In September, when I was in Edmonton, I had the great pleasure of visiting the home of Elizabeth Penttinen. She is an art quilter extraordinaire! I was blown over by her talent and the variety of quilts that I saw. And, I know that there were many more that I didn’t see.
The photos were taken with my Iphone and at night, indoors, so the photo quality is not the best.
Obviously, this one is ready for quilting … but look at all the greens, the curves, the straight lines …
This one has an organic wavy binding … and if I remember correctly, it is not cut on the bias.
And a close up of the quilting … all hand guided …
All different leaves in this one …
I see the wind blowing in this one … great movement!
Look at the beautiful thread painting! And beads, buttons and shells … (I think!)
Fun collage quilts … made from t-shirts, sheets, and other fabric things.
Elizabeth has spent a lot of time in Africa … I can’t help but think that this definitely influenced this collage quilt.
Cows anyone?
Sons of Anarchy
I absolutely LOVE giraffes and I think this is my favourite by far!!! She was going to be teaching this at her guild … how I would have loved to have taken this class!
Beautiful flowers!
Fall still life …
Mixed media … from Disney!
Thank you, Elizabeth, for the privilege of seeing your beautiful quilts!
Many of these quilts are for sale, if you are interested, contact Elizabeth e_penttinen@hotmail.com and she can give you more information.
Do you know what it’s like to get ready for a retreat? Oh ya! On Thursday, I managed to get borders on 2 quilts and they are sandwiched and hopefully will be quilted at the retreat … bobbins are wound.
And then there is the last minute gathering of STUFF … yup, all sorts of STUFF. When you’re one of the co-organizers, there is a LOT of details to attend to. Last minute emails to send out …
I haven’t been on a retreat for almost 2 years. That’s a LONG time for a retreat junkie!
It’s all good!!! I will get it done. Well, most of it anyhow. And of course, I doubt that I’ll finish all 5 or 6 projects that I’m taking with me … but it’s always good to have a variety to choose from! I’ll tell you all about it next week!
A Friday Finish
I made this quilt earlier this year, thinking it would be good for a fat-quarter quilt and a mystery quilt … and then I changed my mind and went in a bit of a different direction for the Summer Mystery. I still like this quilt … and perhaps one day, I’ll write up the directions for it … but not now … not yet … But it did use 7 fat quarters … with little fabric to spare …
I Was Featured
Photo credit: Jerry Khiev, Island Batik
I was featured on the following blogs … Check them out!
In July, Kelly, of My Quilt Infatuation, emailed me and asked if I would be willing to participate in a blog hop promoting her new book. I felt honoured and of course, I said, “YES.”
She asked me to make an improve ornament mini quilt! This is the quilt she asked me to make! Isn’t it cute?
Sew … I gathered a bunch of blue and purple Island Batik scraps.
Then I sewed them together sort-of following the directions in the book. A lot of my scraps had weird angles in them … so mine aren’t totally square … more improv!
I followed the directions for making the ornaments. They were very clear and easy to follow. As directed, I did use my Tri-Recs rulers for making the purple ornament.
I used Island Batik solid “Turquoise” on the purple ornament and “Amethyst” on the blue ornaments. The strings were made with “Dark Grey.” And the background is “Rice.” I absolutely LOVE Rice!!!
This mini quilt is quilted the same as in the book … stippling in the background and organic straight(ish) lines on the ornaments. I used Aurifil 2600 – Dove to quilt it. And yes, I did stitch in the ditch around the strings and the ornaments.
This was such a fun quilt to make! I’m sure I will be making more mini quilts from this blog!
I have already made “Up, Up and Away,” using Kelly’s instructions on enlarging the quilt. I made it baby sized. I posted about it, and your can read about it HERE.
To me, Kelly’s “Scrappy Improv Quilting” book is one that EVERYONE should have in their book collection! There is a HUGE variety of mini quilts and you can make them bigger as well! I know I already said this, but the book is very well written. The directions are clear and easy to follow!
I actually have 2 more quilts from this book in progress … and I will show you them when they are completed!
If you want to buy the book, I know that Essem Textiles has a few in stock. As well, I will be teaching several quilts from this book at Essem later this month. Contact them to sign up for the class.
Blog Hop
Here is the Schedule for the Blog Hop: (All links up to Oct 11 are direct links to the original post, so you won’t have to hunt through the blogs! … you’re welcome!)
