Hunter’s Star

Cathy's Hunter's Star
Cathy’s Hunter’s Star

SIL made a Hunter’s Star. She did a really great job and it came out gorgeous. She used her Accuquilt Go! cutter to cut the pieces and said the piecing went really well. She used Pointillist Palette fabrics.

I really liked the way she combined the fabrics and did kind of gradated placement of the colors.

This is the first quilt she has made since moving back home.

Design Inspiration

Quilt Design Inspiration
Quilt Design Inspiration

I was out walking the other day and saw the design in the picture. It caught my eye as a possible quilt design I imagine that this design would be done in layers. I was thinking of taking a charm pack and making the bottom layer. Perhaps a couple of charm packs or charm packs with additional layers.

Either I would cut the bottom and sew in the black part or make the two parts separately and applique’ the black part on top. I wouldn’t necessarily make the top layer in black. The final color would depend on the charm pack I chose. I think a solid would probably be good.

This was a good reminder for me that design inspiration can be anywhere.

Color Palette Friday

Greens
Greens

I can remember riding along with my parents in the car on some trip or other looking out the car window at the variety of colors on the hills, as we traveled through forests and in the reflections of lakes. I often think that some scene appears, for example, green, but when closely examined is really a variety of greens.

Greens Palette
Greens Palette

I saw this patch of greens (in the salad sense, since I don’t know exactly what kind of greens they are) and I was very interested in what came up in the Palette Builder.

When I look with my eyes, I see a lot of light purple or lavender. I know others would see different colors. The technology is certainly not perfect and limited to the colors available in fabric. I love playing around with it.

Sharing Julie’s Thunder

Friend Julie and I went to drop off a quilt at Colleen’s last week. Thursday? Friday? One of those days. 

Julie's Tumbler
Julie’s Tumbler

It wasn’t my quilt, but I do feel some ownership as I cut a lot of patches for the top in exchange for some Eye Spy patches.

I was pretty excited to see the piece. I really find scrappy quilts to be much more interesting, often, than super matchy-matchy quilts. It is pretty much a charm quilt as well. 


Colleen figured out that the top has over 1700 patches. Isn’t that amazing?

Cargo Duffle Homework

Cargo Duffel homework
Cargo Duffel homework

I am taking a workshop to make the Noodlehead Cargo Duffel in a few weeks. The class isn’t just making the duffel, but we are making it with some hacks that Jaime figured out.

I spent a few hours the day after the BAMQG meeting familiarizing myself with the pattern and beginning to cut the pieces. There are A LOT of pieces in this pattern. Last Saturday and Sunday, I spent time cutting the rest of the pieces. 

I now have to do the rest of the prep. This involves buying a couple of zipper and sewing bits and pieces together. There is homework because this is a serious bag and it can’t all be done in one day.

I am happy to do the prep even thought I was confused at the beginning. I think it makes for a better start for me once I am in the class.

I actually contemplated cutting out another whole bag so I could make two at once. I am trying to restrain myself.   😉
 

Little Girl Toys

Little Red Riding Hood
Little Red Riding Hood

The other day Julie and I went to The Granary and saw a doll made from a panel. Unfortunately, they didn’t have anymore of the panels, so we went on our merry way with our day.

A few days later, I was at Always Quilting and I saw the panel plus one other. I was kind of thrilled to see them. I am not exactly sure why, but I have been wanting to make dolls/doll clothes on and off for quite a while.

Coral: Queen of the Sea
Coral: Queen of the Sea

The one we saw made was a mermaid, which was very cute. I decided to buy them and make them for my little niece.

The panels have a lot of pieces including a quilt for each one. I plan to make the dolls and the fin for the mermaid as well as the skirt for the Red. Then I will see what happens.

Perhaps this will quench my thirst for making dolls.

