Thank you Elias Howe!

I finished my Modern Quilt Guild 2017 Fabric Challenge quilt!

I am proud to show you:

Thank you Elias Howe!

The challenge requirements were to use the Riley Blake Creative Rockstar collection and confetti solids. I loved the fabrics as soon as I saw them and started sketching ideas right away. After I had three or four sketches, I set everything aside and let them sink in.

After a couple of weeks, I looked at the sketches and decided that I didn't love any of them and realized that I needed to go back to square one. It was actually a relief to do that because I felt like I was trying to force myself to use one of the sketches and get started. I've finally learned that when I put off starting a project, I need to understand that has happened for a reason and I need to take a step back and relax. I set it aside for a while and and revisit it with a clear and open mind. I may end up doing exactly what I had planned, but more often than not, I start from scratch and make something completely different. That's what happened with this project.

I decided to think about the fabric line in a new light - it's name. What constitutes a rockstar - MY creative rockstar?

It didn't take long for me to realize that a sewing machine is my tool to creativity and artistry. I quickly sketched a sewing machine and then created radiating lines from it. Yep! That's what I wanted/needed to do.

This may not be modern in the true sense of the word, but it works for me and I didn't want to force anything else into the quilt. In my mind, the 66 simple and colorful radials come together in the center of the quilt and showcase the center of my creative world - my sewing machine.  And because of that, I have Elias Howe to thank. 

Jack usually helps name my quilts and this one was no different. Even with just the sketch, he began thinking of names for me to consider. We tossed around a few and none of them really wowed us, but since the quilt hadn't even been constructed yet, we weren't too concerned.

The day that I started putting wedges on the board to determine placement, we started with the name discussion again. Again, nothing was popping out at us so I went to make lunch. Right after we sat down, I laughed and said, "Thanks Elias Howe!" Jack looked at me and said that he was thinking the exact same thing. How could we not use that name or some derivative of it?!?

Can you see the thread tail going off to the left in the picture below? It's just hanging loose from the needle. Perhaps I should have taken a picture of all the threads hanging off of me. 😄 

In this picture, the thread is hanging straight down. If you look closely, you can see how I have it going through the needle.

Gee, this picture made me realize that I didn't quilt the center circle! DUHHHH I wasn't sure if I wanted to and then I completely forgot about doing it.

Here's a picture of the back. I even like that.

Check out the bottom left edge - in the aqua. Can you see the little bit of painter's tape sticking out? hahahah  I guess I should have been more careful.

Here are some close ups of the quilting - front and then back. I basically just echo quilted 1/4" away from the wedge seam lines and then outlined the sewing machine applique.

I changed thread color in both the top and bobbin to match the wedge color I was quilting. I like how that looks on the back.

When I was getting ready to take pictures, I really thought I wanted to hang the quilt on the doors of the back building. It was a good plan, but I think the white cross bars of the doors are distracting. Even if I cropped them more, it just didn't look right. I guess I'll try it with another quilt. Of course I'll probably want to clean the stain on the bottom left before I do that though. ☺

Here are some quilt stats:

Size: 42" diameter

Wedges: 66 - 20" long, 2" at widest part down to 1/2" in center

Fabric: Riley Blake Creative Rockstar Fat Quarter Collection and Confetti Solids (Black, Gray, Yellow, and Aqua)

Thread: Superior Threads Sew Fine! #50 - Black (#411 - Black), White (#451 - Blizzard), Gray (#408 - Silver), Yellow (#420 - Daffodil), Aqua (#470 - Sky), and Red (#413 - Scarlet) 

Batting: Hobbs 80/20 cotton/poly blend