Around here

My sewing at the moment seems to be focused on a couple of quilt-a-long projects I've joined.

For a while now I've wanted to use up some of my older scrappy fabrics in a way that made them look a little fresher.  The Square Dance mystery quilt at My Caroline Home seemed like the perfect project to give this a try.   The fabric requirements are quite simple - just dark/light, and best of all I got to use some pre-cut 2&1/2 inch squares for the darks.  For the lights I've thrown in some modern low-volumes, so I'm mixing the old and the new together and I'll see how that works out.

When I bought my new sewing machine my plan was to get better at quilting my own quilts.  As soon as I read about the Free Motion Quilt Along that the Central Jersey Modern Quilt Guild is running this year I was "in".  This is a great way to practice new quilting designs because each month you work on a fat 1/4 sized quilt sandwich  - nice and easy to manipulate.  At the end of the year there's going to be a smart way to join these pieces a-la quilt-as-you-qo.  I'm using up hand-dyes from my stash.  I love love love hand-dyes and I always have a stash of them, though some of the backs are the ones that don't seem to have found loving homes LOL.

See that middle one has a blank 1/4.  Well.... there's a design I haven't got my head, or my hands around yet.  I'm going to have to come back to that one.  I'm enjoying this project.  It's fun and I'm learning as I go.

Linking up with  Sew-Stitch-Snap-Share  a regular meet up where you see what other blogging quilters are up to.

Under the needle

This week I've been tidying up the Quiltery which was looking a bit the worse for wear and working on some nearly finished projects.

First up is this baby quilt for a friend's 4th son which I finished quilting over the Christmas holidays.  I was waiting for my friend to decide on the name for her baby so I could finish up the label for this quilt and gift it.  I made wonky stars in 2016 for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge and have since made a couple of other quilts with those blocks.  For this one I had enough blocks for just a small quilt so to make it a little bigger I sashed the blocks and pieced smaller stars in the intersections.  I love the result. 

The second project I've been working on is a Crosscut quilt.  This was originally a QAL at A Quilters Table.  I fell in love with this design when I made one for a quilt buddy in a swap.  I had some leftovers from that project and decided to put them together into a similar quilt for myself.  This one is special because some of the turquoise strips are from a hanky that was my mum's.  Finishing it hasn't really been a priority though and has been on the back burner until I got my new sewing machine at the end of last year.  It was a good project to try out the machine on because the construction method was quite forgiving and meant my seam allowance wasn't too critical (getting a new machine is a bit like learning to quilt all over again).  After quilting it with lots of straight lines, I parked it again, but now (finally) it is getting facing. 

I just wish these were the only two long term projects lurking the Quiltery. 



Linking up with Sew,Stitch, Snap, SHARE to see what other people are up to. 

Happy New Year and what's on the machine

Happy New Year from the Quiltery!   It would seem that I hardly blogged in 2017, perhaps because I hardly quilted for a big part of the year.  I'm planning this year to do more of both; quilting and blogging.  I think for blogging to work for me I have to keep it simple.  While the Finish A Long (and others like it) encouraged me to set goals, it was all about finishes, so when I didn't finish I got discouraged that I didn't have anything to share.  Really I want my blog to be about what I'm doing, and most of the time that is not finishing.    So I'm going to try and blog once a week about what I'm doing, connect up with Julie and Linda in their Sew, Stitch, Snap, Share get together that embraces blogging and sharing work in progress.

For the past couple of weeks I've been quilting this quilt, made from the Project 48 Quilt blocks I made.  The quilt is square and I'm quilting a continuous spiral on it.  The outer spirals are a long way around but I love the effect.  On the down side, some of my blocks are bit on the big side, and I've had to do some gathering to get them to lay flat.  I must have skipped the step of measuring and trimming the blocks before I put the top together.  It has been a good lesson for me to remember these simple steps, especially with this much quilting. 

Talk next week.

