20 Done-ish

With the addition of these

 I have reached 20 blocks.

Done-ish because the top one whose pattern I saw briefly on a Facebook reel had a black centre for each intersection.  I tried various stitches and beads but did not like the look.  So I set it aside.

 Done-ish because the middle one when viewed from afar seems empty on the right side.  I will revisit later.

The last one, I couldn't find a green fabric to match the perimeter's green so I used a bit of the same tie from the cut off pieces.  Kind of like the effect.

I figure that if I do one or two blocks a day from now until I finish I should be ready for the Pomegranate Show and Share in June.  Maybe. 

Also working on the leaves for the POM Temple Emanuel project.  The quilt is being quilted this week and hopefully we will be able to attach the tree and leaves before the end of the month.  Don't know what I'm talking about?  I'll review the project with photos when the quilt comes back from the longarmer. 

One more in progress

I perhaps should have documented my process.

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 I started with a burgundy tie as background and gold centre square.  Did not like it.

Then tried a goldish orange linen look background and burgundy background.  Did not like it.

Then a burgundy duppioni background with gold centre.  this was better.  I tried embroidering the burgundy perimeter with gold fly stitches.  Did not like it.

Finally settled on this gold silk background from upholstery samples and burgundy duppioni from my stash.  the central finding is from one of my recent trips to Israel.  I have now used up all of these particular findings of which there were originally six.  Unfortunately, the guy I buy from in Tel Aviv does not have a website or do online selling.  I'll just have to travel again...

In the meantime, I am mimicing the blue colour in beading from one of Inbal's deconstructed jewellry pieces.  My hands are not cooperting with my beading right now so I'm setting it aside.

I do want to try some shibori embroidery and may even venture out to the library to see what they have to offer in the way of books.  There is plenty of stuff on youtube but I'd like to see a few patterns at the same time. 

Three More

 

Picking Up Steam

I have, until today, completed - ish 10 blocks.

I say completed - ish because after I complete the 75th block, I may revisit and decide if I want to continue.

Here are the blocks I've done so far:

I try to let the necktie fabric dictate the colours, styles and techniques I will use.  Often my original idea does not end up happening and something else does.  I am using up the bits and bobs I've accumulated over 25 years of quilting/embroidering/sewing etc. and am rediscovering stuff I made for other projects which were abandoned which now find a place.

I'm also getting to review what I have and declutter at the same time. 

 

Blocks - Continued

 Although I determined I should photograph the block before embellishment, I forget until I had done the first seam.

This is the 2nd of the crazy quilt centres.

And the finished, block.

 

Ran out of sparkly thead at the bottom of the vine...

Hands were shaking a I attached to chamsa.

I think that the spider in teh bottom right doesn't match the rest of the block but can't decide whether to leave it or what.  Just had an idea.  I may replace it but not today.

I have two crazy quilt centres left - I will wait on them and try some of the other blocks.  But not today. 

First Blocks Done

 I have started embellishing the blocks.  If you think assembling the blocks was time consuming, you have no idea how the next process works.  It is so hard to decide how to embellish.  Stitches go in and I don't like the result.  Unstitch, keep stitching?

The first two blocks are done, I think.  I started with a crazy quilt block.  I should have photographed it before I started but I didn't.

This is the finished I think block.  I think because I'm not sure if it needs anything else.

 The frame is the last of Mel's ties.  The white fabrics are family wedding dresses or fabrics.  The threads, beads and findings are those I have amassed over the years.  I am also trying not to buy anything for this project but I think I may need to - I am letting the frame tie colours dictate the white sections embellishments.  My next crazy quilt frame is primarily dark blue with hints of gold and green.  I have next to no gold threads.  I will see.

The second block is one of the ties I received from Brenda, or perhaps someone else.  This time I remembered to photograph a "before".

 

 And this is the after.

 

 Imagine it rotated left so the feathers are hanging.

The burgundy is duppioni silk from a sample from my neighbour, the upholsterer.  

For this one, I tried several things and this is how it ended up.  

 

I don't have to be in love with each piece, just to do my best to finish them estheticly. 

 

 

Now What

 

This pile has 75 8 3/4" squares with 4 1/2" white centres.

Thanks to blogging, I know that it took me 18 days to make the squares.  An auspicious number, no? 

My next step is to embroider/bead/embellish/stitch in the white centres.   This step will take longer.  Do I want to do it by myself or with friends? Do I want to work with a theme or just wing it?

How much of the white do I want to cover?

Do I want to set myself a time limit (e.g. 75 blocks in 75 days?)

I am hoping to exhibit them which will directly affect how I back them and a hanging system.

I am taking a day or two to think about it. 

So close - so far

 I have four blocks left to sew.  

 

My machine is telling me not now.  The top thread keeps breaking, making knots, etc.

So I am going to listen to my machine and say ok.  I'll do them tomorrow after I give my machine a thorough cleaning.

But in addition to the blocks on my design wall, I have these done.

 So I am doing OK.

Did I mention that I cut one half block 8 1/2" instead of 8 3/4"?  Fortunately, I have no shortage of neckties or batting so once I have the final count, I will see if I need to make more.  I also noticed that one of the ties had a cut so I'll have to replace that one too.  And did I mention that in some of the centres I sewed the interfacing to the front instead of the fabric?  It doesn't show so I'm leaving it the way it is. 

