Saturday, January 30, 2016

Picnic Flimsy


The Ad Hoc Improv Quilters link up is on again! Like Audrey, this week I have been diligently sewing the improv quilt I started in November. I finished the flimsy today!

At about 86" x 93" (218 x 236 cm), the darn thing queen size quilt is too big to photograph in one piece. This is almost all of the centre:

Modern Utility Quilt #1, "Picnic"

And this is the border fabric I chose:


The white dots are 1" (2.5 cm). I was thrilled to find something that matched the colour and scale of the blocks so well! The fabric is a Riley Blake wide back, which conveniently let me cut the borders in one piece. And it will conveniently be the back, too. After much thought, I decided that the most forgiving way to cut and sew the border would be to have about 3/4 of a dot showing on the inside and outside edges.

Since the quilt is "improv," I was unsure if I should sew the blocks with matched corners. At first I thought I wouldn't worry about it. But then I decided that I would quilt it myself on my home machine. So I thought it would be better to match the corners, spin the seam allowances on the back, and reduce the bulk in the corners.

In December I finally bought Sujata Shah's book Cultural Fusion Quilts. This quilt is inspired by the "Windmills" quilt in that book, although I see now there are quite a few differences in mine. But, Shah also matches the corners on her blocks!

I know most of my regular readers bought the book long before me, but if you haven't, you should! It is excellent, and I have more projects planned that are inspired by Shah's techniques.
So, this is my first improv flimsy, and my first bed-sized flimsy! To read all past and future posts about this quilt, please click here.

I do plan to quilt it myself, but I have many others to get through first, so it likely won't be until the fall. After my big "scope creep" insight during Allietare, I've simplified my plans for the improv letters that I made last fall. At some point I'll get back to those, and I have a couple more ideas that I'd like to get started. Right now, though, I am quilting Mod Trips, and then I really will finish Allietare.

In the meantime, check out all the other great posts at the AHIQ link up here. I highly recommend Cathy Perlmutter's post, which you can read here. If you are wondering how to get started with improv, Cathy will get you going! Or at least, laughing. :D

20 comments:

  1. Cathy's post was a HOOT! Thanks for sharing. Your picnic flimsy is wonderful. I love the polka dot border fabric! What a fun piece!--Terry

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    1. Thanks, Terry! It has been fun to turn off that inner critic and just go for it! And it's fun to see it work out, too!

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  2. what a great quilt this is best of luck with the quilting, you say you have a few more to quilt, welcome to the club! The book you mention I have read about on other blocks, tempted but would rather see it prior to buying so will have to wait till I get to a quilt show, looks like it will not be till septembet

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  3. First improv flimsy and you go for big - I like your attitude! This is great - I like the happy feel, the colours and the movement that the dotty fabrics bring and I love the inclusion of those little bits with the big yellow dots.

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  4. Great top, congratulations on your finish. Thanks too for the book recommendation; I'm giving it serious consideration.

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  5. Yummy, yummy. This is a quilt I wish I'd made; it just sings the happiest of songs. I wrote about another quilt that had considered where to seam the polka dots. Now you mention it again. You both used the extra large dots.
    Lucky us. We will get another view of this cutie when you finish quilting.
    Such an inspiring post and top. Thanks for linking up with AHIQ.

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  6. Very nice! I love Sujata's book too. The colors are fantastic.

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    1. Thank you, Sue! This is right in my favourite colour zone -- pink, orange, red and lime. I use it a lot! :D

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  7. Great post again on improv quilts Monica. Your quilt is beautiful; casual in an orderly fashion. Love it. Also appreciate the references. I'm trying to figure out this improv thing and I appreciate your insights.

    In fact, it is your posts that have inspired me to give "improv" a try. As my next post is also about my "scrap buster" quilt, I was hoping that I might reference your blog in mine. Please let me know if that's OK with you.

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    1. Thank you very much! You don't need permission to link to my blog, although I am certainly thrilled to have inspired you! If you want to use a photo, please send me an email via the link in my profile. Click my name in the comment here to access my profile. I'm looking forward to your post!

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    2. Thanks. For some reason I can't get a link to your email through your profile. Very likely something on my end.

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    3. If the email pop up is blocked by your computer, you can still "hover" over the Email link, and it will show you the address. Good luck!

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  8. That has worked out brilliantly. It's a splendid achievement - love the dots. I'm interested in how you will quilt it. Well done you,

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    1. Thanks, Jillian! It turns out that Sujata and I had pretty much the same idea about how to quilt the design. But, I have to practice my free motion on some smaller things first!

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  9. What a lot of fun fabrics. And the colors just say summer. I'm longing for some hot weather, sunshine and a picnic. Maybe I'll just make some potato salad and call it good. Congrats on such a large top. Sounds like you had some fun making it.

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  10. Your quilt is a delight to the eyes. Fun and full of energy.

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  11. This is just wonderful! (Written from the ER - the hubster has been having some health challenges recently which is also why I haven't posted anything in a while).

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  12. What a happy quilt! Picnic is just the right name for it too :-)

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  13. Love the name...I can absolutely see this quilt spread out on the grass with a spread of everything summer! Just so cute!

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  14. Monica, This is the first time I see this quilt made as large as yours! It makes me want to start one for myself! I love your color choices and the name of the quilt. It's so happy! xo

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I'm told Blogger has been bouncing some comments, so if it happens to you I'm sorry! But the settings look right so I can't explain it. In any case, thanks for reading!

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