SQUEEE!!! But then…. UGH

Onward and upward with the space quilt!  I decided that I would definitely piece the stars and the moon, was still undecided on the rocket (probably applique), and then to applique the Earth.  How’s that for a mix of techniques?

So I took the plunge and started sewing my space quilt, and AHHHHH, SO COOL:

Please excuse the icky photos — I took all of these at night since I’ve been sewing while the girls are sleeping.

I began with some stars…and I am absolutely LOVING them!  I have always wanted to do wonky stars, and they are just great!  And I think my idea of alternating nine-patches and plain blocks is going to be great to add some interest to the background but not be overwhelming.  SQUEE!

As for the Earth, I decided to audition a fabric I thought would be awesome: Fingerpaints by Camelot Cottons!

I picked these up at Quilt Festival this year, specifically at a shop called Fern Hill Gifts and Quilts.  The print just really has a lot of life to it with the great variety of color and tones in each colorway.  Now looking at their website I wish they had had a bigger selection at Quilt Festival, but I love the fabrics I did come home with.  ANYWAY, I thought the fingerpaint swirls would make a wonderful ocean, but my brightest blue isn’t really bright enough to contrast with my starry sky.  As you can see on the side of my pictures in this entry, though, I have another fabric I think will work well for the Earth.  The Earth, thus, seems to be moving right along.

So, what’s the “UGH” all about on my title?  The Moon.  My poor poor icky moon.

I was extremely excited to try and piece a moon, and attacked it with glee and…absolutely no plan whatsoever.  My moon is, well, passable, but really looks rather sad next to my brilliant stars.

I’m now befuddled.  Do I try to piece another moon?  Look, I have a plan this time!:

or, do I just give up and applique the moon onto the space background?

OR, am I just being silly and my moon is perfectly acceptable?

I’m pretty sure I’m going to make the moon a bright white instead of what you see pieced up above.  I thought that fabric was awesome for a moon, but it turns out to be a bit too muddy for me, especially with all the bright clear colors on this quilt.

Any opinions on my moon are greatly appreciated!

 

OH, and I forgot to mention last time:  I’m linking up to Naptime Quilter’s Workshop in Progress.  It is really an opportunity for all of us to show more of our process and get some feedback in return.  My quilts tend to move slow and therefore I often give some process on my blog, but I’m trying to do this one quickly AND show what I’m up to.  You should go and check out some of the other great quilters joining in.

Just some of the scraps and some possibilities for the rocket.