Snow Dye

I read online about snow dyeing and since we can expect at least three months more snow it seemed like a good thing to try, especially since others are lamenting the melting of their snow. Nobody laments the snow leaving around here! This is the snow with the dye poured on. It's still melting so I'll show the result later today or tomorrow.



I am stalled on the Rosy because I need fusible web so what's a person to do but start another? I have a lot of brown scraps from my last three quilts so I thought it would be a good thing to use some of them. I love the middle strip but I'm not so sure about the squares on the sides. They seem a bit too big and busy but you can never tell at this stage. I'll continue and see if they stay or end up in the parts drawer. This one is quite a contrast to the Rosy.

Too Much?

I found some scraps of fusible web and made some more spirals.
The rosies are sewn on but not the spirals. Are there too many? Sometimes less is more. I have looked at it so much today that I can't see it any more.
The petals on the bottom and left will stick out beyond the border. If you look closely you can see where the white background ends. That is why that part looks a bit empty. When it is on a colored wall I think it will look different.

More Rosies

I am getting better at making these things. The yellow and pink one is the latest. The white and yellow one that I made yesterday had to go into the parts drawer. It disappeared on the white background.
It is much more difficult to arrange things when circles are involved. I want to make a lot more spirals but I need to get some more fusible web first. If you look closely, you will see that it has a white background and some of the rays will stick out from the edge. I need to get some gray or beige flannel for my design wall so that white will show up. It's probably not going to happen any time soon though. I'm too busy making these little wall hangings.

More Rosies

These things are even more adictive than I thought!

A New Technique

This one is all finished including the hanging sleeve unless I decide to add more beads later. I have lots of the colored stars so that could happen. When I went to add the strings of beads I couldn't find the thread I bought on the weekend. I used the floss again and found the thread when I was putting the beads and floss away. Oh well, next time.


This is a new quilt game technique called a Rosy. These ones are pretty big as you can see by the 18 inch ruler. I didn't have enough of the middle fabric unfortunately because I love the looks of it. I'm not sure about the dark petals. I may try something more toward blue with a yellow stripe in it. If I use these they will be attached with raw edge applique. In the book they use satin stitch but I'm not really into that look for these pieces.

I'm Getting There

Today I hung an 18 inch ruler beside the wall hanging so you can see the size. It is sewn together and I am starting to embellish. I decided that I didn't want a rectangle so the borders got cut up and insterted. After I looked at the picture I realized that the bottom right has no border. That has been corrected. The tiny silver stars and the colored ones are from the earrings I bought yesterday.

Today we are having a bad ice storm. It is raining (unheard of in Manitoba in Feb.) and freezing as it lands. The roads are impassable and the walk to the studio is fraught with the danger of falling. It is supposed to last for a couple of days and then turn to snow. We may be stranded for sometime. We won't mind as long as our electricity doesn't go off, which is a very real possibility.

She's At It Again

I can't seem to let well enough alone, so here is the start of yet another quilt game. I am going for a bit of an outer space theme on this one. I particularly like the way the upper left circle turned out. This is just the barest beginning but I can see already that it will be very different from the others. Right now I am dyeing some black on white prints with the lime green dye that is on the sashings. The border fabric may have to go. It's a bit overpowering so far. I like the spiral but not the color. I have to get more fusible web before I can experiment any more with the spirals.
Yesterday I went to a bead store to get some proper beading thread because somehow dental floss just doesn't seem right. Some of the beads I got for 20cents for a pill bottle full were as much as that for each bead. The ones around the circle in the last blue wall hanging were very expensive. I also got a couple of new dangly earrings with stars to use on this quilt. My aim is to just use second hand for the embellishments but these were just so appropriate for what I had in mind that I bought them. Fortunately, they were kids' earrings and not very expensive.

Sacha's Birthday

Last year we spent Sacha's (granddaughter) birthday in Hong Kong celebrating Chinese New Year on our way to Australia. This year we went to Chinatown in Winnipeg for Dim Sum. It was not quite like last year but fun and delicious nevertheless.

It's Done

Here it is with the beads all sewn on. I decided that the orange beads on the top looked too heavy so went with colors to match the stripes. The color is a bit off because the wall is a warm yellow. The wall hanging is quite a bit brighter than this photo would indicate.

Finished?

