Final quilt for 2015

I looked at my 2015 wish list and WIP/UFO list a few weeks ago ....and panicked!   Then I found time and inspiration I needed to get these little quilts finished.  DH found the dowel required to hang them.

Only problem was we had to hang them on a new wall....the original wall of mini quilts is full!  This is next to my front door - the original owners had speakers hard wired into this room, which shouldn't be a problem, except when your trying to hang quilts!

But I still had one outstanding WIP. The bears paw wall hanging.  Well its suppose to be a table topper.  I quilted it simply with a diagonal cross hatching.  Its got the hanger corners on, but no label yet.

 I washed it to get rid of the marking pencil.  I am relatively new to using cotton wadding.  I forgot that it makes for crinkly quilts AND I draped it over a drying rack, which made the centre puff up?!!  I like this quilt.  Cannot say I love it.  But looking at it daily might change that, lets hope!

Hanging little quilts is interesting when they are very different sizes!  Think I will have to make some more to match my Temecula We wish you a Merry Christmas, otherwise it looks a bit funny by itself.  Any excuse to make more mini quilts!

Happy 2016 and happy quilting, Sue.

Red and White Dresdens are stitched

My favorite WIP, the Red and White pieced Dresdens, are all stitched down onto their backgrounds.  

Trying to get a good photo was tricky. And yes, I probably should have ironed them first!

This is a better shot as the true colour comes through, but I couldn't fit all the blocks in the lens!

Still you get the idea.  I cannot made up my mind about the colour for the centres.  I thought the choice would be between white/cream print or red print.

But it turned out that the 2.5" strips were not wide enough to make a centre from, so I couldn't use the left over light strips from my dresden's.  Instead I tried some French General reds.

The red print is a bit distracting, but I like the size better then the plain red.

You can see the size difference here.  I am not going to have enough of this solid red - I cut into a layer cake square to get it.  So I am either going shopping or finding another suitable fabric, perhaps a red with a very small print out of the same layer cake.

Happy quilting Sue.

Temecula Quilt Company - We wish you a Merry Christmas Part 2

So I was going to be clever and show you each lot of blocks as I made them.  Life gets busy and it didn't happen.  Here is progress shot two.

And here is the finished mini quilt!  I had some time and I knew it was now or never, so this little quilt top got pieced and then quilted.  I didn't quilt the border, as it is so small, but perhaps later when I can borrow the cable border stencil my group have - we have broken up for the summer, so it will have to wait for now.

The finished quilt is 10.5 x 12.5 inches.  I tried to stick to Christmas colours, but think I will leave it hanging up to enjoy all year.  

Happy quilting Sue.

More finished mini quilts!

This cute little dolls quilt has been a short WIP.  It was finished while my computer was offline, but I was also holding off revealing it, as it was intended as a gift for a friend who follows my blog.

 I amended the pattern (original was on point) Shoofly Potpie by Kim Diehl from her book Simple Traditions.

You cannot see the border quilting very well, but I machine quilted a cable pattern.  It was fairly easy using my walking foot, but my marking pen was hard to see on the beige fabric.  The ideal marking pen is out there and one day I am going to find it!  

 This larger mini quilt is from Lori DeJarnatt's quilt along, Country Roads, so a few stencils later  and I found one that fitted this quilt that I could achieve on the machine!  I do really need to start hand quilting the little quilts...but I am a machine girl : )

  Didn't take long, just the right frame of mind to get stuck into it.  

Happy quilting, Sue

Leaders and Enders dilemma

A lady I know is moving house and while they are not downsizing, there will be less room in the new place.  The end result is that I have been a very happy receiver of goodies from her quilting room.  I was very happy to give these two books a new home.  

There are the cutest quilts in the Civil War Legacies by Carol Hopkins.  The Civil War sampler has some lovely blocks, but is also a very interesting read.

SCORE!  I didnt own any of Bonnie Hunters books, but now I do!  I learned all about Leaders and enders from following Bonnie, so it was great to have the patterns.  I am now trying to decide which pattern to choose as my new leader and ender for 2016. 

I love a good nine patch and Sisters Nine Patch ticks all the boxes!  How can you not love all those delicious red and white nine patches!  And I have loads of red and white stripes left over from my dresden plate quilt.

Then again Blue Ridge Beauty - a blue and white four patch combined with half square triangles is also tempting! 

OR perhaps I should throw caution to the wind and move away from controlled palettes and make this sweet quilt called Crab Apples, using all my 1 1/2" squares...I am sure I don't have 854 one and half inch squares, but then I have never counted them!

