WIP Wednesday 8/31/11

This is a block I'm working on for a ufo who's number has not been called yet.  I've assembled the block.  Now I have to applique an owl onto it. My favorite kind of block - piecing and applique - say this might be a great scrap block!  Not my favorite owl pattern, but that's what came in the kit so will go ahead and try it.  I'm learning to work with tiny pieces with these.  Help me, Rhonda - what's the best way to do tiny pieces? - I don't know that's for sure.  Go on over to my left sidebar and click on WIP Wednesdy by freshly pieced and see what others are working on.

Fabric Tuesday 8/30/11

Our latest BOM for our LQG is very simple, and  we're all looking forward to the drawing because on sew day (the saturday after the guild meeting) we're going to make a darling table topper.  And it only takes 4 fallen dish blocks and four 5" light squares.  Here's my two that I will enter into the drawing to win 4!  If I don't win, I'll just make four more - they are easy peasy.   Our prez calls them fallen dishes because they are the broken dishes block pattern using fall colors, thus Fallen Dishes.  If you'd like to play along check out our newsletter at
http://raincrossquiltguild.blogspot.com/p/newsletter.html  Now click on the August 2011 issue link and it will take you to the newsletter.  On pg 2 you'll see the table topper and the directions for the blocks are on page 3.  Enjoy.

Want to see other fabric stories?  Just go to my left sidebar and click on Fabric Tuesday by Quilt Story and you'll see what others are doing.

Design Wall Monday 8/29/11

This actually was on my design wall - it was a mug rug my DGS, William, had started for his mom.  I was working on finishing a ufo and he wanted to do something in the sewing room, so I had him pick out fabric batting, and a back.  He then sandwiched them and sat down and drew some of his components for this rug.

Then we got busy and set it aside til this sunday when we decided to finish it off because it was 106 outside and I wouldn't let him go play Indiana Jones out there. He actually went outside for about 30 seconds and came right in and said' " you're right, Wela, it's too hot out there." Taking his drawing, he sat down with a basket of scraps and came up with pieces for it.  Then took awhile to position them - then I executed his design with the needle by zig-zagging around the pieces. While I did that, he rummaged some more in the basket and found what he wanted for the binding.   He wrote his message  and I straight stitched over the letters.   And here is the proud designer holding his latest:
He wants Mom to take it to work to be her mug rug on her work desk.

What's on your design wall?  Go over to my left sidebar and click on Judy's Patchwork Times and check out what others are doing.

Stash Report 8/28/11



I made two BOM blocks and those extra 2 light blocks so that used up a fat eighth and I put the back to my scrappy split nine patch, so that used a yard, I'm happy to report giving me these numbers for the week:
Used this week: 1.13 yards
Used/Donated Yr to date: 56.95 yards
Added this wk: 0.0 yards
Total Yr to date Added: -11.0 yards
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Total Yr to date Use: 45.95 yards

And here's the finished quilt front.  I like how rotating it can make a different set of blocks pop out. 

Go over to my left sidebar and click on Judy's Patchwork Times button and see how others are destashing.

Favorite Things Friday 8/26/11

Two of my favorite things are my family and my garden.  I mentioned in Thursday's post that Lily likes to dance.  If she hears music, she starts dancing and even singing along.

And from my garden:  A Naked Lady surprised me!

What are your favorite things?  Go to my left sidebar and click on Favorite Things Friday and share them.

Applique Thursday 8/25/11 - One of First Efforts


Back from a wonderful two days babysitting my DGD, Lily, at my mother's house.  DS and DDIL took DGS2 to LegoLand - not a place for a 16 month old.  Here's our darling:



















I couldn't believe 16 month olds could move so fast!  And she wanted to check out everything!  Nothing was safe.  Good thing Mom and I put everything below 30 inches away so Lily wouldn't take them apart.  She loves to push buttons, and dance.  I'll post about that later. 

As expected, no sewing got done, but I was able to photograph one of my first applique efforts.  It is a round robin my DD, DDIL, and I made for Mom.  It's totally made in flannel and the wonderful color scheme is due to my DDIL's wonderful eye for coordinating fabrics.  Check this out:


I hand appliqued the hearts on my first round.  When it came back to me for the second pass, I decided to do the applique border.  The vine is machine straight stitched and the flowers are hand appliqued.  Here's a close up.



Mom keeps it on one of her guest beds. 

