Getting Close

"Advice is what we ask for when we already know the answer but wish we didn't."

Erica Jong

Oh, this quotation is so true, at least for me, but today I am not asking for advice. I'm boldly showing you what I've decided to do! The picture above is a quick preview of how I anticipate Jockeying for Space will be finished out. I've loosely wrapped the batik fabric around a stretched canvas 12 x 12 inches and laid the trimmed quilt on top. I could just as easily make a mount out of the batik, but I wanted to try this other method of attaching a quilt to a stretched canvas that is now all the rage.


I always felt this quilt was not going to stand for perfectly squared up sides. This slight arc treatment is what I decided on - almost a cathedral window effect. I cut several frames from paper to test my idea, then realized I could just pin the frame in place and use the edge of the paper as a guide to run a line of stitching around the outside. Once that was done, I trimmed close to the stitching. Next step will be to sew this to the batik and couch yarn over the edge. I think I will lightly twist together the sari silk yarn and the dark blue chenille to make a visible outline.

Tomorrow I go on retreat...well, sort of. My Midwest friends are gathering again for a weekend of quilting but I'm not able to join them, at least, not physically. Instead, I plan to join them in spirit, pretending I am there with them, sewing away on a typical retreat project, checking in by phone throughout the weekend, and ignoring normal responsibilities. I've spent time this week "preparing" my project like one does, picking fabric, doing some math and cutting my pieces so that once I "arrive," I can concentrate on sewing. If I tire of that project, I'll pull out the wall quilt I took to last year's retreat and continue hand quilting it. It won't be the same as being in the same room with them, laughing and sipping wine and getting opinions and soaking in and giving out some oohs and aahs, but it's the best I can do.