Pumpkin and black mini in progress

After months of making charity quilts I recently made a mini quilt from the Quilts and More magazine, which then inspired me to make another.  This pattern is called Nine Patch Checkerboard (22'x22") from the Jo Morton book Little Favourites.  The pattern in mini quilt books are not always true scaled down miniatures, but this one uses 1.5" squares, and that was sufficient challenge for me at the time!

I figured it would be "easy" because there were mainly squares v triangles...however trying to square up the block was a bit dicey.  I definitely need a new small ruler with more 1/8" lines marked all along the ruler.

I also struggled to find much variety in my black fabric.  In the end the final block uses two different scraps of black fabric, in order to get enough to make a block!  As some of the fabrics are quite colourful and busy I ended up ordering a larger piece of black from Elm Grove Patchwork for the borders.  I found that I have a substantial collection of pumpkin and cheddar fabrics, so really had fun auditioning the different prints for the tiny border.  

 

My birthday plant from last year has a new flower and a second one down closer to the base about to come out.  I think this is a peace lily, but no matter what it is, I just adore the colour of that flower!

 

Happy quilting Sue.

Quilts n more Spring 2017

This is the Spring 2017 edition of Quilts and More magazine.  It has been on my coffee table for at least six months and to be honest doesn't stay in the book case very long.  Hence I have ended up making a LOT of projects from this one edition, and many of them this year!

The main reason is the Vivid Grid pattern (page 46!) which has become a favorite pattern because; a) easily made with stash, scraps or jelly roll, b) only uses 2.5"stripes and squares" c) is not complicated pattern to layout or piece, hence quick to make.  

Sorry terrible photo taken at night, but this is a cot sized fourth version of Vivid Grid that I changed up slightly by adding sashing.   My first Vivid Grid was pretty and bright, using a combinatino of stash and scraps, in 2017 after I brought the magazine.  It was gifted to my husbands niece.

Second version was made using a jelly roll Collection for a Cause and finished in early 2018.  I took the quilt to  UK and gifted it to a friend Jim, who we visited on his family farm that year.   

Third version was made from stash using up red and blue and a scrap bag of yellow pieces I brought when on retreat in 2019 at Periwinkle Patchwork.  Can you see the millenium fabric in red (LH corner)...I have just used some of the last 2.5" squares in the fourth version, LOL!

Page 72 is Natures Guide and I have now made this quilt twice this year!! (at this point your allowed to think the pandemic has sent me crazy!)  This is version one (half size  pattern), and version two is very similar;  a different sashing fabric and quilted by me instead of a professional long armer.  I will blog about version two soon.

Page 86 is A Bit of History, a mini quilt by Ann Hermes using antique fabric.  My version is made using very bright reproduction scraps instead. I wanted to make something for me and another project from the magazine, plus I am a fan of Ann's patterns.  

Page 58 Top your Table: Spring table runner  was a project I finished in our spring 2017....which is fall in the northern hemisphere!  I love seasonal themed projects to decorate the house, but I think I only finished one other from this series....I need to rectify that!

So that still leaves a few projects unmade from this magazine, including a large and mini Shoo Fly and a gorgeous chocolate and pink log cabin that is not in the photo, but very tempting!  I have decided if I am going to go whole hog or not, LOL!  That might depend on how long this pandemic and my period of unemployment run for.  

Happy quilting, Sue.

Temecula Quilt Co sampler

Temecula Quilt Company ran a free sew along for a mini quilt sampler in June 2017. I started the sew along with blocks from scraps, in a variety of colours and a second version in pinks and reds.

By October 2017 all the red and pink blocks were completed and sewn together with sashing.  Which clearly I didn't like and changed to add cornerstones!

Then on camp in April 2019 I found the completed flimsy and started quilting it.

Quilting the sampler was easy as I just did in the ditch, but when your up close and personal all the mistakes hit you in the eye.  I just kept going.....finished is far preferable then to adding another UFO to the collection!

So finally a finish for this old UFO and  it was in time for our exhibition.  Now to hunt down the multi coloured blocks and see where they are at!

Happy quilting Sue.

French General Frivol

Moda Frivols tin #5;  Atelier is the pattern and the fabrics are  Petite prints Deux - French General.

I pieced this little quilt (33 x 30") while I was on camp in March.  I then came home and quilted it very simply while I was in the mood for quilting.  It was great to get a quick finish on something that had been sitting in my sewing room (in its lovely tin) for too long.  

I love growing African Violets, they are the perfect house plant for a "fair weather gardener" like me - someone who likes minimal effort gardening.  I subscribe to having house plants to clean the air and add some living colour, but keeping them alive has been a challenge!  My success is down to the pots, Decor brand, which have a reservoir of water underneath and the plant sucks up the moisture as it does in nature, through its roots.  The bonus is that African violets don't mind a period of dry, so if I forget to top up the water it doesn't seem to stress the plant, but more importantly I cannot overwater them.

Happy quilting Sue.

Progress finally

This quilt (Moonlight by Gerri Robinson in her book "A Cut Above") is made with French General fabric and has been back from the lovely long armer Vicki Jenkin for weeks!  Finally I found my box of left over FG to cut and sew the binding.

  

Its such a treat to have a lovely quilt to hand stitch binding down at night, when its still cool enough to want a quilt on your lap.  The weather has warmed up but a lack of rain has caused me to hold off planting much in the garden, and I have had to start hand watering it is so dry.

Having said that it was freezing cold over the weekend and I just hid in the house as much as I could.  I have been frustrated for months that I couldn't find anything in my sewing nook so I attempted a clean up.  I moved fabric from box to box, upended cupboards, whined about the lack of space and project boxes and made a big mess. I say attempt, because I am so easily distracted that when I found some projects I stopped cleaning up!  I did some unpicking and sewed borders on two projects then dumped them both in a box that I promised myself would be my go to UFO box.  LOL will see if that makes a difference in finishing UFO's!  