Little Red Riding Hood detail
Little Red Riding Hood detail
Coral: Queen of the Sea detail
Coral: Queen of the Sea detail

Peacock Again

Peacock - mid July 2016
Peacock – mid July 2016

The Peacock has been on the design wall and I am not as excited as I was. I thought that it would be quite exciting, but I am not excited now. I am trying not to take down all the blocks and put it away, though I do think that is a very real possibility.

Still I am happy with the basic layout. I think the blocks need some space between them, but I don’t think I have it in me to cut up strips of fabric to put between each block.

Testing squares
Testing squares

I thought that perhaps I would add a Peaky to each block and make them in squares. That means I could put the blocks together with a little space between them. I put a piece of a solid behind a couple of the blocks to see what it looked like. It is hard to see what the whole piece would look like, but even still I don’t really like the look.

I think I’ll just sew the piece together, basically as shown, and be done with it.

BAMQG Orlando Pulse Quilts

The BAMQG meeting was last Saturday. Mike and Jaime brought the Pulse tops we all worked, and they sewed together, on at the last meeting. I was thrilled to see them. Both Jaime and Mike are very talented quiltmakers and they did a great job, quickly, with blocks contributed by members.

BAMQG Pulse Quilt by Jaime
BAMQG Pulse Quilt by Jaime

Jaime created a simple setting with a bit of sashing between the blocks. The sashing sets off the colors and fabrics of the blocks, which was a great idea. It is also looks very bright. A couple of my blocks are towards the bottom. Angela is going to quilt this quilt.

BAMQG Pulse Quilt by Mike
BAMQG Pulse Quilt by Mike

Mike infused some additional meaning into his design, which made me tear up. He left some blank spaces to remind us of those killed in the shooting. Great idea, but sad he had to think of it. Mike has a longarm and will quilt his quilt and send it off. I think a couple of my blocks made it into this quilt as well.

Pulse Quilt Wallhanging by Mike
Pulse Quilt Wallhanging by Mike

Finally, Mike made a quilt for himself and his partner. This commemorates the losses, but also the contribution of the first responders. I really appreciate Mike remembering them. I am not sure I think beyond them just going in and doing their job, but I can’t believe they are not affected.

The Orlando Modern Quilt Guild is posting blocks and quilts they have received. There are a great variety of really interesting designs. The guild also posted a lot of information about the efforts in the minutes of their July meeting. I was pleased to hear they already have 48 finished quilts and 600 blocks. their process for distributing received blocks is genius. The information also gives readers an idea of how you can still help.

Kathy M, quilt writer for ChicagoNow, writes about and shows the process of making her Pulse Quilt. I love the design.

Color Play Friday

House Beautiful Color
House Beautiful Color

I saw this color study in my most recent issue of House Beautiful. One reason I like that magazine is the color. They report on a lot of great color combinations in interior design. I follow them on Instagram so I can get a quick dose of color when I need it.

They often have very energetic color combinations similar to Anna Maria Horner, Jennifer Paganelli and some Amy Butler, but in furniture, wallpaper and dishes. I really love the over the top combinations and would do soemthing similar in my vacation house, if I had a vacation house, 😉 and were starting from scratch with decorating.

Kona Color of the Year 2016
Kona Color of the Year 2016

This caught my eye because of QuiltCon. Remember Highlight? The Robert Kaufman Color of the Year? I don’t think the values are quite the same, but the sentiment is definitely the same!

I am really intrigued with the circumstance that brings these two companies to the same color. Actually, there are more companies and House Beautiful saw the similarities and brought them together. I am sure somehow there is some overlap. Furnishings companies need fabric, right? Still I am intrigued by why this particular color?

I have heard many people profess to dislike yellow, even easy to use sunshiney and golden yellows. This neon would be difficult to use if it weren’t the main color in a quilt. The quilts made for the challenge and displayed at the QuiltCon booth were great. (QuiltingMod displayed some in her blog post about Quilt Market). Still, I like yellow in a quilt as it helps the eye move around the surface.

What are your theories about highlight cropping up?

More Sew Together Bags?