This one is quilted and backed but the beads are not sewn on yet. I'm not sure if I'll use the big orange ones or not. Does anyone have any recommendation for the type of thread to use for the hanging tails of beads? Some of them are dangly earrings but lots of them are beads strung on a thread. So far, I've been using dental floss.


I finished the beading on the one on the left. It's about 25 inches squarish and the small one is about 15 inches. These are quite a lot smaller than my usual work.

I Like it Better Now

Before:

After:

I got rid of the light blue rectangles that were stealing attention from the middle circle. I'm not sure about the orange beads along the top. I liked them better around the blue circle or maybe not at all. Does the middle bottom area look like spider legs?

Stash Questionnaire

I found this questionnaire on Sew, Mama, Sew!

• What do you usually sew?

I sew mostly quilts and wall hangings and bags.

• When you shop for fabric, what size cuts do you usually buy? (i.e. If you see something beautiful, but you don’t have a use for it right away, how much do you buy?)

I usually buy a yard of fabric unless I will want to use it as backing or am following a pattern. Then I might buy more.

• Do you buy on impulse or do you go out looking for something you need?

I go looking for something I need unless there is a big sale on.

• Are you a pre-washer? If you are, do you wash your fabric before you need it, or only when you’re ready to use it?

I don't pre-wash. I prefer quilting with the crispness of new fabric. I have had no problems with running or shrinking. The only pre-washed fabrics in my stash are the hand dyes.

• Do you iron it?

Only if it really needs it.

• How do you sort it? (color, print size, collection, etc.)

It is sorted roughly into colors.

• Do you have any special folding techniques?

I fold it in half lengthwise and then roll it around a ruler and then fold it into a rectangle.

• How do you store your fabric?

The folded lengths are on shelves and the scraps are in bins. I have a clothes horse full of strips too.

• What tips do you have for building up a well-rounded stash?

Lots of variety and as many colors as you can find.

• When do you say enough is enough?

I haven't said it yet.

• What are some of your favorite stash-busting projects?

Scrap quilts and bags.

• Do you have a current favorite print in your stash? Let’s see it!

I love them all but I specially love my collection of polka dots. Oh yes, and the black and whites.

• What’s your definition of the perfect stash? (Consider sharing a picture or two of your stash & storage, or direct us to a pic on Flickr!)

Lots of different fabrics. I'm not there yet.

My stash is not that extensive. These are yardage pieces, folded and they were once organized.


Here are some of the scrap bins, not at all organized! The drawers contain tools, buttons, etc.


My clothes rack full of strips. I need to make a strip quilt asap.

Summer's Pillow

I worked quite a bit on the blue one today but after reading the comments, I think I might take those two blue rectangles out and put something else in. That's one thing about this kind of sewing, you have to be ready to do a lot of ripping out. I can see when I look at it in a photo, that the rectangles compete too much with the circle. I'll try a few things over top before I do any ripping. I have some colored netting that might make a difference.



This is a pillow I made for Summer from the other circle she made. I stuffed it with left over bits of batting.

Summer's Blue Circle

I worked a bit with Summer's blue circle yesterday. I'm not at all satisfied yet but I'm not sure why. Maybe the two pieces that match the center of the circle are too big or too bland. I may have to toss them and try again. Also maybe the two vertical blue strips don't have enough contrast. I'll be doing a lot more work on this one. I am trying to keep it mostly in blues, which is not my normal way of doing things.
I'm thinking that with the other circle I might try several borders with mitered corners. Because I like the simplicity of the middle I want to highlight it. Then it would probably end up as a pillow top rather than a wall hanging.

More of Summer's Sewing

Here are the two circle blocks that Summer made yesterday. I said she should take them home but she opted to leave them and let me work them into a wall hanging. Summer has a very good eye for color and design.

Free Motion Quilting

Here is the back of the latest quilt with free-motion daisies on it. Summer (granddaughter) did the bottom three rows and I did the top part. I think I should have made her stay overnight and finish the whole quilt. I like hers much better than mine. So what if she missed school today. It's all about quilting, right Summer!
She also made a couple of circular blocks similar to what I've been using in my wall hangings. They will appear soon in a new piece. They are in the studio so pictures of them will have to wait until tomorrow.

Some Finishes

Here are some UFOs that I have finished in the past month. This one had a seam that wasn't sewn properly, which I only noticed while I was quilting it. This little froggie agreed to sit on top of it so nobody could see it.



