Friday, August 22, 2014

EPP did not get the best of me

Hello and welcome to finish it up Friday!
I'm sooo very excited...I finally finished my "Oh My Stars" quilt top!! Isn't that an appropriate name for it? It is English paper pieced (EPP for short), which means that it is completely stitched by hand. I never ever thought I would completely hand stitch a quilt top, but hey, I've done a lot of things that I seem to have fallen into! Ha! Looking back, I'm quite pleased with my choice of fabrics (30's and polka dots) for this quilt, because it should continue to get better with age. I am so thrilled that I saw this to completion!

Specifics:

2" 60 degree diamonds (2" is the measurement of each side of the diamond)
Cardboard templates (I cut my own)
Video tutorial here
Quilting On the Go by Jessica Alexandrakis is also a great resource
Started: April 2011
Top Finished: August 21, 2014
Fabrics: 30's prints and polka dots, various white backgrounds, but mostly Kona cotton
Finished size: 63" x 83"

Now I get to baste and hand quilt it. That will probably take me another 2 years and 4 months! But for now, I will celebrate the fact that the top is DONE!

It's your turn! Please link up your finishes for the week. Thanks for joining me for finish it up Friday!
finish it up Friday, August 22, 2014
1. Melissa @ Happy Quilting  62. Mari @ The Academic Quilter  
2. Eva-Bambi-Johansson  63. Peach Patch Quilts - EPP  
3. Jo's Country Junction  64. Charlotte's gRACE for a Cure  
4. Kat & Cat Quilts  65. Jenn @ A Quarter Inch from the Edge  
5. Michelle's Romantic Tangle  66. Sewn Barefoot- undies quilt  
6. Katie @ Good Golly Ginger  67. Ruth@CB Crafty Corner  
7. Pat@ColorMeQuilty  68. Divided Star  
8. Laura  69. Kim @ Ties That Bind Quilting  
9. Erica @ Kitchen Table Quilting  70. gina @ occasional quilter  
10. Prism Quilt | Tina G @ ModGeometry  71. Carla @Creatin' in the Sticks (Bibs)  
11. Gunilla in Sweden  72. Janeen@QuiltArtDesigns2  
12. Judy@Quilt Paradigm Spin Finish  73. Deana  
13. KatyQuilts  74. Quilting is more fun than Housework  
14. Amy @ 13 Spools  75. Valerie @ MeekManor  
15. Julie @ That's Sew Julie  76. Carol's Red Baby Quilt  
16. Lindasquiltmaia  77. Jennifer @ Glinda Quilts (bags)  
17. My Quilt Infatuation- Big Reveal!  78. Diana @ Red Delicious Life  
18. Kathy@KayakQuilting  79. Jennie @ Porch Swing Quilts  
19. Geta Grama  80. Karen @ Badlands Quilts  
20. Fabric Destashing with PugMom Quilts!  81. Lucy @ Charm About You  
21. Brigit @ brigitgail  82. Cathy@Sane,Crazy,Crumby  
22. Hoffman Challenge with PugMom Quilts!  83. sally from Sally's Angelworks  
23. Alycia @ Quiltygirl  84. New Dress by laurie  
24. Cargo Duffles & a Dress @ Dresden Lane  85. Bjorn the Bear | Factotum of Arts  
25. Ben @ Huntspatch Quilts  86. Charity Quilt number 20 - Karen NZ  
26. Julia in Mississippi  87. Neighbourhood | Factotum of Arts  
27. Madeline @ Sweet Bamboo  88. Marie @ QuiltswithPersonality  
28. Heidi @ Buttons and Butterflies  89. Upcycling men's shirts.  
29. A Tangent in Voile  90. Hawaiian Quilt @ Dittencraft  
30. "Call Me Imelda" Quilt  91. Molli Sparkles  
31. Rockin' Robot Picnic Playmat  92. Vicky  
32. A Fabric Cut Out Art Block  93. Terri Faust Quilts  
33. What's Your Hobby?  94. Giraffe Love Finish @ LoGoQuilts  
34. Trapped Square Block Tute  95. Martha  
35. syglad  96. Val's Chevron Finish  
36. sylvi  97. A Little Something  
37. Patch the Giraffe  98. Heidi  
38. Rene' Creates  99. Myintzu  
39. Lynn  100. Harleigh@cutieandco Feather Quilt  
40. Redesigned Panel Baby Quilt  101. the Colorful Fabriholic  
41. Umbrella Prints Pouch | Ants to Sugar  102. Kate @ katiemaequilts  
42. Man Quilt {Finish}  103. Sarah @ Confessions of a Fabric Addict  
43. Bernie @ Needle and Foot  104. KISMIF FMQ Threadpath  
44. Stacey @SLOstudio - x plus finish  105. Sailboat Collage Quilt  
45. Darcy @ Modern Cozy  106. I QUILT FOR FUN  
46. Zoe  107. Triangles & Squares  
47. Kim @PersimonDreams - little house  108. Nana  
48. country girls cuteness @ goldshoegirl  109. the Watermelon Diva  
49. Shauna of Shauna's World  110. Alissa  
50. Jana Machado: three blocks- quilt along!  111. LisaAnn @ Making It Up As I Go Along  
51. Angie in SoCal  112. Sarah @ Blue Elephants and Green Apples  
52. Melissa G  113. DIY Liberty Shoulder & Elbow Patch Tee  
53. Barbara  114. The Easy Quilter  
54. Vera @ Negligent style  115. Lorna @ Sew Fresh Quilts  
55. Mihaela@ abeeautifulday.blogspot.com  116. Grey X Pillow Cover, McTavished  
56. Janeen@QuiltArtDesigns  117. See my quilt at AQS Chattanooga!  
57. Rachel @ Piece At Last  118. beth@lovelaughquilt  
58. Tisha @ quiltytherapy  119. pat in wi  
59. Beth  120. Frankie carson  
60. stitchingimpressions  121. Rachel @ Quiltineering  
61. Sue @ lappteknik  122. SoSarahSews  

