WIP Wonder

July 07, 2022

I'm down to 13 WIPs!!! 13 is my lucky number!!!!!!!!!!!!! I wasn't sure this would EVER happen! If I finish one extra project this quarter, I could be down to single digits by autumn!!!

I finished Venetian Squiggles at 9:53 p.m. Thursday, June 30, the final hour of the Ravelry Spring Quarter WIP challenge, making me, once again, Queen of the Last Minute. I truly wasn't planning to steal the crown once again; I lost about 14 days in June I may have spent sewing and/or quilting when I lost my dad. Probate stress really stoked my hunger to create and to finish a project. If it hadn't been for my Sweet Ringo's perpetual tension temper tantrums, I might have finished this quilt a few hours earlier. I think my Simply 16 may be due for a timing checkup. After all, I think I've had it nearly four years now...

Back in 2010, I took photos of the shadows of my blinds on the fleece blanket I hung to cover the window and seal in heat and seal out winter cold. Two years later, I played with some of those photos in Photoshop. A lot!

I got the bright idea to have one of the resulting masterpieces printed on fabric via Spoonflower. I should have illustrated on paper my initial inspiration to turn the small panel into a larger quilt. The designs that flooded my mind when I received the fat quarter have completely faded. When I began working on the quilt last month, I could not remember what I was going to do, other than create rainbow-colored strips that might echo the original straight lines of the blinds. I was forced to come up with new ideas. I pulled out all my Kona solids stash and tried to match the colors in the panel as close as I could.

I cut or pieced 1.5-inch strips from the 12 colors I picked, using up every single inch of three leftover colors from quilts gone by. Then I just started making striped fabric without a real plan. I ended up using a bunch of tiny little pieces, which was fun, challenging and mind-clearing. I needed that. I'm prety happy with my final design. I really had high hopes for this quilt!

The backing was created from leftovers of the colors I used on the front. I used up every single black strip but one! And I used up almost all of the tiny pieces of the colors. I loved how the back looked when I finished it, and I'm really kicking myself in the pants for not snapping a photo of it before I, well, ruined it.

I got in some really great quilting practice once I finally got the tension vomit cleared up. Quilting was complete in about two and a half hours, and oh, how I couldn't wait to show off this masterpiece!

Then I pulled the quilt off the frame. I nearly broke down and cried. I think tears actually would have fallen had I not already drawn heavily upon the saltwater reserves during the last month. The quilt back has viscious folds. I sat down with the quilt on my lap for a few minutes, studying the horrible mess on the back, wondering how I could fix it. I think there was but an hour remaining of the alloted WIP challenge. If I ripped out all the stitching, it would take me a week or longer. If it left it as is, it would be a frustrating reminder to make sure my quilt sandwiches are flat. Maybe I was too excited to get this one on the frame, then with all the tension delays, I just let the fabric slip or something??? I don't know. But I was horrified, and too tired to fix it. I decided I could buy another fat quarter next time they go on sale and try again. I've worked up a little plot in my head to make color-matching go a little more smoothly.

I decided this quilt doesn't have to be gifted or given away. It can be a lap quilt for me when I'm feeling down. I'm hoping the mistakes later will make me giggle. I decided if there ever is a contest with the "Finished is Better than Perfect" theme, this one would be a clear winner. And, if I don't look too close, like, from maybe 100 or 200 feet, I don't even see the booboos!

On July 4, I made a few firecrackers of my own and uploaded Photoshop versions of my quilt to Spoonflower. Yes, this means I'll eventually have more WIPs when I'm trying to have fewer, but the quilt top turned out so well, how could I not play some more in Photoshop???