Wednesday, October 20, 2021

Another Finish - or not

 Yesterday the sun finally showed its face again and I was able to take a few photos of the latest finish, the Black and White Triangles quilt.  It needs a better name than that, please chime in with something that seems fitting as my mind is blank!

Not sure why but this quilt is incredibly heavy considering the large piecing, the usual 80/20 Hobbs Heirloom cotton/poly batting, and a one-piece wide backing.  I should have weighed that backing fabric I guess.  It will be a warm one for sure.



I machine quilted it with double lines across each triangle edge, but thinking it might need more.  When my two big hand quilting projects are finally completed I might just get this back out and do some big stitch hand quilted circles in the middle of each triangle.  What do you think?  It is perfectly usable as it is now, and can be pressed into service when the grands come for their next overnight stay in the meantime.  So maybe it's finished and maybe not ...


The backing.  And here is a warning - I ordered this one from a well-known company, it "should" have been plenty large enough for this 80x80 inch quilt.  But, rather than the advertised 108" width the fabric was barely 100 inches in width, and it had been cut 'straight' as it was folded on the bolt, but in fact I lost a good 18 inches of length due to its not being on grain when it was folded right off the loom.   So, when layering and pinning the top, I had to angle it rather than having the backing straight across.  Thankfully it appears fairly straight now that the quilting and binding are finished and it has gone through its first wash.  

As usual my four-legged buddy accompanied me as we wandered around the yard for a few more shots. I think he's learned the art of posing for quilt photos!




Today was the last nice day before our next round of dreary rainy days and colder nights.  Weather forecasters are calling for snow flurries in the higher elevations Saturday and Sunday night. We've had very little fall colors here, many trees just dropped their leaves without changing color at all, others turned brown rather than the typical bright reds, yellows and bronzes.  

Last fall we had bought a bundle of three ears of Indian corn to hang next to the back door on the covered porch.  They stayed there all winter and into late planting season this spring.  Hubby decided to try an experiment and planted a row of the kernels along with some sunflowers along the garden fence.  Well, the sunflowers grew tall but the Indian corn grew taller, with some stalks reaching at least 12 feet high, a couple might have reached 13-14 feet!  The leaves were huge too.  And the stalks bore ears of corn which we eagerly awaited to see if they would have the wonderful colors of the parent kernels.  Checked a few ears in early September and were disappointed to see only whitish  kernels at the top of the ears we tested.  Hubby cooked a couple of those ears and tried eating them - very starchy!  But today, lo and behold, some of the ears yielded pure gold!  What a happy surprise, kind of like opening gifts on Christmas morning.  These are our fall colors blessing this year!
Glistening like agates just tossed by the waves onto a beach .



I only opened four ears today, there are more waiting in the wheelbarrow to husk on another day. Some are quite small and probably won't yield much,  but we're delighted with these and if we can get the kernels planted earlier next year, we may get a much better harvest to share and decorate the porch next fall.

And I'll leave you with the latest photo of Sammy in his favorite napping spot in the 'tent' created under the hoop stand holding my Quilty 365.

Til next time, happy stitching!





22 comments:

Robin said...

I wouldn't worry about more quilting. It looks great just as it is. I'd call it a lovely finish. I've been trying to think of things that are black and white to name a quilt. This is what I have come up with,
1. Sunlight and Shadow
2. Tuxedos
3. Nonpareils
4. Salt and Pepper
5. Puffins
Hope that inspires you to figure out a name.

Cynthia@wabi-sabi-quilts said...

I'm such a minimalist with quilt names that I would call it "Triangles" lol. Robin has some great ideas. It's such a striking pretty quilt. Too bad about the backing being a hassle - something to let the company know about for sure. That is so cool about the corn - it's gorgeous!

Julierose said...

Maybe "Triangulation"? or "Double Vision" ? Under any name it is a beautiful finish. I don't think it needs anymore quilting.
Interesting result from that Indian corn--I may give that a try here..
Hugs, julierose

Sherrill said...

The quilt is beautiful and love the way you quilted it! Perfect. The corn is very interesting and so neat that is actually sprouted and great LARGE!! What a fun experiment. Great kitty picture.

Sandy said...

I love your b&w triangle quilt, and love how you quilted it. I don’t honk it “needs” anything more, but of course it would be fun to embellish it with some big stitches. That’s puzzling about the backing? I hope you let them know, as it sounds like a quality control issue. At least it ended up working out ok. What great fun with the corn! I’ve never grown any kind of corn in my life. I don’t think it gets hot enough here. Your Sammy knows the art of camouflage. He blends right in with your quilt!

