Category: 2015

Box Full of Letters All the Blocks

I haven’t had a lot of time to sew recently. I was determined and pleased to carve out some time out on Sunday. I was resolved to accomplish something. Thus, I needed the most bang for my buck. I looked around and thought of the Box Full of Letters project.

Perfect.

I got to it and finished the rest of the Box Full of Letters blocks. I know I intended them to be leaders and enders, but bang for buck was foremost in my mind. As an added bonus, it was just the right project, because I didn’t have to do a lot of math or thinking.

the last 15
the last 15

There were about 15 left to sew and I did them chain piecing style. Three seams per blocks makes quick work. I only had to rip one out.

I tried to arrange them to take the photo so all of the blocks made from dot fabrics were separated. Therw ere a lot of dot fabrics, so it was pretty tough. It was not a horrendous hardship, however, I have to admit. 😉

All the blocks
All the blocks

Now, ‘the rest’ is relative. In looking at the finished group of blocks, I am not sure that I am done.

As you can see there are an uneven number of blocks. That means that I am wondering if I need to make more blocks. I have 45 blocks total and I am not that excited about making more, but the design has to rule. I don’t want to make an ugly quilt.

The other option is that I have is to arrange them in an asymmetrical manner. I got the idea from a quilt I saw in Love Patchwork & Quilting magazine. It wasn’t this pattern, but the blocks were arranged in an alternative grid and I might just try some different layouts to see what you think.

Stay tuned.

Thoughts on Solids

Happy Father’s Day to all those fathers, dads, step-dads and all the guys who act like dads and make a difference.

We are not talking about dads today, though, we are talking about fabric. Again. There is no doubt about it. I have fabric on the mind. First, I admonish you to use your good fabric. Now I am talking to you about solids. What is going on?

I guess I have fabric topics on the mind, one of which is solid fabrics

Solids have become popular again (No duh, right?). When I started making quilts, the Amish style was popular and we all bought solids. I was actually kind of scared of prints! My first quilt project was mostly solids, but I did throw some prints in as I became more confident. The Cotton Patch, in Lafayette, California, where I bought most of my beginning class fabrics, had a whole room of solids!! Brands and designers were not important or known then so I have no idea what kind of solids they were. Due to the longevity of  the Kona brand, some of them could very well have been Kona.

The brands I have thought about recently are:

  • American Made Brands
  • Art Gallery Solids
  • Bella Solids by Moda
  • Kona Cotton Solids by Robert Kaufman

Some thoughts on these brands — and don’t get me wrong, I know there are other brands by other makers such as Michael Miller Cotton Couture and the Timeless Treasures Soho Limited Edition solids brand. I just don’t find those in my local area very often. I haven’t used them. I’ll have more to say about the Timeless Treasures Soho after I make the Peacock One Block Wonder piece. I, also, could do an update someday after someone sends me some and I use them. 😉

American Made Brands: the thing I like most about these fabrics is that they are completely made in the US – from growing through processing (ginning?) to weaving. I am not a rampant protectionist, but I would rather pay a little more and know that someone in the US is contributing to their household because of fabric I buy.

There aren’t as many color choices in this line thought they do keep coming out with more. I do love their turquoise!

A color card is available at selected retailers.

The colors also glow. We saw an exhibit of quilts made from these fabrics at Houston and the color combinations were amazing, not because of the fabric choices, but because the colors glowed. It was amazing to see.

The fabric is a little thinner than some of the other brands.

Art Gallery Solids: the brand/collection is sometimes called Pure Elements. They are very tightly woven. They have a beautiful hand.

A color card is available at selected retailers.

While there are some very clear colors, many of the colors are shades of pure colors.

This brand does not fray. Hallelujah!!!!!!

Bella Solids by Moda: Moda is a powerhouse around fabric design. They have the best designers, the freshest colors and the most up to date designs. Their solids are no exception.

There about 400 different solids in the line, with many shades and tints in each hue’s range. There are several different colors of white, making it relatively easy to find the exact color for your project.

A color card is available at selected retailers.

My biggest problem with Moda fabrics, including the solids, is that they fray like crazy. I assume this ‘problem’ has to do with the quality of the greige goods. The fabrics feel good, and the designs are gorgeous (Zen Chic! Bonnie & Camille!). The fraying, however, makes me crazy and I find I hard to keep my work area tidy and to piece with precision. Yes, Fray Check keeps the fabric from fraying, but is messy.

Kona Cotton Solids by Robert Kaufman: these are probably the most popular solids available. Websites match Kona solids to patterns. Playcrafts creates color stories using Kona Solids. Robert Kaufman, via the Kona Solids, has good marketing when they play nicely with other websites, designers and patterns.

