P is for...

Progress # 1

The wedding quilt top is coming along.  I've made three more "blocks" since my last post.  Five more to go and I should be able to start cobbling this baby together.  As I begin to see the end of the project, I have to remind myself that no matter what... it will take time.  The last laps seem to take the longest;  I've never run track, but I imagine that it sometimes feels that way.

(Teotihuacan- Pyramid of the Sun)

mosaics - note the diamond

Progress #2


The triangles galore quilt now numbers 21 bocks.  I'm shooting for 35! I'm gonna run out of room on the design wall.

Parts


Quilt "parts" are one of the ideas that Gwen Marston and Freddy Moran have advocated in their books, Collaborative Quilting and Freddy and Gwen Collaborate Again.  They found that making basic pieces such as HST's or nine patches, or piano keys, or spikes, in advance of their meetings made the designing process a lot more efficient. Each of them put together a stash of parts using their scraps and with no set quilt pattern in mind.

I've been making parts, too. I have no set plans for them, but I know I'll use them somehow, someday.    I always sew together HST's of the cut off triangles from the corners of flying geese or snowballs (even if they are tiny).  I sew together elongated triangles left over from the Triangle Galore project which will make skinny spikes or divided rectangles. I sew these pieces together in the Leader and Ender style of Bonnie Hunter... I have a stash of pieces by my sewing machine.  As I start a series of sewing, I will begin the process with one set of the parts and then when I come to the end of the project, I'll sew another together.  These leaders and enders take the place of the bit of scrap that is often used at the start of a seam so that fabric and thread don't make an annoying birds nest or jam into the "hole" in the machine.  (Sometimes I forget which project I am really working on and end up sewing several parts in a row before I remember they are supposed to be the leader and ender.  LOL)   Here's just a wee handful of my parts.  Those HST's measure 1.75 inches square.

Play


The Bloggers BOM for this month was designed by Amy of Mrs. Schmenkman Quilts.
These are my four blocks.

The New'Bee made-fabric bee over on 15minutes play.com... Beebee asked for this star of made fabric and a bright solid around it.  The solid fabric is really a lot brighter than it appears here.  My made fabric was made from tiny scraps, so there is lots of variety.

Parcel


Look what arrived in the mail all of 40 minutes ago!  Gwen's newest book!  Published by AQS.

It is FABULOUS.  No matter what your quilting style is -  modern, traditional, scrappy, applique, wonky, liberated, amish solids- there is something of interest in this book.   It holds lots of fun and inspiration and how-to hints!  Gwen shares the spotlight with a number of BIQR students.   I highly recommend this book.  I'm looking forward to taking a really good look at all the quilts.  I'm going to Gwen's retreat in October and Liberated Medallions is the focus.  So excited!

Bits and Pieces: on-going projects

I've been working on several on-going projects.   I like the fact that I can work on one project for a bit and then switch to another project.  There is no pressure to complete something right away.  I may feel overwhelmed when I finally get all the pieces finished and want to get them sewn together.  Hopefully that won't happen.

My most important project is the wedding quilt, with a self-imposed deadline of June ( to complete the top).  I will tell you the entire story when I finally finish all the blocks and get them sewn together. Below are the blocks I've made so far.  The blocks are free pieced. I work from photographs.  I make a pencil sketch for guidelines and notes. Then work in sections, referring to my sketch for the order in which things need to be pieced to make that part of the block.  The tricky part for me is to remember that the fine details I might see in a photo need not be included.   Some  of these blocks have fused accents and others have applique.  The lettering is all free-pieced.  I used Tonya Ricucci's Word Play Quilts as a guide for making them.

7 down... 8 more to go... Think I'll make the deadline?



I am doing the Bloggers BOM. I am making 4 of each of the blocks. I am playing with different  colored fabrics while attempting to keep the background fabrics similar. I've found this project to be a challenge, because what looks like a contrast between fabrics close up often isn't when one gets it sewn together and steps away. I've kept all the blocks anyway.  Selecting fabrics is a constant learning process.  Here are the last few months of BOM's. Sorry - photo colors are very washed out.

I am in the New'Bee Swap through www.15minutesplay.com.  This is the block for Janet.  She requested we make fabric of contrasting colors from our scraps.   I chose red and aqua green, which are complimentary colors in Joen Wolfrom's 3 in 1 color tool.  I started by pulling out all of my "red" scraps and "bluish" scraps and then weeding out the shades that weren't really red or aqua.  That was a challenge. I was happy to have something to compare colors against.  I just discovered a three part posting about choosing color and fabrics by Laura Nownes.  Check it out.  I've linked to a list of all her posts, so you need to scroll down a little to January 2012 for these posts.

there is more... but this is enough for today.

making slow progress

Happy New Year to all!

Over the holidays I've been doing stuff in the sewing room.  I've not completed anything, just plugged away at on-going (slow moving) projects.

Here's a sneak peek of one project.

I've been using Tonya Ricucci's book Word Play Quilts as guidance for making the letters.  She also provides several examples of what not to do.  (I need to remake one of these signs as the letters are somewhat lost because the fabric I chose is a bit too busy and pretty much the same value as the background.  Can you spot it?).  I have two more place names to make before I move on to the next phase of this quilt.  It will be complex, unlike any I have ever made.  I love the challenge and I know that its recipients will cherish it; for me, it won't be "a lot of work" as some are prone to say, it is a lot of fun.











I made the 4th block for the Bloggers BOM.  Pat Sloan designed the block.  I have been making 4 of each block, playing with various similar backgrounds and color combinations.

I've been mentoring a young lass as she made her first quilt. She loves going to the thrift stores. She purchased fabric whenever she could find it, plus received some fabric from a quilting friend.  In two weeks she made a twin quilt top of scrappy nine-patches and snowballs.  It is now at the quilters. She is so excited about it and about having reached her goal of making it in time take it to the University.  She is entering this semester.  I hope to get a picture or two once she gets the quilt back.  We still have to put the binding on it.

Swap blocks and more

As many of you know, one of the pleasures of quilt blogging is the opportunity to join in projects distant from home base.  What better way is there to try out different techniques or designs?  Plus, the internet contacts are very rewarding.

I joined the 15 minutes play  scrap  "New'Bee".  For December, V asked us to make an ethereal star and surround it with dark scrap background.  She sent us two swatches of fabric to incorporate however we wanted. These swatches were a bright orange print and a navy with bright green ikat.  We could also include another star if we wanted or send her an extra star.  Any kind of star was legit, so I went liberated.
This is going to NYC very soon:

I also joined the Blogger's BOM, hosted by Jackie.  I love this BOM.  I can raid my own stash.  I can experiment with color combinations. The blocks have been fun to make. Each is designed by a different quilter and each month is presented as a surprise. And the BOM is free.

 I decided to make 4 of each block.   I am using different light orange and yellow backgrounds (the color is washed out in these pictures) and plan to put all the blocks together in a good size happy quilt.  Here's what I have so far:

September:  Block designed by Sherri McConnell
                                                             

October: Block designed by Vicki Welsh

November: Block designed by Stephanie Dunphy















I also joined Beth Shibley's Neighborhood House Party.
Here are my houses:

I'm sending them to Beth. She will be 'redistributing' the gathered blocks to some lucky winners on January 1. The number of winners depends on how many people join the party.  Everyone has only ONE chance, regardless of how many houses she may have contributed.    I look forward to seeing all the different houses.

Hey!  Anyone can do this.  Check out the link above and join the fun.  Just remember, your house needs to be in Beth's hands by Dec. 31.