It’s that time of year, again! Not only is it a most gorgeous fall, but this week starts The Fall edition of the Bloggers’ Quilt Festival. It should be subtitled Bloggers’ Open House because we get to peek inside so many people’s blogs. It’s almost like peeking in windows, only you are invited in! If you’re new here, welcome! Pour yourself a nice one and have a look-see! Thank you Amy for hosting such an inspiring event!
This is one of my slowest ever quilts, but it is finally finish ~ finished! Including the hanging sleeve and embroidered date and signature. Saturday the weather was perfect for getting outside and enjoying it! I took my quilt along for some mother/daughter time. Okay, I took my camera, too, so she could help me photograph a couple of quilts. This one, I’ll share today, I call Out of This World.
“Out of this World”
September 2012
70″ x 55″
Entry #96
Machine pieced
Hand quilted: by myself, Lori French
Special technique: Bias binding appliqued, Hand Quilting
Best Category for the BQF:
Wall hanging, Scrap quilt, or Art Quilt
Once that was done it could finally be put in place. It now hangs where I see it every time I walk down the stairs to my studio. I love it. Even after all this time! When we bought this house in 2006, I knew I would be making a quilt for that wall. It’s a big wall and I finally had a space to make a big wall hanging! Plus, I knew it would really warm up this space.
This quilt idea came about when working on other quilts. I’ve always loved quilting in circles. Some people don’t like working with them, but for me, they are all about the challenge!
There are more but you get the idea.
Years ago, while I had a huge mess of scraps out, for another project, I decided to play with the scraps and see how many colors I could get into one 5″ block and have it still make sense. I started out playing with the templates that I more recently used in my Shoot for the Moon quilt. I suppose they are Drunkard’s Path pieces, though I have yet to make one of those.
I then duplicated those templates and cut them into more pieces … similar to what I did in my Radiant Stars quilt. Then I put them all back together. That is what we quilters do, isn’t it? Cut up perfectly good fabric and then sew it back together?? LOL!
I wish I had more pictures of the process, but this quilt was started before I was a blogger. Back then, I was happy to just have a picture of my finished quilts!
While playing with those templates I decided I wanted even more color so grabbed my Clover bias tape makers and started playing with those.
If you have never used these, they are pretty sweet to make smaller quantities of bias tape. They are especially good for bags, purses, to trim out necklines and arms in sleeveless tops. They are not for making quilt bindings, that is different. Little did I know then, that Simplicity actually makes a machine to make bias tape. I suspect it wouldn’t have work as well, with using scraps, as a ruler and straight edge does!
They worked perfect for this application. I grabbed my basket of scraps and started cutting bias strips of different widths, pulling them through these, under the iron, to set the folds, then stitching them on top. The 1/2″ worked good, enough width that you could see there was another fabric added, but still narrow enough to curve even in the smallest of areas. The 1/4″ worked okay, the 1″ did not, it was too wide to make tight curves, though there are some of them both in this quilt.
This quilt was made entirely of scraps, including the borders, and backing, which were left over strips of Stonehenge fabrics from the quilt I made my sister in 2010. From scraps is my favorite kind of quilt. I could not begin to tell you how many different fabrics I have used. Some blocks have as many as 9 different ones in them. After the top was made it languished as a flimsy, for quite a while, until I decided how I wanted to quilt it. Of course it would be hand quilted, I just wasn’t sure how, there were SO many seams to deal with. I decided on hand quilting concentric 1″ circles and partial circles, having to make a decision on each circle, or most often, partial circle, as to which path I would follow! Each 5″ block is unique in layout, fabric, bias binding and quilting…
On the advice of my hand quilting, expert, friends, I quilted the borders in a simple 1″ crosshatch. I couldn’t be happier with how it came out. That is one thing about internet quilting friends, they are so very generous, and *smart* and have no problem helping out with ideas. Had I asked for opinions/ideas sooner, this quilt would have been hanging much sooner! If you are interesting in hand quilting you should check out the Celebrate Hand Quilting blog. They also have a very active Facebook page where someone is almost always at the ready to help with any question or just to share and celebrate your projects.
“Out of this World”
September 2012
70″ x 55″
Entry #96
Machine pieced
Hand quilted: by myself, Lori French
Special technique: Bias binding appliqued, Hand Quilting
Best Category for the BQF:
Wall hanging, Scrap quilt, or Art Quilt
Now, go refill your choice of drink, click below and see what everyone else created! Don’t forget to nominate and vote for your favorite after November 1! Feel free to pin anything here you like, that is how I’ll be tracking all my favorites! Come back soon!
I’m also linking up with:
A Stitch in Time
Can I get a Whoop Whoop
Show off Friday
TGIFF
Finish it Up Friday
Sewfrench 
great quilt! love all your fun photos. thanks for sharing it
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That is a gorgeous quilt. Love the colours and the quilting.
