WIP Wednesday: the one with lots of stuff

I swear my titles are getting worse!

Finished

Sydney Modern Quilt Guild - The Rainbow Connection!

Based off Tacha Bruecher's 'Over The Rainbow' quilt in her 2012 book 'Hexa-Go-Go', this was collectively made by a dedicated dozen or so members of the Sydney Modern Quilt Guild, put together by Guild President Penny Poppleton, and quilted by me!

It's big. Very, very big. And beautiful!

It's due to go into the Quilt Show at the Sydney Quilt And Craft Fair later this year, and afterwards will be sold and the money donated to a women's shelter organisation, for women escaping untenable domestic situations.

I have a more detailed post here. The Sydney Modern Quilt Guild has an update post about it here.

Harvest Windows

(I finally thought of a name for this!)

For my aunt and uncle on my father's side who've been very good to my sisters and I over the years. Very traditional, richer, darker colours, and I really hope they like it. :/

And the back:

Ready to be sent off for quilting!

Fuller post here.

WIPs

Baby Quilts

I've been a bit busy to get on with these. And I'm deciding whether to do backs in the cotton I usually use, or some flannel which I have, which is wonderfully soft.

Quilt backings

Needed for:

1. California Girl
2. Santorini Sun and Sky
3. Honey Honey
4. HST Harvest

Some new photography of these in early morning light:

California Girl:

Honey Honey:

If I get at least a couple done I can send them off to Jo for quilting.

Diamonds Dancing In Rainbows

I haven't touched this since I put it up on the design board. Really need to get a move on with it!

To Do

Scrap Attack {String Fever}

This is going to happen. IT IS GOING TO HAPPEN.

It is Going To Happen because the other night I pulled out my big box of string scraps...and my little box of string scraps...and my small cloth baskets of string scraps...and my plastic trays of string scraps...

And realised just how many I'd collected over the last four years of quilting.

My plan so far:

1. sort strings into selvedges/non-selvedges
2. sort selvedges into neutrals/colours
3. sort colours into warms/cools
4. sort warms/cools into specific colour groups
5. ...

After that I'm not 100% on exactly how this is going to work!

BUT IT WILL!

Gift Quilts
Alli: red, white/neutrals/low-vol, blue - American patriot theme - possibly Sisters Ten BOM? Alt: "low volume" quilt?
Jo & Amy: Valley of the Kings - design not yet certain. It's a hard fabric line to design for!

Ideas for future

• 1:3:2 in A:B:A fabrics
• broken dishes (in Cuzco or Terrain?)
• "low volume" quilt

Anyway, that's me! How about you? What have you been doing this week?

Sydney Modern Quilt Guild: QUILTED OMG

So, those hexagons I was sewing through December, January, and February?

Well, they were for a group quilt being put together by the Sydney Modern Quilt Guild, according to Tacha Bruecher's book Hexa-Go-Go, which was published last year.

The quilt is titled "Over The Rainbow" in the book:

Guild President Penny Poppleton asked permission of Tacha to use the quilt design as one of our guild quilts for 2013 - not all participating members would have the book, although quite a few do - and Tacha gave her permission! (Thank you, Tacha!)

We made up kits using paper hexies donated by PaperPieces.com and sent them out to Guild members who were interested and willing. And Tacha herself offered to make a block for the quilt!

A bolt of Kona White was donated by the lovely people at Victorian Textiles (along with fabric for the backing) and once we had all the blocks back, two crazy days of 9-to-5 cutting and sewing ensued!

And here are the finished blocks (well, most of them) up on the design wall at Penny Poppleton's house:

Laying out:

The slightly dizzying perspective is because it was taken from the top of the stairs at Greta's Handcraft Centre (Lindfield).

And then sashing, posting, and adding the borders! (I don't have a picture of this because it was done by Penny Poppleton (Guild President).

Finally, the quilting! Which was my job. A long one. Six hours' worth of free-motion quilting from setting up on the frame on the Avanti at Hobbysew Top Ryde, to quilting and quilting and quilting and quliting until it was DONE LIKE A DINNER!

I took a few photos during the quilting process...

"Baby, I'm ready to go!"

"Oh, we're halfway there!"

And finishing it off...with a swirl! (Okay, a signature, but whatever!)

It's supposed to say "Sydney Modern Guild" in case you can't read it.

And finally, as much of the quilt as we could display in the shop, given that it's a MAMMOTH size - 112", in all it's colourful, beautiful glory!

So very pretty, even unbound and unhung! (Great design, Tacha!)

A look at the back detail - we ended up with 50 blocks (no idea how that happened) and tucked one on the back instead.