Janet O. said...

It is a beautiful, striking quilt. I think Robin gave you some great suggestions for names.
What a success story on the corn. Love the sunburst-like design on the kernels.
Cute kitty camo. :)

Paulette said...

That's such a pretty quilt! I'm at a loss for names at the moment. I like the way you quilted it and I don't think it needs more. Hey, the Indian corn is so cool! What an interesting look to those kernels.

Lizzy D said...

Your post did arrive for me! Late but here. The b & w quilt is fabulous, I love it so much. Very striking and interesting. I also love Gibbs' posing talents. [and darling Sammy's of course.]

No good name ideas---dominos? Oreos? Tuxedo cats? I ll think on it.
That corn! Amazing and so very fun. I wonder about the colors, do they form as it ripens and dries? I'd say your experiment is a huge success. [but I don't think colored corn is edible, were some tummy aches involved?]

love

lizzy

Kyle said...

I think that you have a modern striking "finished" quilt. I wouldn't add anything else. It would be lost. What a great surprise to see your colorful corn kernels. Don't leave it too long or the raccoons or squirrels will be enjoying them.

Needledmom said...

The triangles are just beautiful!. That corn is amazing too. So pretty.

Nancy said...

Your quilt is so striking! So many wonderful prints! I can't imagine the challenge of aligning the ends of the triangle pieces and matching the points. Beautiful work. Sorry I don't have any ideas for names.
It's too bad you had such a challenge with the backing. I think I would let the company know. My thought is always if no one tells them they assume everything is fine.
Your corn is so beautiful!
Sammy looks comfortable yet alert to the goings on around him. It seems to me cats like to be in the know.

Hill Top Post said...

I thought I commented on your wonderful post last evening when I told you how much I like your black magic quilt. My favorite old quilt made by a great aunt has lots of black which is such a great look.

Quilting Babcia said...

I think you might have just named my quilt - Black Magic! For some reason known only to the blogger fairies your comment went directly to spam and never showed up in my notifications or email until this morning - sigh.

Martha said...

I love your triangles quilt, it is beautiful. And what a great surprise with your corn!!!! Who would have known those kernals would grow into such beautiful treasures!! So much fun. I am so glad your husband tried the experiment. Happy Fall!!!!

Angie said...

Fabulous quilt! I think it's perfect as is - no additional quilting needed. Thanks (again) for the inspiration, as I have a stash of black & white fabrics that need to get used up! Loved hearing about the corn, what a fun surprise!

Barbara said...

Your quilt turned out beautifully! We have a kitty "tent" like that one too. Mine is where my mid-arm machine is, and the quilt gets draped over my sewing chair. Sadie thinks it makes an excellent fort, and it frustrates Smitty, as you might guess.

Chantal said...

Congratulations on this gorgeous finish! I love this quilt and I think the quilting is just perfect the way it is, but that's just me. I might be influenced by the weatherman but I'm thinking Frosty Night or Snow in the Mountains, but the prints in the quilt might be telling another story.
Your corn is wonderful. Gosh! The first picture is like marbled kernels or something. Like cat's eyes. It's mesmerizing. Is the husk really that purple? Just awesome! Nature is so beautiful. Love your pets' pictures too. Gibbs has a secret talent. ;^)

QuiltGranma said...

Love you Black and White and Red all over quilt! That corn looks like some I've seen advertised that is some kind of Gem name. Beautiful. Does it make popcorn? We have some popcorn that is multi colored.

Quilting Babcia said...

We haven't tried making popcorn with this corn yet. We'll try finding some seeds that might produce that gem coloration, and also plant some of the kernels from the ear we already have.

Jocelyn is Canadian Needle Nana said...

You are doing so well with getting these long term projects quilted. This black and white is beautiful and I’m thinking too that the quilting you have done should be fine. Sounds so cozy and warm. Very neat corn!

Ruth said...

I'm glad you got some name suggestions as I'm bad a thinking up names. Your dog/quilt picture is perfect! He matches it! How neat that the corn grew and came out so beautiful! We are finally getting rain (after a dry summer) and the leaves are dropping fast. Happy Fall!

Barbara said...

I think your quilt is perfect just the way it is! Love the black and white combo with all those wonderful fabrics. I enjoyed your outdoor photo shoot with your helper. That Indian corn is really amazing. I'm so impressed!