A Colorwash quilt is one in which the placement of colored squares mimics the color wheel with the lightest area near the center and darkest areas in the corners.
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| On a cloudy morning |
One thing is obvious - The gradual transition from almost white (in or near the center) to almost black (at the edges/corners) is the essence of making such a quilt.
But everything else is subjective.
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| Colorwash Layout (almost) |
The Colorwash 360 class taught by Wanda Hanson of
Exuberant Color came with many organizing tips and lots of guidelines were provided but most of the actual design process is Trial and Error.
This was the first time (I think) this class was offered. So there were no previous reviews to help me decide whether I should sign up for this class.
At $297, it is the most expensive class I have ever taken.
And that was just the beginning. I also needed at least 300 different fabrics.
A kit was priced at $175. I decided against it.
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| Organizing (not all my stash) |
When I finished organizing my fabric in preparation for the class, I realized I needed more fabric. I bought about 20 different charm packs (from MSQC, FQS, Craftsy, and Hancocks) for a wide range of colors and values. That was about $150.
I begged Jennifer for browns and
Mari helped me with dark greens.
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| At the design wall |
Lots more cutting and organizing and preparing.
Lots of time at the design wall.
Lots of trial and error. Place a few squares, step away, notice the issue, come back to the wall and fix it, step away, notice another issue at another place. Repeat.
Lots of do-overs.
Lots of frustration.
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| Progress |
One of the problems with such a quilt is that it is never really done because you can always improve it. Swap out that one square, or move that other one so that it flows better, so that there is not a sharp jump from one value to the next.
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| Are we there yet? |
Eventually I decided to
call it done. And the final layout met with universal approval.
Breathtakingly beautiful, one of my non-quilty friends remarked.
A co-worker, who has artistic leanings and used to paint (before the mind-numbing number crunching destroyed his soul) said -
Don't change a thing.
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| Almost Flimsy |
The sewing together of the squares was not without issues either. Wanda had suggested we make a 5 by 5 square block to practice the webbing. I made one and knew that I needed more practice keeping seams straight and uniform. So I made another and another and one more to get the hang of it.
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| 5 by 5 layout for webbing practice |
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| Clipped and Numbered |
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| No slippage |
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| Begin practice sewing |
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| Continue practice sewing |
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| Webbed but wonky |
One thing became abundantly clear to me - This class was out of my league.
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| Not one but four practice pieces |
Generally speaking, I sew two pieces together with a scant 1/4" seam, iron it open, square and move to the next piece. THAT is how my points match and seams stay straight. But in the webbing process, there is no room for correction. From start to finish you rely on sewing accurate and straight seams. Yeah, not for the (relative) newbie like me. And although I followed the webbing process the best I could, the seams do not match in many places.
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| Begin actual sewing |
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| Halfway done |
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| Finished Top - So Crooked |
Once the top was completed, mismatched seams notwithstanding, I made the binding. Layered the batting and the backing and waited for the invisible thread to arrive in the mail, while I read up on how to quilt with invisible thread. After reading all the stories about tension and rapid unspooling, I decided against it. I worked on other projects.
The inspiration for the quilting pattern came from Pat Graham, another student in the Colorwash360 class. Wanda had shared some of the
completed quilts. Pat's quilt had a circle in the middle with rays radiating to the edges.
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| Begin quilting |
I chose to quilt an octagon in the center and spiral it out. I marked the top on Friday evening and
quilted on Saturday. I used Aurifil 40 weight thread, color 2600 for the quilting.
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| Octagon in the middle |
The hand binding was completed on Sunday. I then pinned it to my design wall to admire it.
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| The Blue/Purple corner |
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| Yellow Green Orange Brown |
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| Red to Red Orange to Orange |
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| The Red Corner |
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| The Blue, Blue-Green, Green Corner |
Paul: This may be the best quilt you've ever made.
Preeti: It does have great visual appeal.
Paul: Does it have a name?
Preeti: Mixed Feelings.
Paul: Mixed, how?
Preeti: Because it was a frustrating process with a spectacular outcome. Also, this was an excellent class at an exorbitant price.
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| Dragonfly caught in the Spiderweb |
Paul: Was it worth it?
Preeti: I don't know.
Paul: Oh come on.
Preeti: OK, if I made a dozen colorwash quilts and I could sell at least 3 or 4 of them, then it would be worth the investment.
Paul: Are you going to make more of these colorburst quilts?
Preeti: Not sure. If someone offered me a boatload of money for a commissioned piece, I may be inclined to make another one.
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| Octagonal Spiral Quilting |
Paul: So no?
Preeti (agitated) : Geez, thanks for the vote of confidence, Paul. Occasionally, I HAVE received money for my quilts.
Paul (calmly): Was it a boatload?
Preeti (subdued): Not really.
Paul: So the answer is that it was NOT worth it.
Preeti: The answer is may be it was worth it. May be in 10 years. I can't say.
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| Bound and Labelled |
Paul: Forget the expenses part. Did you learn a lot?
Preeti: Yes, a LOT. May be too much too soon.
Paul: What does that mean?
Preeti: Like a middle school kid taking a college course. I struggled with it.
Paul: Then why did you sign up for it?
Preeti: I wanted to take the class because Wanda Hanson is an accomplished quilter. Her body of work is very impressive. I just did not know what it would entail. I saw no reviews.
Paul: But why not wait a few years?
Preeti: Wanda is 78 years old. She may stop teaching by the time I am actually ready to take the class.
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| The Tiger lurks in the shadows |
Paul: So you had to do it and now.
Preeti: It had to be now and I was ill-equipped.
Paul: You? Ill-equipped? Not possible.
Preeti: If you have been quilting for longer, you have a bigger stash to work from. I did not. More importantly, there are things about color and value that you learn over the course of time. These come naturally to more experienced quilters, but I had to learn in a compressed time frame. Hence the struggle and the frustration. It was hard work.
Paul (mockingly): And you are not used to hard work, my American princess!!!
Preeti (mockingly as well): Not any more. I am a spoiled American now. When I spend $500, all the work should be done for me, automatically.
Paul: Well, I love Mixed Feelings.
Preeti: Of course you do. You are enjoying the outcome without having to endure the painful process.
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| The quilt looks back at you |
Paul: What process?
Preeti: The process of making this quilt was like a long, painful, and difficult labor with a huge hospital bill. The baby is absolutely beautiful, angelic and everyone instantly falls in love with her. Only the mother knows the pain.
Paul: Actual physical pain?
Preeti: Yes. My back hurt from standing too long at the design wall - arranging and re-arranging the squares in the upper half.
My butt hurt from sitting too long on a foot stool (placed a cushion on day two) while working on the lower section of the design wall.
And then I was afraid like a new mom, (it took forever to come up with an appropriate quilting design) to not mess up the beautiful baby.
And just like a pregnancy, I am sure the next one will be easier. It may be a while (or a very long time) before I contemplate a second Colorwash baby.
Paul (walked menacingly towards the quilt): Well, if the quilt reminds you so much of the painful process...
Preeti:
Get out. Nobody touches my baby!
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| Mixed Feelings |
I have shared my process, my frustration, my true feelings and the final outcome so that you can make an informed decision. And I ask for the same in return - your honest opinion.
Don't try to be nice, just be true. I will be sharing with all my favorite linky parties, see full list on the sidebar.
Photo Credit - By Sidrao21 - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=74400062