It will be (should be) displayed at the Sydney Craft And Quilt Fair in June 2013. If you happen to be in town, come by and take a look!

Afterwards, it will be sold (we're still working out how) and the proceeds are to go to a shelter for women escaping untenable domestic situations. All the fabric was donated, as were the paper pieces, and even the Aurifil thread that was used to piece and quilt it all together was donated, so the only cost incurring is that of the time spent on the quilting machine.

Whew! So glad that's done. :)

WIP Wednesday: the one with Lily & Will

WIPs

Lily & Will baby quilt

From this:

to this:

to this:

Got stuck at the quilting stage - my feed dogs aren't lowering. May have to just do straight-line quilting.

Heirloom Voile Dress

Had the voile for a long time. Was going to make a summer quilt out of it. Seeing as summer is mostly over...I'm thinking of making a dress with it. Better not think too long, though, or summer will be completely gone!

Haven't even started cutting this out yet.

Sydney Modern Quilt Guild Hexies

Still going! Slowly Slowly!

Last two are Purples-Pinks and Yellow-Oranges. Next week, I hope to have the full set of seven!

Up Next

Books And Blocks Bee

I have completely lost track of these. :( Must start doing them again.

Aunty S's Harvest Quilt

A quilted bed footer for my aunt and uncle - my aunt fell in love with this very bright 'harvest' fabric that I had as a backing for another quilt, and I was going to make them one for Christmas...

Plus possible use of many bits and pieces that have been sitting around for rather too long...

What about you? What have you been doing this week?

WIP Wednesday - the one with busyness

Week of busyness!

Finishes
Honey Honey

Completed top in two weeks! Two layer cakes, a nice, simple design, and a lesson learned:

Don't use 'snow' solids with pastels. It just makes everything fade.

In progress

Sydney Modern Quilt Guild - Charity Quilt 1
Still sewing hexies. But I have the greens, the reds, the blues, and the oranges done!

Greens:

Reds finished:

Blurry Blues on the train:

Oranges:

Green-yellows, Yellow-oranges, and Purples to go. Although the green-yellows are nearly done..

Will & Lily Baby Quilt

For the daughter of some friends from church - baby Madelyne, who's nearly three months old.

It's going to be a split nine-patch.

This one may be a crazy rush job - I'm seeing them for lunch on Saturday and hope to get the quilt made by then. Maybe. :)

WIP Wednesday: the one with hexies

Back from Vietnam - it was a wonderful holiday. I even got a bit of handsewing done for the Sydney Modern Quilt Guild charity quilt!

Starting with on the plane:

At my dad's house in Vietnam - the red hexies:

And the red-purples:

And the green-blues - handsewing on the train going in to work this week:

I'm pretty sure I did the yellows and the oranges while in Vietnam, but I can't seem to find them anywhere. *grumble*

--

quilting projects 2013

It's going to have to be a productive first half of the year, because the second half is going to be quite seriously disrupted by a trip to the US and Italy for six weeks.

Woodland by Natalie Lyman

I'm going to do something small and sweet with these charms squares of 'Woodland' by Natalie Lyman:

Probably a very simple rail-fence-like design.

Round The World

It feels like nearly everyone's doing the Round The World right now - it is a lovely, simple quilt to make - and great for scraps.

Not that these Kona strips are 'scraps' exactly. I cut them out while slicing strips from which to cut the Eternity Quilt triangles - I figured since I had it all out, I might as well make some strips for a project of unknown specifications. :)

We'll see how it turns out. I may regret using these strips for a RTW which looks like it would work best scrappy, but I guess we'll find out!

--

Going to the US 2013

I need to make quite a few quilts this year - I'm planning to head over to the US and while there, I'll offload a bunch of quilts for friends with whom I've stayed through the years, and take back a HEAPLOAD of fabric. :)

I also would like to make some clothing for cosplays since I intend on attending at least one fannish media convention in 2013 while in the US. Think the Victorian-style dress I put together for Halloween, only based around a specific character.

Only perhaps more complex.

These are some lovely dress designs based on the characters in the Avengers movie and designed by Kelsey Michele.

I particularly like Thor, Maria Hill, and Hulk, although I suspect that, based on my figure, the Captain America dress is a better choice than the Thor one.

(I have broad shoulders, and a nearly non-existent hip-to-waist ratio, which means I need something that really nips in at the waist and flares out at the hips.The Thor dress would look best on an hourglass, or a girl with good hips.)

Over-ambitious, I think. Still. *sighs*

Anyway, a slightly scattered first WIP Wednesday for 2013! What have you been working on?