Project Quilting - Stars Over America

Here's my latest entry for Project Quilting.

We had to use at least one color other than red, white and blue.  And we did NOT have to use red, white and blue.  The theme:  Stars Over America.

My interpretation was literal.  I made stars and hung them over the word America.

I started with lots of little squares of creams and golds and pieced each of the letters in a separate block.  Mini-borders of red (1/8 inch) were added to each letter block to make them stand out a bit. These blocks were pieced to a background on larger squares of two different cream fabrics.  Before the background was finished I ran out of the lighter cream.  I discovered that using the wrong side of the darker cream would give the same look.

The stars that hang above the word were stuffed with lots of bits of batting to make them puffy.  I made flag blocks to hang below, outside the square of the quilt.  The white in the flag blocks was too white!  I thought about taking them apart and doing them again with cream.  Then inspiration struck... I brewed some tea and soaked the blocks... perfect!

When I first sketched my project I thought of making it a flip floppy piece.  Not reversible but top becomes bottom and bottom becomes top.  So the flags have stars on the back, and the stars on top are red on the back, and the random boxes on top have letters appliqued upside down.  Flip the quilt and you again have "Stars Over America"!  Love it!  Or it could be hung over a fence or railing and you would have a quilt on each side. 

With this project I thought outside the square, wrong side out, and upside down!
There were nine other entries. Three other quilters said they had a literal interpretation and they were all different.  Funny how you can be literal about the same words and still be different. You can see them all at Kim's Crafty Apple. There's a neat prize to be given away to the public.  All you have to do is leave a comment.

Now I have to go clean my sewing room  :(