The collection currently has 303 different colors. A color card is available at selected retailers.

The fabrics feel thick to me and I like that substantial feel. However, they also fray and seem to be loosely woven in a different way than the Bella Solids. I still buy them, because they sell them at a store to which I can walk and I have the color card.

All of these have uses, especially in the color department. Sometimes you need the perfect color whether it frays or not. I have been experimenting with Soak Flatter and Mary Ellen’s Best Press to see if these products will help with fraying.

Boston Fabric Shop

I was in Boston for the Special Libraries Association conference. On my last day in Boston, I walked over to a fabric store called Grey’s Fabric and Notions. I had looked at their website and saw a number of blog posts on garment making including lingerie, so I was on the fence about visiting.

image
Building with interesting colored windows

My conference buddy encouraged me so we walked over there together. We got there off of Summer, A Street, 4th and finally Harrison.

Summer Street was a main road and to get to A Street we had to go down a set of metal stairs to the street below. It was kind of like the Stockton Tunnel street madness here in SF. The neighborhood looked yup and coming, but also very much in transition.

It was a bit of a long walk, but we enjoyed it. We took pictures of interesting architecture and things we don’t see at home or interested us. The neighborhood is definitely changing.

Pretty alley housing Grey's Fabrics
Pretty alley housing Grey’s Fabrics

Grey’s was a little hard to find, but worth the trip and in a charming little alley with other art galleries and creative spaces, including a bead and fiber store.

The store itself is great. It is a good size without being huge. They had plenty of quilt fabric; a very respectable selection and I liked what they had. I indulged in a couple of pieces. One will be a dress for a future NSGW event.  They had a fair selection of Philip Jacobs (my man!!!), considering the size of the store. They also had notions, patterns, embroidery floss and a lot of gift items.

Front of Grey's
Front of Grey’s

One thing I really liked was the table in the front with lots of little things, including gifts. If that “Be Nice or Leave” pouch had been a sign I would have bought it. I need to tape such a sign to my forehead.

I bought a piece of flannel to make future receiving blankets. Ashley, the store manager, introduced me to double gauze, which she said fluffs up a little after it is washed. It came up after I told her about the receiving blankets I make as gifts for babies. The double gauze, apparently, makes very soft receiving blankets. I didn’t buy any, though it might be good for lighter weight receiving blankets. They have an online shop and it is made by Cotton + Steel so I maybe able to find it locally as well.

The store had lots and LOTS of the independent pattern company garment patterns, such as Colette. I was tempted by one, but restrained myself because I want to look at the Vogue patterns before I buy any other patterns.

The other thing I saw that I liked were the Sublime Stitching embroidery patterns. Of course, I have heard about them and seen them online, but I have never seen them in person. There was one called Sexy Librarian that would make a great raffle prize for my library association, if made up into a pillow or something.

All in all, visiting Grey’s was a worthwhile activity and I would visit again. I wish it was near my house as I would love to take classes there.

You can find Grey’s Fabric and Notions at:
450 Harrison Ave, Boston, MA 02118
(617) 338-4739

Creative Prompt #315: Lunch

mid day meal

Definition: “Lunch is a midday meal[1] of varying size depending on the culture. The origin of the words lunch and luncheon relate to a small meal originally eaten at any time of the day or night, but during the 20th century gradually focused toward a small or mid-sized meal eaten at midday. Lunch is the second meal of the day after breakfast.” (Wikipedia)

lunch break

lunch hour

free school lunch

lunch box

National School Lunch Program – USDA

Lunch bag

Lunch money

out to lunch

eating lunch at your desk

lunch date

“It’s Just Lunch”

lunch meeting

Woolworth’s Lunch Counter – “On February 1, 1960, four African American college students sat down at a lunch counter at Woolworth’s in Greensboro, North Carolina, and politely asked for service. Their request was refused. When asked to leave, they remained in their seats. Their passive resistance and peaceful sit-down demand helped ignite a youth-led movement to challenge racial inequality throughout the South.” (Smithsonian)

school lunch

Naked Lunch (1991 movie)

Power lunch

hot lunch

lunch room

No free lunch

New York & New Jersey Lunch Cruises

lunch ticket

songs from Lunch by Gucci Mane

let’s do lunch

lunch counter

lunch specials

go home for lunch

lunch tray

Lydia Lunch, born 2 June 1959 in Rochester, New York, USA, began her activity in 1977 with Teenage Jesus And The Jerks as lead singer and guitar player.

