Not so long ago I got pulled up and ticketed by the Quilt Police on a charge of 'puckering in a public quilt block swap'. It was a fair cop. Despite sweating blood and tears trying to make a New York Beauty block my end result was not perfect. In fact, had I not been out of my head on all the chocolate I ate to try and counteract the tears, I would never have sent it. I had no defence. And my mitigation - Oh come on its a swap, its for fun, accept best I have to give with grace and anyway I was on a sugar high - was rubbish as well. So I accepted my sentence with good grace. Fortunately the Quilt swap Judge/ hostess was merciful, despite the fact I put her in a horrible position and only gave me community service. (She did the block for me because she is competent and ever so nice, and I will do a block she trusts me on for her in the future.)
So, it was with one ear out for sirens that I took the lid of my own NYB UFO box tonight. Let me just say that at least the block I got picked up on had straight sides. Not these puppies. Their edges had curves approaching the degree of the center ones. And it appears that I am a recidivist puckerer. But you know what - if you put the blocks together and sew a straight line the seam line is straight even if the seam allowance bits are not. What is that you say? It doesn't lie flat? It does now I applied level 6 steam to it. And so the outside edges were not straight? Trim, iron, measure trim some more. And I wasn't stupid. I am aware of the three strikes sends you to the prison Sun Bonnet Sue Factory for life policy. I resisted the temptation to border it by just sewing the centre to a strip of fabric. I measured through the middle and cut to size like a good girl. Now the flimsy is a perfect 25 5/8 inch square.
And you know what, the Quilt Police are going to look at it and they are going to sit around their squad room eating doughnuts just knowing I did something heinous. But they are never going to prove it because it looks just fine!
Today was a good day for quilting whatever the quality of it...
7 comments:
and to think I've always loved that block and contimplated making a few....
and I'm sure it was pure accident that the photo is wildly out of focus... right? tell THAT to the judge. Oh yeah, that's right... you are the judge.
I heart you, Helen!
LOL - I think its great! :)
Love your post! It looks great - down with the Quilt Police I say!
It is a beautiful quilt - I admire you for your perseverance - on even trying to make a block that would have me sitting in a crying spell for decades, and putting it together despite having the quilt police looking over your shoulder.
Hey there -- any sign of a box there yet, from me to you? Love the work your doing and the police be damned!
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