This group looks like it would be a wonderfully cheerful baby/toddler quilt. Turquoise and pinky-red! What could be better?
It makes me want to just toss all the FOTY 2016 squares up on the wall and sew them together in a way that creates a larger cheerful quilt with this look. This tells me that I am getting tired of the project.
Don’t worry; it is a stage int he process and I will get through it. It is a good sign and perhaps I will start arranging right after New Year’s Day. We’ll see.
I looked in the box of squares yesterday and found it stuffed to the gills. I hope I don’t have to cut the squares down. I don’t want to.
I have been in desperate need of leaders & enders lately. The crisis has passed since I got my order of Northcott Colorworks charm squares, though before it did a lot of weird pieces were sewn.
Orange Soda Journal Cover (closed)
I had some orange scraps that I had started to sew together, so I continued to sew and turned it into a journal cover. It is along the same lines as the Orange Crush journal cover and the scraps may have been from that piece.
I am really pleased with how this one came out. The front cover is really well placed. The scraps aren’t too small, which always causes finishing issues. It is also bright and cheerful. I need bright and cheerful right now.
On my first day in Dornbirn, I went with my Austrian mom to the natural grocery store (Bioladen). Across the street was the house above. I love the painted shutters and the window boxes. September is such a lovely month in Vorarlberg.
I decided to use the photo to see what kind of palette I could make. I have recently been fascinated with the combinations of neutrals. I see a lot of houses in the neighborhood painted in a pleasing combination of neutrals. I am reluctant to commit to such a color combination, however. There is a difference between admiring as I amble by and being forced to look at it each time I drive up and walk in.
ColorPlay Nov 11 n.1
This photo has some interesting neutrals. I focused on the neutrals in the first palette. As individual colors combined with super brights, as per my usual, I can imagine using them. I am not sure about the palette above. I was trying to get a white, but the Palette Builder recognized the color as baby blue. It is interesting to think about using a very, very pale blue instead of white. This is when I need a team of assistants to sew on command. 😉
ColorPlay Nov 11 n.2
Kind of depressing, especially after Tuesday, so I tried to create a brighter version. Not much to work with, but I do like the result. The watermelon is an interesting color.
I know I just wrote about my progress on The Peacock a few days ago, but I have made more progress and I am pretty excited. The progress feels kind of like a baby. The first few months of a baby’s life sees a lot of change in their looks. In this piece, each row seems to provide more personality.
The Peacock – Nov 2016
I spent most of the day Sunday out, but since it is Standard Time and the day started early, I arrived home on the early side. The timing allowed me to spend a few hours sewing. I wasn’t expecting any sewing time and was very pleased. As I am getting towards the top, the piece really looks more and more like something.
I am not sure I am a huge fan of the green (feather) diagonal line, on the right towards the middle, that was formed when I pieced those rows. I am not, however, unpicking. I do like the trails the green solid has made and I am eager to get those sections on the design wall so I can finish working on the final width and layout.
I know I was pretty ambivalent after making the blocks for this piece. I am really interested in how the quilt top is turning out. It is taking a lot of time and work. However, the challenge is really working my brain.
The tablerunners are ready for their first outing in a couple of weeks. I have no illusions about finishing the tablemat, but I am pleased with my efforts thus far.
The first one I finished is shown on the left. I really like this one and kind of wish I had bought more of these panels, so all of the runners could match. I didn’t and I am not making more.
Tablerunners #2 & 3
I did very simple quilting, for the most part, though the quilting ended up being much more complicated on the alternate design just because of the fabric motifs. I did a lot of outline quilting of the leaves and such, so it took more time.
I think, depending, that I will plan to take the tablemat to the next quilt retreat. I get a lot of blocks made at retreats, but quilting is also a good task for a retreat.
The last time I reviewed my list was in July. I have made some progress, but not a lot. August was pretty much a desert for getting projects done and I was gone in September so no sewing then either. I was ready to rock in October and am making some progress.
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.