As it's Applique Thursday, please add a link to an applique work you admire, are in the middle of finishing or any applique you'd like to share. Just click on the blue Add a link below.  It will walk you through how to do it.  So look forward to your eye candy!





Design Wall Monday 8/22/11

My Scrappy Split Nine-Patch is assembled, quilted and trimmed.  I just need now to bind it and it will be done.  Later this week I hope.  On my design wall is a new scrappy block for me.  It is a block from a quilt in Fons & Porter's Love of Quilting, May/June, 2011.  It's called tic tac toe  by Toby Lischko.  I like the quilt but am really taken with the "O" block.  So I decided to make it into a scrappy block and see what it was like that way.  Seems so Moorish to me.

I really, really like the center of this block and may rework another so that instead of building the block as shown in the magazine - somehow I'll do it in row fashion so that I can use a large center block instead of a 4-patch.  Then again I may need to study my scraps better and pick out more of them that fall better into the dark, medium, light categories.  Like that one with the birdhouses, now that I see it in the block looks too dark, should have been another medium like the green almost solid.  This may be a scrap block where you have to have bigger pieces to make it work.  We'll see.

Go to my left sidebar and check out the other design walls at Judy's Patchwork Times.  Enjoy!

Stash Report 8/21/11

I was busy quilting all last week, but not with much new fabric.  So my numbers are better than last week, but not a whole lot more.  I used about a half yard of scraps for 2 new scrap blocks.  Then I used a yard for the back of my new scrappy nine patchblocks.  So here are my numbers:
Used this week: 1.5 yards
Used/Donated Yr to date: 55.82 yards
Added this wk: 0.0 yards
Total Yr to date Added: -11.0 yards
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Total Yr to date Use: 44.82 yards

A long way to go for a hundred yards!

How are you doing in destashing?  Go over to my left sidebar and click on Judy's Patchwork Times button to see how others are doing.

Favorite Things Friday 8/19/11

One of my favorite quilting things is scrap quilts - and look what I won 9 scrappy split nine-patch blocks last night at my guild meeting!  Since they're 12 1/2" square, they'll make a bright and quick charity quilt.  Love the repeating pattern that emerges when put together.

Go on over to my left sidebar and see what others are declaring their friday favorites.  Enjoy!

Applique Thursday 8/18/11

And the winner is, as per the True Random Number Generator:  Min: 1, Max: 21,  result: 20 .

And that is:  Erin!
                                 Vesuviusmama said... " I have been miserably unsuccessful at appliqué so far, but I've linked up just the same" on August 15, 2011 8:24 AM.

Congratulations, Erin!  Send me your snail mail address and I'll send the book along to you.

Thank you all of you who decided to play and share your applique efforts with me.  I just loved visiting all of you and seeing your beautiful work.  What eye candy.  And fyi:  I'll be having another giveaway real soon.

Now to what I've done.  I did make a block this week that had applique.  You can see it in my post tuesday, Aug. 15 and 16th.  And in the mail today, I got this!:



Just the kind of quilts I like!  Some piecing and some applique - woohoo!
So, I need another applique piece to work on in these coming days and found one in my stack of ufos


I started this years ago and was my first attempt at needle turn applique.  On examining now, it looks kind of juvenile to me and not sure I want to finish it.  Here's what it was suppose to look like:


What would you do?








WIP Wednesday 8/17/11

Here is the state of my cutting table on a block I am working on. 


The idea is to see what I can do with a stack of 10" squares.  I don't know where I'm going with this, if anywhere, just playing.

Off for a Ladies Day Out in a little while.  We're going to Yorba Regional Park (about 30 miles away) and take a walk, then on to the Irvine Museum of Art for a California Plein Aire Exhibit, and then a Thai restaurant for lunch.

Here's what I usually say when I head out on the road:
              St Michael, defend us in traffic.
              St Raphael, travel with us as we go.
              St  Uriel, light our way.
              St Gabriel, tells us what we need to know.

Click on WIP Wednesday by freshly pieced on my left sidebar and see what others are working on.


Fabric Tuesday, 8/16/11

I'm here to report on the good, the bad and the ugly - yes, all three.  First the good: 
I soaked this square in cold water and all the mark-be-gone blue marks came out - even though I had ironed over them in constructing the block.
Now the bad:  I foolishly trimmed the block before I soaked it and then hung it out on the clothesline in the hot sun to dry and the muslin shrunk!  It is no long 12 1/2" but 12 1/4" square (sort of).  Good thing I am adding sashing next and can compensate that way.