This mini cake stand quilt (12") was not a UFO, just a favorite orphan block.  I added two more rounds, quilted it minimally and put the binding on. While I think it deserves more quilting then it received, I am happily calling it a finish for now!

Happy quilting Sue.

A new mini quilt

I thought I would cheat and show you the progress shots (to pad out this post), as I made this quilt.

 But the truth is, it was quick to make, hence I did show them on Instagram, but this little pretty is done and dusted now!

Besides the clarity in this shot is way better then the progress ones!

Another mini finish from my Jo Morton book "Jo's Little Favorites".  This pattern is called Cabin Corners and combines log cabin blocks with courthouse step blocks.  I don't remember making courthouse step blocks before, but they were fun. I have also never been a huge low volume fan, but I enjoyed the challenge here.

A "nearly at the end" progress shot, this is the quilt my Mum started at Patchwork camp a few weeks ago, 

and she has since finished all the blocks and sewn them up. I think she is planning on a thin cream border though on the edge, so really nearly a "flimsy finish".

The pattern was purchased at Periwinkle Patchwork, but the name of the pattern maker or pattern eludes me.

Happy quilting Sue.

Mini Finish

Pattern Bordered Toile by Jo Morton, from her book "Jo's Little Favorites",

Nice to have another finish.  This is the second quilt I have made from this book and there is a third in progress.  I think that says something about a book.  Or perhaps it speaks volumes about my attention span for miniatures this year, v large quilts!  

Frustrating to have a collection of finished mini's that are not hanging on the wall!  Need to find some time with hammer and hooks and get the collection hung!

Happy quilting Sue.

Marvelous Mini Monday update

I am participating in the Temecula Quilt Co Marvelous Mini Monday.

I wanted to use reproduction scraps, but couldn't let go enough to have a different fabric on each side of the centre block, so I have been very controlled.

I liked the blocks so much I decided to make a second set in red, pink and shirtings.

 
After making such tiny centres, to have solid centres for block 4 seemed a bit "easy"!

No complaints, because we had to make four of them...so easy is good!

Happy quilting Sue.

Yellow mini Dresden

I have made my yellow mini Dresden block for June.

These are the Dresden's I have made as part of Rainbow Scrap Challenge this year.

They measure about 7 1/2" across, so if I am considering just making nine so I get a nice size wall hanging.  

I think a linen background would be nice, but not sure if I want to use linen for the centres as well. 

What do you think?

Happy quilting, Sue.

Bits and pieces

I am stitching hanging sleeves onto quilts and writing descriptions ready for our local quilt show.  Its all boring, so I have been entertaining myself with some fun stuff in between.

I finished a few more mini spools to use up the last few strips cut from Miss Kate charm pack.  Plus I am keen to make this block part of my Rainbow Scrappy challenge project.  So that means making some more from my other scraps!

Opp's I started a new project!  Although technically its now a UFO, because I cut this out to do at quilt camp in March but didnt get it started.  I made the body of the mini quilt in a day, but the border is fiddly.  This is a mini replica of a antique quilt, pattern by Ann Hermes, from American Patchwork and Quilting Magazine, February 2011.  

 

Finally made some more flying geese, this is just a sample. I have mixed them up a bit, having some reverse colours and using some darker backgrounds as well.  Not sure where this project is heading, but its good mindless sewing and happy to sew along when I have time.

Happy Quilting Sue.

Sadie's Quilt - finished!

I started making this little quilt back at Christmas while I was on holidays.  The hold up has been the quilting. 

 Finally some inspiration struck and I quilted daisy's in the centres and SID the blocks.  On the edges

I made a geometric design, sort of half a four patch.

Sadie's quilt is by Jo Morton from her book, Jo's LIttle Favorites and the pattern finishes at 22 x 26" but I made half the blocks so my quilt is 13 x13".  The smaller the quilt the more I can fit on my wall!

Happy quilting Sue.

Last years finishes - never seen before!

Honestly it was only after I blogged about what I had made for the year and I did an audit that I realised my written list was longer then my photographic evidence/blog posts.  Still it has taken me weeks to round up the details of these projects - a lesson in there somewhere!

This is the table runner I made out of a Moda charm pack Atelier by 3Sisters. 

 The pattern was So Charming from Tonya Alexander (see her website Eye Candy Quilts HERE), published in the Summer 2016 edition of Quilts and More magazine.  

This sweet rail fence mini in strawberry and cream colours was a surprise gift for Lisa's birthday.  Hence I never blogged about it...but that was no reason for forgetting to take a photo! 

Luckily Lisa was happy to loan it back to me for a photo shoot.

This pattern was from the Spring Stitching day out at Quilters Harvest 2015 - by Shelly Kelly and is a little needle case that you hang.  I haven't put a loop on mine, because I have no intention of hanging it!  But a loop and button to close it would be more to the point.    

Happy quilting Sue.

A Flimsy from Jo Morton's Little Favorites

Jo Morton's newest book was on my Christmas wish list and Santa delivered!  

This lovely little quilt, titled Sadie's quilt is 22.5 x 26" in the book.

I made a  smaller version (still 3" blocks) is 13.5 x 13.5" so it will fit on my wall of mini quilts.

I was surprised at the number of black fabrics I had in my stash to choose from.  Not to mention orange or cheddar fabrics.  Still it was hard to decide on which ones to use.  I ended up tea dying one of the black prints as it had a very stark white print that stood out.

Now I just have to pin and quilt it....the heat of summer is not conducive to quilting, but its only small, so wondering if this will be my first finish of year?

Happy quilting Sue.