eBay quilt - Just shaking my head
 

This will be picture heavy as I still can't believe my own eyes. My question is should I continue, how, or just throw it away!! I bought a top on eBay before I started quilting, I thought it was beautiful. When I started quilting, I put it away. I am now between projects so I thought I would pull it out and work on it. I did notice a LOT of points were not that well executed. So I thought I would take it apart and re-do the points. Something I have had to do with my own quilts when points didn't match. No big deal. Holy Cow!! Not only do the points not match, they aren't even cut. I know you are saying, "What is she talking about?" My defense, look at the pictures!
This is the rows, you can see the points in the centers don't match.http://www.quiltingboard.com/attachm...d=495806&stc=1
Closer view of the points
http://www.quiltingboard.com/attachm...d=495807&stc=1
If you can see the black lines, that was how it was pieced, in a "L" shape??http://www.quiltingboard.com/attachm...d=495808&stc=1
This is with the sashing pinned backhttp://www.quiltingboard.com/attachm...d=495809&stc=1
Can you see where the pieces are connected? Who would do this??http://www.quiltingboard.com/attachm...d=495810&stc=1

Should I cut it apart and re-piece in the traditional way or just chunk the whole thing, call it a lessson in paying attention while on eBay or what??????

I have never seen anything like that .... If I had to redo this, I would square off the red squares and make a new centre block using a similar red or even a white with black quick corners.
Good luck my dear. :o)

I would say to the question (who would do this?) .... Someone who is new to quilting, is trying to learn on her own, figuring it out as she went along, doing the best she could to figure it out.... Kudos to her for trying so hard to figure out how to do something on her own! I would not have started taking it apart, I would quilt it as is, perhaps using it as a quilting practice piece and keep it as a utility quilt, maybe as my next * picnic quilt*

I agree with Tartan completely. Reds are notorious for bleeding. It would be a total waste of your time and an even bigger stressor on your part if you haven't ascertained that the red remains colorfast. Good luck with whatever you decide to do.

It is/was a pretty pattern.

Yikes! There's no way I'd spend the time to take it all apart and redo it. I'd call it an eBay lesson and do as Tartan suggested. :shock:

You thought it was beautiful when you bought it. It's not now. Your first mistake was taking it apart and trying to make it be something it never was going to be. At this point, why spend time gnashing your teeth? Either stitch it back up as is, or use the pieces to make potholders.

I'd just quilt it as is, after making sure that red doesn't fade. Too much trouble to do anything else...and it is a pretty pattern.

Dina

That's what I would do.

I would just toss it but that's my personality. I don't even want to fix my own mistakes so I sure as heck wouldn't fix someone else's! I'd find it too frustrating to have to take the entire thing apart to fix it and since quilting is supposed to be fun, I just wouldn't be able to bring myself to attempt it.

I would be at the fabric store (or in my stash) picking out the perfect fabrics to sew up a new Bear Paw quilt. Any excuse to buy fabric. :)

Is it still considered a Bears Claw block if it has 3 HST instead of 2?

Usually when a picture of something is posted on eBay, the item is shown to its best advantage. It's relatively rare, for a seller to show the 'ugly' side of something he/she is trying to sell. My guess is that the OP saw an eBay photo of the top, which the seller made sure looked pretty good.

I see no irony, in the fact that she tried to fix a few mistakes.

That is one hot mess! I would halt all attempts to salvage.

I once read that if one don't like the quilt she is working on: don't throw it away but donate it! Somewhere there is someone who likes it and is pleased to get a quilt! And there are many organisations that will make these "unloved" quilts ready and give them to someone who needs a little bit shelter or warmth!

It would be so much easier and lead to better results to just piece a quilt of your own rather than take that one apart and redo it. what a mess. I think if you really want to keep it, you just put it back the way it was and accept it as imperfect or cop it into strange pieces and make a crazy quilt out of it.

I had a friend who I had met in April and talked a good talk about being a good quilter. Just before she moved again, I was the recipient of one of her quilts to fix. Sometimes there are quilter's that see nothing wrong with what they make. I found out that my friend has ADD. I just attached the metallic gold rick rack to hide most of the mismatched seam allowances. Now I am trying to decide if I want to even attempt to put an outside border on the quilt.

I wouldn't take any more apart. If you don't want to keep it, I would still finish it and donate it. We send some of the quilts we make in the church's sewing group to Haiti or Africa where they will be appreciated.

I wouldn't take it apart and fix it. These are the options I see.

1. Someone will love the quilt and not know all the errors you see. Most quilt guilds make charity quilts. You can contact one of them and donate it as it is. They will quilt it and donate to someone.
2. You can just quilt it as it is and use it as a utility quilt....the one you use to put on the ground, wrap Grandma's dresser in it when you are moving it, etc. Or give to the dog to lay on.
3. Or you can use it as a practice quilt, to try all different types of quilting on.

Personally, I'd just find a guild and pass it on.

I would check on the red bleeding. I really believe in charity quilts so I would test it and then if its bleeds I'd finish it, quilt it and wash it with a number of color catchers and lots of water and then donate it. My guild donates many, many quilts. You can't believe the joy the quilts provide and the new owners don't care about perfect piecing.
Good luck

Yes this! I would make an utility quilt. It is just not worth it to take it apart.

I'd have left it alone and appreciated it was what it is.

I have never done this before, but, honestly, I would dispose of it and never have to look at it again. You didn't make it, you will, under no circumstances, never be able to make it right. I would chalk it up to just a bad mistake, and don't think of it again - you know, the out of sight - out of mind - thing!!!!! I am sorry you have to go through this, and much worse if you in one way or another hang on to it. I would put it in a bag and dispose of it, gently, but permanently. Whoever sold this in ebay isn't doing anything for ebay, it is making you fret over it. I have taken pieces and disposed of them. Yes, I have, and I don't remember what they were, but I do remember disposing of them, and the fact that I can't remember is my point! You probably do a million times better anyhow.

