I believe this quilt says it is "DONE". No other border needed. It just wouldn't fit the time period of the quilt if I added MORE to it...you know?
The one thing I hate about not putting a border on.....it doesn't leave a fudge factor for trimming and squaring the quilt once it is quilted. I look at antique quilts...did they square off their corners and make sure everything was perfectly straight and the corners were at the perfect angle before adding binding? No. They quilted it, and bound whatever shape the edge turned out to be. How come we have turned ourselves into such "straight edged and perfect corners" quilters?
But there you have it. I know if I quilt this the way that it is now, that the quilting will distort the edge a bit, it's the nature of the beast, fabric is a semi-fluid medium. When I go to square it, I'm going to lose enough in that 1" outter edge of the sashing that it will be wonky to the eye! My main thought for borders is that it gives you a wider place to trim off and it doesn't look so obvious if you shave a bit off here and a bit off there to square the quilt.
Talula would have just bound it and been done with it....no matter if there were bumps along the edge, and the corners weren't perfect.
Why do we (I?) get so worked up about this?!
Bonnie
22 comments:
It's beautiful, Bonnie!
Just beautiful! I love the colors. And to answer your questions:
How come we have turned ourselves into such "straight edged and perfect corners" quilters?
I think it's because we don't need our quilts. I try to remember that when mind don't turn out perfect, but I'm still rather new at this quilting thing :)
Very nice quilt Bonnnie. I go along with Talula, I don't worry to much about the perfection. I look at the use and charm. Maybe that is why I will never receive any ribbons when I enter my quilts in shows. I just like the beauty, function, and uniqueness of a quilt. Perfection is boring. I love your quilts and your patterns.
It is perfect Bonnie !!It is so charming . I hope that it is a bit cold when I am at your house.. mmmm I can dream under these quilt s:-) I never sqaur up the corners of the quilt after it is quilted. I just bind it as the way it is.
If it bothers you that much - and obviously you know it shouldn't - you could block it square instead of trimming it square. I know a lot of quilters do that. Of course the catch is you need a large carpeted area free of furniture to do it.
Much better that you just don't worry about it. It looks terrific.
In Talula's day, there probably weren't quilt shows. Maybe county fairs? When did county fairs come into vogue? I digress. There were no "quilt police" (judges). I'm all for ignoring such piffling items like points and squareness. Long live maverikness (another made up word)!
Hope Sadie is better today.
Love your Talula-inspired quilt!!! Can't wait to see what you do for the quilting.
And I had a good chuckle at your *fudge factor!* We are a crazy lot, aren't we!
I'm sure it will be all the more beautiful for its slight maverickness when it comes to binding :-)
I reckon the reason we have all turned into such "straight edged and perfect corners" quilters is 'the dreaded quilt police' - even those of us who don't bother entering competitions get caught up with the pc-ness of quilting - sometimes it's great to just go with the flow :o)
Another wonderful quilt - it's so friendly, warm, with just a little bit of quirky. Love it, and really love the binding/sashing.
I have long been a fan of T-quilts and this example is stunning. It finishes nicely as it is, without further bordering. It will be just great!
Why DO you worry about it? Just stop already. I remove excess batting and backing using a rotary cutter and a small ruler, cutting only about 2" at a time. I stopped making things straight and square ages ago when I lost 2" from around the quilt and it still wasn't any squarer. I've learned it just doesn't matter. Let the quilt be.
I like that you can ask Talula for advice, and love how she helped you. Your quilt is beautiful!
Yep, it's done. If it ends up a bit fluted around the edges just stay stitch before putting the binding on. Great quilt.
Been lurking for a while Bonnie but love what you have been doing - the quilt is magnificant. My quilts are never squared before or after quilting. I figure I'm human, not a machine and there fore those small quirks like wiggly edges are perfectly acceptable. Besides the quilt will still keep someone special warm whether it is straight or not.
I love your T quilt. Our middle son has been called T since birth. He is now 16 and I know his graduation quilt is going to have to be a T quilt. You have gotten me thinking about it again.
It looks finished to me! And so what if it's a bit wonky on the edge after it's quilted. It'll still be beautiful and keep you warm in the winter.
Fantastic quilt --- very stunning! Great job, Bonnie! I love it!
It is wonderful! I agree - it needs no further border! And as for trimming - I say you go with this one the way it ends up!
I've never made sure it was completely square. I put my largest 15" square on the corners and put the long ruler up from that, but if it cuts too much off I move it over to compensate. NO worries! Maybe you could sew a 2" red border on and use that to trim to a sortof even 2" border on the red. Just a thought!
Thanks for saying un-quilted tops are not UFO's I don't think mine are either. They are waiting in line to be quilted but I can only go so fast!
Love that setting Bonnie! It really makes the blocks stand out. Fun colors also. Clever lady!
Great quilt! I love the border you used. It really tied everything together and made it interesting.
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