WIP Wednesday: the one with Momo!

So, two weeks ago I went to the Sydney Craft And Quilt Fair. I didn't buy very much there this year - well, comparatively, anyway. Mostly what I wanted was some Reece Scanell shot cotton solids, and a few bits and bobs.

I came out with fabric, a bobbin ring for storing bobbins, a ruler for quarter-inch measuring on HSTs, and a book that deconstructs traditional blocks and also shows images of them repeated - as they'd appear in a quilt top.

The really big thing at the Craft And Quilt Fair was the 2013 Sydney Quilt Show.

There were some amazing quilts on display! And mine! It was quite a thrill to stand in front of quilts I'd had a hand in and see the big picture, all pretty! (And to hear people admiring it, too. Always nice!)

The full post is here, but here are the three quilts I had a hand in making and quilting:

The Rainbow Connection

Santorini Sun And Sky

Eternity

Okay, no more photos of the quilt show quilts, I just wanted to show them big and hanging up!

Finished!

One finish this last fortnight!

Bright Baby Quilt

Originally, I planned to use the leftover layer cake pieces to make a scrappy border, but the prospect of cutting and sewing all those pieces together didn't appeal. So I pulled a brick red fabric from my stash instead:

This one's for a little girl who was born in May, and I think it looks pretty good!

WIP!

Classy Baby Quilt

For a little boy born in late April. Again, I was planning to use the leftover layer cake pieces to make a scrappy border, but got lazy. So I pulled out some Saffron Craig yardage and used that! The little bugs on the red-maroon are so cute!

Attach, turn over, finish! Might do it tomorrow.

1, 2, 3, Go Momo!

Started cutting up the fat quarter set this week - while re-watching the end of Season One of Avatar: The Last Airbender. Sokka is such a sweetheart - and so very perfectly adolescent boy to me. And I loved the fight between Katara and Zuko - oh, and the fact that Katara beat up all the other waterbenders while taking her lessons with the master! "Anyone for a rematch against Katara?" Teehee!

While I was cutting and sorting the fabric, I realised it's got a really lovely 'hand' - it's really light and fine!

Nine blocks so far - they're 12.5" square unfinished. I'm planning a 7x7 block quilt - 84" square finished. It's gonna be big!

Honey Mermaids

My brown Mendocino fabric came in the mail!

As did the Pure Honey solids from Art Gallery Fabrics. I like this colour better with the rest of the colour set. It's richer and warmer.

The old colour options were brown and grey. Originally I favoured the brown, but now I'm leaning towards the grey.

Got any thoughts or advice for me on this? I won't be doing this until probably August, at least. I have several other quilts to do in the meantime...

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And finally, here! Have a pic of one of my kitteh 'helping' me iron...

What have you done this week? Have you linked to Freshly Pieced?

2013 Sydney Quilt Show!

Last Friday, I ventured out with Penny Poppleton to the 2013 Sydney Quilt Show. And many beautiful quilts were seen!

Unfortunately, permission must be sought to display the quilts, and so I can only show you the three quilts I had a hand in making, and Penny Poppleton's lovely modern quilt.

Firstly, the finished Rainbow Connection!

Doesn't it look stunning?

It was attracting a lot of attention in the show. I don't know about the shows in other places in the world, but the Quilt Show here in Sydney skews traditional. At the Sydney Modern Quilt Guild, we're hoping to balance that out in the next couple of years. If you're a modern quilter here in Australia, certainly think about submitting a quilt to the show next year!

We're still working out if we should sell it or raffle it off. Any suggestions from people who've done this before?

Then there was my Santorini Sun And Sky.

I was trying for a quilting design like little whirlpools in the sea. I don't think it turned out too bad, although I think the quilting patterns detracts from the pattern design.

It was also pretty distinctive in its row - very modern, with all that white/cream and blue and yellow!

And, of course, Eternity.

I think it looks pretty super with the black background! A lovely, colourful contrast!

Trying to work out how to hang it was horrible - I said I'd attach fishing line to the top corners of the quilt at first, but it proved impossible to see; I ended up sewing ribbons instead.

I really have to work out what I'm going to do with this one. I don't really have anywhere to display it at my house just now...

And Penny Poppleton's quilt (the name of which I have completely forgotten):

Lovely and simple and modern!

Anyway, now that Quilt Show 2013 is over, it's time to focus on Quilt Show 2014!

Tee-hee! Not quite! (Although I do have some ideas...)

Trip Quilts 2013 - due to be completed by the end of August (when I leave for the US). I need to have made a dent in my fabric by then, because I want to come back from the US with a whole lot more fabric.

*coughs*

WIP Wednesday: the one where diamonds are a quilter's best friend!

I fear I have done pretty much nothing these last couple of weeks, which is why my WIP Wednesday has been non-existent.

However, this morning, I put some effort in and finally completed a project!

Finishes!

Diamonds Dancing In Rainbows

Finally made up my mind about the borders, and sewed the diamond corners on!

Got them all lined up and sewed together:

And done!

Crappy photography due to crappy light. (And crappy photographer, ie. me!)

I think this one will provide some lovely opportunities for practising my FMQ - I'm thinking some Angela Walters techniques for practise!

NAME: Diamonds Dancing In Rainbows
SIZE: 55" x 59"
NOTES: Kona solids, 5" squares, from the I <3 Kona charm swap run by Alyssa at Pile O'Fabric!

WIPs

Honey Mermaids

Decisions, decisions, decisions!

I bought some grey and some brown as possible borders for the quilt and laid them out with the fabrics - I figured one could be the front and one could be the back.

Now I'm not so sure. I like the brown more than the grey, but not as much as I hoped. So I did another card match and bought some Pure Honey for the borders. I think this will probably work better than either the grey or the brown - the grey didn't feel quite warm enough for the yellows, pinks, and purples, but I'm a bit iffy about the brown...

So I ordered 3 yards of Pure Honey. If that doesn't match, then I'll go with the brown.

And I'm wondering if I can find a match for the Plum Swimming Sisters background, to fill out a little of this strip - it's a bit too narrow, you see, and I'd like to be able to use as much of it as possible...

Incidentally, if you happen to have any Swimming Sisters In Plum (above) or Mermaids In Brown, I'd love to swap some for any of these prints:

I'd be willing to swap 3:2 for either of the Seahorse prints (ie. you send me 1FQ of the Swimming Sisters in Plum/Mermaids in Brown, I send you 1.5FQ of Seahorses).

Scrap Attack {String Fever}

Okay, so the Scrap Attack challenge has finished and I only got 27 blocks completed. Argh. Just couldn't quite get it happening!

They do look pretty in their colour arrangements!

I'll keep going on this - slowly and steadily. It's not a priority right now: I need to get my giftquilts done for the US trip!

Modern Mini: Teeny Tiny HST Time!

Going to try to get something in for the Modern Mini Quilt Challenge over at Ellison Lane Quilts, but no guarantees!

This is what I have so far - the HSTs leftover from my quilt Build Me Up, Buttercup!

They're going to be 1.75" at most. AT MOST. Did I mention teeny and tiny?

I'm thinking a cushion. I pulled out one of those 50L plastic storage containers full of raw cushions (no covers). Quelle horreur! How can this be in the house of a sewist? QUICK! I MUST AWAY TO THE SEWING MACHINE! *swirls cape*

To Do

1-2-3-GO MOMO!

A nice simple quilt, with an oldie but goodie fabric line - Momo's Just Wing It! I've had this FQ for ages, and it's sitting around begging to be used! Consider it done!

Plus, you know, everything's at right-angles. That should make it easy, right? RIGHT?!

If this one works, I might end up using it for the FQ bundle of Kate Spain's Terrain I have sitting around...

Sydney Craft And Quilt Fair

So, it's on now (today!) at the Sydney Exhibition Centre, and while I have won no prizes, I have three quilts in there that look quite stunning. (At least, they look pretty stunning from the photos I've been sent!) I was going to go in today, only I got injured last night at hockey training and am now laid up with a bung knee. It'll heal in a day or two, but until then...limited walking around, I think! I'll go in on Friday instead.

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So, what have you been up to this last week? Have you linked up at WIP Wednesday?