A completed quilt top!
Are we out of the woods yet?
Super happy with how it turned out! I think I managed to keep the distribution of the trees pretty random. How did I do this?
- I tried to place larger and smaller trees next to eachother so that their differences in height and width create variation.
- I sometimes added a bit of filler fabric so that the tops, bottoms or sides of two or more trees that are placed in a row or column don’t align exactly.
- I first created sections and within these sections tried to alternate horizontal and vertical seams when combining subsections of multiple trees.
- I used 3 Y-seams or inset seams to avoid one seam running from top to bottom or left to right.
The order in which the different sections were pieced.
I kept changing the layout of the part of the quilt that was not yet pieced so I could fit it to the part that was already pieced as best as possible. I also kept creating more trees as needed to fill up gaps. I definitely spent more time thinking about how I was going to piece the next part than actually piecing.
For the filler fabrics I chose 1 black and 2 white fabrics. The black fabric contains lines that come from hubs that connect to other hubs. I thought this was a great representation of a rapidly spreading virus. I deliberately used this fabric mostly in one of the corners and only a couple of smaller pieces in other spots. After all, we’re trying to get out of this situation and I am hopeful that we will, at least at some point.
Don’t be scared of Y-seams, once you know how to do them they’re really not that hard.
One of the white fabrics has silver dots forming star constellations. These represent cured people and places without virus. The last fabric contains little lightbulbs with golden hearts. Which is kind of corny, but my little girl does like some sparkle and I thought they could represent all the innovations that take place in science and medicine right now.
Now I have to think about a back, which I’ll probably keep quite simple since the back of a wall hanging is very rarely on display. And how to quilt it… That part will take some time to figure out as well. Which is just as well since I also appear to have run out of batting.
Your tree quilt has turned out beautifully. You must be very proud of it. I like the symbolism behind the filler fabrics, including the light bulbs! I am impressed that you tackled those Yseams so blithely
Thank you! This is definitely a special piece for me. I first watched some Y-seam tutorials and did a a trial run with some scraps. That went so well that I decided that I would just go ahead and use the tecnnique for my quilt top since I would otherwise not have been able to get the look that I wanted.
Hurray! It’s done! I bet this is the first mother/daughter collaboration of many, and what a great way for her to learn quilting, naturally and painlessly. Love the thinking behind your fabric choices, too.
Thank you! I’ll have to think of something new to do with her. I didn’t really involve her in the assembly part because I had to concentrate too much to make the jig saw puzzle work. It would probably have been super boring for her too to look at her mum studying the trees for 10 minutes before deciding what the next step should be. 😉
Amazing! It has been fun to see this piece evolve! Great job joining it together and so awesome how your daughter’s creativity is a part of this piece!
Thank you! I am working to get it completed. Batting is ordered and I hope to make a backing today or tomorrow.
Wow. I love this design. The trees and the randomized pattern. It’s really beautiful! Great work!
Thank you! It was a lot of fun to create.