Some sewing done this past week….

I did three blocks towards the Secret Garden quilt by Cindy Lammon, with hand applique leaves on the honeybee block.

 

I kept up with Pearl P. Pereira’s mystery block of the month – and here’s my version of the quilt to date.

 

I decided that the some of those large flower prints from the Portugal line were just too much for me – so I cut up the fabrics I did like to start a Sunshine and Shadow quilt, pattern from the book Radiant Sunshine and Shadow by Helen Frost.

I caught up on the bunnyhill tisket a tasket blocks – redwork version.   I was going to change the stars to maple leaves on the July block, but then thought that leaves will likely show up on a fall design.  So I added a moon, because I thought of the nighttime summer sky (maybe while camping...).  But my moon looks like its backwards.  I kept the sheep because he's cute.  I completely changed August - cupcakes don't mean much to me, and I thought of what August might mean when I was flipping through books for design ideas when I found a doodle by Betty Alderman - just the idea of August when you have the chance to have to daydream on a hot muggy day.

And…I did get a quilt sandwiched, although it nearly did me in, but its ready to go when I am.

 

 

 

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Design and Planning frenzy

Over the past couple of weeks, since my last posting of August 2, I've been in a frenzy - or daze - or an obsession - about planning some new quilts. I've finished up the tops that I really wanted to get done...the leaf border on one of them will have to wait. I really needed to find some new fabric combinations, some new block designs, something interesting to keep me motivated. I haven't done much sewing at all during these two weeks, just a lot of book and magazine browsing, EQ designing, web shop browsing, and of course going through my stash over and over and over.

So these will be my latest works in progress, I think -

Sleep Tight in Poseyville, by Beth Ferrier, using fabrics from Moda Portugal line. The green leaves in each corner of the blocks are appliqued. I've got one block sewn, and is it ever a departure from my usual colours - pale yellow, white, and pink.


Secret Garden, by Cindy Lammon, using Moda Glace. I think I'll be making changes to some of the blocks - switching one for another. I've never made a primarily red and blue quilt - and these colours are softer than the usual repros I commonly use.



And, Plain and Simple bed quilt from Kim Diehl, using Gypsy Rose charm squares and a "nutmeg" coloured flannel - its about time I had a flannel bed quilt for winter!


During all this dreaming and planning, I was hoping to come up with a couple of miniatures and or wall hangings. I have lots of scraps, put into zip loc baggies so they're kind of coordinate. Somehow I ended up with all large quilts...but I do hope to soon make a small one to freshen things up for late summer/fall. Oh, and of course get to some quilting of the tops I do have ready to go.

Scrap Quilt Surprise!

I’ve finished sewing together the top for Pick & Choose – it looks much different than the original, because of the sashing substitution.

But before the big picture - imagine my surprise when pressing the top, to discover…

Who *is* that man in my quilt?!!

He must have just jumped in at the last minute ‘cause its amazing his whole self is in that triangle!

Oops!

Yesterday I decided I would finish the centre of Pick and Choose.  Not too much to do – just finish putting together the four patches into blocks, then piece the sashing strips.

I got the blocks put together, counted them, and came up with 18, instead of 20.  Okay….there are two more somewhere that I had made up some time ago just to see how the block would look.  Now, where the heck did I put them?

The sashing strips are made up of umpteen 1 1/2” by 6” strips, pieced to form long strips that come to about 75”.   Two of these strips are sewn together lengthwise to end up with a 2” finished size sashing.   I sewed up 9 or 10 of these, then proceeded to cut up enough of these long strips to 12 1/2” to make the short sashing strips.  I grabbed my 12” ruler – cut, cut, cut – 24 pieces – sat down to sew them to my block – ack!  They’re short, or my block is too big!  Or….I just made the stupidest mistake ever, because 12” is not  12 1/2”!!!!!  Oh my – these pieces are not exactly replaceable scraps. 

By now I’m tired, and fed up, and mad as all get out.  I grab a basket of cut up neutrals that were meant for another background –  they were cut up to a size that might work, and they were neutrals – and started to sew those into the proper lengths.  By the time I realized that what I really had to do was make all the sashings neutral – that I couldn’t get away with short neutrals and long strips of scrappy – I had to put it down for the day.

But first – I had to find those darn two missing blocks.  Which were no where.  For a few moments, I seriously considered making the quilt with 3 x 4 block setting, instead of 4 x 5; but forced myself to find enough leftover pieces to make 2 more blocks.  I did have to stop for the day though, while my sewing room looked like something had exploded.

This morning I got right back to it, before I forgot what it was I planned to do; and before I chickened out.  I did get the new sashings sewn, the new blocks sewn, the centre of the top sewn.  Now just the final pieced border remains. 

More applique play

I made yet another partial applique block yesterday – this time a design from one of Kim Diehl’s book.  I’ve now decided that I definitely need to treat myself to some new fabric :)

I’m bored with my stash; unhappy with how the fabrics I want to use are looking in the projects I thought they’d be good for.  Time for some new stuff – some style familiar, not so different that I won’t be happy working with it – but different enough that I get a little lift.

I’m also looking for a “just right” pattern – not really flowers, vines, wreaths, samplers – I’m looking for some pattern that has a repetition of a single block.  Something I can slowly work away at, just to keep up my needleturn skills.

I keep thinking of the Applique Sampler I did from the Piece O Cake ladies – that quilt was all done in FigTree quilts moda fabric.  I love the look, but never went back to it.  Kind of got stuck in a rut of civil war repros, and tiny prints and tone on tones.  Tried some brights, but they weren’t my style.

So I’ll do some shopping, I’ve got yet another pattern in mind, Twining Blooms & Baskets by Elly Sienkiewicz and hopefully have some positive results soon!

Fiddling with applique

I spent the weekend playing with the idea of another applique project.  While I already have handwork on the go (redwork, wool applique, even hexagons), and I have a few machine applique projects happening, I very much miss needleturn applique. 

I keep thinking I’ll approach an applique pattern via needleturn, then reality sinks in and I’ll end up using a machine applique method. I am very slow at needleturn applique, what with periodic hand shakes, stiffness and cramping.  I also have this annoying self talk going on – you *can* make a needleturn masterpiece!; no, what’s the point?  I want my quilts to be used and loved and I already have made two pretty darn good needleturn wallhangings! 

I would just like a project that I can pick up and put down without any timetable in my head – whenever I get the itch to needleturn!

Here are my experiments from this weekend – all were easy to sew, all are okay fabrics, but none gave me the *eureka!* moment – because of the fabric, the pattern, or both.

The first three are from a basket pattern in Kay MacKenzie’s Baskets to Applique; the last one is a basket pattern from Piece O Cake, the flower arrangment is from Bountiful Baskets by The Rabbit Factory.

 

 

I’ll keep searching and playing with fabric and EQ – experimenting with applique is my biggest challenge, and although I have taken the easy road with a few block of the month appliques quilts, I am learning a lot from them regarding colour placement, background fabric choices, and design.  This will I’m sure help me to eventually make up my own version of a great needleturn quilt.