WIP Wednesday: the one with fairytale forests

Finishes

Books And Blocks Bee

Last block done! Thank heavens! Not that it wasn't fun or lovely to do, just that I don't think I'm cut out for Bee blocks. And it's been a tricksy and busy year, difficult to get them done.

The last one is 'Four Acres' from the 99 Modern Quilt Blocks book. There are some lovely designs in there, and when I finish putting together my quilt from the bee blocks I received, you'll see what I mean!

I didn't join any Bees this year - I think it's for the best.

WIPs

A very long time ago, there was a Dead Simple Quilt-Along, where the point was to pick fabrics, cut them into squares, and sew them together without any fancy piecing.

On the frame, set and ready!

I did a kind of 'winding vine' pattern around the border, and tried to do some pretty stuff in the insets. (It didn't work very well.)

The centre was pretty much my trademark 'fiery curls':

I was beleaguered by problems while doing this quilt. To start with, I didn't have the right colour Aurifil thread, and while I had a pale grey, I didn't want to use it. The shop with the longarm has thread, but the best colour match was the Mettier brand. A bit expensive though.

And not very good. It frayed and broke a lot. As in, a lot of a lot! So, yeah not going to use that brand for quilting again!

So thread issues. Resulting in tension issues on the back of the quilt. Bother! And then after all that, I got to the end of the quilt and realised...I hadn't left enough space at each end of the backing - or I hadn't matched the quilt top as closely as I should have when I started.

So, yeah, the bottom of the quilt is 2" shorter than the top. Luckily, this is not going to be a competition or display quilt. But I'm annoyed at myself for not planning it better.

Let's just say that putting this quilt together was a PITA. Ironic that the Eternity Quilt was hell to piece and a dream to quilt; this was the reverse!

But finally we are finished!

And some detail along the border. Not as good as I'd like - it won't win any prizes - but decent enough.

No progress on a lot of other projects, and I'm going back to work tomorrow. Drat!

What have you been doing this week? Have you linked up to the linky party?

Free Motion Quilting Day!

No, it's not anything official, but that's what today is for me: Free Motion Quilting Day.

I'm going to FMQ these two quilts:

Santorini Sun & Sky

The Dead Simple Quilt

I've been reviewing Angela Walters' Free-Motion Quilting patterns for most of the morning, trying to work out what to use and how to do it, and also checking out the Free Motion Quilting Project - although those seem to be mostly fillers. I'm thinking something with waves and pearls on Santorini, and maybe a leafy design on Dead Simple - still haven't quite worked that one out!

I figure that after the Eternity Quilt and the tricksy difficulty of doing the Eternity Quilt (I did not start with an easy quilt), these two should be relatively simple...

Relatively...

Pics on the other side!

Quilt Show Choices!

The Sydney Craft And Quilt Fair is on again this year, and I'm submitting a quilt to the Quilt Show. I've never put a quilt in a show before, so this will be an experience!

We can submit at least two.

Quilt 1: Eternity

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Quilt 2 is a question mark right now.

My options are:

1. Crooked Summer Sampler

I'd submit this one mostly just to imagine their faces when they receive the submission.

2. Santorini Sun And Sea

I like this one, it's been finished for a while, and all I have to do is get it backed and quilted, which I could do myself, easily enough.

3a) I <3 Kona - without borders

Latest work, up on the design board now, trying to work out if I should just go borderlerss like this or...

3b) I <3 Kona - with borders

The black border is pretty dramatic. Not sure I want to go with it - a better option would have been a range of subtly tinted 'blacks' - alas, for I cannot find my Kona Colour Card and so I don't even know if they have that.

I thought the border would give an opportunity for the colours to really pop - but black looks like it blends too well into the dark colours, and would just make the light ones really obvious.

Your thoughts? On the quilt choices, on the borders/no borders, on the whole submission in general?

WIP Wednesday: The One With New York!

Finishes

After what feels like a lifetime of effort, I finally got the New York Beauty Mini done!

I used it for FMQ practise - lots of radial line, bubbles, snail-shells, and my trademark 'fiery curls'

Funny story: I broke the needle just as I was starting to edge this, and so I had to lever up the plate under the foot and needle. And found...quite a lot of lint.

Had a go at it with the good old vacuum... :)

Books And Blocks Bee

These are ridiculously late. But done and in the mail!

Blue Lagoon:

Parisian Star:

And I still have the last block to go! (January, I believe.) I also stuck a bit of Mendocino Mermaids in there as compensation for lateness. I hope they like Heather Ross!

WIPs

Coloured Charms

Sewn into columns, but not fully together yet.

Looking pretty good, though, I think!

Sydney Modern Quilt Guild

You remember those hexies I've been doing for the last, oh, FOREVER?

Well, at the end of last week, we abrutply realised that the submission for the Sydney Quilt Show in June this year must be done by the end of this week. Cue panic. And several days of Sit 'N Sews to get most of the blocks done so we can lay it out and take a photo to give an indication of the design. It doesn't have to be finished just yet, they just want to see the design!

So we sat, and we sewed. And we sewed. And we sewed. And after two days sewing with Penny Poppleton and two other lovely ladies...we had this!

Isn't it magnificent? Pretty damn awesome, isn't it? If you're thinking it looks familiar, that's because you've probably seen Tascha Bruher's Hexa-Go-Go book, from which the pattern comes. Tascha has been wonderful about giving permission for the Guild to make the quilt from her pattern, even if not all the members could buy the book. And it is a wonderfully dramatic quilt - and looks even better with the sashing, posting, and borders on! (I don't have that photo - if you check out @pennypoppleton on instagram, it'll be there. I'm @seldear on instagram if you're interested in following me.)

Lily And Will Baby Quilt

I have the binding fabric cut and sewn and ironed and ready to sew on...I just haven't done it yet!

To be done by Sunday.

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Anyway, that's me. What about you? What have you been doing?

WIP Wednesday: the one with charms

Finished!

Sydney Modern Quilt Guild - Hexy Charity Quilt

(At least, done in so far as I've completed my part of it.)

Yellow hexies on the train!

And we are done!

Phew! So much teeny-tiny sewing, but so very pretty! And now what am I going to do on the train to work, pray tell?

Lily And Will Baby Quilt

No progress. It's still hanging over the old TV. I think it's going to have to be straight-line stitching...

I <3 KONA Charm Swap

Start with 112 charm squares of 56 Kona solids, and 112 two-inch squares of Kona White:

Sew together at the Sydney Modern Quilt Guild Sew-In at Greta's Handicrafts:

Press and arrange:

Decide you don't like the pale blues in the middle, rearrange and start sewing:

I still don't like the placements for some of the yellow-greens, but...what can you do?

Next Week

Books And Blocks Bee

I am a bad Bee. :(

Finally, I made a trip over to Hornsby Hobbysew:

Mmmm, fabric!

What have you been working on?

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?

What I Did On My Weekend

Or, I'm Trying Not To Only Post On Wednesdays (It's going to be a bit tricky, I think.)

So, baby quilt for the daughter of friends. Born back in October, I wanted something simple and pretty and decently sized so she can crawl around on it until she's old enough to want a blankie/quilt and then she can carry it where she goes.

Two charm packs of Lily & Will did the trick for a disappearing nine-patch.

It went together pretty fast - I started sewing the blocks together on Thursday night.

Friday:

Backed:

And all sandwiched together, ready for quilting!

Slight problem: the feed dogs on my sewing machine aren't dropping down, so I can't do the stipple I originally intended to do...

Oh well. We got this far!

Maybe try to do the rest on the weekend at the Sydney Modern Quilt Guild sew-in!

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. :)