Wednesday, February 4, 2015

Kicking Curve

Dear reader, in my opinion, the past few months of posts here on From Bolt to Beauty have been reporting more on my tribulations at my sewing machine and my growing neurosis about quilting than on my sewing triumphs. Well, do I have a post for you today. It chronicles how I faced a challenge, tackled a few firsts, and kicked some curve.

So you’ve read that I’m taking Stitched in Color’s Curves Class. Last week, I eased my way into the world of curves with a clam shell journal cover. Since then, I delved into improvisational curves. It started with one note card, using lovely scraps that were so small I would have otherwise tossed them.

 
Then there were two cards.

And three.


I think I made eight or nine cards in total. There was just one casualty: a card I sewed shut. Arg!

I enjoyed the card-making process a lot, but it was time to move on to the next assignment: Oh Christmas Tree. This was a higher-stakes project. It took more time, and I really, really liked the design. I didn’t want to blow this project. I’ve done little improvisational sewing—this was by far the largest piece I’ve done—but I took my time with the curves and I’m pleased with the results.


Curves classmates: I departed from Rachel’s color palette, for fear that the neutral sky would be lost once the quilt was hung on one of my neutral walls. I think it works! The biggest change in my technique between the cards and this quilt is that I took more care not to pull on the fabric as I sewed. The hardest part for me—would you believe it?—was the wonky star. It was my first time sewing a wonky anything. The points on my original one were too close to the seam allowance, and I had to remake it. (Boooo!)

Did you notice the dots on the tree and one hill?
Yes, this project is also my entry for Le Challenge’s
dot theme. Woo hoo!

To recap, these projects were my first substantial foray into improvisational sewing and included my first wonky star. Oh Christmas Tree was also my first project sewn entirely on my new machine, a Janome 1600P-QC. It is too early to pass judgment on this machine, but once I saw how easily and evenly she sewed through the side seams on a Sew Together Bag without a walking foot, I knew I needed to get comfortable with her, and fast.

Linking up to Let’s Bee Social, WIP Wednesday, Needle and Thread Thursday, TGIFF, and Finish It Up Friday ...

http://le-challenge.blogspot.com/


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20 comments:

  1. I had to laugh when you mentioned you sewed one card shut. I made Christmas cards this year and did the same thing! Oh, boy. :)

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  2. I think your tree is beautifully made, with a very pretty mix of fabrics. And I love your dark blue background!

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  3. Yay! Congratulations! All of your projects look great!

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  4. Congratulations on the new Janome (I love Janome!) and on your conquering the curves! Love that beautiful finish and it's been fun to see your progress in real time over on IG. Way to accomplish the wonky, too!

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  5. The tree is gorgeous!! I much prefer your background. :) I don't think your blog has been whiney, or lacking in anything. It was real and honest to what was going on for you at the time. I'll take hearing about sewing tribulations any time over fake happy-happy blogs....but I'm biased. :D

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  6. Your tree piecing looks wonderful! And the cards are great - I bet they will be handy to use throughout the year.

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  7. Congrats!! Your curves look great, I love the cards.

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  8. Look at you, rocking those curves like it's nobody's business! Nice work! :)

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  9. You are doing such a great job on all of the curves projects! I love how your Oh Christmas Tree came out. The fabrics are perfect! I took your advice on the shorter stitch length and pulling less on the fabric and it definitely helped. Next, precise curves!

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  10. What sweet little cards, seems like that class really covers a lot!

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  11. Wow, curves and wonky in one project! They turned out great! Yay for success, but I also like reading about challenges--they help us all grow as quilters.

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  12. your Christmas tree block is adorable and I love the idea of using tiny blocks/orphans to make greetings cards :) www.crazyforpurple.com

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  13. Cute cards and lovely block! Well done!

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  14. You did a lovely job on those curves! Kudos to you for taking the risk of something new. Thanks for linking up with TGIFF!

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  15. It looks like you're having fun! I hope it stays that way. Congrats on the finish.

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  16. I love how the Christmas tree turned out! Change can be a good thing.

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  17. I love how the Christmas tree turned out! Change can be a good thing.

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  18. These all look great, you're obviously having fun while getting the hang of the curves. loved reading that you sewed one card shut!

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  19. Glad to hear you are bonding with your new machine. She was very impressive going through all those layers! Also congrats on the curves hopefully you will be bring it to share tomorrow!

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