Carpenter’s Wheel blocks – I finished #9 and #10. I thought this finish concluded the blocks. However, after I laid them out, I realized that I didn’t have enough to do what I wanted. I need to make a few more. Perhaps as leaders and enders?
English Paper Piecing Project– half hexies – I added three more stars to the large piece over the weekend. I also measure the piece and figure out how much more I have to stitch to get it to a good size.
Lobster – have more stitching to do and then I need to quilt it.
Octagon 9 Patch: ready to put together. Not sure what I am waiting for. Another leaders/enders project or do I want to lay out the blocks more carefully?
Pies and Points from Victoria Findlay Wolfe class. No further progress. I did find more of the background fabric when I went to Portland, so I can make a larger piece.
Stepping Stones #2 – I am in the process of making the border blocks after I designed them to be a little different from the first Stepping Stones quilt.
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.
Aqua-Red Sampler – I made progress on the partial seaming tutorial and need to sit down to finish it.
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 am taking a machine quilting workshop soon (shock, horror, I know) and the focus is on background motifs. Just what I need!
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.
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.
Under the Sea: class project; like the design and am happier with the colors. I bought a few spools of Aurifil 12wt and have been embroidering with it and the Perl Cotton on it. It might become a lush pillow for someone.
Theoretically, the Tarts Come to Tea is in the quilting process. I am taking a class next weekend that may give me some ideas and perhaps get me back on track with it.
Binding
None
Hunting and Gathering
Blue Gradation Quilt: cutting 2.5″x 4.5″ blue rectangles
Blue Lemonade: cutting blue, green, purple 2″ squares
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. I bought a new template, so I should be able to get going again
Other
Stepping Stones #3 using the Macaron pre-cuts from Hoffman. I have all the fabric in pre-cuts and am just waiting for space in my schedule.
I think my last update about this project was in August. A lot has happened and I think we are nearing the end.
SIL and her machine have been working hard. She has to recolor all of the designs so use just 6 colors. Sometimes that is really hard and she has to make compromises. Still she has done a great job and I can’t wait to have the napkins out at Thanksgiving.
Thanksgiving Napkins, mid October 2016
My job has been to wash and press all of the embroidered napkins. I have had no bleeding or fading of the designs. I have used a lot of Flatter and Mary Ellen’s Best Press!
The embroidery machine had a hissy fit and ate one of the yellow napkins. While there were probably enough napkins for everyone, we decided to get one more packet (World Market Buffet napkins). I bought a dusty purple and these came out SUPER well. I am very pleased with them.
I really like all of the napkins. Not only are they pretty and festive, but they are also large enough to keep laps clean.
Time does funny things to my head when I am sewing. I know I sewed A LOT over the weekend. Still, I felt like it wasn’t enough. Will there ever be enough time to sew? I don’t know.
The Peacock, end of October 2016
During all that time, I worked, mostly, on the Peacock. I now have 10 rows sewn together in some fashion or another. I have them mostly sewn together in groups of four rows. They will all be sewn together eventually, but I am just doing this much for now.
I also started to sew some bits of the upper rows together, but nothing major is done up there. I have to get serious about the solids and see what I can make for the background in the upper right hand corner.
I have an idea to spice up the latest batch of 16 patch blocks I made for the BAMQG charity project using HRTs.
HRTs are half rectangle triangles, which are similar to half square triangles. This shape/block is also called a Bias Rectangle. I wanted to make them using a method similar to the Triangle Technique. Wouldn’t that be great? DH and SIL worked on the math, but they could only get one rectangle and a kite shape out of a similar method.
It might be easier to cut these shapes if you had a cutting mat turntable. Martelli has one that includes an ironing surface.
The Modern Quilt Guild posted a tutorial on bias rectangles. The tutorial shows how to make 4.5 x 6.5 inch final block size, but notes that the tutorial works for any size as long as you use the same sized rectangles. The tutorial includes directions for “squaring” up the blocks (a rectangle made up of two triangles).
