Thursday, December 28, 2017

"Bugs and Boats", and more Boats and Toys

Where did the month go?  mmmm a trunk show and preparations  ... photos are still not loaded onto Photo Bucket thingy .... hope I remember how to do them.

This little Bargello quilt turned out very attractive -- I named it "Bugs and Boats", a Bonnie Hunter inspiration.  I had purchased a lot of that dark fabric a while ago, thinking the red splotches were  flowers - but when I got home, those red splotches turned out to be ladybugs.  Kinda hard to add bugs to any quilt except for a boy, so it's lasted a LONG time.  The light fabrics are "boaty" and boyishy, and kids playing.  Some of the other fabric was donated by Kathy, a quilty friend who passed away last year.  Many people benefited from her fabric gifts, and she remains with us in many ways.  8-)))

Backing is all from stash.   (Yes, it's laying out in the snow!)


New subject -- My husband is still making boats, always,  he works with wood, but this time he decided to try LEGO!  Wow, they offer an array of high-end, expensive models.  We both fought the thought that they are just for kids and he decided to try one. 

 The little "men" are just so cute - it's difficult not to smile at them - one even has a goatee!  This project has been filled with laughter and smiles!
Have we lost our minds?  LOLOL

More boats - called a Modified Landing Craft, inspired by a boating magazine.  The boat is scratch built, but the best parts are the little "toys" we added.   OH MY - we had fun picking out the most suitable vehicles.




Tuesday, November 28, 2017

Critter Comforts #2, DONE

QAYG, backing squares were all laid out perfectly perfect, but when I turned the project face up, then the string blocks looked really terrible and chaotic.  I decided the front side with many various strings needed to be more organized than the back, so ... Perhaps next time I won't try to use up so many various stash items on the back.  But I like it, and the fabrics are all attractive, just not well ordered.

 Uh oh -- no fabric on this corner - this calls for creative applique!
 Done - destined for Donation Quilt.  This looks a lot like Critter Comforts #1, completed a few months ago. 
 Closer view of back.
It's very flat and square - lawn is crooked!  I totally enjoyed this QAYG method and am looking forward to the next project.   

Friday, November 24, 2017

QAYG, "Creature Comforts #2" -- waaaaaay toooooo much fun!


This went together quickly and I even had a normal life between sewing times. 

Lesson# 4652:  Backing squares are a variety of suitable stash, all arranged so the BACK looked coordinated and attractive, but when I turned them over, the front was a MESS, waaaay too chaotic, sooooo, I had to rethink that plan, and concentrated on giving the front a bit of order - the back is - uhhhhh ... interesting.  I'll reveal it in a later post.  You can tell the maker (ME) was frugal and using what she had.

Sunday, November 19, 2017

"Critter Comforts #2", (another QAYG)

I still had more animal prints, more kids prints, more batting scraps, and more fabrics for backing squares so I'm making another QAYG, this time, a bit more girly, (more pinks).  Finished blocks (trimmed) are 8.5 in.  They are 6 x 8, a good size kids quilt.  Honestly, this has been pure fun!   It only me about 1-2 weeks.  I put one row together with sashing in less than one hour this morning.  I was VERY neat and precise, and the stitches on back fell neatly OFF the sashings, like I wanted.   If you've made this version of QAYG, you probably know what I'm talking about.  Keep your iron hot and ready. 

My method is from a YouTube video from Erica Selman who says hers was from Leah Day. 

Here is my stack of finished blocks - even tho the strings were fairly randomly sewn, I did arrange them with a little order, and always white down the diagonal center.  When preparing to sew, I pinned the each rows together, and pinned a number on upper left for the appropriate row.  Stay organized - there is a lot of flipping back and forth during construction and it is easy to get them out of order.  I also had my variety of backing squares carefully planned and orderly,  but then the front was too chaotic, so I gave up on the back symmetry and concentrated on the front looking good.  It will be a surprise when I turn it all over! 

Strips on front (white) are cut 1.5 in., folded/pressed in half, and back strips (pink) are  cut 1 inch.   
One row, done.  My garden gnome says it's looking good.   

Saturday, November 18, 2017

Visually Disturbing

Hmmmm - wonder why my vacuum quit? 

OK, to the shop, 60 miles there, 60 miles back and I had to leave it.  Great Vac & Sew repair shop, but no idea of damage we caused when we tried to thoroughly clean up this mess, but they kindly gave me a loaner while I wait to find out damage. 

