Saturday, December 19, 2020

Necktie Wall Hanging

Mission accomplished!  The wall hanging from neckties that I was aiming to finish for my friend by Christmas is now done.  I put the final stitches in the binding yesterday.


Then I had the afterthought to hand sew some of the labels I'd taken off the ties onto the back of the quilt.  Many of these ties were from the same local clothing store (which closed some 50 years ago) and of the same brand.  It was neat to see how the brand label had changed through the years, along with the style of tie.


Other than stitching the inner and outer edges of the Dresden to the backing fabric, I relied on the way I was going to quilt it to further secure all the layers together.  I started in the open center circle, stitching in the ditch of each of the blades of the Dresden in straight lines radiating outward, and continuing through the background and into the border.  Like rays, I guess.

(Using painter's tape as a guide.)



I used a variegated Sulky thread in shades of gold, red, and dark brown to echo the shimmer of the ties.  Hard to tell on these pictures, but I like that it's not just a flat-looking thread.  The bobbin thread was Aurifil, and I also used that to ditch quilt the square where the background and border meet.



Finally, I added the center brown circle from the only wool tie in the group.  I had to maneuver around a few holes and thin spots, but found an area of viable fabric to cut the circle from.


Third time's a charm when it came to free-motion quilting that center spiral.  I even drew it in chalk first.  Sheesh!


Normally I don't add a rod pocket to my wall hangings because I use curtain rings to hang them at home, but I added a pocket on this one to keep things easy for the recipient.

Here, in this picture below where I used flash, you get a better sense of the texture of these ties.  They're really smooth, shiny, and silky feeling!


Can you tell the gentleman was an avid outdoorsman?  I love those pheasant and grouse ties (at about the 12:30 and 4:30 positions).  Also, the geometric mid-century graphics on several of the other ones.  And that Greek key.  Okay, I love them all!


I'm going to take a stab at another wall hanging from a different grouping of ties I've set aside, now that I have the hang of this a bit.

12 comments:

Quilting Babcia said...

What a beautiful finish! Perfect way to feature those wonderfully eclectic ties.

Quiltdivajulie said...

Absolutely beautiful - love how you incorporated the labels, too.

Lesley Gilbert said...

I enjoyed watching your progress with this project and a great finish.

Sarah Craig said...

Really nice work, P. - and so nice to see you blogging again!! Have a very merry Christmas!!

Jeanne said...

WOW this is stunning!!

Anonymous said...

This is absolutely gorgeous, P! I love that you added the tie labels to the back.

Michelle
https://mybijoulifeonline.com

Paulette said...

Thank you Jeanne!

Marei said...

Nicely done!!! I really like that you extended the straight line quilting into the border & the labels? Perfection!

QuiltGranma said...

What a lovely memory for your friend!

Kaja said...

What a clever, creative way to use the ties. Labels on the back is a really nice touch too.

Dinah said...

This is a handsome and personalized wall hanging for someone special. It is outstanding. I would like to try and make one. Could you share what the length of the ties are from the center (where the circle was placed) to the tip of the ties? Also, what was the size of the finished wall hanging?

Thank you again for sharing this wonderful wall hanging and providing guidance.

Paulette said...

Hi Dinah, you are a no-reply commenter, so I am unable to reply to your question by email but I hope you will see the answer here in the comment section of the blog. I cut each piece of the ties using an 8-inch EZ Dresden ruler (the full length of the ruler). You can see a picture of it on this post: https://thewayisewit.blogspot.com/2020/12/progress-made.html I don't have the finished piece anymore to be able to measure it, but as far as the overall size of the wall hanging, I'm guessing the background I put the Dresden on was about 22 inches square, and with the border I added, it was probably 26 inches square overall. I have to go by the picture I took on this post where it's hanging below a shelf that is 24 inches long. Funny way to estimate size, but I think that's close. Hope this information helps!