I really want to start something new

On my day off today I was itching to start a new project. But, I spent some time deciding how to quilt my first plaid quilt. After sketching out a few ideas, I had to consider what would be the best option. There's a lot to weigh up when making a decision - how much time do I want to spend, is the design practical, will there be lots of starts and stops, what will enhanse the patchwork design, and so on. Sometimes I take the hard way, sometimes the easy. Considering my desire to start something new, I chose an easy option and am glad that I did.

I've started quilting an 8-loop flower pattern centered on each block and it's quick and easy. There's no marking and the design softens the strong squares and perpendicular lines of the blocks. I've done half the blocks and should finish the others this week. I'll use the same motif on the borders although I have not yet decided on the scale yet.

Last weekend I also made some progress on my green HST quilt. I've now completed 15 blocks - I think I have at least that many more to go plus the borders. I have this project at our beach house so I don't get a chance to work on it often, especially this time of year. I know that over Christmas when we are there for a few weeks it will definitely get done. (Sorry for the bad photo, I can't manage a good one using my phone for some reason.)

I have 5 bed-sized quilts in various stages of completion. I would love to get them all done this year, but it seems unlikely. I haven't started thinking about Christmas presents yet - have you started yet?

As usual, I'm linking up to Freshly Pieced WIP Wednesday.

Too busy to blog

Lately I've felt like I am so busy doing stuff that I can't take the time to blog about that stuff. (Stuff=quilting.) I often ask myself "Should I write about it or do it?" My answer is usually "Do it!"

I've been working on some little projects - probably because all of my big projects are overwhelming me.

My first one is a ukelele bag that I made for my daughter. When I saw her toss the instrument onto the couch one day after school, I decided that what she needed was a quilted bag to carry it in safely. I picked all the fabrics from my stash and started with just the triangles but was told that it was "too brown" by the intended bag recipient. So, I added the blue strips between 2 rows of triangles, and it was much improved.

I've joined a new group called Monday Moderns. During my first meeting we exchanged scraps. There was a half-hearted challenge to do something with them. This past weekend, I used them to make some little pieces. I don't know if they are big coasters or little place mats. I wanted to practice my drunkard's path piecing and try out the new templates that I ordered. Here they all are - fronts and backs.

This is a closeup of my favorite one. It's made using my colors and I did it first. The later ones were a little less coordinated (nothing wrong with that though).

The AMQG raffle quilt is all quilted and another member is doing the binding. I was amazed how much FMQ I did on it and in hindsight, it should have been less dense - but, once you start, you have to carry on. I went through countless bobbins and at least 1/2 mile of top thread.

I sandwiched together the first Block Lotto quilt and did some stitch in the ditch to get started. It's not my most favorite thing in the world, but yesterday when I was off work I decided to work on my least fun thing first. The backing is pieced like a giant plaid and works well.

I'm making slow progress on the butterfly heart quilt and just realized that I've sewn on the hearts flying in the wrong direction. So, I will need to rethink how they go - just part of the design process, I say.

No progress on Blue Snowflakes for ages. I brought it along when we went skiing a few weeks ago but the mountain was closed because of bad weather. Rather than sitting by the fire alone sewing while DH & DD skied, we spent the days together trying to entertain ourselves.

No progress on the Green Triangles. Do I have too many WIPs?

FMQ on AMQG raffle quilt

At times I regret organising a quilt to raise funds for the Auckland Modern Quilt Guild (AMQG), but I admit that I am enjoying the process even though it has been time consuming. Luckily (maybe) I have been home sick these past few days, so I have had some time between naps to sew.

Members of the guild have made blocks and we have had 2 working days to piece together the tops (we have enough for 2) and sandwich the layers. I have volunteered to quilt one of them and another member (with a long arm - lucky!) is doing the second one.

I stressed over my foolhardiness, but came to terms with my decision to quilt this. I've done big quilts before, but only for me, not for someone else - and certainly not for someone willing to pay money for a raffle ticket. But, I am looking at it as a learning experience.

So, my first step was to engulf myself in anything I could to learn more about FMQ - books from the library, a course on Craftsy, a few books downloaded to my Kindle. And what did I learn? That I knew what I was doing and that none of these things could give me what I needed - courage!

So, yesterday I dived in. I started with the stars - each one requiring a different color thread. Luckily, I have a lot of thread (some are mine from years of sewing; others from my MIL when she moved into a nursing home).

For each star, I've done a square spiral in the center and curvy zig-zags on the points. I admit that none of them are perfect, but altogether, they look good.

I have 3 more stars to do and then I will start on the background. I'm planning a swirly pattern although I have not yet committed to the exact motif - I've done about 10 samples on paper and on fabric, but am still undecided. I have a pale grey veriegated thread already for the background, so I should be moving forward on that this weekend.

Here's a wider shot of the quilt - or check out a full photo of the flimsy on the AMQG website.

