Pineapple, Border, My Blue Heaven

(I am almost over my Washing Machine Rant (previous post), feeling almost recovered from feeling like an ignorant fool for getting cheated by the industry, and EPA.  I just hope the next person considering a washing machine will be informed.)
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Here is my finished Pineapple top - this is the second Pineapple I've done in last few months - OK, I'm obsessed!  Note there are 2 separate blocks in this version.  Contrary to general opinion, this is NOT a difficult block at all, IF you use one of the wonderful rulers available.  The border was 3 separate strips, each one slightly wider, resulting in corners that look like an extension of the blocks.  It's 72" x 80".  Tomorrow, off to my LQS for batting. 

If the centers are all light, the entire quilt has a lighter appearance.  I LOVE the spool-like features at the corners.

I've used this border on another Pineapple quilt (below, years old, and PP'ed) - it seems exactly what was needed for a border.

New subject -- below is a photo of blocks I've saved for years, kinda remembering it came from Bingo Bonnie's blogspot.  Thank you Bingo Bonnie for this inspiration!  I've lost track of her blog - but I STILL love this block.  She calls it My Blue Heaven, not to be confused with Quiltville version of the same name, but slightly different.   It's on my To-Do list -- isn't it the perfect scrap project?  I have several baskets of 2 1/2 in. HSTs, knowing I can use them ... soon I hope.   

What the Heck #2, and Warm February.

Lucky me -- I used five stash fabrics in this quilt and had just enough of 4  for the border!  I will try to "dull" the very light side with my quilting thread. 

Size is about 60" x 60".  Are you intrigued by the design?  I'm not telling, yet.

Today I'm working on the backing. 

 

Yesterday, February 27 -- Very strange for February in western Nebraska.  I even managed some raking and tidying up the gardens!  My tulips are peeking thru mulch, I saw green on the lilies, and daffodil greens are several inches tall on sound side of garage.  We are watching for the screech owl.    

 

Pineapple border, machine quilting, and a few little quilts

 

Border possibilities - Piano Key?  uh, nope, I like this one.

 I basted this in the house - it's about 63" x 63" -- sorta do-able on my sewing table.

And this morning ... ta dahhhhh!  I am so excited to begin the machine quilting - my favorite part!!!  I started with a Schmetz 14 quilting needle, but right away, it skipped, so I changed to a Schmetz 14 topstitch and voila.  Happiness!  This is an allover, kinda lighthearted in feeling, center is a swirl with a posy and then an echo around the posy.  This was inspired by Christina Cameli, in her recent MQ book.   LOT of seams, my machine goes thru them.  (Janome MC 6500, no stitch regulator). 

 

 Here is the top quilting thread - a King Tut variegated.
  

 

Here is the backing I found, on sale - Yeahhhh Pats Creative Stitchery!!!  Back thread is white. 


New subject - these are 2 little quilts I made starting with 9-patches, cutting the 9-patches, and rearranging the pieces.  For whatever reason, I have always LOVED making blocks and then re-cutting them.  They are too small for Linus quilts so I just look at them!  8-))) I call them 9-Patch Puzzle.

Jamestown Landing (My Way)

The center of my Jamestown Landing is all quilted here.  I want to find another name for this project - something about remembering Mom and Grandma telling me about their extraordinary methods they tried to make a little pocket change during the Great Depression - all during this quilt construction, I heard Mom over my shoulder, reminding me to "Make do".  I wish she was here to see it now -- Mom never knew me as a quilter unfortunately.

If you have not seen this quilt previously, I used plain blue fabric instead of the suggested strings, inspired by Bonnie Hunter of Quiltville.

(The hanging flower basket was given to me by Sydney, after I had mailed her a quilt that had her name written all over it, a quilt called "RED".  )

 Below is a close up of my favorite quilting design that works well as an overall design, and that fits well with the space on my DSM.

 Also, a favorite free-form design for an inner border.  I like to finish my designs with a circular spiral, just for fun? 

A final version, all the chunks of fabric on the wide border are quilted in a variety of designs - most I like, some, not so much, but they are good practice and good examples. Binding is done as well.  I LOVE those beautiful shadows!!

"Step Lively" a Rebuilt Log Cabin

This looks a lot like a previous "Rebuilt Log Cabin" I posted, but it's yet another quilt -- the colors are probably similar.  If you have studied this design, you may notice that I did the same cutting of border corners as I did with the block - look what happens? Hey, cutting off those 4 corners took courage!

I have a Tutorial -- my one and only Tutorial (tab across the top) for a Rebuilt Log Cabin  block.   

It's quilted with a variety of patterns and threads requiring several different needles and a LOT of tension  adjustments.  I'm happy with it, and LOVE the border variation, and really love that I took a chance!  Quilt size is about 65" x 85".  

