A Sampler!

It all started [in Jan 2017] with being bored and not really wanting to face up the prospect of having to move house and live in a Caravan Park until the next house was ready.  You know the scene, scrolling, procrastinating, not wanting to face reality, "I really want to start something new"...  all those wonderful excuses we give ourselves?  

As I was scrolling, I came across the 182 Day Solstice Challenge - a fun, sampler quilt with blocks of all sizes jumping into the mix for the fun of playing together.  

The blocks I've made so far, laid out on a bed sheet.  The large centre block is my own design.

I started with a beautiful piece of French Linen, some shot cotton and a background.  The rest of the bits coming from my stash.  

At the time, I took my little travel machine and sewed while sitting in the "budget" cabin at the caravan park while my boys started at their new school and my DH went to work.  This project was a bit like a saving grace for me.  We were in a new town and I was looking at starting all over again with getting into new groups, finding work and so on.  It gave me an excuse to go and check out the local quilt shops and have a focus on something other than moving house.

And, after the move?  I worked on it for a little while until I lost 1 single solitary triangle from the centre panel.  Yep, you guessed it - this project has then sat in it's tub, patiently waiting in the cupboard until last week, when it jumped off the top shelf and into my hands while I was looking for something I could cut out and prepare for Friday Quilt Group.

When I opened the box the blessed lost triangle was sitting on top looking at me!  Seriously!  After huffing and puffing at myself (grrr) about the triangle, I sat down very calmly and put the block together, framed it and voila!  I LOVE that big middle block.

After making 4 blocks last Friday, I just felt happy.  It is so good to have a focus for this project and to see the direction it is heading in.  Once the blocks are completed, there will be some filler sections to make, but they can wait.😉

Today, I got all of the remaining blocks cut and they are now in plastic sleeves with their patterns, ready for tomorrow's quilt group gathering. 

**  The blocks from the 182 Day Solstice Sampler Challenge can be found here.

Happy New Year!

image from:  dreamstime.com

My wish for 2023 is peace, love, happiness and finding the joy in all that you do.

For the first time in a few years, I am feeling good and positive about the year that is ahead of us.  I have some goals that I know can achieve and; for the first time in a long, long time, my DH and I have a common goal to achieve.

First up on my NYE resolutions is to get this blog up and running again.  2022 seemed to have "sucked everything out of me" with excess paid working hours, 2 bouts of sickness and some awful family injuries/illness.  Now, the time has come to leave all of that behind and begin again - A Fresh New Start.

I have some travel planned; reduced my contracted work hours and have a goal to get some of my gorgeous projects out of their containers/zip loc baggies and see them come to fruition.

I have so many things I want to finish:  cross-stitch, knitting, quilting - piecing and actual quilting; as well as creative writing - I need my groove back!

With all that said, I am signing off now with the most heartfelt New Year wishes to all.  May 2023 bring everything that your heart desires.

Much love,

Andrea xxx

Purple Butterflies

I found this post sitting as a draft in my blog post list.  It has been waiting since 9th August 2020 to get its time to show off, simply because I hadn't taken a photo of the finished quilt!  Yes, I could have back-dated the post so that it would go in chronological order of quilt finishes, but then I decided to publish it here and now so that Purple Butterflies can have it's own time to shine.

Back in January 2017, I wrote that I had stopped working on this project 2 years earlier because I didn't like the applique thread I had chosen as it was too light.  I didn't realise at the time that it would take me another 2 years to find the right thread for the applique.  Turns out, purples are really hard to match!

Butterflies fused in place, but not sewn.

In March of 2017 we moved house to another part of the State and, you guessed it, this project was once again packed away.  Then, finally, in February 2019, I was finally able to start stitching down the applique.  I completed this task in April 2019.

Ready to get finished, with binding, backing,
 quilting and applique threads all together.

I used a beautiful dark, dark purple rayon 100wt thread, which flowed so smoothly through my little travel machine.  The stitch used was buttonhole at 2.0 x 2.0 so that I could get around some of those little circles.

Packed away again, for whatever reason, this was finally quilted.  I used my favourite tumbling hearts/leaves all over design with variegated pastel purple 50wt thread.

Seriously, this quilt, was determined to not be finished - I had to purchase some new fabric for the binding because the previous one was made TOO SHORT and I had no fabric left!!!  Arrgghhh......!!

In a stroke of good fortune, I found a fabric for the binding which matched so much better than the original fabric.  I think it was meant to be.

One single, extra butterfly was appliqued onto the backing.  She was one too many for the front, so now gets to shine on her own.  

Backing onto front peek.

The alphabet backing fabric has the most perfect colours for matching the front.

TA DA.....  here is the finished quilt.  Unfortunately the fold lines are showing, but now it's been refolded to give those creases a chance to relax.

 For a quilt that had so many issues with the making, it has turned out so soft and pretty.   I am super pleased with how this quilt turned out.  I guess the seemingly difficult ones do turn out the best!

