Crafting the Batman quilt was a lot of fun, but it certainly involved a lot of trial and error.  Actually doing the construction turned out to be easier than I expected. Planning the process was the bigger challenge.​

True, the copy I printed was very pale. Very pale. While that didn't help, it wasn't the real problem.  Apparently, magnified to more than 500% of original size, all the lines in the comic got very fuzzy.  Tracing over them with a sharp pencil clarified the nature of the problem, but not the image. I'd have to go back to the (computer) drawing-board and produce a precise line drawing.  

With a grid added to divide the image into 25 sheets of paper, it was ready to print.

Coming up next: Holy seams, Batman! We're actually sewing!

But where to start? Working from the center outward was one option, and maybe a good one. Instead, I chose to work from the edges in, and from the top down. Though I confess, that decision was really based on wanting to start with the easiest part.  That long, straight seam across the top was the clear winner. (Actually, two long straight seams; there's the dark green, then a narrow strip of black, then the lighter green.) The next seam would be a curve, but a long, gentle curve. Piece of cake.

My working method was similar to piecing quilt blocks: build up sections with straight machine sewing, then join to other sections with more straight seams. In places where that method broke down (like the angled yellow-and-brown window frames in the photo below), I did what I could on the machine, then finished up the "hard parts" with hand-applique.

As I selected each section for sewing, I cut the corresponding shapes from the paper pattern to use for cutting the fabric, adding seam allowances to each piece. 

So far, so good, but the black and grey colors in the original were not looking like a quilt for a toddler.  The brighter, shades-of-blue Batman was what I was looking for.

The next step was very computer-intensive, as I traced every single colored shape from the drawing. (There's probably all sorts of software available to automate all that tracing, but I use a slow, tedious method, using Microsoft Publisher. I do not recommend it to anyone with a normal tolerance for tedium and frustration, but it works for me.) Assuming I'd have the original comic image to use as a pattern , I made this tracing a bit rough--no finesse in the drawing, just enough detail to see the color patches.

Then I played with re-coloring all those shapes in different shades of blue and green. Thinking ahead, I chose my palette from the colors available in Kaufman's Kona Cotton. After all, I wanted to be sure that I could actually find fabric to match my color choices.  You can see two versions of color trials below. ​

Honestly, I rather prefer the version on the left for its moodier atmosphere. But some of the colors are a bit too close in value.  I decided to go with the version on the right.

With the drawing finalized, it was time to scale it up. The computer made this part easy. My expanded comic  was proportioned to cover one sheet of paper; scaled up to 500% of original size, it would make a 42 1/2 inch by 55 inch quilt. The pattern would print out on 25 sheets of paper. Perfect. 

Using the full-size pattern and my favorite color trial , I calculated yardage requirements and placed my order. I'd need black, a bit of white and peach, brown, orange, 2 shades of yellow, 3 of green, and 5 of blue. Phew! 

There's no rule that says ordinary has to be boring.

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​Hands down, this is my favorite.

I'm glad I didn't find it sooner, or I might have tried to duplicate it. As it is, I think my hanging incorporates two or three of the same design elements. 

Like the Advent and Easter banners, the pattern for this one will be available for instant download in my Craftsy shop.

At the time I made these little banners, I was very much making it up as I went along.  I love that free-wheeling, totally spontaneous working method.  It often results in beautiful designs, surpassing anything my analytical left-brain would have created.  On the other hand, that sew-first-think-later approach can lead to construction processes that are, shall we say, less than optimally efficient.

Take my Easter banner.  (No, actually, you may not take mine.  Go make your own!)  This was my first venture into liturgical designs, made as a memorial to a dear friend and all-round amazing lady, Jean Curtis.  It needed to be stunningly beautiful, to do Jean justice.  Taking shortcuts of any kind was not part of the plan.

​The theme of Resurrection is expressed by the white lilies, a time-honored symbol of Easter. They bloom before the cross, in an orb of golden light.  Using two lighter values of gold in the circle creates the illusion of the cross remaining visible behind the luminous circle.  Life triumphs over death.

The Trinity theme is developed throughout the hanging, starting with the three white lilies. Each lily holds three embroidered stamens, and the lilies bloom on a stalk with three sets of three leaves.