Scrappy Improv Quilting Blog Tour Schedule-8/31- Intro, Single Block Beauties, and Simple Shapes
Please contact me if you would like to purchase the pattern. This quilt uses a Tri-Recs or a Deb Tucker V-block ruler. There is an option of using a pre-cut Stack (10″ squares) to make this quilt.
Flutterfly Stars appeared in Island Batik’s Spring/Summer catalogue. You can see it HERE. Check out page 9 for a close-up and page 56 for the whole quilt. And there are tons of other beautiful quilts in the catalogue … lots of quilty eye candy!
This quilt used the awesome collection, Flutter Fly, by Kathy Engle and is available at select stores now.
This year, Aurifil Thread has a Color Builder program. It is a total of 12 different mini-collections that, for 2021, are based on Endangered Animals. Aurifil’s goal is to “Increase sustainability and positive environmental impact.” (source: Island Batik).
For the October challenge, Aurifil is asking you to create a piece inspired by the endangered animal featured on your assigned Color Builder box. Use each one of the 3 provided colors somewhere in the challenge piece, how the thread is used is up to you! (source: Island Batik)
I received the Pangolin bundle. The 3 threads in this collection are: #2312 – Ermine, #6010 – Toast, #2360 – Chocolate. They are all 40 weight.
The Pangolin is sometimes used for it’s meat, but mostly the scales are used in traditional Chinese medicine. There is a huge amount of illegal trafficking and the pangolin is considered Critically Endangered. Source.
I literally spent a few months thinking about what I would do.
I finally decided that I would go to the Internet and search for royalty free colouring book pages and pangolin. Bingo! I found one at THIS SITE.
Below is the pangolin print out and fabric (Buttermilk) on my light board. My light board happens to be a window. You can see where the pages are overlapping and taped together. The Buttermilk fabric is taped on top.Then a picture of me tracing it out with a brown sharpie. (Inspired by Helen Godden and the Flower Power Quilt-a-long)
I used Hobbs Polydown batting and Odif 505 temporary adhesive spray and got to work. First I stitched over the brown sharpie lines with #2360 – Chocolate.
I quickly realized that I needed to have a fabric on the back: the polydown was catching on the lowered feed dogs. Previously, when I used this technique, I was able to use Hobbs 80/20 with no difficulty.
Then, I was not pleased with how it was stitching out! So, I cleaned my machine (it needed it) and changed to a Schmetz needle. That helped a bit, but then I took off my ruler quilting foot and put on the regular free-motion quilting foot. I’m not sure why, but my quilting was WAY better.
The pangolin is outlined with Aurifil #2360 – ChocolateI. The Zendoodling is Aurifil #2312 – Ermine. Aurifil #6010 – Toast, was used for the organic echoing around the pangolin. It took 3 full days of zendoodling to get to this point. Then I needed a break!
For the spikes around the border, I used several pieces from the Autumn Wings collection, along with Large Netting-Sand (a blender) and Citrine (Marvelous Multis). The spikes were all fused with steam-a-seam light. And appliqued in place with #6010 – Toast. Then the feet were “coloured” in using Aurifil #2360 Chocolate. It is bound with Wavy Dots – Cappuccino.
Disclosure: The fabrics, thread, batting and needles were generously supplied by the following companies:
Here’s my comments on some of the points as it relates to me and quilting
Think of the end goal. Remember that wonderful feeling when a quilt project is finished? It feels pretty good, right?
Focus on what you can control. OK … so you might not be able to finish your project today, but you can sew a few seams, cut out some of the fabric … That’s doable, right?
Start With The Most Loathed Bits First. You might as well get it out of the way and then the rest will be easy. (Well, this won’t work if binding is what you loath, but I’m sure you can find something!
Work Out What You’re Afraid Of. Cut out the excuses and just get started.
Bribe Yourself Shamelessly. I’m on a serious fabric diet, but maybe I could go shopping. At least I need thread, right?
Do It For Just 10 Minutes. We can all work on a project for 10 minutes … set your timer if you need to!
Here’s my tally sheet. You’ll notice that I have 3 Island Batik Secret projects to work on. I actually had 4, but one is completed. These include writing patterns, organizing pattern testers and making the quilts. I’m going to be busy for the next while!
