Saturday, February 16, 2013

Playing with Emerald

Labyrinth

Despite it being Valentines Day this week, and despite being smitten with all the wonderful heart quilts and pillows around the internet, I have been playing with emerald. Here is Labyrinth so far. She is not quite square - about 19" x 20". I put a bird in the centre as I had a green one handy and thought instead of a Minotaur, I would have a bird, sort of like the canary in the coal mines - so you know all is safe.

Labyrinth - detail

I have long wanted to make a log cabin that was a labyrinth, and the Emerald Challenge seemed like the right time. Green makes me think of gardens and then I thought of hedges and lawns and that took me to the labyrinth. When my son reminded me that Theseus had escaped the Labyrinth by following a thread, well there was no turning back - the inspiration had hit.

Quilting Labyrinth

Here is an action quilting shot from my instagram photos. The white walls or walkways of the Labyrinth were easy to quilt with a single start and stop. Now I am trying to decide whether to leave the green as hedges or quilt them into lawns - a lot of folks suggested that they be left to pop against the densely quilted white parts and right now I am thinking they are right. I just need to quilt around that bird to make it stand out a bit. I will show you more soon.

Emerald Irish Chain, top done

And the green nine patches are assembled into an Emerald Irish Chain. I hope to baste this later and maybe start quilting it later this weekend. It does actually look much nicer that that instagram photo but the sun has gone behind the clouds and I can do no better today, so trust me for now.

she can quilt

In other news, the "official" part of the Mod Pop QAL finishes up on Monday. Of course anyone who is trailing along can continue and I will encourage and help. All the finished quilts as of Monday will be eligible for our last prize which is a $30.00 gift certificate from Dragon Fly Fabrics, which is a lovely little on-line shop here in Canada.


All the finished Mod Pop Quilts from the QAL will be entered, and I will show them off in a post here too on Monday. I am also going to set up a linkup on Monday here that will be open for a long while so that past, present and future finishes from the QAL can link up too.

Enjoy your weekend, we have a long weekend here -  Monday is off for Family Day.

Best,

Leanne

33 comments:

Di said...

Emerald labyrinth is very clever and shows off those greens really well. Di x

Jenny Squawk said...

I love the labyrinth, quilt, shape, and movie. I'm enjoying your emerald play.

Debbie said...

Love labyrinth! And I just adore the dense quilting you are doing. Looking forward to Monday's modpop post!

Svetlana said...

Leanne, I'm totally smitten with your Labyrinth, it's beautiful, and so imaginative, too. And, of course I love the Irish Chain, it's such a classic, never disappoints.

Nicole said...

The Labryinth is looking good, Leanne! I'm loving the bird in the and the straight lines. You've got a nice set of greens for both quilts!

Rachel said...

Really fun quilts. The Irish Chain is making me want to put one together for St. Patrick's Day.

Katy Cameron said...

Loving the bird centre of your labyrinth, plus the labyrinth itself, and I do like the dense quilting in the white :o)

Marjorie's Busy Corner said...

Liking Emerald!!

MariQuilts said...

Looking lovely!!

Marg said...

I love the quilting on Labyrinth. The way it is more dense in parts. I think you should leave the green unquilted too.
The Irish chain quilt top looks fabulous too.

Carla said...

I love it love it! The Irish chain looks great too

Catherine said...

I love it Leanne. And the quilting in the white is perfect

Anna said...

Love those greens. Both quilts are gorgeous!

Susan said...

Enjoy your extra day off! I love the bird in the centre of the maze- the canary down the mine is such a perfect analogy!

Canadian Abroad said...

Another great idea from you. I love labyrinth.

Helen in the UK said...

Love that Labyrinth! The bird in the centre just makes it :)

Charlotte said...

such a fantastic idea to make a labyrinth, and it is really lovely!

Archie The Wonder Dog said...

I love both quilts and the quilting on Labyrinth is wonderful!

Annabella said...

You are making us all think of spring Leanne - they are both beauties and I love your quilting on Labyrinth.

Deborah OHare said...

The Labyrinth quilt is inspiring. I love the story behind it.

Sarah said...

Love the top! Just densely quilting the white will look fabulous. I'm really loving your emerald chain too :-)

Run Quilt Knit Write said...

What a great idea - I love your labyrinth!!!

Esch House Quilts said...

Love both of your emerald quilts! The story that goes with the labyrinth quilt is wonderful. I'm not usually a fan of leaving parts of quilts unquilted, but I think it really suits this particular quilt/story :)

Mrs Flying Blind... said...

Superb!
So much thought; unlike the greens I have been playing with today; I will have to make something up now!

Kelly said...

It is gorgeous!

Sheila said...

Labyrinth is lovely, especially liking the texture you have achieved on the white walkways.

Judith, Belfast said...

Family day? I like the sound of that! Your Emerald quilts are looking peaceful and lovely! Jxo

Elita@Busy Needle Quilting said...

What lovely quilts! They remind me of my trip to Ireland last year. I'm inspired to try the Mod Pop pattern thanks to your king size version. Thanks (I think)! :-)

Cindy said...

Labyrinth is just super! Absolutely beautiful and your quilting is just perfect. That might drive me batty!

Elise Lea said...

Beautiful Quilt. I love how the inspiration came from you and then evolved into more with the mythology! Beautiful Quilt as always.

www.randomthoughtsdoordi.com said...

Everything you make is beautiful Leanne

mjb said...

I love your emerald playing!

Nancy said...

I love your Emerald Irish Chain. I can appreciate it for both the traditional pattern and the more modern way you've interpreted it. I can't wait to see how you quilt it!