It seems like months since I finished anything and, although I realise it isn't a complete finish, I'm happy to have finished the quilt top for the sofa.
To give you some context, here is a picture of our very beige living room with a dark plum sofa that sticks out like a sore thumb.
The quilt top has turned out a lot busier than I thought it would but I still think it does a good job at tying in the plum and beige.
I'm going to take it into work tomorrow and see if I can sneak it onto the long-arm and get it quilted. It would be a lovely surprise for mum. she's coming out of the hospital on Thursday evening for the knitting club Christmas dinner (sounds exciting, right?) so, if it could be done by then, that would be perfect.
I'm having a re-jig of my WIPs because I realised that I've been scaring myself by listing projects that I haven't even started. They non-starters are going in their own separate section so hopefully I will be less overwhelmed and more able to get something done.
Quilt for mum
A brand new range of fabrics, Melrose by Red Rooster Fabrics, came into the shop where I work and they would look just perfect in our living room. I quickly snapped some up with the aim of making a throw sized quilt for one of the sofas.
Our living room was predominately beige and mum decided to inject some colour into it by buying a dark plum sofa. Needless to say it now sticks out like a sore thumb so I'm hoping to calm it down a bit with a throw.
I decided on the Hidden Wells pattern I used with Rouenneries fabric previously. Its quick, effective and makes use of the contrasting fabrics quite well. I've sliced and sewed and sliced again and it's well on its way.
This picture shows the balance of fabrics in the top, although these blocks have been re-sliced now. Fingers crossed mum will be coming out of the hospital next week and I'm determined to have this quilt done by then.
Hexalong
I didn't complete any hexagons this week but I slowly basted all my spotty fabrics, a couple at a time in front of the TV.
I can now see which odd colour combinations I'm going to deal with first. I think the brown and magenta at the bottom and the maroon and green at the top right are top of the list to match up with solids.
Other projects
Strawberry Patch - Echo quilted 3 blocks, not much but at least it's progress
Neutral jelly roll bear paws - Still waiting to be quilted
Shabby Wedding Rings - No progress
Plan for the week
Finish off mum's Melrose quilt
Piece 8 wedding ring curvy bits
Complete at least one hexagon
I think that should be manageable - baby steps. Check in next week to see if I made it.
Why not pop over to Freshly pieced to see what everyone else is up to this Wednesday.
There was a scary moment this weekend when I thought that I must order fabric in my sleep. This package turned up at the door. That's a pretty big box, I don't remember ordering that much fabric...
Phew, I'm not sleep shopping. Inside the big package was a smaller package...
Fun! Pass the parcel! Inside the smaller parcel was a purchase worth wrapping twice. A Jelly roll and a layer cake of Echo by Lotta Jansdotter.
I hadn't even remembered buying this so maybe I do have a problem. I'm glad I did take the plunge because it's absolutely spectacular in person.
Now it's getting ridiculous. I'm writing another list and getting some jobs done. Surely if I keep myself really busy then I won't be able to do any more shopping.
Next Friday is Children in Need night on the BBC. For those of you not based in the UK, Children in Need is a charity that helps children and young people in need all over the UK. Pretty self-explanatory really.
The mascot of the charity is a super cute bear called Pudsey who has one eye - awwwww. To raise money I have designed a mug rug with Pudsey on. Say hello....
The kits are available from The Fat Quarters. You can buy them online or pop in to the shop to pick one up and see what other fun is going on. They are £3.50 each, of which £1.75 goes straight to the charity.
When I looked at my WIP Wednesday this week, I realised that my WIPs are growing. I used to start a project and carry it through to the end but now it's been months since I actually finished anything. So I had all the intentions in the world not to start anything new, to concentrate on one thing at a time and to finish up some projects.
But then this arrived:
I just love the look of a USPS packet because I know straight away that it's going to have gorgeous fabric inside. This one had my charm packs for the "Iron Quilter" competition and this beautiful, if slightly crumpled, layer cake of Chrysalis by Sanae.
I know it's quite an old line now but I've been resisting it for so long, I finally gave in. One of the first quilts I made was this disappearing 9-patch using the Arcadia line, which is by the same designer, and I just adored it. I sold it and I know it went to a very good home but I miss it.
I'm hoping I can make something I will love just as much with this layer cake.
