Vintage Tuesday

Floral Nine Patch 1996
Floral Nine Patch 1996

I visited my grandmother last week and noticed a quilt I made hanging on the wall of her guest room.

I made this quilt in 1996 according to the information on my webpage about the quilt. I am pretty sure I gave it to her around that time, but her husband wouldn’t let her hang it up and it wasn’t even large enough for a lap sized quilt so I didn’t see the quilt for years. My Grama gives everything away, so I thought it was long gone.

I also made one for my grandfather. That one used plaid blocks and went to my aunt when my grandfather died. I don’t know what happened to it when my aunt died in 2007. it has a label, so, perhaps, it will end up in the IQSC someday. Hopefully, it is not being used as a dogbed in the back of someone’s station wagon.

The blocks are from a swap on the Q-XCHG list. I could see some of the names written on the blocks.

The Q-XCHG list was a listserv hosted at a university back in the Internet dark ages when there was only text on the web. It was a companion list dedicated to swaps of QuiltNet, the mother of all lists, blogs — everything quilty on the web except, perhaps, Usenet.

I realize that many of these words mean nothing to those of you who have joined the Web quilting community since the advent of the visual web. Just keep in mind that there was a web before there were blogs and we still managed to swap and have fun.

The Petrillo Bag Along Week 4

This week we are finishing. You may already be done. If so YAY!!! If not, keep at it! You can do it!

Petrillo Bag Complete
Petrillo Bag Complete

Me? Yes, I am mostly finished. I have a bit of hand stitching of the inside to do then I can say I really am finished. I will put up a completed project post when I am done.

As I have mentioned, I was out of town for part of last week including the time I usually spend sewing. That meant that I had to get back in the groove of where I was with this bag. I found that I rely on regular sewing time to keep me on track. Not having that time completely put me off my game.

It turned out that more ripping was in store for me. I had forgotten to, not only, cut the inside flap piece for the main flap used on the top of the bag, but also to sew it when I put the main flap together. Sara clearly says in Step 17 what to do and I just missed it. Sigh.

I ripped out the Main Flap top stitching, put in the inside Flap piece to line the Main Flap and resewed.

Then I thought I could make some progress, but when I tried to sew the flap to the back of the bag (Step 29) I found that I had sewed the straps too close to the top of the bag (Steps 24 & 25). Sigh. More ripping ensued. I would recommend stopping an 1″-1.5″ away from the top of the back of the bag.

Zipper Pocket
Zipper Pocket

I also started the inside of the bag. The inside of the bag starts with the zipper pocket (Step 33). I did Steps 33-36, which include cutting the opening for the zipper. As soon as I cut the zipper opening, I was sure I had the placement of the pieces wrong. I stared at the picture in Step 33 and the picture in Step 36 and they didn’t compute in my mind. I emailed Sara and she was kind enough to email me back fairly quickly to reassure me. I still was not convinced, but I soldiered on. As she promised, the zipper pocket worked out fine.

Do I seem like I am struggling with this bag? I am a bit. It is really hard for me to read directions and do what they say. I am much better when someone shows me what to. I got through it which gives me an image in my mind. I’ll be able to breeze through the next iteration of this bag. Yes, there will be a second bag. 😉

I have to say that I do like the shape of this bag. Good thing since there is so much ripping. 😉

Inside Petrillo Bag
Inside Petrillo Bag

The inside of the bag, which went together very well, after I made the zipper pocket and the padded pocket, seems a little big to me.

More Hilarity

Tutinella made a second Petrillo bag and wrote about it recently. The thing she did differently was add side pockets, which is a great idea. I might add side pockets to my second bag. I may also add inside side pockets.

Another thing I like about this bag is the opportunity to use new products. I have talked a bit about the Soft & Stable, but the Shape Flex is on my mind today. I still have the skirts I planned, to make. One thing that was holding me up was lining. The pattern I have does not call for a lining, but quilt weight fabric is not very thick, most of the time, so I will need something under. I am not sure my clothing skills are up to the task of a lined skirt out of the gate. I got to thinking about the Shape Flex and may try it to give a bit of weight to the fabric and to provide a kind of lining. I will have to give up some drape, so I will need to think about it. Let me know if you have experience with using Shape Flex on clothing.

I have to say that I am amazed at how Sara could have conceived of this bag and the way it goes together. I thought the same thing about the Anna Maria Horner Multi-tasker tote, which is a great bag, if you haven’t made one.

Other relevant posts:

For you Tweeps, you can follow Sara at @SewSweetness.

As a result of all this Petrillo-ing ;-), I have no updates to the Star Sampler.

26 Projects – April Update #2

Finished 2013 Projects:

  1. Corner Store: Finished on 1/1/2013 YAY!
  2. The Garden. Finished on 1/5/2013 YAY!
  3. Stepping Stones: Finished on 2/14/2013 YAY!
  4. Fabric of the Year 2011: Finished on 2/27/2013 YAY
  5. Calm: Finished on 3/14/2013 YAY!
  6. A-B-C Challenge: Finished on 3/31/2013 YAY!