(Cannot add links: Registration/trial expired)

78 comments:

Melissa Corry said...

Oh my goodness, oh my goodness!! Absolutely stunning!!! What a beautiful finish. And 2 years is nothing when you are doing all hand piecing. Gorgeous!!

Good Golly Ginger - Katie Dold said...

Wow! Wow! Wow! It's absolutely beautiful! Will you be hand quilting it? I'd love to see the quilting progress.

Gunilla said...

Beautiful top, I also love EPP :-)

Julie said...

This is so beautiful! Congratulations on the fabulous finish!

charlotte said...

Congratulations! What a great accomplishment. It looks wonderful.

Ellomee said...

HOLY MOLY!!! I am bowing down! What an accomplishment!!! Congrats on a job well done!!

Nanaofck said...

Congratulations on your finish. Yes, lots of people have hand pieced a quilt, but in this day and age they are few and far between. It looks beautiful, and no doubt the quilting will just enhance it..

Unknown said...

congratulations on an epic finish! It is so beautiful--30s fabrics are a perfect choice for this design.

Julia Graber said...

Oh yes. This is absolutely marvelous. And marvelously done. Congratulations an your wonderful finish!

Rene' said...

It's just incredible Amanda!!

Unknown said...

Beautiful and gorgeous colors.

Unknown said...

Absolutely beautiful!

Anonymous said...

Completely worth celebrating!! Congrats on the finish.

Anonymous said...

Oh my goodness, how beautiful is that top! I have seen a few EPP quilts lately and have loved them all, but I haven't had a go myself yet.

Quilter Kathy said...

This is gorgeous... so pretty and sparkly!

Darcy said...

HAND quilted too?! It's official, you're an over-achiever ;-) Love it. Congrats on an amazing finish!

Patti said...

So beautiful. I followed your blog posts about this quilt. And of course was inspired to do one too. Well I have the fabric and the templates, lol! Congrats. It turned out so lovely.

