Sunday Stash #152 - Nursery Versery by Heather Ross

Nursery Versery by Heather Ross for Kokka ~ A collection of four different prints, each offered in at least three colorways.

I did try to resist the urge to purchase this collection - I still haven't used the earlier stashed Heather Ross ~ Far Far Away III collection! - alas, I lasted all but about a week or so.  The cutesy factor pulled me in; I blame those little pink pigs ...

.... and the family of country mice!  The Nursery Versery collection is printed on what I truly think is a lovely quality lightweight cotton/linen blend (85% cotton / 15% linen) suitable for a range of crafting projects,  including quilts!

Enjoy Sunday!
Rita

Summer's End ~ A Pink Castle Blogger Bundle

Summer's End ~  RPQ blogger bundle

16 Fat Quarters

Now available from Pink Castle Fabrics 

20% off all Blogger Bundles with code:  blogger20

TEMPORARILY SOLD OUT ~ MORE STOCK COMING SOON (AUG 22/23)

• Fly A Kite Floral in Orange
• Scandi in Coal
• Headliner in Black
• Mono Pez in Orange 
• Verona Dot in Rouge
• Morning Glory in Coral
• Kona in Carrot
• Bikini in Yellow 
• Zig Zag in Licorice
• Metro Living Circles in White
• That's It Dot in Black
• How To Make A Pillowcase in White
• Songbird in Green
• Forget Me Not in Sugar
• Leaf and Dot in Gray 
• Seaside Dot in Red

Thank you, Brenda!  I thoroughly enjoyed browsing your online store to compile a bundle of fabrics  that are a reflection of my color and design style. 

Rita

Bloomsbury Gardens Quilt II

With every good intention to tidy up after finishing each quilt, I may have sidetracked a little when fondling folding my leftover Liberty Lifestyle ~ Bloombury Gardens fabric scraps.

Out came the rotary cutter and in a process similar to that described in the Postage Stamp Quilt Tutorial this quilt top came together quickly with very random fabric placement and a late night of stitching, cross-cutting fabric strips and re-arranging blocks.

This is probably one of the busiest quilt tops I have ever made, but I do like it.  The fabrics are so very pretty, and they were easy to work with even for these small (2.5 inch finished) patchwork squares.  

And that's the end of my Bloomsbury Gardens fabric bundle.  I am looking forward to re-stashing when this collection becomes more readily available in stores, although I promise to hold off cutting into it for a while.  You are probably ready for a little more variety?  Too much of a good thing ....

Thank you for stopping by,
Rita

Relevant Links:

Bloomsbury Gardens Fabric Collection

Bloomsbury Gardens Quilt (A Snowball Quilt)

Bloomsbury Gardens ~ A Finished Quilt

Happy Tuesday!

And a finished quilt.  I have loved working with the Bloomsbury fabric collection and I think this traditional patchwork design ~ alternating a snowball block with a plain block ~ is perfect for showing off the rather pretty paisley and floral prints. 

Bloomsbury Gardens Quilt ~ Finished Size 52 inches x 60 inches

I admit I am not usually taken by dainty floral prints but this collection might see a change in my fabric stashing habits.  I think I need to keep my eye out for small scale prints, in particular eclectic floral prints in a range of modern colors/designs.

For the back of the quilt I have used a solid off-white fabric as well as a panel of patchwork using some of my leftover Bloomsbury squares.   The back of the quilt also clearly details the quilting grid.  The quilting lines echo the seam lines of the patchwork "stars" that can been seen in the quilt top.

For a change, and because I didn't have sufficient yardage of any of these prints, I have pieced a scrappy quilt binding.  This, much to my surprise,  I do like!  And although I'd rather not jinx it by telling you, I usually have much luck with the more bulky binding seams rarely falling at the corner of the quilt, even for this quilt with more than 9 joins.

I have updated my Etsy Store.  You'll find the listing for this quilt here:  Modern Patchwork Quilt ~ Bloomsbury Gardens   SOLD

Thank you for stopping by,
Rita

Relevant Links:

Bloomsbury Gardens ~ A Quilt in Progress
Bloomsbury Gardens ~ A Liberty Lifestyle Collection

Sunday Stash #151 - Chicopee by Denyse Schmidt

A brand new collection by Denyse Schmidt:

Chicopee by Denyse Schmidt

26 quilting cottons in two distinct color palettes - Relish and Push Pop - in vibrant colors and prints that are evocative of 1970's Americana.