Still WIPs

  1. Aqua-Red SamplerFrances  is working diligently, though I know she feels frustrated and I think part of that is because she is left handed and I am right handed. I finished the foundation piecing tutorial, along with my block for this part of the class. I am not
  2. The Tarts Come to Tea: I still haven’t worked on this since April 2011, though I did think about working on it. I hope that counts for something. I really do need to get back to the quilting. I am still a little mad at myself for making such good progress and then getting sidetracked. I thought quilting the Whole Cloth quilt would get me back in the swing of quilting, but apparently not.
  3. Pointillist Palette #4: Fourth is a series of 6 quilts; needs tiny square patches sewn together. Mrs. K. gave me more PP fabric and I won some from a giveaway. I still think it is a sign that I need to work on this. Leaders and enders.
  4. See: needs satin stitching. Small, also a possibility for finishing. I really have the feeling I came so close to working on this project this month.
  5. Self Portrait: started in 2006 at a class at Quilting Adventures in Richmond, Virginia. I like the piece, but don’t know where to go from where I am. Mouth? Hair? The attitude I need to have is that I can’t ruin it; there is always more fabric.
  6. Under the Sea: class project; like the design, but not the colors much.
  7. Flower Sugar Hexagon: I thought about sewing more hexagons together. Although not difficult, sewing Y seams is a bit of a chore, so I get tired of doing it after awhile. I could, perhaps, use leaders and enders to get this piece moving?
  8. Young Man’s t-shirt quilt: have cut up the t-shirts and am still in the process of applying fusible. He cleaned out his drawers and found some more t-shirts to add to the quilt. Oh Yay! <– just a bit of sarcasm. He asked me again for another quilt, so I think this one is next in line. I plugged in his heating mattress pad, though, which should keep him quiet for a bit longer.
  9. New: FOTY 2012: top, finished, though I can’t decide if I need a quilting border. Working on the back.

Ready for Quilting

  1. Original Bullseye: At the quilter
  2. New: Wonky 9 Patch: needs basting, quilting and binding. Not on original list
  3. New:* Super Secret Project #2: At the quilter. Not on original list
  4. New: Super Secret Project: At the quilter.  Stay tuned. ;-) Not on original list
  5. Infinity blocks: blocks sewn together into a quilt top, borders on. Back and binding made; ready to be quilted.
  6. A-B-C (A-Z) BAMQG Challenge –At the quilter. Due April 1.
  7. New: Sparkle Pink – At the quilter.
  8. New: Swoon – At the quilter.
  9. Spiderweb: Top is together, binding is made. This is at the quilter.

Please note that even if you combine the two lists above, I do not have 26 projects on this list anymore. That is something, IMO.

In the Finishing Process

Abandoned

Nothing so far for 2013

Hunting and Gathering

  • Spin Wheel: really not started, but supplies gathered. Cutting fabrics as I go. TFQ does not consider this a UFO and made some good points to that end, which is why I have moved it to the Hunting and Gathering section. She says, and I have to agree, that quilts are not ‘projects’ until the sewing starts. OK. I’ll go with that.
  • Windmill quilt: Still hunting and gathering.
  • Stepping Stones #2 using Bonnie & Camille fabrics Bliss, Ruby, Vintage Modern: made two test blocks, but still in the thinking stage while I decide on the background colors. I want the contrast to be good.

Last update for the 26 Projects List. Read it. There’s some interesting stuff there.

*New – Project started after I started working on the 26 Projects list

Book Review: Art Quilt Portfolio: People & Portraits: Profiles of Major Artists, Galleries of Inspiring Works

Art Quilt Portfolio: People & Portraits: Profiles of Major Artists, Galleries of Inspiring WorksArt Quilt Portfolio: People & Portraits: Profiles of Major Artists, Galleries of Inspiring Works by Martha Sielman

I am not a big fan of representational quilts of people. There is something about the quilting on faces that freaks me out. Also, why make a quilt when I can just take a photograph?* As a result, I often skip past these types of quilts at shows. When Art Quilt Portfolio People Profiles by Martha Sielman showed up, my heart sank even while feeling very glad it was a quilt book and not a jewelry book. 😉

I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised. There is a bit of freaky face quilting in this book, but overall Sielman has done a 100% excellent job choosing the quilts for this book.

As I looked over the table of contents, I found there are a lot of artists in this book with whom I was unfamiliar. I was really only aware of Pam RuBert and may have heard of Jenny Bowker, though I can’t think where. It is nice to be introduced to new quilt artists. As I read through the book, however, I found many artists represented who were not profiled. Susan Shie and my friend, Pamela Allen, both have pieces in this book as well as other quiltmakers whose work I have seen in the past.

The book starts out with a well written, smart introduction discussing faces in our society, pareidolia, the organization of the book and much more. Sielman weaves stories about the artists and their work to whet the appetite for this book. As I re-read the introduction, my fingers itched to move on to the images.

The artists included are international and have different ways of working. Their work has different messages and meanings, which Sielman discusses at the beginning of the book. As I re-read the introduction, my fingers itched to move on to the images. I think this quote describes the artwork in this volume beautifully “…we come in so very many different sizes, colors, and shapes. Our human family is infinitely varied and unendingly interesting, and– as this book demonstrates– it serves as a rich source of inspiration for artists around the world (pg.9).”

