More Quilting and Kit Top Completed

Quilting, binding and label done on this quilt I made for my mom.
I'll be visiting her in a few months's time in Portugal and presenting it to her. These are her type of colours and will suit her home decor.

 

I freehand quilted these blocks and stitched in the ditch around the blocks.

 For the stripped border I did a freehand scallop but for the large floral border I used a continuous line pattern that I used with the stylus.
I have been going through my stash and setting aside large pieces of fabrics to use for backings and in spite of this one not being one of my favourites, it was  put to good use.

So, another quilt done, 10 more (and counting) still requiring quilting.
I am pleased that with each quilt that I complete, it has better workmanship than the previous one and I have increased my skills and techniques.
I have to accept that while I spend time on the Handi-Quilter, I can't be completing tops at the same rate and it's better to take my time and enjoy the process...

Having just said that, I did complete a quilt top;  the medallion is hand applique but the rest of the blocks were done on the machine.

I had purchased this kit years ago at the International Quilt Festival in Houston so it was about time I made it up.

I found that the triangle border did not quite match although the HST are exactly the way the instructions stipulate. It's not going to be a show quilt so I am not concerned about it. 

I have been meaning to show you a couple of areas in my studio so finally took some photos one evening.

I like being surrounded by things that inspire me.... my fabrics, my music, words....

And looking out to my garden and the sound of the birds....

Next time I am hoping to show you another top I have started and will have another quilt in the frame....
So until next time, be creative and feel free to comment...

More quilting on the HQ18 and a top

I have been very busy with work so I haven't done as much quilt playing as I was hoping.

I had Orca Bay on the machine for over two weeks and this time I used my rulers as well as some free motion quilting.

Because I quilted every block it has taken a fair bit of time and a lot of thread but it's all good experience to develop my skills... plus it's a lot of fun !

I choose stars as the main quilting design on each of the star blocks and smaller stars in the yellow blocks.

 

For the border I used another ruler to mark the scallops.
In some places I attempted to do straight lines without the ruler but at times the line was not too straight.
I much prefer guiding the machine with free motion quilting than ruler work as it is faster and more liberating but it all comes down to what you want to achieve.
Anyway Orca Bay is now finished and ready to be used. Had I not the HQ the top would have stayed folded away for many years to come.

Another quick project which I did recently was this quilt top.
This was a free pattern from Quilting Treasures  called  "Wild Horses" and the finished size is 61 1/2".

My 4th quilt with the HQ

I don't recall if I mentioned before but the main reason I purchased the Handi Quilter is because my tops were just lying around and to send them away to be quilted was becoming quite expensive. So with 14 completed tops and others on the go, I guess getting the machine was a much needed purchase.

I finished this top about a couple of years ago, when I was on a scrap busting mission, using most of my small solid scraps and 'making' fabric for this design.

It's an easy quilt to make but takes quite a lot of time and a lot of thread to join all the bits.
This is what it looked like when I got it off the machine.

This is a close-up of the quilting.  Once again I used variegated thread and the overall effect turned out quite nicely.

I have now Orca Bay loaded on the frame ready to go. Not sure how it's going to be done at this stage but whatever happens I am going to have fun, practice and learn new skills !  Just wish there were a lot more hours in the day for my quilting ...

'Dear Jane' Quilt Show

This is the the Box Hill Town hall where yesterday I went to see the "Dear Jane" exhibition.

To celebrate the 150th anniversary of the Dear Jane quilt, members of the Australian Quilters Association have created an exhibition featuring their own recreations of the 1860 American Civil War pattern.
The original Dear Jane quilt, made by Jane A. Stickle in 1863, became famous for its non-traditional, innovative, geometric design.


They displayed about 50 quilts with some still not fully completed.  

 

They styles of fabrics used made them so unique and yet very recognisable.

Association spokeswoman Pam Hammer said fifty members took up the Dear Jane challenge. "Some have stuck to the very traditional design, and other members have done if differently," she said.
 

People used very bright fabrics, jungle fabrics, Aboriginal fabrics, batiks and other styles.

From darks to lights.

To make the show more interesting, they had other quilts, some clothing and a couple of historical Australian quilts.

It was worthwhile to attend and marvel at the amount of work involved in each and every quilt on display.

More practice on the Handiquilter

I had some blocks I made last year, so I decided to join four of them and make a table topper.
I mainly wanted to practice some more free motion quilting and try out some different motifs.

It's getting easier each time and loading the quilt is now a straight forward but critical part to begin the quilting process.
At this point I had not purchased any rulers and given that I don't have a computerised program (rather expensive), it all comes down to practice, hand and speed co-ordination and getting used to the feel of the machine.

I tried to do a 'fake' trapunto in this block and I quite like the way it turned out. I used the micro-handles for the mini sized stippling in the center.
The heart and circular shapes are also free hand without any pre-marking. 

And this is what the final quilt looks like after adding the binding. I had washed it and it still looks quite good  with a nice feel to it.

Next project (my 4th in about 2 weeks) I am planning to use groovy/pattern boards.
My next quilt is ready and waiting...

Teddy Bear Quilt completed

I have done my first 'real' quilting project on the Handi Quilter. Every step of the way has been fun and I have learnt so much.  From loading the machine, to changing the needle, adjusting the tension and the actual sewing has been interesting.

Also collecting gorgeous threads has been fun (but expensive !).

I did not mark the quilt but instead decided to do loops around the edges and outline the applique.  I also did tiny loops inside the red flowers.  Doing the loops was very easy and fast but the outline requires a steady hand which I am still getting used to.