Meadow Mist Designs hosts a link up for a Favourite Quilt each month. My favourite is from a new book “Scrappy Improv Quilting” by Kelly Young. You can read about it HERE. I will be teaching this quilt (and others) at Essem Textiles later this month. Contact Simina at Essem to book your spot!
This quilt used Island Batik fabrics, Aurifil thread and Hobbs batting!
So Scrappy
My Scrappy Table Topper for September was 2 – both featuring orange … you can read about them HERE. October’s colour is Lime Green. Hmmm … wonder what I’ll make?
I was away on holidays … did a bit of sewing then, but most of it is secret sewing … so no pictures.
Design Wall
Piecing:
#1. Secret Sewing: Island Batik
#2 Secret Sewing: BBQG mystery quilt
#2. Scrappy Improv … another variation of the hot air balloon quilt
Quilting:
#1 November Island Batik project is being quilted
Stash Report
I was in Edmonton while I was away … Lori’s Country Cottage had a 40% sale on selected fabrics … I did not behave myself … It was fun to be in a fabric store … it was fun to shop … here’s a picture of the damage ….
I could justify each purchase … the fabrics on the left were for one of the guild’s mystery quilts and the fabrics on the right were all flannels … necessary for backings …
Fabric Used this week 0yards
Fabric Used this year: 99 yards
Fabric Bought this week: 12 yards
Fabric Added this year: 39.75 yards (my husbands amounts as well)
Net Fabric used 58.25 yards
Husband’s purchases: 0 yards (which are added into my total amount of Fabric added this year). For those of you who don’t know … my husband often buys more fabric than I do … so, I’m keeping track! Unfortunately, he doesn’t sew!
Stitchin’ Time
While away, I managed to sew for 5 days … and for 6 days, I did not sew.
January – August – 235 / 242
Sept – 20 / 26
Total: 255 / 268
Percentage = 95 %
For more Stitchin’ Time, you can check out Kate’s blog: Life in Pieces
TO DO
Linda from Texas Quilt Gal is now hosting “To Do” every week. You can check out her blog HERE.
The last To Do list: (from weeks ago)
OK … so I had over 2 weeks to accomplish my To Do list – a little bit of everything got done!
Finish quilting Island Batik’s November project Partially done!
Finish 3rd Project from Scrappy Improv Partially done!
Work on Island Batik’s December project Partially done!
Write the directions for the guild’s Fall Mystery quilt √ done
Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! √ done
Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes √ done
This week’s list:
Finish quilting Island Batik’s November project
Work on 3rd Project from Scrappy Improv
Work on Island Batik’s December project
Quilt Secret Sewing BBQG mystery quilt #1
Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder!
Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes
PHD in 2021
Table Scraps
I have 2 Table Scraps for this month … First is my table runner and 2nd is the coaster.
This Table runner was made with scraps of Island Batik fabric … mostly from the Autumn Wings collection. Quilted with Aurifil thread, Hobbs Batting and Schmetz needles.
This coaster was made with a free pattern from Kreative Kiwi … Island Batik fabrics, Hobbs Batting and made in the hoop on my embroidery machine.
Last fall, I did some secret sewing and I couldn’t show you. The quilts were all made for the latest Island Batik catalogue. You can see all of the catalogues HERE. This quilt is in the Spring/Summer 2021 catalogue and the fabrics are available now.
This first quilt is made with the Fancy Feathers collection, by Kathy Engle along with the basic, Rice. Aren’t these fabrics absolutely wonderful?????
This quilt is called “Feather’s Chain.” Please contact me if you would like to buy the pattern. You could use a strip set (jelly roll) to make this quilt. The pattern also includes instructions on how to make the flange binding.
Quilt Stats:
Size: 68″ x 68″
Batting: Hobbs 80/20
Thread: Aurifil
Quilting: Free Motion Quilted on my domestic Janome sewing machine.
In January, my Island Batik box contained this fantastic maple leaf die from Accuquilt. I made 2 different quilts with it.
And now, I’m using it again to make a table runner for the I’m Falling For You blog hop. What is more FALL than Fall leaves??? As well, the scrap table runner challenge for this month is Orange … so I’m making a 2-fer.