Sew Together Bag in my lap
Sew Together Bag in my lap

I have Sew Together bags on the mind. I don’t know why, but I want to make more.  They are somewhat frustrating, the directions are vague, they take a bunch of zippers and all sorts of special gymnastics to make.

Purple Chair Sew Together Bag - zipper tabs
Purple Chair Sew Together Bag – zipper tabs

Still, they are pretty. I see mine, which is one of the most useful bags I have made, and I want to make more. I use mine all the time. It has exactly what I need for EPP as well as basic hand sewing, so I can grab it and go. I might want one for every outfit. 😉 I keep looking around and at people critically and wondering if I should make that person a Sew Together Bag.

One thing I like about the one I made for myself is the fabrics. I really chose well. I might choose something different for the outside of mine, but I think it is great and I absolutely LOVE the fabrics on the inside. I am so glad I chose fabrics that I thought more of than “this will be fine”

TFQ Sew Together Bag - open
TFQ Sew Together Bag – open

I know that not everyone is as smitten with these bags as I seem to be. I think it is more about the making of them than anything else. They are very satisfying to make (as long as you use the Quilt Barn sew-a-long tutorial in conjunction with the directions), and, as I said, useful. I love making quilts, but there is only so much usefulness you can get when you have too many wall hangings and not enough walls.

Watercolor Box Sew Together Bag
Watercolor Box Sew Together Bag

Thanksgiving Napkins Progress

Two leaf napkins
Two leaf napkins

A few weeks ago I wrote about Thanksgiving napkins that SIL and I** were in the process of making. We have finished some of them.

There is some trial and error in the process, but SIL is working hard to minimize the loss of any napkins. So far so good.

Progress is good.

 

The process is

  • wash napkins
  • press and starch napkins
  • pick embroidery designs
  • figure out thread colors
  • test embroidery
  • embroider on napkins
  • rip off excess embroidery
  • wash
  • iron
  • Repeat
Warm leaf napkins
Warm leaf napkins

I did the washing and ironing. As I do with all of my fabric, I washed these napkins in hot water. Hot water is the worst than can be done to them, I think, in terms of washing. I ironed them with Mary Ellen’s Best Press, mostly. I used some Flatter, but I really don’t like the smell of the one I bought.

SIL had a few embroidery designs in her library that were suitable. I went looking at a couple of sites she suggested and bought a few. We plan to reuse the designs. I don’t want or need 30 different designs. using different threads and stitching them out on different colored napkins makes the designs different enough.

We do all the napkins we are doing to do with one design before we switch to the next design.

We had to simplify some of the thread choices, because SIL has a machine that can accommodate 6 thread colors. It is easier not to have to deal with thread changes in the middle of stitching out a design. I kind of wish she had bought the 10 needle machine, but I wasn’t laying out the cash. 😉 Also, I wouldn’t be doing this at all if she hadn’t brought her machine to live around the corner from me. I had planned to make napkins the normal way I make them, which is odious at the best of times. It would have been a ton of work as well as a ton of money for Thanksgiving appropriate fabric. If my math is right (1/2 yard of fabric for each napkin), I would have needed 15 yards of fabric. I love buying fabric, but this is much easier and much more cost effective.

More leaves
More leaves

SIL had some tension issues at the beginning. After much fiddling, she resolved them, but thinks the machine may need a spa day.

So far, we have about 6 done. Fortunately, once the machine is set up, it stitches the designs out without someone standing over it pressing a foot pedal. It is still a lot of work and I am trying to help as much as I can.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

**Nota bene: Most of my part is making color choices and buying stuff. I also wash and iron the napkins as needed. She is operating her massive embroidery machine.

2016 Various & Sundry #9

Media & Events

I heard about Flow magazine from Deanna Raybourn. It is Dutch and can be found at Barnes & Noble. Deanna writes “Imported from the Netherlands, it bills itself as a periodical for paper lovers, but it is so much more! Each issue is jam-packed with articles on creativity, activities, interviews, graphics, and freebies.” I am going to take a look at an issue when I go past the Barnes & Noble tomorrow.