I'm also waiting for the new electrical connection and new range "eye" -- guess I'm not making gravy for Thanksgiving. 

Guess I'll sew, and work on my second QAYG kids quilt.  8-)))

I am wishing all of you a blessed, warm, and safe Thanksgiving Day. 

Monday, October 30, 2017

Fence Rail, or is it Rail Fence?

This inspiration came from Quiltville.com - thanks Bonnie!

Simple stash user, but those black and white checks took some getting used to!  In the end, they make the quilt!  (Where have we heard those kinds of comments before?)

I quilted it with light blue variegated in a topographic type design.  There's a lot of quilting in there, more than necessary for a kid's quilt - wish I had done something simpler but it sure gives it a nice texture.




Above - the last of that cute fabric!

Friday, October 27, 2017

Short and Sweet - Waste of Money!

Scissors Sharpener - Don't waste your money - it did not sharpen my scissors, but made them even worse.  I can't remember what I paid, but perhaps $14.99 - must have had too much money that day!

Tuesday, October 10, 2017

"Prolific Pyramids" - a finish

This may be called "Thousand Pyramids" but 1000 is too many this time.  All from my stash, except the backing.  I practiced "ruler work" on this one and was marginally pleased with what I did.  The end result is much better than I expected.  These triangles/pyramids are using the triangle from Tri-Recs, a little more graceful than the 60 degree equilateral triangle.  I called it "Prolific" because every time I turned around, another triangle was needed, and then those baby ones started showing up!

I was surprised with how easy this was and how many different ways the triangles could be set together, resulting in a myriad of variations.  I grouped 4 light and 4 dark triangles in each unit, and always had the darks on the same side each time.  I pressed seams open and again was pleased with the ease of sewing them, with reasonable care, as 2 sides were on bias. 

DH was holding this up and sun was shining thru.  It's all quilted and DONE.  

 Lots of straight lines, lots of practice with rulers!  I reverted back to free-form quilting in the side triangles. 
 Backing - isn't it delightful?  ... giraffes, with little blue baby giraffes. 

Thursday, August 31, 2017

Something from Nothing - a String Quilt

mmm not bad, considering the bin of strings I started with!  Of course, the bin is still full.  The blocks are sewn on phone book pages.  These blocks are 7.25 in. unfinished.  I don't mind removing the paper at all - it's a pleasant, mindless project.

Some of the blocks were getting kinda murky and dull-looking so I started sewing in some skinny, jazzy bright colors on the dark side.  Problem solved.

Sunday, August 20, 2017

Anniversary, and Ruler Work Practice

Our anniversary is same as Eclipse Day - flowers arrived early, because of all the activity planned tomorrow, big "E" day.  Our little town of 8900 is in the center of the pathway and good grief, so much planned, so many people expected, so many flights in and out and even rumors of a few big name "movie stars"!  We are not accustomed to "traffic" but already 1 day prior to the big "E" day, ... hey, it's a ZOO  out there!  
New subject -- I've been practicing ruler work - this quilt begged for straight lines.  

Originally I tried this ruler made especially for what I thought would be useful - mmmm - not sure it works well for this project, but perhaps on another design.  More practice me thinks! For this project, the straight edge is not long enough before hitting a stop point.  Re-adjusting the ruler each time means delays, and more possibility of a mis-stitch.  

Below is one of my quilting feet - notice the high edge around the foot, meant to keep a ruler  from sliding getting under the needle, but also it slides along the edge of the ruler, keeping the line straight.  However, note on the right of my foot, how the assembly is rubbing slightly against the ruler - it does not actually impede movement but it 's close and something to think about, if choosing a ruler.  Also, there is a lot of "stuff" in my view, hard to see behind the foot, but it can be done.  I did a lot of peeking, up, down, leaning left and right to be sure my ruler was lined up accurately. 
 I found this short, ruler in my stash, a freebee when visiting this Denver shop - it works great!  It is thin so be sure your ruler foot had high edges.  You need a little ruler that slides around easily, doesn't get caught up on seams, but slides over them but also stays put.  Tricky?  Yep! 
Some of my lines - turning corners and then readjusting was difficult without little crooked stitches.  I did used a dark Sharpie to fix some of my mis-stitches on dark fabrics as my thread showed light.  Thread buildup was my problem at the center of the triangles, but then I learned how to stop short before going back the other way and then I learned Jump Stitches when moving from one area to the next.  My first 2 or 3 blocks had to be redone several times -- practice helps a LOT.  
I marked everything, using a Frixion pen in purple along with a white ceramic pencil.  This is not a fast project for now but gets faster with practice.  Perhaps, in time,  I won't need to mark each block. 

