Woohoo! Happy dance! I’ve finished assembling my latest Kawandi Style Quilt – I call this one Sunset! This one has gone so much faster than anticipated. I wanted to give a little update, in case you want to try making one, too.
I started this one on my longarm. You can read about that process on my previous post. On a large piece, basting some squares down is a great help in keeping things in order.
I’ve been dragging this piece with me as we travel. It’s been to Florida, San Francisco, Los Angeles and New Jersey. One of my favorite aspects of making kawandi style quilts is that they are so very portable. The few tools I use are all TSA approved. Plus, when my legs get cold on the plane or in the car, I’ve got a cozy quilt to sit under.
The color planning I did worked out really well – I’m so happy with how this piece looks!
I really like how the color changes, although I think the transition is a little abrupt. I was feeling like I didn’t have enough color blending fabrics, but to be honest, I never feel like I have enough variety in my fabric. I have some really specific criticisms, but I won’t drag you through my neurosis. I leave it at – I enjoy finding room to improve on my next piece. The more specific I am in what I want to change, the better for me.
My very first row of hand stitching on this piece felt like it was too far from the edge. So, I decided early on that I would go around again, doing another row of stitches inside the first. I did that on this placemat.
The change in texture was so dramatic. It’s really amazing.
I’ve really been enjoying adding the second round of stitches. They are so easy – no fabric choices, no pins, nothing. Just me, the needle and the thread. Plus, with this piece I used double gauze on the back, silk batting, and lovely yarn dyes for the fabrics, so it is very easy to stitch through.
I have a couple of different kinds of silk included, and a few pieces of velvet. I’m excited to see how these new additions survive the wash cycle. I really enjoy living dangerously and experimenting. Really, the worst case is that they bleed or fall apart. Bleeding is fine on a color blend project like this. Deteriorating is fine, too – nothing a patch can’t fix.
I’ve been sharing on Instagram as I go along, so if you want more you can find it there.
This project has given me a bunch of ideas for next steps. I’m excited to start my next piece, but for the next week or so I’ll be enjoying some simple stitching on this piece.
I contributed a workshop at Making Zen last month, and I have so enjoyed watching the projects everyone made get shown on Facebook. I really enjoy sharing this technique so much.
If you want to take a class with me I have several options currently.
First, my on-demand Kawandi Style Quilting class with Gotham Quilts is always available. It’s about an hour of videos, along with written instructions.
I have a couple of in-person events coming up, too. On July 20 I will be in Lafayette, NJ, at Hangin’ by a Thread. I’ll be teaching Kawandi style by machine and leading the class in making a table runner.
On September 11 & 12 I’ll be with the Berry Basket Quilters in Medford, NJ.
The next in-person opportunity is in Furlong, PA at Art in the Barn. I’m teaching Kawandi by hand there in September and in October.
If you are around, I’d love to spend time sewing with you.