I was rather excited to get my hands on these!  Reminiscent of the earlier (2009) Denyse Schmidt Hope Valley fabric collection but with an extra zing in color as well several light background prints that are definitely in the running as "favorites":

Chicopee 

•  Voltage Dot in Black, Lime and Red
• Paisley in Lime and Red
• Circle Cross in Green and Red

Enjoy Sunday!

Rita

Bloomsbury Gardens in Progress

I was a little undecided on what to do with my bundle of Bloomsbury Gardens fabric but eventually decided to go with a traditional design to highlight the beautiful colors and in particular the gorgeous floral prints.

I have alternated a printed fabric square with a Snow Ball Block.   It was really easy and relaxing sewing although I had some issues pressing the little triangles.  It took a little more than usual effort to persuade the seams to be pressed into a crisp clean lines.  More steam!  

However, the quilt top came together really beautifully and any doubts that I'd had about the layout and the effect soon disappeared.  I have used Robert Kaufman Kona WHITE as a background fabric.

Next up:  backing, basting, quilting, binding!  It's going to be another busy weekend.

Thank you for stopping by,

Rita

Relevant links:

Bloomsbury Gardens ~ A Liberty Lifestyle Collection

Bloomsbury Gardens ~ A Liberty Lifestyle Collection

The Liberty Lifestyle collection is a new range of standard quilting (and crafting) cotton by Liberty of London. The first collection  ~ Bloomsbury Gardens ~ consists of five different color palettes and eleven prints.  A total of 55 prints (not all pictured here).

Bloomsbury Gardens is an eclectic mix of prints and colors inspired by the historic district of London, an area well known for it's beautiful garden squares and historic architecture.

Bloomsbury Gardens is scheduled to arrive in stores in August.  (Watch this space for updates)

I have already cut into my stash.  It's lovely to work with!

More soon,

Rita

RELEVANT LINKS:
Bloomsbury Gardens I  - A Finished Quilt 
Bloomsbury Gardens II - A Finished Quilt
Liberty Lifestyle - Stile Collection
Stile Collection - A Finished Quilt

Sunday Stash #150

First up, a little Spoonflower stashing!  Spoonflower is a custom fabric printing service, which allows you to upload your own textile designs, printing only what you need on fabric weight of your choice.  You can also purchase fabrics designed by other Spoonflower community members.

These three designs are by Kajsa Wikman, digitally printed by Spoonflower on Robert Kaufman Kona cotton.  I adore these prints!  See all of Kajsa designs here:  Spoonflower:  Syko

 

Next, some hand screen printed fabrics by Karen from Blueberry Park:

Karen is a self taught designer and hand screen printer of fabric.  I adore Karen's simple and geometric designs!  All designs are printed on beautiful quality linen with water based paint and heat set to make it washable.

See more of Karen's fabric designs and handmade products here:  Blueberry Park @ Etsy

I am always on the look out for these special prints; a unique - and highlight - fabric to feature in a quilt and at the same time support emerging businesses and designers with fresh and modern ideas.

Enjoy Sunday!

Rita

Butterfly Block Tutorial

By popular demand, and because after much messing about I eventually worked out my own rotary cutting and piecing instructions,  I have written a tutorial for a Butterfly Block.

You will need:

Rotary Cutter and Mat

Ruler
60 Degree Triangle Ruler
Sewing Machine and ¼ inch presser foot
Iron (lots of steam preferred)

Fabric requirements for each block:

• 2 Butterfly Wings (green printed fabric) each measuring 2 1/8 inches x 5 inches

• 1 Butterfly Body (text fabric) - measuring 1 ¼ inches x 5 inches

• 4 Background pieces (black fabric) cut as follows:

From the width of the background (black fabric) cut a strip - or multiple strips - 2 ¾ inches (2.75 inches) wide. With the 60 degree triangle ruler, and alternating with a standard straight ruler, cross-cut the strip as pictured at regular intervals.  Precision is not so important, although keep the angle correct.  I used 2 yards of Robert Kaufman Kona Cotton in Pepper for my Butterfly Quilt, more than I had first anticipated.


