BINDING SPIDER LEGS

 I enlisted help from my quilty friends from Brave Patch in deciding on which fabric to use for the binding on Spider Legs.  We settled on this black and white strip.  I like to use bias binding, which means the strip will be diagonal.  

I made the binding and got it sewed on today.

Then I put it up on the wall and took the photos I need if I want to submit it to a show.

This quilt is done!  It's 63" by 81" 

SPIDER LEGS QUILTING FINISHED

 I finished the quilting on the Spider Legs quilt, made from Spider Web parts from Sherri Lynn Wood's improv workshop.  I'm very pleased with how this quilt looks.  The teal background fabric is just so much fun.  And it's always satisfying to use up scraps like I did in the black and white 'webs'.  

I used a light teal thread in the 'background' areas.  I only had a partial small spool and was concerned about running out.  But, I won!  I won the thread-chicken game.  Just barely.

ps, that's my little pin cushion, Freydis. She's in charge of my spiral eye needle.

Here is is. Almost done.

DIAGONAL QUILTING

 Now that Carpe Diem is off my mind for the most part, I can get back to quilting the neglected Spider Legs quilt which is loaded diagonally on the longarm.

I've been ignoring it and doing other projects lately.  But, I got back to it today and made a little progress.  It's now past the half way mark.

QUILTING DIAGONALLY

 I started the actually quilting on Spider Legs which I have mounted diagonally on the longarm.  It's going well.  I'm using the ruler exclusively to make straight lines in the 'background with a light teal thread, and zig-zaggy lines with black thread in the black and white 'leg' parts.

I only worked on it for a few hours, then I went back to work on the Dear Jane blocks.  I wanted to get my third and fourth one for the week done.

This is B12 and B13, which finishes off the second row.  This makes 26 blocks I've made, only 143 left to do.

B12 was all curves

B13 was an easy one to complete the week's 4.

FRIDAY FINALLY

 I finally got the backing for Spider Legs pinned onto the longarm.  I've been procrastinating about it for what seems like a very long time.  It barely fits onto the longarm because I added fabric to all the sides so the backing would be diagonal when I quilt it.  

I also loaded the batting and the top and even wound one bobbin.  Then I joined the Brave Patch Finish It Friday group.  

I was able to get the next Dear Jane block, B11, finished before I had to go in to make dinner.

CONTEMPLATING QUILTING

 I've been thinking about how I want to quilt Spider Legs.  I keep coming back to quilting it on the diagonal.  Which means loading it onto the longarm on the diagonal.  I've watched a few how-to videos on YouTube.

I think I might do it.  So, now I'm wondering how I want to quilt it.  I printed out a photocopy of the quilt and started drawing lines on it.

Since it's called Spider Legs, I thought about putting hairy spikey things on the legs.  So, one of the legs on the photo has straight spikes the other has curved spikes.  I'm leaning towards the curvy ones.  And then there's what to quilt in the black legs.

What do you think?  Any ideas or suggestions?  I'm open for input.

BACKING FOR SPIDER LEGS

 I've been procrastinating, but I finally finished making the backing for my Spider Web project.  I've named it Spider Legs because it doesn't look like a spider web anymore.  

I think I'm procrastinating because I don't know how I want to quilt it.  I've got a few ideas, but I haven't decided on anything yet.

THE SPIDER WEB BLOCKS ARE A TOP

I got all of the Spiderweb blocks made and had enough for a 7 by 9 block setting.  So, with the odd number of columns and rows I went with the diagonal setting so I wouldn't have a half of the pattern on the side and end.  

This top is 63" by 81".

NEW LOOK FOR SPIDERWEBS

 I made more Spiderweb blocks and as I squared them to the correct size I put them up on the design wall in a different configuration.

DIFFERENT CONFIGURATION

 I squared up the blocks on one side and then put them back onto the design wall in a different configuration.

Here's how that looks.  Now I need to make a bunch more blocks.

SNAKING AROUND

It is the Year of the Snake, you know.

So, here are all of the blocks I've made so far, up on the wall.

 

Now, I need to make more strip sets and make more blocks.  

A SNAKE OR A WEB?

 I thought I'd try to make snakes instead of webs.  Not sure if it will stay this way though.

STRIP SETS AFTER WORKSHOP

It was the next Improv That Block Squad workshop with Sherri Lynn Wood.  This month's block explores the Spider Web block.

We discovered two different ways to make the blocks. 

I worked on making my strip sets all day.

This is how many I have so far.

I choose to make my 'webs' in black in white for a couple of reasons.  One, the Black/White/Grey Scrap bucket is overflowing.  And two, I also remembered a memory from elementary school.  The teacher took us out behind the school in the morning, where the trees surrounded the playfield.  We took black construction paper and laid the wet spider webs on it then sprinkled flour or some kind of white powder onto them to capture a permanent record of our webs.  

Spiders are creepy, but I love the webs.

 

PUT A SPIDER ON IT

 I'm still doing improv quilting on the Quilters Playcation 2022 quilt.

And I put a spider on it.

SPIDER WEB

We've been watching Quiltfolk Magazine's Block of the Month for 2024 called "Break the Rules".  Every month they talk to Roderick Kiracofe about his book Unexpected and Unconventional.  Roderick talks about one (or sometimes more) quilt(s) in the book.  This month was the Spider Web quilt.  

That reminded me of the Spider Web quilt I made years ago.  I got it out and took pictures.

Back in the late 1990's at Pieces Quilt Shop, a group of us had gotten together to make some quilts with lots of different plaids.  Everyone contributed fabrics, so there was a lot of plaids.  We'd throw the pre-cut plaid pieces in the middle of a big conference table and we'd all set up our machines around it and pull out pieces and sew, sew, sew.

This Spider Web was made from strips of the plaids from that time.  I didn't finish it until January of 2004.  I quilted it on my domestic machine, a Bernina 1230. We use this quilt.

I had this really great weird fabric that was perfect for the backing.