After writing about the Fine Spring Day Journal cover, I went back and looked for a post about the dress made from the same fabric. No joy. I only found my post about the pattern. I thought I would close the loop and show you the dresses.
In the interests of full disclosure, I did not make these dresses. I found a wonderful woman near my old office who not only can follow a pattern, but who is also able to take apart a garment and make a pattern from it. She has also altered a lot of my clothes as I have lost weight.
Fine Spring Day Dress
I went to her to make these dresses, because I wasn’t prepared to do the work myself. These dresses have to fit and I have to look awesome, because, like a rock star, everyone wants to photograph DH and me. Also,, I didn’t think it could possibly be true, but found out that people were keeping track of my clothes. Life in the fast lane is such an adventure.
Anyway, this dress made a sensation. I wore it to the Ladies Lunch at Grand Parlor and I looked really different than everyone else there. The awesome thing about this dress is that I felt great. The style suited me. I really liked the fabric even though it was a bold choice and way out of my normal comfort zone. I felt confident and like I looked good.
Chrysanthemum Dress
I kind of waited until the last minute to get these dresses made. I thought I would find something at a store, but I didn’t and went back to my original plan to get new dresses made. Yvonne worked like a champ and was able to finish two.
The second dress was the test dress. I purchased the fabric, because I love my pal Phil (Philip Jacobs) and this was a different choice for me for the back of the quilt. For a dress? CRAZY! I don’t think I have ever EVER worn a dress this color. Without the fuchsia flowers, there is no way I would have worn this dress.
Again, I had the right shoes and I felt great.
I have to find the right times to wear these dresses again. They are so memorable that people will remember them. I’ll have to pick the right event. When I need confidence, I will wear them.
I have received more Flying Geese and I have made a few more as well. My last update was May 23 and this group doesn’t seem like enough, but it has to be. I am pretty sure I am not behind.
My geese have been a tough group to make. I am having problems with the measurements on the rulers I am using. I don’t know why the directions say to make the small squares one size and then the geese cannot be trimmed to the proper size. I was in a panic and a rush, so I sent them to TFQ anyway. I know she can handle the smaller seam allowance and I will make a few extras down the road.
Still, I am annoyed at the measurements.
Yes, I am cutting the squares larger now, but I have a whole bunch of squares that are just slightly too small. It is very irritating.
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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
Before I revamped my design wall, I reorganized the Flying Geese from my exchange with TFQ and took a good picture of them.
Yes, the mistakes are still in there, but they won’t be on the front of the finished piece.
It is kind of fun to see how bright and cheerful they are. Even the grey does not make the group look depressing.
Looking at them this way makes me see all the red and pinky-red I, especially, have used. I think I need to work with some cool colors for awhile.
Looking at them also made me want to sew them together instantly. I don’t have enough to make anything (and I had no time), so I refrained. Still, I think the end product will be one I enjoy when I do sew them together, whenever that is.
It has been awhile since I was able to attend a CQFA Retreat – 2 years, I think. I was so thrilled to be able to attend the current retreat, which was held over Mother’s Day weekend. Isn’t that a great Mother’s Day gift?? As a bonus, I sewed so much!
I feel like I really made some good progress on projects that were languishing:
First of all, I, pretty much, threw projects and parts into project bags starting about a week before the retreat. This helped me not forget critical fabric and supplies. The only thing I forgot was a lamp and my sewing machine’s light kept me from going blind.
Next, I made sure I had plenty of blocks and parts that would make good leaders and enders. Using the leaders and enders technique, I made 20+ Nine Patches for the octagon 9 Patch on which I have been working and 27 (!!!) Box Full of Letters blocks. In addition to significant progress on two projects, I am pleased with the progress I made on the leaders on the leaders and enders projects.
Oliso ironing surface
The other thing I did was try out the Oliso iron I bought. I finally dragged out the June Tailor ironing surface I bought for the Dale Fleming Circle class as well. It was a little different because you don’t set it up on its end, it just pops up away from the ironing surface. Also, the steam and basic functionality are a little different. Friend Julie tried it also (we shared a table and a mini ironing surface) and gave me her feedback as well.
Sue’s Baby Quilt
People made great projects. Bron and Sue were working on baby quilts for friends. I liked the ideas they had and may use the ideas for donation quilts.
