos.
Don't get discouraged and just keep trying!
If you want to hand quilt it, you should!! It's a very strong design and certainly has lots of show potential!
ReplyDeleteThe design and colors are gorgeous! I'm a big fan of combining hand and machine stitching and think you could make an already amazing quilt...even more amazing!
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing the story of your inspiration. I love the unique and modern setting for the hexies, truly one-of-a-kind.
ReplyDeleteI've noticed that a lot of the quilts that get accepted into shows have a lot of dense quilting. What if you add straight line machine quilting in the long strips and hand quilting in the hexies? Whatever you decide, it's truly a lovely quilt.
This is such a cool quilt! I do think that there is room for more quilting though, either machine or hand quilting. It just feels like a lot of blank space. Maybe quilt hexes in the long diagonal pieces - to echo the hexes themselves?
ReplyDeleteMy vote is to add hand stitching! I love this quilt!!!
ReplyDeleteFun! Of course it looks great as is, but why not indulge in some hand quilting. Enjoy! Kudus for taking the colors from the Rifle print. That's such a fun way to land on a color scheme.
ReplyDeleteI'm probably late to the party... I'm not sure how often hand quilting gets through to Quiltcon, if that's the ultimate goal. I'd be tempted to leave it as it is, but if you really want to add more quilting, I'd go simple and by machine.
ReplyDeleteThis is gorgeous and the colors!! I just discovered your quilt and it's lovely. I even like the back with all the matching patchwork. As much as I love intricate quilting, it does make the quilt a bit too stiff for my taste. Do whatever suits you but soft quilts are always nice for cuddling.
ReplyDeleteI can picture in my mind the exact kind of house that you drew your inspiration from. This quilt is wonderful! I've discovered that my favorite part of making a quilt is the piecing so I personally would call it good but at the same time, quilts with lots of quilting look amazing! If the thought of doing more quilting doesn't make you cringe like it does me, then I say you should!
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