Slow progress

I seem to be having trouble progressing on anything in particular. Everything is progressing a little bit, but no one project seems to be close to the finish line. Perhaps I just have too many WIPs.

Here's what's happening:

• Butterfly Hearts: I've managed to sew on some more hearts and I like the way it looks so far. I was struggling with finding matching floss to sew each one to the background but suddenly remembered that I had a huge collection of floss from my MIL. I suspect that there are about 500 colors - each one neatly hung on a hanging card and cut into manageable pieces. I am very grateful to have taken possession of this treasure.
• Plaid Block Lotto #1: I added some borders and am not sure about the bold red/black/white plaid. It should work, but it doesn't. I've put it aside for a while to have a think.
• Plaid Block Lotto #2: After working on paper and trying a few settings, I've chosen one. I need quite a few narrow bright sashing strips and I did start cutting, but that's about it.
• Blue snowflakes: A few inches of needle turn applique (maybe?).

This is the Butterfly Hearts quilt so far.

I'm also mulling over the AMQG raffle quilt that I'm organizing. I have about 56 wonky stars set on white backgrounds. My initial instructions were to create different sized stars and not necessarily centered, but most have come in the same size and centered. I didn't want the stars to look aligned in rows, so I'm working through options for adding coping strips to one edge of each and offsetting them. This Sunday we're having a working day to piece together the quilt, so I better come up with the ideas quick...

Sorry, not many pictures this post - makes it a bit dull.

Back home in New Zealand

I am back home after our long trip to the USA. It was a shock to my system to arrive to such chilly weather after the intense heat we experienced on the east coast before we left. But, cold weather is quilting weather.

Someone asked me once for tips on quilting a bed-sized quilt (not that I'm an expert). One of my tips is to save this job for cold weather because it can be quite physical and you inevitably get wrapped up in your quilt. So, the cold weather prompted me to do some quilting. My quilting corner is also in my bedroom which is the warmest and sunniest spot in the house.

Butterfly hearts: I started this over a year ago and then set it aside while I tried to figure out how to move to the next step. Yesterday I machine quilted slightly random parallel lines across the whole quilt. Next, I am appliquing hearts cut from many (many) butterfly fabrics that I have collected. I decided to do raw edge applique. I tried out 2 using chunky running stitches with 2 strands of embroidery floss. I like the look (front and back) but am worried that it won't be durable enough. Now I wonder if I should machine sew them on and then do the running stiches on top of the machine stiches. Any advice?

Plaid Block Lotto winnings: I went to my local fabric shop looking for something to use on the border. I was committed to only selecting fabric from the clearance rack, so my choices were limited. I came home with this grey/red/coral/black large scale plaid and a matching bright red-coral print. I think I will do a narrow strip of the bright print and then a border with the plaid. I've only used half of the blocks so far, so I should be able to do a second quilt with the remaining blocks. I am considering donating at least one, maybe both.

Blue snowflakes: I finished one block and started a second, this time blue on white. My needle-turn applique is improving and the silk thread my mother recommended is really good.











Auckland Modern Quilt Guild (AMQG) raffle quilt: We have 56 wonky stars in bright colors on white. The original plan was to make the backgrounds white and light grey but nobody used grey except for me. I admit to having quite a few in my stash, but looking around the shops lately, there's not many on offer. There's a lot of white in these blocks, and I feel like they need some neutralising. We have a few working sessions scheduled to piece the front and back. The quilting is still TBD.

I have a few ideas in the pipeline but have promised myself that I cannot start anything else until I get through these ongoing projects.

Wednesday already?

Not too many posts from me lately - I've been travelling around the USA for the past 3 months and am heading home to New Zealand tomorrow. I was hoping to have a 'quilty-er' visit, but for some reason DH and DD are not so interested in quilty activities.

My mother is a quilter, so I brought along projects to work on, thinking I would do some needle-turn applique while on the road and some piecing while at my parents place. While packing up my bags today I realized how little I've done in the 3 months. We have had a wonderful trip, so I shouldn't sound disappointed.

Cotton Robin round robin: I worked on 3 other quilts and mine came home while I was in the US. It's amazing how many great ideas I saw on all of the quilts in the round robin.







Block Lotto April: I won in April - what a fantastic surprise. I ended up with 48 blocks; 24 of them I've pieced together. I'm still trying to decide on a border. The other 24 Ill put together into another single-sized quilt using a different setting.





Block Lotto May: I made 5 of these free-form stars.










Block Lotto June: I managed 3 of these modified schoolhouse blocks. I used the paper-pieced patter which I thought would be easier than the normal piecing method - the number of pieces to cut did not appeal to me.





Block Lotto July: Nine silly string blocks went together super fast.








Besides some quilting, I did manage to visit a few quilt shops. I was surprised that they did not seem so much better or bigger than the ones I have access to at home - maybe I'm luckier than I think. The prices are much better in the US, but the current exchange rate really helps because my NZ dollars are worth much more than on previous visits.

