Gone Quilting

The Fair and Square Quilt top has progressed to the quilting stage.

I am going to quilt straight diagonal lines through the larger solid squares as well as some more concentrated cross-hatching through those blocks pieced from the much smaller squares.

As usual I am marking lines with a Hera Marker.  A Hera Marker marks a temporary faint crease on the fabric (as pictured above - just to the right of the - - - - - line) without any messy residue.  Using a ruler I mark one or two lines at a time.  The crease lines helps take the wobble out of my stitching and is obvious enough to follow accurately.  I would be lost without it!

And the backing fabric:

Truly, after piecing overload last week, I just couldn't bear the thought of piecing a backing for this quilt.  As it happens I found this large scale print on sale at my local patchwork store.  The creamy/white background matches the solid Kona Cotton (Snow),  used for the quilt top, perfectly.
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I hope you have a happy stitching day!

Bee Imaginative - July and August 2010

I have spent some time getting up to speed with the Bee Imaginative virtual quilting bee.

July blocks for Ryan - Ryan asked for Asterisks blocks (made using this nifty tutorial).

These Asterisk blocks initially looked quite complicated to piece, but once I got started they really were very easy and came together rather quickly.

August blocks for Kate - Kate asked for a simple square in a square block. 

Kate's blocks will be used to make a Bento Box quilt.  Each block Kate receives will be cut into quarters, rearranged and pieced together again.  Lots of examples of Bento Box Quilts can be seen on Flickr. (absolutely love Kate's choice of fabrics!)

More Bee Imaginative block swappers here.

Sunday Stash #63

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Some local stashing this week, with an eye for black, white and grey:

All are Japanese imports except for the small scale floral print which is a Windham Feedsack VI ca 1930 print.

And for some color inspiration this week I have also stashed some yarn with the intention of enjoying a little crochet when out and about.

Enjoy Sunday!

Fair and Square

My head is in a spin after finishing up this quilt top. Little did I realize what I had started.  All of it was planned in my head, without sitting down to see if I could be more efficient in cutting or stitching.   I just wish I had drawn up a plan to allow for some more strip piecing.  As it is, the blocks are all pieced at random!

Some of the stats:

1,150 pieces

many hours cutting and pressing

quilt top measures 63 inches x 63 inches

I wish you could see the actual quilt, it is nowhere near as dizzying to look at, and the design is a lot more obvious.

For this quilt I used Robert Kaufman Kona Cotton in Snow rather than the usual White as the background sold fabric. The Snow colorway is a little warmer, more like a creamy white.  The contrast between the solid and the prints is still strong.  I am pleased with the overall look of the quilt, although I am not ready to move away from Kona White permanently.

Now for the backing; I am not sure if I am up for more piecing just yet!

Progress

Just in case you are wondering what I am up to this week:

I am still piecing blocks with tiny squares.  Each block measures 13 inches x 13 inches and is made up of  100 pieces each.  Each finished square measures 1.25 inches.  Tiny!

I do love how the blocks look laid out next to each other, however this layout is not going to be how the final design will come together. I am busy piecing another block with which the above blocks will be alternated.

Hopefully the final layout will come together as planned.  More pictures soon.

Rita

Sunday Stash #62

Kaffe Fassett ~ Gazania GP03-C ~ discontinued.

This is another one of those fabrics that I overlooked when it was in abundance.  However this week I found myself at the right place at the right time  (it was even priced very fairly for a much sought after fabric) and it soon arrived on my veranda. 

Gazania by Kaffe Fasett was printed in several color ways, some of which I have stashed in small quantities (less than 1/2 yard).

Enjoy Sunday!

Work in Progress

Just a quick post to show you that I have started on a new project. 

The squares are small and progress is slow and steady.   This is probably my favorite kind of piecing,  and to some extent it is perseverance sewing.  However, I don't get bored piecing endless four-patch units as I enjoy the color and fabric play and  just know that the final result will be well worth the effort.

Many more four-patch units still need to be pieced.

Down Under Doll Quilt Swap #1

Swap Quilt #1 ~ hopefully of many more to come as I have really enjoyed piecing and quilting the doll quilt.

I have quilted this doll quilt with a diagonal grid intersecting in the center of each square (cross hatching).  The squares created by the diagonal stitching lines are small, measuring just 1 inch each. 

As this is a small project, 24 inches x 24 inches, basting was quick and easy, as was the quilting.  I was able to baste this mini quilt on my work table, which takes the hard work out of this task.  Furthermore, the squares of the quilt top are small, therefore no quilting lines were marked.  When stitching small distances without marking, that is, from diagonal corner to corner through a block, it helps to look at the point that you are stitching to rather than looking at the actual stitching/needle.

I cannot wait to send this off to my secret partner.

A Trip Around the World

I am working on a mini-quilt made for my secret partner in my first ever Doll Quilt Swap:  The Down Under Doll Quilt Swap.

As a regular reader of my partner's blog I know she loves all things bright and colorful.  My partner's sewing skills are an inspiration, and it was not without trepidation that I set out making this doll quilt.

I was indecisive about the quilt design, changed plans several times, and then decided to stick with a striking "Trip Around the World" block pieced with 2 inch squares, using some of my favorite fabrics.

I really enjoy this kind of piecing; simple and repetitive but also effective and eye-catching, involving lots of fabric play.  Each one of the 289 pieces (cut as 2 inch squares)  were laid out on my design floor and then chain pieced in rows, carefully picking up the pieces of each row ensuring not to mess up the design.

Next up: quilting. 

RELEVANT LINKS:
A Trip Around the World Finished Doll Quilt
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Sunday Stash #61

I think I showed great restraint at the Melbourne Craft and Quilt Fair.  

These were my only fabric purchases from the Craft Fair;  a cute little stack from Ballarat Patchwork, from top to bottom they are:

• Kei Honeycomb - grey dots on white and then orange dots on white
• Prints Charming - Rainbow Garden in Chatruese and also in orange (the bottom one)
• an orange dot on yellow - manufacturer and other details unknown
• Monaluna - Mingle - Squares in Steel

Admittedly there were also some fabric arrivals during the week that deserve a mention.  From Quilthome:

These prints are from the Marylebone collection and are based on original artwork from the 1875 Liberty textile archives. Kaffe Fassett has selected the prints for this collection from the Liberty archives, and then created the scale and colors for each the design.

I am looking forward to seeing many more such designs being reproduced.

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Enjoy Sunday!