Intense and rewarding
When I headed off to Sewjourn last Friday evening for a weekend workshop with Kellie of Don’t Look Now! I really didn’t realise just how much hard work it would be! I anticipated that there would be wonderful company, and there was. I anticipated that we would be completely pampered and well-fed by Jan, and we were. I anticipated that Kellie would be inspiring and encouraging, and she was. I even anticipated that there would be inadequate sleep, and that certainly was the case. But boy, learning a new skill was difficult!
Our evening began with introductions and a trunk show by Kellie, where she outlined her quilting journey and the path she has travelled to the style of quilting that she does today. Fascinating! She showed us numerous quilts and quilts-in-progress from the first lot of quilting fabric she bought (still not made up into a quilt!) to recent quilts and cushions. Kellie is quite intuitive and the styles and colours that she loves to work with are reflective of her personality – she uses the fabrics and colours that sing to her and resonate. I think that this is why they are so beautiful – she is true to herself with what she makes.
We then headed over to the studio to choose which practice piece to work on – Kellie had three simple cushion designs to choose from. Coincidentally we all chose the same one! Fabrics were chosen, the applique design traced, and eventually we all headed off to bed (somewhere around 2.30am, gulp).
After waking up early for a brisk morning walk and some delicious breakfast we were back in the studio learning how to do raw edge applique. This is when I began to realise just how much I had to learn.
The applique is attached with a fusible product then with free motion stitching as close to the edges as possible. When done well, the two or three lines of stitching that secure the edges are pretty much on top of one another rather than beside one another. I found this incredibly hard to do properly. So mine is a more “sketchy” style of stitching (since I couldn’t manage to do otherwise)!
Once all the applique was in place, Kellie showed us how to do a few different styles of free motion quilting.
These photos are Kellie’s quilting by the way, not mine! Just look at how perfect those stitches are – all even, and done without a stitch regulator – and how precise the curves are. We focused on learning one type of quilting design over the weekend, this one with spirals and curves.
By mid afternoon I was about ready to pull my eyelashes out individually as I thought it would be less painful than quilting. I just couldn’t get the hang of it, and I REALLY wanted to! I had a try on Kellie’s super duper sewing machine to see if it was all user error or whether I could blame my tools. Some of it was my tools (my old Pinnock was never designed to do what I was trying to get it to do) but there was plenty of user error taking place too. Eventually instead of getting more frustrated I went to bed for a nap, and as it turns out that was the best thing I could have done.
After a nap, dinner and conversation I was back in the studio doing more practice. I made up another three practice quilt sandwiches and just kept on going until the process felt more comfortable. I finally listened properly to Kellie’s sage advice on how to hold the fabric and how to move it and slowly and gradually it all began to fall into place. I quilted well into the night with Jan and Kellie keeping me company. Even when I went to bed I kept on tracing out quilting designs in my head! The next morning I was into the studio early – I simply HAD to get it figured out.
Finally I moved onto the cushion front and began quilting away. A number of hours and a lesson on constructing the cushion later I ended up with this.
Although it comes nowhere near the perfection of Kellie’s quilting and I still have quite a way to go with the raw edge applique I am actually quite pleased with my first finished cushion!
So for me the weekend had a little of everything – lots of fun, good food and drink and great company, but also some exhaustion, frustration and almost tears. Luckily like many good dramas there was a happy ending, and I have shown myself that rewards can come when you want them enough and work hard towards them.
And what about everyone else’s work? I tell you, this was an extremely talented group of women! Just look at those beautiful fabric combinations and superb stitching. Something that I particularly enjoyed and appreciated was how encouraging and supportive the group was of one another. There wasn’t competition but there was plenty of assistance, reassurance and praise.
Thanks to lovely Leah for this photo – you can also read her account of the weekend over here. Clockwise from the left we have Jan (the host with the most), Kerry, Mary (who travelled from Canberra to be with us), Kylie, Donna (who travelled from Canberra with Mary), Kellie (holding Leah’s gorgeous project) and me!
I still need to hand-sew the binding in place on the back of the cushion, but otherwise it’s finished. I came home exhausted (hence it taking until now to manage a blog post) but highly satisfied. As well as learning a new skill, I learned a little more about myself. Thanks again to Kellie and Jan and everyone else who was there for such a great weekend.
And now I’d better head off to bed (and dream of a Bernina 440 or even an 820…)
It looks stunning. You have got it so neat around the leaves, it looks very professional.
Well I love it! It looks so cute! What a pretty design and the sewing is beautiful!
Applause for being so tenacious. It’s beautiful! There’s a bit of green enviousness over at colourdujour. I’ve admired Don’t Look Now for some time now.
Wow, what a great effort! I think your cushion looks lovely.
You’ve summed it up perfectly Lara!!! And the tiredness……that’s the reason there’s no blog post from me yet! But lots of fun! This time next year??
PS Your ‘blog finished’ cushion looks great
Oh lara, isn’t it an awful feeling when you just can’t “get it”. In your situation I would have had a tantrum at myself for sure.It sounds like you did the right thing. I am so plesed it worked, dead jealous of your new skills and think your cushion is spectacular !
