i understand why so few people make frank lloyd wright quilts.
01-16-2014, 02:28 PM
#1
Senior Member
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Join Date: Apr 2012
Posts: 764
i understand why so few people make frank lloyd wright quilts.
as a test for a commission later in the month i decided to make one of jackie robinson's quilt patterns from her 1995 book "quilts in the tradition of frank lloyd wright."
i also thought it would help me improve my piecing and cutting accuracy by demanding a kind of precision i haven't attempted before. my cuts and seams are much better than i can usually expect from myself, but the pattern is wholly unforgiving. i knew that going in, but right now that's not helping.
the patterns are complicated. i have already learned that switching out the plain background for a complimentary directional print meant that i should absolutely NOT have precut. i should have cut as i needed pieces.
there is probably a quilt brain savvier than mine that could sort out how to strip, chain or construct the blocks or elements in a more efficient way, but i thought i should follow each step as closely as possible on my first run so... the piecing is slow, tedious and awkward. following her rule that one must always press toward the coloured pieces means you are pressing over bulky seams a lot of the time.
element lengths are not given, and using fat quarters instead of full width fabric has resulted in a truly staggering amount of waste for angled cuts, though i will reuse the pieces elsewhere. this is another thing someone with more experience would probably have recognized, but is not noted anywhere in the directions.
the quilt won't be perfect, but it will be far more accurate than some of my other work, and hopefully i will carry over the lessons learned from it. but right now i kind of hate the whole project.
aileen
i also thought it would help me improve my piecing and cutting accuracy by demanding a kind of precision i haven't attempted before. my cuts and seams are much better than i can usually expect from myself, but the pattern is wholly unforgiving. i knew that going in, but right now that's not helping.
the patterns are complicated. i have already learned that switching out the plain background for a complimentary directional print meant that i should absolutely NOT have precut. i should have cut as i needed pieces.
there is probably a quilt brain savvier than mine that could sort out how to strip, chain or construct the blocks or elements in a more efficient way, but i thought i should follow each step as closely as possible on my first run so... the piecing is slow, tedious and awkward. following her rule that one must always press toward the coloured pieces means you are pressing over bulky seams a lot of the time.
element lengths are not given, and using fat quarters instead of full width fabric has resulted in a truly staggering amount of waste for angled cuts, though i will reuse the pieces elsewhere. this is another thing someone with more experience would probably have recognized, but is not noted anywhere in the directions.
the quilt won't be perfect, but it will be far more accurate than some of my other work, and hopefully i will carry over the lessons learned from it. but right now i kind of hate the whole project.
aileen
Last edited by stillclock; 01-16-2014 at 02:41 PM.
01-16-2014, 02:42 PM
#4
Senior Member
Join Date: Jul 2012
Location: Kaua`i
Posts: 617
Uh oh! I wanted to use FLW window designs as a jumping off point to design my own quilt for DD & SIL who adore FLW.
Glad I read your review of this book. It's out of print and the prices for it on amazon are ridiculous. But there are colouring books with patterns that look perfect.
Maybe it's time to invest in EQ7 .........
Glad I read your review of this book. It's out of print and the prices for it on amazon are ridiculous. But there are colouring books with patterns that look perfect.
Maybe it's time to invest in EQ7 .........
01-16-2014, 02:51 PM
#6
Super Member
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: Sonoma County, CA
Posts: 4,299
This photo has a mistake? I don't see it!
I love the colors you've selected! I'm going to have to look these quilts up! Not necessarily to try for myself, but just because it looks like it's probably a really cool pattern.
I love the colors you've selected! I'm going to have to look these quilts up! Not necessarily to try for myself, but just because it looks like it's probably a really cool pattern.
01-16-2014, 02:57 PM
#8
Super Member
Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: RVing in USA and Canada
Posts: 1,413
Wow, you may hate the project right now, but it is absolutely beautiful. Your color choices are stunning. I hope you can step back from it for a bit and return to it with new found joy. It is going to be a true treasure.
01-16-2014, 03:12 PM
#10
Super Member
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: Texas
Posts: 5,500
This quilt will be beautiful. I love it. I am very fond of Frank Lloyd Wright architecture, but I had no idea that there were quilts that had been inspired by his beautiful windows. Just wow! I had a great time reading about Frank Lloyd Wright quilts, and if the price of the book wasn't so high, I might consider trying to make one...emphasis on the "trying."
Your quilt is just wonderful. I am sorry that you currently hate it, but I understand that feeling well.
That feeling will pass and you will have a great quilt.
Dina
Your quilt is just wonderful. I am sorry that you currently hate it, but I understand that feeling well.
That feeling will pass and you will have a great quilt.Dina
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