I watched the TQS Show with March Lipinski that came out on 6/20/2016. In it he talked about the Quilts of Valor. I LOVE the pattern he designed. Of course, I imagine it in turquoise and pinky-red.

Apparently there is a Bay Area shop hop in November. It took Alex Veronelli from Italy to let me know. Where is the Quiltmaker’s News Network?

Quilter’s Newsletter Magazine is shutting down.

The San Jose Museum of Quilts & Textiles is having a fundraiser called Tying the Knot on August 27, 2016, from 6:00 to 10:00 p.m. Their site has more information about this event and all of their programs.

Tips, Tricks & Tutorials

I know some of you are sewing garments with some of the new knits from our favorite designers. Sarai of Colette Patterns has a guide to finishing knits.

I’ll be sewing the Cargo Duffel 2 by Noodlehead in an upcoming class. Someone replied to my comment questioning zipper lengths that I could “easily shorten a zipper”. The person who made the comment is really nice and means well, so I refrained from making a snarky comeback, but I have to say that the Amy Butler Sweet Harmony pattern I made that asked me to shorten a zipper rather than buying the correct size still stings. Instead of the snarky comment I looked up tutorials. One I found was perfectly adequate, but had no photos, so I had very little idea what they were talking about past the first step. I avoided the videos except as a last resort and finally found the Indie Sews tutorial, which I think I can actually use.

Jackie has a money saving tip to extend the life of a worn out cutting mat.

Katie has a new video tutorial on mitered bindings with no ruler.

Products, Tools, Fabric & Supplies

I saw an article on thread, which mentions EPP in a significant way. It is a little biased towards Superior thread, but we do need a little perspective and the Superior threads I have tried have been a pleasure to use.

Friend Julie wrote a review of Steady Betty Hands on her blog. I bought these also, have used them and find that the review is accurate. My favorite part about Steady Betty Hands is that I can tie off threads, change needles and bobbins without taking them off.

I was just thinking about Pink Chalk Fabric the other day and wondering if the company was dead. I received an email with an update. The shop is finally reopening, but with a new name: ilovefabric.com. I am not sure why they are making the change since Pink Chalk had such a good reputation. My understanding was the sale was for the social media aspects of the company, but who knows. I am sure there is a reason. Their mailing address is 5653 Stoneridge Dr. Suite 109 Pleasanton, California 94588 USA and they can be reached by telephone at: (925) 399-6550

Patterns and Projects

I have been wanting to make tea cozies- a couple for myself and others as gifts. I saw a tutorial on TQS, which might just spur me on.

Garnet Hill Door Mat Inspiration
Garnet Hill Door Mat Inspiration

Friend Julie has gotten me into collecting patterns for the Row by Row Experience 2016. I make no promises about making quilts or rows, but it is kind of fun to see the patterns. Also, as a side benefit, the list of shops is awesome! Start at the state page to find participating shops in your area. You can all the FAQs, too. I saw a doormat in the Garnet Hill sale catalog that would be a great row. I am sorely tempted to make a pattern for it. What does that mean? I have to make it, which might mean further rows. That means another project. I am sorely tempted.

We are making the Cargo Duffel in a workshop at my guild. It looks like the pattern on the Kaufman site got an update.

Amy Ellis has a new line of fabric and a new pattern. The colors aren’t really bright enough for me, but I like the designs. Kelly will like the large prints!

Bling

Do you remember collecting fabric patches when you went places? They were inexpensive souvenirs. I have a small basket of them and still have illusions of making a quilt and incorporating the patches into it. In terms of collecting, that ship has sailed, I think. Boy Scouts still get patches, but they aren’t very prevalent in souvenir shops anymore. Still, I was pleased to see some very clever sewing and quilting related patches on Instagram. SIL has made specialty patches for her Scout trip over the years and I think these would be great gifts for guild officers.