I quilt on a DSM, a Janome 6500.  I started quilting Sunday, and finished it today, Thursday.

Pineapple Quilt, still a WIP

Finally, it's all together, but I still have to fasten down the triangular units in the semi border. After all the handling adding borders, all those seams need pressing AGAIN!

I LOVE how you can't tell where the quilt top ends and the border begins.



DH (below) thought the last border should have yet another triangle on the corner, but it would have to be very large to fit in with the style of those previous triangles. I thought it should not be there at all. I put that little rust swatch on the outer corner, not what he had envisioned. I don't like it there either but ... Opinions? I DO like the rust color though.

I may have to wait for a warm spring day to actually baste and quilt it, or else haul in the basting tables from the garage through all the danged SNOW!!!

The blocks are 6 inches finished - the quilt is about 62" x 72".

Now, suggestions needed - what kind of quilting?

Pineapple Border, Fiddling

What on earth is THAT? OK, I'm wanting to continue elements in my pineapple quilt, into the border. I've used this technique before, and while not perfect (yet), I like it! Rather than piecing the border in hundreds of pieces, I'm adding the insert, those triangular pieces that are not hard to make. However I DID graph it on paper, just to be sure. (It's amazing how clear things become when I first draw them!) They deliberately finish taller than my first cream border, because I wanted the effect similar to how the blocks are looking.

All the paper has been removed. This photo shows the pieces basted to light-weight fusible interfacing, then they are turned, pressed on a Teflon Pressing Sheet (an amazing invention!) and inserted. Later, I will fuse them down well, and then use invisible thread to sew them down with a blind hem stitch, and THEN, do the quilting.
With all the colors in this quilt, I wanted those corner units to be a consistent green and coral. They are visually obvious in the finished quilt top, so I wanted to repeat them in the border. If you try this, the side inserts are green and coral, while the end inserts are coral and green - be sure to check before completing them all. I have one side to add the cream border to make - maybe this week. Then border #2, etc. They will be easier and quicker.

This last photo shows how the triangular unit will look inserted, and overlapping the cream, going INTO the green (or whatever color I put next). The green is just for audition only. I plan on having 4 borders in all, and at the corners of each border, I will add a quick corner, again copying the element from the quilt center.

I've had fun making this one!

Graphing the border

I am pushing the limits with this version of Log Cabin. Wow - talk about busy! Some of my fabrics are Kaffe Fassett, which I've wanted to try, but I'm ending up with a very strong quilt. Not sure I like it but no matter what quilt I'm making, I tend not to like it until it's done so ... here's to "getting it done!"

Since the quilt center is so strong, I thought the border needed to be equally strong. I chose this Bargello-type design. This design is very effective when you want to use up your fabric used in the quilt, when you want the design to wrap around the quilt, when you want your corners to be kinda clever. Only one of the fabrics needs to be repeated -- all the rest CAN be softer left-overs. I chose the brown to be the "marker." My pattern remains constant in this case.

Get our your graph paper! You MUST start at one end - leave the corner block undone for now - and work towards the center. No matter what side you are working on, work from the edge of the quilt towards the center, and modify in the center.


While this looks complicated, it is NOT, but you MUST plan it on graph paper. The strip widths are sewn together in a strata, pressed every other way, then the edges are sewn together and you have a tube. Then they are cut apart (these are cut at 2 inches), then carefully unsewn one at a time, so the pattern is repeated the way it is designed. A few mistakes were made, but altogether, it's strong enough to stand next to the busy Kaffe Fassett fabric. I'll show the whole project when completed.

You might be able to see my Flower Pin marking the last strip made, and there is an arrow marking the center in my graph plan. It's easy to get mixed up, but again, the sewing is NOT difficult - it's so darned neat! Your design on one side of the corner block may be different on the other side of the corner block. Keep your graph paper in front of you. Now it's time for me to start at the other end of that border.

(Note to myself - Elaine Adair, you dorky non-mathematician quilter! You drew your graph plans to one inch, but your squares finish to 1.5 inches! I'm glad I realized it now instead of at 3:00 am! The 'idea' is still accurate -- my own calculations are not!)

More snow, and finished Scrappy Star Struck

Ten more inches of snow - at least it's not real cold.

Below - Scrappy Star Struck - DONE. ... and this was the quilt I had almost given up! This should be a lesson to ME, and any UFOs that appear to be unsalvageable. I did NOT like this quilt - not because of the pattern -- but because of being in a pitiful, pathetic, poor-me state, and that led me to carelessness. During trimming/squaring up, some of them are trimmed OFF! However, that little one-inch border definitely perked it up. Then I auditioned at least 50 border combinations and eventually, one combo actually looked GOOD. Does this "issue" of too many small errors explain some of YOUR UFOs?. This is another wonderful pattern from Bonnie at Quiltville.


