Do you ever get an idea for a quilt in your mind and you need to see it realized, no matter how time consuming it is? Yeah, that is me right now. I love drawing up a design and then figuring out how it can actually be sewn. It’s like doing a brainteaser.
If you read my blog, you know how much I LOVE flying geese. I wanted to make a Mariner’s Compass completely from flying geese. Here was my photoshop design:
It’s only 320 geese. That’s not so bad, right? The diameter of the circle is 40″
I drafted the templates in Photoshop, then printed them out half-scale and taped them together to make sure they would work.
It’s always fun to see a pattern coming together. Here is the inner circle.
Inner and middle circle completed. I was so ready to slap a background on it and call it done, but I am persisting!
Currently I am working on the last 32 (yes, 32), templates. They are all identical, except for the colors, so I am working on all of them at the same time.
Half done!
A few people have asked me how I get my paper-piecing to look so smooth. First, I press after every seam. I think it helps tremendously. Second, before I take a photo, I place my work on two layers of batting and press with steam. I leave it on the batting to take the photo. If you scroll two photos up you can see a lot of wrinkles on my geese, but once the papers are removed and it’s pressed onto batting everything looks crisp and smooth.
Hopefully I can update a finish soon! I still need to figure out what fabric to use for the outer background (to square it all off). Any ideas?
Since you used all solids for the geese…..and your inspiration was Mariner’s Compass perhaps a mottled blue…or a variegated blue batik to represent the sea and sky?
I can’t wait to see the finished piece.
Wow! What a beautiful design and execution. Your original photoshop picture has a dark background. What about using a gray?
That is going to be amazing!! I like the dark background on the drawing, too.
Gah! I love it! Keep going … I’ll cheer you on from Australia 🙂
Um. Wow.
Like, really, wow.
Did I mention wow?
Ditto what Katie said. Just WOW! I hope you are going to share or sell the pattern! SO amazing! I like the idea of a dark charcoal gray for the background too, lets the center SHINE!
This is brilliant … a wee bit crazy. But mainly brilliant!
My opinion is that it is very cool as a circle and maybe leave it that way and don’t square it off. 🙂
Such an amazing quilt!
P.S. I just pinned it to my Quilts that Inspire board….. 🙂
You nut! This is fabulous! My choice for the background would be to use some sort of stripe (probably black and white) and then pieced so the stripes radiate outward. (If you’re tired of it, you can give it to me when the geese are finished and I will ‘slap’ that background on it 😉
Just wonderful!!! I can’t wait to see it completed. Will you be sharing the pattern?
This is AMAZING!! It will be so worth the effort!
I’m with some of the others – a dark gray background. And I’m definitely interested in the pattern – I’d buy if you sell!
I love this pattern. Your work is so beautiful. I would use a grey similar to the woven on the edges of the blog or maybe a little lighter. Linen or linen print.
Janice, I love this design so much!!!! I’m sure it’s a ton of work, but it will all be worth it in the end. You’ll probably have to sell this pattern, because it’s just so good everyone will want to make it 🙂 I like the charcoal background you have on the photoshop design, so maybe stick with your initial gut.
You’re insane in the best possible way. That’s amazing!
STUNNING!! I, too, would buy this if you sold the pattern!!
It’s Stunning!! Can’t wait to see it finished!
Wow. That is going to be truly stunning.
Simply amazing! That is a ton of flying geese. Thanks for the pressing step too!
You have a skill level and a patience level unseen in the natural world! You blow me away – I would have struggled to just get the middle circle done! Love!
I am in love with this! It is Wicked Awesome! I am also interested in purchasing this pattern. It would be amazing with the rainbow of color on black.
Oh my goodness! That is just amazing. I printed it so I could put it with my other quilt pictures which will never get done, but this one is above my computer on my wall so I don’t ever forget to grab the pattern if you put it for sale. You should do a video on this or a class on Craftsy!! I would certainly pay for it!!
AMAZING!!!!! Will you be selling this pattern on Craftsy? I’ll say it again, AMAZING!! 🙂
Janice, I so enjoy your work and its bright and positive vibe! I can see just a corner of your sewing machine in one shot…what are you sewing on? A Juki? Love the design of the machine, from what I can see. Thanks for posting your work and design process…very interesting and inspirational.