This blog should be called "The Adventures of a Fabric Junkie!". I am passionate about fabric, threads, colours and textures. I can record my crazy quilting, sane quilting, embroidery and everything else that I consider important in my life.

Photo shows my block for the Hurricane Katrina fund-raising quilt "All That Jazz".

Wednesday, November 08, 2006

My BIGGEST UFO quilt

This would have to be the BIGGEST UFO imaginable. I started making the hexagons in 1995 while on a plane between Australia and England and took lots of cut-out paper templates and pre-cut fabric shapes with me to work on while on holidays. I made the mistake of measuring the quilt from the floor on one side of the queen sized bed, over the top and down the other side to get the width, then I measured from the floor at the end of the bed, up the length of the bed and over the pillows (in this photo, a lot of the quilt is tucked down below the camera out of sight), and over the pillows to get the length. Then I stitched enough hexagon flowers separated by calico hexagons to finish the whole of the outside edge, thus committing myself to this HUGE size. One momentous day about four years ago, I finally reached the middle and therefore last flower and my hands shook so much I could hardly sew. Each hexagon flower has a yellow patch in the centre surrounded by two dark, two medium and two light colour co-ordinated ones. Every hexagon was hand tacked to the paper then top-sewed with tiny slip-stitches to it's neighbours. There will not be one single machine stitch in this quilt but I have to admit that I have been procrastinating about the actual hand-quilting, even though the quilt, wadding and backing is all sandwiched together and held with quilter's safety pins. It is awkward to manipulate and hand-quilt because of the sheer weight of it all and also because I am using a large hoop to keep the fabric taut. This is my UFO to finsh next year in Sandie's UFO challenge. I intend to finish it off by sewing a wide border to the backing fabric, bringing it through to the front, tucking it under the last row of flowers and then using the applique method to stitch the flowers down on the border, making a straight edge. Posted by Picasa

8 comments:

May Britt said...

It is very beautiful. I love hexagons. Have you counted how many you got in this quilt. I am working on one too, probably the same size hexagon that you have used, but it is hidden way back in my pile of ufo's or as Sandie calls it WISP or as I will call it Work in very slow progress...WIVSP

Viv and Eddie said...

Hi May Britt,
Thankyou so much for your nice comments on my quilt. I am going to make it my priority one project for 2007. from Viv

NormaH said...

Maureen, your quilt is beautiful and I know you will be glad when it's finished. An excellent challenge choice.

Julia said...

That is a big job Viv!
But it is beautiful and you must get it finished...I did a smaller one, much smaller,and I know hard hard it is to hand quilt all he hexagons.
I cheated and only quilted the centre hex and all the surronding cream ones.
Hugs

abeautifulcraft said...

Viv ... wow ..... this just looks so stunning! I cannot wait to see it completed.

Ulla said...

You made it.

Wonderful.

Ulla in the north of Sweden

crmanina said...

Just now ran across the the picture of your biggest UFO quilt while searching for Hex quilt desins. BEAUTIFUL!! What a fantastic heirloom this will make for following generations. Wonderful work. And what a HUGE project to take on! Once you get it finished you should throw yourself a wild party!!!

CAB said...

Just lovely - so glad I happened across your blog in my searching for hexagon quilts!