And lastly the ugly.  Remember I used that dissolvable applique sheet to get the lettering on the spine of my book block?  Well, I don't know what I was thinking.  Those sheets are compressed and formed of little fibers that break loose and thus dissolve in the water - but not if you stitch over them three times!  Then they're stuck to the black.  Arrrghhhhh!  Also I didn't read the directions carefully enough.  One is suppose to lightly press the fusible side to the fabric - press it for 5 seconds and it sticks like cement.  Remember here this product is suppose to be on the back side, so wouldn't cause these problems necessarily.  But I've washed this three times in warm water - each time a few more fibers came off.  I even used Goo Gone before the third wash/soak and still some of those pesky fibers were all over the place.  My husband loaned me some very fine tweezers and with the aid of a poweful magnifier, I was able to get some more off.  Then I took a black ball point and made the letter stand out a little more.  All I can do.  I'm not doing it over!  Will just have to be a dusty book in the quilt when I put these blocks together.  So here is the book block completed:
Please visit Fabric Tuesday by Quilt Story to see others' work and their progress.  You'll find the button on my left sidebar.

Design Wall Monday 8/15/11

I'm working on another ufo now.  Still trying to finish Em's quilt but not really inspired to do so.  Maybe tomorrow.  This is a shop hop block and is called the book block - have the embroidery to finish and the lettering on the spine.  Am going to try something different for the spine.  Since there are three layers to the spine - am going to machine embroider the lettering.  I'm going to use a piece of  a sheet of this wash-away sheet developed by Beth Ferrier.  It's suppose to dissolve in water.  But I'm using it kind of
different, so wish me luck.






Go on over the Judy's Patchwork Times button on my left sidebar.  She's in the process of moving but has been posting still.  You can then see what everyone else has on their design wall.

Stash Report 8/14/11

Not much to report.  I used two 13" squares of fabric from my stash on thursday.  You can see them here.  Made a supersized Dear Jane block.  I've started on a block for my next applique thursday, but that fabric was from a kit so can't count that.  Here are my numbers: 
Used this week: .11 yards
Used/Donated Yr to date: 54.32 yards
Added this wk: 0.0 yards
Total Yr to date Added: -11.0 yards
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Total Yr to date Use: 43.32 yards
Well I didn't do better this week, but at least I used a tiny tad of something.  Must think of a big project.  Problem is I just want to come up with a pattern to use up more scraps.


Favorite Things Friday 8/12/11

What with taking my mom to her post op and then taking her home, and then fighting traffic to GET home, I didn't have time to make another DJ block (I posted one yesterday), I"m posting a link from my friend, Billie, who again posted  a DJ block.  Go here to see a lovely, soft K-6.  http://billiebeesblog.blogspot.com/2011/08/dear-jane-k-6.html

A great job, Billie.  Your paper piecing is right on.

Check out the other Friday favorites by clicking on the button on my left sidebar for fridays.  Such lovely posts each week.

Applique Thursday 8/11/11

Okay, it's another Applique Thursday, and I have a giveaway for you!  You know how I love applique, want to look at applique and want to make more applique, so the book on left can be yours so you can do or try applique (this is the easiest kind - fusible applique).  There are 10 great poster quilts in this title -six I'd like to make, but I'm giving it away (yes, I have another copy-hehe).  All you have to do is add your link below to a blog post that has some applique on it.  Not the link to your general blog, a blog post with applique [If you're not sure how, go to my tab above for Applique Thursdays,and you'll find some directions].  Now it can be one you're making, one you've done a while ago, one you've dreamed of making. If you don't have a blog add a link to a photo of some applique. So even non-bloggers and non-wanna-be appliquers can receive this book.  It's a great book.  Let's have some eye candy!   I'll pick a winner next wednesday.  Hope you want to play.

Now here's is what I've been working on.  This is a Dear Jane block, M-7,  Junko's Rose Garden.  I wonder if you can notice what's different about it.I used reverse applique for the large piece in the middle and then machine appliqued the 8 leaf like pieces.  It went together faster than I expected.


Below, I photographed it on point and I'm pretty sure I have seen a whole quilt made out of this block, but can't remember the name.  Does anybody know what it is?  For some reason, reel comes to my mind, but don't think that's all of it. 






