Deacon Update ~ and Aprons!

I'm well into assembling all 85 blocks of the Deacon quilt but have a dilemma. 

This is the original 1842 quilt made for Ella Maria Deacon, Mount Holly, NJ, and currently in the Art Institute of Chicago's permanent collection. The blocks were offered by Gay Bomers at Sentimental Stitches, 4 per month for 21 months.

The instructions called for 4 yds of striped fabric for the sashing to run on the diagonal with no seams. The stripe at the top was my first choice until I saw the 2nd one which more or less resembled the original. But in the end I stuck with the first.

It took hours to cut these 2" strips figuring the longest lengths first then the shorter ones. That way I could get two out of each long strip--one long, one short. The longest being 138", the shortest 12-1/2".

Not to mention the shorter strips that go between each block and measure 2" x 9-1/2". 

Next were the edge triangles. I had purchased two different fabrics to audition and went ahead and cut into my first choice. Then I realized the size was based on 9-1/2" unfinished blocks without taking into consideration the width of the long sashing. 

So . . . once I had that figured out I cut into my second choice fabric and that was much better. Here are the first 4 rows . . . 

I've got two more draped over the railing and ready to go. These are rows 5 & 6. Row 7 is the center point. 

All the other blocks are sorted and labeled by row. 

Here's my dilemma and I can't believe I'm saying this:

The finished quilt will be 107" x 107" and I'm having second thoughts about making such a large piece. It is definitely challenging to line up all those sashing strips. I could eliminate a row or two (yikes!) and put those blocks on the back. That would reduce the overall size to 90" x 90" which is still pretty big. Any thoughts?

On another note . . . 

I broke down and bought a few aprons.

A cute patchwork . . . 

A great border print . . . 

And one with a stitched-in towel.

These are my apron books. The bottom two are my favorites :)

Well, that's it for now. . .

 

Copyright 2022 Barbara Schaffer