Celtic Solstice Part 1 - Mystery Quilt - Bonnie Hunter -

I am gradually working through a couple of quilts but until the tops are done there is not much point blogging about it.

However, as per 'tradition' I am participating in this years mystery quilt ;  Bonnie Hunter mystery quilt - Celtic Solstice.

The quilters who have blogs are sharing their progress along the way and linking each step to Bonnie's Monday Mystery Link-Up so this posting has to be ready for that.

This is what I have done so far ; I am hoping to complete this step before the next clue that comes out Friday.

All the fabrics came from my stash and this time I am using combination of colours which I have not used before... actually pink is not a colour I immediately buy fabrics but I have enough around to use in this quilt.

As the first clue came out for us in Australia late Friday night I decided to give myself a good night's sleep and wake up early the next day. So on Saturday at 4am I was already in my studio (separate dwelling from the main house) with a cup of coffee,classic music playing and very excited... Actually so excited that I cut myself with a rotary blade !!! But that did not stop me and I kept going.
I started using the Tri Recs rulers but after making several blocks I decided to use paper piecing.
I love paper piecing technique so it's a breeze to get these blocks made... I even like the mess of trimming and tearing the paper. My mom thinks I am a bit mad getting up so early and making such a mess... But I am happy...

I am so grateful that Bonnie Hunter does this for us and especially this year with so many options of how to construct these blocks and all for FREE !

Amish inspired small quilt top, new project(s) .....

I have been having fun with my stash..... As much as I love Civil War reproduction fabrics I also love bright fabrics (and anything else in between) so I have been quietly collecting these beauties !
I started a new quilt using them but at this stage I am not ready to show you.... just the strips!



and these blocks... well, part blocks...

 



 And with a view to part of my garden to match the flowers in the fabric how can I not be inspired ?

 

I am still trying to quilt all my tops, so this one which I completed years ago is ready to be quilted.

 

I have finished something recently; the top of a small quilt... the blocks are 4 1/2" and these blocks are done using the foundation/paper pieced with my scraps...



And lastly.... I have done it again !!!
We visited  Threadbear quilt shop (check us on their blog)  and I could not resist this pattern... and a few other goodies; fabrics for the background, 3 fat quarters, circle templates, Karen Buckley scissors and fine pins which cost and arm and a leg !

I have promised myself  (wink, wink) that I won't start this quilt (another long term needleturn project) until I complete two quilt tops I have in progress at the moment... such a hard decision to make as I already have most of the fabrics for the quilt from my large civil war repro fabric stash... what's a girl to do ??

 

 

Table Runner

I have a quilt in progress (not a huge surprise !) and as I made some of the blocks I ended up with some triangles which I have put to good use by doing this table runner.

Did some other stitching but nothing completed enough to show you.

 

My longest UFO !!! 15 years

It may seem a long time to have a quilt in progress but I like this quilt today as much as I did when I started it years ago. And now it's finally quilted, bound and labelled !

I got the pattern for this quilt in 1998 at "Primarily Patchwork" quilt shop as well as a stack of fabrics to get the project started.
I was fairly new to quilting back then but already loved needleturn applique, so I maintained my enthusiasm for the blocks for quite some time.
I struggled a bit with the piecing, trying to fit all the triangles and blocks together, eventually I got it done but decided not to follow the border design which have included several hundred more triangles.

Then I decided to quilt it by hand so I purchased a large quilt frame and began.  After a while of very little progress I got a quote to have it professionally quilted but the price was way too high, so I got it basted instead.
I then proceeded to hand quilt around each motif and this went on and on until I gave up altogether when I realised that it needed a lot more quilting in the open spaces.
This was not going to happen so the quilt stayed in the bag for a few more years.
Then last week in the middle of the night (after being called up for work and could not fall asleep immediately) I contemplated the idea of loading it on the Handi Quilter and finish it no matter what !
And that is exactly what I did....not the usual way of loading a quilt but I got it done and that is all it matters.

I did not mark it, nor did I pre-planned before I started each block, I just let my imagination take over and just went for it !

I did not worry that the designs were not perfect or conventional but I had great fun coming up with each design.

Each block is different and I used a neutral thread so unless you look really close it's not obvious the imperfections. 

The quilt measures around 96 inches (2.45 metres) and I am just so happy that is done !

The photos were taken indoors, so the actual colours don't show it's full beauty and being so large, it was quite difficult to photograph in it's entirety.
 

Vases Quilt and a Pouch

It has been a while since I completed something but this week I finished a couple of things finally.

I found a small bag of Australian fabrics scraps and a few buttons and in no time I had this pouch made.  I would like to make a few more soon.

One of the projects that has been taking a lot of my time recently was free-motion quilting this quilt.
I had made this top a while ago but was not confident enough to quilt it on the machine and don't have enough time to hand quilt it.
I used needle-turn applique and the pattern came from a one day class I took several years ago.

Here is a close-up of the quilting.