WIP Wednesday 8/10/11

I have some progress on my coverlet.  I tried several things but nothing worked.  Then I remembered that large bag  I have stuffed with nine-patches - so here is the coverlet with a new round added. Don't know why two of the squares look so dark (they aren't - camera operator error, I guess).  What do you think?

Fabric Tuesday 8/9/11

My chatelaine redo is done!  I first had to get a pattern for the square - it had to measure 3" square to fit in the space.  Then I had to make a copy of the logo that was 2 1/2" square to be centered in that space.  Fiddled with the logo on Publisher until I got it to the right size and then printed it out.  Then I had to cut it out very careful.  I then found a piece of batik in the color I wanted and ironed steam a seam to its back.  Then taking my template that I cut out, I traced the logo (a raincross) unto the steam a seamed fabric .  With very sharp scissors, I cut out my logo.  I took off the paper and fused it to the center of my 3" square.  Next I ironed a piece of freezer paper to the back of the square to be my stabilizer, and then zig-zag around the symbol with matching thread and bingo I had my square.  I was able to machine stitch one side but all the others had to be done by hand with a blind stitch.  Now I have to decide if I want to put any lettering on it.  I think I'll wait on that and see what others say.  Would be very small.  But our logo is very distinctive and I don't think there are any other guilds with this symbol so may speak for itself.  Oh yes, that's our pin on the right side over my name.

Go on over to the Fabric Tuesday button on my left sidebar and see what others are post at Quilt Story for their fabric tuesday.

Design Wall Monday 8/8/11

I have a chatelaine on my design wall.  I bought this when I belonged to a local quilt group.  It is out a town group and meets in the morning.  A big group - had 250 members when I belonged - a little too big for me.  Plus it was a drive - not by California standards - driving an hour to LA is nothing around here or 1 1/2  or 2 hours to San Diego - that's just the way it is in car oriented CA. 

Back to the chatelaine - I really wondered about the meaning of this.  I thought it meant a thingy you hang your keys from your waist.  Here's a definition I found on ehow.com:

A popular modern sewing gadget also has the name chatelaine. It is a miniature pin cushion attached by a fabric tape measure to a small, often ornate, pair of sewing scissors. Sometimes the pin cushion is personalized in counted cross stitch or needlepoint. The idea is for the chatelaine to hang around the seamstress' neck so that she never needs to hunt for her needles or scissors. Read more: Definition of Chatelaine eHow.com  http://www.ehow.com/about_5055256_definition-chatelaine.html#ixzz1UP6kLenz

Our use of it was to have it function as our name badge and a place to hang our pins.  I've never been able to make it be for hanging my scissors - I keep poking myself, LOL. 

So what I've done is taken out the 3"square that had that old guild's logo and I'm going to substitute my new quilt guild's logo in it's place.  Now to figure this out.  Help me, Rhonda!!

Go on over to Judy's Patchwork Times on my left sidebar and see if she has posted about Design Wall Monday.  She is expecting the movers at 8am tomorrow, so may not be there.  But knowing Judy, she's probably scheduled a post and it quite possibly will be there.  Then you can see what all the design walls have on them.

Stash Report 8/7/11

Well, I did accomplish two of my goals for last week, but they didn't involve much new fabric out of the stash.  I did make two BOM blocks, finished the applique on my coverlet and pulled out 26 nine-patches from my stash (I guess those count - they're not part of it any more). so total I used about a yard give or take a smidgen.  So here are the numbers:
Used this week: 1.00 yards


Used/Donated Yr to date: 54.21 yards

Added this wk: 0.0 yards

Total Yr to date Added: -11.0 yards

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Total Yr to date Use: 43.21 yards

Hope I can do better next week!

How are you doing?  Go on over to my left sidebar and click on Judy's Patchwork Times button and see how all the others are doing.  It amazes me how many are still playing this far into the year.  That means a lot of us want to wither that stash down.

Saturday Quilty Tip # 1

Many of you probably know this, however, if not, here goes:  When you are making oodles of nine-patches to set in a quilt top, press the inner seams toward the center of the block, whether dark fabric or not, like so:

See how two seams of the blue are toward the sides and two are now toward the center? That way when you sew them together you can rotate one block so that the seams will always nestle together.  If the seams were all facing outward (as in the first block in the photo below) you won't be able to get them to nestle together to get perfect corners.
Do you have a tip to share?