Wayne Kollinger also posted 3 (yes, THREE) different tutorials for making HRTs. First, he talks about just cutting fabric. No tools or special rulers. Wayne’s second method also uses the Tri Recs ruler. The third tutorial uses freezer paper. One thing Wayne says is “the rectangles are twice as long as they are wide. This means that for a 6″x6″ block the rectangles would have a finished size of 2″x 4″. For a 9″x9″ block the rectangles would have a finished size of 3″x6″.”, which is very helpful information moving forward.
Heidi at Buttons and Butterflies posted a tutorial includes what not to do, which is a great illustration of what I found out from DH’s mathematical adventures. From the tutorial you can see what happens without having to do it yourself. 😉 There are a few different techniques included in this post including an Accuquilt technique. The Accuquilt die has the tips cut off for easier matching of patches. She finishes up with a tutorial similar to the Modern Quilt Guild tutorial. Heidi also talks about the differences in HRTs, which I was glad about since I didn’t realize some of the things she discusses.
Kristi of the Schnitzel and Boo Blog uses a similar technique to Heidi, but sews on each side of the center line to make her HRTs in her post. The post includes a quilt tutorial/pattern as well.
Marjorie Rhine from Quilt Woman has a PDF discussthe topic, including three options for making the blocks. One is to use a template, similar to my tutorial on using templates. I supposed the Tri Recs ruler discussed above would also work. Also mentioned are the Marti Michell’s Template Set D or Margaret Miller’s AnglePlay Template. The latter is a companion to a couple of books. She includes paper piecing and using templates as techniques. The PDF includes a lot of useful information.
These can also be made using foundation piecing. Printing a template from EQ7 or drawing the paper template is also possible.
BiRangle ruler
Finally, I have a ruler called a BiRangle ruler. It is by Martingale (I bought it when the company was called That Patchwork Place).
Sew Mama Sew has a tablerunner pattern. She talks about why the Triangle Technique does not work for HRTs.
I am pleased to report I have used about 145 yards of fabric this year. Isn’t that crazy? I can hardly believe it. I still have to work on using more and I am sure I can use at least another few by the end of the year. November To Do
Wash fabric AKA The Great Unwashed-some progress
Cut out 3 notepad covers for gifts
Finish cutting out Day in the Park backpack variation
Finish sewing Anna Maria Horner Multi-tasker tote -this was a gift I intended to give during Holiday 2013- sigh. Missed 2014 Holiday deadline as well. I made it for birthday 2016 and it was a successful gift.
I am out of cut white squares for charity blocks, so I used pieces for the City Sampler blocks as leaders and enders while I was sewing the Peacock together this past weekend.
City Sampler blocks n.38-41
I was able to finish a total of 6 blocks, which still makes me under 50 done, but progress is progress. I am still on the triangle blocks and my machine really likes eating the corners when I use the method Tula Pink suggests. I was grumpy making these blocks and ordered more Northcott charm packs to use for the donation blocks.
City Sampler block n.41
I added a few new fabrics from the group I recently washed to spice things up. They are all in the blue-green range, so they will go. I know I said before that I had too many, but clearly now I don’t care.
I don’t have a lot of fabrics in my group that are good for fussy cutting, so I did the best I could. I am pleased with the way the ice cream block came out.
Of the above blocks, I really only like the one in the upper right hand corner. I like of the fabrics in all of the blocks, but don’t much like the block designs and not just because my machine ate the corners. I particularly dislike the one in the upper left hand corner. It looks like baby blocks and I don’t think it came out well. The piecing is really wobbly due to the above referenced machine hunger and because of the many small pieces. I may redo as suggested by some on Instagram, but it will probably just blend in by the time I get all of the other blocks made.
City Sampler blocks n.42-43
I do like the two I made yesterday and think that simple is better for the small size of these blocks. I am really looking at the one on the left and thinking about making it super big – bed sized, in fact for one of the nephews. I have to figure out how big that would actually be. I can see the block as a quilt in, from the top down, Kona Ash, scarlett and black. I would probably do a test block first to check the color choices, then see if American Made Brands or Art Gallery has a similar solid color to Kona Ash.