We’ve been away for almost 2 weeks. I took this with me to finish while we were travelling. (Yes, I take my featherweight and sew when I can and when we have power.) Well, I definitely was NOT meant to finish this on our trip! I didn’t take enough of the background fabric AND … once I finished the top, earlier today, I realized that I did not take enough batting or backing … groan … Anyhow, thankfully I was able to find everything I needed and get this table runner done! I stippled the background and did straight lines on the coloured portions of the leaves.
Table runner stats:
Fabric: Island Batik – from the Autumn Wings collection, background is Custard
Batting: Hobbs fusible
Quilting & Piecing: Aurifil thread
Size: 19″ x 37″
Accuquilt die: Maple Leaf
Here is the Full Schedule for the blog hop:
Be sure to visit all of the bloggers and be inspired by their “I’m Falling for You” creations!
This is a Blog Hop that I’m super excited about!!! Kelly, of My Quilt Infatuation, has a wonderful book out and it is absolutely wonderful!!! My official day is Oct. 11. But, I am too excited to wait that long (well, I’ll wait for that day for my assigned mini quilt!
Yesterday, Sandra @ mmm…quilts! posted her Up, Up and Away Quilt! Isn’t it great???
So, I’m going to show you my Up, Up and Away quilt. Kelly has instructions in her book on how to make the mini quilts larger. So, I followed her instructions to make this into a baby quilt. However, I must confess, I had to fudge a bit because I didn’t have quite enough background fabric.
The fabrics are all from Island Batik. But for some reason, the scraps didn’t decrease at all!! (Ya, I know, scraps multiply when you have your back turned! )
I quilted wavy up and down lines on the balloon and wavy organic lines on the background (sky).
This is one of the quilts I’ll be teaching at Essem Textiles in Cloverdale in October! Make sure you sign up and join in the fun!
Here is the full Schedule for the Blog Hop:
Scrappy Improv Quilting Blog Tour Schedule-8/31- Intro, Single Block Beauties, and Simple Shapes
This month, the Island Batik challenge is to make a bag. I choose to make the “Round Trip Duffle.” It is a pattern byAnnie. Island Batik and byAnnie made a kit with everything I need to make the Round Trip Duffle … I mean EVERYTHING!
The Island Batik fabrics that I chose for the bag – from top to bottom are:
Peacock Feather – Teal (from the Proud Peacock collection)
Whip Cream (from the Neutral collection)
Peacock Mardigras (from the Proud Peacock collection)
Paisley Dot Celery (from the Proud Peacock collection)
The key to making byAnnie bags is organization. A list of everything you need to cut is included in the pattern. I copied the list and attached it to each item as it was cut. Then I put it all up on my design wall so that it would be handy and easily found. The quilted pieces were on my ironing board.
The next step involved making all the bag components … the straps, the pockets, and so on … I’m using Aurifil thread #1148 – Light Jade with Schmetz Needles.
It’s getting exciting to see all the parts coming together!
Once it was completed, my daughter had to put her dog, Daphne, in it … believe me, that didn’t last long! (The dog in the bag … the bag was not harmed!)
I am very very happy with how this bag turned out! A friend of mine said, “It looks so professional.” That’s because byAnnie patterns are so well written! I hope to use this bag when I go on my next quilt retreat!
Disclosure: The fabrics, thread, batting and needles were generously supplied by the following companies:
Are you feeling overwhelmed with the number of UFOs? Try just taking one UFO and focus on it. Perhaps write down all the steps you need to do to complete it. Even if the list is LONG … tackle the first step. I promise that you will feel much better about it! Then later, or tomorrow, tackle the next step. Pretty soon it will be done!
My PHD tally hasn’t changed a lot. Well, no UFOs are finished, but quite a few of the Starts in 2021 are completed. I’ve been working a LOT of my November Island Batik challenge. I am SEW glad that I started early! It’s taking a LOT of time and a LOT of concentration. You’ll see why in November.
GROAN …. How do I choose which quilt is my favourite when I think I made 3 fantastic quilts? I know I’m biased … but I LOVE each one of these quilts!
DrEAMi
This month, I had a DrEAMi … (Drop Everything And Make it) This was a pattern from Sandra Walker (from Musings of a Menopausal Melon) and after seeing that several people made it … I just HAD to. The pattern is “Let Your Star Shine.” You can get the pattern from Sandra’s Etsy shop: HERE. It is a pretty quick quilt to make!
