Tuesday, August 16, 2011

Stressful Sewing

I have spent the last month working on an ark curtain for a synagogue.  When people ask you how long it takes to make a quilt, it is not a simple question to answer.  First I spent a week coming up with designs and doing my best to draw them on paper with colored pencils.  I have to say that my artistry with fabric far exceeds my drawing talent.  I warn clients from the get go.  Fortunately the people choosing the design were familiar with my work.  I made torah covers for them last year. You can see them here.

I spent a day in NYC in the garment district and came home with $300 of dupioni silk.  I love this silk.  It's got shimmer and it's got texture.  It is just plain gorgeous.

Then I spent 2 weeks deciding how I was going to construct this curtain that measures 60"Wx77"H.  I realized that it was so much easier to make colored pencil lines and not so easy to figure out how I was going to sew 1 1/2" strips of silk into radiating lines.  After a few false starts, I decided to construct it on a foundation of lightweight interfacing in 2 pieces that would be joined before quilting.

Then I spent 1 1/2 weeks constructing half the curtain.  I never perspired so much before during a quilting project, and it wasn't because the A/C was broken.  I was sweating because I was so worried and nervous.  Choosing lightweight interfacing as a foundation was not a good choice.  It stretched and distorted as I added the strips. I couldn't see the faint lines I drew as my pattern after I finished my first section.  And if you are wondering if you would ever use a protractor again after HS Geometry, guess what I used to draw my rays?  You can actually download one from the internet.

So I am not going to sugarcoat this.  I finished the left side and it will need serious blocking and squaring up.  This is what it looks like now.


Am I looking forward to making the right side?  Hell no!  Mirror image?  I don't think so.  But I will try my best.  I will keep you posted.

10 comments:

  1. Love that material, gorgeous!
    I think with an art piece, a little wonky is acceptable;)

    Debbie

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  2. It looks beautiful! Did you fuse the silk before you started? I have found that fusing it onto a cotton woven interfacing and then using a foundation works well when working with silk....good luck!!

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  3. Cheryl I LOVE it...right up my alley! It is going to be so cool.

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  4. Now i know why you haven't been posting much lately- you have been BUSY! It is gorgeous and well worth all your sweat! I can't wait to see it in person! I hope the second half is easier due to all the practice you have had on the first half. Have you picked a really great reward for yourself for when you finish this challenging piece? Good luck with it and keep us posted!

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  5. Cheryl,
    It looks amazing! I don't think I would be able to recreate this in mirror image. I hope I get to see this in person.

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  6. Oh, it's soooo worth your effort (ha - easy for me to say, huh!)!!! I'd been wondering how it was going, so thanks for sharing. It really is spectacular now - think of how grand it'll be when it's complete!

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  7. Cheryl used the H word! Hey, you're on top of the mountain--can't get there without sweat but it's all down hill now. Stunning.

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  8. oh my goodness, this is gorgeous - and I'm sure the silk looks even better in person. can't wait to see the finished piece - good luck!

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  9. Cheryl, this is just stunning! How in the world did you do it? How wide are your strips? THAT must have been very tricky! I sure hope I get to see it in person. Magnificent!

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  10. Wow. This is incredibly awesome!!!!

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