Many years ago (so many I can’t really remember when, which brings up unfinished projects, which may be a whole blog in and of itself 😉), I found the pattern Fit to Frame by Lori Smith at one of my local quilt shops. I like handwork because I can take it with me to kid events or other appointments where I find myself sitting and waiting. The blocks did not take me too long to blanket stitch, maybe 4-6 month and only when I was out and about, but quilting it took FOREVER because I could not make up my mind what I wanted to do.
I first thought I wanted to hand quilt it. I even started hand quilting it, but did not like it because the stitches were so light and small and got lost in the background fabric which is flannel. My mom told me to use darker thread. So I bought the thread, unpicked all my quilting, and then decided I should just machine quilt it. And I’m so glad I did. I’m happy to have it finished after all of the work I put in. Now I can enjoy it. My quilting was a simple free motion echo around the “shape” in each block, and stitching in the ditch around each block.
I enjoy working with wool and intend to start another quilt, but I have not yet decided what it will be. That has not stopped me from collecting wool. I have some from several years ago, but was inspired through and IG conversations I had with @nichole_meister about thrift store shopping for wool. I live close to a great thrift store that gives a 50% discount on prices twice a month so I marked my calendar and went shopping.
I purchased mostly skirts and a couple of dress jackets. After cutting everything apart I will probably never buy another jacket. Too many odd pieces and kind of labor intensive to cut up. I paid $1.50-$3.50 for the skirts. In the right picture at the top you can see I even found some leather. No plans for it either, but thought it would be good to add to my stash. I felted all of the pieces right when I brought them home and cut them apart after that. I definitely want to add some brighter, lighter pieces that have a little “electricity” to them.
The only thing I’ve made with my “new” wool is a pincushion. I like the way it turned out. The texture is different than cotton and gives it an overall softer look.
Happy Quilting! ▶︎ ▶︎ ▶︎
Storts Market 