The Thousand Pyramids design of the background takes the Trinity theme into the very substance of the banner. Triangular patches, cut from an assortment of white-on-white fabrics, combine to form innumerable expanding triangles. The cross, and even the circle of light, are composed of Thousand Pyramids patchwork. 
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Here's where I may have gone a bit overboard.  Honestly, all that tricky piecing of all those tiny patches in the circle does not show up behind the bold floral elements.  Plus, it makes a rather lumpy substrate for the appliqué.  In writing up the pattern, I greatly simplified this part.

​Other than that, I'm still totally in love with this design.  Like the Advent banner, the Easter hanging is finished with a row of prairie points on the bottom edge, and a wrap-around backing with integrated hanging sleeve. This is one of my favorite, genius time-saver techniques for small wall-hanging quilts. 
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​With an entire month left before Easter, there's still plenty of time to stitch up this banner.  You can download the pattern here.

Coming next: the Pentecost banner!
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At the center of the piece is a brilliantly white element, which reads as a star (for Advent) or a cross (for Lent). The narrow shapes and sharp points give the impression of  slicing open the center of the hanging, admitting a burst of light into the purple darkness.

 "...And God separated the light from the darkness." (Genesis 1:4) 

The placement of the purple fabrics, progressing from the lightest values at the center to the darkest at the edges, continues the theme of spreading light.

Construction of the hanging is simpler than it looks.  There are 24 6-inch blocks of identical design, differing only in color. I named this block design, “Genesis", for the dramatic way it divides the light and dark values. 

The same set of 6 templates is used for both the lighter and darker halves of each block, with no left-handed/right-handed variations of the block templates to keep track of. Avoiding mirror symmetry in the blocks keeps the overall design dynamic.

The central star may look complicated, but it's really an easy trick. The "arms" of the star are added by machine on top of each quadrant of assembled blocks.  Then the 4 quarters are seamed together.  Slick.

The old pulpit hanging in the church had long drapery fringe on the bottom.  Not wanting to use fringe, I opted for a row of prairie points to finish the lower edge. 

Instead of the standard quilt binding, I used a wrap-around backing technique.  That has the advantage of forming an integrated hanging sleeve, and means no binding to sew on.

The pattern, available now in my Craftsy shop, includes full-size templates for the blocks and the star, plus detailed piecing and assembly instructions and a clear color-placement chart.

Next week, I'll share my Easter hanging, which features lavish appliqué over a thousand-pyramids background.
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OK, to be honest, it's been waiting more than a few months. More like a couple of years, actually.  The problem was, I had to find just the right quilting design.

It couldn't be too complicated; this quilt has been in progress long enough, and I really want it finished soon. Even so, I'm not ready to settle for something boring for the sake of hand-quilting speed.

The Lost Ships block has two triangular areas of different sizes to quilt, and I wanted those designs to be related, but not identical (because that would be boring). The design also had to fit the Lost Ships theme (because I said so). 

Most importantly, the design had to be template-friendly. That is, it had to be adaptable to my stencil-free approach to quilt marking.

Using a stencil is a great way to mark a quilt. Stencils are available for lots of beautiful quilting designs from online vendors like quiltingstencils.com.  The problem is that I never seem to find what I want in exactly the right size. Sure, you can cut your own stencils.  I've done that.  Frankly, it's a job that always finds me clenching my teeth and muttering, "There's got to be a better way!"

Finally, I discovered a better way.  Unlike stencils, where the quilting lines are cut as narrow channels in the background matrix (tricky to plan and difficult to cut), my template method uses solid shapes (ultra-easy to cut).

Plus, because templates are a "trace-around" tool, they need to be somewhat rigid, but unlike stencils, they don't need to be thin.  That means you don't need that pricey mylar material for your templates.  Any card-stock will do.  A panel from an empty cereal box will do very well, as my grandmother taught me.  (My Scottish great-grandmother would approve.)

Let me demonstrate.

For the Lost Ships quilt, I decided on a pair of shell motifs, one quite simple, the other a bit elaborated. ​
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​I'll cut this as 2 templates: the blue shell by itself, and all the scrolling parts together.  Again, it's very simple to mark the quilt by tracing around the templates. Lines where the yellow and orange sections intersect are easy to fill in.

Instead, the design can be rendered with 3 overlapping templates. The first is the overall outline of the design, and serves to mark the boundaries of the other two, which are rotated to cover the 4 sides and 4 corners, respectively. The overall outline template isn't strictly required, but it helps with visualizing the process. It's also handy for aligning the rotating shapes.

Not every quilting design will lend itself readily to the template method.  Spiraling lines are particularly template-resistant.  But once you learn to look for the solid shapes within a design, marking with templates is a breeze.
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