 

Lunch – the documentary

Ladies who lunch

Lunch-o-matic – PBS Kids

Healthy Lunch

break for lunch

lunch program at school

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 get familiar with your blog or website.

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.

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

Pinkalicious

I mentioned my new pink journal cover recently with very little detail. Somewhere I also mentioned I was naming it after Pam’s pink mosaic pieced donation quilt. Twitter? Instagram? I lost a week and I don’t think what happened before that is coming back.

New Pink Journal Cover - June 2015
New Pink Journal Cover – June 2015

What you see above is a journal cover in process. It is long enough and I either need to cut it off or square it off. I want to square it off, but then it will be a little too long. I like the piecing I will have to cut off, though, so I haven’t cut it yet. I have to think about the direction.

What’s on the Worktable?

I have milked the little progress I have made over the past weeks for all they are worth in the past few days and here I am milking some more. I really do need to get a handle on my current/in process projects. This should probably have been a design wall Monday post, but I am changing it up. I thought your head might be spinning, too, and you might appreciate a recap.

This isn’t my normal 26 Projects post as I am not including the UFOs. I don’t want to think about them right now. This is just a post about the pieces on which I am actively working right now.

Sample Box Full of Letters blocks
Sample Box Full of Letters blocks

Box Full of Letters: I feel like I should put a mini-audio setup in this quilt to play the Wilco song on demand. It is a clever and terrifying proposition. This is, so far, a leaders and enders project.

Improv 'A' blocks
Improv ‘A’ blocks

Improv: As mentioned, this is a project that I will give as a gift, which was started in Tina Michalik’s class. It is getting better. The A blocks aren’t where I want them to be, but they are better.

Stepping Stones blocks - June 2015
Stepping Stones blocks – June 2015

Stepping Stones: I hadn’t made progress for a long time, but did recently.

Field Day in process June 2015
Field Day in process June 2015

Field Day Zipper: recent post details trials and tribulations.

Food Quilt #2 Top - June 2015
Food Quilt #2 Top – June 2015

Food Quilt: top done. Back is holding me up.

New Pink Journal Cover - June 2015
New Pink Journal Cover – June 2015

New Pink Journal cover

Octagon Nine Patch detail- April 2015
Octagon Nine Patch detail- April 2015

The Octagon Nine Patch is still ongoing. Field Day Zipper usurped it’s place on the design wall so I haven’t worked on it much lately. Pretty soon I am going to need 50 design walls.

If you are asking yourself how I can work on all of these projects at the same time, believe me when I say I am asking myself the same question. I want to get the three quilts ready for the quilter as I want to give them to their intended recipients and move on. Getting the tops and backs to Colleen means I actually have to make them. The backs, too.

I am linking up to Nina Marie’s blog. She has an Off the Wall Friday linky.

Use Your Good Fabric!!!

Here is the short version of this post: Use the Good Stuff! 😉

The other day I posted about the Enchanted Plume panels I bought and SherriD commented that she had a panel she was “saving.” This comment made me think about my fabric, what I have to use and what pieces I love. As I have also mentioned, there is no shortage.

If you use your favorite fabrics, you will see your favorite fabrics more regularly. The yardage won’t be folded up in a cupboard or closet waiting for the perfect project.

If you use your favorite fabrics you will enjoy and use the quilt more.

If you use your favorite fabrics, it will be easier to take pride in your quilt and show it off.

If you use your favorite fabrics, you will want to make more quilts.

Win-win for everyone.

One issue I have run into is needing more of a fabric I love when I want to make a slight variation on the project. This happens a lot with bags, particularly bag linings. Generally, I am out of luck. I do make the FOTY quilts so I can try and figure out if I like a fabric enough to get more before it goes out of print, but, still, generally, I am out of luck.

In 2007 or 2008, I made a quilt called Thoughts on Dots. This is a quilt made from all dot fabrics. I had some beiges that I thought “would be fine” for the back. The quilt lives on my bed and now I have to live with beige. I love the dots on the front, but I don’t like the beige.  The beige isn’t even depressing beige, but it is still beige and I would have much rather put a color or one of my Philip Jacobs fabrics on the back. If I had, I would be much happier.

Scrapitude Carnavale, on the other hand, is a masterpiece**. I love the quilt, because I used fabrics I love throughout the quilt. It makes me happy every time I look at it. The back has fabrics I love on it, too, so I don’t mind if the back is showing.

Fabrics get Dated

The sad part of saving fabrics you love is that they will get old and dated and you won’t love them any more. I feel bad about this because I used to love these fabrics so much and now they just inspire a Meh kind of reaction when I see them. I should have used them right away. Live and learn.