Your colours are spectacular!
You did a fantastic job. All that hard work definitely paid off. It looks awesome.
What a beautiful outcome Lara. Persistence is definitely the key!
Well done Lara! I am so impressed, your tree and quilting looks amazing.
There is nothing I don’t love about this post.
When I saw this pics pop up in flickr I thought that they were supposed to be sketchy & thought…”this must have been a challenge for Lara”. I LOVE the thread sketched look. Stick with it!
I love that you try, try & try again. I love that you’re always keen to learn more. I love you!
Looks great Lara, I knew you would finish it. Thanks again for a great weekend and your (and everyone elses) encouragement. I promise to practice practice practice.
Kerry
It’s beautiful. All of the ladies projects are beautiful. My brain has hiccups just thinking about trying it out, I don’t think I have the determination you seem to.
it’s soo gorjuss..you’re too hard on yourself Lara. I would have been just like you though and persisted till I got it right. well done.
Can you bring it on Thursday for show n’ tell if your coming ( :
Machine quilting eventually does just “happen” and it all comes together in a crash, sometimes! You seem to have mastered a lot in a very short period of time, so well done! And it becomes addictive too.
The cushion is so beautiful. I love Kellie’s work – may have to head for a workshop down your way myself one of these days!
WOW! You’ve done a fantastic job! It’s just lovely!
I can see how the perfectionist in you must of been screaming, that is kind of funny to us non-perfectionists. The outcome though is really great. It really is a fantastic technique, I am really interested
Your cushion looks amazing.
I also have a machine that is not really very good at quilting, and dream of a newer one, but I love my machine for everything else, so figure I will have to make the quilting work for me on it.
I had a giggle to know that Kellie stayed up into the night with you – does that woman ever sleep (I know Kellie well enough to know that the answer is not much)!
Kellie may be taking a class for our guild in September, so I hoping to get a go at this kind of quilting.
Looks like you mastered it, and are going to be itching to quilt some more. Quilted Winter clothes perhaps?
Amazing – very inspirational – I want to make one!!
Wow! I bet you had a great weekend! I am really impressed with your final result – those swirly bits must have been really tricky, especially when you got close to the applique. I hope me and my sewing machine can hack it when we do a workshop with Kellie later in the year.
Simply wonderful post, Lara! Like the other commenters, I admire you for your tenaciousness and your persistence. From here it seems like it was all worth it, it’s truly beautiful.
I love the sketchy look too, deliberate or otherwise.
Congratulations!
Lara, your work is FANTASTIC! I would love to have a go at Kellie’s workshops. It really appeals to me. Good on you for persevering.
Lara, sometimes when I look around blogland, I get the impression that all the lovely work I see comes naturally. I like the fact that you shown how the finished piece came about through hard work, persistence and practice (though I am sure your eye for colour and beautiful sewing skills were involved somewhere there too).
It is without doubt a really stunning piece! Your quilting look amazing. Today a cushion …. tomorrow a quilt!!!
So proud of you Lara! I think your cushion is just stunning and worth all that hard work.
Oh gorgeous, I love the fabrics you’ve used, you’ve done such a wonderful job. Looks like everybody did.
Lara! Excellent post! I so hope you keep up with free motion stitching … it really is relaxing once you get the hang of it!!!!!
Thanks for a great weekend!
Kelliex
Hi Lara – have just found your blog through Kellie’s. I’m doing her class in Canberra in two weeks so was fascinated to see what you all got up to at Sewjourn. Your quilting looks fantastic – what an effort! I am a little scared though… but very excited! Keep up the good work! Danielle
Thanks for giving the background story of the hard work that went into your beautiful cushion cover. If you had just shown the pictures, I would have assumed you had been doing machine quilting for years. Congratulations on your persistence, and the lovely result.
Lara – don’t sell yourself short – I think your quilting and raw edge applique looks fantastic! Congratulations on your hard work – it sure paid off 🙂
Lara, I have done that workshop (the same cushion pattern too!) with Kellie and I have complete empathy with you for learning how to free motion!! It was a lovely sort of torture for me as well with it not clicking for me after it seemed everyone else was ‘getting it’. I finally did ‘get it’ and although I’m not a star yet, I feel as you did. Happy to have gained a new skill. Glad you enjoyed it!
WOW that is absolutely gorgeous. Your quilting is inspiring me to keep plugging along with my own.
WOW! What a great accomplishment! I think it looks great and am excited to see all the wonderful things you do with your new found skill :o)
Fabulous Lara, I would not beat up on yourself…….u came thru with flying colours…looking forward to what else u will do
i can’t believe you did that beautiful work with your first go at free motion quilting – it’s fabulous!
fmq is a bit like early days of breastfeeding – it really helps if breathe out and lower your shoulders because they creep up with tension and then nothing flows!
isn’t sewjourn the best?? i had such a good tme there and can’t wait to go back
Beautiful quilting! What a wonderful technique for you to learn. I think your first piece is amazing!
You’ve done a wonderful job with this. I can’t believe that you’ve just started learning to machine quilt. Be proud.
I really REALLY love this. Well done!