Let's get started:

Place the 60 degree Triangle Ruler so the bottom left and bottom right hand corners of the Butterfly Wing fabric are exactly on the outer edge of the triangle ruler (as pictured above). I have placed some tape on the down-side of my ruler to assist with quick placement; the top edge of the tape abuts the bottom edge of the fabric.

Trim with rotary cutter.

Using a ¼ inch seam allowance sew the background fabric to the Butterfly Wings

Press seams:

Trim these units as follows:

Place a standard ruler along the outer edge of the Butterfly Wing as pictured.  (Please bear with me here as I am left-handed, and use a left handed ruler - the numbers on your ruler probably run from right to left).  This unit needs to be trimmed to just 4 ½ inches wide; accurate piecing will result in 1/8th inch of background (black fabric) on BOTH SIDES of the outer edge of the Butterfly Wing unit):

Trim the side and top edge with rotary cutter:

Turn the Butterly Wing unit around and align the outer right edge (or the left if you are using a right handed ruler) of the unit at the 4 ½ inch mark of the ruler, and the bottom edge of the Butterfly Wing unit at the 2 1/8 inch line of the ruler (as pictured below):

Once you've pieced a few Butterfly Wings you will begin notice the consistent stop and start points of the background fabric:  see the top edge of the ruler at 1 3/8 inches and 3 1/8 inches, as indicated by the red arrows (above).

Using a scant ¼ inch seam allowance sew the body of the Butterfly (the text fabric) first to one wing.  Trim excess body fabric.  Then sew the body to the opposite wing.  Press seams together towards the body, away from the wings.

The butterfly Block measures 4 ½ inches x 4 ½ inches.  If you find that your block is on the small side, be sure to cut a little more generous (particularly the Butterfly Wings - cut a slightly generous 2 1/8 inch wide).

Repeat times 180!

Any questions?  Please leave your questions in the comments section and I will reply there as others may also benefit from further clarification.

Happy Stitching!
Rita

Relevant Links:

The Finished Butterfly Quilt
The Butterfly Quilt in Progress 
Text/Word fabrics ~ details and sources
Another variation of the Butterfly Block - larger block size (please do check it out as your might find this variation works better for you)   Tutorial by Mrs Schmenkman Quilts

60 degree Triangle Ruler available from:

The Fat Quarter Shop 
Fort Worth Fabric Studios

Robert Kaufman Kona Cotton in Pepper available from:

The Fat Quarter Shop

A Butterfly Quilt

Get ready for an overload of pictures!

Butterfly Quilt

Measures 48.5 inches x 60.5 inches (or 1.23m x 1.54m)

180 Butterfly Blocks pieced together and quilted, but not without frustration.  The seam intersections are bulky but no more so than expected when sewing together patchwork blocks.  My fancy sewing machine was not impressed and once again the Juki - straight stitch only - machine came to the rescue.

I also agonized over the quilting.  With so many different contrasting fabrics, quite a lot of it black and some of it light/white, I couldn't decided on what color thread that I would be happy to see on the quilt.  I am not much of a fan of dark quilting lines on a light fabric, and vice versa.

And so, I decided to ditch-stitch the quilt.  All of the seam lines surrounding each Butterfly Block have been ditch stitched.  It was slow going but not difficult. (All of the images in this blog post are of the finished quilt).  Quilting detail wasn't necessary for this already interesting and busy quilt. I am really happy with the result.  The quilt is not heavily quilted and the look of the quilt has been preserved. 

For the back of the quilt I have used a Flea Market Fancy print - Dotted Leaf in Gray.  A favorite!

A traditional RPQ binding:

I've got a lot of pictures, please bear with me ...

This quilt is for sale!  Paypal only (major credit cards accepted) - use drop-down menu below to choose correct shipping destination.  Please don't hesitate to email me if you have any questions:  EMAIL  redpepperquilts@gmail.com

 SOLD

Thank you for stopping by!

Rita

NEXT UP: A much requested Butterfly Block tutorial!