There is always more fabric

The good part of using fabrics that you love is that fabric companies are churning out new designs every day and they are bound to have a new design you also love!

What is the Good Stuff?

What the good stuff is depends on you. What do you like? What do you like today? Some weeks ago, I bought a FQ pack of Alison Glass fabric. This pack was not in my normal colors. I thought I had better use it right away in case the colors and designs lost their appeal. Already the love is waning, but the quilt is in process and will be done soon. No problem.

I think “The Good Stuff” changes depending on our mood and influences, though the underlying favorite colors (e.g. turquoise and red for me) or motifs (e.g Dots) will remain consistent. I think we all, at certain points, expand our horizons or veer off in a new direction like I did with the Alison Glass fabrics, but will veer back when push comes to shove.

I have decided that the perfect project never comes along. Projects come along that are more perfect than the last, but I have not yet come across THE perfect project. I think we find projects that are perfect for us at the time. In order to make each new project the best project we can, we need to use our best fabric.

The good news is that there is always more fabric.

 

 

 

 

**Ok, ‘masterpiece’ is in the eye of the beholder. This quilt will not win best of show anywhere except at my house. I love the colors, the fabric and the quilting, so, for me, this is a masterpiece.

Attack of the ‘Progresses’

Field Day Top in process - June 2015
Field Day Top in process – June 2015

While I haven’t spent a lot of time at the machine, I seem to have made quite a large amount of progress. I would say that the Field Day top is almost done. I screamed through some piecing last Sunday (not the Sunday that just passed) and was shocked to see how much I had gotten done.

I have a couple of things to decide about this top:

  1. Do I sew top and bottom borders of the Sangria on this piece?
  2. Should I get some of the Goldenrod and put a thin border around the outside and then another border of Sangria?

The other problem is the last row. It was doubled up on top of row 7 and I don’t know if was intended to be row 8 or half of row 7? If it was to be half of row 7, then I added more coins where now it is much, much too long for a row. I may cut it in half to make row 7 long enough or add more to it and make the quilt wider.

If I make the piece wider, it is going to be a weird shape and I don’t know if I want to inflict that on someone.

Hey! Remember Me?

I haven’t posted about this Stepping Stones project since February, mostly because I haven’t really worked on it until recently. And ‘worked’ is a generous description of my efforts. I have been pushing red and turquoise through the machine as leaders and enders in between Field Day and the Food quilt.

Voila!

Stepping Stones June 2015
Stepping Stones June 2015

More blocks.

Progress. And so it goes.

I plan to be a little more precise as I make the blocks so I don’t end up with a weird shaped quilt. Sometime I’ll drag the already completed blocks downstairs and lay them out on the bed so see where I am. I haven’t done that yet, though. 8 blocks does not a quilt make, but they are large blocks and we have a small bed, so I don’t imagine I will have very many more center blocks to make.

I made these two top blocks as leaders and enders when I was working on the borders of the Food Quilt #2. The bottom one is, as you can clearly see, still in progress. I do take my time picking out the fabrics to include.

Improv Again

I don’t remember exactly when it was, last Friday, I think, but I had a brief window of time before I had to go do something else for someone. The grief at the implications of my BIL’s loss were starting to creep into my brain in the quiet and threatening to overwhelm me.

4 'A' Blocks
4 ‘A’ Blocks

I turned to the Improv pieces I had worked on at the workshop. They were sewn together as you see (left photo), but I wasn’t happy with them, so I unstitched them and began to rework them.

Tina’s idea (from Little Blue Cottage) is that there should be a lot of negative space in the center. Because I like the interplay of the strong pattern, I wanted the blacks and whites to act as the negative space and the red to act as the foreground.

This isn’t a terrible idea, but it wasn’t working with this layout. I looked at it a lot, trying to like it – or at least be okay with the center. The reality was that I didn’t like it. I wasn’t achieving anything near what I was imagining, thus the ripping.

Big, fat Improv
Big, fat Improv

The ripping really didn’t take long, but it did allow my mind time to wander, which is not what I wanted. After ripping, I began adding more neutrals to the ‘legs’. The photo (right) is what the pieces look like right now. I have not sewn the four blocks together yet. I haven’t decided if I am done with the ‘A’ blocks yet.

I think I will definitely add some more red to the outside. I also think that a few more neutrals is in order. It needs to sit a bit.

Windowframe layout
Windowframe layout

I wandered around it for awhile and then began to wonder whether I should reverse the blocks and arrange them the way Tina intended the pattern to be arranged. I think the neutral part of the blocks look too skinny again when arranged with the red in the middle. It isn’t terrible, though.

