And So It Begins...

First Two Borders For Wall Hanging

I spent the day in the studio assembling the first part of my bluebird wall hanging yesterday. If you've been following along, you may notice that many of my fabric choices changed. I decided to stick with more subtle colors. The batik I showed you will still be used as the outside border and back, but I'm only showing the borders and fabric choices (along the right side) for the half square triangles which will be the next border. I may add a few other appropriate fabrics as I assemble them.

There's a little tension in the fabric where I stitched the fencing, which is a bit disappointing. I tried very hard to keep my fabric taut in the hoop, and not pull too much when I was stitching, but alas, I still have to fine tune my technique. It should disappear when I do the quilting in this area, so I'm not too concerned at this point.

I placed the feathers that will be in the half square triangle bands on the corners of the main block to show you where I've yet to stitch them directly onto the fabric. The feathers on the main block will be larger than the ones you see here, but not significantly bigger. I kept this block the same size as my other two wall hangings (the robins and the cardinals) so their sizes will be consistent. The next one with the goldfinches will be the same, too. I'll stitch in those feathers after the next border is sewn to what's already done.

I got this much finished so far, and today I'll begin making all the half square triangles for the next section. The golden brown border you see here will be the same width as the darker border (1/2") after the next border is added. 

I work tonight, so I'm not sure whether or not I'll get the next border attached today. I'll surely try. Otherwise, I'll get to it asap. I'm sure you can tell now that I'd love to race to the finish line. I just want to make sure I get it right, and that it turns out the way I want it too. 

Oh, just a note. It was a conscious decision to avoid a lot of blues. I really don't want to take anything away from the needlework. What do you think so far? You like the colors I've chosen? Let me know.

What Was Misplaced Is Found

Once again, I was problem solving in my sleep. The night I told you I couldn't locate the last piece of fabric that was part of the background for the bluebirds, I went to sleep thinking about where it might be. Two places came to me overnight.

I woke up yesterday and immediately went to the first place. I pulled out a drawer and moved the contents that were toward the front. There it was, safely tucked under one of my small notebooks. Waiting for me.

I smiled as I took it from the drawer, turned on my small iron, and pressed all the folds out of it. In no time, I had drawn outlines of the feather (two of them mirror image) four times, and by dinner time last night, I'd completed all my feathers. It doesn't bother me that they aren't all exactly the same, because they don't all match in nature either. 

The lines represent the two inch squares of fabric I'll need for the corner blocks when I begin cutting the coordinating fabrics to create the wall hanging. First, I have to press and square up the center blocks with the bluebirds. Then, I'll work out from there.

I may work on more of this today, but I have a few other household tasks begging for my attention. You'll have to come back tomorrow for an update!

Shhhhhhh. I'm Hunting FABRIC!...

Elmer Fudd

 

I worked for nearly four hours yesterday, and by the time I got home and changed into my sweats, I was wiped. Even so, I wanted to pull out the ground fabric I used in the bluebird piece to start working on my feathers. One big problem. I couldn't locate it.

 

Ground Fabric For Bluebirds

I actually have it in two colorways. This one, in a tan colorway that I used for the bluebirds and cardinals, and a gray colorway that I used for the robins (and plan to use for the goldfinches). 

I went to the fabric studio shelves expecting to see it right next to the gray colorway bolt. It wasn't there. Then I remembered that I'd pulled the last of it off the bolt for this piece, and folded what I wasn't going to be using for the central block to use later for the corners. 

I spent at least an hour searching, sorting, rearranging, and yet was unable to find the last piece of the fabric. I went back to the main piece to see whether or not I have enough to tease the corners from it, and if I have to I can, but it will be tight.

I'm going to look again today. I'll go back through the places I looked yesterday, and open every container and drawer to see where I put it for "safekeeping". Needless to say, there was no feather stitching yesterday. I'll keep hunting until I find it, and perhaps I can begin that process later today. Wish me luck!