Hello!  It’s Easter Monday and, for me, it’s a day of tidying up loose ends.  The list isn’t terribly long and I’m optimistic that I can cross off several items.

Several months ago I entered my name into a fabric challenge, put on by Riley Blake fabrics.  The rules for each challenge differ and for this one I just needed to use the fabric that I was given and create something quilted, by April 30.  The fabric line is called Rockstar and my pieces were orange, white and aqua.

I was awed by the Best in Show quilt at QuiltCon in Savannah,  (See post here – QuiltCon 2017.) so decided to try my hand at paper piecing.  Hmmm, how to draw a star?  Freehand didn’t look so great.  Thankfully, Google and YouTube came to the rescue!  Once I had the star, I broke it into smaller pieces and assigned each piece a number and a colour.  Hopefully this would help me get it all back together in fabric.

Once the fabric star was pieced I machine-embroidered the names of my favourite Rock Stars who are no longer with us.  Leonard Cohen, Michael Jackson, John Lennon, Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison plus several others are stitched on in silver thread.  The silver is a bit too subtle and I’d use a stronger contrast another time.

The finished star was then appliquéd onto the black background.  I quilted the star with a mix of straight lines and triangle shapes.  The quilting on the background mirrors the shape of the star.  The batting is 100% cotton and the quilting thread is Superior King Tut in Temple.  The piece has a one inch facing instead of a binding.  It measures 32″ x 32″.  Here’s a photo.

It’s not meant to be centred, if you’re curious!  Also, the background fabric didn’t come in my package so I had to purchase it.  It never dawned on me, until I got it home, that the white marks look like cemetery crosses – kind of fitting!

This is my third challenge piece and I don’t expect it to be prize-worthy in the judges’ eyes.  However, I enjoyed having to use my imagination and I acquired some new skills along the way.

Now for the next thing on my list – cleaning out my thread cabinet.  Now that’s a challenge!

Thanks for reading.