A NEW Blog Hop
Kelly Young has a AWESOME new book that has just been published. She is having a blog hop starting later in September. This book is fantastic! There are 22 mini quilts and they are SEW easy to make.
If you check out Kelly’s blog, My Quilt Infatuation she has an overview of the book HERE.
I have made one mini quilt for the blog hop and am in the process of making another for myself. I will show it to you after the blog hop is over. I don’t want to ruin the surprise of all the mini quilts that you will see during the blog hop.
I must say that this book is really well written! (I have my own copy!) The directions are easy to follow and there are a ton of fun projects to make!
If you live locally, Essem Textiles has the book in their store.
I will be teaching classes of projects from this book in October at Essem Textiles. Dates are TBA.
Rainbow Scrap Table Topper
The monthly table topper is run by So Srappy. The colour for August was aqua. I wanted to try a paper pieced Storm at Sea block … so that’s what I made! It’s 15″ square. Made with Island Batik fabrics, Hobbs fusible batting and Aurifil Dove thread.
Design Wall
Piecing:
#1. November Island Batik project
It’s being paper pieced, and the project is a secret … but I can show you this …
#2. Second project from Scrappy Improv … which I can’t show you until after the blog hop
Quilting:
Nothing at the moment!
Stash Report
The backings from the 3 “favourite” quilts this month, plus the aqua table topper were all from my stash and totalled 11 yards.
Fabric Used this week 11yards
Fabric Used this year: 99 yards
Fabric Bought this week: 0 yards
Fabric Added this year: 27.75 yards (my husbands amounts as well)
Net Fabric used 70.25 yards
Husband’s purchases: 0 yards (which are added into my total amount of Fabric added this year). For those of you who don’t know … my husband often buys more fabric than I do … so, I’m keeping track! Unfortunately, he doesn’t sew!
Stitchin’ Time
I’m aiming for at least 30 minutes a day. Many days there are more than a few hours spent in my studio. We were away this past weekend, so there was 2 days that I did not sew.
January – July – 209/211
August – 26/29
Total: 235 / 240
Percentage = 98 %
For more Stitchin’ Time, you can check out Kate’s blog: Life in Pieces
TO DO
Chris from ChrisKnits is hosting “To Do” every week. You can check out her blog HERE.
The last To Do list: (from weeks ago)
OK … so I had 2 weeks to accomplish my To Do list. I kept the list light because I want some more time to enjoy the summer! Consequently, it was easy to get it done. I’m keeping this week’s list light as well!
Piece and Quilt Let Your Star Shine √ done
Start Aqua Table Topper for the monthly Table Topper challenge √ done
Start “Orange you Glad” project! √ done
Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! √ done
Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes√ done
This week’s list:
Complete Island Batik’s November project
Complete 2nd Project from Scrappy Improv
Prepare more fabric for Island Batik’s December project
Write the directions for the guild’s Fall Mystery quilt
Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder!
The fabrics were all Island Batik scraps … The purple and dark pink are all gone … there is a few scraps of the background and light pink. In some ways, I’m sad to see the end of these fabrics … but I’m also glad that I was able to use them! And, they make for a pretty quilt!
If you are looking for a quilt pattern that is easy and fast. This might be just what you are looking for! Sandra Walker of MMMQuilts is the designer. You can purchase the pattern HERE.
I had these very pretty orange Island Batik fabrics that were sitting in my stash, calling for me to use them. Actually, they were shouting. What to do? What to make?
EQ to the rescue … along with Accuquilt Cube 8 dies.
Now, according to EQ, I did not have enough fabric … so I hit the stash builder rolls and pulled out some orange strips. I used them for the half-square triangles. SO EASY to cut with the Accuquilt!
This is actually one of the first patterns that I wrote … it was for a class I taught using the Easy Angle ruler … but it is actually more accurate to use the Accuquilt dies!
There’s a drizzly rain outside – not great for taking photos … and since I just finished quilting and binding this, I had to make do with a photo on my design wall.
I received the “V Block” from Studio 180 Designs. I love this block … but what to do? What to make?
I also received 2 Fat Quarter Bundles of Autumn Wings … along with 2 yards of coordinating Bubbles-Sahara (from the Blenders collection and 2 yards of Teal from the Basics collection. Autumn Wings should be available in the shops now and Bubbles-Sahara and Teal are available all the time.
