Finished Tree Quilt

Finally, I’ve finished the Tree wall hanging.  It finished at 34″ x 42″.  I struggled getting good photos of it today, between the wind and lack of a good place to hang it, so I’ll probably take some more before I list it on Etsy.

I debated whether to bind it in green or purple, so I put it to the #Twilters.  Green won, but I went with Darla’s idea of a purple binding with a green (faux) flange.  Thank you!

This is the quilt that started with the scrap left from backing the green donation quilt.  It was tall and skinny, so I was inspired to cut the top off and let the tree go into the border, like this beauty by Cathy Geier.  I started carelessly adding border fabric, but I wish I had measured and been less improv about it.  That’s fine for blocks, but I struggled to get this top square again.  It’s pretty close, even if it doesn’t look it.

The leaves on the panel were chunky and squarish, so I cut little squares of green, gold, and purple fabric, mostly scraps from the donation quilt.  I wanted to sprinkle them around, but they refused to sprinkle, dropping instead as thick, layered clumps, so I ended up hand placing each bit into the areas I had prepared with spray baste.

Then I covered them with water-soluble stabilizer so I could quilt them into place.  I used Solvy and Dissolve, and found them to be just the same to sew on and both dissolved fine in the washer.  The washer also frayed the edges of the bits nicely.

I used metalic thread to brighten the sunbeam on the right.  It really shows more in indoor light (good!) and when you walk by, than in a still photo.

The hanging sleeve is caught in the top binding, and hand sewn underneath, so that’s my hand sewing for the week year.

I like the way it turned out, and if no one else wants it, it’ll look great in my house!

I’m linking up with Finish It Up Friday at Crazy Mom Quilts and Whoop Whoop Friday at Confessions of a Fabric Addict.

Blogger’s Quilt Festival Fall 2013

Here is my entry in the Wall Hanging category of the Blogger’s Quilt Festival at Amy’s Creative Side.  Make sure you go over to see everyone’s work.  The show is always fantastic.

I am fortunate enough to live on a hill in a wooded area, and this was my view one fall evening as the sun was setting.  You know you own a lot of batiks when you can walk inside and pull the perfect sky fabric immediately.  Most of the fabrics in this are batiks.

I hung the sky on my design wall, layered the “ground” fabrics over it, and cut the trees and trunks freehand.  I used a glue stick to adhere them.

Then I cut the design to size and framed it with green grass and blue sky.  I really love the textured blue batik fabric that contains hints of purples and oranges from the scene.

The fallen leaves on the grass are bits of scraps from the trees.  I laid them on after the quilt was sandwiched, covered them with water-soluble stabilizer, and quilted over them to hold them on.

I quilted inside the trees to hold them in place, leaving the edges to fray in the wash.  On the sky and on some of the trees I followed the fabric motif as a quilting design.  I backed this and bound it in a brilliant orange tie dye print.  I am very happy with the way this turned out.  It’s my very personal fall landscape.

“Fall Glory”

Valerie Root

Wall Hanging

32″ x 38″

Machine pieced and appliqued

Machine quilted