The Open Road

 

The plan (before fabric modifications)
After finishing "Bear Country" I immediately started thinking about making a lap quilt for my brother.  Our mom made him a bed quilt years ago but he won't use it because he's worried the pets will ruin it.  While I understand that, I'm hoping he will use this quilt without worrying about it getting used and abused.  As far as I'm concerned they are meant to be used and worn out, and if he DOES wear it out I can always make him another one!

I am using almost the exact pattern I worked out for Bear Country except with an added 1" border to break up the two black ones and obviously with a change in fabrics.  It's amazing how a different fabric can change the whole feel of a project.  He is a motorcycle enthusiast and I'm using motorcycle fabrics in oranges, blacks and greys.  To me the bear paw pattern looks like flames, which is kind of perfect for a motorcycle theme.

Because I ordered the fabrics online it wasn't until I was cutting out that I realized the motorcycle background fabric wasn't quite the right colour and it was also too busy for the background.  I then went to Lens Mills in London and found a better match with motorcycles on a back background with orange flames coming out of the exhaust; perfect!  I used this new fabric for a 4" outer border and used a solid beige for the background.

I tried to do a bit of fussy cutting to keep a lot of the cool details of the fabrics.  While many of them don't immediately jump out at you, I can see him picking up on a number of items as he looks at it over time.  There are motorcycles (of course), V-twin engines, spark plugs, piston and con-rod assemblies, just to name a few.  The finished quilt is 70" square, so it can be thrown on a queen bed or used as a large lap blanket.  

I'm feeling pretty confident that he is going t love this.

  

  






  

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

My Bionic Gear Bag - Pattern Review (long and pic heavy)

Image
The Completed Bionic Gear Bag EDIT: Link to the second bag I made almost seven years later   Well I finally finished my Bionic Gear Bag .  What can I say?  I laughed, I cried... This pattern makes a very cute bag and overall I am happy with it.  On the other hand I did run into some hiccups and perhaps my timing could have been better with purchasing this pattern.  The Bionic Gear Bag was designed by Sally AKA Ripstitcher .  She had purchased a similar pattern from Craftsy , made it, reviewed it on her blog, designed her own version that met her needs better, and put it up for sale on Craftsy.  The internets went crazy and  major drama ensued . Now I will be honest and say that the first pattern caught my eye in the first place because I saw Sally's review of it.  When I then saw the design Sally came up with I thought it would better suit my needs, so I bought it.  Unfortunately when I bought it the drama was at its height and even though there was email communication from
Read more

New Look 6735 - The Dedicated Post

Image
I have decided to put up a dedicated post for New Look 6735 .  Because I have made so many versions of it, it really doesn't require a new post every time I make one.  This will make it easy for me to track my projects with this pattern.  I have made this up now as the 3/4 sleeve tee, the cap sleeve tee, a sleeveless version and the cardigan (although heavily modified).  The fact that I have certainly got my money's worth out of this pattern makes the cheap bastard in me very happy!  So here we go (with newest versions on top): With narrower neckline Blog post Blog post Blog post Blog post Blog post Blog Post Blog post Blog post Blog post Blog post Blog post Blog post Blog post
Read more

Name That Bike!

Image
I've decided my bike needs a name. I've been developing quite a relationship with it, and it seems too impersonal to just call it "the bike". So I need some help. Any ideas? Maybe Gretchen? or Gloria? Something else? Why don't I give you some background. I used to have a really hard time bike riding because of my rheumatoid arthritis. It's mostly in my wrists, and the conventional way of bike riding where you are leaning on the handlebars just put too much pressure on them. It was too painful. So about ten years ago Canadian Tire came out with the retro cruiser-style bike and I bought one. The cruiser has you sitting more upright without putting all your weight on your hands and wrists. The handlebars are curved back towards you in a much more comfortable position (my wrists don't really bend) that regular straight bars. It only had six gears instead of the 21 that everyone else was riding, but I found the six plenty for the type of riding I d
Read more