The book is organized by artist. I like art quilt books organized this way, because I can see relationships between quilts and the style of the artist. In some of these quilts, I like the colors. In others the imagery, aside from the human form[s], is interesting to me. Also, there is some information about the artist and I can get an idea of what their work is like before I have to go trolling multiple different websites and blogs.

The book is also organized by theme. I am not going to try to explain this. You can buy it (or get it at your local library) and see for yourself. In the first theme, happiness, the reader is introduced to Collette Berends. I can only describe the imagery of her quilts as “nightlife.” I do like the way she has represented the people. They are a bit fuzzy and impressionistic.

Yoshiko Kurihara’s quilts (pg. 66-71) are very angular and the people represented are clearly not meant to convey real people. They have no faces and the angles of their bodies are sharp. In no way are these attributes negative, though, because I was clearly able to tell that the figures in the pieces were people.

Kathy Nida’s (pg.164-169) work stuck with me as well. It is a little bit gross for me, but the quote “…of trying to NOT be pregnant, then trying TO be pregnant, and then NOT again. That little group of organs, the uterus and the ovaries, rules a woman’s life. (pg.164)” really stuck with me as one of life’s truths for women. Much of Ms. Nida’s imagery involves detailed imagery of the inside of the human body: the organs, food and medicines going in, etc. Her work and this imagery, especially in relationship to women fascinates me.

Some of my favorite quilts are:
-Kate at 40 by Kate Themel, pg.55. I like the yellow that she used as well as the blue. Both are on the face, which makes it clear that this is not a representation of how any actual human looks, but an impression or suggestion.
-Motorcyclist Portrait Project: Kari and Jim, 2007 by Cheryl Dineen Ferrin, pg. 61. Mostly I like the lips and the sunglasses on the woman in this piece. The lips are a wonderful shape and I adore the color. There is something about the sunglasses that is very appealing as well.
-Time Traveler, 2011 by Louise Schiele, pg.157. I love the colors in this piece as well as the large clock and the repetition and balance of the figures.
-Pam RuBert’s quilts are punny and fun (pg.170-175). I like it when, though serious about our work, we can also make people laugh. I love her work for the series element of it as well as the laughter.

There is something great in each of these quilts whether it is a color combination or a curved line or some details. Even in quilts where I didn’t like the overall look of the quilt, I saw something that inspired me or gave me an idea.

This book is well worth the cost and I would encourage you to buy a copy for your personal library or donate a copy to your local public library. Enjoy!

Thanks to Lark for the review copy!

GIVEAWAY ALERT!!!! I have two copies of this book to giveaway. I know I announced that I would be doing a giveaway a few weeks ago. There was some family stuff going on and I couldn’t get my act together, but I have now! I have two copies of this book to give away, thanks to Shannon at Lark.

There are special rules for this giveaway:

  • You have to like my page on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/artquiltmaker OR
  • Be an email subscriber to my blog. If you were an email subscriber on 4/8/2013, then you get an additional entry. If you unsubscribe before the drawing, you cannot win. Only current email subscribers win.
  • No whining.

I will draw a winner around Sunday May 5, so you have a week to subscribe to the email version of the blog and like https://www.facebook.com/artquiltmaker.

Update 5/5/2013: Giveaway closed. Thanks for playing along!

*I really need to understand this, so please tell me what you think. I just don’t get it.

View all my reviews

Sketching #202

CPP Response #202: Iris
CPP Response #202: Iris

I stopped to visit my aunt for a flying visit last Friday. She has always been a wonderful gardener. I think she loves gardening as much as I adore quiltmaking. Irises are her favorite and I was thinking about her when I thought up this prompt. This is one of the bearded irises in her garden. I really like the red violet on the lower beards.

You can create your own response after you look at the original prompt.

Creative Prompt #205: Starfish

Sea star

starfish therapy

Asteroidea

class of echinoderms

Rutger Hauer Starfish Association

Throwing starfish – World of Warcraft

Crown of thorns starfish

Starfish stay-put bath sticker

 

Definition: Starfish or sea stars are echinoderms belonging to the class Asteroidea.[2] The names “starfish” and “sea star” essentially refer to members of the class Asteroidea. However, common usage frequently finds these names also applied to ophiuroids, which are correctly referred to as “brittle stars” or “basket stars”. About 1,800 living species of starfish occur in all the world’s oceans, including the Atlantic, Pacific, Indian, Arctic and Southern Ocean regions. Starfish occur across a broad depth range from the intertidal to abyssal depths of greater than 6,000 m (20,000 ft).

Starfish are among the most familiar of marine animals found on the seabed. They typically have a central disc and five arms, though some species have many more arms than this. The aboral or upper surface may be smooth, granular or spiny, and is covered with overlapping plates. Many species are brightly coloured in various shades of red or orange, while others are blue, grey, brown, or drab. Starfish have tube feet operated by a hydraulic system and a mouth at the centre of the oral or lower surface. They are opportunistic feeders and are mostly predators on benthic invertebrates. Several species having specialized feeding behaviours, including suspension feeding and adaptations for feeding on specific prey. They have complex life cycles and can reproduce both sexually and asexually. Most can regenerate damaged or lost arms.

