Ok To Just Create the Tops?
 

Is it ok to just make quilt tops? I really love the creative process: developing the design, chosing the fabrics, cutting and stitching, etc. Not so much the ripping and resewing. I love to learn new methods and techniques. I just don't care for making the quilt sandwich and basting. That part doesn't come easy to me. I even tried the Sharon Schamber method which wasn't any better. My DH got the boards for me and luckily he could return them. I have tried pinning things to no avail. I have pretty much decided that for right now I am hopeless. I know I can learn, but I am self- taught. How can I teach myself something I just haven't been able to master even poorly?

I do make strip quilts for babies using Jenny's QAYG method on the Missouri Quilt Star Company website. I have attempted other QAYG methods and found them tedious.

Right now I am excited about the quilt tops and I need something to do to keep my mind off the fact that my DH's cancer is getting worse and it looks like he will have to go back into treatment very soon which breaks my heart. I just feel that I will not be finishing what I start and I already have a few larger quilt tops that are not done. I can't afford to have someone else finish them.


I guess I will just have to give myself permission to enjoy the quilt tops and not worry about completing them now. I will be using my very small stash plus a few extra fabrics I find on sale.


My DH doesn't see a problem here and encourages me to do whatever I enjoy.
Thanks for listening. I think I expect too much of myself. Still I can't gift unfinished quilts. :):):)

It is okay to do whatever you enjoy.

You can quilt by check or just have a big top collection. Or, if you have a guild you can donate the tops for charity and someone else can do the quilting part.

Hope you DH gets better.

Nothing wrong with just enjoying the tops. you can always send them out to be finished or donate as is if you want.

Sew whatever you want whenever you can. It sounds like you need the distraction. At some point you can find a charity to donate unfinished top to or find someone to help you learn to baste or quilt by credit card. Many famous quilters seldom actually quilt the tops themself.

Have you considered making coverlets, rather than quilts, with your finished tops? Just add a backing and either tie or quilt. Less hassle than quilting with batting. You could even birth the quilts quite easily that way, and then they would be finished and useable. Whatever you do with them, it sounds like making the tops is therapy for you, and so the time and $$$ spent is beyond value in the long run.

What do you mean quilt by credit card???

There are many quilting charities who would love to have your tops. Maybe as you make them, you can put them into your collection, and then every so often go through the collection and select one or two to pass on to a charity. For me, time changes my perspective, and I can "let go" after I have "loved on" some of my work for awhile.

Of course it's okay! You're a "topper" - someone who just likes making the tops and there's not a thing wrong with that. Some people really only like doing the quilting, some people really like doing the binding...seems to me you need to do a little networking with a local guild and find people with complementary skills and then all your tops will find homes. Or just stockpile them...some day when you're less stressed/distracted you might discover a technique that works for you and then you'll have a lot of tops to practice on. :)

I'm kind of the same way...the top is the part I like. I can do the rest, but the rest feels like a chore (and I'm not as good at it) whereas making the top is a joy and is the part where I really feel like I get to express myself. To each their own! If nothing else, even if you just get rid of them when you're done it's cheap therapy. Have fun doing what you like and whatever you do DON'T feel guilty about not "finishing" them. It's your art, your therapy, and YOU decide what is and is not "finished".