Monday, February 11, 2013

Framing mini-quilts: an easy task

     People always wonder what I will do with my numerous 8" x 8" and 12" x 12" journal quilts. I stack them in little suitcases of similar size. Framing and big quilting suggestions abound. I just enjoy "leafing" through my portable exhibition to show friends; but Donna Jean's suggestion of sewing them to a pre-stretched inexpensive canvas caught my attention. I wanted to try it. Here is what I did:



     I bought the pre-stretched canvas on sale at Michael's. I selected a compatible fabric for attaching the quilt with a running stitch.  And I cut the fabric about two inches wider on all sides. I next centered the quilt on the frame cover, turned it over  and stitched a simple little running stitch all around. I want to be able to easily remove the quilt from the frame, yet make the piece secure enough to hang. 


     I set the canvas upside down onto the running stitches that I had just sewn. 


     Making sure all was centered carefully, I spread Aleene's Original Tacky glue all around to each EDGE of the canvas and over the stapled area, one side at a time. This glue dries relatively quickly and holds beautifully. It can be a messy task with fingers so I used a big wooden knitting needle. I smoothed all the edges, giving special attention to smart corners.


      My regret was that I cut the landscape quilts to fit the frame. Landscapes should not be cramped. I also forgot to finish embellishing them with hand stitching before framing. It can still happen, but I was too interested in the framing to slow down. If you click the photos to enlarge, you can almost see the frame supports for the quilts which can now hang easily with a little more importance and respect :*)  !


This is what I did during Boston's 2013 snowstorm, along with reading The Snow Child, a novel by Eowyn Ivey!


12 comments:

  1. Brilliant job! These look wonderful!

    ReplyDelete
  2. I love your framed quilts. You make it sound so easy! I think the landscapes look fabulous.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Great idea to use the glue and it worked!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Just looked at your journal quilts framed. They look fabulous. great idea. Kathy

    ReplyDelete
  5. clever. I particularly love the crab.
    A

    ReplyDelete
  6. clever. I particularly love the crab.
    A

    ReplyDelete
  7. God bless you, dear Linda, for sharing your talents and ideas with everyone. You continue to amaze me, and I love you very much. Thank you!
    RA

    ReplyDelete
  8. It would be neat to figure out a way to prepare the quilts so that they could be mounted on the frames whenever you wanted to display a particular one. My friend Sharon and the friend with whom she has done some joint projects currently have an exhibition hanging downtown at the Community Foundation. I went to the opening, and it was fun to see a lot of their work hanging for all to see. I do like their collaborative projects.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Hi Linda,
    What a great idea, they look fabulous.
    Elana

    ReplyDelete
  10. that's beautiful. Jim

    ReplyDelete
  11. Linda, They are gorgeous! Your creativity knows no bounds. K

    ReplyDelete
  12. Always impressive...You might consider turning your "teaching" blogs into a craft book. They are terrific; even if I am not crafty,I recognize their instruction. ss

    ReplyDelete