More Family Quilts on Friday

My daughter is the lucky owner of this quilt, inspired by a Christine Book pattern purchased at the Camden Quilt Show in October 2001. The pattern was for a lap quilt so I found numerous other pictures of hearts, increased the size of them all, then hand embroidered or appliqued them all in shades of blue. I coloured in a rough design of the quilt after reading a Jenny Beyer book on colour, trying to achieve a colourwash effect with dark hearts in the centre, light hearts in a heart shape and medium values around the edges.

My husband reluctantly took me to numerous quilt shops in our travels and was quite happy to find different blue fabrics for me. This was in my first year of quilting so he helped build my stash!

The quilt top was finished in time for my daughters 17th Birthday. She was quite surprised to find out that the quilt top she was sitting on, in the middle of the lounge room floor was actually hers. It took a while longer for it to be quilted. The centre back of the quilt is a panel that I embroidered a poem onto. The colours of the triangles and shadows of applique from the front of the quilt show through in this picture.

F is for Family Quilts

I come from a large family and since I started quilting have given most of my family members a quilt. One of the first quilts I gave to my mother, was from the first quilting class I did. It was a 2 day class in May 2002, with Michelle Marvig using bias tape and machine applique and I fussy cut some of the flowers. Both new techniques to me at the time. I then hand quilted hearts with a thick red pearl thread, and walking foot quilted the outer braid border, - also firsts for me. My mother has used this quilt on her bed since then and it has been washed many times. Fortunately the colour from the backing fabric no longer runs. It now adorns the bed in her nursing home so doesn't receive any special treatment when washed.

Friday's Featherweights

I have acquired another two Featherweight machines this week. I must stop buying them. These two still need me to do some work on them. So I must order some more spare parts.

I really do like the white 221k it is from After May 1967 according to it's handbook. I also have a soft spot for the 222k's as well, this one was made after March 1954 .

There are now 8 in the sewing room. Too many according to my husband, but if my quilting allies feel they need one they know who to ask!.

Wednesday's Wall

It has been a productive week.
I've designed a Log Cabin Quilt for the State Quilt Show, cut it out and even have 1/3rd of the blocks pieced.

I have started putting the binding on APQS 2009 swap quilt. I finished quilting this quilt in July last year, but kept putting of doing the binding as it has a lot of curves. Hopefully I can finished machining it this week and then hand stitich it next week.

I have even organised this months classes and done a mock up for next month. Plus the pattern is now done ready for a shop quilt too.

Customer quilts are all caught up on. If it wasn't windy and wet outside I would have to consider doing some gardening. Think I will wait until it is warmer though.

Tuesday's Tutor

I have been very fortunate to have spent 6 days of classes with Gloria Loughman, doing three of her classes. My first two days were some of the most enlightening quilt classes I have taken. They inspired me to TRY Free Motion Quilting for the very first time. This was in October 2004 and I was using a 30 year old Elna Supermatic that could not drop the feed dogs. From that class onward I then have quilted all my own quilts.

The background was painted with a heat set paint. The lightning strike was made using pieces of untwisted embroidery thread. Where the light couldn't get to the quilt the fabric remained white. I then stitched free motion the patterns of the strike, hills tree branches etc.

The picture of the gorge was made using small squares for the forest, a few of the rocks are hand painted, the water in the river is also painted. The tree fern in the foreground was my first try at 3D applique. Then covered my feed dogs and just scribbled the forest leaves, I won't show close-ups. Smaller rocks were quilted using embroidery thread in the bobbin.

Sunday's Visit to EKKA

I had a very early start this morning accompanying a neighbouring family and their 4 children under five years old to EKKA. I spent the day pushing the stroller around but I had plenty of time when the children were playing in the sandpit with the toy tractors or watching a Kids Stage play to do some of my own activities.

I was able to soak up some quilts and see mine of course. I've included a picture of my rosette - its huge. Well it is my first rosette. I am sure the centre is metal too.

Then I checked out some of the cake decorating and the garden displays, so I've included those too. I had an earlier exit than the familyi was with, as when my husband finished umpiring at the SE Queensland Masters Softball, he was able topick me up. I may well be in bed before my neighbours are!

F is for Friday and First Quilt

I would not have started quilting if we had not bought a King Size bed. I couldn't find a Doona Cover that I really liked, to match the curtains, so decided to make a quilt instead. I had been an avid reader of my Mother-in-Law's extensive quilting book library for many years. I was not a huge fan of little triangles and squares so

my first quilt was a King Size Drunkard's Path. I drew up the templates on an ice cream container lid and traced onto the fabric with a lead pencil. Cut out all the pieces with a pair of scissors, pinned and stitched together. Lay it out on the loungeroom floor and worked out an order I wanted to put them in. Took more than a few days! Then put each row in order in labelled plastic bags, my saving grace.

I then joined it and realised I wanted it bigger so purchased more fabric to make a border then the dilemma of what to do in the corners. Four blocks - perfect! Sent it to a Longarmer with the instructions to stitch 1/4" from the seams - little did I know then! I got it back from the longarmer in November 2001 and even then it cost $250 for the quilting.

Came time to bind it - I had never read that far in the books! So it is an inch wide with batting only 1/4" and the corners are squared off.

My piecing and quilting have come a long way in 9 years

Wednesday's Wall

I am a finisher. I like to start a project and then work through it to completion. With everything else I am trying to do at the same time I find it best to write myself lists and put them on the walls of my sewing room.

I write them on Laminated A3 sheets of paper and write on them in a whiteboard marker. That way I can erase completed projects.

Today I am rubbing out 1 customer quilt that is completed, and one shop Project that is completed.

There are still 5 things on my Design & Make chart ( Ihaven't even started these yet).
4 things on the piecing chartor should I call that works in progress. 6 on the shop chart - I like to have an idea of where I am heading with my classes(my yearly plan).

The Houston Shopping list - just keeps growing. 8 different suppliers I want to check out.

Everywhere I look while I am in my sewing room, reminds me that THIS IS MY WORK and I better get on with the job!

At the moment it is a mess, and I need to do the ironing - it lives in here too - but I am off to Community Quilts today. How many bindings can we get done on TWBHQuilts?

News from the Ekka

While enjoying a morning of stitching with the Toowomba Quilters Club Inc this morning I received a phone call from the EKKA. The quilt I had entered, "Featheration" was awarded second place in the Professional Pieced category. I was pretty excited. Even more so when I found out who the winner quiter was.

It feels good to be recognised for my work.

A traditional pieced Feathered star that started out as a one block quilt, but I enjoyed the piecing process so much that I made nine large pieced stars and then four Foundation pieced 8" stars. Those tiny ones took me five hours each to piece!!!! Most of the piecing was done on one of my trusty Featherweight machines so the name of the quilt has many connotations.

Of course with a name like Featheration I then quilted it heavily with feathers.