Thursday, August 5, 2021

A Perfect Combination of Events

It's always interesting to look back at what might 
have influenced you in a certain direction
 when you're ready to start something new.
Here are 4 perfect events that influenced me.

1.  As a quilter and a X-stitcher, we have all been
saddened by the passing of Barb Adams, who was
part of Blackbird Designs along with Alma Allen. 
This lead me to revisit all of their wonderful books and patterns
I've collected over the years.  
So many wonderful ideas.

2.  I recently sorted through my wool fabrics and
decided to share pieces with friends.
I had a large piece of off white wool.  When I 
showed my friends they all said, "Kyle, put that back
in your stash.  You might need that!"

3.  Also in the past 2 months I have relocated
most of my fabric stash from one place to another.
The good part is that you familiarize yourself again
with what you have and the bad part is
you realize just what you have!
My flannel collection had not been reduced in quite awhile
and I thought maybe I should work on that.

4.  Ideas come and go like the ebbing of the tides, but one
that I always seem to come back is a log cabin design.
I had been thinking about making blocks with a larger
center square and using the center as a platform for an applique.
****

So where did all of that lead me?



The idea was sparked from a pattern found in a series of booklets
called Christmas Memories.


I pulled red and green flannels


and cut strips.  Then I subcut the strips 
into the correct lengths for the log cabin pieces.
I find if I take the time to do that,
my blocks stay square and all the same size,
especially if you use your walking foot on your machine
when you're working with flannels.

But before I sewed the blocks together, I 
fused off white wool snowflakes to the large center squares and
then whipped the edges with a DMC wool floss.


Once the blocks were sewn they lacked the luster
of new fallen snow.
It was then I decided to stitch crystal beads 
to the points of the 20 snowflakes.


I attached the 3 beads to each point as a separate unit.
Just in case a bead becomes loose, all of them won't fall off.


For quite awhile, I was in a spot waiting for inspiration
and not having anything in mind of what to work on next.
I do like where all of the different influences ended up leading me.



"Perfectly Imperfect"
57" x  69"

 I'm glad I was open to combining events and letting
my creative muse inspire my imagination.
I hope you are too.

Until Next Time-
Kyle

24 comments:

  1. WOW! Love it when all the elements come together

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  2. I love your journey on way to a snowflake log cabin. Hugs

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  3. This is wonderful! I really like the addition of the beads and the way it catches the light. You sure have some lovely flannels, what a great way to put them together.

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  4. Yes, let your creative muse lead the way! I love this quilt top and it will be so cozy.

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  5. Kyle Me fascina tu creatividad! maravilloso, bellísimo edredón! log cabin es uno de mis favoritos,
    Cuidate

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  6. Great way to use up your flannels! I love Barb and Alma's designs too.

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  7. Really enjoyed your story of inspiration and creativity and love the result!! I love log cabin designs and also find them a great "go to" when I'm stuck for ideas. You can't go wrong!

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  8. Absolutely positively beautiful. I love log cabins and yours is so special with your snowflake centers. Your quilt really looks cozy and happy.

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  9. Love it!! I think I used to have that book. Unsure if I still do since I've destashed a couple of times since Frank's death. Glad you still had yours! I'm gonna be in your state in the very near future!

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  10. So wonderful! Love those snowflakes!

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  11. I love the way your setting invites the eye to meander around the quilt and explore the nuances of texture and shading in the log cabin blocks. Beautiful finish!

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  12. That is a lovely result from an inspiration tour. Loved how everything came together to make that quilt.

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  13. I love it when quilts come together like this--so creative and inspirational! I bet Perfectly Imperfect (great name!) is really cozy. Putting a snowflake in the center of each block was a great idea and adding beads was the finishing touch :) Lovely!

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  14. So many fun ideas converging together for a happy result!

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  15. What a beautiful result! I love the snowflakes and the added beads!

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  16. Oh wow! What an inspiration indeed! IT is simply sensational. And just begging for snow to fall. I am one of those crazy people who cannot wait for the white stuff. Thanks for sharing what came from all your pondering. It is beautiful!

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  17. It is fascinating to see what leads us in certain directions. Lovely to see the end result of all these ideas. A lovely quilt and fabric used from your stash. Couldn't be better.

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  18. You were inspired to make a wonderful quilt and what a great way to put those flannels to work! I also have been revisiting my Blackbird Designs books--so many wonderful ideas are swirling in my head. I'm coming close to finishing up a couple old projects and can hardly wait to start something new.

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  19. Beautiful quilt that will always remind you of a very talented quilter.

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  20. Simply beautiful! Love it! I especially like the added dimension of the crystal beads.... makes me want to call in sick to work today and get started on a quilt like this for my very own.... lol! Happy stitching!

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  21. wonderful christmas quilt. Your combined things imperfectly perfect to me.
    I too was sad about Barb Adams. What a talent.

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  22. It's so true that inspiration comes from many different sources and if we're open to it, we'll find ourselves making some very interesting things! I'm scared to look in my tote of flannel fabric. It would be such a rabbit hole!:)

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  23. It is nice to just let yourself play and go wherever the muse leads you. I often wonder why I am more drawn to certain quilts than others enough to make them. It is a great Christmas quilt.

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  24. I love log cabin quilts for stash busting. I’m in that phase myself. Yours is stunning! I love the bead detail.

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