Jessica said...

It looks fantastic! Thanks for sticking with it~ you'll be curled up underneath in no time.

Emma said...

Ermahgerd! I love it!!! I'm working on a similar one. I'm so glad you plan to hand quilt it too!

Angie in SoCal said...

Congrats! It is a beautiful top, Amanda. Love the fabric - so appropriate. I invite you to link it to Hexie Weekend where we love to see any kind of EPP eye candy.

Rachel said...

Oh it's lovely!!! Can't wait to see how you quilt it.

tisha @ quiltytherapy said...

Wow! It is lovely.

Kristal said...

YAY! I got to see this one hit the top stage. Good job! This also means there is hope for me yet.

Unknown said...

So beautiful! I'm so glad you're going to hand quilt this as well!!

Lauren Deel said...

This is so gorgeous and is such a great accomplishment! Congratulations and good job!

Josie McRazie said...

Congratulations! ! I am so happy to hear you are going to hand quilt it!! It will be amazing!!

Anina said...

Pretty! I just did a post this morning about the Grandmother's Flower Garden I started waaaaaay back in 2007. It'll hopefully be a finish by the end of the year.

Carla said...

Just beautiful. There's nothing more satisfying than hand piecing a quilt top. And nothing more painful for the fingers...lol
Wonderful!

MellieWo said...

It's so amazing! You should be very proud!

Kat said...

Wow, what a master piece! I did a blink in a sampler once that was EPP and that was enough for me. Kudos to you for sticking with it.

karen @ badlandsquilts said...

Fabulous accomplishment! Having a hand quilting project will be nice if we have a cold winter!

MaryBeth said...

Congratulations!! It's simply gorgeous!!

Lucy | Charm About You said...

It's absolutely beautiful! I love dots and 30s prints and agree this will just get better :) I finished my first EPP quilt top last week and it already feels a bit strange that I won't be piecing it anymore but I'm excited to start hand quilting it over the winter! Do you know how you're going to quilt it?

Cathy said...

Congrats on an awesome flimsy! I love 30s prints and just finished hand quilting my second bed sized quilt and ready to do another! I learned a lot in the process...how to use a thimble for starters! Good luck on your journey.

Quilt Lady said...

Nice job. What thread do you use?

Unknown said...

Congratulations - I just love hand piecing and hand quilting it is so meditative. Your quilt is just gorgeous - Love it! Enjoy the next stage. As always, thank you so much for hosting the linky party. Have a great weekend. xxx

Schulz Family said...

I just love it. The first ever quilts I did were EPP as I did not know anything else. No longer though. But seeing this inspires me again.

Merry Merry said...

Gorgeous, gorgeous! Have you seen the EPP Insanity Quilt? One more tantalizing project! This finish of yours inspires me to get back to mine.

Unknown said...

Your quilt is beautiful! Congratulations on actually finishing, and I'm sure it will be a real treasure for you and your family. I also wanted to say I appreciate you hosting the link-up every Friday. Have a great weekend!

Susan C. said...

Now THAT is a FINISH!!!!!!!! Well done you. :-)

Serena @ Sewgiving said...

I fully appreciate how much time and effort this quilt took you! Such a lovely finish and your choice of fabrics are wonderful :)

KathyinMN said...

It's fantastic. Congrats on the finish!

Mary on Lake Pulaski said...

This deserves another WOW!

Veronica said...

So beautiful - it will be a precious family heirloom, I'm sure of it!!

eva said...

oh yeah..... this would be reason enough to call you "crazy"....
absolutely beautiful...
when did you start it??
ever so proud of you!!!
xo
eva

Linda said...

YAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It's soooo pretttyyyyyy! :)

SuperMomNoCape said...

WOW, just WOW. It is stunning! And congratulations on finishing the top. I'll look forward to see it quilted and bound no matter how long it takes you.

Christine S said...

Wow, this is great!

SarahZ said...

