The Shape We're Stuck In

Here's one of the activities that has been keeping David and me busy.  We both enjoy doing jigsaw puzzles and usually have one in progress on the game table in the family room.  When I purchased this one I was a little concerned that David wouldn't enjoy it, but we both had a great time with it.  The worry stemmed not so much from the subject matter as from the shaped border.  This was a first for us.  Square borders, diamond borders, and circular borders don't faze us.  After all, the edges are still easy to locate and put together.  This one was different.  Not only were the edges difficult to pick out but they were also difficult to put in place.  Oh, did I mention that one of our "rules" is that we aren't allowed to look at the picture on the puzzle box?  Now you can understand why this one was a particular "puzzle" for us!  As it turns out, we enjoyed it enough so David asked if we had any more like this.

Anyway, you know there's a quilt connection here.  Now, for the moment, I'm not discussing qults meant for use on a bed - rather the ones intended for display on the walls.  What keeps us from playing around with the shape of our borders?  Clearly, one issue is very obvious: how to hang a quilt that's shaped like a sewing machine?  Or a spool of thread, or a basket, or any other shape?  It isn't the shape of the quilt that's the problem; it's the hanging of it.

So let's think more creatively about that.  If you made a quilt the shape of the puzzle pictured above, the hanging bar would stretch very nicely behind the top of the machine.  Would the wheel at the right side cause a problem?  Possibly.  Could one resolve that by using one of the heavier interfacings or a wire inserted in the binding?  I think so as long as whatever one used wasn't so heavy that it caused the wheel to be pulled down by the weight.  And possibly the wheel would not be an issue at all.  

All right, that one was relatively easy.  What if your shape was even more difficult?  What if the support system showed intermittently along the top? The most simple thing is to decide whether having the support system visible is really a problem.  A rod could be painted the color of the wall to make it disappear.  Or it could be wrapped in the fabric that was used in the binding which we're used to having in evidence.  The rod could be decorated in a way that complements the subject matter of the quilt.  

Failing all else, if the hanging of a quilt seems insurmountable, why not just throw it across a table, the back of a sofa, the foot of a bed?  

The biggest question here is:  Why let the hanging of a quilt keep us from experimenting with the shape of that quilt?  We are so accustomed to the square/rectangular shapes of our traditional blocks that we fail to see that there are indeed other options open to us.  Yes, the straight edges of the familiar are easier to execute, but why not take the leap?  Why not play with the shape of our quilts  if  the subject matter warrants it.  Wouldn't it be fun to design a quilt like the puzzle above?  

If you can't respond in the blog, you can always email me (most of you have that address already).  I'd love to hear what your thoughts are on this subject.      

By the way, we're going to a wedding in Buffalo this weekend so there won't be any new blog entries until next week.  It also means that I won't be able to vote.  Will you be sure to vote for me, please?