I also can understand trying to keep something for "quilter's posterity", but some just can't be. Concentrate on what you can do and make your quilt a beautious quilt, life is too short to use on something that you will never even bond with. (in my opinion, only)

I am truly sorry if I offended anyone, but there is a lot of work on this quilt top that I don't think anyone can really correct properly and I would much rather use my time and make something of my own design and after all the "work" that would have to be put into that quilt top and it being red, that would be the straw that broke the camel's back. I love making quilts, I make them with a story especially designed for the person I am giving the quilt to or keeping for myself. At 76, I don't have time to worry about redoing a quilt top that may probably bleed all over the place. I want my quilts to be set and ready when I start sewing and not have to worry about this or that. Lesson well learned and now you have the time to do the quilt you really want to do and please, don't feel guilty about not completing a quilt just because it isn't finished. Some quilts are not meant to be finished. Edie

From your pics the only points not matching were the center strip to center square...and really just a smidge off at that! Did you take apart the rows or was that how you bought it? I would resew that one that you showed as a sample of " bad seam", sew those rows together, quilt it however you choice, bind, wash to check for bleed.....and either use it yourself or donate to someone who needs it.....now it too has a story.........

I have a quilt that I made with red & white material. I had prewashed the red several times and thought I was through with the bleeding. NOT!!! The first time I washed it after I had finished the quilt, the red bled all over the white and the white part was magically transformed into a very pretty light pink. Even the white back that I used is pale pink. Since it was not going to be a "Pride & Joy", I just let it be what it was determined to be. Ironically, the white cotton thread I quilted it with did not take the red color, and the quilting looks very good. The quilt went home with a granddaughter, after she asked for it, and she sleeps with it every night.

:pJust quilt it as is... and even if it does bleed you can use it as a Picnic Quilt , just spot Dye it with Ketchup, Mustard and BBQ Sauce, a little red Wine ;), some Spaghetti Sauce:D and Chocolate Milk or Pudding:shock:... and Call it a Memory Quilt:confused::eek: ! ! or depending on where you live, the Trunk of the Car.... :o

Put it back together the way it was. Put a cheap batt and back on it and quilt it quickly, as in FMQ in a loose meander. Then see who wants it. If no one does, give to charity. Throwing it away would be senseless. Someone will need a quilt and enjoy it tremendously. I think it's pretty, mismatched seams or not. And if it turns pink, so what. And if you don't want to do the finishing, find someone who would. I would.

Remember: Better to do something imperfectly, than nothing perfectly. Done is better than perfect.

I totally agree. And maybe they had to do with what (very) little resources they had. I honestly have seen much worse. Maybe it was handed down to the person who put it on e-bay to sell so someone else would correct the mistakes without being critical. Maybe it was started by a young person just learning and wasn't able to complete and that was the best they could do.

The points were only off if you decided they were suppose to meet. It looked fine in its original except to those who had a preconceived notion of what pattern it was to be. I wonder if anyone would have looked at the finished quilt and thought, "oh the points don't match." I would have seen it as a twist on an old pattern.

The eBay seller did not deceive. She took a pic, you saw it, liked it, and bought it. Personally, I think it was beautiful for the same reason an oil painting is. When too close the painting looks nothing like a real image but when back a bit it is a complete image. I am missing the point of taking apart to fix as I don't see it needing fixing. But then I don't make or even try to make show quilts. My gang does not know each quilt design so they would never know something was off or not lined up.

If you just want something to do. I would take it all apart and see if you can make it better. If the red bleeds it will turn the white pink. Finish it up and donate it. Like many have said it will still keep someone warm.

I would not attempt to fix the blocks. Quilt it with cotton thread and 100% cotton batting, throw it in a hot water wash and hot tumble dry. When it comes out it will have all the crinkled yumminess and softness of an antique quilt and those cut off points will never be noticed!

I would put it back together, quilt it and then give it to charity. Take it to a homeless shelter and give to them. It doesn't matter if points are perfect when you are cold.

Whoever sold you this quilt got the better deal! I would not spend one more minute on this project but toss it in the trash or give it to charity!

I would put it together and do a quick method of quilting. I have bought some imperfect quilt tops and used them. Great for practicing quilting and then use as a picnic quilt or dog blanket.

I have bought many quilts off eBay and at flea markets. Except for a few, none are perfect. I love the look of the quilt and I would have just quilted it and enjoyed it. I agree with others about checking for bleeding, I would use a color catcher. Many people do not learn from classes or from their family, they just do it the best they can. I think this quilt is quite pretty even if the points are cut off.

Wash it, let it bleed, then cut and slash and make a whole new pattern and quilt using this scrappy method. I often take leftover blocks and use them as a starting point for a whole new look. I've had great success transforming many ugly blocks that never made it into a "standard normal pattern" quilt into interesting scrappy ones. And it's quite liberating!

Get it back together, quilt it, then donate it. The recipient will appreciate it.

Yes, in this case, done is better than perfect. I wouldn't "chuck it," but I would repurpose it either in parts are as a whole utility piece.

And the person who put it up on eBay must have been proud of it to put it up for sale, don't you think?

Oh My! I can see why they decided to sell it.

I agree. Since you are in the middle of no projects. Also when you look at the pictures you do not see the points are not matched so that means that you would probaly not notice it after it is quilted. If you really do not want to mess with it anymore than give it unfinished (but put back together) to a senior group or church group that will complete it and give it to chartly.