2017 Finish-A-Long: Q2 Goals

With the first quarter finishes accounted for it is time to turn my attention to what I hope to complete in the second quarter (Q2) of 2017.  Linking up with Marci Girl

First up is the most ambitious but most important because it has a mid-year deadline for gift giving.  This pile of blocks needs finishing, putting together and quilting.




This sampler quilt is ready for quilting.  It's made from last year's Project 48 blocks.  I stopped at around block 38, so it uses 36 blocks with a wide sashing to make it a better size and add some calm between all the  colour.  I did wonder if needed some more borders, but that would make it a funny size, and I'm "a bit over it" really.

Next is a much easier project.  I'm remodeling this sunflower quilt, but it has sat for several months and I want to get it ticked off and back on the wall.

Grand Illusion  just needs the binding hand stitched down, but this the point where my quilts stall.  If I put it on this list I'm hoping to motivate myself to get it done.

2017 Finish-A-Long: Q1 3rd Finish

This quarter seems to have flown by, so I'm really glad I set some quilting goals to which meant I could measure my progress during this time.  And I'm proud to say I finished all three of the projects on my list here.

My third finish for the Finish-A-Long is what I call my "Sew-A-Long Sampler". Back in 20T14, Erin at Sew At Home Mummy ran a the Classic Meets Modern QAL.   Erin challenged us  to put their own interpretation of a modern spin on classic, traditional blocks, and this really suited where I was at with my quilting.  I started out really enthusiastically with all the bases covered - white background fabric, recycled shirt fabric, funky modern fabric, solid fabric...  okay so I wasn't actually at the solid fabric stage when I started and I had lots of great hand-dyes so I used those.  I went well for 3 months.  Then in months 4, 5 and 6 the blocks were a bit more difficult and one turned out a bit 'off-size'.  I started to question this wild assortment of fabrics I was using; were they really going to work?  Was that white just too stark?  The project went in the box and it sat around for a little while.  Every now and then I'd dig it out and feel guilty about not progressing it.  I'd look at the blocks I had made, and the instructions for the blocks still to make and worry about my fabric.  Part of me felt that I was failing to be a modern quilter if I couldn't even follow a quilt-along.   And so it sat a while.

Actually it sat around until 2016.  At some point in 2016 I listened to a great podcast (which I've lost the link to thanks to having my laptop stolen) about how to get past procrastination and creative blocks.  The quilter talked about reassessing your UFOs and deciding why they are UFOs.  This insightful quilter talked about identifying what you liked about the project in the first place and what is needed to finish it.      This helped me find a turning point.

I decided on a setting I liked, and  then found blocks I wanted to make.  I added in more of the strong yellow and blue fabrics, and added some small areas of solid.  And all those funny fabrics and blocks I wasn't sure about came together with the new blocks into a quilt I liked.

The idea of quilting a sampler made me feel really nervous.  I had been looking at lots of quilts with spiral quilting on them and I loved the idea of it.  There are lots of tutorials around on how to quilt a spiral on your home machine and they make it seem achievable so I decided to give it a try. I can only say that this is the perfect technique for a big quilt on a domestic machine.   The hardest part is in the middle so its out of the way first, there are no stops and starts to tie off, and it looks great.  The quilting really brings the design together.

Lastly I finished the quilt with "Susie's Magic Binding".  I love the effect of the little piping, and I really love that I didn't have to spend a long time hand sewing it down.

This quilt is a donation quilt for  Foster Hope a group which supports children in foster care.

 

Linking back the to finish up here where there are lots of other lovely finishes to see.

2017 Finish-A-Long: Q1 2nd Finish

 

My second finish for Q1 of the Finish-A-Long is an art quilt piece for an online group I belong to.  This is the 3rd in a series, and there is still one more to make.  I've never worked in a series before so it has been a new experience.  Our challenge theme was 'Gondwana'. 

My series has been about reinterpreting my place in the world. I wanted to explore how New Zealand is portrayed in a style that was different from green scenery and endangered native birds and to make a strong statement.

I chose to create an abstract image of the continent Zealandia in the warm colours like those used in undersea maps. After breaking from Gondwanaland Zealandia has been mostly under the sea. Scientists argue about whether it submerged completely then partially rose, or whether it only partly submerged. In either case only 10% of Zealandia is visible above water; this part of the continent forms the islands of New Zealand.

The fabrics are my own hand dyes (with maybe a borrowed green; green is my dye weakness), cotton batting, backing is the drop cloth from a dying session (perhaps my other dye weakness is my messiness).

I'm pleased to say I finished all three of the projects on my Q1 list here.  The linkup for the finishes is here and there is lots of eye candy representing lots of hard work.

2017 Finish-A-Long: Q1 1st finish

Its the end of the first quarter (Q1) for the  2017 Finish-A-Long Q1 and I'm pleased to say I finished all three of the projects on my list here.   First up is this Wonky Stars Quilt.   I haven't quilted any 'real' sized quilted for quite some time because I've had the joy owning a long arm machine.  A couple of years ago when my husband received a cancer diagnosis, we had an out-of-the blue offer to buy the machine, and we accepted it.  It relieved us of having to rent studio space for the machine, and at the time was a load off our minds.  Good outcome.  But it has meant I've had to face quilting my own quilts.

This wonky quilt is intended as a donation for the charity Foster Hope, which helps out kids in foster care because the often go into care with nothing.    The blocks were made by a couple of friends, and there is another quilt from the blocks, which my friend is quilting.

I kept the quilting simple with some wonky, wavy, lines spaced well apart and the quilt is lovely and soft.

I'm really pleased with this quilt - wonky stars are one of my favourite blocks  - and look forward to being able to give it away.

There are lots of finished on the link up.  Check them out here

2017 Finish-A-Long: Q1 Proposed Finishes

 

I've sorted through my piles and boxes of unfinished quilting projects and, they seem to have been multiplying in the cupboard.  One of the cupboards is getting a bit difficult to close now so it is time for action.  I've decided to join the 2017 Finish Along to help motivate me to get some of them completed.

I have three goals for the first quarter.

First up is this wonky star quilt.  The blocks were made by three of us from my little quilt group, and as you can it has at least progressed to the quilting stage. 

Second is to put the facing on this art quilt for a mid February online reveal.  This pic is just sneak preview.  This quilt is the 3rd piece in a series of 4.

The third and last project is this sampler quilt which is at the top stage, so another quilting project.  This has been a stop-start project that began life as a quilt along and turned into a bit of experimentation.  It took a couple of years longer the original quilt along timetable so I'm super pleased to have the top together, and am looking forward to getting it finished.  I have no idea how I'm going to quilt it.  Along with the Wonky Stars, this quilt will be a donation to Foster Hope, a group which provides support for children in foster care.

This is going to be fun!  But I gotta go quilt now.

Sunday Sewday

Lots of time stitching lately round here.  I think as the year gets busier I'm making myself spend time stitching to try to balance it out.  Here's some of what I've been up to.

The RSC has moved on to yellow for October.  I have lots of yellow but have only made a start on some star points because I was buy sewing blue stars for the collaborative foster kids quilt.  You can check out what others are up to here.

The last two blocks for my sampler, which started a couple or so years ago as a Classic Meets Modern QAL over at www.sewathomemummy.com  Along the way I disliked my choices, changed direction, lost interest, until finally I made a new plan to finish this.  I found some blocks around the internet that I wanted to make and have used lots of nice strong fabrics in these to pull everything together.  Watch this space for the setting plan.

I'm continuing to work on the Project 48 Quilt.  Dodgy photo I'm afraid, taken at quilt group when I laid the blocks out.  Below are the blocks made since then.  I think I am one block behind; the applique month really slowed me down.

Also under my needle:  blue stars, postcards for a swap, a secret project for a Christmas Swap.

On my mind:  finishing the RSC Sampler from 2014, my much neglected wonky houses, a row quilt from a swap a few (could it be 10) years ago.

Sunday Sewday

My Project 48 Quilt has been languishing over the past month or so.  I had spent quite a bit of time on other projects with deadlines so this took a backseat, and  though I normally try and keep up to date with these blocks there seem to have been issues with recent blocks.  Some blocks have needed more thought than usual around fabric choice and placement, some needed alternative techniques to be found, and others that just took a long time to make.  I'm still not up to date, but I feel like I've made some good progress with these.

