Going Green

A new project.

The rotary cutter has had a workout.

I can't wait to get stitching.

Just waiting for the postman...  He seriously knows I need the parcel with the linen in it.  Where is he today? Tuesday IS parcel day after all.

The Finished Gobstopper Quilt

Finished Quilt measures 49 inches x 49 inches

The Gobstopper Quilt is quilted, has its binding firmly stitched in place, and has been delivered to my Etsy Store.    - now sold.

The story behind the name of this quilt is one where I asked my 15 year old son to suggest a name for this quilt.  His immediate 15 year old boy response was "The Circle Quilt".  I asked him to perhaps think outside of the square, and promptly named it The Gobstopper Quilt - his favorite candy purchased by his Gran as a treat.

The backing for this quilt is a vivid red fabric with large white polka dots.  I think it works well with overall bright and cheerful theme of the quilt.  This backing fabric is one that I insisted on washing before use, but found that there was no color run at all.  Red fabric is notorious for bleeding into other fabrics, none was noted, the rinse water ran clear.  Nice!

It feels great to have this one finished.  It is satisfying to know that those nasty curved blocks can be tackled by machine, and actually come together as a full circle quite well.  I definitely will make another quilt with curved piecing.

This quilt is now available for sale in my Etsy Store.  Feel free to ask any questions you may have. - SOLD

Rita

RELEVANT LINKS:
Work in Progress 1 - Gobstopper Quilt
Work in Progress 2 - Gobstopper Quilt

Sunday Stash #36

Liberty Tana Lawn fabrics - very classic and traditional British fabrics, 100% cotton, finely woven, lightweight, soft and durable with the most lovely drape.   These fabrics are ideal for blouses, skirts and sleepwear, but of course for use in special quilts.  

Liberty fabrics are expensive, and therefore somewhat limited in my stash.  Slowly I am building up my own Liberty collection, purchasing the occasional fat quarter.  I have a feeling a pink quilt is in the planning stages in my head.

My collection of pink Liberty was purchased at Patchwork on Central Park.  A good selection is also available online at Calico and Ivy and  Purl Soho.

Gobstopper Progress

Adding borders posed much less of a problem than the piecing of the circle blocks.  Half Square Triangles are my favorite block, so easy to construct, versatile, and adds so much impact to a quilt.

I have been down on the floor, basting this quilt.  Although I do find this part of the process a chore I do take my time, ensuring that the backing, batting and quilt top are all perfectly smooth and aligned.  A well basted quilt is tantamount to a quilt without puckers, tucks and fabric distortion.   Excess fabric cannot be "quilted out" as you go along, believe me I have tried!

I use pins, lots of pins.

Bee Imaginative - January 2010

I am participating in the Bee Imaginative Block Swap which is starting this month.

First up is Kerri from Lovely Little Handmades, who is building her own village of mini houses in the spirit of this quilt made by Ingrid Press. 

Originally uploaded here.

Kerri's choice of fabrics is the fresh and modern color combination of red and aqua, and included some much sought after Gnome fabric by Heather Ross.

The finished block measures 15 1/2 inches square and the background fabric is Kona Cotton in Snow.

To see more of Kerri's little gnome village go to the Bee Imaginative Blog or the Bee Imaginative Flickr Group.

Curves

This quilt project has been on my design floor over most of the Christmas period, choosing fabrics at leisure, piecing at irregular intervals whenever I felt the need to sew, even whilst wrapping presents and basting the turkey. 

I have been wanting to practise curved machine piecing for some time, and although I think I have improved, I still don't enjoy curved piecing. 

I have used Matilda's Own Drunkard's Path templates to make the blocks.  And because I don't like tracing templates, nor cutting fabric with scissors, I have used a small rotary cutter to cut directly around the templates.  No tracing, no scissors, so much easier.

 

28mm Rotary Cutter

An even smaller rotary cutter (18mm) is available, but I found that this size managed the curved templates quite well.

I have used the 3 inch Drunkard's Path templates, with each complete and finished circle block measuring 6 inches.    100 three inch curved blocks and I am glad the center panel of this quilt is finished. 

Work on the borders has commenced, and these will add some geometric contrast.  No more curved piecing for now.  Phew! 

And the Winners are ...

And finally here are the winners!

The winner of the Hope Valley Quilt with comment #34 from Washington DC, USA is:

Jodi said...

Oh.My.Goodness.

I love that quilt.

Looking at it might make me brave enough to cut into my on HV stash!

January 5, 2010 1:15 PM

Bricks and Stones Quilt

The winner of the 18 fat eighths of Hope Valley fabric with comment #410 from Quebec, Canada is:

Margaret said...

