Monday, February 2, 2015

Proof Positive that UFOs are a GOOD Thing

Oh I've been busy busy busy the last week and most of it had nothing to do with sewing. Lots of family events that were so enjoyable, so I won't crab too much about the diminished sewing time. And before everything got busy I did get some things accomplished.



First, my Pretty Petunias are finished! It came about about 55" X 66". That outside border may be a tad too wide. In the photo I think it needs to be narrower but in real life I like it. That inner border is reading black but is actually a dark purple.

I am soooooo glad I found this UFO and got it together. It is going to look great on my living room wall whenever Spring arrives. I heard Punxsutawney Phil said 6 more weeks of winter, but Buckeye Chuck said an early Spring - Chuck is my guy - LOL!

So,  while I was searching high and low for the Pretty Petunias UFO I unearthed this one, which by my calculations is at least 12 years old!



My design wall was full of petunias so I laid this one out on the floor. This is done with fabric from The Quiltmaker's Gift based on the book of the same name which was published in 2001. The book is still available on Amazon here. The fabric line is by Benartex and came out not long after the book became a hit.

All of the hexagons were cut from this fabric which looks like a giant crazy quilt.



This is a HUGE repeat - 24 inches! I've made LOTS of Stack N Whack quilts and this is one of the biggest repeat lengths I've every come across. Luckily when I rediscovered this UFO all of the blocks had been sewn into rows and I had pinned the number of the row to it! I can't believe that I did this, as the biggest lie I tell myself is "I'll remember what I was doing" - LOL!


When you look at the blocks you see bits and pieces of the motifs in the crazy quilt.


In total there are 98 different hexagons and I love how each one draws you in to look at it closer. In the second row of the pictures below there are two blocks which each have a different portion of the unicorn. From a distance you just see in interesting design but up close it is another story.


This is going to be a nice size lap/almost twin size quilt. I'm not sure what I had planned for the borders but there is some of the blue and red fabric in the plastic bag so after I get the rows together hopefully I will remember what I planned to do. I REALLY REALLY REALLY REALLY REALLY like this UFO and I am soooooooo HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY that I found it. It underscores my personal philosophy that UFOS are a GOOD Thing. When you come back to them you are usually close to completion and the enthusiasm to finish is back again. Perhaps before this week is out I'll have this one all assembled.

happy stitching-
carol fun

12 comments:

  1. I just love that petunia one- I've been eyeballing it in your progress posts and am so glad you finished it!

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  2. Those are both fabulous quilts! I love the stack and whack effects. The fabric for the second one is so much fun! I can see why you were happy to get it back out and work on it.

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  3. Sure wish I had such treasures in my UFS's. I think the petunia quilt will be spectacular.

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  4. Wow awesome quilt!!! I just read that book to my daughter yesterday for the first time. It's so neat to see there is a quilt that goes with the book.
    Great job!!

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  5. Wow! Love these quilts! Thanks for linking up.

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  6. I am so impressed by the amount of work that goes into these One-Block Wonders. Some day, after I retire, I may attempt making one of these. Whenever that happens, I will come to you for guidance/inspiration. Your quilt is a SHOWSTOPPER!!!

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  7. They are both beautiful. You have inspired me to attempt a stack and wack again. My one and only foray into that relm was with rodeo fabric. Would believe all of my resulting hexigons were horses behinds?! It was hysterical, and somewhat inappropriate.

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  8. Petunias - fabulous!
    Quiltmakers Gift - would love to see it firsthand. I made a quilt out of that fabric too but it was before blogging so I didn't see what everyone else was doing with the fabric. It takes me down memory lane (and that's a good thing).

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  9. Love these quilts! I love that the really busy print, with the large repeat, is turned into a quilt that looks like flowers, except, as you said, if you look closer you can see all sort of details! I clicked to make your photos larger to really see each section! I bet you could look at that quilt for ages and still see something new each time you looked at it! very fun!

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    1. Hi ES -- Thanks for your kind comment. I just figured out how to do replies in this comment section. You've left me some lovely messages and I wanted you to know that I appreciate them. The Quiltmaker's Gift top is so pretty in person - IMHO! Can't wait to finish it. Thanks for stopping by!

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  10. Good things come to those who never toss away anything old or unfinished! So glad you made some notes to help you now that you've started up again!

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  11. Absolutely gorgeous hexie quilt a la The Quiltmaker's Gift. Thanks for sharing. It's inspirational.

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