The Asteroidea occupy several important roles throughout ecology and biology. Starfish, such as the ochre sea star (Pisaster ochraceus), have become widely known as an example of the keystone species concept in ecology. The tropical crown-of-thorns starfish (Acanthaster planci) is a voracious predator of coral throughout the Indo-Pacific region. Other starfish, such as members of the Asterinidae, are frequently used in developmental biology.

(Wikipedia)

Post the direct URL (link) where your drawing, doodle, artwork is posted (e.g. your blog, Flickr) in the comments area of this post. I would really like to keep all the artwork together and provide a way for others to see your work and/or your blog.

We are also talking about this on Twitter. Use the hashtag #CPP

The Creative Prompt Project, also, has a Flickr group, which you can join to  post your responses. I created this spot so those of you without blogs and websites would have a place to post your responses.

Book Making

Sometimes, very occasionally, my personal creative world and my professional world meet.

Books I Made 3/2013
Books I Made 3/2013

This happened a few weeks ago when the social committee of one of the organizations to which I belong scheduled an outing to the San Francisco Center of the Book. Of course, it was a week where a thousand things were happening and I almost cancelled. I am glad I didn’t, though, because it was a great class and it got me moving in the direction of bookmaking, like the Red, Purple, Well Done and Good Job journals, again.

Until it is in Flame
Until it is in Flame

Not every participant had arrived, so I took some time to look at the exhibit on display. I don’t remember the name of the exhibit, but the books all looked like they had hidden messages.

The piece, Until it is in Flame, is by Beau Beausoleil and Andrea Hassiba. While I do not like the burned and destroyed book, I do like the way a part of the book is hollowed out. The space could hold additional artworks, messages or other books. It makes me think of how to do this sort of idea in the structure of the books I make, but it also makes me wonder whether I should.

Healing Wounded Words
Healing Wounded Words

Healing Wounded Words is a piece about the power of words by Marina Salmaso, a Danish artist from KØbenhavn. I find this piece to be very light, but the words and the red are not boring. I also like the format.

You really have to click the photos to see them larger. The thumbnails don’t do them justice.

Exhibit
Exhibit

Another exhibit was in another room and it was equally as intriguing as the one in the main room.

I really like the variety of different bindings and different types of books. It was so fun to learn how make a few of them.

My Favorite Binding
My Favorite Binding

Rhianna, the instructor, passed around lots of different types of books with different bindings. We did 4-5 separate books and bindings. Of course when I saw the binding on the green book, I immediately thought it would make a fantastic journal binding.

Guess what?

This book was a teaser for another class! I really want to take that class so I can learn how to make the binding. If I made it I can decide whether I can translate the binding/bookmaking type into fabric.

Inside of My Favorite Binding
Inside of My Favorite Binding

From the inside, this binding looks like it would hold a lot more pages than the other types of bindings we learned.

It also looks like one could see some of the fabric through the binding.

Type cases
Type cases

The San Francisco Center for the Book is a great place. It is in a hip, up and coming neighborhood that still has a bit of grit with their Whole Foods.

Type case label
Type case label

There are a lot of interesting things to look at in the facility and it is light and airy as well. The exhibits I looked at were two in a series of ongoing exhibits.

If you are making a trip to San Francisco and want to get off the Fisherman’s Wharf-Ghirardelli Square-Cable Car beaten path, you might want to check out the San Francisco Center for the Book.

Be Creative

Be Brave by Kim Hyer
Be Brave by Kim Hyer

I stopped by my sister’s house last week on my way to visit my grandmother. I don’t get to see my sister that often and she is getting ready to move, so I wanted to stop by and see her studio. My sister and I are having an argument, but I decided to celebrate her creativity anyway.

The last time I saw my sister’s house, she was living in a place that I don’t remember having a lot of wall space and I don’t think I saw her studio, or perhaps it wasn’t set up? I don’t remember.  Last week, she was coming home from work and we were going to meet her at her house for a quick pow-wow before we went down to Grama’s. My mom and I got there before my sister. The dogs had had a little party, so we cleaned up for her and, in the process, I couldn’t help looking around.

I was so blown away.  My sister is unbelievably talented. She paints (By the way, you can get some of her stuff at her Cafe Press A Paper Addict store. Her paintings are really great, but her creativity doesn’t stop there.

Variety of works by Kim Hyer
Variety of works by Kim Hyer

Her creativity extends to decorating as well. Her whole space has the feeling of light and air. Some of the pieces that were in our childhood home are now in her house. They don’t look heavy and large in her house. They fit in really well.

This is the wall in her bedroom and I just loved the variety of canvases paired with the large sized letters.

The best part was that she turned the Master bedroom and bath into her studio. What a genius!

Kim Hyer Studio Space
Kim Hyer Studio Space

She really did a good job thinking outside of the box. The room was large and she put tables all around the room with her supplies on them.