Someone asked me why I finished FOTY 2014 in 2015 instead of in 2014. This was before my trip, so the comment annoyed me. Now that I am much calmer and have had time to think about it, I realized that some people may not understand the concept. Don’t worry I am not going to rehash it here, but you can see a detailed explanation of the concept on the Works in a Series page about the Fabric of the Year quilts.
Fabric of the Year 2015: Finished!
I finished FOTY 2015 last week (or perhaps the week before). I was still sewing on the sleeve when I took it to BAMQG last weekend for show and tell.I needed DH to help me photograph it and that didn’t happen until last night.
I am pleased with how it came out. I really like the layout using rectangles and squares. The two different shapes add interest, I think.
Fabric of the Year 2015 Back: Finished!
I used large pieces for the back, which should come as no surprise. I have been trying to minimize the fiddly little piecing I can get into for backs. I like large print fabrics and the ultimate goal is to get backs done. I need more of that yellow fabric as I used the last bit for the EPP Stars and was short one leg of the EPP stars.
The Orlando Modern Quilt Guild updated their meeting minutes and included a detailed description of their Pulse Project. The scale of the project is mind boggling. I am amazed at what they have accomplished. They also posted some photos of the first distribution on the OrMQG Instagram feed.
If you want an ongoing way to use up scraps by doing some good, take a look at Kat’s Block Drive. She requests blocks every month to make quilts for families who have lost loved ones.
I was pleased to get Marsha McCloskey‘s newsletter. I was not so happy to hear that she has been 24/7 caregiver for her very ill husband. Send her good wishes via her website if you have a chance. She mentioned the Stargazing: American Star Quilts exhibit at the Iowa Quilt Museum in Winterset. It runs now until January 24. Her Star of Chamblie Sampler quilt is in the exhibit. I want to make a version of that quilt!
Products
Johanna Bashford, coloring queen, has a line of tech cases for Apple products. Samsung owners, including me, are SOL.
Patterns, Tutorials and Projects
I recently saw a link to the Queen Bee handbag pattern from U-Handbag, a British company owned and operated by Lisa Lam. I love the look and the design, but didn’t really want to deal with British pounds (sorry, UK friends, I am not trying to be an ugly American). I looked around and found the pattern on Craftsy, but without the purse frame and other bits and pieces. Sigh.
My sister, not as well versed in the ways of fabric as some of you, dear readers, but she has a good eye and sent me a link to a fabric rugmaking tutorial. The fabrics used in the tutorial are very appealing. The technique is similar to one in which bowls are made. It is nice and would be a good way to use FabMo scraps.
I love the look of this pieced Pineapple quilt pattern. Tutorials are linked on the page.
I have been talking about making a Lozenge quilt for awhile. While I have a number of projects in process, I think the stars have almost aligned for me to do this. I found a pattern that works with charm packs (5 inch squares) and a layer cake (10 inch squares), which is kind of what I want to use. I got a layer cake of Manor by Victoria Findlay Wolfe and have been looking for a reason to use it. This might be it. Looking back at the page of ideas I gathered, though, makes me wonder if that is the right fabric. I’ll have to dig around in my fabric closet and see if there is a more suitable layer cake. God forbid, I should actually CUT fabric for this project. 😉
Bonnie Hunter has announced her 2016 mystery quilt, En Provence. It is inspired by that region and the photos are worth viewing even if you don’t want to participate.
Other Artists
Christa Watson has a post on a series of black and white quilts she did after choosing black & white for her ‘color of the month’. I really hope she didn’t make all of those quilts in one month. I’ll feel quite lazy if she did! Regardless, Christa has a great design sense. Her Illusions piece moves when you look at it. As she says, black & white quilts have a high impact graphic quality that is hard to beat. Information about the Color Blog Series can be found on Michelle Wilkie’s site.
Marie Webster was active in the early part of the 20th century and owned a pattern and kit company before such things really existed. A lot of her patterns were applique’ and very different from the feedsack and pieced patterns of the 1920s and 1930s. Kathy Matthews wrote an article about an art quilt exhibit responding to Webster’s patterns in a new way. You can read about her in a book.