I quilted this one on the frame and hated it so spent several frustrating hours ripping it out again. Lesson learned: Don't try straight lines on the frame without using rulers. I re-did it on the regular machine. I don't enjoy it much though because I see where I had problems ripping.


This one was not really a UFO because I only started it a couple of weeks ago but it is finished completely.


This is the last quilt I finished before starting on the wall hangings.

Adding Dodads

It is mostly sewn together. I haven't decided whether the two outside strips should be above or below or even with the middle section. I'm thinking it will be the way it is right now but I want to think about it for a bit before I sew in down. The two dark blue strips are folded under and they may end up hanging a bit below the middle section. The middle bottom block seems a bit too light colored to me. It might just need a dark strip on the bottom. The light colored one on the right was too light until I outlined it with dark brown. I'll try that on the bottom one before I take it out and make something darker.
I strung some beads from my new stash to use as dangles. I might also make some tails from fabric.
Looking at the two posts side by side, I think I prefer the original configuration a bit better. I like the more square shape. I'll be keeping that in mind for the next one.

Series or Obsession?

Yes, I think it could be called on obsession. I made this one this morning. I will still do a lot more to it. I love the pink and blue block on the far left. It was an accident really because the blue and pink strip wasn't quite wide enough so I added more pink to the sides. Suddenly it had those nice pink squares in the corners. That type of block is made according to Quilting Outside the Block. I made a small quilt using those techniques last year and thought they'd go well with the ones from Quilters' Playtime.


I scored again at the thrift shop yesterday. Somebody got rid of all their beads. I didn't take them all but grabbed all the nicest ones. They were in pill bottles at 20 cents a bottle. Nothing wrong with that!

When is it Done?

The big question when working on this type of project is when to call it done. You could keep fiddling with it for weeks. I decided today that it was done. I quilted it and enveloped it. I just have to hand sew on a hanging sleeve. Our sunroom has yellow walls and I think this will look really nice in there. It would look even better if I'd finish and put away the big pile of hand work that is sitting on the table in there.

Playing Around

Today I added some more bits to my latest quilt game. Not many of the larger pieces are sewn together yet so there will be lots more playing with it before I call it done. I want more pieces hanging from the bottom and the left side is totally undecorated yet.
In the end, I think I prefer the darker ones but I'll decide when this one is finished and they are hanging side by side.

Another Wall Hanging

I started another wall hanging using some more of the techniques from Quilters' Playtime. I bought that striped fabric awhile ago and have been eager to use it. I also got lots of dangly earrings from the thrift shop and they really go well on the tail pieces. The bottom row with the blues and pinks is just pinned on. Who knows where this one will go from here!

Quilting Playtime

I finished piecing the wall hanging and quilted and backed it. I spent some time sewing on beads and dangles. I moved the black tassel from the right and cut off one of the mauve pompoms. It was too squished to the side. I wish I had two more of the black teardrop beads. I'll have to take those off and put something else on I think. Adding the decorations at the end is half the fun of this style of quilting. I have a big cache of thrift shop beads, necklaces and trims that come in very handy when I start doing this job.

Quilt Game Updated

No posts for three days and now two in one day. Strange, I know.

I'm still having thread breaking issues on the quilting frame so I read the wrapper that was on the thread (following instructions, always a last resort!) and it said to use a top stitching needle. I guess it will now have to wait until I get back to town.

Meanwhile I did some more work on the Quilt Game. I'm still not satisfied with the bottom right part. I may add some of the green that is on the top and left. So much fun!

New Qulit Game

All Shook Up is quilted and the Nine Patch quilt is on the frame and well started. I got different thread for the top of this one since there are large patches of light color. I bought some Bottom Line thread in variegated beige to brown. It is a lot thicker than what I normally use and I had problems with breaking thread until I put in a new needle. I like the way the quilting looks with this heavier thread.



Meanwhile, because I can only machine quilt for a short time without getting tired or bored, I started another wall hanging from the Quilters' Playtime book. I will not be using the large green piece. I put it up there to see how it would look and don't like it at all. I'm thinking of several long strips of different colors but I'm not sure exactly what yet. I really enjoy building the piece as I go with nothing pre-planned .

All Shook Up Pieced

I finished piecing All Shook Up this morning. Now I have two quilts to put on the frame and quilt. The next order of business will be to make the backing for both of them. I was short one piece of batting but I got that yesterday so there is nothing stopping me now.