Sue’s (left photo) quilt is made from strips and a background. She said she cut strips and then sewed them together in rows. She said she used different widths of strips and I think that gives the piece a lot of movement. Lucky kid, I say.
In thinking of different ways to make this quilt, I could use strips, cutting them as I cut into new yardage. I would save up strips until I had enough and then get Gerre to quilt it. 😉
The other thing I could do it rummage through my scraps and get pieces large enough to do something similar. My mind is reeling.
I didn’t get a photo of Bron’s quilt, sadly, but what she did is wacky sew pieces together, then she cut the pieces into squares and sewed them together with sashing into a baby quilt. She used a white dot on yellow for the binding, which I loved! It would be a good scrap project.
Gerre’s art quiltGerre burning her quilt
Gerre was working on an amazing art quilt. She put layers of fabric together with tulle on top, then quilted it then BURNED it! It was awesome.
Reva worked on a flower quilt.
Angela was doing some improv piecing based on a piece she started in a class.
Julie’s Tumbler
Julie worked on 3 or 4 pieces, including a self portrait and a couple of pieces she started in China. She also sewed rows to her tumbler quilt top, which is nearing completion. It was so great to see her so productive as well.
Rhonda worked on handwork all weekend, including an applique’ project inspired by Kevin Kosbab. She showed me the Valdani Pearl Cotton collection she bought from MassDrop, the temptress! I love Valdani Pearl cotton. I may have to start another quilt like Beach Town. Or just pick a project on which I can embroider. Hhmm.
Maureen’s Mid-Century Modern
Maureen worked on a piece that I thought was made from a pre-cut, but she picked all the fabrics herself. I really think that she should put pre-cuts together for Moda. Her piece looked like a mid-Century modern quilt or painting.
Maureen worked on a plaid piece as well. She found the fabrics at FabMo and turned them into improv blocks which she was playing with when we all had to leave.
Dolores was working on dolls from a class she took with Susan Else as well as the piece from the online class she is taking.
Caroline made pillowcases and worked on a crazy paper piecing project. I think the one section she worked on had 58 pieces!!!
Amy’s Landscape
Amy was working on a kind of landscape with flowers. I loved it!
There was also a “free stuff table” and I picked up a couple of pieces of fabric. There was something about the colors and imagery that attracted me. There were a couple of pieces of Kaffe Fassett and some others. I tried to exercise restraint. It was difficult, but I seem to have succeeded. The purple dandelions were kind of a surprise, but they will come in handy somewhere.
CQFA Retreat Free Fabric
In addition to the sewing, it was great to see other people’s projects and chat with my friends. There was never enough time to find out everything I want to know about other people’s process or what is going on in their lives. I didn’t take nearly enough photos and wanted more time to sew.
Still I am glad I got the time I did, especially at this time of year. I felt like I was really productive and that feels good. I need to sew more.
I thought I would write much more about the Flying Geese swap than I actually have. The last time I posted was back in January. My lack of reporting is not an indication of lack of interest.
Flying Geese, Early April 2015
This is a great exchange and I am really enjoying it. First, the FGs are easy to make. Next, they have a good impact. Third, there is a lot of bang for my buck. I take 5 squares and come up with 4 Flying Geese. Also, they are like potato chips. I can’t make just one set at a time. Once I get started, I want to make bunches of them. Finally, though I am sure there are other positives, all the colors I try work well.
So, the photo at right is the sum total of the Flying Geese I have made and received until last week. Not, it’s not a great picture, but, as you saw on my last Design Wall Monday, my design wall is backed to the gills and there is no space. I’ll get a better picture at some point, but for now you’ll have to be happy with this one.
The last days of the CQFA Show Primal Green 2 is at the San Francisco Public Library. I went to see it one day on a trip to the City, but this is as much a reminder for me to see it again as it is to encourage you to go.
Did you go and see the show? The 24th is the last day to see it. Primal Green2 is a show of environmental art quilts at the Main Branch of the San Francisco Public Library.
The Wallace Stegner Environmental Center is one of the special collections at the Main Branch and, after a year of work with the Library, CQFA has over 20 quilts and other fiber art on display. The quilts all have an environmental theme. The show will hang until Friday April 24 and be available to viewers during the Library’s normal open hours. Don’t wait until the last minute! Oops! It is the last minute. Go TODAY!