I love to look at the pictures of your quilts-you know how

certain blogs use all the colours that you like and quilt in

straight lines too. Please enter me in your quilt drawing

January 5, 2010 11:05 PM

Congratulations to both winners, please check your emails! 

And what an amazing response - 1119 COMMENTS!  That is just more than I could ever have imagined.   Thank you to everyone who has participated in the giveaway.  Unfortunately there could only be two winners, and my apologies for those of you who have been disappointed.  Fortunately the pattern to make this quilt yourself is still available from my Etsy Store. 

Thank you again to everyone who has already purchased the pattern!  I look forward to seeing all the different versions of the Bricks and Stones Quilt.  A Flickr Group will be set up in due course to share your creations.

It is back to the sewing machine for me for now.  I am looking forward to some serious stitching.

Rita

Sunday Stash #35

It's great to be stashing again.

Anna Maria Horner 

Little Folks (voile) wich comes in three palettes 

Sugar Cookie, Moonlight & Playground.

 From left to right:

Forest Hills in Sweet

Coloring Garden in Berry

Baby Bouquet in Sweet

From left to right:

Forest Hills in Citrus

Coloring Garden in Sea

Little Honey in Meadow

Little Folks - Voile - is a lightweight, free flowing cotton fabric with a high thread count.  It has a really beautiful drape and is suitable for clothing and soft furnishings but surely also quilts!

Little Folks fabric stash was purchased online at Hawthorn Threads and Sewmamasew.

I can't wait to cut into these!

Just a reminder that the comments/entries to win the Bricks and Stones Quilt as detailed in the GiveAway post will be closing tonight, Sunday 10 January at 12 midnight AEDT.  The draw will take place on Monday, and the winner will be announced shortly thereafter. Good luck everyone!  Your enthusiasm and support has been totally overwhelming and much appreciated.

Bricks and Stones Quilt Pattern

Writing a quilt pattern was on the list of things to do in 2010.   I can hardly believe it myself that I have accomplished one of my main New Year's Resolutions within the first two weeks of the year!

Writing a pattern posed as one of those almighty mental hurdles, and after much encouragement from family, friends, and blog readers, I decided earlier this week just to start writing.  I have been best buddies with my computer ever since (although we certainly had our ups and downs!).

Bricks and Stones Quilt Pattern - PDF File

The Hope Valley Quilt featured in the GiveAway post has been renamed Bricks and Stones Quilt.  The pattern is suitable for beginner to intermediate sewers, and includes step by step photo guide and many of my own tips and hints to enjoy success in making this quilt. The pattern comes in a PDF format only and is available for immediate download upon receipt of payment ~ from my Etsy Store.

Thank you also for your incredibly positive response to my GiveAway post!    Good luck to everyone who has entered the draw, and to those of you who have not as yet already done so, it is not too late to leave a comment on the GiveAway post, and be in the running to win the actual Bricks and Stones Quilt. 

All Red Pepper Quilts patterns are now also available here:

Rita

Hope Valley and a GiveAway!

Happy New Year! It is great to be back from a short break, and I am certainly looking forward to all that 2010 may bring.

Last year was a wonderful year; blogging has not only created some great opportunities, it has also introduced me to some really creative and supportive bloggers, some of whom I have had the pleasure of meeting in person.

I am completely overwhelmed by how widely read, followed and commented upon my blog is! Please forgive me if at times I have not replied to your comments or responded to an email in a timely manner. I am grateful for all of your visits, regardless of whether you comment, follow, subscribe to, or have bookmarked this page.

So, as a token of my appreciation and thanks to all who read this blog, I am having a giveaway! There is much to celebrate:

218 posts

600+ followers

thousands of comments

231,000+ visitors

( The interest in numbers/stats lingers from my Accounting past!)

The back of the Hope Valley Quilt

To be in the draw all you have to do is leave a comment on this post, with the only requirement being that you provide either in your profile, or in your comment, an email address so that I can contact the winner!  International visitors are very welcome to enter!  Only one comment per person/email address will be eligible to enter the draw.

And the prize? The first name drawn will win the quilt featured throughout this post. Made with fabrics from the Hope Valley collection by Denyse Schmidt, machine pieced and quilted with straight line quilting.  This is an original design/layout,  and comprises some very traditional but simple piecing.

 First Prize - Hope Valley Quilt

The second name to be drawn will be sent 18 fat eights from the Hope Valley fabric range, more than 2 yards of fabric.  A great starter pack for a quilt, or this bundle makes for a great way to start adding to the fabric stash in 2010, if you have not already done so.

 Second Prize - 18 fat eights - Hope Valley by Denyse Schmidt

The draw will take place Monday 11 January 2010, at which time comments to this post will be closed. The winners will be announced here on my blog, and also contacted by email.  Good luck everyone!

ENTRY TO GO IN THE DRAW FOR THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED.