WIP Wednesdays: the one damning the torpedoes

Racing towards the Quilt show!

Why is it that everything is always due ALL AT ONCE? I'm going to be binding quilts at Bible Study tonight, at a tea party on Saturday afternoon, and probably while watching my hockey club's D-grade team on Sunday (I'll be on the field for the A-grade game and padded up as goalie for the C-grade game).

Let's not even talk about labels and hanging sleeves. Oy.

WIPs

Show Quilts

Both are in variable states of binding, but they're looking pretty good!


That's Mondrian Dreaming on the frame on Saturday.


And that's last night when I stayed up to register for QuiltCon. Alas, I suspect I borked something up in the rego with the MQG, because I didn't receive the email with the registration link. *sadface*

I think I'll just stick to the online classes and the tutorials, and do any local classes with designers that turn up in Australia. The Camille Roskelley class was great fun, and she was so sweet and lovely. And it's nice to meet up with other women who also love quilting!

On the plus side, not going to the US in January means I might be able to get to Europe next summer when a couple of friends will be over there working/travelling! And go to the US in September for Dragon*Con. With extra bonus cosplay?

Friendship Supernova Swap

Cutting and piecing is taking place! And laying out. I think I want more contrast, although not quite so vivid with the yellow, perhaps?


This block will be in the mail by the end of June, but probably not actually received until mid-July. I better write to my swap partner about that. And ask about her food allergies... *grin*

Rainbow Snowflakes

Yes, I've started another project. With teeny-tiny pieces (1" finished diamonds).

Remember the pattern I made for Madame Parfait's "Rainbow Blossom" block back in 2012? I called it the "Snowflake block" because I'm lazy like that (or possibly just Australian), and made a couple and stuffed them in a box somewhere.

I'm pulling the pattern out again. This time going scrappy.


It's going to be a bit more difficult with individual scrappy pieces than it was strip-piecing, but I'm confident I can manage it. I'll be working with Michael Miller Cotton Coutere instead of Kona this time - the CC collection is a little thinner and finer than Kona, and will probably better for working with small pieces. (And I ordered major yardage from the Fat Quarter Shop.)

I think that's going to sit on the design wall for a week or two while I get everything else finished. Heck, I had that up pretty much the night I quilted Mondrian.

CAN'T STOP QUILTING. BEARS WILL EAT ME.

No Movement

- Passacaglia: lots of little pieces sewn, nothing worth taking photos. It doesn't help that I left my hand-piecing bag at bible study last Wednesday, and didn't get it back until church on Sunday night.

TO DO
- make labels and hanging sleeve for show quilts.
- mail the NSW Quilt Guild and tell them of the changes in name and quilt size for the show: still haven't done this
- six quilt backings and their tops to my quilter: still not done!

other things

My sister and I 'liberated' a slow-cooker from the parentals, who are cooking enthusiasts, and have the kitchen and appliances to prove it. (They're also retired and have the time to bake and cook and entertain to their hearts' content, which makes a difference.) My uncle also has a yen for cooking, and he bought a sous vide/slow cooker combination that he liked so much, he bought my parents one.

They already have a slow cooker. And a pressure cooker. And probably a sous vide tucked away in a cupboard somewhere. I wouldn't be surprised. So my sister asked if we could take the slow cooker/sous vide the uncle bought and the parentals said yes.

I may be on the way to addiction. Throw the ingredients together in the morning! Turn on the slow-cooker! Come home to a house that smells delicious and a dinner that tastes as good - if not more so!


So far, I've made Pineapple Pork and Black Bean Beef. No, the alliteration wasn't intentional, it just happened that way. Recipes and finished pictures will follow, but they won't be, like, food blogger standard, because I can barely take decent photos of my quilting work, and photographing food levels up the difficulty by a thousand or something.

Anyway, how's your week been? Have you been productive? I'm linking up to Freshly Pieced's WIP Wednesday and anywhere else that I remember!

WIP Wednesday: the one with the World Cup!

It's been a busy week.

Finishes

Mondrian Dreaming

Top is done!


Not quite the effect I wanted, but good enough for the 'Modern' section of the Quilt Show. It won't win any prizes, but that's not my point in entering the show. I want to bring clear examples of modern quilting to a show that, previously, has been largely traditional styles, or art quilts.


WIPs

Millefiori Madness

Still in many many pieces. More to show next week, with pictures. Now that I've finished piecing the two show quilts, I can get back to getting more Rosettes completed.

Still in desperate need of a plan.

Red Letter Day: Class with Camille Roskelley

Full post to come, but here is a snapshot of the class and the blocks we'd done by midafternoon.


The blurry woman in the pic is Camille herself. She was a sweetheart and very nice - and gave us a really helpful tip on assembling quilt blocks neatly and in order!

More pics can be found on Instagram under the hashtag #redletteraustralia - including my full nine blocks as well as many others' finished quilts.


No Movement

- Friendship Supernova Swap (must start working on: needs to be in the mail by the end of June!)


TO DO

- bind 'Walkabout'
- mail the NSW Quilt Guild and tell them of the changes in name and quilt size for the show
- six quilt backings for my quilter
- quilt 'Mondrian' - need to book Kim Bradley Creations' machine again!

World Cup Decorations

(This is related to sewing. Just a little. I promise!)

The really big event in my office right now is the World Cup. In an office full of guys (I work in IT) with several Europeans (including various Brits), it was never going to pass us by. So management decided to make a celebration of it - including assigning countries to particular areas, charging them to decorate in the assigned nationality, and having a party on Friday.

The decorations started off relatively small - with just a few enthusiasts:


Then it got a little bigger when people started getting competitive.


And by Friday it had seriously escalated:


This is my section - Spain - we were assigned countries, which is why all the different flags/nationalities:


On the whole, it was a lot of fun. And yes, those red and yellow pennants above the 'ESPANA' sign were sewn by me!

So, how's your week been?

FIFA World Cup (a post that is only marginally about sewing)

So, I have finally made bunting!


It was pretty easy. And I rather like the effect, although it took a bit of working out on how to use the 60degree line on my 24" ruler!

The full story is that my office is decorating for the FIFA World Cup, and we all got assigned a country for our area. We were to decorate our area to represent that country, and bring something for an Opening Ceremony Lunch at 1pm on Friday.

My section is Spain:


I'm quite pleased with the end result: simple and bright and not too cluttered. And the bunting does look nice!

Incidentally, I'm not actually supporting Spain; I'm supporting Australia. Sort of. When I remember that a game is on, and can be bothered waking up early or staying up late. I'm not that invested in the FIFA World Cup - the Hockey World Cup is much more interesting to me - like the women's game between Australia and the USA earlier today. For the record, I think the Hockeyroos deserved to win (they had possession more often than not, and more shots on goal) but damn the Americans gave them a run for their money, especially in the second half!

And those one-on-ones at the end? As both a goalie and a field player, let me tell you that it was stressful watching, but I'd prefer a one-on-one to a penalty shoot-out any day!

WIP Wednesday: the one with picnics!

...I wrote out this entire post once, and then my computer crashed and left me with nothing but the framework for my WIP Wednesday post. ARGH!

Finishes

Oh My!

I signed up for the SEW We Quilt "Perfect Picnic" bloghop without thinking about the timing. All the things I'd have due. All the events I'd have on. Or without considering the weather.

So far, I've managed to keep my head above water. So far. And I finished my bright and happy fun picnic quilt last Thursday night...after a little drama with the bobbin running out of thread 20cm before the binding was sewn on.


ARGH!

Still, it was done! Now I just had to hope for good weather. Which there was!


And a box of donuts (I only ate one, the rest went to church supper), Nalini Singh's latest book, and some handsewing (my Millefiori Madness).


Must go back to that park when summer comes around!

My bloghop post about the quilt is here if you're interested in taking a look!

WIPs

Walkabout

The negative space in this quilt was always going to be for FMQ. The issue was that I'd never really done elaborate FMQ before, so it was all a big mystery, and slightly daunting.


Me, being my slightly OCD self, did sketches. Lots and lots of sketches.

Lots and lots and lots of sketches.