Ah decisions, decisions!  

Happy quilting Sue.

Temecula Quilt Company - We wish you a Merry Christmas part 1

I would like to say that I made one of these blocks a day, following the Temecula Quilt Company free patterns - We wish you a Merry Christmas (on their blog HERE), in the lead up to Christmas.  But the truth was while I was offline I was ignorantly bliss, as soon as the computer kicked back into gear, I immediate gorged on these sweet patterns and made all five at once!  

To put the size into perspective the blocks currently measure 2 3/4"!!

Happy quilting Sue.

Curved Ruler table runner

I finished making the curved ruler table runner - this is the free pattern that comes with the ruler.  I completed the top in a workshop months ago with Ann from Periwinkle Patchwork.

However it took me forever to go and buy backing and binding fabric to match.  Then it sat around waiting to be quilted.  I really struggled visualising an appropriate quilting pattern.  However a quick flick through Pintrest and I just got down and "did it"!  

I enjoyed quilting the wavy lines and was tempted to do the coloured curves in the same way, but I didn't want to over quilt the whole piece.  I am glad to have another finish before Christmas, now I just need to find it a good home!

Happy quilting Sue.

Woolie workshop with Debbie Busby

Yipee I fixed my IT issues...don't ask me to explain how, but I managed to retrieve all my lost photos and software, phew!

OK so back to the important stuff!  While I was offline I attended a wool workshop with USA artist Debbie Busby, at Quilters Harvest in Warracknabeal.

Debbie had lots of lovely patterns, I was especially smitten with the tiny flower baskets.

And then there was a lovely floral table runner pattern.

I have always wanted to make a month themed wall hanging, this one was the perfect size and Quilters Harvest are ordering in the cute wire hangers to hold them.

 We made this delightful table runner (pattern is called Holly Basket) and I got most of it finished on the day.  

It was so nice to come home and be able to finish it in front of the TV that night!  And it is the perfect size for my "newest" coffee tables... one that belonged to my grandmother.  

 Debbie was very generous and made everyone a cute little tomato - I am using it as a decoration, but I guess its really a pin cushion.

 The girls at Quilters Harvest were very generous and our kit came with all the wool (many pieces were already cut out, a great time saver), three skeins of embroidery thread, scissors and a needle, so I didn't need to take a thing!

I really enjoyed working with wool and Debbie was so sweet, the catering us A1 (food is always good at the Quilters Harvest workshops) and all round we (Lisa and I) had a great day out. 

Happy Quilting Sue.

What have I been working on?

This should be a much longer post.  But alas despite several hours work from DH, pulling apart the computer, printer and non ergonomic desk and then reinstalling computer and printer on an old unattractive but perfect height laminex table - my computer still has issues.  

Well really only one issue, for some reason the software that downloads my photos from camera onto the computer isn't working AND all the photos that were on that software have disappeared.  I have lots of new quilting things to show you....but the pictures are stuck on my camera, so frustrating :(

 Still I have one photo you haven't seen previously, an updated shot of the pieced red and white Dresden's.  Now that I have stitched eight down onto the background, I have started to think about what I am going to use for the centers.  I have four more to applique on before I am ready to do the centers, but going to start auditioning reds.  I am leaning towards using different reds for each center, but we will see.  

Life is getting busy here with all the Christmas associated social functions starting to kick in, as well as usual preparations for the 25th.  I hope to fix this IT issue (well DH is the IT Fixer!, not a job title he relishes) soon before we hit the madness that always happens in the last five days before Christmas!

Happy quilting, Sue.

Bright stars

Stitching is a rare event at present, as I cope with a shoulder that gives me pain all the way down my arm.  However another trip to the physio and a better desk (current one is too high, which is what upsets my shoulder) will soon fix this problem, hopefully for good.

However I wanted to sew despite the discomfort.  The enormity of the acts of terrorism in Paris on television kept me updated, but required me to see solace in easy, chain piecing using up left over half square triangles from my rainbow scrappy challenge projects.  I made some brighter blocks - to cheer myself up and pray for a time when individuals seek comfort and happiness in peaceful activities instead of seeking power and destruction.

I honestly believe if everyone had a creative hobby like sewing or gardening, the world would be a better place!
Happy quilting Sue
PS My computer has some issues that I cannot resolve (eg the thingy isn't reading the whatchamacallit) and so I am forced to use the computer at the library.  Hence you are getting a old post which was luckily in draft format awaiting me to approve it.  Hang in there I will be back, hopefully with some up to date photos made since my shoulder has improved sufficiently for some sewing :)