Starstruck

A friend of mine from the US of A by name Cindy Ellerbe remarked once, ‘You Indians jump in with both feet.’ She was commenting on the fact that many quilters in our group would embark on something complicated their first time out, something she felt quilters from her country never did. I have to plead guilty to that charge. I always seem to take on more than I ought to. The proof of that hangs before me – my peacock tapestry which took me three years to complete. And I have a crocheted runner that would add weight to the charge. And now here is my ‘starstruck’ quilt done over a period of one and half years. I must admit that now when I see it in full I wonder how I managed it.

 Madhu Mathur, a fellow quilter has designed the blocks on a free software called Quilt Assistant. The blocks were all paper pieced and were released fortnightly. ( You can find the blocks here). I was doing a quilt practically every month and so my blocks were often relegated to the backburner! Until I decided the quilt was going to be finished before the curtains rang on 2015. And I just about managed to keep my promise.

 The layout for the blocks were also designed by Madhu. I chose this as it was easy to break into panels and do it qayg.

 Details of the quilting. I wanted the blocks to shine and chose to quilt densely to make them stand out.

The spiked dresden framed by the border. I was thrilled to design the tiny compass in the corner something I would never have ventured if  Madhu had not encouraged me to do iṭ

 The first block and for me the most difficult.

 Geese at the pond. this was the second time I did it the first done as a tester and used in another quilt.

 The mariners' compass on the right was easily the most pretty and I cant think the colours could be any more perfect.

 The blocks are quilted using decorative stitches rather than fmq. You can see that here.

 And in this Card trick block too.

 Winding ways was a block Madhu used in her Saptapadi quilṭ The quilt went on to win a prize at Husqvarnaś competion for quilterṣ

 I did go overboard on the quilting I freely admiṭ

 The easiest block!

 Dozens squared glowing amidst the orange yellow flames !

 Quilting in between blocks.

This quilt was a journey as I learned to paint fabric to suit the blocks, paper piece and sew a little more precisely and even design a tiny block for the quilṭ. The journey would not have been possible without Madhu and I hope the other quilters who have put their blocks on hold will take it up and finisḥ It is really worth the effort. What do you think?
Linking this with ALYOF and Friday Spotlighṭ

Twiddling thumbs

Sometimes life takes over and before you know it is months since you wrote anything. The past nine months has been so hectic. Every month has seen a quilt finished!No UFOs! Now that is an achievement. Of course there are UFO's from other crafts stuffed into the closet. Crochet yarn tumbling out every time I open my cupboard, cross-stitch patterns waiting their turn patiently but not a single unfinished quilt project. That is really something to talk cheer about. And many of these quilts have found homes with friends who are there right behind encouraging and buying! As they say there can be no star without the audience and no creator without someone to appreciate.
October has been a lean month. My sewing machine has gone for a long needed service and I am twiddling my thumbs. No quilt in the making. Not that I am idle. There is the baby blanket being crocheted for 'The Hundred Hands' project. And a cross-stitch UFO that I am determined to finish this month. And the monthly challenge for the Desi quilter's group. Flower power. Without the machine it may not get done but the challenge gives me reason to start something that is long overdue!
The challenge. Which brings me to the not so new group that I am a member of - Desi quilters. A bunch of Indian origin quilters who live all over the world  and a bunch of quilters who live in India. The only two qualifiacations are a desi connection and a quilting connection even if it is just tenuous. Led by admins who keep everyone crafting, challenging their limits, the group dynamics keeps one addicted, leaving little time for crafting. Now that is ironical but still true. I am looking for detox so if anyone knows of a good place......
Two days to finish the month and a lot to show for it inspite of the lack of machine. I'll share all the unfinished and the finished in the next post as the challenge is supposed to be through anonymous entries.
Oh and I am shifting all my photos to Flickr. The new google+ has played havoc with my albums and I am not going there until some sanity returns. Let me know if there are any glitches in my Flickr album. And you can find all my finished quilts either on flickr or on Quiltbug on FB.