Month: February 2015

Spring Chick, anyone?

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This is a block that was designed by Janeen, over at Quiltartblogspot.com.

I have never really been a fan of paper piecing. This year I felt

like sewing  something different so this is filling that niche.

I am surprised at how  long it took to create this cute little bird.

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Janeen needed some help creating some of the blocks she has

designed for an upcoming magazine article. She publishes a

magazine called qadpublishingblogspot.com.

This little spring chick is for the March/April edition.

The pattern can be bought on her Craftsy store.

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This is a quilt that Laurie created for a friend of hers. It is so

neat to see how a simple pattern can really make a nice design

and quilt.

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Here is a closer view of the individual block itself. It consists of

4 squares that are cut up and randomly moved around. Each square

has the same layout but the different fabrics will take a different

spot ineach of the blocks.

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The fabric itself is pretty rich looking as well. Carol decided

that she wanted a fairly simple panto on the quilt top. She chose

“Celtic Braid.”  The thread used was a  white polyester thread,

used on the top and the backing.

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I really like the medallion in the middle of this square. It

would make a nice motif for sititching. I know, I have

issues.

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Here is the backing. It is a white color and shows the quilting

beautifully.

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A close up of the stitching on the backing.

Here is a teaser for you for next week. Linda

created this amazing BOM quilt at a local Quilt Shop

in the area, Country Concessions. Next week, I will give

you some more pictures of it. It is now finished and

done.  Stay warm.

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A seal pup

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Despite all the cold weather lately, I am managing to get some

quilts finished.

This quit belongs to Eva. What a great idea to use up all those

scraps.  It never ceases to amaze me of how simple patterns,

the square here, looks so neat when it is used.

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Eva is quite the quilter too. She loves hand work and I think

that she even hand stitched all these small squares onto the

black background. Wow!  A very patient person indeed.

She wanted a panto, an overall design on the top. And since

she loves beige so much, that is what we used for the thread

color on the top and the backing.

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The backing is read and it has all kinds of sewing items on it, such as

needles, thimbles, and thread.

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It is funny how color changes depending on what color its neighbour is.

The beige thread I mentioned above does not look like beige on this red

background, it looks more like cream to me.

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This is a sweet baby panel that I bought at Fabricland. I know, I am not supposed

to shop there for quilting supplies but this baby quilt is for a silent auction

coming up at my Church. I didn’t want to spend a ton of time on making

an original quilt so this one fit the bill perfectly.

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I really do think it will make an adorable baby quilt. I used a white thread

and quilted all around the motifs.

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Here is what the baking looks like. It looks like a plain white  backing

but it is really a pale plaid backing. Both the top and the backing are

flannel as well, not cotton.

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I have just completed my block #2 in a Quilt Along over at

Artquiltdesignsblogspot.com.

This is totally paper pieced and I didn’t use any freezer paper this time.

I completed it alot faster and the paper tore off quickly at the end. I am

a bit disappointed with the fabrics I chose for his face and the water.

The water is a little too dark for the seal pup and his face reminds me of

a lion. What do you think? Can you guess what is missing on his face?

I will take another photo when I get him totally completed.

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I did have alot of fun creating him. Paper piecing reminds me of completing

a puzzle. After I choose all the fabric, it is so exciting sewing all the pieces

together and wondering what it will look like when it is totally finished.

I know, I have issues.

Keep warm and have a great week.

Happy Valentine’s Day!

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Dorothy made this cute camo quilt for her grandson.

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Dorothy wanted a simple design for the quilt so we

chose the “Swirl” panto by Norma Sharp.

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As you can see in the photo, she even stitched  a bull’s

eye in the middle of the target.

 

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Dorothy had wanted a simple design because she was using a quilt that

had already been quilted. It also had the batting in the middle so she

didn’t want to add another layer of batting to it.

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The quilt was quite thick in the areas where she joined the red backing.

I think that you can get  past this issue by butting the two pieces of

quilted backing up against each other and sewing a zigzag stitch

instead of sewing a 1/4″ seam as usual.

The backing looks pretty neat with the swirl and the quilted backing.

I am sure that her grandson will love his new camo quilt. What a

great grandmother!

Happy Valentine’s Day! Don’t forget to get something for your

sweetheart. Valentine’s Day is on Saturday this year.

 

What I have been up to….

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Once again, it is very cold here and this is making it a great

opportunity to sew and quilt.

I have been working on some new things that I have picked up

lately. Mary, a friend from a local Guild, just introduced me to

paper embroidery.  She showed me several cards that she has

made and I think that they are gorgeous!

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Pinterest also has quite a selection too, as well as free

patterns you can download. I had to try my hand at making one

and this is the result.

I really didn’t like having to thread my needle constantly but when

you use a 40 wt thread, it does slip alot. Having to constantly

check the back and front to see where I had to stitch next was

a bit of a deterrent as well. Overall, though, I did like

how the card turned out and I think that I may have to make

some more. They seem to stitch up quickly so they would make

a great project when you are looking for something quick and

small to conquer.

Beside these small cards, I have been trying to continue on

with my fabric postcard collection. I am making 3 for Valentine’s

Day and this is the first one.

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This card uses some felt stickers from the Dollar Store.

I placed the smaller pink heart on top of the larger red heart.

Then I stitched around it slowly and yes, the needle did gum

up a bit from the glue on the back of the sticker. I did use a

monofilament thread too so that may have caused a bit of a

problem too. After I changed that thread out, it didn’t break

anymore. There still was some gum on the needle though.

Next, I used my alphabet on my sewing machine and stitched

in the words.

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The  pink backgrounds on each of these cards were painted using a

soft body acrylic paint. The fabric went a little stiff and rubbery

after I painted it but I may have used too much paint on the fabric.

Isn’t it amazing what you can use for these fabric postcards? The

white flower was taken from a birthday card. I couldn’t throw it

out with this lovely flower on it. I merely ripped it off the card and

stitched it onto the pink background. How is that for fast and easy?

These are not finished yet, I still have to stitch around the edges.

Stay warm and have a good week.