The back (above) was made of 10 1/2 inch squares, and I used a lot of my blues etc. THIS method of using old fabric DID make me feel frugal and efficient. Additionally, my brain no longer has to deal with looking at the pieces in the drawer , with guilt, "What can I do with this?" "Why did I buy this?" -- wearing myself out with self recriminations.


I quilted each of the 4 borders in a different kind of weedy, leaves, feathers, swirls. Good practice and another area for the owner to enjoy. I used a variegated blue - similar to the center. I don't like the variegated thread in the border because parts of the motif disappear and look disjointed and skipped. Lesson #8,462,729.

Now, here is the worst error and a great solution in this quilt. During my frenzy of careless sewing, too-quick careless trimming, I had a big cut-off point! So, I solved this error by drawing a "point" in the light fabric. I guarantee, it will never be seen - even I have trouble finding it, and I'm looking for it! I am showing it because we all need to remember (to each other) that an "error" is no big deal - it is STILL a great, finished quilt. It is NOT meant for a quilt show - it is a testament to loving and caring for another person - that's the important part. And it's ready to mail.

DH and I "tried it out" during yesterday's afternoon nap. It works! 8-)))

I wouldn't give you 2 cents for it until ...

What a difference a border makes!

I've been in the pits, looking at this top, getting careless in my sewing, because I could not fathom all these scraps turning into anything useful. I had visions of stashing it in the car trunk for road-side emergencies and not ever looking at it again. Another lesson to ME ... a decent border always gives an 'ordinary' quilt pizzazz!

We are expecting warmer temps this weekend - the garage is full of clumps of mud, horse manure, slop, from our outdoor wedding adventure but I still want to baste this quilt Sunday.

And below is my current Fabric Diet. I have been faithful in logging everything purchased that was sewing-related. Fabric IN is still gaining over fabric OUT, but at a slower rate than in 2008 (sounds like Federal budget conversation).

2009 Fabric in 95.50
2009 Fabric used (83.20)
2009 $ spent for sewing supplies, etc. $1,439.12

Remembering Geometry for Spools Border

I spent 2-3 hours calculating today, working out a border on the diagonal for my Easy Peasy Scrap Spools Quilt - and my idea was to carry on with the 'diagonal' plan. AND, I actually figured out the inner border plans - you know, when your top is NOT a regular size and you have to add different widths to side inner border than on the length inner border? Once a person figures it out, it's like uhh duhhhh - what was so hard about that? But my eyes have always glazed over reading the instructions. Somehow, just having a pencil and paper and calculator in front of me made it easier than reading it. And then, since I wanted to put a diagonally pieced outer border on, that made some added complications, but hey, I like it! It's SUPPOSED to fit - we'll see! LOL

Just to show that I DO have a clean ironing board cover, occasionally. And someone was asking about irons? I am convinced the manufacturers build in a life expectancy of less than 2 years for ALL irons. Expensive or cheap, they all quit. Won't turn on, won't turn off, won't steam, won't get hot enough, too hot, cord broke, etc. So now I buy CHEAP, and use a spray bottle. No iron has lasted me more than 2 years. You may notice I've clipped out a photo of 'someone's wonky houses. It doesn't look like Tonya's colors but ???

My Spools are all sewn together, and I'm pleased with the colors. Again, all stash fabrics - will only purchase the batting, and will hand quilt this one.


Those strips for the border were cut at 1.91 inches. That number was carefully calculated - again, we'll see! LOL

"Water Logged Cabin"

Another scrappy quilt - I pulled most of the fabric from my stash - I made this some time ago. This is made similar to the previous Rebuilt Log Cabin, where the blocks are made oversize, then the corners are trimmed off and resewn to opposite sides. Doesn’t that technique give even more life to a Log Cabin? I had many scraps of purples, blues, greens, and I was aiming for an ocean-looking quilt. I asked the machine quilter for a swirly, kelp-like, frond-y pattern. She did a fantastic job!

I went one step farther, and beaded the corners with small blue and purple glass bubbley beads. The beading is minimal because I had visions of actually USING this double bed sized quilt.

The full size photo was taken at a quilt show – it shows off the bargello-based border that I adapted from the bargello techniques and samples adapted from Bonnie at www.quiltville.com What a versatile block.

I am sometimes a hand quilter, and sometimes a machine quilter, on my home machine. I’m not so great at machine quilting, but I keep practicing and am getting better. I've even experienced some moments of absolutely lovely machine quilting! Here’s also a closeup of the wonderful machine quilting done by a long-arm machine quilting friend.