When we were at the "Knitter natter" last night in Woolaballoo it was late night opening at The Fat Quarters next door (it really is dangerous having these two shops next door to each other). My sister decided she wanted some Christmas bunting
Any excuse for fabric shopping is good for me so we ran next door and bought these cute Countdown to Christmas fabrics by Sweetwater. Another design team that I have admired from afar. At least that should be a quick project.
So, instead of finishing up a project this week, I have already added 3 new ones. Poop.
My mum was hospitalised on Friday so, between work and running backwards and forwards to the hospital, I haven't had much time for sewing. I was determined to make some progress this week so here's the little I managed to do.
Hexalong
So far, I have been picking out my favourite spots and favourite solids to make the hexagons but I started to worry that I would be left with the yucky colours and no way to brighten them up. The new plan is to take the spots I'm not keen on and find some way to make me fall in love with them.
This was the first challenge. I really didn't like the diarrhoea coloured mustardy brown spots with the violet but, when paired with a brighter yellow, the whole thing looks a lot more palatable to me.
Double Wedding Ring
I pieced another couple of curves which makes enough curves to piece my first full ring. I also traced out the templates for the "melon" (the tutorials term, not mine - I've never seen a melon that shape!) and the centres using template plastic. Using my new templates I cut 4 melons and 1 centre.
That's when the panic set in. Should I piece them together or should I make all the curves and play around with them first. I have a fear of getting the balance of colours wrong. A paralysing fear.
I'm learning that my brain does not do scrappy, it craves order and symmetry. It's an engineering brain and scrappy is hurting it. I will not be defeated! I will, however, chicken out of sewing them together until I have them all pieced and can spend hours and hours rearranging them.
New projects
They're running a competition over at Missouri Star Quilt Company called the iron quilter. Take up to three charm packs and create anything you want. The finished quilts will be judged in January and the winner gets $150 to spend in the shop.
Can I resist the chance to win $150 of fabric loveliness? - nope. Do I have time to design a quilt, make a quilt and post it to America by December 31st? - Do I ****!
I guess I'll have to make time because I've ordered the charm packs so now it would be rude not to.
Why not pop over to Freshly pieced to see what everyone else is up to this Wednesday. It's the one year anniversary of Lee's Linky party and to celebrate she's featuring the original linkers and a giveaway.
I adore my new job doing the long arm quilting at The Fat Quarters. I get to play with quilts all day and get paid for it, who could ask for anything more!
There are some drawbacks, however, the main one being major quilt envy. Every now and again (almost every time) I fall in love with the quilt that I'm working on and it's incredibly hard to hand them back to the owners. This week I'm basting a quilt so that it can be hand quilted at home.
Please excuse the bad picture quality - they were taken in a basement with my phone. Look at all those hundreds of perfectly pieced 1" squares and the panels are lovely little snowdrops.
It's been made by a really sweet 80 year old lady. She must have the patience of a saint because it's over 100" long. If you click on the image above you can just about see the marking lines where she's going to hand quilt. I hope she brings it in so that I can see it finished.
This is the back of a little cot quilt that I just adored. I was proud of my first attempt at stars.
I'm now going to attempt some sewing of my own. I am so short on time at the moment that it's really difficult to squeeze in my own projects. Hmmm, which to work on... hexagons or wedding rings....?
Shabby Wedding Rings
I have pieced 6 of the curved sections for my double wedding ring quilt.
The patternI am using is made up of 4 rings by 4 rings but I think I'm going to expand it so it's more bed sized. In total I need to piece 60 curves so I'm 10% there. That doesn't seem so bad.
Hexalong
I've made one more hexagon, using fussy cut flowers from a Faffe Fassett fabric.
It took me a couple of evenings but I'm very proud of it. So proud, I think I'm going to order some fat quarters of the floral in a couple of different colourways so I can do some more. I think these three would give a good balance:
Last Wednesday I asked "Is there anything more satisfying than neat piles of freshly cut fabric?". It turns out there is! I have had so much fun sorting my fabrics into colour groups:
and piecing them into perfect wedding ring curves (I am a total foundation convert!).
Add to that the serendipitous fact that, just as I started piecing a wedding ring quilt, 2 of my best friends announced they will be getting married next August. It must be fate. So shabby wedding rings is to go to this gorgeous couple.
And now I have a deadline, I better get going...
This post is linked to Quiltstory's Fabric Tuesday. Why not pop over for some gorgeous fabric inspiration.