One of the things that makes me feel really good is when someone tells me that a project I made inspired them.
Lynnette’s Star Sampler
At a recent Sew Day, Lynnette was laying out star blocks that looked suspiciously like my Star Sampler, but in really awesome colors. She told me that my Star Sampler had inspired her.
Ooooh! I inspired someone. That feeling is awesome.
I know the colors are hard to see, but it is in shades of white, plum and grey. It will be a gift. That told me that Lynnette is a better person than I am. I am just thrilled to see another version IRL of the Star Sampler.
These squares arrived in the mail for me last week and I felt like a kid at Christmas. It was so fun to receive an unexpected batch of fabric. I really had a good time looking through them and imagining their placement in the Blue Lemonade quilt.
I have made good progress lately on Hunting & Gathering. Between these, the ones Mom cut for me and the squares I have cut for myself lately, there is a nice little pile accumulating.
I am still definitely in the Hunting & Gathering stage. I will be until I, at least, figure out how many patches I need. I do think this quilt will definitely happen.
I think I have 3 blue quilts in process and I wonder if I will get sick of them before the last one is finished?
There is a lot of creativity happening in Maryland. No, I am not surprised.
Rick’s Leaded Glass
Cathy’s Swoon
Cathy’s Embroidered Star Quilt
Torie’s Disappearing Pinwheels
Torie
Torie
Tanesha
Tanesha
Tanesha
Tanesha
Tanesha
Tanesha
Tanesha
Tanesha
Tanesha
Tanesha
Torie – Fraternal Twins Quilt
Torie – Fraternal Twins Quilt
Torie
Navy Retirement Pillow
I have to say that I was really inspired by everything I saw. I love Tanesha’s mummy owls. I love the way Torie uses batiks. I really enjoy the way Rick has incorporated leaded glass panels into his house to make the house unique.
TFQ already talked about our Flying Geese exchange on her blog. Still, I am going to talk about it here. Over the course of the year, probably ad nauseum. Still, it is my blog.
I like doing projects with TFQ. The last one we did together was the Star Sampler. She is waiting to finish hers, but mine is done.
As you might remember, we started off, after PIQF, exchanging the PIQF Cross blocks. TFQ admitted to sincerely disliking those blocks before I did, but I really did not like them very much. When we finally got on the same page, TFQ suggested Flying Geese patches and I thought that was a good idea.
We decided to use the same color selections: light, bright grey, which was good. I already had a selection out to use. I have since picked out a few others.
First off: I started off making the Flying Geese wrong. That is why you see some of the geese have been made into chevrons. I just have them on my design wall arranged like that for kicks. I can’t see making more of the Flying Geese the wrong way. I don’t suppose you ever really know.
That meant that I had to start over, recutting, readjusting my brain and sewing more to catch up.
Measuring
Next, I got reacquainted with the Deb Tucker Flying Geese ruler. I have also used other rulers such as the Creative Grids Flying Geese ruler. This time I am using the Deb Tucker Flying Geese ruler. Once I figured out what size to cut each square, then I churned out several geese. The Deb Tucker Flying Geese ruler makes 4 at a time, which is one reason I like it.
Aside from actually mailing off the patches, which I keep forgetting, I am doing pretty well making them. This is a much better project. I am already thinking about what I will do the mounds of Flying Geese I am going to have. I do have ideas, especially for these, which are gorgeous!
My friend, the environmental librarian, asked us to do the show again.A lot of the same parameters were applied to this show that we created for the last show.
It is on through April 24, 2015, so you can go and take a look as well and check out some books while you are at it. 😉
I finally was able to go and take a look. I stopped in before going to lunch with a friend who works nearby. I missed the CQFA group viewing because I was in Houston.
Display Cabinet
There are a number of quilts displayed there. I thought they were hung very well. One of the display cabinets had Caroline’s fish purse in it. I love that piece, because of the whimsy. I wonder what the general public thinks about it?
The green piece on the top right is from the color challenge (I bought the fabric for that challenge and never did the piece – or haven’t yet done the piece).
The signature book was tucked in a corner so I don’t know if people saw it and were writing in it. The last book for the show had some odd comments, but had some really nice comments as well.
My Quilts in Display Case
My quilts were well displayed and I was pleased. You can see Beachtown on the left. What you can’t see is The Flower Garden on the right.
The quilts were all behind glass for security, so they were difficult to photograph. Still, they have to be there, because they will get stolen and touched. I was just taking photos so you could get an idea of how the show was hung not so you could get a perfect rendition of the quilts.
My Whole Cloth Quilt is also in the show. I didn’t get much of a better photo of it than I already have . The stitching is too subtle for a regular camera.
Virginia’s Quilt
One of the quilts is so great. It is a regular traditional quilt from far away. If you look closer at the quilt, you will see that the fabrics are covered with bugs. LOL! This is by Virginia and I love the bugs.
There are many more quilts and I will see about creating another post about them. The show is really worthwhile and I hope you will go and take a look.
Can you tell that I don’t know what to call these blocks? I really have to look the pattern up in Barbara Brackman’s book or Jinny Beyer’s book and see if they have a real name.
First PIQF Crosses
I haven’t made a ton of progress since I last talked about this project. I seem to have not had much time to sew in the past week or so. I finally took a few minutes last night while I was waiting for dinner to finish to sew the blocks together. It really only took a few minutes. I finished two of the blocks I have in process, but the others need fabric cut and I wasn’t set up to do that.
I was able to use scraps for most of the pieces as they are small, which is really good since my scrap bins seem to be overflowing. Still, the blocks are small and, thus, a pain to sew. In my haste I cut off some points, which I will need to remedy if we are going to continue making these blocks. I am not sure I like them well enough to make a whole quilt out of them.
TFQ & JHL Blocks
I think they do look nice together. I like the scrappy look. We didn’t intend to use all blues for the crosses, but it seems to have worked out that way. The others I have in process do not have blue or blue green or aqua in the center.
So, my blocks will be winging their way to TFQ today. It is possible that I’ll have more time to sew tomorrow and will send some on Monday.
These are the blocks we saw in the quilt at PIQF. I had a bad start with these blocks.
PIQF Inspiration Blocks
I started making them before I went to Houston and the pain and suffering was almost beyond endurance. OK, I am exaggerating, but I couldn’t understand why the square in a square pieces took so long to make. I really have had very few issues like this with blocks.
While I was in Houston, TFQ sent me one of her blocks. I put on the wall as inspiration for my blocks. When I finally got the square in a square pieces (ONLY the square in a square pieces, mind you, there are 5 additional pieces in this block) finished and up on the design wall, I found they were wrong. Much too small.
Huh?
I went back and checked the measurements and found that I had cut wrong or read the directions and cut wrong or something. Bleah. This was a total head on desk moment.
Once I got the dimensions correct, the square in a square pieces went relatively well. I put the first block together relatively quickly. I was able to cut pieces for the other blocks from some scraps, which was great.
There are lots of pieces in this block, but being able to use scraps is a bonus. I have to make time to sew about 10 more seams and then send them off. Wish me luck.
A few days ago I talked about a project that TFQ are trying out. I think I am behind, because I didn’t get to sew anything until this past weekend.
First of all, I know some of you are thinking “what the heck, dude, don’t you have about a bajillion projects in process?” Well, yes, I have a few on my Current Projects list. I just really like doing a one-on-one project (also group projects like Scrapitude) with (an)other quiltmaker. Also, a few blocks isn’t really a project, is it??? Mostly, I am a social animal and like to have some human contact, especially if I can talk about quiltmaking in the geeky, detailed process-oriented way that my brain loves.
Second, I looked up the pattern and found a block called Garden of Eden that I could modify in EQ7. EQ provides such an easy and quick way to look at sizes of pieces. We were able to look at the rotary cutting directions for individual pieces in order to decide what finished size to make the blocks.
I don’t know exactly, but to put us on the same page, TFQ and I talked about colors of the octagons I am using for the Russian Rubix and whether those were the sorts of colors. Yes, they are the sorts of colors, but I will also use different fabrics and make it scrappy.
For the background, we will be using different cool, light greys. Again, they will be the same in each block, but, possibly different between blocks. The four squares in each block will be the same the same color, but not necessarily the same fabric.
I am not sure about the cross in the middle. I am not sure if I will use analagous colors or complimentary colors or what.