I think the ultimate path is to make some of the ‘B’ blocks and see what happens once I have more to look at.

 

Creative Prompt #314: Hood

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.

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

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 get familiar with your blog or website.

1. The ghetto. 2. Someone who is from the ghetto. 3. Someone who acts like they are from the ghetto. (Urban Dictionary)

head covering attached to a jacket or sweatshirt

Since 1846, the name Hood® has been synonymous with fresh, quality dairy products that taste great.

Mount Hood, Oregon

Hack the Hood trains low-income youth of color in technology and marketing skills.

Walter J. Hood. Professor of Landscape Architecture & Environmental Planning and Urban Design.

Hood (King Raven Trilogy) by Stephen R. Lawhead

range hood

Hood College

Hood River County

Under the Hood (2009 Video)

Warren Hood

Hood Sailmakers specialize in building high-performance, long-lasting sails for serious cruising yachts, classic yachts, short-handed racing and one-designs.

Adam Hood is a singer-songwriter from Opelika, Alabama.

Hood [Theological Seminary] is an ecumenical seminary in the African Methodist Episcopal Zion tradition.

Hood To Coast Race Series

under the hood

 

Definitions (Wikipedia)

Apparel

Anatomy

  • Hood, a flap of skin behind the head of a cobra
  • Clitoral hood, a hood of skin surrounding the clitoris

Other

  • Hood (soft top), retractable soft roof of a convertible vehicle
  • Hood (vehicle), covering over the engine compartment in a motor vehicle (‘bonnet’ in most Commonwealth countries)
  • Fume hood, piece of laboratory safety equipment
  • Lens hood, device used to block light from creating glare in photographs
  • Range hood, exhaust system for a stove or cooktop

Entertainment

People

For people with the surname “Hood”, see Hood (surname).

Places

Other

Peacocks Moving Forward

Peacock Panel
Peacock Panel

The picture (left) looks like the others I posted, but it is an actual panel that showed up at my house.

I received the panels for the Peacock One Block Wonder. I know I said last time that I bought the panels from Miller’s Dry Goods and I was waiting for them. They came quickly and I am ready to wash and start the project. I have to clear up some others first.

I saw a number of One Block Wonders at the Fair last weekend. In the midst of life, I volunteered (it was too much effort to try and get a replacement and nothing family oriented was happening, so I went) to sell tickets for the BAMQG Opportunity quilt at the Fair. It got me in for free, so I had a half an hour of quilt viewing as well.

Anyway, I saw a number of One Block Wonders at the Fair and was slightly horrified at what I had gotten myself into. I didn’t like what they had done, mostly, which made me question myself. I had to reel myself in and remind myself of Pam’s version and stay the course.

It just occurred to me that I am pushing my comfort level with this project which is what all the back and forth and drama is about.

 

Creative Prompt #313: King

Face card

ruler or monarch

King County, Washington

The Night’s King is a recurring character in the fourth and fifth seasons of the Game of Thrones

The King and I (play)

Martin Luther King

interactive entertainment company for the mobile world

Stephen King

The King laboratory uses molecular and comparative genomic approaches to reconstruct the origin and evolution of animals. (Jurassic Park anyone?)

KingKing, Hollywood – Features live music performances seven nights a week. Includes a calendar of events, directions, booking and production information.

B.B. King

RodneyTV Series   (King

King City, California

King 2011-present –Life of detective Jessica King does not run exactly smoothly. When she becomes the head of the Major Crime Task Force, she is eager to prove she is the best

Burger King

King James Bible

The King and Prince Beach Resort on St. Simons Island

Carole King

King & Spalding, law firm

King Arthur Flour

Martin Luther King, Jr.

Official web site for U.S. Representative Steve King (R) for Iowa’s 4th Congressional District.

Real-time trade and investing ideas on King Digital Entertainment ($KING) from the largest community of traders and investors

King Neighborhood of Northeast Portland

King Ranch Quarter Horses

King Estate Winery

Coretta Scott King

King Soopers

King Tut

King v. Burwell: Issue: Whether the Internal Revenue Service may permissibly promulgate regulations to extend tax-credit subsidies to coverage purchased through exchanges

King of Thieves – mobile app

Retailer of natural pharmaceuticals.

Disney’s The Lion King

King of Prussia

King Cage Bicycle Waterbottle Cages: Made in Durango, Colorado out of Titanium and Stainless Steel.

King Middle School, Berkeley, Calif.

Jester King Brewery

Sun King Brewing Company is an Indianapolis-based craft brewery with a focus on continually creating traditional seasonal and unique specialty beers.

King Kong

Laurie R. King

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 get familiar with your blog or website.

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.

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