DH and I both agreed we are liking the overall effect.  This is before sandwiching.

Sunday, August 13, 2017

"Critter Comfort" - DONE



The back is as attractive as the front - just goes to show - use that old fabric you've been saving and put it on the back.  I was concerned I'd have "wrong" fabrics next to other "wrong" fabrics.  Nope - it's all just fine and dandy!   The narrow "sashing" adds  appeal - again, I used a variety - makes things interesting!  The  quilt binding is black with a tiny lime green flange, sewn down on the front.  I found it impossible to keep my stitches from showing in a wrong place on the back. Half showed on the black binding, half on the backing - was unable to sew consistantly. Perhaps a slightly wider binding?  Sharpies can be used for many things.  8-)

Tuesday, August 08, 2017

"Critter Comfort" - progress

Above is the back of my kid-friendly Quilt As You Go.  I already had the squares of fabric, 77 of them, planning to use them as backing on an adult quilt.  That idea sorta lost it's luster, thinking of sewing them all together, then quilting them on my DSM.  But, when using them for QAYG on a kid  quilt, and sashing them with novelty fabrics, they looked less intimidating.  Also, I DID foolishly begin to plan the backing squares to be in a planned pattern ... uh, no, don't go there Elaine Adair!
Here are 3 rows together,  (to myself)  upper left corner is a Sturgis motorcycle.  There are 8 rows, 48 blocks in all.  I see the remnants of numerous kid quilts!

Putting the blocks together was easy.  There was a lot of non-traditional flopping back and forth, so some sort of labeling was needed.  There was some organization of fabrics and colors, not a lot.  The back sashing was cut just 1 inch, and front sashing cut 1 1/2 in. then folded in half.  The seams/batting nested together nicely.  It was not easy to get the back sashing seam threads in the right place so as not to show -- I was only partly successful.  A busy backing would help.  

This is not a quilt for a show - it's a quilt for a little kid - he/she won't care if seams show.  I will  simply bind it, not add borders.  Actually, making this little quilt was a delightful experience -- I had been wanting to do something different, and those cheerful critters made me happy! 

This gal has a lovely QAYG project with instructions on her video.
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wb8vcA_Z2HU

Sunday, August 06, 2017

QAYG, "Critter Comfort"

QAYG is a great technique to use up fabric bits (in case no one ever told you!).  It also eliminates the final quilting as it is machine quilted by sewing strings to the precut backing/batting pieces.  The backing pieces were already cut, cutting the batting pieces went fast, and sewing the kids prints/strings took 3 days - that's all.

Back in the '80s -- (that would be the previous century!!!!), I learned Quilt as you Go, from Georgia Bonesteel, the only quilt program  available on TV.  It was aired on the Public TV, coming from North Carolina.  She is responsible for this lovely addiction!

I'm trying this method, slightly modified from the original.  Many tutorials are available all over YouTube.  I've used strings, and the sewing goes to the edges of the block, and I will machine sew very narrow sashing to front and back, between the blocks.  That's the plan, but have NOT started that part yet.  Here are 49 blocks that are trimmed to 8 1/4 inch.  The only constant is the white diagonal.   I DID make a dent in my kids prints hoard as well as my batting scraps!  Blocks will be set 6 x 8 (one extra).  Some of the blocks look clever together, most are accidental - the white center strip gives the blocks continuity.  Bbacking squares are a variety of fabric.  



Here is kinda what they might look like when putting 4 together, without sashing for now.  Note, the cats and the cat food cans!  Toooooo cute!  
One fabric of green polka dots and monkeys was given to me by Kathy, a fellow resident and quilter, who passed away unexpectedly recently.  Thank you Kathy - I used it for good purpose.  

Monday, July 31, 2017

Plenty Plaids, almost a Flimsie Fence Rail

This was  Bonnie Hunter's/Quiltville Leaders and Enders project, a Fence Rail.  Thanks Bonnie!  I tend to sit down and SEW until it's DONE - prefer to NOT drag it out.  There is one more border to go, then I'll bind it in black.  There are parts of MANY shirts in that quilt, and a few strips that refuse to conform.   

It is astonishing how many varieties of Fence Rail Quilts people come up with!

