When I first saw this pattern, by Kristy of Quiet Play, I knew I had to make it for my cousin's Star Wars obsessed son. At just 3.5 years old he's already a full bottle on all the characters and says of Darth Vader, his absolute favourite, "He's not all that bad". Too cute!
As Mr 3.5 can be a fussy eater at times, I thought a special placemat may encourage him to sit at the table and at least try to have a few mouthfuls of dinner. Well, anything is worth a shot, right?
I was super excited when I finished the binding on this baby - the whole thing looked pretty much like I had imagined. That and I was just so glad it was finished because it was not a fun project for me.
Those following me on IG know I had at least one episode with the unpicker but, in all honesty, it was closer to 10. Talk about frustrating! I pieced the wrong pieces, I sewed over folds, I didn't have right sides together and I tried to use pieces that were too small. I was just not feeling the paper piecing love, let me tell you! At one point I even snipped my finger with the scissors. Ok, ok, I did that twice.
THEN... I had a few issues lining the seams up (totally my stupidity, nothing to do with the pattern!) so Darth Vader has ended up with a few wrinkles between his eyes. I figure that with the life he leads that was inevitable anyway. ;)
For the quilting I decided on a random grid pattern, using some of the seams to start with and then going from there. I've done this style before, on this quilt, and really like the look.
I also stitched around Darth himself, which you can see a bit better on the back.
A spotty binding finished him off at 13.5" x 9.5".
Well... I thought he was finished but after pulling this out of the washing machine I noticed a small hole where the seam had pulled out. ARGH!!!
Yes, I cursed. Loudly. More than once. He is truly a bad, bad, bad man. :(
So, dear readers, what do I do now? How do I fix this? Plan A is to scream, stomp on it and throw it in the bin. Plan B is to glam Darth up with a pretty flower - but I have a feeling Mr 3.5 may object. Any ideas for a Plan C? Anyone?
HELP! Please. With a cherry on top.
E.
Linking up with the Paper Piecing Party over at Kristy's house.
Oh no!!! I hate when that happens! The only suggestion I have is to try to carefully hand sewn that bit of the seam. You might end up with a little puckering though - but better than unpicking the whole thing!
ReplyDeleteDespite the torment he put you through, I think Darth turned out fabulously! Perfect colour scheme for him too!
Its brilliant!! Great idea to make a placemat and I agree with Kristy just hand sew it, you won't notice a dark thread. XX
ReplyDeleteHe looks truly villanous! And I agree with Kristy and Lucy that you should be able to hand sew the culprit seam.
ReplyDeleteIf it were me I would use fabric glue then a ladder stitch to try and hold it in place. I'm sure then little guy will be so excited that he won't even notice!
ReplyDeleteLadder stitch it with a very fine needle and thread.
ReplyDeleteHe is brilliant and I am sure will have the required effect! Sewing down the seam will not detract from the overall effect!
ReplyDeleteLove it!
ReplyDeleteHe is such a bad, bad, man! Sorry about all the trouble with him. Ditto everyone else with the hand sewing. Your nephew will love it!
ReplyDeleteOh I know how you feel I had a bad paper piecing week myself. One block went well the other frustrating as heck. So glad it worked out well in the end - I think Darth looks like he'd make you eat your broccoli and finish your carrots too. He's going to love it!
ReplyDeleteWhat a fabulous idea to turn him into a fussy eaters placemat Erin. I too have trouble paper piecing when I have had a break from it. It's like learning all over again.
ReplyDeleteOh I feel your pain! There are days when my quick unpick is never out of my hand when I'm paper piecing. That said, I still love the results that you get so I stick at it!
ReplyDeleteLove the way you quilted this. Good luck fixing it!
What a great idea! Shame about the naughty seam - I'd put some fray check on it and then try to hand stitch it. If that failed I'd hand appliqué another other piece of fabric (matching!) over the top - I did that for mam after Alfie chewed a hole in a table runner (he has a thing for new, unwashed fabric!) and you have to look closely to see the patch...hope you find something that works!
ReplyDeleteWhat a great idea! I should really check out those patterns for my nephews for Christmas.
ReplyDelete