Media
You might have heard of Frances Dowell’s new book, Birds in the Air. She also has a different site from The Off Kilter Quilt that is all about Quilt Fiction. You know that my librarian heart loves this type of compilation. Frances notes in her recent episode (#199) that the Quilt Fiction site is a still a work in progress. You get a free story if you sign up for her newsletter.
If you have wanted to start a La Passacaglia quilt, but don’t know where to start, take a look at Dana’s post. First, she has great photos of her “La Pass.” I like the way she approached the project and it has given me ideas for getting started, which I have been avoiding. (N.B. I do have an idea that will help me take the leap). She also has an idea about combining shapes to make a larger space. This is an interesting idea that I might use when I get farther along. Not only is this post helpful, it is also written in a great tone.
Tips and Tricks
Kathy Matthews posted a link to some still relevant vintage tips and then she wrote an article talking more in depth about the tips booklets.
Quilt World News
Sadly, art quilts were stolen off the walls of a church in Vancouver. The article states that the quilts were worth $6 million. The article has a link to photos of the stolen quilts. There are two sites that list lost and stolen quilts, Lostquilt.com and a page for Missing Quilts on Quilter’s Cache. While there is no good in stolen quilts, I am pleased that the quilts are considered art in this instance.
Bonnie Hunter announced her 2016 mystery quilt*, En Provence, today. I haven’t ever done one of her mystery quilts, but I always collect the instructions, thinking that I will do one some day, after the fact. I am pleased to watch Pam and Daisy and Valerie and others do the steps. They have made some gorgeous quilts.
I have a great deal of respect for Bonnie for creating a new mystery quilt every year. I just haven’t made the plunge. I did Scrapitude, which I love. That was a mystery quilt and I am not sure I could top it.
Normally, I am quite confident choosing colors for a quilt. One problem I have with mystery quilts is choosing the colors. Scrapitude was great because it was a scrap quilt and the background was clearly defined. In this one, I don’t know if the neutrals will be the background. I don’t know where the green and yellow will end up, though Bonnie says the two colors should have good contrast with each other. I appreciate her mentioning such tips and tricks. However, I don’t want to spend time on a quilt only to have it end up as a mushy mess at the end.
My color preferences are much brighter than hers. I always wonder if they would work. I did some Palette Builder work on her inspiration photos and was glad to see that she had made good choices.
So, I don’t know if I will make the mystery quilt. I will collect the directions and I did order the new and fancy ruler (I love rulers!), so I am ready to go. Stay tuned.
*As you may know, the link above will not work after ~June 2017. You will need to work along with her to get all the pieces.
My recent trip to Austria was a complete feast for the eyes. Everywhere I looked I wanted to capture the images – the layering, the lines and especially the color.
Silberkammer: pantry
It is hard to choose a favorite museum, but right now I am in love with the Silberkammer in Vienna. It is the museum of the Kitchens and Dining of the Hapsburgs. There are dishes, serveware and set tables everywhere. Above shows one of the rooms of the pantries that remain. There were several, but some are now used for other purposes. Ever since I saw the butler’s pantry at my friend Kathy’s childhood home in Upstate New York, I have wanted a pantry. Of course, the one shown above would take up half of the main floor of my house (kitchen, dining room and part of the living). To have somewhere to keep china, crystal and silver would be fantastic.
Silberkammer: Soup tureen
One of the sets of china includes a soup tureen decorated with a lovely jade color. I am using it as our color play today.
The color scheme the Palette Builder tool originated was all neutrals. That lovely green color was not included. I didn’t even save that palette. I moved all the circles around to come up with something better
Soup Tureen Palette
It is interesting that the green is considered Kona Bluegrass. I’ll have to go and look up what color Kona Jade is, if there is such a color.
Again the tool had problems with the pinks/fuschias. I moved the little bubble around quite a bit and the Kona Crimson was the only red I could get. I think the angle of the photo had something to do with the results as well.
I would definitely change out some of the colors if I made a quilt with this color palette.
Let me know your thoughts or if you make something from this color palette.