That's got to be a sweeet finish! Enjoy the quilting...it is a super cute top!

Anne / Springleaf Studios said...

Beautiful. I hope it doesn't take 2 years 4 months to quilt because it needs to be shown off. I admit I have tops older than 2 years still waiting.

Anne said...

Oh how beautiful! I love it!

maybe said...

Oh, wow, it is beautifu. Congrats.

LisaAnn said...

Beautiful top and worth the time! There is hope for me to do a hand pieced quilt!

Kay said...

Congrats, it is beautiful. EPP is my favourite way to sew and I am slowly working on a Liberty fabric quilt at the moment. x

Granny Maud's Girl said...

Beautiful! There's a far greater sense of achievement from finishing slow projects, don't you think?
How did you find the diamonds? I am happily piecing hexagons by hand, but I have a diamond project in mind. The closer I get to starting, the more the skinny points make me nervous. I'll probably have to make a cushion as a test piece first.

Suzanne said...

This quilt is going to have satisfaction written all over it. Imagine, a quilt all by hand! Yes, I know that's the way they used to be made but in any day and age, it's admirable.

roberta mill said...

Yay! you are now part of the 'slow quilting movement'.

lindak21 said...

OH my gosh!!! Just love this and would love to try one...but think my grandkids would have to finish it...HA! Such a beautiful quilt and one to cherish!

Lorna McMahon said...

What a labour of love and perseverance. You have done an amazing job, Amanda Jean! Lovely work!

beth said...

Now THAT is the kind of quilt you HAVE TO SHOUT from the HOUSETOPS about! Beautiful.

elizabeth said...

this is amazing and beautiful. In two years I have been doing hexes I have enough for maybe a pot holder!! :) i am so impressed!

Lisa Lisa said...

Goodness!This is absolutely beautiful!

Janet said...

Your quilt is so lovely. You did a lot of work in a short period of time to complete it in just a couple years. Love it!

Annalia said...

WOW! That's amazing!

Unknown said...

Congratulations on the finish of your amazing EPP star quilt top - it is gorgeous - I hope you are going to keep it as a family heirloom when you are completely finished. Colours are gorgeous.
Pauline

perry94022 at hotmail dot com

Kris said...

Congratulations on the finish. I would be so thrilled too to finish that hand piecing. I am really impressed that you are going to now hand quilt it. I have ambition to hand piece but not hand quilt. This is a beautiful fantastic wonderful job of a quilt!

good4life said...

Fantastic! it looks amazing!

Unknown said...

WOW! That star quilt is a classic. Your tribute quilt (one patch) is also timeless, not to mention such a lovely tribute. :) Good job YOU!

Thimbleanna said...

It's BEAUTIFUL CrazyMom! I LOVE it! I've started one too -- but I like regular hand piecing more than EPP, so I'm a little worried that I'll never finish LOL! I'm SO pleased that you'll hand quilt it -- I cringe when someone machine quilts a hand-pieced quilt!!!

Live a Colorful Life said...

This is just beautiful. What an accomplishment!

liniecat said...

Love it! Well done lol I may well have given up and made it half the size!!

Amber said...

Can you link to where you did the math for the edge pieces? I remember reading about it, but can't find it on your blog! Thanks so much! It's beautiful!

Trish said...

Gorgeous!! That quilt will be a treasure :)

Unknown said...

Lovely stuff! I stitched little white shirt buttons in the middle of the stars to join my layers when I made a similar quilt. I didn't have the patience to handquilt!

Unknown said...

That's amazing! All hand stitched? That's a huge accomplishment. Great job on the completion!

Pieced Brain Quilt Designs said...

I love it! It is so beautiful... Great job!

Jade said...

This is so beyond fantastic and SO inspiring, especially as a new to EPP fan. I just love it and would love to do something like this one day. What an heirloom this will be. :)

Roxanne said...

I remember when you started this, I loved your fabric choices right off and look how beautifully it has turned out. I'm catching up on several of your posts and commenting as I go--you've been doing such interesting stuff!