Space Crystals

While telling students in a recent Stitchin' Mission class about binding, and how it can be sewn to a quilt in many different ways, I recalled this quilt that hasn't seen the light of day for several years. It's another older quilt that's tucked into a pillowcase in my quilt cupboard. 

"Space Crystals," 40" X 40"

When I teach about binding a quilt, I explain how it can be sewn to a quilt using a variety of methods. (If you haven't already, be sure to check out my tutorial for non continuous sewn binding.) And a few different enhancements can make binding more of an accessory to a quilt than just a finished edge.
Susan Cleveland's Piping Hot Binding tool makes piped binding an easy enhancement. While it's not appropriate for every quilt, it can add a little pop. My challenge is to remember to keep yards and yards of cording on hand for whenever it strikes me that "this is a quilt for piped binding." 
On this all batik quilt, a small purple batik piping contrasts with the black-blue background.

Also, instead of the usual mitered corner binding, I sewed binding on a curve drawn along a sandwich plate. Much easier than mitering!

I did this quilting without a stitch regulator, on a Bernina QE153, which I no longer have. These days I'm quilting on a Pfaff Grand Quilter... without a frame; while sitting down.

"Space Crystals" was made during a 2006 class with Sara Nephew whose geometric designs have always appealed to me. Though I like this quilt, there's absolutely no suitable place for it in my home, nor the homes of my kids. It earned a second-place ribbon at the 2006 Des Moines Area Quilters Guild annual quilt show. 

40" X 40"

Linda