With deadlines met I've also got back to making my Wonky Stars for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge and will be linking up with Angela at So Scrappy for her weekly check-in.  Angela's blog is wealth of pattern and project ideas based on using your scraps by colour.  The link ups give you a chance to see what everyone else in blog-land is doing.

Now what about those deadlines?  Here's one.  This is a 12 x 12 piece for the Aotearoa Quilters yellow challenge.  I had lots of ideas for yellow, but none that really formed into a plan.  Then I found a pile of doilies with yellow embroidery and I figured I could do something with those.  My favourite shirt provided the inspiration I needed.  It is a really graphic print that makes great use of colour, and I love the way different designs flow into and across each other.  I stamped and stencilled some background fabric, and found a graphic print, and a retro floral (a sheet) to add the different patterns.  I quilted it in a variegated yellow, and then stitched in black, cutting across the yellow quilting. 

I'll blog about the other deadline project another time.  It will take a wee bit of explanation.

Quilt Salad

I feel like I've been working on a bit of everything this week.   My really creative project is a small abstract piece for an online art quilt group I joined.  It's the second in a series. That sounds very aspirational for me, but really I'm just having another try at making the first one again using a different technique.  No pictures yet; it's still a bit too rough, and I had to give up this afternoon when I couldn't get the cat off the work in progress.  The group is also having a postcard swap which I was a bit worried about about the workload of at first but then I put my thinking cap on and went through THAT BAG in the bottom of the cupboard.  Well I found some spares of these postcards from a few years back to use, and the off cuts of this netted a few more so I'm well on the way now.

I've spent some time on my Project 48 Quilt blocks, trying to resolve the 'issues' that seem to have come with some of the recent blocks.

As well as some being too big and some too small, I fear that some are  just plain gaudy.   I fell in love with the orange solid in the top two blocks while browsing at Nancy's win Wellington and had to buy it. Unfortunately once it's pieced I find it a bit sickly sweet, like a icing, or Fanta with ice-cream.  I'll have to work had with the next few block to focus the colour scheme again.

Wonky stars continue to make me smile.  I made parts with my blues and completed a few pink blocks for the weekly Rainbow Scrap Challenge link up which you can see here.  There are some amazing projects being made by the other participants.

One more week and then I'm heading off for a quilt retreat with my quilting buddy!  Yay.

Back in the wonky swing of things

I've really got back into making wonky stars this week.  These pinks make me smile.  A few years ago I would have cringed at pink, and I wouldn't have had any in my stash, but after making Bonnie Hunter's Grand Illusion mystery quilt a couple of years ago I collected some pinks, and combined with crisp white and the Wonky Star block, I have to say I'm in love with these pinks.

Don't forget to have a look at Angela's blog and see what other pink projects are in the pipeline with the Rainbow Scrap Challenge weekly link up here.

I also made some blue stars for my group's charity project.  I'm in catch up because we were planning a multicoloured quilt, but at our first check in when we combined the blocks, I was the only one who didn't make blue stars.  We've now turned the projected into a blue quilt LOL.  These are my blue stars from the past couple of weeks combined.  Obviously I'm playing in the very dark blue end of the blue drawer.

Slow stitching

After a bit of a hiatus I've got back into stitching Wonky Stars.  Pink stars just because it is the colour of the month over it a the Rainbow Scrap Challenge (check out the awesome projects that other bloggers make on Angela's Saturday linky here), and dark blue stars for the charity project my little group is working on.  I think I say this everytime I post photos of a few of these blocks, but I really love making these stars. 

 

 

We had a trip to Wellington on Friday and a couple of quilt shop visits allowed me to add to my supplies for my Project 48 Quilt.  That fox might be a bit tricky to use, but it was so cute, LOL.  It will depend on what the future blocks are like.  

