The second quilt finished this past weekend is Ship Shape. Right around a year ago I started this quilt from my stash of thrifted men's shirts. I had been inspired by a photo in Country Living magazine years earlier, which I had ripped out and saved in a binder.
I found the free block pattern, Sail Boat Block 2, at Quilter's Cache website. I modified the cutting instructions so each block would turn out 9-1/2 inches square. That meant cutting the small HST blocks at 3-7/8 inches and the larger at 6-7/8 inches.
The blocks were then set 7 across x 8 down. I liked the no-border look of the inspiration piece, so I just bound my quilt in a red and black print from JoAnn. There is one pale red pinstripe shirt used in the quilt, and the binding brings that out while providing a nice accent for the rest of the shirt fabrics.
Ship Shape was shipped off to Melissa at Sew Shabby Quilting for an all over panto called Van Gogh, which I thought looked like swirling ocean waves as much as Starry Night. Love the effect!
Melissa did a fantastic job, and fast! I'm sure my backing was a challenge (and I'm sure that is an understatement). I was using up a piece of blue and white older fabric in the backing, as well as a strip of large shirt fabric blocks. The backing was just barely big enough, were I to have quilted it on my domestic machine. When I decided to send the flimsy out for quilting, I added muslin strips on all sides of the backing so it would be able to be loaded on a longarm.
I knew it was going to be close, but until I trimmed the quilt after it came home and saw that on a couple sides I was shaving off only about an eighth inch of the actual backing, I didn't realize just how close. I'm sorry, Melissa, for any gray hairs I caused! I won't do that again, I promise.
Ship Shape was sleep tested last night, and I'm happy to say it passed with flying colors. If you've got a shirt stash you're wondering what to make of, I highly recommend giving this simple but stunning quilt a try. I think it'd make a great Quilt of Valor too!
Wow, this is a great finish! I knew I would love this one when you started it. Thank you for sharing all the process as you went, I will file this one under "must try!" I love it, P ~ :-}pokey
Oh my...you are churning out sublime quilts of late!! This beauty oozes an aura of simplicity and freshness. What a wonderful array of shirts you found; ingenious really and well worth every single, little grey hair that this 'charmer' may have caused!! Just stunning!!
Absolutely stunning P....kind of makes me wish I'd persevered with my shirt quilt but sadly that thing was s******g me off so badly it had to go live in the bin...
No way! That is totally awesome! You are really cruising through the WIPs and UFOs! I love how this one turned out! The quilting is just perfect for it! And the binding is just right. You really do have a way with fabrics! And most importantly, it passed the sleep test! Hooray, you!
It's wonderful! I like the thrifted aspect as well - we sometimes forget that quilting evolved from a need to reuse fabric until it couldn't be used anymore. What beautiful things we can create that way!
Fabulous! Your piecing is so exact. The points are..., well, so pointy! I love the geometry of this design, and it's simply cool you created such a beauty out of men's shirts.
(Lately, I find myself wanting to steal some of the ties my male coworkers wear! They would be beautiful in a quilt.)
Wow, this is a great finish! I knew I would love this one when you started it. Thank you for sharing all the process as you went, I will file this one under "must try!"
ReplyDeleteI love it, P ~
:-}pokey
Thats a great quilt for a little boy and I think I might look at doing this for my grandson.
ReplyDeleteLovely finish
Oh my...you are churning out sublime quilts of late!! This beauty oozes an aura of simplicity and freshness. What a wonderful array of shirts you found; ingenious really and well worth every single, little grey hair that this 'charmer' may have caused!! Just stunning!!
ReplyDeleteMy first glimpse was thinking it was Houndstooth pattern, but then I saw the ships!
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely stunning P....kind of makes me wish I'd persevered with my shirt quilt but sadly that thing was s******g me off so badly it had to go live in the bin...
ReplyDeleteThis is the perfect weather for testing it. It is also the weather for inside photos. Lovely Darling!
ReplyDeleteCharming quilt with a homespun feel to it!! I bet it is cuddle worthy!
ReplyDeleteThat is gorgeous, P.! I've got a stash of shirts just waiting to be made into a quilt - if I only had the time!! Love the red binding, too...
ReplyDeleteNo way! That is totally awesome! You are really cruising through the WIPs and UFOs! I love how this one turned out! The quilting is just perfect for it! And the binding is just right. You really do have a way with fabrics! And most importantly, it passed the sleep test! Hooray, you!
ReplyDeletexo -E
It's wonderful! I like the thrifted aspect as well - we sometimes forget that quilting evolved from a need to reuse fabric until it couldn't be used anymore. What beautiful things we can create that way!
ReplyDeleteOMG! LOVE this!!! Another fantastic finish - I adore the whole quilt and the quilting is perfect :) Looks so cuddly!
ReplyDeleteGorgeous! Can we get a shot of the back, as well?
ReplyDeleteI love this! Shirting quilts make me think of my great grandmother and the quilts she made. None as nice as yours though.
ReplyDeleteDELICIOUS! I said it before, this quilt is SO me! I love EVERYTHING about it! Wonderful job, and you are right! It would be a GREAT QOV!
ReplyDeleteFabulous! Your piecing is so exact. The points are..., well, so pointy! I love the geometry of this design, and it's simply cool you created such a beauty out of men's shirts.
ReplyDelete(Lately, I find myself wanting to steal some of the ties my male coworkers wear! They would be beautiful in a quilt.)