 

Kim Hyer Studio Space
Kim Hyer Studio Space

She also put decorations and things to inpire her on the walls. Don’t you love the giant glassses?

I really didn’t have much time to talk to her about her studio as we had other family business to discuss.

I really would like to have known more about the space and how she created the organization, but another time.

I look forward to seeing what comes next.

More Star Sampler Blocks

I think we are on week 12 of our Star Sampler project. We are still making 8″ blocks. These are from the week of April 15. I am now behind again, because I was able to sew over the weekend. I chose these blocks:

  • Basic Star
  • Whale’s Tail (Once Again Around the Block, pg.126)
  • Centennial (Around the Block Again, pg.40)
  • 2142 Mosaic #19 (R1, C5)
Whale's Tail
Whale’s Tail

Whale’s Tail: There are a number of the blocks with chevrons making up the legs. I kind of wonder about the name of this blocks.

Since we are nearing the end of the pieced larger blocks, I am trying to make sure that all the fabrics I have used in other blocks have been used at least 3 times, so that there is some balance in terms of the colors and fabrics. If you want to read more about balance, Sandy and I did an episode in the design series and we talked about it.

Centennial
Centennial

Centennial: I really have to wonder why this block was named Centennial. I looked up the block on the web, because I don’t have my Jinny Beyer book handy. I found some interesting settings for this block.

2142 Mosaic #19
2142 Mosaic #19

2142 Mosaic #19: I should look up this block in the Jinny Beyer book, because it is such a weird name. Were there 18 other versions of this block?

I have also done similar blocks. I paid attention to the fabric placement and, as you can see, fussy cut the fabric for the center.

I think all four blocks came out nicely and look good together.

I have now made 37 4″ blocks. I am almost half way finished with them. TFQ is going on vacation and my goal is to make them all during the first two weeks of May so they are ready when she comes to visit.

 

Week of 4/15 Stars
Week of 4/15 Stars

 

 

 

4" Sawtooth Stars
4″ Sawtooth Stars

The Petrillo Bag Along Week 3

This week we are working on the sewing. Before  we can get to sewing the bag together, there is still some prep to do. Please note that this is not a tutorial on how to make this bag. I am just recording my experience and noting things I had trouble with. If you want to make the bag (and I think you should), buy the pattern and read the opening post. Keep in mind that I don’t learn well by reading directions, so I have more trouble than most when reading patterns. My trouble is no reflection on Sara’s pattern directions.

Prep

I was so relieved to finish the cutting. What a lot of work that was! Anyway, I was so relieved that I got right down to the business of putting the bag together. Since adding the magnetic snaps is one of the first steps, I immediately realized that that I had bought the wrong ones. I didn’t buy the sew-in snaps. I bought the ones with the arms you have to bend. This is absolutely NOT Sara’s fault. Yes, I did read the instructions for purchasing supplies, but I didn’t know there was such a thing as sew-in magnetic snaps and simply didn’t see those two words on supply list. UGH! A delay!

I ordered them immediately from Tantalizing Stitches’ Etsy Shop, which is the vendor Sara recommneds. I received the sew-in snaps in about 2 days. I put them in relatively quickly using a small zigzag. The sew-in snap was covered with a clear plastic square and I had to sew over the plastic, which was odd. My machine did it, but I had to yank on the piece a bit to get it started since I was sewing the plastic covered snap to the Soft & Stable (=very thick!). I went around twice just to make sure it would stay in place. The hard part was keeping the snap straight. It didn’t end up completely straight, but since the important part is the circle, I figured it didn’t matter as long as it was in the middle. These are sewed to the Soft and Stable so there is no distortion of the fabric.

I know I could have used the magnetic snaps that you bend, which I think Pam did, but I did like the sew in snaps: no cutting of the fabric.

A lot of the prep was preparing to sew the whole bag together and some of the prep involved some top stitching and sewing parts together.

Straps

I was pleased to see the way Sara creates the straps. None of that turning tiny strips inside out nonsense. She creates them using the folding method that I like. Hooray!

Sewing

Flap with Accent
Flap with Accent

I decided not to do the gathered flap after having some trouble with the gathers. I can’t remember whether I have done gathers before. This was not unexpected as I was a little unsure of the gathers from the beginning. They do add some interest to the bag, but I kept wondering if they would catch on something as I navigate my way through the public transportation systems I frequent. Sara suggested just cutting out a flat piece of fabric using the Flap pattern piece, which is what I did. I also liked that I was able to highlight one of the motifs of the fabric

I was a little confused by the directions in Step #14, covering the flap, but I decided Sara meant topstitching and went with that. I was able to apply the accent with no problems, though, as usual, turning under a small seam allowance, like you would do for applique’ was a pain. I think you could do a regular quilt binding around this piece, if you didn’t mind a little bit of dimension.

PICT3421sm Tutinella suggests topstitching the bottom, which I thought was a great idea.

I used my clear applique’ foot and just measured using the inside of the right hand side of the foot, which gives me a line of stitching about 1/8″ away from the bottom of the bag.

One thing about all the prep is that you don’t have to stop to do prep. Once the prep is done, the bag starts to go together very quickly.

