Michael Miller is In the Can

This has been a project of running with those first thoughts that jump in my head that I don't even know are coming. "Whoa, where did that come from?" kinda thoughts that happen when I'm not in brainstorm mode.

My mild potty humor blog title slithered through my brain as I was putting the final touches on the binding so, of course, I had to run with it too. It didn't start out as potty humor but as a phrase I have heard used to signify that a film project is complete. It took a few seconds for my mind to take it around the corner to the old Sir Walter Raleigh phone prank.

As this is my first foray into QuiltCon Challenge Land, I am not sure of the sharing protocol so I am not going to give a full reveal today. The weather is also too dark and gray to get good photos and I want to do the quilt justice so I have two excuses to just share snippets.

How "Let's Glitz Physical" came to me:

I just happened to be on my computer when the initial challenge invite popped up and I quickly filled out the form and waited to see if I would get the a bundle. Yes! I wasn't a day late and a dollar short this time.

I had no idea what I was going to do with this sparkly fabric. I am not a metallic fabric fan. I am very tactile and metallic ink/dyes ruin the touch for me. I wear minimal jewelry and am not comfortable with a lot of bling. And the kicker is that I am super sensitive to glitter. It smells funny, hurts my eyes and makes my skin crawl. Just looking at metallic fabric can give me the glitter heebie-jeebies.

I was in a bit of a panic about this project and then the little bundle of joy arrived in my mailbox.

As soon as I touched it I had one thought....My theme was set in motion. The whole quilt top flashed before my eyes. My only decisions were what color Michael Miller Couture solids to use, which pieces of Glitz I would use for the centerpiece feature and what pattern I would use for the feature.

I was to make one major change to my layout. A few days after the bundle arrived I had a short visit with Son #1 and when I shared my idea with him it was met with a very ominous and pensive silent stare. I thought he hated it but he was actually just laying out the top in his head. His first comment was "How are you going to justify it?" 

Um, I am the Mom, I don't have to justify anything to you Son, I brought you into this....

Not really, I knew exactly what he meant. 

Me : "Well, I was planning to center it..."

Him: "Did you ever think about Right?"

He was spot on and another snap decision was set.

My original thought was to use up the extra Glitz for the back but a few days later another unsolicited thought erupted.

That handmade camp shirt I bought at a yard sale in 2013 that I thought was quilting fabric and when I researched it at home didn't I find it on the Michael Miller site? Yes! And it compliments my theme! Perfect!

So I ordered my Couture and my pattern and set to work when all arrived and the project turned out just as my mind's eye pictured it. I love it and it may be my favorite project of my short quilting career.

I fussy cut my camp shirt and created a photograph look for the back. This allowed me to eliminate a traditional label as I have written my quilt information on the white photo frames.

The title, Let's Glitz Physical popped up one day when I was laying the quilt out on my design wall. It turns out "Glitz" is one of those words you can plug into other things. I told a guild mate my title and she immediately popped it into her title too! 

My repurposed fabric even has the Michael Miller brand printed on it in a couple places. I love these ladies!

My binding skills have improved since I started quilting and this one turned out beautiful.

So, now I'm waiting for the clouds to clear so I can get some good photos. I'll probably get the Hubs to shoot them since I have such dismal photography skills and his are above average. 

Can't wait to see all the other Michael Miller QuiltCon West Challenge projects.

Thanks for visiting.