Frayed edges

This is where my layering of scraps has taken me so far. All the different sized pieces were layered onto pieces of felt and have been quilted down with wavy lines, ragged ends showing. I really like the texture of this - I seem to be very taken with texture and the feel of textiles lately.

I started out as a traditional quilter, and I suppose part of me still is, as I constantly feel the need to explain that, yes, I do know how to sew. I do know that you are supposed to hide raw edges inside neat seams, quilt and embroider neatly and bind off with a double fold binding with perfectly mitered corners. But I choose not to. OK? Some of the time, anyway. I will still make "proper quilts", but I also want to explore other paths and work more freely.

Now I don't know why I'm going on about this here to you, because this is where I find people who actually understand and feel the same way. The thing is, in "The Real World" - among fellow quilters that I actually meet at guild meetings and in shops and classes, I increasingly find that I have to explain myself and justify what I'm doing and why. "But what is it for?" people invariably ask when I show something new and exiting I'm working on. "Where are you going to keep it?" is another one. "Isn't it going to fray?" is what I'm expecting to hear when it comes to this project. Because I have actually got answers for the other two this time.

So what if it frays? - I really hope it does! I'll use it until it falls apart and then I might make another one! I still have to fight an urge to finish off things too neatly when I'm trying to tear myself away from The Rules of Quilting, but still, it is very liberating and I'm getting better at it. So what is it for? Wait and see, I will tell you :-) Although I know you totally understand the need for frayed edges too!