Nailed It! Project Quilting 12.2 Fussy Cut Challenge

 

Let me come right out and say it.  Fussy cutting is not my thing.  Now I will tell you, if you ask me, that I don't like fussy cutting because of the waste.  But the truth is I have limitations and I know it.  Not only do you have to position the fabric and cut it out properly but 99 times out of 10 if you waiver at all in your seam allowance you've blown the whole effect.  I do not like it. 

So when I saw that this week's Project Quilting Challenge was fussy cutting, I may have let out a few rude words like '2020'.   However, I set a goal to make something, preferably something other than a cozy of last resort, for every challenge this season.  So I had to do something.  Fortunately/unfortunately I have set another goal to use only stash and I already blew that one on the first challenge because I had to buy two pieces to make it work.  So..... I had to do this with what I had.  

Now I don't go big on prints and designs in my stash other than for magic bags.  The scale is very tiny on those so they don't make for a big statement in a piece.  And I wanted to make a BIG statement  I like to whine and complain about the challenge prompts.  It is just one of those things that amuses me.  I actually find the challenges I complain about the most, push me the furthest out of my comfort zone. They make me think hard and look at fabric in new and different ways.  This one was no different.  

I did have several different ideas for this quilt.  I didn't have a lot of time to pull it together and I was pretty convinced that even if I did go to the fabric store they would not have the perfect fabric for it.  I had to root through my stash to see what I could find.

 This Heather Ross Print from several years ago was on ridiculous discount at one of the big chain stores.  I bought the ends of the bolts of three different prints because I love Heather Ross and I knew I would find a project for it eventually.  Plus, I could tell the Mr that it was HEATHER ROSS so it was as much an investment as his Magic Cards!  

 

Now before you Heather Ross fans get all shirty with me you need to know that with the exception of the one PERFECT motif in the middle all of the bits in this quilt came from the cut edge and were already essentially destroyed before I mutilated them further.   But I did get that one perfect cut!  Nailed it!

This quilt is approximately 13 x 17 inches.  It has fast finish corners for hanging.  It is essentially a ticker tape quilt.  Each little attempt to fussy cut Chloe was stitched on top of the quilt sandwich with a few extra boxes thrown in for balance.  The binding is also stash fabric.  It was the best I could do since I already knew that the local quilt shops did not have the perfect gray gingham.  (I already looked for a a different project.)  The binding is hand sewn on the back.

I quilt near St Louis, MO. 

The RULZ of Quilting

 

 For any of you who are wondering...

There are only three rules in quilting.

1. Make sure it is structurally sound. (This can one can fly out the window if you are doing a wall hanging or art quilt.)
2. Done is warmer than perfect.
3. If you can't see it from the back of a galloping horse, it isn't there.

Any other RULE anyone tells you is just noise and can either be learned from or ignored.

Yeah, I might have an attitude. I respect and appreciate competition quilters. I admire the quilters who are able to match every corner, keep every point and make tiny perfect stitches. I aspire to their level of quality. I learn from them. 

 

However, it makes me sad to see quilters apologize for their work and point out tiny mistakes that no one else can see. Everyone should be able to enjoy the process and celebrate their successes and finishes. Few of us are actually doing this because it is essential to keeping our families warm.

 

And it hurts my heart to see self-appointed quilt police shut down the enthusiasm of other quilters. I was fortunate enough to have my first experience with an expert turn out to be incredibly supportive. I took my first effort to a quilt shop where the kind lady ever so politely explained to me how to match up corners. I was so green, I didn't even know that was a thing. When I asked if I needed to rip it all apart and start over, she said, "finish is up and move on, dearie. Learn what you can from this one and the next on will be even better." Had she treated me as I have seen some treat others, I would probably have trashed my first effort and never done another one. But she was kind. She was helpful. She encouraged me. And almost thirty years later whenever I am discouraged by a project, I hear her voice in my head saying " finish it up and move one, dearie." And so I do.