Aren’t these fabrics absolutely gorgeous? !!!
I watched the video from Studio 180 on making the V-block and the High/Low blocks. As I was watching, I loved the block in the background. It had a pinwheel in the middle. No problem. I also have the Tucker Trimmer and I used it to make the half-square triangles.
Here’s the design I came up with in EQ. But alas, I didn’t have enough of the Bubbles-Sahara fabric to use for the background. But I did have enough “Custard,” from a previous Island Batik shipment, so I substituted it.
Here’s the first High/Low star that I made. I’m SEW impressed!!!! Using the Studio 180 tools, the blocks come out PERFECT. Look at how those seams nest together SEW nicely. It’s definitely not ME!!! I’m not a perfectionist. It’s using tools that make it work well! I’m liking them!!!
I also used the V-block to make these 4-pointed star blocks and used the Tucker Trimmer to cut the 5 1/2″ blocks for the centers. On the design wall. I wasn’t sure that I liked the solid squares in the middle. So, I decided to make the rest of the High/Low blocks and see.
Nope … I still didn’t like them. And while playing around with fabric, I decided that a square-in-a-square would be the block to put in the centre.
I was able to buy a “Squared Square” Studio 180 tool and made the blocks quickly and easily. Much better, don’t you agree? (And now I’m happy to have another useful tool!)
And the blocks ready to sew together! Along with a bunch of V-blocks for potential border treatment. Along with trialing the sashing strips.
Some of the border blocks started (all V blocks), but not sewn together …
Played around with the border blocks and liked this version better! And I added square in a square blocks on the corners (using the Squared-Square ruler).
It quilted like a dream … an absolute dream!!! Before I started quilting a put a fresh Schmetz needle in!
Here is a picture of the quilting on my domestic machine (Janome M7) using Silly Moon’s “Rocket” to sew 1/4″ away from the star …
All finished!
I used Schmetz needles, Aurifil #2000 – Light Stand for the quilting and #4029 – Turf Green to sew on the binding.
Remember that this fabric collection is called Autumn Wings … well it’s the middle of summer and autumn is a ways off … so I took this picture on my dried out lawn (the closest to having fall colours!)
Make sure that you visit Mania from Mania for Quilts. She has the same fabric collection and her quilt is absolutely totally different than mine. She is very creative and talented!
You have 2 opportunities to win … well, actually 4. Two from Island Batik and 2 from me. Click on the Rafflecopter link for opportunities to win either a 10″ stack of Butterfly Blooms or a 2 1/2″ Strip pac of Autumn Wings from Island Batik.
In order to win one of these packages of fabrics from me, you must live in Canada (but outside of Quebec). They have at least 10 x 10″ pieces of Autumn Wings – some are much bigger. Reply in the comments answering the following questions: (I know some people are unable to respond in the comments – just send me an email and answer the questions).
Where in Canada do you live?
Have you ever won fabric from me before?
What would you do with the fabric?
Disclosure: The fabrics, thread, batting and needles were generously supplied by the following companies:
Did you know that by setting goals, you are actually motivating yourself? That’s right! Way back in January, you decided to do your PHD in 2021. That meant finishing at least 12 of your UFOs and finishing every project that you start in 2021. (We don’t want that UFO list to increase, right?)
SEW … take a good look at your list(s) … what do you need to work on? What is your biggest challenge? How about in the next month, you spend at least 15 minutes a day working on your biggest challenge. You will be pleasantly surprised at how much you actually get done!
Something about me: before I retired, I often had to work several 12 hour plus shifts. I had to be at the hospital prior to my students arriving and I couldn’t leave until the last one had left. This meant that I was often there about 13 hours a day. Add in the 45 or more minutes to commute each way and it made for long days. And I had to get up the next day and do it all over again. It was hard to unwind … so I would sit at my sewing machine for 15 minutes. I actually set a timer so that I would quit and go to bed. It helped me unwind and I managed to get a lot of piecing or quilting done!
I know that you don’t all have an area that you can leave your machine up and your supplies scattered nearby – but it’s something to consider.
I have completed 12 UFOs this year. Here they are:
On the “Complete all the 2021 Starts” I’m doing pretty good! Of course I still have my Island Batik projects to finish, so there’s a few new starts there. Plus, I’m sure that a few squirrels will be tempting me!