Thursday, July 20, 2017

Rail Fence, Quiltville Version, and Heat

I saw this scrappy Rail Fence on Bonnie Hunter's Quiltville page a few days ago, and thought I'd use my plaid scraps on this version.  So far, so good!  It's kinda "fiddly" but I AM using up bits.  I had to be careful to keep the strips pressed straight.  The black/white holds the design together, doesn't it?  Blocks are 6 inch.  Those black/white checks had me checking my sanity periodically!  LOL

Different subject - I am in western Nebraska - look at the outdoor temp, far right of the thermostat!  Admittedly, it is on the sunny side, but even under trees it's about 104 degrees.  We've lived here almost 20 years and I've never experienced such heat.  



Sunday, July 16, 2017

Owls heard my computer

We've seen the screech owls on and off this spring, even thru July 4th bombs and explosions - nothing seems to faze them!  If we sit outside at dusk and listen to the robins screeching and hollering and dive bombing, we know the Eastern Screech Owls are somewhere nearby.  We live in western Nebraska, in town.

Tonight, I had the bright idea of taking the computer outside on the deck, and playing YouTube sounds of Screech Owls, wondering what might happen -  I kinda hoped one owl might land on my computer - however, we ALL remember "The Birds"! 

I heard the robins making a ruckus, so played an Eastern Screech owl's sounds and calls,  and in a matter of 5 minutes there was one little guy sitting on the deck rail, looking back at us.  DH  and I sat there mesmerized.  Soon the robins found this little owl and did their pestering and dive bombing, so he fluttered to a nearby spruce for safety.  I continued to replay the Youtube video and I could see him listening (I think) and also he replied with his little trill.  Soon a second owl arrived in the area, sitting on a cable.  Eventually both of them took off, without a sound.   

I didn't have my camera so will repost 2 photos from a few years back when they roosted in our backyard spruce.  We feel blessed they shared a few moments with us.





 

Thursday, July 13, 2017

Faux Flange

This pretty method to machine sew an attractive binding to the FRONT of a quilt has intrigued me so today, I tried it out.   I learned mine from Jordan Fabrics (link below), and hers was narrower than some of the other methods.  This was the first time I've tried this.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EB0rc76kVV4

Here is my little quilt - of little importance, but I wanted to try out some ruler work, and also the Faux Flange in the binding.  Note the ripples due to stress of trying something new!   LOL  Ruler work?  uhhhh, I'm still on the fence with that technique.  However the Faux Flange worked well.  Neat and tidy and precise is the name of this technique!   Border was MQ'ed to the edge then trimmed carefully.  I used my 1/4 in. foot to sew the binding to the back of the quilt.  I then pressed that binding away from the back, to the front, and slowly sewed it down, using an open toe foot (no pins).  The open toe foot still wasn't quite the best -- next time I'll try another foot, but I'm pleased with the end result. 



Here is  binding with the faux flange on the front. 

A busy back helps to hide stitches which end up close to the binding. 

Many of you know how to do this - I kinda liked it, especially for donation quilts, or kids/baby quilts. 






Wednesday, July 05, 2017

Thousand Pyramids - Almost a Flimsy

I'm preparing something for All Day Sew - looks like this project is ready for some routine sewing.  There are a bunch of little triangle leftovers waiting to be joined.  Even tho they were just leftovers, I think they "make" this quilt.  The reds were not used at all. 

If you've not followed this thread, I'll repeat - the triangles were made from Tri-Recs, as were the side triangles.  A 60 degree ruler would also work but I thought this taller triangle made from the Tri ruler was a bit more attractive.  At first I was wondering how to enlarge my smallish templates, but realized the sides could be easily elongated using a long ruler.  As usual, easy to do once one actually DID it.  

Saturday, July 01, 2017

Thousand Pyramids - more fun

I'm finished with the center - might rearrange some values.  Two extras.  This design worked up quickly - many inspirations are all over the internet.   Despite bias edges, I had NO issues with stretching.  Seams were pressed open, gently, and one must remember that one side is on grain, and shorter than the others - sometimes I wasn't thinking and had to unsew.  Adding the little triangles were just plain FUN!  Today, I need to determine values of the outside triangles that merge into a border - something sorta blah (light cream) will probably be best, then a narrow spark of something, then plaid border.  Hah, I THINK that will work - funny, we think things will be one way, but when we get there, something else is needed.  ... sounds like life...

... what happened to my plan of using extras in a border ... ???

I can't figure how to edit these photos any more - with Windows 10, they are so easy to import from the camera, but now editing has me totally discombobulated!