Petrillo Bag
Petrillo Bag

I was really surprised at how well the Soft & Stable acted with my machine. I thought I would have to fight with the machine, because of the layers (fabric + Soft & Stable, occasionally 4 additional layers with the straps).

The first round of stitching was really satisfying because of the quick way the bag started to look like something. Yes, the above photo shows it being flat, but it still starts to look like a bag.

Finished Outside of bag
Finished Outside of bag

The directions say to draw a line 4 3/4″ from the top of the front of the bag. The purpose is to show you where to stop sewing the straps. You need to stop sewing, because the flap flap slides underneath the straps to keep it closed.

I missed that part of the directions and sewed the straps to the bag all the way around. when I realized what I had done, I knew I had to rip. Bleah. It is very hard to rip through all of those layers. I also had made the little squares with Xes through them at the top of the bag which made the ripping even more arduous.

I did it, though, and after an hour and a half I had the bag back to where I should have been.

Other relevant posts:

BAMQG Meeting Notes – April

I know it has been a week or so since the meeting, but I have had a couple of crazy weeks. At this moment, I am enjoying the benefits of a laptop by getting this post done while out of town.

We were back at our old location this time, which was a relief. I enjoyed the location of the last meeting. I thought it was a beautiful space, but felt like I was coming home this time. Everyone else was more relaxed and happy at this meeting, as well, for some reason. Or so it seemed.

BAMQG Banner

Bay Area Modern Banner
Bay Area Modern Banner

Last summer, the Modern Quilt Guild had a block challenge where they were making blocks for charity and for a banner that would be displayed at various events (I guess. Frankly, I don’t remember the details, but I wrote about it). At the same time the BAMQG leadership asked for blocks in the guild’s colors. Kelly has been working diligently on the banner and she revealed what she had so far. She has a bit more quilting to go, but the idea is to display it at the SCVQA show, which is this coming weekend.

Show & Tell

Everything that was shown was great. There wasn’t a lot, though. I showed the A-B-C Challenge. Jennifer has already posted the photos, so here is a slideshow from Flickr:

Color Group

Color Group
Color Group

One of the funnest parts of the meeting was the color group meeting. My group had Patti, Kelly, Suzi, Chris and Jennifer. This time Joan and Kathleen joined us, so our group is quite large and also enthusiastic.

Color Group colors
Color Group colors

At the last meeting, we met with our group and selected a group of colors from items that people brought. Our colors (see right) are purple, pink and chartreuse. This time we were to bring fabric scraps in these colors (I forgot) and decide what project we wanted to do. Others forgot, too, so we decided we would each make 2-8″ finished blocks from our own fabrics and bring them to the next meeting. One of the members, Jennifer, brought a large piece of a green wheel print and we will all use a piece of that in each of our blocks to help with continuity.We will create a charity quilt out of the resulting blocks.

Color Group Fabric
Color Group Fabric

I suppose the blocks have to be ‘modern’. Since I am in the groove of Sawtooth Stars, I may just make some Sawtooth Stars while work on the Star Sampler. I don’t know yet. The fabric is really stiff and I need to wash it before I do anything with it. I don’t think I have any of the fabric in my own fabric closet.

Another group is doing a round robin. Another group is making zipper pouches to exchange. It is an interesting exercise.

Destash Party

Destash Party
Destash Party
Destash Party
Destash Party
Destash Party
Destash Party
Destash Party
Destash Party

I didn’t bring anything to get rid of, but there was no shortage of stuff. I helped get everything out of bags and sort of organized before the contributors were let loose. “Organized” is a lot more generous a term than what we really did. We emptied the bags by dumping them on a big table in a giant mound. I couldn’t really believe how much stuff there was.

I was all for organizing things neatly, but was soundly vetoed. We did put all the patterns together, all the notions together, etc.

They made short work of most of the good stuff and the rest went to charity.

Someone brought 3 spools of Aurifil thread. I was tempted to slip one into my pocket before the frenzy started, but restrained myself.

There were patterns and tons and tons of fabric.  Cynthia brought a box she had packed a year ago to send to a friend’s daughter in Japan. The cost turned out to be prohibitive, so she just had the box sitting on a shelf. She brought it sealed and everything. Jennifer A took a chance and got the premium fabric, charm packs and fat quarter bundles. I looked through it and it was  a great haul.

San Mateo County Fair

Rhonda brought the applications for the fair for our group entry for the A-B-C Challenge. She was very organized, which was great. I helped her while she was a destashing/restashing by hunting down some of the members and getting their entry fee. I have to get my other entries in as well. I also have to finish the sleeve.

Various & Sundry 2013 #4

I am pretty excited that we have 19 people following via email! Thanks, email readers.

Are you a friend on Facebook?

Color and Projects

Wanda, over at the Exuberant Color blog, put up her March finishes at the end of March. One that I loved was her Japanese X quilt. As you remember, I have one quarter of one of those blocks in my A-B-C Challenge quilt. I saw a pillow that Kathleen made (talked more about this back in August 2012) and do want to make a larger piece with this pattern. Wanda’s version is GREAT. It truly has  exuberant color.

