Wednesday, March 5, 2014

Quilt #2 - Halfway

I know, I know, it's been nine months since wedding quilt number two was mounted on the frame. It should be done by now, right? Well let's see, what have I been up to?  I sewed a wedding dress, helped my daughter with summer projects, raised corn, beans, carrots, potatoes, berries, and pumpkins, wrote a couple hundred pages of my memoir, and . . . I'm sure a lot more projects I've forgotten.

Two days ago I reached the halfway point. Fifteen rows of 24 blocks quilted. Fifteen rows of 24 blocks to go. Yay!!


To help myself grasp the scope of the accomplishment, I made a few calculations. The quilt is comprised of 720 squares each 3 inches by 3 inches. Halfway means 360 squares or 2520 inches of hand stitching. At an average of 6 stitches per inch the total number so far is more than 15,000.  No wonder it took so long.

One technique that speeded up my work for the last few weeks is ironing the thread after I wax it. Sounds pretty anal, but a friend suggested it so I thought why not try. I'm a total convert. The ironing sets wax into the thread making it stiffer and not as likely to tangle. Up until I started this technique, many hours were spent upside down under the quilt frame untangling knots (of course they all happen in the most awkward spot). Now, knock on wood, tangles are few.

My current goal is to finish the second half in ten weeks. To do that I must quilt 36 squares a week. What do you think? Will I make it?

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