 
 

Favorite Things Friday 8/5/11

One of my favorite things to do is go to a quilt show!  Not every quilt show - wouldn't have time to quilt then, LOL - but when a big one comes around locally, I'm there.

Last saturday, I went with my mother to see the Summer International Quilt Festival in Long Beach.  For us out west, this is the next best thing to going to Houston, cuz it's the Houston show on wheels!  It's not as big, the quilts aren't juried, but oh there are a lot of them!  And of course, vendors.  I was good - all I bought was thread and two stencils.  However there was a lot of fabulous fabric there - someday!

So to share, I thought I'd upload the eye candy I photographed that day on this favorite thing friday.  These are just a few of them.  You'll get an idea of what I like by what I picked to photograph from the hundreds they had.

Oh and there was a fabulous, fabulous Baltimore Quilt Exhibit - but it said no photography so I wasn't able to share those with you.  But they are indelibly printed in my brain.
If you're ever close to one - they have one in the spring and summer and fall - do try to go - you won't regret it.  PS:  this is where I saw the great O Canada exhibit  that I posted about earlier.  ENJOY!
IQFLB

Appliqué Thursday - 8/4/11

Hello!  It's another Applique Thursday - a place and time to share our applique efforts and urge us on to do some or complete a project.  Don't you just love the look a little bit of applique gives a pieced top?  I do and hope you do also.  And today I have a photo of my coverlet to show you.  This was my ufo, but now it is my WIP as I want to get it moving along.  I finished the bottom row and put centers on the top row's flowers.

What is a coverlet?  It is a two piece cover unlike a quilt which has three.  We have many a night when it's too hot to have any thing more than a sheet for a cover, hence I am making a coverlet for our bed.  I may have it done before our warm season is over.  What you see so far is the center of it.  I'm sorta doing my own round robin -hehe.  I have two sides done with appliqué.  I want to emphasize the rectangle shape somewhat, and looking at it now, I'm wondering if I should just leave this as is to continue that emphasis.  What do you think?  Should I do the other two sides or just quilt  a vine with flowers in thread and go on to the next row?  I'd really like to know what you think.

And I'd love to see your applique.  Please consider linking so we can all see your "A" work.


WIP Wednesday 8/3/11

Curvy block is done.  It is now a quiltlet or a table topper - not a WIP any more.  I had fun practicing curves; was it much easier than I thought.  Now to decide what to do with it.

Be sure to go over to my left sidebar and click on WIP Wednesday by freshly pieced to see what others are working on.

Fabric Tuesday 8/2/11

Yeah, one of my goals for the week is done - I finished the rag quilt top for St. Ann's.  My job was to piece it.  I then take it to the meeting and someone else clips it and washes it to transforms it into a rag quilt. This makes the 4th one made. It will go to a nursing home, I think.  A friend gave me all these flannel rectangles, so here is the first batch made into a quilt. Thanks, Deanna!

And now, as promised, I'll show you the placemats the girls made as they learned to use a sewing machine.  We decided to use scraps for them.  The girls learned to sew seams, measure, sandwich, quilt and bind.  I'm so proud of them. 


Megan's Placemat



Lauren's Placemat

The only thing I did for them was straighten edges so they could sew the subsequent straight seam.  I was a little bit hesitant for them to use a rotary cutter.  Maybe next year if we do it again.  Here are the backs: 

Lauren did some free motion quilting.

Megan did a sitd variaion for her quilting.

The girls put them to use for lunch that day.
They later informed me that they were going to use them as doll quilts as they matched the quilts they made earlier - LOL.

Design Wall Monday 8/1/11

I'm noticing a pattern here. I've posted new things I'm working on several mondays now and not much has been finished. It stops today - LOL - well sort of because one of the projects in the photo is new.  Clockwise, I'm working on a new rag quilt for St. Ann's.  I hand stitched a leaf and a center last week; want to do the rest before Thursday.  Keep working on Em's quilt and get it out the door.

Is that so much to do?

Check out what others have on their design wall by going over to Judy's Patchwork Times on the left sidebar.

SAHRR Round 5 and 6

  Ready to show rounds 5 and 6. Actually, the prompt for 5 was make 4 of something. So I chose four patch, and actually since that made my q...