I caught a few quilt exhibits:

• National Quilt Museum in Paducah, KY: A great variety of quilts on display. I especially enjoyed the basket challange that included modern interpretations of the basket motif and antique quilts as well.
• Abby Alrich Rokefeller Folk Museum in Williamsburg, VA: Beautiful collection of red & green Baltimore album quilts from the 19th century and early 20th century.
• Quilters Unlimited annual show in Chantilly, VA: A large show with a diverse display of quilts and vendors.

Round robin complete

The round robin that I started earlier this year is finished. I have not seen my finished quilt in person, but it has arrived at my mom's and she has seen it. The organizer, Julie, has kindly sent me photos and posted all of the finished quilts on the website here.

My starting center block was a needle-turned applique bird (New Zealand black robin) that I found in an old New Zealand Quilter magazine (I will properly give credit when I am back home and can check the magazine date and the designer). I modified it slightly because the original pattern specified fused raw-edge applique. My needle-turn skills mean that some tight corners needed to be smoothed out slightly.

The background was made up of bands of color with curved seams made to represent an abstract landscape. I included some of the background fabric and another fabric for anyone to use along the way.



The finished quilt included borders added by Sophie (3 sides: the sun, the words, and the small squares, I think) and by Julie W (2 sides: vine and black/brown strips). The quilting was done by Gwen. I can't wait to see it in person.



I also added the first border to Sophie's center block. She included with her center star block some additional fabrics including one with large polka dots. It was screaming to be cut into giant dot appliques. I chose to stick them on using a running stitch for something different.



And the second border to Melinda's center. My border included the skinny green, red, and black/white checks as well as the words. A kakariki is a green parakeet that we have in New Zealand; it is also the word for green in the Maori language. I had never done words before but I really enjoyed doing them...I feel a project coming on. Interesting how I added words to another quilt and someone else added words to my quilt and both referred to birds, hmmm.



For the final round I had to sandwich and quilt Andra's quilt. The first border was paper pieced and very intricate, so I did some stitch-in-the-ditch in that section. I also did some stippling in the blue triangles in the center and hand stitched around the birds and foliage. The outer border has a diamond pattern.

Updates - a long time coming

I have been very busy and somehow, posting on my blog has moved down the priority list. Yes, we all have excuses - I wear mine like well thought-out accessories. First there's the kitchen - 5 weeks now cooking on the George Foreman grill, borrowed electric wok, and microwave. Next week the granite benchtops go on and we will be done!

We are off on an extended 3-month journey to the US starting mid-April. This means that I have a lot of planning to do (thanks goodness for hubby taking on much of that planning for me). Because I contract at work and am not sure there will be a job waiting for me, I need to wrap up everything, document it, and hand it over to other people. This has been weighing heavily on me and seems to be sapping me of some creative energy.

But I have been sewing...(sorry, no pictures this time)

• March Block Lotto - love the HSTs and managed to throw together 7 of these blocks.
• April Block Lotto - Sneak Peak. I put together 3 blocks so far and really want to finish 9 of them, especially since I had to source some 'special' fabrics for this one.
• AMQG fundraising quilt - prototype blocks - I volunteered to organise this (what was I thinking?) and have narrowed the options down to 3 blocks. The stars are winning. Our next meeting is 10 April, so I will need to present the guidelines and instructions (oh, and make a block).
• AMQG challenge - Many of the members regularly make small quilts to donate to Auckland Starship Hospital's special care baby unit (SCBU). This challenge is to make a small quilt (minimum size is 20" square, I think) and then donate the quilt to the hospital. I chose to use one of the NY beauty patterns (this one was from Sew Sweetness). I've finished the 4 blocks to make up the circle and now need a border and to finish it by 10 April.
  
  
  
• Cotton Robin round robin - I can't post much about this one because it's supposed to be secret until the quilts are done. I've done the first border on one block and sent it on a few weeks ago. My next block with one border already on it arrived last week. I've decided on the design for the final border for this one and need to get it done and posted by next week.
• Crumb quilt - I never posted the finished quilt. I think I finished more than a month ago. DD has adopted it and she and the dog sleep with it every night.
• Green HST - no progress.
• Blue snowflake - started another block (this one blue on white) in February, but no progress since then.

When I'm in the US we will be travelling a lot. Anyone that has a favorite quilt destination (shop, gallery, antiques, etc.) please let me know. We will be in/around these cities in April-May:

• Fredericksburg, VA
• Nags Head, NC
• Charleston, NC
• Savannah, GA
• Florida City, FL
• Orlando, FL
• Port St. Lucie, FL
• St. Petersburg, FL
• Destin, FL
• Natchez, MS
• Memphis, TN
• Paducah, KY
• Mammoth Caves, KY