Jan 23 11

Thread Give-Away Winner Announced and Sidelined, Kind of…

Drumroll, please…and the winner of the Poly Quilter Threads give way is Nanette Fleishman of Burnsville, NC! I actually know Nanette from the Fiber Arts Alliance group in Asheville, NC, so I know these threads are going to a great textile artist! Congratulations, Nanette!

Now, what’s been happening with me…not very good stuff. I tore a ligament in my wrist and have now developed a condition called Guyon’s canal syndrome, where the ulnar nerve is trapped as it passes through the wrist. I can’t move my wrist in many ways before it gets very painful, so I’ve been partially sidelined by this. Ernie was nice enough to cut fabric up for me this week and I didn’t quilt all week, until this weekend when I felt that I had to give it a go. I’ve been in a wrist splint 24 hours a day for many days and that does a very good job of not allowing me to move my wrist in the ways that provoke the worst pain. So, I figured it would be pretty safe to try a small project, so I returned to that trapuntoed flower block as it wouldn’t involve having to move a big quilt around with my left arm and wrist:

You can tell which petal I stitched first…it’s the blue one at about 11:00 and the swirl is completely straight because I was feeling really nervous and hesitant with my movements. It’s kind of awkward to do this with a large splint on your hand and arm. But the “funness” of it outweighed the awkwardness of it and soon I became more confident. Here’s a shot on the machine bed that shows some petals quilted and some still empty. I think it shoes how much a little thread work can add:

Normally, when I know I’m going to do the EKG edge finishing design, I do that part before I do any “internal” stitching. This petal is so large that I thought the design in the petal would be more “commanding” than the edge finsihing design, so I stitched the swirls with the goal of adding the EKG work later. Here’s the flower with all the petal swirls done but before the edge finishing:

The swirl motifs are so large and the gold on purple stitching is so high contrast that I figured my edge stitching needed to be fairly unobtrusive. I ended up using a reddish purple rayon thread and stitching the design in a fairly diminutive scale:

…and here’s what the backside of the block looks like once all the excess batting has been cut away. This block won’t have anymore stitching done on it until the entire quilt has been pieced and placed into the final quilt sandwich:

17 Comments

  1. Leslie Says:

    I adore it, Patsy! And I think you’re quite wrong.. can’t tell which one you started on as they are all “singing together in perfect harmony. And…May you have healing on your wrist! All the best to you.

  2. Marti M Says:

    Be careful, and let your wrist heal. Your work is beautiful.

  3. Lynn Says:

    Simply beautiful! Love the bright, high contract fabrics. As usual your stitching is flawless.

  4. Caryl Says:

    Patsy,
    For whst it is worth and excuse me for butting in, but I had the same condition several years ago. I had surgery which fixed it completely. Never had another problem. At the time, I was told that leaving my hand and wrist in a brace for long periods would weaken the muscles. I am not in the medical field, I just wanted to share my experiences. If you do go the surgery route, find the best hand surgeon you can who has done hundreds of these surgeries.

    All the best,
    Caryl

  5. Claire Pereira Says:

    Sorry to hear about your wrist…hope it heals quickly. That Ernie!!! He’s a keeper!!
    The flower is just lovely…even the back looks nice!

  6. Carol C Says:

    I hope everything goes well with your wrist. I can’t imagine how you must feel. Your work is still beautiful. Good luck.

  7. leeanne Says:

    Congratulations Nanette.

    Your quilting is so amazing and alive!!

  8. Brita Says:

    So sorry about your hand! Will it eventually get better by itself, or will you need surgery? Hope not. I’m glad to see you’re still able to do the magic with your machine!

  9. Kelly Jackson Says:

    I’ll be right over to do some surgery on that wrist. Some wine, a scalpel and You Tube is all I need….well maybe some Google too!!!

    ROFL

    Hugs,
    Kelly

  10. Linda Erickson Says:

    I hope your wrist problem will get resolved since I know how frustrating that can be.
    Lovely flower!!

  11. Marika Says:

    Congratulations Nanette.
    Fast recovery but cautious work !!
    I say thank you for the opportunity of a game.
    Marika

  12. jloussarian Says:

    Patsy, thinking of you and wish you a speedy recovery with your wrist problem. We love seeing your lovely work on the blog. Jean

  13. Stephanie Says:

    So sorry to hear about your wrist Patsy. So wonderful of Ernie to help you with your cutting.I too wish you a speedy recovery.

  14. Debbie Alexander Says:

    Patsy-
    How do you come up with your designs? Do you draw them out free hand or use a library of different designs you have collected? Your stitching once again leaves me wondering if I’ll ever be able to do something like this?!?!?! I know practice, practice and more practice.

  15. Pat Minnick Says:

    Hope you are well on your way to recovery. Your work is so beautiful–you challenge all of us to step out of our comfort zone.

  16. Marge Says:

    Dear Patsy, so sorry about your wrist,but being the positive and very happy person you are…you will figure out away to overcome,even in this set back….time to dream of the next project…I have enjoyed your teachings and your lovely website and your quilts they are so creative and beautiful…Thank you for sharing your love of quilting…I have been sewing for over 50 yrs and have now started to quilt( I consider it adult sewing !)I love the free motion aspect of quilting and have bought one of your cd’s..

  17. Evelene Sterling Says:

    Wow the stitching really makes it pop. Even the back looks great.