Take a look at the results of the March-a-Long that Darla, the Scientific Quilter organized. Lots of people participated and I think a lot of people made progress on their projects. Thanks to Darla for spearheading this effort and for thinking up a clever name.

Color confidence and Kaffe Fassett article.

Media

The City Quilter had to deal a change to the program in the PBS schedule: Visit https://www.dropbox.com/s/c1b08ucuf3ox145/CityQuilter-New-York-Originals.mov on your computer. This is one part of one episode of the excellent New York Originals public television series.

An excellent blog pointed me to this interesting video about Nancy Page, go here: http://vimeo.com/28386634. I promised to keep her secret blog secret, so I can’t tell you where I got the tip, but go look at the video, if you have any interest in 1930s quilts or just not making dinner, not bathing children or not going to the grocery store. You are busy watching a QUILT video for heaven’s sake! 😉

CraftyGardenMom talks about quilt shops in recent blog post and follows up with more information about more quilts in a future podcast (as of this writing).

Supplies, Fabric and Notions

Quilt Bear April Club
Quilt Bear April Club

The Quilt Bear Aurifil Club sent me this variegated coral and yellow spools this month. I have them both already, but still enjoyed the little treat. Aren’t they nicely tied?

Rhonda brought an iron caddy that she made with the Madrona Road fabrics to the last meeting. I really liked the shape and thought it would be a good purse shape, or purse pattern. I was too lazy to try and find as I probably won’t make it. Today I was noodling around the BAMQG forum and Amanda posted a link to the site where a person (AHEM) could buy the pattern. It is by Kaye Wood and you can see the shape. The examples are not as cute as Rhonda’s caddy.

As you know, I bought some Soft & Stable from ByAnnies.com to make the Petrillo Bag. I was tidying up my workroom the other day and looked at the brochure that came with the Soft & Stable. In it, the writer of the materials details the variety of zippers they company has. When I went to buy the zipper for the Petrillo Bag, I wanted pink to make the inside, but all they had was a boring baby pink, so I ended up with a boring cream color. This brochure shows fabulous colors like turquoise, eggplant and seagrass. Sadly, they didn’t have the right length, but at least I know I can get cool zippers if I need one in a 24″ length. Now I just need to find some cool 9″ zippers. Well, maybe one additional 9″ zipper.

Creative Prompt #204: Laughing

Post the direct URL (link) where your drawing, doodle, artwork is posted (e.g. your blog, Flickr) in the comments area of this post. I would really like to keep all the artwork together and provide a way for others to see your work and/or your blog.

We are also talking about this on Twitter. Use the hashtag #CPP

The Creative Prompt Project, also, has a Flickr group, which you can join to  post your responses. I created this spot so those of you without blogs and websites would have a place to post your responses.

Laughing Yoga

Laughing Squid

Laughing Gull

Laughing Brook

The Laughing Owl Press

 

Definition:

Laughing is an involuntary reaction to certain external or internal stimuli. Laughter can arise from such activities as being tickled,[1] or from humorous stories or thoughts.[2] Most commonly, it is considered a visual expression of a number of positive emotional states, such as joy, mirth, happiness, relief, etc. On some occasions, however, it may be caused by contrary emotional states such as embarrassment, apology, or confusion (“nervous laughter)” or courtesy laugh. Factors such as age, gender, education, language, and culture are determinant factors[3] as to whether a person will experience laughter in a given situation

Laughter is a part of human behavior regulated by the brain, helping humans clarify their intentions in social interaction and providing an emotional context to conversations. Laughter is used as a signal for being part of a group — it signals acceptance and positive interactions with others. Laughter is sometimes seen as contagious, and the laughter of one person can itself provoke laughter from others as a positive feedback.[4] This may account in part for the popularity of laugh tracks in situation comedy television shows.

The study of humor and laughter, and its psychological and physiological effects on the human body, is called gelotology.

Laughing Coyote Project | Where human nature meets mother nature.

I would put belly laughing at the top of my highlights list. They always say that laughter is the best medicine. Carol Vorderman

Laughing Sal at the Musee’ Mechanique in San Francisco

Who’s laughing now?

You don’t stop laughing because you grow old. You grow old because you stop laughing.
Michael Pritchard

Cat Beds Again

As you saw in a previous post, I am back on the Cat Bed wagon. Some people had some good questions, so I thought I would gather up the information and put it in one place, to the best of my ability.

Schnibbles
Schnibbles

Kati asked “How large are the scraps you’re stuffing? They look pretty big to me.” These are the size that I put in the cat beds.  the little triangles are the ears off 2.5″ and smaller half square triangles, so you can get an idea of how big the shards are. I might be a bit crazy, but I really only throw away tiny schnibbles that really can’t be used at all.  For the longest time I worried about tossing even these tiny shards away. They seemed like they could be used for something. I just didn’t know what. As I read some Victorian novels and ‘rag & bone’ men were mentioned, I kept trying to figure out what could be done with these shreds of fabric. Amanda saved me when she asked for these cat beds.

