Tuesday 6 October 2015

A major milestone for my la passacaglia

I went to bed very happy last night because I've completed the bottom half of my la passacaglia.  Yes, I'm 50% done!!!!


For my newer followers, I started this quilt at Christmas time.  I made about 20 rosettes between January and July, but I only started to join them up in August.

Some of my early rosettes - they're not all in the quilt yet

All the decisions required about pattern and colour mean that joining the rosettes has been a slow process. Hand sewing all those stars on takes forever too.

Two of the potential rosettes in this photo didn't make it into the quilt afterall

I am extending the pattern slightly beyond the edges shown in the book, but I do currently intend to mark a straight edge and attach a fairly plain border (or maybe two - a skinny one and then a wider one).

Some people in the facebook group are appliqueing their edges to a border so they don't lose any star points, but I think it would be too hard to fold the points down.  Others are hand piecing a plain row of pentagons around the edge and then attaching a border or binding.

Forward planning on my kitchen floor

The bottom section measures 37" x 55".  I have lots of rosettes made for the top half. I just need to decide on the placement, make the stars, and join them up.  I'm not sure if I'll manage all that before Christmas or not.


If you're thinking about making this quilt then I really would recommend allowing about one year.

28 comments:

CathyC said...

this is just so beautiful! I have enjoyed seeing this come together, and find myself tempted on so many levels :)

Karen - Quilts...etc. said...

looks great such pretty use of colors

Vicki said...

Wow! That's without a doubt the prettiest one I've seen yet! :)

Serena @ Sewgiving said...

There's nothing more satisfying than reaching a quilting milestone! I bet you slept well :) I've just reach a small milestone by buying the book ... here's to starting a quilt that will probable end up as a cushion!

Linda @ kokaquilts said...

Wow it looks great Wendy... so colourful, so vibrant! I have checked back on & off during the year, and you have stuck with it - slowly but surely - and such a wonderful result! Inspiration ++, maybe I too can tackle something that will take a year!

Sue Wild said...

It looks really fab. Well worth the year's work that it's taken, what a result

margaret said...

what an amazing piece, it is coming along so well and to have done all this since Christmas along with all your other creations, beautiful

Linda said...

Gosh, what a lot of work! Your rosettes are beautiful, the colours you have chosen are stunning. It's a work of art.

Oops-Lah said...

Just stunning! It's interesting to see how the colours all blend beautifully together once the rosettes were sewn together. What a labour of love!

Manuela said...

Hello Wendy,
it looks so amazing. Fantastic fabrics and colours.
Greetings, Manuela

Gina said...

It looks amazing. I have the book ready to go but I haven't even come close to fabric choices yet

cityquilter grace said...

a beautiful accomplishment!

Lynette said...

Oh my goodness!! Your Passacaglia is so marvelous - my favorite one that I've seen :)

Lorraine said...

Adore this quilt and it is coming together beautifully. A "massive" amount of work girl!

Sandi said...

Lovely work Wendy! I've been wondering how big your piece was, thanks for sharing the measurements. It is breath taking!

Rochelle aka Bella Quilts said...

Absolutely beautiful, Wendy. I admire the perseverance required to complete this quilt. It surely must help to the encouragement of the facebook group.

Staci said...

Wendy what a great milestone! This is really the most beautiful version of this quilt I have seen--BRAVO!!

Carli The Quilter said...

Wow, what a lot of hand stitching, but in the end a great accomplishment. Beautiful color choices Wendy.

Joan said...

Amazing! Love the colours!

JanineMarie said...

This is such a visual treat--it's a masterpiece already!

Sophie Zaugg said...

It is amazing ! Congratulations.

Heide said...

This is going to be just stunning! Love seeing your progress.

HeathersSewingRoom said...

After looking through your photos I am really intrigued by your background choice and how this is giving each rosette more of a feature in your quilt. It certainly pays to put a lot of thought into this quilt as it is very complex and I love how yours is progressing.

Capital Quilters said...

testing for Capital Quilters blog.

felicity said...

Your version of this intricate pattern is stunning. Those Kaffe Fassett colours are incredibly vibrant.

Granny Maud's Girl said...

ONE year?! I would allow at least three! I think you are making phenomenal progress. It looks truly beautiful.

lvkwilt said...

Your color choices are just spectacular...I have this quilt on my bucket list but finishing up the three EPP quilts I have in the works first. I only hope I can do half as well as you when it goes to picking fabrics! Thanks for the inspiration!

No Worries said...

Hi, yes I am an infant to quilting, but watched by Grandmother cut out hexagons, among many other things, when I'd get out of g r ade school. I'm in 50's and she hand did it all, lol, my email is either the one below or the same beginning with me.com.

IHAD TO TAKE A SEC TO TELL YOU THIS IS THE MOST BEAUTIFUL QUILT I HAVE EVER SEEN! DID NOT THINK I COULD BE SHOCKED! NOT THAT I KNOW ANYTHING, LIKE YOU & FELLOW QUILTERS, JUST MEMORIES & POSSESSION OF THOSE QUILTS NOW.

EVEN HAVE ONE FROM PATERNAL GRANDMOTHER THAT'S PUSHING 100 YEARS OLD. MY FRIEND ANGIE ADKINS, TENN., HAD TAUGHT ME A LOT BY PICS OF WHAT I HAVE OF THE QUILTS!

I ADMIRE YOU AND ALL YOU CREATIVE OVER-ACHIEVERS! I'M GOING TO ARTS PLACE-IN SCOTTSDALE AZ, SO RUSHING TO LOOK FOR NO CLUE! LOL KEEP UP BEAUTIFUL CREATION! I'LL WORK ON THE HTML TAGS FORGOTTEN