This seems like it was a difficult finish. First, I didn’t have the right red to go with the panel. That made is necessary to BUY fabric. I found some grunge and … it worked … and was perfect for enhancing this panel block!
Then I quilted it and was very pleased to be done … until I looked at the back … on the last 2 rows of swirls … GROAN … 2 and a half days later, the stitching was all removed.
I changed the needle and started re-doing the quilting … and I was checking every 12 inches or so … but it was fine! YAY!!! Doesn’t this look much better?? Perhaps this lesson taught me that I need to change the needle more often??
Yesterday, the binding went on … photo shoot happened and it is DONE!!! YAY!!!
I’m so pleased that it is done!!! Another UFO kicks the dust!!! This also means that I have completed the minimum number of UFOs to achieve my PHD in 2021. (HUGE GRIN!)
This quilt was made from 2 separate panels … one bought at St. Jacob’s in Ontario and other bought in Pennsylvania … probably a few years apart. The batting is Hobbs 80/20 and the quilting is done with Glide thread.
I was Featured
Andree from Quilting and Learning – What a Combo featured my Island Batik “Never Too Early” project! You can read about it HERE.
Are you following along with the Summer Mystery Quilt? You can see the latest clue HERE.
Design Wall
Piecing
#1. Country Panels: No work on it this week!
#2 It’s A Secret: you’ll see it in October! (And yes, I HAD to start something NEW to give myself a break!)
Quilting:
#1 Amish panels: I finished the quilting and when I went to put the binding on I discovered that the rows of swirls in the border were HORRID!!! So bad that I’ve spent more than a couple of days taking it out. That’s why it’s not finished, the quilt above isn’t finished piecing.
Quilting #2: Island Batik August is ready to quilt – but I have to fix the other one first!!!
Stash Report
I didn’t need any more fabric this week and I only finished my Island Batik project which used 1 yard of fabric for the backing.
Fabric Used this week 0 yards
Fabric Used this year: 70 yards
Fabric Bought this week: 0 yards
Fabric Added this year: 27.75 yards (my husbands amounts as well)
Net Fabric used 42.25 yards
Husband’s purchases: 0 yards (which are added into my total amount of Fabric added this year). For those of you who don’t know … my husband often buys more fabric than I do … so, I’m keeping track! Unfortunately, he doesn’t sew!
Stitchin’ Time
I’m aiming for at least 30 minutes a day.
I have stitched for over 30 minutes all days this past week. And, I’m including “unsewing” as part of my 30 minutes / day!
January – May– 180 / 180
July – 18 / 18
Percentage = 99 %
For more Stitchin’ Time, you can check out Kate’s blog: Life in Pieces
TO DO
Chris from ChrisKnits is hosting “To Do” every week. You can check out her blog HERE.
Last week:
This week it was hard to get everything done. Like most people, I highly dislike unsewing. OK … if I’m honest, I HATE it!!! Its taken me ages to get all the horrid quilting out … and I’m not finished yet! GROAN!!!. I do have a personal policy of taking out the mistakes before quitting for the day … but more than a couple of days of unsewing is discouraging! It’s OK … it’s almost all done … and then I can start moving forward again!
Add sashing to Country Panels: not done
Finish IB August top √ done
Finish quilting Amish Panelnot done
Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! sort-of …
Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes√ done
This week’s list:
Add sashing to Country Panels
Fix Amish Panel , finish quilting, bind
Start quilting IB August
Finish Secret project (listed at KY book in my UFO tally)
Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder!
I’m really enjoying our lovely summer days! It’s cooling off at night – so I think the weather is lovely! However, it’s so tempting to spend a LOT of time outside! The garden needs weeding, the tomatoes are ready for picking – almost every day!
I finished my latest project for Island Batik! You can read more about it HERE. This wall hanging used Hobbs 80/20 batting, Aurifil thread, Schmetz needles and of course, Island Batik fabric!
Are you following along with the Summer Mystery Quilt? You can see the latest clue HERE.
Design Wall
Piecing
#1. August Island Batik project: Moving right along!
#2. Country Panels: No work on it this week!
Quilting:
#1 Amish panels: Lots of quilting done … not quite finished.
Stash Report
I didn’t need any more fabric this week and I only finished my Island Batik project which used 1 yard of fabric for the backing.