This is the book that we got the pattern from. It is called Six Halves Make a Whole by Susan Knapp and Mary Jane Mattingly for Quilt Branch. There are a couple more patterns in the book that I want to try eventually.

All Shook Up

Yesterday I was faced with a decision: Iron a mile of fabric, cut a backing from it and load the quilting frame or start the last kit. Well what would you do?? Here are some of the blocks. I have made 4 out of the 6 sets of 6. The most complicated part was cutting. There are so many pieces of similar size that I was stressed about mis-cutting. I'll know if I did when I get to the last blocks. The four on the top left are placed according to the diagram. I think it will be a very nice quilt when it's done. It won't take long to sew it all together once I get the last 12 blocks assembled. Then I'll cut the backing for both quilts. The backing piece is a tiny bit shorter than I thought and I may have to piece one of the backs with strips from the front. That always adds interest to the back so it's not a problem.
This quilt is called All Shook Up. I'll have to get the book from my studio before I can let you know the designers.

Borders

I have the new brown border sewn on. I used the same fabric as I will put on the back. We bought enough for all three quilts and there was quite a wide piece left over on the side of the Mocha quilt. It looked fine as a darker border. The piano key border is not sewn together completely but I do like the looks of it. I'll do the binding in the same brown as the inner border.

Pillow Cases

Here are a couple of pillow cases I made from the left over fabric from the quilt border. Please excuse the strange lighting. I wanted the striped border to be much narrower but I was about 4 inches short of the dark brown so the stripe had to be that width.

On the Bed

Here is the Mocha Quilt in its new home. They are going to get a brown bed skirt but it's hard to find the right shade of brown. The pillow shams ended up fitting perfectly and the quilt is extremely warm and light due to the wool batting.

Moving Right Along

I had time to do a little sewing today before heading out to Winnipeg. This one goes very fast. I haven't sewn all the strips together yet but they are ready to go. I think it might look better with a wider inner border. It also needs to be a bit darker in my opinion. The pattern calls for 1.5 inches on the sides and 2 inches on the top. I think that looks a bit skimpy. Some of the browns from the previous quilt might work for a wider border. I'll audition some when I get it all sewn together.

New Nine Patch

I have started an on point nine patch from a kit. This is my first experience with a kit. I hope I don't make any serious errors in cutting. If I do though, I could probably get some similar fabric locally so I'm not too stressed out. It's quite scrappy so lots of fabrics would do. So far no big mistakes. There are 18 nine patches so it's coming right along. It will be a couch quilt so it shouldn't take long to put it together.

Pillow Sham

Today I made a pillow sham. I'm not totally happy with it though. I forgot to take into account the shrinkage due to quilting and when I added the cording around the edge I lost some more. Also I'm afraid it's a bit wonky. The edging looks good but it's a bit stiff and I had lots of problems putting it on. I used the quilt binding and inserted some cording. I can't discard this one and make another because I used up almost all of the binding and most of the border fabric. Hmmm... maybe something completely different. I'll finish the other one and see how they fit but I'm not hopeful.

Binding

Here is a close up of the binding cut on the bias. I really like the effect of the stripes on an angle. The designer of this quilt thought of everything.

Ready for the Hand Work

Here is the Mocha quilt just off the frame and trimmed. After I took the picture I sewed the binding on and now I only have a couple of miles of hand sewing to do. The meander goes really fast and would have gone faster if I hadn't threaded the machine wrong at one point (the thread was not between the two tension plates) and had to rip out half a row because it was all loopy on the back. I'm quite happy with how this has turned out. I'll be making a couple of pillow shams to go with it. I'll try to get a picture of it in it's new home when I deliver it.

I learned a couple of really useful things on this project. First, I learned a lot about arrangement. It was set up in a way that I have never done but might try again with ultra brights and blacks. Also, I never use bias bindings, thinking it's such a pain to cut. I used a hint from Happy Endings by Mimi Deitrich and found it really easy to cut. Then, as a bonus, the ends are already cut at the right angle so it's super easy to sew together. Also, since this binding is a stripe, it looks great on an angle.

It's on the Frame

I have the quilt on the frame and have started quilting but today Blogger won't let me upload pictures. I am doing a loose meander. I had thought of doing some vines or leaves but decided to stay with what I know. The quilting won't show up much on this busy quilt anyway and it's probably better to try something new on a utility quilt. Hopefully I'll be able to load pictures later.