Whew! A Friday Sprint to the Finish Line!

It's still Friday and despite the odds, I finished the strip quilt! WOOHOO! I was able to mostly tame the wavy borders that plagued the quilt.  I had two feet of sewing left on the binding and . . . WTF?? No really, that was actually uttered and I think you will agree, it was appropriate - the spool of thread RAN OUT!! And it was 5:26 p.m., guess what time the quilt shop closes? So, I did what any industrious person would do. . . I popped that bobbin right out (which did not have much thread on it either) and manually spun about half of it onto the empty spool and off I went. . . I did this THREE times. . . I have about a foot of thread left. No really, a foot.  That's it! Talk about way too close for comfort!

For your viewing pleasure, here is my strip quilt (which I did not like making, LOVE the way it turned out and quite honestly, like the back better than the front):

The quilting on the front adds loads of texture but can't really be seen, except in that black border :)

I was afraid I was going to have problems with tucks in the main part of the quilt, but I did not YAY!  There are a few in the border but I'm hoping that washing will make what is now not too bad considering how wavy (think HUGE tidal wave) those borders were.

This is a close up of the back, never mind those wool flecks :) I took this to show you the stitch quality I am getting with the Janome 8900 - freakin AMAZING! Those are curves and no, I was not going slow!

TA DA! This is the back, if it were my quilt, this would always be the front!! :)

And a few lot more close ups of the quilting on the back - I looked.  I could not find ONE place in which the tension wasn't pretty much perfect.

Quilt Stats:
Size: About 65" x 70"
Fabric:  Timeless Treasures Tonga Batiks Falling Leaves collection
Batting: Wool of course!
Thread: Two full spools of Superior Threads Butternut 40 Wt

What did I learn in making this quilt? First, I do not like making strip quilts. I absolutely love the look.  Do not like the process one little bit.

Second, if your gut tells you that the back should be a front - go with it :)

Third, if your gut tells you to remove those borders, remove the borders.  I actually could have gotten away with just removing one side.  I chose not to.  I was then going to add another layer of batting in the border - do a little creative tapunto ;), but I didn't. It was slow going on one side but the design in both borders made it almost painless and wrinkle free :)

Fourth, there is a reason quilting 101 says to measure the width and length of the quilt and cut borders accordingly. . . I am now sheepishly grinning and red faced because here is another confession. . . I have never not once done it and have never had a problem. . . . now I know. And I'm never making another quilt with a border ;) haha

I am now off to sandwich my problem child OK, OK, it wasn't the quilt top that was the issue, it was bad planning on my part - at least I know there are NO waves!  I have thread (better order more of that just in case. . . ), I have batting and I have the backing.  I will start quilting in the morning! YAY 

Linking up with Finish it Up Friday, TGIFF, SewJo Saturday and maybe a few more ;)

Until next time, keep on quilting!