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Out of this world is right! It’s brilliant! Congrats on such an amazing finish : )
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So pretty with those Fall leaves!
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Your quilt is lovely. I have done very little curved piecing and really admire it when I see it in other quilts.
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WOW! That is an amazing quilt. I love the colors and such fine curved piecing. It looks amazing photographed with all the fall colors that it echos so well. Fabulous!
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That is absolutely gorgeous and perfect for that space! I love it!
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Gorgeous! How clever to use the bias binding… It adds so much dimension.
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Wow. Just Beautiful! Love it.
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The quilt is amazing and your photos of it are inspiring! Thanks so much for sharing.
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This quilt is amazing! Great work, what a fun way to celebrate this beautiful season!
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Your quilt really is something to “whoop” about. I love it.
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WOW, fantastic quilt!
Love all the colors!
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Great post! Love the story, the design, the quilt and the quilting..and the photos too! Thank you for sharing.
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beautiful and your photo shoot location is perfect
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So gorgeous! You did a fantastic job creating this beauty.
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That is so incredibly cool! The quilt looks great with the fall colors.
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Your quilt really does warm up your space. Beautiful!
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Your quilt looks great hanging on your wall, and I love the pics of it with the yellow fall leaves and over the wood fence. Nice photography!
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I love it! The added color added in with the bias strips is wonderful. Great finish.
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The quilts are gorgeous and so is the scenery. I am currently visiting friends and family in Michigan and loving the colour.
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Glory of autumn colours! Your quilt is so beautiful and I love those autumn colours in your quilt and in you beautiful photo! Just amazing design! x Teje
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What a fun quilt! I love how cross hatching quilting looks in the simple border and how the circle emphasize the shapes in the blocks. Congrats on a great hand-quilted quilt. I love reading about others on Celebrate Hand Quilting too.
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I love this quilt, and it looks perfect both in your room and in the trees!
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beautiful!!!! thats a lot of curves!
ann
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Wow it is lovely, I love all of the different colours you have used also I havent seen those bias things before either – they look like they make a tricky job easier! Thanks for sharing. #263
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Absolutely lovely! It would brighten up any space and looks great on your wall.
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Love your quilt! scrap quilts are my favorite! so beautifully done!
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WOW, what an amazing quilt. Fantastic job!
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You did It again! Woooooow!
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Another Heidi here 🙂
Hey, what a wonderful quilt and the colours match the season perfectly
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I.LIKE.
I.WANT.
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Gorgeous quilt!!! Love all the warm colors! You photographed it perfectly with the autumn trees.
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Okay, first of all your quilt is absolutely stunning!! What a lovely thing to do for yourself! And I also love how you started off your post in that first paragraph. Thank you for the warm invitation into your blog.
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That is beautiful! I host a SHOW-licious Craft Show if you would like to be a part of. I would love for you to feature your crafts there! http://sewliciousdecor.wordpress.com/2012/10/27/1761/
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It is great and I love the addition of bias tape as appliqué.
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Just love the warm colors
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Absolutely beautiful! I’m in awe! Love, love, love all the circles and reading the process and story behind your quilt!
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great quilt! Just got my vote in the contest. I’ve never done circles before – yours is amazing. (Mine is #52)
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What an amazing quilt. It is totally out of this world.
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WOW! so beautiful!!
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FAB!!! So glad you added this to the FB page as I hadn’t found it yet. Guess I should add mine too. Great quilt, love the batiks (I used them too) and the hand quilting and the bias tape, etc. etc.
Great job.
Come see my entry #46 Batik Tulips, hand applique, hand quilt, wall hanging.
And if you like antiques #23 red zigzag quilt
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So beautiful! I love that this is made entirely from scraps! and I love your photos of it also!
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Reblogged this on Sewfrench and commented:
It’s American, exercise your right to vote.
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Out of this World is RIGHT! Oh wow…this is a gorgeous quilt! I love the color placement, the style, the quilting. Amazing job all over!!!
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You get my vote in this final round!
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Gorgeous quilt! If I hadn’t missed the voting, you’d get mine!
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That is SPECTACULAR! Like a beautiful piece of textured art hung on your wall. And the shots of it out in the autumn trees are vibrant. So glad you put this into the festival because it would be up there in my top 5 favourite quilts. All the best with a vote from me too.
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Gorgeous, Lori! I love how all the scraps work together, and of course the circles!
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Your quilt is gorgeous – congratulations on winning a prize!
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Wonderful quilt! Congratulations on winning! The pictures are just beautiful, too, love the fall colors
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Congratulations on your winning Lori! Your quilt and the photos are gorgeous!
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