I am enjoying the process more and more and accepting the fact that some stitches will not be as perfect as I would like them to be but they are still good enough.  I am only doing my own quilts and it's a lot better than having the tops stored away after spending a lot of time getting them done.

I am finding each quilting session some kind of  meditative process and not only do I feel more confident but more inspired to try new designs.

I have another similar size quilt I am working on which comprises of applique on wool and pieced blocks. Most of the pieced blocks are done but still have 3 applique blocks to complete. Of course it won't be finished that soon but I'm making steady progress.
In the meantime I am considering doing Bonnie Hunter's Annual Mystery Quilt.  Are you going to do it ? I have great admiration for her work and what she brings to the quilting community not to mention the amount of energy she has in accomplishing so many things.

I did Orca Bay the year before last mystery and completed the quilt in a smaller size although I must admit it was quite a lot of work. I won't need to buy any fabric for this project also, so that would be a good thing to use up my stash.

Table Runner, Scrap Fun and Quilt Show

 

I made this table runner with a bit of an Australian flavour.

 

 

Close-up of the quilting...

 

I try to follow Bonnie Hunter's method of organising fabric scraps and have a large box of 

1 1/2" squares. With these I have made already 60 Nine Patch blocks and I may end up doing Dancing Nine Patches quilt. 

For now I am happy just trying out new designs, using my scraps and if nothing comes of it they will not be UFO's but simply experiments.

And of course there is a quilt on my HQ18 which I am taking my time as well for the sake of practice and accuracy rather than trying to finish as fast as possible a project. 

 

 

I have a couple of "Honey Buns" pre-cuts and added a few of my own fabrics to came up with this.  Not sure if I will add more blocks or leave as it is but whatever happens it will be a good piece to practice my quilting skills.

 

 

This year's the theme at Quilts In the Barn exhibition was Dutch Chintz Quilts.

My photos did not came out too good but here are some.  The first two pictures were my friend Lynne's quilts and as usual she makes beautiful quilts no matter what style they are.

 

 

 

Loved the quilting here....

 



 

Ohio Stars Quilt and more scrap fun

A couple of years ago I participated on a block swap with Jan Marie . I made her Log Cabin blocks and she made me these Ohio Start blocks.

I had them all in a box but not quite sure how I wanted to put them together until last week when I purchased this great fabric (grey) for $5 a metre.

 

 

I enjoy getting an idea and within the same day just going into my studio and make that idea come alive.  No pressure of having to write up patterns and considering anything else apart from enjoying the process... and that is exactly what I have done with this quilt.

 

Here it is the finished quilt !!! Just love it...

 

Another fun thing I Iike to do from time to time is to play with my scraps.  Bonnie Hunter from Quiltville has been doing a a videocast doing this block and while I watch her I make my own blocks and be part of the community.



 

 

Took these pictures today of my garden; it's calling me to give it some attention.

But still rewarding me with it's beautiful camellias and...

 

And the first Spring rose !



 

Some more pictures I took last month in the city of my birth....Lisboa.

  

 

 

 

 

Back in 'business'....sewing and enjoying the garden.

Well, it's not business in the true sense of the word but getting back to my routine of quilting for my own pleasure.
I have fully recovered from jetlag and got back into doing a little stitching during the day (lunch breaks and waiting for picking up daughter after school) and then after dinner  going into my studio to sew while listening to podcasts and/or smooth jazz.  Those are very precious hours in my day when I am lost in another dimension and totally indulge in my two passions : quilting and music.

Talking of podcasts, this week I found two podacasts  that I wasn't aware of and quite enjoyed listening to what the girls presented: one is called  Canadian Quilt Talk and the other is Amy's Creative Side.

My time management worked out for me this week so I finally achieved a promise I made to my friend Debra. She celebrated her birthday while I was away and just prior to that I did not have time to finish a quilt I had promised her.

But it's done and in her bedroom. She appears to be quite pleased in the photo.

The past few months I made many projects to take over to my family and friends overseas as well as familiarise myself with the Handy Quilter I bought earlier in the year. I still have a long way to go to improve my quilting skills so I have purchased several Craftsy classes to help me along the way. 

I visited my regular fabric store this week and my friend Lynne who works there, gave me these two beautiful gifts she made for me :

This is a close up of the thread-catcher..

And she also made me a needle case storage organizer. Thank you so much Lynne.

  

I admire all the things she makes and her talents extend to embroidery, applique,  patchwork, making bags and other items and even sews a lot of her own clothes.  I wish I could persuade her to start a blog one day so you all could enjoy looking at her beautiful projects.

 



I could not leave the store without buying just a little...The bottom fabric in the pile is currently being used in a project which hopefully I can show you on my next posting...

Spring is now making it's presence and I can see that in the garden ; the perfume especially at night is very intense and in the past two days it feels good being outside.

 

My gazebo is just about covered...Can you see my daughter in there ?

 

 

 These were taken on my recent trip to Dubai, very interesting designs which could be used for quilt blocks.

 

 

So until next time, happy quilting and feel free to make a comment or get in touch.