Terrible mistake- [Update] - All Fixed - See Post #97
 

OK, I made this quilt from scraps for a Quilt of Valor donation. I was quite excited that it turned out so well. I pieced it, laid it out, even took a picture of it. Then I quilted it and thought it turned out really nice, that is until I was cutting off the excess material in perpetration to bind it.

Now what do I do? Is there any way to fix this?

My first thought would be to applique something between the two star patches. Something that would connect the two to look like part of the design. A silhouette of an eagle in the red maybe?

You call it a design decision. That's what makes this quilt unique. :D

First off...Your quilt is beautiful! It looks like you just turned around 2 sections. If it were mine...I would carefull take out the quilting in just this area, sew the pieces int he right place and then requilt it. It's not as bad as you think. We have all done this. I love your quilt and the design. Don't beat yourself up over this. Just remember...there are never any mistakes in qujilting...only creative adjustments. I'm sure the person recieving this will love it!

Maryb119 has a great plan - or maybe you could find a poem or phrase about imperfections/uniqueness/and applique it there.

As a last resort, you could cut down the quilt all round and then add a further border possibly incorporating the stars again. It's really a lovely quilt though. I am sure you could unpick the area as suggested by Mary above. Good luck.

The person receiving the quilt will probably never notice or think that the pattern was meant to be that way. The real question is: Can you live with the error or will it always bother you? Your answer will tell you what to do.

Personally I would follow maryb's suggestion. I've found it's not half as bad as you would think to pick out quilting. Or you could take a white piece of fabric, embroider something on it that goes with the QOV theme (I know QOV has guidelines on what cannot go on one of their quilts, so you might need to consult with them), turn under the edges and applique it to completely cover the part of the edge that is, shall we say, "different". Then quilt that area again. It is still a beautiful quilt, and you are a very special person to be contributing to QOV.

Beautiful quilt. I would do what Maryb suggested. It will take some time but if it was my quilt I would be happier knowing it was done the way it was originally meant to be.

Yes this! It will be worth it.

You know what, I would leave it as it is. I think it gives it a really unique personal touch! That's probably not what you will end up doing, but I would have no problem leaving it as it is.

Dina

When I do things like this I weigh the balance of whether it will always bother me or whether it looks like it's supposed to be that way. I had a film strip border that would have ended up with a big white space at a corner, so I turned the last square into a pieced star. You can applique a red square onto your white sashing or you can pick out the quilting. If you decide to remove the piece, look at the bright side - the part that needs to be removed and turned around is right at the edge and you can do the unsewing while watching tv.

How about a nice label, in that spot? Maybe something with a quotation . . . .

Okay, this is probably out in left field. But here is what I would do. This is for the Quilts of Valor. How about making a replica of the American Flag? Not perfect, but with stripes, stars in the upper left hand corner. It appears that 5 blocks by 2 blocks will do it and on the last white stripe of the flag, put something like "Thank you for sharing your life for our country" or something else. This makes this quilt totally unique. Just put it across the 5 squares and it will look like you deliberately made this quilt special...my thoughts..can you tell, I have made some whoops on my own quilts??????

I did the same thing once, was right in the middle of the quilt!! Just makes you sick!! Told myself "you did it, then you can undo it". Was a lot of extra work, but looked great when I was done. Nobody but me ever knew about it!!

I'd leave it as a design decision.
K

I would not correct it. It is now what the quilt is supposed to be. Life is full of imperfections and just as those coming home from battle know better than anyone, it is a good reminder of our frailty, and our will to grow.
I would love to receive this quilt as it is.
peace

Yes, your quilt is beautiful!! I agree with this... and love that we all make "creative adjustments"!!

I love Quiltinghaven's suggestion of a flag and, if it were me, I would go with that.

Please do not do anything that defaces our nation's flag or an image of it, in any way! Our flag is not a "design"; it's a symbol of our freedom and should be treated with utmost respect. Sorry to get so emotional about this! I can guarantee most veterans will share my sentiment.

This quilt is fantastic! I'd leave it alone and give it a name...like.."in honor of our wounded warriors" and the broken stars could stand for those soldiers.

I would take that section apart and correct it, then re-quilt the corrected area. The quilt is too pretty and nice not to take the time to make it right. It will take some time, but you could take out those stitches while watching TV, and maybe it won't seem so long :o Good luck, and don't fret!

I would leave it.....nothing is perfect including quilts....I think it gives it charm and creates a conversation piece. Can you tell I hate to rip.... One quilt I'm binding now I did on a long arm with a pantograph, I just realized I missed the quilting inside one design......it has charm lol that's my story

I think it is gorgeous, and I would leave it exactly how it is. Since it is well sewn, the person who receives it (if the notice it) might sit and ponder the meaning of such a placement.

To be honest, I would simply go ahead and bind it. Let the new owner discover the "mistake" that makes this quilt unique. For me the "mistake" simply adds to the charm of a very beautiful quilt.

Although un-sewing isn't any fun, if it were up to me, I'd carefully take that section apart and re-do it. Thankfully, it's on the outer edge, so shouldnt be too bad to fix.

The quilt as a whole is beautiful; I'm sure that no matter what you decide, it will be a much appreciated gift.

i'm with maryb on this. i'd feel awful if someone did notice the boo boo. if that's not your cup of tea, though, i'd love to see a silhouette of an eagle there

Leave it. The first thing my daughter does when I finish a quilt is look fir the mistake that I always seem to make.

I would put a label in the end one, and applique a heart in the other one.

I may be dense on this but I might do this sometime so I'll ask a question. How can she take apart a quilt that is already quilted and have the quilting still look good?

I have done it (many!) times! This quilt looks like it is a medium meander. If I was to pick out the stitches, I would un-quilt it , leaving as long a tail at each end for reference as I could. Pick out the piecing, repiece, layer, and then bury each tail starting to quilt where I ended. If I didn't think I could join up to the other tail, I would quilt from the end to the edge and then do the same with the other tail of stitching. If the ends are buried, you might never see it again.

I would definitely do a fix of some kind. The quilt has a mistake, no getting around it.

1) I agree - there is a mistake in that corner -
2) I disagree - that it is terrible, it is not - it is fixable - and from what people have said, a bit of a bother, but definitely not the end of the world.

It would drive me nuts to leave it like that.

Give it a name...
 

The Falling Star...it was on purpose...

I totally agree with this quote. It might take a while to take it all out but not nearly as long as it will bother you if you don't.

As much trouble as this sounds....this would be my solution. I would be dissatisfied with anything else. Luckily, this is just a small area. Wish you luck. And I definately agree that the quilt is beautiful.

I have to agree. Look at the bright side, it is on the edge of the quilt. I have done something similar twice, both times the problems was close to the center of the quilts, one I didn't notice until the binding was done!

I agree with the applique. So it won't look like an after thought I'd do an eagle and perhaps another or two other American symbols. I definitely would not rip out the quilting. Good luck.

Suggestion by maryb119 sounds good!

may cut bottom right corner out make two new stars and requilt