Black and White and Red all Over

What is black and white and red all over??? (Or should I say 'read' all over). The newspaper! Hahaha - this is the first joke I remember telling and actually 'GETTING' as a child!

Hello pretty 

And on to other news...

Yay me!!! The K Quilt is complete - isn't that just the best feeling??!!! I began this quilt in February. It is for a friend's birthday at the end of this month. I have previously shared my creative process here and a progress report about this quilt here. This quilt makes me happy (I seriously CANNOT stop touching it) because I have learned so much from it.

Favourite block

This quilt has taught me more about myself as a quilter than any other quilt!
Here are some of the things I have learned while making this quilt:

1. That I can push my creative process until I am in love with what I see, I really need to FEEL what I see on my design wall.

2. That the *CLICK* will come - I will eventually create a design that speaks to me. 

These first two points are really important for me - I noticed that as I went through the design process on this quilt and then the next quilt I designed (this is new for me, as I have always followed patterns before) each time there was a period of fret and worry like - 'OMGOODNESS I have ruined all this fabric and don't like what I see' - and when I continue and really challenge myself, I have been able to realize a design that I truly love.

3. That the following quote (that I discovered while trying to sew very precise seams on this quilt) gives me confidence as a quilter - "It does not have to be correct the first time you sew it, only the last time" (Sally Collins). RIGHT??!!! So true! Hello seam ripper! 

And even better - for some reason this quote makes me feel less frustrated (as in 'OMG I made a mistake') when I am changing a seam and more like - I am choosing to improve upon my quilt. Which I see as a good thing!

4. How to fix skipped stitches - thank you so much for the suggestions ladies - your help really did help!

5. That I have finally perfected my 'Perfect for Me' binding. I am super duper happy about this. I have been documenting my binding technique on paper for quite a few quilts now. When I liked how a certain aspect of my binding turned out, I make a note of it and when I didn't like the way something turned out, I made a note of what to try next time. I was really searching for a way to make my binding look pretty to me each and every time - I wanted a PREDICTABLE sequence, so that I can follow the steps and get the same results for every quilt. Very demanding, I know haha!

I say 'perfect for me' binding because I had a very specific set of criteria - I like a skinny binding (2.25 in strips) and I really do like the look of machine sewn binding AND true to my 'organized, everything must be the same' kind of self - I wanted BOTH sides of the binding to be sewn so it looks the same. Phew! I did take pics of my process and have my notes - tutorial to come!!! My first!!!

So not only is this quilt for a special to me friend - it is also a very special to me quilt, for teaching me so much about the art that I love. Kind of fitting I think!!!

Happy Friday all! Linking up with 'Finish it up Friday' at Crazy Mom Quilts and 'Let's get Acquainted' Monday link up party hosted by Charm About You.

~Lisa