When Alyce asked if I'd like to be a part of this blog hop, I jumped at the opportunity! Kate Spain's fabrics are the first designer fabrics I really fell in love with and I've had a soft spot for them ever since buying that first charm pack several years back! However, there is a dark spot in my Kate Spain history...
Scene: Summer 2012. A girl and her sewing machine. Fat quarters of coveted Fandango and a rotary cutter, along with an IKEA down comforter to use as batting. She should have felt the chill in the air when she opened up that flat comforter and it started expanding like a Macy's Thanksgiving Day balloon. She obliviously kept on.
Cutting precious Fandango.
Painstakingly piecing delicious Fandango.
Never knowing the devil sitting next to her, in the form of imitation down. EVER EXPANDING.
That's right, folks- I decided to use a stinking IKEA down (?!) comforter as batting for a quilt with precious Fandango that I had been hoarding. What was I thinking?! In all fairness, that comforter starts out REALLY flat when it's shrink wrapped! But, holy cow, once you unwrap it, it grows like my waistline at Dairy Queen.
I didn't take any pictures of the quilt after the actual quilting at the time... it was all too devastating! Oh my goodness, you have no clue how upset I was. At one point I thought "Well, maybe I'm just not meant to sew! But, darnit... I just bought fabric at Sewn last week. What am I going to do with all this dang fabric if I stop sewing?!" So, I decided to keep sewing but shoved my lumpy, hot mess of a Kate Spain quilt deep into a box of WIPs so I wouldn't have to relive the horror. ;)
Fast forward to when Alyce asked me to be in this blog hop... and I knew it was time to face my truth. It was time to pull my nemesis out and show it who was boss!
First, I assessed the situation. And was a big girl and photo documented the hot mess.
 |
| oh.my.word. |
I thought about ripping all of the stitching out until I realized I would rather shoot myself in the foot first. Look at that tension!
I decided that the best thing to do would be to cut the quilt top completely up...
and make two piles of fabric- one with the crazy tight stitches and the other with the strips that hadn't been quilted.
Now I had something to work with!
I decided to take the non-quilted fabric pieces, square them up and make a mini quilt for a friend! Everything is coming up daisies now, I tell you. :)
Ready for the reveal?!
I love the way this turned out! Plus I have all of those extra bits that I cut out to make more projects with. I see a future bright with Fandango pillows, friends. :)
So, that is how I almost lost faith in sewing (oh, the humanity!) but how instead I made lemonade out of lumpy, rotten lemons! Have you ever had any sewing catastrophes? I hope I'm not the only one! :)
PS: Make sure to visit the other stops on the blog hop and link-up your own Kate Spain projects. There are FANTASTIC giveaways, tutorials and an interview with Kate herself!
Monday June 3rd - Interview with Kate Spain
Tuesday June 4th - Interview Part 2 and Jane at QuiltJane
Wednesday June 5th – Christa at Christa Quilts
Thursday June 6th – Kimberly at Fat Quarter Shop
Friday June 7th – Laura at Quokka Quilts
Tuesday June 4th - Interview Part 2 and Jane at QuiltJane
Wednesday June 5th – Christa at Christa Quilts
Thursday June 6th – Kimberly at Fat Quarter Shop
Friday June 7th – Laura at Quokka Quilts
Monday June 10th – Chrissy at Sew Lux
Wednesday June 12th – Julie at The Intrepid Thread
Thursday June 13th – Kristy at Quiet Play
Friday June 14th - Link up your favourite Kate Spain project! and Lynne at Lily’s Quilts
Wednesday June 12th – Julie at The Intrepid Thread
Thursday June 13th – Kristy at Quiet Play
Friday June 14th - Link up your favourite Kate Spain project! and Lynne at Lily’s Quilts
Monday June 17th – Alyce at Blossom Heart Quilts
Tuesday June 18th – Heidi at Fabric Mutt
Wednesday June 19th – Melissa at Ms Midge
Thursday June 20th – Jess at The Elven Garden
Friday June 21st – Janice at Better Off Thread
Tuesday June 18th – Heidi at Fabric Mutt
Wednesday June 19th – Melissa at Ms Midge
Thursday June 20th – Jess at The Elven Garden
Friday June 21st – Janice at Better Off Thread
Monday June 24th – Diane at From Blank Pages…
Tuesday June 25th – Gemma at Pretty Bobbins
Wednesday June 26th – Kara at Me And Elna
Thursday June 27th – Readers’ Q&A with Kate Spain at Blossom Heart Quilts
Friday June 28th - Link up your blog hop projects!
Tuesday June 25th – Gemma at Pretty Bobbins
Wednesday June 26th – Kara at Me And Elna
Thursday June 27th – Readers’ Q&A with Kate Spain at Blossom Heart Quilts
Friday June 28th - Link up your blog hop projects!
oh man, what an adventure, but I love what you ended up with!
ReplyDeleteMaybe the down comforter would work with a much more open quilting? I think that would actually be good we have one and it gets bunchy in different areas.
LOL! Oh dear! Good save in the end - look forward to seeing how you salvage the rest.
ReplyDeleteGreat repurposing!!! I would of thrown it in the scrap pile:) haha!!!
ReplyDeleteYou are so awesome! I love that you were able to face your fear and make something beautiful after all! xoxox
ReplyDeleteoh my goodness, how amazing are you for going back to this and turning a disaster into something gorgeous and useful?
ReplyDeleteAll's well that ends well! Such a fun read :)
ReplyDeleteI don't think I would hid it the first time. But I do know what you mean. I would have finished it to begin with then donated it to charity. Someone would have appreciated the lumpy quilt you made. You were very brave to confront your biggest mess there although from your pictures I really couldn't tell how bad it was. I too had a "mishap" with a top. By the time I realized it, I was almost finished with the top. So I kept going.
ReplyDeleteOOOOOh Girl!! You did an AWESOME job!! Proves what I always say..."Ya never make a mistake, ya just change your mind!" LOL You changed your mind & created pure Awesomeness!!! Proud of you!! :)
ReplyDeletewow, you did a great job making it into something useable! Yes, I have plenty of sewing catastrophes. I keep mine deep in a box somewhere hidden:)
ReplyDelete