Half way point

This week marks the half way point of the Project 48 Quilt with the 24th block completed.  I'm enjoying this project and am pretty pleased overall with the way things seem to be coming together. I started with a bunch of fabrics leftover from my raggy jeans quilt and added some scraps.  It got a bit bland and after 12 blocks I refreshed the fabrics with some solids and additional prints.  This seemed to lift it and pull it together.  I also took the opportunity to remake one block which was bugging me - LOL.  I think I might do that again now.  And looking at the picture I think I need to use more of the solid orange, some green, the white-on-blue print in the Greek Cross.

I think the only thing that's disappointing about working on this Quilt Along is that it lacks the sense of community that blog-based Quilt Alongs have.  Though there's a Facebook page and Instagram, I don't feel like there's a home for the project and don't feel connected to others involved in the same way that have when working on other projects of this type.

Anyway, here's my progress so far.  I really should lay them all out to mark the half way point, but lunch calls.

I came back

I headed away for few days at Easter and that turned into several weeks when my father-in-law became ill and later passed away.  With all of that it has somehow been a along time since I stitched, so I was glad of the opportunity to spend time at my monthly quilt group meeting working on these little wonky stars.  

Some greens to link up with the RSC 2016 colour of the month. 

Sunday check in

This weekend I've washed and ironed lots of fabric.  It has been in storage for a while and needed to be freshened up before going into my drawers.  Lots of little pieces makes for lots of work, but it will be worth it to have lovely fresh fabric.

My Project 48 Quilt block this month has lots of orangey goodness.  I'm not sure about it though; the background fabric doesn't really rock my world.   However my approach to this quilt is to learn from the choices I make and just move on.

Lots of wonky fun this weekend.  One purple block for the RSC linkup, one blue block for my growing stash of these, and three aqua/teal/turquoise blocks for a charity quilt project with my quilt group - yes I've got them making these stars now.

Stitching time

The Project 48 Quilt moved into Flying Geese Month and released its 9th block this week. 

 

And the RSC 2016 moved into purple.  Loving these.  There is lots of purple eye candy to see at So Scrappy in the link up. 

 

The last of the summer sewing

As the end of February draws near so does the 'official' end of summer.  I spent this last weekend of summer stitching on a number of projects.  I was going to go into the office and catch up on a couple of things (try and clear out my email) but I just couldn't face it when I had lovely quilty projects to play with.

First up a wonky star for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge, in the 'proper' February colour way of *Brown with a touch of pink*.   Others will have lots more to show.  You can check out their chocolately goodness at the weekly linkup here.

This week's Project 48 Quilt block is my favourite.  Sometimes fabric combinations come together and you are reminded that this is why you quilt; this is one of those times!  Full credit to background print which I think does all the work here.

 

 I worked on my slightly neglected  Allietare Mystery Quilt.  Working out where I was up to wasn't so hard once I got started.  I stitched together all the 'extra' star blocks, and some of the pieces for the extra alternate blocks. 

And lastly, I worked on what I'm now calling my *Sew Along Sampler*.  I made this very tipsy Arkansas Traveler Block.  It is not meant to look wonky, but something went wrong when I was cutting and sewing 60 degree angles.  This means that is both wonky and small.  But I took Tim Gunn's MAKE IT WORK mantra to heart and this is my Tipsy Traveler.  

I have 10 blocks done now and I fell that they are starting to look a bit more cohesive.  I think that dark border (a coping strip to bring it up to size) might have to be narrowed down because it is very dominant.

My plan is that this will be a donation quilt for Foster Hope, a charity that supports children in foster care by providing all the things they don't have when they move into care.  In many cases they need pretty much everything from a toothbrush to clothes; a teddy bear to a school bag.  Foster Hope is a group that has lots of different ways for people to help, including making quilts.  So because I want this quilt to be for a child, I'm working on moving it away from the kind of weird scrappy look of some of the first blocks I made towards  bright colourful. 

(Hmmm... when I look at this photo, I'm not sure that fan block is square.  I might need to take a look at that.)

So that is my stitching for the last weekend of summer.  I hope that the warm weather continues, and that my productivity does too!