Fabric Used this week 1 yards
Fabric Used this year: 70 yards
Fabric Bought this week: 0 yards
Fabric Added this year: 27.75 yards (my husbands amounts as well)
Net Fabric used 42.25 yards
Husband’s purchases: 0 yards (which are added into my total amount of Fabric added this year). For those of you who don’t know … my husband often buys more fabric than I do … so, I’m keeping track! Unfortunately, he doesn’t sew!
Stitchin’ Time
I’m aiming for at least 30 minutes a day.
I have stitched for over 30 minutes all days this past week.
January – May– 180 / 180
July – 11 / 11
Percentage = 99 %
For more Stitchin’ Time, you can check out Kate’s blog: Life in Pieces
TO DO
Chris from ChrisKnits is hosting “To Do” every week. You can check out her blog HERE.
Last week:
I did work on a few projects and was not distracted by squirrels! And the studio got a cleaning for 30 minutes! However, I think that I need to spend more than 30 minutes this week – but I’m going to leave my To Do list at 30 minutes! ~grin~
Work on Country Panels: not done
Work on IB August project √ done
Start quilting Amish Panel√ done
Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! √ done
Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes√ done
This week’s list:
Add sashing to Country Panels
Finish IB August top
Finish quilting Amish Panel
Do NOT be distracted by any SQUIRRELS! I NEED this continual reminder!
Tidy & clean studio for 30 minutes
No further finishes. I started my August Island Batik project.
It’s Never to Early is the Island Batik theme for this month! And this is what the instructions said, “No one typically thinks of winter in the summertime but it’s the best time of all to get an early start on Christmas and holiday projects! No matter what special holidays you celebrate around the end of the year, this challenge has something for everyone.”
I’ve always wanted to make a log cabin wreath. Like forever. And THIS is the year to make it. I googled Log Cabin Wreaths and there are a TON of patterns out there. But none that I really liked. SEW … EQ to the rescue.
I drew my own block since I wanted the finished size of the blocks to be 7″ and I wanted the centre red square to be 1″ square.
I gathered various Island Batik green scraps, some from Mystery, some from Napa Valley, the red is Wavy Dots Cherry BE. The light background is Coconut.
It definitely needed a bow … so many to choose from! I found one I liked. It’s not perfectly even on both sides and that fits my style completely! Besides, when a bow hangs on a wreath, it’s never symmetrical. Well, at least mine aren’t!
I decided to trapunto the bow and here is a picture of the extra backing being cut away. Again, I used Wavy Dots Cherry BE for the bow. Although, you can’t tell in the picture below!
And, even though I absolutely HATE applique, that’s how it was sewn down. (I’ve been known to call it “CR-AP-plique!) An obvious sign that I need to practice it more! (right?)
I decided to try a double batting to see if I could get the bow to pop out even more. So 2 layers of Hobbs 80/20 were used. And, the white stars popped out, but the green ones did not.
In the centre and the 4 corner blocks, I used a Silly Moon “Twinkle” ruler for the stars. Then did a fairly small stipple so that the stars would pop. I used Aurifil #2600 – Dove to do this part. I quilted the stars in the green portions of the blocks with the same thread. Then I stippled with # 2890 – Very Dark Grass Green.
Since it is July, this little wall hanging decided to lounge in the pool and hang out by the flowers …
There’s more!
This Fusible Batting Strip package from Hobbs batting inspired me to make a Christmas basket!!!
Fabrics for the basket were some of the same fabrics I used for the log cabins above, some strips from stash builder bundles and a red large dot fabric that I bought at a booth selling Island Batik fabrics . (Obviously a few years ago since there have not been “in person” quilt shows for quite a while.)
I started by joining 2 1/2″ strips of fabric together (the same way you would join binding. Then I pressed them in half. Opened it up, placed the batting strips on the wrong side of the fabric, folded the fabric and batting towards the middle and then in half … pressed it together.
I tapered the end and sewed a 1/4″ seam along the edge of the strip. Then I placed about a 7″ piece together, scrunching the ends and started sewing. I used the Schmetz Microtex Chrome 70/10 needle and it sewed through all the layers like a dream!
Once I had about 3″ of a flat surface, I started to curve up the sides.
And here is the finished basket!
Disclosure: The fabrics, thread, batting and needles were generously supplied by the following companies:
