2016 Finish: La Trivetiata

I've forgotten the name for these things... Oh, wait. Trivets! They're called TRIVETS.

At least they are around here. Don't know what other people call them.

The fabric has been sitting around since 2011, when I first started a quilt for my mother using RK's Imperial Collection 7 (I think). I trimmed down the tiny HSTs, sewed them together and then took forever to finish binding them. I'm awful that way.

Also, my old machine (a Brother NS50, which I originally was using for dressmaking when I turned to quilting) wasn't good for binding. My new machine (a Juki) binds quilts like a damn Trojan! (Or maybe it should be a Spartan? THIS IS BIIIIINDIIIIINGGGG!!!)

But they are FINISHED!


(And yet again, I have to work out what to do with them. They were to be a gift for a friend when I started them, but that boat has kinda sailed...)

Linking up to the 2016 Finish-Along!

2012 recap: a big year

I’ve been a bit slow with this post – the recap of 2012 and the goals for 2013. Partly because I was away in Vietnam during that week when I usually do all my “past year, next year” organisation, and partly because my computer died at the start of December and I didn’t get around to replacing it until last week. I’ve been doing everything off my work computer which, while sturdy, makes me a bit antsy at times.

And it’s so much easier to 'do' than to 'recap'!

I'd have done a collage of my projects, only I don't have the time right now.

My goals for 2012 were:

1. Finish another 12 quilt tops.
2. Make at least 1 quilt from go to whoa - including the quilting stage, which I usually fob off to someone else.
3. Start making quilts and patterns with an intent to sell.

My results for 2012 were:

1. Not quite. My excuse is that we were doing kitchen renovations from February until August, and I had no sewing space because the kitchen essentially got moved into my sewing room.
2. Yes! The Eternity Quilt. Designed, cut, pieced, quilted, and bound by me!
3. Well, I did some quilt block patterns but they were nothing special. I'm not sure I'm cut out for the 'making patterns to sell' angle - it's not my focus, although I might still make some quilts to sell in future.

2012 Works

California Girl: A very quick project that turned out rather nice. More pastels than I like, but it'll be to someone's taste, I'm sure! (And the photography doesn't help.)

Charmed Prints: A quilt-along with Anne-Marie of Gen X Quilters.

HST Harvest: Using up the FQs of a "harvest themed" fabric collection I bought four years ago and which I don't like anymore. (The colours are Not My Thing at all!)

Floating Wildflowers: For the wedding of a friend in April. Another fabric collection I bought four years ago and hadn't yet used. I like this one better - the dark jewel tones, the design - much more to my tastes!

New York Beauty Blocks: Was to be for a huge NYB quilt-along, but I didn't like the colours I chose. I worked in mostly-solid or monochrome batiks and it just didn't work for me. So I'll make a small hanging from this and do a fullsize (or bigger size) quilt in some other fabric collection.

Nobody Puts Baby In The Corner - Scrap Attack: Definitely a pattern to do again in future - love the scrappiness, and the off-white 'backing'. It would be interesting to do this with a layer cake (or jelly roll) and a background fabric...

Azerbaijani scarf for Eurovision: For my friend's Eurovision party back in May!

Two baby quilts: a commission by a friend for her nephew and niece.

mug rug: Part of a mug-rug exchange. Only mine was a bit large - it's more of a soup-bowl rug!

Heirloom: I was trying to do this in the manner of a quilt I saw online, but I think that one was more of a 'coins' style design, which makes a difference - this design is a little too rich for my eye.

Build Me Up Buttercup: I love the fabric, but I don't think the design quite hits me. Yellow (it's actually 'Kona Daffodil' not 'Kona Buttercup' but the name stuck) is not my favourite of colours - I prefer it as an accent, not a theme.

Snowflake block: My first block tutorial! Design is by Madame Parfait, but she never posted the tutorial. This one's a bit rough, and I really need to make a whole quiltload. Perhaps in 2013?

Stepdad’s Cushions: Commissioned by my mum for the stepdad, oh, two years ago. Finally finished this year. Along with her quilt. They now sit in pride of place on their bed.

Batman block: A block tutorial for the Wicked! bloghop in October 2013. I need to use this block - perhaps in a cushion cover?

Eternity: My 2013 nemesis, dreamed up for a church project and completed in a ridiculously short time given its complexity level. Four months from inception to completion, and I did every inch of it, from design to cutting to piecing to quilting.

So that’s 2012, done and dusted!

Up next, 2013 goals.

Parental Patchwork Presents

This post is very much overdue. I simply haven't had the picture to put it all together.

Having completed my mum's quilt, the "ImpStar" (started about 15 months ago), I figured I should hurry up and finish the stepdad's pillowslips (which my mum asked me to make at least a couple of years ago).

The fabric is Imperial Collection 6, which I accidentally ordered while trying to get hold of more Imperial Collection 7 for Mum's ImpStar quilt. Oops!

The first panel - Fans and Flowers - came with the FQ bundle, but the second panel is entirely unrelated and something I found in the Blue Mountains, at the delightfully-named Picklemouse Corner in Leura, almost a year ago while I was at a writer's retreat.

I spotted it, thought "oh, that could work with the collection" got home and discovered that it pretty much perfectly matched! Don't you love it when a good plan comes together?

Draped over the big body-pillow to get a feel for how it's going to look!

Ready for basting and quilting!

No batting, just the top and two layers of cotton to give it a bit of thickness.

First time I used my quilting gloves! Great for moving the quilt around (although I need a bigger machine arm and a decent platform on which to rest the quilt).

The quilting is not very good. I started with a variation on an Angela Walter FMQ pattern "Tiles" only to realise that it didn't really work for triangles.

So I switched to straight-line quilting with a walking foot. Much easier and a bit more in keeping with the style of the blocks.

Finished body pillow!

And all together now and laid out on the parental bed!

They're very happy with it, and I'm very happy with it. It's all good!

WIP: The one with KONA solids!

WIPs

Stepdad's pillow

Got the top sandwich happening, but now I'm at a loss how to quilt it. Not too much quilting - the last one wasn't very detailed, just basically stitching to keep the blocks in place.

The last one, I quilted the triangles and around the panel, but I didn't quilt over the panel itself. I might do the same here. If I can find any thread that matches the fabric. (I'm running a bit low right now.)

Terrain Challenge

Eternity Quilt

So...

The Kona light and dark bounty boxes came!

Eee! So much beautiful, colourful fabric! *gloats*

That's 200 colours to work with! More than enough for the Eternity puzzle:

Now I just have to lay them out, mark them, cut them, organise them, piece them, quilt them, and bind them!

...maybe I'll take a lie-down first.

Or possibly have high tea!

Boronia House, Mosman. Birthday tea for my sisters. Lovely gardens, lovely house. The high tea wasn't bad - the nibbles were nice but nothing standout. Their Madagascan Vanilla tea was DIVINE, though. I'm hoping to find it at T2 teahouse!

And now it's your turn! What have you done this week? Have you checked out the linky party at Freshly Pieced!

Hopefully I'll have a big update next Wednesday, since we have a long weekend this weekend. Plenty of time to do things! (I always think that; somehow, it never quite gels.)

WIP Wednesday: The Terrain by Kate Spain Sits Mainly On The Cutting Mat

Doesn't scan quite so nicely, does it?

Had a writing weekend away up at the gorgeous Pearl Bay on the NSW Central Coast, but managed to get some cutting done in amidst writing, eating, and taking friends to the hospital so she didn’t have to suffer the entire weekend with a migraine.

WIPs
1. Stepdad's pillow
No change. Didn't get the quilting, the backing, or the pillowslipping done at all.

2. Terrain Challenge
>Terrain is cut! So are some white strips. Sewing-together is taking place, and probably more white strips will still be needed.

Looks pretty good, doesn't it?

3. Eternity Quilt
I gave in and bought the Kona boxes. *looks guiltily at her bank account* It was just easier than trying to hunt it all up. Anyway, two rows down...28 to go!

It's right at the top of the design wall...

Not very good photos, I'm afraid! Better ones to come once I get my shipment of Kona. And then it will be crazy mad sewing. CRAZY MAD.

--

And now it's your turn! What have you done this week? Have you checked out the linky party at Freshly Pieced!

WIP Wednesdays: the one with SPRING!

What a week! Crazy writing, crazy working, crazy sewing!

Thank heavens I had a quiet(ish) weekend. For a given value of 'quiet'. :)

SPRING IS HERE! REJOICE AT THE NO-LONGER-FREEZING TEMPERATURES!

I hate winter with a burning, fiery passion. Brr. Who wants to be cold all the time?

Give me temperatures from 26-36C, the cicadas sawing away, the sun, the blue blue sky, and a good book which I can read as I sprawl in a beanbag and drink iced drinks.

And spring is the transition season we're in right now, and my garden is doing little growy things all on its own!

But you're not here to see me gush about the garden.

Sel the Mad Quilter
Sitting in a tree!
Q-I-L-T-I-N-G!

First come the finishes...

Stepdad's pillows

Sunday afternoon, I made a push to finish the stepdad's pillow covers and managed one!

The tricksy part was mostly the 'quilting' - and that was because I got ambitious and tried to bite off more than I can chew. Nothing unusual there! I'll be a little more sedate next time.

At any rate, I think I need to do a little quilting practise each week, so I'll add that to my WIP Wednesdays.

There's still one pillow to go - this is the Fans and Flowers pillow, the other one is the Golden Carp one, and I'm going to finish both before I turn them over to the parentals. Yes. Yes, I am!

Then come the WIP...

Stepdad's pillows: Golden Carp pillowslip

Quilting, backing, and pillowslipping still to be done. I'll try to get this finished done Sunday morning and maybe take it around to the parentals on Sunday afternoon for pics!

Eternity Quilt

Take one mathematical puzzle solution:

Add a range of Kona solids:

Mix in some rather finicky organising:

A design board:

And one quilter who tries to work these things out because she is possibly insane...

Stir well!

I think it'll be pretty impressive, but it's gonna require the patience of Job to put together. And, um, probably a lot of Kona solids. Like...the whole range - or close to it! I only need a 3.5" x 18" strip of each, too! *wince*

I am seriously contemplating asking if people are willing to swap fabric with me - particularly those who have the Kona solids fabric bundles? Say 6x 3.5"x18" (or 22") strips in exchange for a fat quarter of something in my stash? Does that sound reasonable? I have collections like Terrain and Secret Garden, It's a Hoot, Aviary 2, Heirloom, and, oh, so many others. Or we can just wing it?

Then come the Things On The 'To Do' Ship!

- Terrain Quilt Challenge with Penny Poppleton: possibly to be finished for Material Obsession's "Swap Day" on the 8th December.
- Baby Bag - here on the Moda Bake Shop

And th-th-th-th-that's all folks!

Linky party at Freshly Pieced!