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Rag Quilt continued
Sep. 27th, 2013 08:06 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
emmneIt has proven a little more complicated than I expected, partly because I had no idea what I was doing when I started, and I had not intention of having a back entirely made of 4 !/2 blocks. I've decided along the way that color blocks of about 5 or 6 blocks per row is good for the fabric mix I ended up with, and that's how big the backing blocks will be for the quilt-as-I-go stage. Machine sewing has helped especially for the initial strips, but sewing between the raised seams is no easy matter on the machine and would be easier if somewhat slower to do that part by hand.
It has been an interesting color exercise. I thought the least of my colors was greens, but I think it was an illusion due to the lack of variety - I had lots of scraps of the same greens, mostly solid, slightly bluish green, but overall there is lots of it, so I have made only one block of black and gray fabrics, but three blocks of greens and I'm not sure I'm done with them, yet. And that's not counting the certain spectrum of green fabrics that are waiting for me to remake an old green applique crazy quilt. The color blocks will be shifting in color from dark to light, blues to yellows, yellows to roses to purples. It's a true rag quilt to the degree of being years of leftover fabrics and not a purposeful selection. I have too much of certain fabrics I am working on finding ways to use up, not enough of pattern ones that will help blend colors that don't go well, but maximizing the mix within similar groups, the slow rainbow progressions have meant that so far I've only rejected a couple of fabrics that didn't look good next to anything else in the group.
I don't know that I would make another one, but I like to try at least all the basic types of quilts, and I hadn't done a rag quilt before but like the fluffy look of some of those I've seen. I don't care for the ones that have very short, tight seams, as if they were trying to look like chanile (sp?). It looks like I will not have lots of leftovers, so what I do end up with will probably be pillow shams or pillow cases, depending on how many I end up with, the fabrics, and the color spectrum. If it is much of the heavier fabrics, I'll make it a sham for a decorative pillow, as they don't make the best direct sleeping. A proper pillow case should be a light, smooth cotton weave or flannel, not cordiroy or denim or polyester, and this quilt has them all.
It has been an interesting color exercise. I thought the least of my colors was greens, but I think it was an illusion due to the lack of variety - I had lots of scraps of the same greens, mostly solid, slightly bluish green, but overall there is lots of it, so I have made only one block of black and gray fabrics, but three blocks of greens and I'm not sure I'm done with them, yet. And that's not counting the certain spectrum of green fabrics that are waiting for me to remake an old green applique crazy quilt. The color blocks will be shifting in color from dark to light, blues to yellows, yellows to roses to purples. It's a true rag quilt to the degree of being years of leftover fabrics and not a purposeful selection. I have too much of certain fabrics I am working on finding ways to use up, not enough of pattern ones that will help blend colors that don't go well, but maximizing the mix within similar groups, the slow rainbow progressions have meant that so far I've only rejected a couple of fabrics that didn't look good next to anything else in the group.
I don't know that I would make another one, but I like to try at least all the basic types of quilts, and I hadn't done a rag quilt before but like the fluffy look of some of those I've seen. I don't care for the ones that have very short, tight seams, as if they were trying to look like chanile (sp?). It looks like I will not have lots of leftovers, so what I do end up with will probably be pillow shams or pillow cases, depending on how many I end up with, the fabrics, and the color spectrum. If it is much of the heavier fabrics, I'll make it a sham for a decorative pillow, as they don't make the best direct sleeping. A proper pillow case should be a light, smooth cotton weave or flannel, not cordiroy or denim or polyester, and this quilt has them all.
