Another quilting question about my turtle

12 years ago

The sea turtle for my expected grandchild's crib quilt has undergone some changes since I first envisioned it. I'm usually (too) conservative with color, but this sea turtle appears to have come from the Caribbean--which I guess is appropriate because my son and daughter-in-law love Aruba.

These layers of fabric have been bonded to Heat 'n' Bond Lite, but not yet bonded to each other. The fabrics are all lightweight cotton. I'm concerned that when it comes time to zig-zag stitch around the edges, sewing through all the layers could present a problem.

The most layers will be involved when I sew around the two small blue pieces in the middle. To avoid this, another option would be to discard the little blue pieces and cut out two shapes in the yellow, revealing the orange underneath. I guess I could do a test piece to see how that would look.

The turtle is big--16" tall and wide, including the head and feet. The background will be three green small prints: dark at the bottom, medium in the middle, and light at the top. I'm planning a border, but haven't gotten that far yet.

Any and all advice is appreciated. This is fun, but nerve-wracking! Rug hooking is so much easier. :-)

Thanks!

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Comments (14)

wanda_va
12 years ago
You shouldn't have a problem sewing through the layers. I would probably put a new needle in the machine, and I wouldn't sew at top speed. I have done layered applique many times.

An option would be to zigzag the blue to the yellow (and possibly the yellow to the orange) before fusing it.

Have fun! BTW, quilting is more challenging than rug hooking, but it's also a lot more fun!!

...wanda, who was a hooker, but is now a quilter...
nicole__
12 years ago
I've never quilted...just wanted to say "I LOVE IT!!!!!"

Turtles are my weak spot.......and your doing a FANTASTIC job!!!!
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rhizo_1 (North AL) zone 7
12 years ago
Gasp....I love it! And I adore the colors.

I think that if you remove the small blue patches and opt for holes as you suggest, that it will actually look like the poor turtle has a defective shell, instead of the domed carapace that they actually have.

Do you see what I mean? I can't help with advice about the sewing, but I'm sure that others can.

You'll post more pictures as you progress, right?
jannie
12 years ago
I love him!
dees_1
12 years ago
I'm with rhizo; I think you need those little blue pieces. An alternative would be to cut holes in both the orange and yellow to let the blue underneath peek through. This is looking fabulous!

Dee - craft challenged individual.
alisande
Original Author
12 years ago
Wow--thanks, everyone! I needed that shot of confidence.

Good point, Rhizo. Hadn't thought of that. I'll follow Wanda's suggestion to zigzag the blue to the yellow (and possibly the yellow to the orange). I didn't realize I could do that. Thanks, Wanda!

Yes, I'll post a progress pic or two (assuming I don't ruin it). :-)
ravencajun Zone 8b TX
12 years ago
You can buy what is called a jeans needle, I had to use them all the time when I was making all the outfits with sequins and other heavy fabrics and stuff. They are the heaviest needle around and will really go through just about anything. I used them to sew a lot of the lighter weight leather items I made.
I used to find them at Hobby Lobby and Hancock fabrics.
these are the exact ones.
Schmetz Jean & Denim Machine Needles - Size 18/110 (great price with free shipping)

another item I used a lot with multiple layers of fabric and thick seams was the jean a ma jig
Dritz(R) Jean-A-Ma-Jig
alisande
Original Author
12 years ago
Thanks for the tip and links, Raven!

Here he is, everything bonded (obviously, lots more background fabric hanging down the sides of the ironing board) but nothing sewed except the two blue pieces on top. In the process, I made enough mistakes to have a do-over on the blue pieces and two do-overs on the yellow. Whew!

I'm so relieved to get it to this point that I have to keep reminding myself I have a long way to go before this is finished. :-)
alisande
Original Author
12 years ago
I was happy (and surprised!) to find an unopened package of jeans needles in my supplies. The turtle edges are sewn!
ravencajun Zone 8b TX
12 years ago
Excellent! It looks terrific.
chisue
12 years ago
Don't get panicked by the due date. The work will be loved and appreciated for years.

Could you show us Joey's turtle again, please?
alisande
Original Author
12 years ago
Happy to, Chisue.
chisue
12 years ago
Oh, THANKS! I love that!

I can admire the crafty people here even though I last 'crafted' anything in the Camp Fire Girls -- and the world is the better for it. LOL
alisande
Original Author
12 years ago
Thanks, Chisue! I'll bet you were a good Camp Fire Girl. I wasn't in any group as a kid, but I became a Girl Scout leader when my girls were in middle school. We had fun.

The turtle rug is the hooking I'm most proud of. Certainly it meant the most to me as I worked on it. I dyed all the blues and greens, as well as the peach background for the lettering. I held my breath a lot doing the lettering, but I was happy with the way it turned out.

Quilters, I probably mentioned this before, but the turtle pattern came from FourTwinSisters.com, a nice source for free quilt patterns run by.....four twin sisters. :-) They're also on Facebook.

Another quilting question about my turtle

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