Cat Bed March 2013
Cat Bed March 2013

One reader said “It’s easy until I come to the stuffing the tube…do you have any secrets to make it easier than having to put my arm into the tube up to my elbow to push the stuffing around? I am going to have to redo the second one because it is too stuffed/firm.” My answer was “I just dump it in and then once it is as full as I want it (about 3/4s full) I just kind of mush it around until it is ok. I think the cat will knead it to the cat’s liking, so I don’t worry too much about it except not making it too firm.” Amanda confirmed when she said “For the scrap pieces, I try to use nothing larger than an approximately 3×3? square. If it is too big a scrap, then they are hard to dry thoroughly in the dryer. You can also you the strippy castoff pieces that are thin but long – those are okay and don’t necessarily need to be cut down as long as they are thin. I think the best stuffing to use is leftover batting scraps – they dry really well, and make the bed nice and soft. But of course, cotton fabric pieces are always good too.

For the issue about the tube – just cut it shorter! When you are sewing the “side” part of the bed onto the base, if it overlaps more than 5 inches, just cut the extra off. You don’t want to have a big overlap because this does make it a pain in the booty to stuff.”

For the short version of the Simplified Cat Bed Tutorial, I am posting it again.

26 Projects List – April Update

17 Projects in Process! That is well under the 26 that I started with. Granted, some of the older projects are still lingering, but I really feel like I have made progress and am not deprived from starting new projects.

Finished 2013 Projects:

  1. Corner Store: Finished on 1/1/2013 YAY!
  2. The Garden. Finished on 1/5/2013 YAY!
  3. Stepping Stones: Finished on 2/14/2013 YAY!
  4. Fabric of the Year 2011: Finished on 2/27/2013 YAY
  5. Calm: Finished on 3/14/2013 YAY!
  6. A-B-C Challenge: Finished on 3/31/2013

Still WIPs

  1. Aqua-Red SamplerFrances  continues to work diligently and the foundation piecing tutorial is posted. We struggled with the class on foundation piecing as the concept is so backwards. I don’t think this particular lesson is over yet, so I am not yet working on what is next.
  2. The Tarts Come to Tea: I still haven’t worked on this since April 2011. I was mulling over some substandard stitching the I should rip out, which would be a great couch project.
  3. Pointillist Palette #4: Fourth is a series of 6 quilts; needs tiny square patches sewn together, which would be great leaders and enders, if I didn’t have about 1,000 4″ Sawtooth Stars to make.
  4. See: needs satin stitching. Small, also a possibility for finishing. I really have the feeling I came so close to working on this project this month.
  5. Self Portrait: started in 2006 at a class at Quilting Adventures in Richmond, Virginia. I like the piece, but don’t know where to go from where I am. Mouth? Hair? The attitude I need to have is that I can’t ruin it; there is always more fabric.
  6. Under the Sea: class project; like the design, but not the colors much.
  7. Flower Sugar Hexagon: I thought about sewing more hexagons together. Although not difficult, sewing Y seams is a bit of a chore, so I get tired of doing it after awhile. I could, perhaps, use leaders and enders to get this piece moving? I could also sew  1-2 together and then attach them to the larger piece.
  8. Young Man’s t-shirt quilt: have cut up the t-shirts and am still in the process of applying fusible, though I really hven’t worked on this in awhile.
  9. New: FOTY 2012: top, finished, though I can’t decide if I need a quilting border. Back done, ready for quilting.

I still have a few more WIPs than I do finished projects. Again, I have made progress on clearing out old projects and I am pleased.

Ready for Quilting

  1. Original Bullseye: At the quilter
  2. New: Wonky 9 Patch: needs basting, quilting and binding. Not on original list
  3. *New: Super Secret Project #2: Quilted; binding being applied. Not on original list
  4. *New: Super Secret Project: Quilted; binding being applied. ;-) Not on original list
  5. Infinity blocks: blocks sewn together into a quilt top, borders on. Back and binding made; ready to be quilted.
  6. *New: Sparkle Pink – At the quilter.
  7. *New: Swoon – At the quilter.
  8. Spiderweb: Top is together, binding is made. This is at the quilter.

Please note that even if you combine the two lists above, I do not have 26 projects on this list anymore. That is something, IMO.

In the Finishing Process

Abandoned

Nothing so far for 2013

Hunting and Gathering

  • Spin Wheel: really not started, but supplies gathered. Cutting fabrics as I go. TFQ does not consider this a UFO and made some good points to that end, which is why I have moved it to the Hunting and Gathering section. She says, and I have to agree, that quilts are not ‘projects’ until the sewing starts. OK. I’ll go with that.
  • Windmill quilt: Still hunting and gathering.
  • Stepping Stones #2 using Bonnie & Camille fabrics Bliss, Ruby, Vintage Modern: made two test blocks, but still in the thinking stage while I decide on the background colors. I want the contrast to be good.

As I mentioned, I am still trying to think of a new focus for this list for 2013. I feel that I made progress on the most ancient and difficult projects and I want to honor that, but there are still some ancient projects that I am finally thinking I might need to abandon.

Last update for the 26 Projects List

*New – Project started after I started working on the 26 Projects list