Wednesday, July 05, 2006

Wedding CQ Finished!

WooHoo!! There were a couple of snags encountered but all-in-all it wasn't too bad. First I added a spider, as it is my contention that all spider webs definitely need a spider...
Spider
She's pretty good size (1 3/8 inch) and fits in very well. I considered adding a mate for her; however, as spiders have a tendency to eat their mates, I thought it might be a good idea to leave it off a Wedding CQ. ;0)

Next I added the binding, curiously one of my favorite parts of quilting. I think it's because it all comes together then... you feel the weight of the quilt as it will be and watch the finished product appear before your eyes. Very satisfying! Anyway, the binding proceeded quite smoothly... for awhile. There was a small oops (or four) when I got to the point of ironing it over in preparation for the hand sewing on the back. See what I mean?
Ooops
Yes, ladies, I had a problem. (The color is way off on this picture. Sorry.) The rayon thread that I used for the radiating lines of the spider web had frayed towards the ends on some of them. To make sure they didn't continue to fray, I tacked them down REALLY well. However, as you can see, I failed to put them close enuff to the edge to be hidden by the binding. Now, prior to adding the backing and tying it all together, I had measured forty gazillion times to make sure it was nice and even, square, plumb, and not off in any way. I never even thought about making sure the binding would cover the stuff on the edges properly. SIGH

So, now I had a binding all sewn on that didn't cover what it was supposed to cover... kinda like a mini-skirt. Hee... anyway... I really didn't relish the thought of ripping out the entire binding. When I added the binding I wasn't too sure about how it would look because it kind of just faded away color-wise so I originally considered using a darker green but decided against it. Now my little oops on each edge (oh yes, at least four of them) had given me the "opportunity" to add an embellishment to the edge. So I did.
Ooops fixed
All better! I continued this mixed bead edging all around the binding and it was the perfect finishing touch. Serendipity strikes again!!
Finished!!
TaDa!! I added the tabs at the top instead of a hidden sleeve because Randy is an ornamental ironworker and will be making a special rod to hang it from so I wanted the rod to be seen all across the top of the quilt. Now to package it up and send it off. Wish I could be there when they see it!

4 comments:

sharonb said...

I like that spider - but really wanted to say congrats on the finnish

allie aller said...

I Love the spider too...can I use it sometime? My Crazy for Flowers quilt will have a web and spider, of course...and yours is perfect.

Nice way to fix the oops...next time that freeform beading detail might be on purpose!

Rian said...

Oh Marty, that spider is beautiful. I have been trying to figure out a way to do a spider. You know, for tradition's sake. Well done.

Susan said...

It was really interesting watching the process from beginning to end. What a special gift!