sometimes it is the small decisions

Finally the quilt is pieced. Whew!!!  But still I must quilt it. Which means I must choose which color thread to use. It should be easy, right? Well, not always. Now I like to use the same color throughout. I find that this gives a cohesion to the piece that I want. But this is where the issues begin. Sometimes I like adding just the bit of yellow or gold to brighten the piece but I am not sure it is the right decision for this quilt which has so much dark in it.

process--quilt--ann brauer--2018

Instead I test colors. For me the easiest way is to hold up the spools of thread and imagine what the color will look like against the quilt. I love the thought of this magenta. After all the quilt is shades of plum and purple. Lavender and mauve. And this would accentuate all those wonderful rich hues.

process--ann brauer--quilt 2018

Then I realize that the bottom of the quilt is teal. The magenta will stand out significantly against the teal. Mmmm. Maybe this is not the right color after all.

process--ann brauer--quilt--2018

I try again with this bright rose. Again it has the warmth I am seeking but still it may be too bright for the mystery of this quilt.

process--quilt--ann brauer 2018

As they say. Third time is the charm. What about the brick red. Not the color I had been initially imagining but it does add just a bit of the warmth and it won't stand out quite as strongly with the teal.

process--quilt--ann brauer 2018

Not too bright against the teal either is it?

process--quilt--ann brauer 2018

Yes, this will work. And so I begin. Simple rows of stitches done free hand using my 1965 Singer 281-3. A machine I love so much I design my quilts around it.

process--quilt--ann brauer 2018

But a seemingly endless process. I just sit there and sew and sew and sew.  When will I finish? I can get a bit of coffee or maybe some water when I reach a set goal. When I need to change bobbins I can check my e-mail. Oh the games I play to get it done. It goes on and one and on. Like my father, the farmer, when he plowed fields. Up one side and down the next yet gradually there is progress and this is after all part of the process.

How do you do it? What keeps you going during those endless rows? And how do you choose the color of thread to use?