Monday, July 25, 2011

Adventures in Quilting or A New Hobby For Me

Quilting is my new obsession. Did I really need another hobby? No, not really. Knitting, spinning, weaving and sewing dresses already take up my free time. My interest in quilting was accidental. When I was young I received a quilting kit and happily made several doll blankets and then moved on to other things. Then last month when I was on vacation I found myself in front of the large magazine stand at CVS. I was about to go to the beach and didn't really feel like reading the book I had brought. I wanted a magazine, something fun and easy. I happened to see this quilting magazine and fell in love with the quilt on the cover.








I hadn't even reached the back cover and I was already hooked. I visited many thrift stores on my trip and started collecting old quilting books. Quite a few quilting books, actually.







My best find was a lone star quilt kit that included all the pre-cut pieces for the star for $6.50. While visiting the Tallac Estate I found a childs quilting kit in the gift shop. I took it back to the house we were staying in and, while sitting in front of the fireplace, I made a potholder by handsewing and finger pressing. Not too bad, considering that I didn't have an iron.






After I returned home I couldn't quite decide which project to start with. I had to buy a new sofa cover and decided to make some coordinating blue and green pillows. I found a quilt block I really liked and drew it in Illustrator. I rendered some color combinations to decide which one I liked best.




My first pillow turned out rather well. I then made a few more sketches by hand to create a second pillow. Below are the fronts and backs of my two new pillows.



























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