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.

Back from Holidays....

 

Giving my brother the birthday quilt....

 

 

Visiting a quilt show in Laranjeiro (other side of the Rio Tejo in Lisbon), Portugal.



 

 

Catching up with my quilting friend  Teresa

 

She made me this beautiful quilt...

 

 

 

 

Meeting up with my new quilty friend Felizarda



 

 

 

She made me these beautiful hand-embroidered hearts...

 

 

I got published for the second-time this year on the UK based magazine Homemade with Love (see right-hand side of this page).

 

Some beautiful sites in my birthplace... Lisbon.

 

My favourite place to stay....

 

 

Table Topper and New Wool Project

With some of my stash and leftover fabrics from the apron I made a few days ago I made this table topper.

 

I have started a new quilt !

It comprises of 9 applique blocks using wool and pieced blocks. Cutting the shapes for the applique blocks is a bit time consuming and fiddly but it will be worth it when it's done.

 



Since Google Reader's demise I haven't had many comments or picked up any new followers that I can see... perhaps my postings are not too interesting or some setting is preventing people from making comments ???

Gift Quilt and smaller projects

Here is the quilt I mentioned in my last posting being presented to my work colleague on his 60th birthday.  He really liked it and has been using it with the cold nights we are having in Melbourne.

 

I have made a couple of other projects which I will post a picture when I present it to the recipient (if he allows it ... ).

 

I like novelty prints and my daughter likes cats, so when I saw this print with cats playing jazz I made her a notebook cover and a tote to carry her trumpet books when she goes for lessons.

 

I made an apron from novelty print I picked up a few weeks ago.  I could not possibly keep everything I make and the fun is in the making and using up my stash is always a good thing.  I still have a little bit left of the fabric to make something else.

 

While tidying up my scraps, I found a bunch of music fabrics from previous projects so I made this zippered pouch. 

 

 And with other scraps I made some gift card holders of slightly different sizes.

 

I need to load another quilt top (Queen size) on the HQ18 but this weekend I wanted to just play with my stash and make smaller projects...



 

Lap Quilt and Journal Cover

Apologies for the quality of the photos.

This is a large lap quilt I made for a colleague at work who is turning 60 years old next week.  He doesn't know about if yet but the funny thing is that last week he saw me looking at a quilting magazine and casually said "one day you have to make me "...

So I think he'll like it or at a minimum will be surprised that he's getting one.

 

Here is a close-up of the quilting; having the quilting machine allows me to finish a quilt of this type in less than a couple of days.
The block is the Disappearing Nine Patch and all the fabrics came from my stash.

After cleaning up my studio I didn't want to start anything large, so I made this journal cover to give my aunty as a gift.
The applique is wool and were left overs from a previous project.

And now for some music:

It's no secret that I adore Chris Botti's music so when he joined Michael Buble in this beautiful song "A song for You" I had to add to the list of all time favourites.
The other version of this song that I also love is done by  Mike Hucknall from the group "Simply Red".