Stuff happens and artists improvise. 

Necktie Hebrew trivia

The word for necktie is עניבה (pronounced UH-KNEE-VAH).  Its root is Talmudic, referring to a knot. Also used for noose "anivat tliyah". Oy.

 

 

 

 

Did I Miscount the Squares or the Ties?

 I have just finished cutting out the white centres and the ties for the existing squares.  I have 11 ties (which I haven't cut yet) leftover.  Which means I either miscounted the squares or the ties.  Am I going to think about it now?  No.  I will start tomorrow sewing up the blocks and when they are finished I will either make more squares or figure out what to do with the ties, bearing in mind that I have enough tie pieces left over to make another 75 blocks...

In anticipation of the sewing, and seeing as I used this method before, I moved my sewing machine to my ironing surface.  I can sew standing up and thereby avoid the up and down each time I have to iron the fabrics as I sew.

This is the pile to be sewn. 

 

This is the new standing set up.

 

 And this orphan fell out from the pile...

Oh well.
 

Third of the Way There

 Well at least for the backgrounds.

 

Still Ties

 

 

 So I didn't actually do any sewing today yet.  After having ironed interfacing onto the ties I am using in my project, I was left with a bin of tie pieces.

  

My first piece of advice to anyone deconstructing ties, remove the guts, labels, and pointed end linings.  Do NOT separate the pieces of each tie until you are ready to actually use them.  I say this because I just spent a few hours matching up smaller pieces and seeing how many I have.

I now have a much smaller bin of tie bundles, each tie which has enough fabric (to do another round of what I am currently doing) is in a bundle.  I have a freezer bag with short on fabric bundles and another freezer bag with pieces which are not easily identifiable as belonging to one of the long enough bundles but I'm hanging onto them, just in case.

I also have a few polyester ties with which I am undecided what to do.  They are all striped except for one burgundy which I may use in my current project for the centre of the squares.

 And I just found one more silk tie to deconstruct... 

But I feel productive and am enjoying myself. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Use It Up

 

 I have assembled photos here for a presentation to the Pomegranate Guild of Judaic Textiles, Toronto.

This is a bin with cut off batting which I have cut off during my approximately twenty years of quilting.  I had planned to make even sized strips and reuse as batting for other quilts.  Unfortunately, I did not mark the batting to show its type or make (e.g. Warm and Natural 20/80).  As different batts shrink at different rates, it is not a good idea to join different batts in one quilt.  So I kept them for "eventual" art quilts which shouldn't be washed so the problem of shrinkage is moot.

When I started quilting with neckties, I was gifted a large quantity of neckties which had already been taken apart and they were sitting in this bin.

 

In honour of my 75th birthday, I decided to embark on year-long project turning the batting and necktie remains into these 9" inch ish (closer to 8 3/4") squares.  The center is white ish and will later be embellished, collaged, etc.

 

I started by taking the batting strips and cutting them into 11"ish strips, then straigtening the edges so the widths were even.  So were 6" wide, some were 1 1/2" wide.  I zigzagged them together and ended up with close to 75 11" ish squares.  I did not have enough batting but I had white felt from Faigie's z"l detritus and cut up some squares from that.

The pile ready to start quilting.

I had purchased a few years back a roll of fusible lighweight interfacing specifically for use with lightweight fabrics such as the silk neckties.  The neckties are cut on the bias and tend to stretch.  The interfacing prevents the fabric from stretching but does not particularly change the hand of the fabric.

I cut the fabric into 2 1/2" strips the width of the interfacing.  I needed two strips for each necktie but found it easier to cut four strips at a time.

I then chose the necktie and ironed the interfacing onto the back of the necktie.  In some ties, the back and front are the same so it doesn't matter which side you iron onto.  In some, however, there is a difference in the pattern and colours so check carefully before ironing. (I some,  preferred the back rather than the front side).

Also - very important.  The interfacing has one side with glue on it.  It is barely discernable in this photo but it has a little sparkle.  Make sure the glue side is down on the fabric when you iron.  Otherwise the glue will stick to your iron and make a mess!  BTW, if your iron gets glue on it, iron over a dryer sheet a few times and the glue will come off.

Here are strips ironed onto the fabric.

 

I cut off the excess necktie and threw it back in the bin.  And below are two samples of the difference between the front and back of the

 

Now to assembel the block.  Trim off the fabric not covered by the interfacing and set aside.  I can be used to die silk to make silk scarves or challah covers.

 

You now have 2 15" strips.  Cut each strip so that you have one 5" and one 10" strip.

Take a 5" square of white-ish fabric and place it in the middle of the batting square.  I chose white because I wanted to use up some of white wedding fabrics and fabric samples I was gifted by the neighour (upholstery and drapes).  

Take the two 5" lengths of the necktie cutting and place on the left and right of the white fabric.  Sew a 1/4" seam.  Then do a 45 degree turn of the batting piece and sew the 10" lengths on the opposite side of the white square.

 

And my last word on this post (I think), you don't have to use ties or batting.

I made these two pieces from family fabrics - the pink and green is from the dress my mother wore to my brother's wedding and the beige, brown, gold is from a skirt I wore to my nephew's barmitzvah, a frum-ish affair form which I purposely purchased a skirt with fabric I knew I would cut up later to use in my fibre art.  And you could use old sweatshirts, blankets or fleece as batting.