12 Fat Quarters - So Simple!

A new set of 12 Fat Quarter and a super easy pattern - this is a sure fire way to get the sewing mojo happening!  I'd had the Fat Quarters for a few weeks before deciding what to make with them.  They are so gorgeous, especially some of the weird and funky flowers in the bigger prints.

The 12 Fat Quarters - ready to cut....

I cut out all the blocks and sewed them up in January 2020.  They got packed away and my sewing room was turned into an extra room for a belated Christmas celebration with Hubby's family.

Blocks made and laid out.

They stayed packed away until May 2021, when in the midst of another set of "stay at home" lockdown orders and the late Autumn/early Winter blues were setting in.  I decided to open the box and let the joyous colours help me beat those 'blues'.  

Can almost see the quilting detail.

I was hoping the photo above would show a detail of the quilting, but it hasn't come up as well as I would've liked.  I quilted this quilt in a lime green thread on my domestic sewing machine with a tumbling heart-shaped leaf design.

The piece of fabric for the backing was not quite the correct size, so the left-over squares and fabric pieces were added.

And, of course there must be the shot of the backing onto the front.  The orange binding is just the ticket for creating a good contrast between the front and back.

Finished Quilt - measures 49in x 56in

Here is the finished quilt.  Taking the photo on quite an overcast day has really made the colours sing.  Unfortunately, the fold lines show, so it's been re-folded along different lines and put aside until it's forever home becomes known to me.

Pattern used:  So Simple by MODA.

Small Sampler Quilt

This is a quilt that I started in April 2009.  Yep, that long ago.  I was gifted the original pattern Golden Memories Sampler by Lori Smith a few months earlier for Christmas and I chose a fat quarter pack of fabric a short time later.  I started making the blocks, but wasn't "in love" with them, so I put the whole project away.  And.... it stayed away for a very, very long time.

Fast forward to October 2020; I decided to pull this particular project out of hiding and take a look at where I was at and assess what to do with the blocks I'd already made.  In the end, I decided simplicity was my friend.  I ditched the original pattern and joined the blocks together with sashing and cornerstones.

A very conventional setting, but very effective.  A trip to the local quilt shop for the lovely denim blue linen narrow border and binding, plus the purple border fabric so that I could get the quilt top completed.

Two weeks ago, I quilted this quilt with a lovely soft, variegated purple thread on my domestic sewing machine.  I quilted cables in the border and did 'stitch in the ditch', combined with tumbling leaves for the blocks and sashing. 

For quilt that I wasn't sure I liked, I have ended up being blown away by what I achieved with this one.  I'm so very happy.

On the 1st of October, I gifted this quilt to one of the most beautiful 'old' ladies you could ever meet.  At 87, she is so active and on the ball that she is inspiring.  She was a member of my local quilt group, but gave up all crafting and disposed of her craft items approximately 12 months ago. 

What I wrote on the label is why I specifically finished this quilt for her:  

A couple of years ago you asked me if I could make you a quilt and I said yes – so here it is with purple and a few other colours thrown in for a good measure.  This is to keep you warm in winter and for comfort if you ever need a hug. 

Finishing at 40in x 48in, she is absolutely chuffed and says she will use it every night when watching TV.  

 

A Panel Challenge!

At the start of March, a challenge by Shelly at Prairie Moon Quilts was issued - A Panel Challenge.  Take a panel which has been languishing in your stash for a long time and make something from it.

I discovered that for a person who really does not like panels very much, that I have 10 of them!!

This panel I had initially purchased to make a tote bag with.  I really couldn't think of what else to do, but somehow had never gotten around to doing just that, until now.  BUT, I did start working again on a reverse hand applique UFO that needed a better bag than the torn paper shop bag I was using; AND Shelly had issued the panel challenge about the same time - talk about serendipity coming into play!

I do not remember how old this panel is, only that I have had in my stash for more than 10 years.  The Jacobean style flowers on it are gorgeous and the flowers in the vase with the red frame remind of those old tapestry fire-place screens.

The writing on the right hand side of the picture is instructions for turning the panel into a quilt.  I still have those instructions for using as a feature piece on another quilt sometime in the future.

The other half of the panel was these vines with leaves on them.  I managed to used three of the vines in making the back panel of the tote bag.  The remaining vine strip has also been put aside for a future use.

Because I wasn't completely sure how this bag was going to go together and I was determined to only use what I have on hand to make it, I auditioned some fabrics from my stash to see what would and wouldn't work.  In the end I kept it very simple by using the gold/cream print for the lining and the dark teal/blue tone-on-tone leaf print for the borders, handles and gusset pieces. 

I made the back of the bag first because that had more piecing and cobbling together and I had to do some cutting and joining of the vine strips to make them the same length as the flower row.  The printing of the flower squares was quite "off grain" which meant careful cutting and joining together to get something resembling straight.

The front of the bag was simply a case of trimming the edges straight and adding borders to bring it up to the same size as the back.

Super simple gusset construction with easy rectangles for the base and side panels.  I then made a second bag body with the lining fabric, added the handles, top-stitched around the top of the bag to stop the lining from pulling out and sewed up the turn hole on the inside and it was done!  Two half days of work and it was done!

I did not use any wadding/batting because I want it to squash down for easy packing with travel projects and then it can 'flop open' on a table at sewing days.

The front of the bag is shown above and the back of the bag is shown below.

And... inside the bag is the above-mentioned reverse applique project from 2012 which I have not touched since 2012 until a couple of months ago - oops - that I put into this bag so my new tote bag from a panel has an intended purpose.

A "one-off" bag that I am very happy to have made and I met the challenge requirements too!!  

**  There is no pattern for my Panel Bag.  I made it up as I went along with ideas jotted in my notebook.  
 

Red and White Log Cabin Star

I had a brainwave to make a log cabin quilt from my red and white fabrics.  My gorgeous friend Sue was turning 50 and she loves red.  She also has a white leather couch that looks fabulous.  

An afternoon of planning with Electric Quilt 8 (EQ8) software and a quilt pattern was born.  Then came the cutting.  It felt like I was cutting into my fabrics for a very long time - when I added it all up, this quilt used a whopping 7.75m in the blocks alone.  Add to that the backing and binding and it totaled 12.25m used in the entire quilt!  

I put all the individual components into little ziploc bags with labels and took then to sewing days and set them up for chain piecing.  At one point I stood up and looked over the back of my machine to take a photo (below).  I'm glad I knew what I was doing, even if others looking at it didn't!

Even though I had designed the quilt in EQ8, the layout still took quite a bit of time to get the final placement of the blocks to look good.  It was my 16yr old son who decided to turn a couple of blocks around to make the star really stand out.  I had been staring at the quilt for  a really long time trying to make the star look more obvious and he nailed it in about 2 seconds flat!

In the photo below, I was trying to get a close up of the quilting detail while my "quilt holders" were mucking around and moving the quilt.  I quilted the quilt on my domestic sewing machine with a 40wt YLI variegated pastel thread in a swirling heart/leaf design. 

A backing onto the front peak.  The colour combos are gorgeous.

Finishing at 64in x 80in (1.6m x 2m) it's a good size for a bed or for wrapping up in on the couch when the weather is wintry.  An aborignal print fabric makes for a great backing, especially when the name of my friends property acknowledges the 'traditional owners' of the land upon which they live.

Red and White Log Cabin Star was gifted to Sue-Ann on 13th March at her 50th Birthday Party.  A beautiful night of cocktails, sumptuous food, 'after 5' dressing up and girlfriends held in a stunning venue.  Pure bliss. xxx

Green Ocean Waves

 Half square triangles.  A "bazillion" of them, or so it seemed at the time.  Over the years, I had been cutting up left over pieces of green from my quilt making into 3.5in squares and then turning them into half square triangles (hsts).

Counting the hsts.

The white fabric was a reject from another project, where it appeared to be "too white" but worked perfectly in this project.  After making and trimming to size all of the hsts, I then had to find pieces of green to make up the bigger plain squares.

Selecting the fabrics for the plain squares.

In an Ocean Waves quilt there are 3 block types:  A, B and C.  It's all about the directions of the triangles in the blocks.  So row 1 is A, C, A, C and then row 2 is C, B, C, B and so-on until the whole quilt top is laid out.

Laying out the quilt top.

I pieced all the A blocks first, then the B and finally the C.  That was fine.  The tricky bit was the layout and keeping the triangles going the 'correct' way with the block placement.  It did play tricks with my eyes and thankfully I pieced the top at a Retreat, so there many opinions in the room!  I found it interesting by the divide of opinion in the room.  It was like or dislike!  Having so much green was quite polarising for some.

Then came the pressing before quilting.  All those seams!  I pressed a bit, took a break, pressed a bit more.

I quilted Green Ocean Waves with a wave design and used a khaki coloured thread which blended beautifully with both the white and the green  

More green for the backing, with the meandering line and dots, I really liked how it set off  and complimented the colours on the front.

The first whole quilt photo was taken indoors and it glows.

And.... here is the whole quilt photo, taken outdoors in the late afternoon dappled sunlight.  Awesome!

I gifted this quilt to my 15yr old nephew K for Christmas 2020.  As soon as unwrapped the gift, he wrapped himself up in it, then opened it up and spread it across the couch, covering up his Nana and Dad at the same time.  He was very, very happy.  Being a teenager, I wasn't quite sure how the quilt would be received.

The next morning, he asked me a whole lot of questions about how I made the quilt, did I cut out all the triangles individually, how did I put it together for quilting......  My Sister (his Mum) said to me later that he had been complaining about all the "blankies" being too small to cover him while watching tv or lounging around and he had been asking for a bigger one.  She was happy too.  

I am happy.  The response from K was far better than I could have imagined.