Design Wall Monday – mid-July

It has been almost a month since I did a Design Wall post. The wall seems like a storage facility for pieces and parts lately. I am putting patches, bits of fabric, parts of blocks and hunting / gathering pieces up to get them out of the way more than work on them. Space feels at a premium in my workroom right at the moment.

Design Wall mid-July
Design Wall mid-July
  1. Flying Geese. I am making some sets of them again. I don’t think I need anymore for the design I am contemplating, but I have a stack of squares already cut and so I might as well make them.

2. I am still collecting red donation blocks. The two set apart are the latest.

3. FOTY 2016 latest squares. You can see some of the Food Quilt #3 fabrics showing up.

4. Donation squares. I seem to have mislaid the box, so I have been putting them on the design wall until it turns up, which it will undoubtedly do. This is always why there are no new donation blocks. No fabric = no blocks.

5. Partial seam block for my Aqua-Red Sampler. Tutorial coming soon.

6. Turquoise donation block. I am thinking of making a bunch of these next for another donation top.

7. Stepping Stones block. This is my sample. Yesterday I made some progress in my head about making the parts for the rest of the blocks I intend to make.

8. Lobster Placemat. I still need to do some stitching.

9. Pieces and parts for a Stepping Stones block.

10. Start of another donation block. I really need to find that bin!

11. Four patch for a blue donation block.

What’s on your design wall?

 

 

I am linking up with Judy Laquidara at the Patchwork Times.

July 2016 26 Projects List

I haven’t reviewed this list since April! I suppose I have too much other content to report on.

Finished 2016 Quilt Projects

Finished 2016 non-Quilt Projects

In Process
The  ‘In Process’ is used to denote projects on which I am actively working or pretending to stitch. I try not to put away projects, because that will ensure I never work on them.

Still WIPs
I still have WIPs. Who doesn’t, after all? A project in the ‘UFO’ category means I am stalled. A nicer way of saying UFO is a WIP. The list is a lot shorter and the projects are newer, for the most part.

  1. Aqua-Red Sampler – I made progress on the partial seaming tutorial and need to sit down to finish it.
  2. The Tarts Come to Tea: I still haven’t worked on this since April 2011, though, it is in a prominent location so I have easy access. I was thinking about how this was veering in the direction of being one of my ‘masterpieces,’ but now that it has languished for so long it just looks old and dated. :(
  3. Pointillist Palette #4: Fourth is a series of 6 quilts; needs tiny square patches sewn together. I still haven’t worked on this project either, but I do think about it.
  4. Self Portrait: started in 2006 at a class at Quilting Adventures in Richmond, Virginia. My career counselor breathed new life into this project for me. She asked a simple question and the end result was inspiration for this piece, but I kind of lost steam again after printing images on paper to try out different designs. Lately, I have stopped feeling like I need to finish this piece. I am not ready to give up on it yet. I think it really needs major surgery.
  5. Under the Sea: class project; like the design, but not the colors. Still a possibility for abandonment. Just can’t seem to pull the trigger.
  6. Serendipity Lady Quilt

Ready for Quilting
Wow! Everything on this list is new, as in it was never on the original 26 Projects list.

  • 2 Thanksgiving tablerunners
  • Thanksgiving tablemat

In Quilting Process

Binding

Hunting and Gathering

  • Blue Gradation Quilt: cutting 2.5?x 4.5? blue rectangles
  • Blue Lemonade: cutting blue, green, purple 2? squares
  • Pink Gradation Quilt: cutting 2.5?x 4.5? pink rectangles
  • Spin Wheel: really not started, but supplies gathered. I probably have enough fabrics and just need to decide to start.
  • Windmill quilt: Still hunting and gathering. I am supposed to be cutting a variety of greys for the background. The problem is that I mislaid the rotary template. Sigh. I may be able to cut the greys on a Sizzix.

Other

 

 

What’s on your list?