Having been given a jelly roll and a quilting book for Christmas 2010, there is no excuse not to get on with quiltmaking.

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Sunday 15 December 2013

Christmas QAL - Dec pt2 - Oh, I give up!


Well, there are times that you just have to walk away from something, and tonight has been that time!

Two days, three needles, more unpicking than I care to mention, and more thread breakages than I can hope to remember later, my Christmas Challenge piece is not completed

I have no idea what the heck is going wrong there, but go wrong it most certainly has - it's only a small piece, for goodness sake, how hard can it be to manoeuvre it under the machine smoothly? (Ans: today, impossible).  Here's a bit of the stippling that has made the cut - and that's far less even than I'd like.

I guess a cooling off period for both me and the machine, and a good oiling for at least one of us will do no harm, I'm sure.  Here is my non-red-or-green-not-bigger-than-96" entry for the QAL, nonetheless.

Despite me wanting to throw (a) the runner and (b) the machine across the damn room tonight, I have had a fabulous time on our Quiltalong weekends this year!  Oh yes!

I've had a hoot on hostess duty, and had so much fun when it's been Joanna at the helm!  Thanks to her, to QuiltSue, of course for the wacky Challenge - and everyone who has been along for the ride!

Have a very merry Christmas, one and all!

9 comments:

  1. In situations such as this my mom always says "You are not holding your mouth right!" She then proceeds to make "dramatic faces!" I always end up with happy tears. Make faces, relax and enjoy your evening.

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  2. I was having the same issue yesterday. I understand your frustration. I kept trying to start in the same place, and I finally decided to begin elsewhere, and try to end in approximately the same place. Worked like a charm. My top was embroidered, and my theory is that I had a knot where I was trying to start quilting. Good Luck! I do think it's a very nice quilt.

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  3. I love your runner and we've all been there with FMQ and I still have trouble on my ordinary machine. Take time out and after the Xmas rush you may be more relaxed and it will come right. BTW, I got the dimensions wrong and now know why everyone else was going small. I can be a right clot at times, so mine is going to be a present for someone wonderful next year. Take care.

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  4. Poor Hazel - this project has given you grief from the start. Like Sunny said - step away and the try starting in a different spot.

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  5. Your quilt is lovely, sometimes I feel machines know how to be frustrating. I haven't even tried FMQ, too scared. Next time you try, it will sew like a dream and you will be ready for next year.

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  6. Speaking as an expert (yeah, right, I'm the one whose friend takes pity on her and does the FMQ for her, remember?) I do remember reading once that a little spray polish on the bed bit, can make all the difference to getting the quilt to move around smoothly.

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  7. Did you say thread breaking? Frustration? Hurling machine and project? I know your pain. It's possible your were trying too hard. So what; there are more important things in life. I love your tree, it looks perfect in the window. I bet it smells good, too. I love to turn the lights on and enjoy the beauty of the tree.

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  8. I had a Christmas Exchange gift like that which had to be done and in the mail before December 6. They wanted Icy colors....complete blank. I went to see what they had done in the past on their page...nothing, no projects. I finally decided on doing one big block from a pattern called Swoon by Camille Roskelley it is 24 x 24. 3 trips to the LQS for fabric,to the sewing machine shop for a specialty needle, three days of nightmare quilting, thread breaking, tension problems etc. and finally I just decided done is done, bound it and mailed it.

    BTW your runner is gorgeous love the black fabric with the holly.

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  9. You are right. Sometimes you just have to walk away. I hope that when you return to it, it will be quilted with no problems at all. Good luck.

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