Thursday, October 25, 2012

Quilt tragedy - suggestions?

So this morning, when I was taking pictures of my Totally Groovy quilt for my post, it was incredibly windy.  I am amazed I got any shots since the quilt spent most of it's time up in the air.  Anyway, the wind died down a little by midday, so I thought I would try to take some pics in a different area along the white fence that separates our driveway from the neighbors yard.  It seemed like a good choice as the white is pretty neutral.  To get the quilt to hang on the fence, I picked up two bricks to weigh down the top as I draped it over.  Of course, before any pictures were taken, one of the bricks fell, ON the bottom corner of the quilt, and...


Not one but two holes!


They go straight through.   I am beside myself!  This quilt was supposed to be a gift for a "totally groovy" guy in my family and it is ruined because I got greedy with the camera.


The affected area is that lower right hand corner.

The way I see it, I have two options:

1) unbind the entire quilt, then cut off a few inches (and the holes) along the width of the quilt, rebind.  This would make the quilt a few inches less tall (it will still be plenty big), and I would lose that little yellow spot, and the yellow spot on the bottom left will be even smaller, but the rest of the design of the quilt would essentially be unaffected.

2) patch the quilt in some way over both holes and requilt the daylights out of those areas.  I am less fond of this option as I think it would look crappy.

Or??  Do you have any suggestions?

Jen

20 comments:

  1. Oh, so frustrating! I think you'll be happiest with option #1.

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  2. I am so sorry this happened to you and your amazing quilt. I would choose option two. With some clever mending. There is a product called Bo-nash, a bonding agent, www.bonash.com and it is amazing. I bought some at a quilt show, but according to the box it is "seen on TV" If you don't want to go there, some fusible interfacing slipped between the top and the batting, carefully fuse in place, and then use some tiny stitches to secure. On the back you can mend and hide with your label. I vote for mending because I think this quilt is amazing, and this while heartbreaking, is one small part of this whole quilt. The amazing guy you are giving it to will look upon the whole quilt, all that you put into it, and love it. I do think you can mend it. Keep us posted, and hugs to you because I know the feeling.

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  3. Oh I am no help but so sorry this happened...I hope there is a good option out there from someone...

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  4. Esthers suggestions sound good. what about a quilt label conven iently located over the hole of course. something round and 70s; werent there alot of pin on buttons in those days? a groovy saying on one side and a nice sentiment on the other. it is a great quilt regardless.

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  5. First, I thought about #1 solution: a more clear one, although you sacrifice some part of the quilt. But reading Esther's advice, I think this could work fine, if you don't want to cut the quilt in any manner. Me? If it really doesn't alter the design, I would cut it...

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  6. Oooh, Esther's good! Given that there is a 70s feel to it, and a music title to it, could you appliqué a 7" single" back and front sort of as a label, quilt name on the front, to, from and date on the back? Concentric quilting on the "vinyl " part of it for the gooves?

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  7. I'd surely try to mend/patch the problems first...If you're not satisfied with the results, you can still slice off the offending area and rebind the edge.

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  8. Oh how heart breaking! Could you somehow do a label that wraps over the front and back of the holes? Hope you find a solution you're happy with!

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  9. Whatever solution you choose, DON'T TELL ANYONE! It's tempting to say, "Here's your quilt, and here's what went wrong." Try to think of this as part of the creative process - solving your way out of an unexpected turn in the road.

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  10. Oh no!! Looks like you've gotten some good advice already. Gorgeous quilting, it really enhances the design.

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  11. I would try to patch over it with an awesome label or something first. Then if that doesn't work I would go with option #2.

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  12. Ouch! I hope you find a good way to fix it!

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  13. So sorry this happened. Before reading the comments, I thought you might patch is with a yellow initial of the person you are giving it to.

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  14. I have no suggestions, although it sounds like you have some great advice already. :) I can imagine the heartbreak though!

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  15. Thank you Everyone for your advice. I agree, I should a least try to patch it or cover it before cutting it! That seems obvious now, but yesterday I just wanted to amputate the problem. I think I will take a few more steps back and try to fix it next week.

    Thanks again!

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  16. Uggg... I'm for amputating!
    I wouldn't want the memory of that tearful event to taunt me.
    And really you only have to unbinding 2 corners and one side.

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  17. I was all for the amputation at first but after reading the comments think I would try the mending/altering. Could you put his initial on the front over the hole? Maybe in a stylized type. Whatever you decide, good luck.

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  18. I know it's tempting to amputate, first reaction, but it is so beautiful! My initial thought was to put the label over it somehow but Esther's advice is intriguing! Never heard of that product but I sure would try it! Good luck and let us know what happens.

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  19. I think this should be pretty easy to fix with a gray patch and a bit more Pebbling. You can check out the full response right here: http://freemotionquilting.blogspot.com/2012/11/question-thursday-39.html

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