I made this quilt many years ago and has been in a bag along with another 10 or so waiting to be quilted. 

 The applique took several months to do back then. It's hand stitched using blanket stitch and has a fair bit of embroidery, beading as well as I added some buttons to accent the dresses and shoes of the teddy bears.  The lighting was not the best when I took the photo.

Looking at it with a critical eye, I think I should have quilted it more in the centre but I was afraid to overdoit. But as I said, it's all part of the journey of improving my skills and it's a lot better than having this top folded up in a bag and not being used at all.

On a quick project front, my daughter asked me to make her a couple of bags to store her Phone and ear plugs. 

This is what's making me happy in my garden....



I got published !

This week has been a very eventful week...

Some things I could have done without but others like buying a longarm quilting machine (see yesterday's post) has made up for it all.

 

And to top it up, one of my projects was published in a british magazine this week.

It was their first issue and it promises it to be quite a success judging by it's contents.

 

 

They did a great job with the project and even used my own photos.



The magazine has at least 30 projects, many using fabrics. There is a wide variety of crafty projects from using paper, buttons, beads, crochet, recycle, gardening, cooking and much more.
It's visually appealing and even the adds are a great source of inspiration to get ideas or purchase fabrics/supplies from the UK.

Take a look at their website Homemade with Love to see what projects they showcase. You won't be dissappointed.

A long awaited dream !!!

After many years of dreaming and saving not to mention accummulating tops I purchased a longarm quilting machine.  It's the Handi Quilter HQ18 Avante.

It arrived yesterday and I have already spent a few hours playing with it.  

It took about four hours to be assembled and after a quick demo by the dealer I got some calico and had a bit of a practice.

It's very smooth to move and only requires the lightest touch to stitch.

My daughter (12 years old) also had a play and found it quick easy to use it.

There was no time like the present, so I took the plunge and loaded a 'real' top which I recently completed using my scraps.

It quilted through the many seams without any effort and it looks quite acceptable given the limited experience I have.  But I am under no illusions that many more hours of practice will be required to reach an acceptable level of workmanship. 
I need to increase my thread stock, watch some tutorials, buy some rulers and other gadgets to expand the designs, get to know all the features of the machine and at some stage do a class to pick up experience from other people.

The best thing so far is that I now only have 13 tops to quilt instead of 14 !!!

Keep tuned for more interesting blogposts soon.

Scrapmania and Swoon Quilt Top completed

Love or hate them, scraps can make your imagination go wild if you just love fabric (like we all do !). 
A couple of years ago I managed to reduce my scraps to 50% but last year with all the projects I did and some (well, perhaps many !) fabric purchases, the scrap bin is back to what it was in terms of size.
So after recently buying a couple of books that use scraps, I got very inspired and made this top.

 

It doesn't look like a lot of work, but it takes  a lot of time and thread to 'make fabric'.  I used the smallest pieces from the scrap bin to give more variety but I still wanted to have some kind of order by making the non-star blocks in one colour. The star blocks are quick to make but lots of seams to sew through.

I haven't quite decided if I should keep going making more fabrics and more stars and a bigger quilt but I needed a break, so I completed the top of the Swoon Quilt last night.

 I haven't pressed it properly but here is a close-up of one of the blocks.

 And another... 
I like the way the quilt turned out and this one will be quilted sooner rather than later.

 And this is the reason my scrap bin continues to grow... I am trying to buy fabrics different from my usual style and away from the reproduction designs  but in the end I have to admit that I love all fabrics !! 

And now for some inspiring music....
Apart from Smooth Jazz I also love Classical music. This is Nicola Benedetti playing the violin with the composition "Meditation from Thai's"  by Jules Massenet.

Table Runner, books and Scraps

Made for my daughter's bedroom this simple table runner using some fabric from a charm pack.  Quick project and quite useful.

 

Received a belated Xmas present I gave myself that arrived this week from Amazon.
Two of the books are purely to use scraps and the other is on pre-cuts.

I particularly like the "15 Minutes of Play" concept, which Victoria Findlay Wolfe shares in this book as well as on her blog.  The only  'downside' for me, is that it never ends as 15 minutes but hours of creativity ! Where can one spend hours doing something this much
fun that is not bad for you and having something to show for that time? 

Here is what I did !
The scrap bins are once again overflowing, so no shortage of fabrics; with the help of the Accuquilt machine saved time cutting the large tumbler blocks.

I'm going to continue having fun with my scraps in the forthcoming months.... not expecting a huge dent in the stash.

PS - Victoria is holding a workshop at  Material Obsession (Sydney) in March 2013. Check out more information on their website under "Special Events".

Sewing Machine Cover and Mat

Until I reviewed my blog today I had not realised how many projects I completed in 2012. 
I knew I had done a few for gifts and others for me, but this many ??? Around 42 and these include various sizes of quilts and bags.
I guess it goes to show when you have a passion no matter what other responsabilities you have to attend to (full time job, mother of a young daughter and love to keep a nice garden) inspiration gets you there !

I have made a photo collage with all these projects (saved as a html, tried to add it to the posting but did not work). So any feedback is appreciated so I can share these projects on the blog.

Here is something fun I did to kick start 2013. I was going over my novelty prints stash and found some fabrics to use.

It's always handy to have a mat under your machine, but one with a pocked is even better, so the essential gadgets are at hand...

 

Since I had enough fabrics available I made a cover for the sewing machine.  It has different fabrics for the front and the back and they make me laugh.

See below this amazing quilting done ? I wish I could have said I did it, but it's the work of  very talented artist ... Victor.
Please check out his recent quilting blog as well as the other blog that he produces on tattoos... I just love it .