My designs were very much influenced by Angela Walters' FMQ designs, and by Leah Day of the Free-Motion Quilting Project whose videos were extremely helpful!

And then I spent about 7 hours at Kim Bradley Creations on the longarm there, putting design into practise. It was a long day. A looooong day.

But it's done!


I'm not sure I entirely like the end result, although I am pleased that I got to develop my FMQ skills. And I have no idea how to get the creases out... Suggestions?

Incidentally, if you happen to be in Sydney, I strongly recommend visiting Kim Bradley Creations. She's a quilter herself, does amazing FMQ, is incredibly lovely (she was helpful and encouraging all day and even went back to her house to get some bobbin thread when I ran out at the shop), and stocks a very nice selection of fabric - she's getting in the entire range of Cotton+Steel. (If only it would arrive!)

Millefiori Madness

Nearly completed a Rosette 2!


Need to sew the pentagons around the edge and then that's one down, only a bajillion more to go! *facepalm*

Red Letter Day: Class with Camille Roskelley

Camille Roskelley> has come to Australia and is teaching a class at various quilt shops along Australia's East Coast. In Sydney, she's teaching at Kim Bradley Creations, and I and some friends are taking a class with her on Sunday!

We've received the pattern and are cutting up our pieces to start with so that the day can be mostly spent sewing, rather than cutting.


I'm questioning the dark grey right now - especially with the purple, which is very saturated. I might have to riffle through my Kona stash for something a little more stand-out in the purple.

No Movement

- Mondrian Dreaming
- Friendship Supernova Swap

TO DO

EVERYTHING!


I have the fabrics for six of the backings out of the seven "Needs Backing (to Jo @ Thirroul Custom Quilting)".


I can't actually find my Modern French Batiks quilt top, though. Curiouser and curiouser!

--

So, whew, that's me done!

Oh, wait, except for the #greataussiedestash sale that we had on Monday, 11th June during the Queen's Birthday Holiday. I didn't sell everything I listed, but I sold quite a bit! Better than nothing at all. :)

Have you achieved much this week? Have you linked up to Freshly Pieced's WIP Wednesday linky party?

Let's have a picnic with SEW WE QUILT!

I signed up for this blog hop because...well, I'm not sure why. I think I had a lapse of sanity given all the other things that I have on right now - quilt show quilts, quilt backings, destash sales, house buying... Nevertheless, I refused to give up, give in, or otherwise say 'die'.

Also: while it's heading into summer territory in the Northern Hemisphere, down here in the Southern Hemisphere we're bound for winter. As a result, the weather has been growing distinctly colder and chillier, with occasional squalls. And they'd been predicting rain for the entire weekend...

Luckily, the rain obviously hadn't yet gotten the memo when I nipped down to a local park for my quilt photoshoot with a basket, a book, my handsewing, and box of donuts!


I haven't been to this park in decades - not since I was a kid, really, but it's lovely and well-kept, and well-frequented by families in the area.


And here's my happy, bright picnic quilt, all laid out!


The fabric collection for the block accents and the border is Sanae's "Oh My!" line from 2011, and the background fabric is a print that I've had lying around for at least as long - little coloured speckles on cream. I pieced and quilted it on my domestic machine just this last week.

For my picnic, I brought a book (Nalini Singh's latest Psy-Changeling novel - just came out the other day!), my handsewing (in the little "ta-da!" bag), and a box of donuts.


No, I didn't eat all the donuts - just one. They're destined for church supper tonight. I was going to bake (both for this and for church supper) but after I had my 20 year high school reunion last night (Wait, what, twenty years? Who gave permission for it to be twenty years?), I'm exhausted and need a "nanna nap".

When I wake up, though, I'm off to admire all the other picnic quilts around the hop: I haven't had a chance to look in-depth, but there's been some beautiful work displayed!

My fellow picnickers for the 9th are:
Monday June 9
Cherry Blossoms
The Quilting Queen Online
Mad Quilter's Disease
Daisy Days
Buzzing and Bumbling
From My Carolina Home
Sew We Quilt
But the full list can be found here (my blog), or here (sew we quilt blog).

Have a lovely summer, and when our summer comes around, I will definitely be picnicking at this park with some friends!

WIP Wednesday: the one with basting and batiks

WIPs

Walkabout

Top is done!


I stood on a stepladder to get that photo...and came pretty damn close to falling off it in the process!

This is the 'from the floor' version:

I need to put together some backing before the weekend, because I'm hiring the longarm at Kim Bradley's Creations on Saturday. Also need to do some doodles for how I want to quilt it:


Okay, so, more doodles. More variation. More ideas! Something that actually works!

FMQ! Much doodling! So pressure. I DON'T EVEN LIKE DOGE!

Mondrian Dreaming

Did a few blocks, not many, not enough. I think this might end up being a renege on the Quilt Show front. I just don't have the time to do it all right now.

Oh My!

Pin-basting:

Quilting:

Pictures on Monday with the Picnic Hop!

Millefiori Passacaglia

Haven't forgotten this, just not much visible progress:

Friendship Supernova Swap

We agreed on batiks and a colour range. So on Saturday I pulled out the box of batiks and started going through them. And I remembered just how many batiks I actually have...

These are the blues, greens, yellows, and whites:


I'm taking the red out because my swap partner didn't want it in there. I just thought it gave a nice pop while I was riffling through my batiks stash. (I might do a thin border around my quilt in red? Perhaps? Or yellow-orange-red 'explode lines' in the border? Hmm...)

To Do

Red Letter Day: Class with Camille Roskelley

My colour choices for the class with Camille Roskelley (of Thimbleblossoms pattern fame) which is on in a couple of weeks! EEEE!


The dark grey will be the background for the solids and prints. The solids will be the small stripes and the prints the half-square triangles and the block centres. The light grey will be the background for the 'contrast block' (with the dark grey the 'block').

Now I just need to get everything cut. Maybe on the weekend.

DONE!

I have been wanting to streak-and-colour my hair for years now. Since my mid-twenties. I never knew anyone who bleached their hair, though, and I was never much of a one for salons. As a result, I just never got it done.

Then, earlier this year, Jenn of pennypoppleton.com decided she was going to go pink. And then blue! And suddenly, I had someone who knew about these things and could explain them!

So, on Saturday night, I went over for A Night With Lee Pace ("The Fall"), some friends, dinner, toasted marshmallows by the outdoors fire, and a hair streaking!

This is how it looks today after I redid the dye on Monday night (it had pretty much washed out on Sunday night due to dirtiness, sweat, hockey, and my viciously scrubby shampoo).


I'm kind of pleased by it. Even if I forget that I have it half the time.

I keep telling people it's "my midlife crisis" just to watch their eyes pop out.

So what are you working on? Have you linked up with Freshly Pieced's WIP Wednesday?

Picnic Blog Hop!

Sew We Quilt is running a Picnic Blog Hop for the next week - from the 2nd June to the 9th June.

Join in looking and enjoying many lovely quilts and sunny days (hopefully) and picnic foods!!

Monday June 2
Sew Incredibly Crazy
How Art You?
The Reluctant Quilter at Hazelnut Deux
GrammieQ's
I Piece 2 -Mary
Pig Tales and Quilts

Tuesday June 3
Ridge Top Quilts
A Stitch in Time
Quilting in a Not Shell
Just Let Me Quilt
Creativity Amongst Chaos

Wednesday June 4
Quilt Taffy
Pampered Pettit
Creatin' in the Sticks
Miss Priss Quilts
Life in the Scrapatch
That's Sew Julie

Thursday June 5
Ella and Nesta's Little Room
Thimblemouse and Spouse
Jane's Quilting
Amanda Murphy Design
Quilting Quietly
Words & Stitches
Childlike Fascination

Friday June 6
Quiltscapes
More Stars in Comanche
Stitchin' By The Lake
Life, Quilts and a Cat Too
Kris Loves Fabric
In The Boon Docks
Living with Purpose

Monday June 9
Cherry Blossoms
The Quilting Queen Online
Mad Quilter's Disease <-- this is me!! Daisy Days
Buzzing and Bumbling
From My Carolina Home
Sew We Quilt