Saturday 28 October 2017

Redesigning

Image result for quilt pattern large trianglesThis quilt top has been on a journey. 2 years ago, I won a block draw at a quilting retreat. Everyone at that retreat made 2 blocks. They were large (9") half square triangle blocks, with Kaffe Fassett fabric in one half and white in the other.  I loved the fabrics, but the quilt top seemed a bit too simple for my tastes, so I decided to modify it. This was the original pattern.

I've played with this block design a few times now, and it cuts perfectly from the half-square triangle. By cutting all my blocks into 4 pieces, I got two half-square triangles and 2 plain squares from each block. The plain squares were easily made into two 4-patches, and the result could then be re-assembled into Jacob's Ladder blocks.

I knew what layout I wanted, and realized (half-way through making blocks) that it takes 2 slightly different blocks to make it. Fortunately, I figured that out before I got too far, and ended up with just the right number of blocks.  I decided an offset design would be a bit more interesting than centering it.  I tried to keep the arrangements random, mixing fabrics with each step of the process so no two blocks are alike, and (almost) no two identical fabrics are side by side.

The quilt top ended up 56x70". I think a border is needed, so I'll have to find a Kaffe Fassett fabric I like for that.


Thursday 26 October 2017

Christmas Wall Hangings


At my quilt retreat the other weekend, I took some fabric bundles with me in the hopes I would be inspired to finish something from them.  I ended up with 2 Christmas quilts. The first was a fabric bundle I picked up a few years ago. I fussy cut the cardinals from the birch tree fat quarter, and even managed to use most of odds and ends of trees that were left over.  3 fat quarters from the fabric line went into this little wall hanging, and the 4th FQ will make the binding once it's quilted.

The second one had grand intentions. I made 20 log cabin blocks to go around the wreath. But when they were done and 2 sides attached, I decided I really did not like it. Advice from my fellow retreaters was to keep it simple, so I removed the log cabins and replaced them with a simple blue border.  This keeps the quilt small enough to hang in my window as my December quilt, so that's a win, anyway.

Tuesday 24 October 2017

Star Quilts

I was given 14 blocks that were made by the friend of a customer. She asked if I would be willing to finish them into a donation quilt. Of course I said yes. The package included some extra fabric of each of the fabrics used in the blocks.

The blocks were big (16") so I knew they'd make more than 1 quilt. And 14 was an odd number to start with, but I sat down with Electric Quilt and played with a few layouts. In the end, I settled on these two. One with 6 blocks in a straight setting. And one with 8 blocks set on point.

A weekend quilt retreat was just right for finishing these up into donation-sized projects.  It's not immediately obvious, but there were 2 different whites used in the blocks.  5 of one and 9 of the other.  So decision number 2 was how to split those up.  After some discussion at the retreat, the consensus was: 2 of the odd blocks in the center of the on-point quilt, and 3 in the other to give a sort of checkerboard layout.  In the photos, the white is just slightly brighter in those blocks.

I added the inner border on the first quilt from my stash, but everything else came from the bundle I was given. I'll use the last little bits of fabric to make pockets for the bags that we'll use for the donations.

Now to get these into the queue and quilt them before my next guild meeting.



Sunday 22 October 2017

Cleaning

I found it!  I haven't seen the top of this table in ages, but I finally spent some time cleaning up and now I have full access to my cutting table.  The pile in the right corner is a quilt that needs to be finished. But it requires the full design wall, and there are currently a couple of other projects taking up that space.

Friday 20 October 2017

Dashing Away

This quilt is made from some blocks I won at guild a couple of years ago. It took a long time, but I finally made the extra blocks I needed, and quilted this with a nice modern design. It will go to show and tell on Monday and then head off to Victoria's Quilts to keep someone warm and cozy.

Wednesday 18 October 2017

Guild Mystery



In addition to 2 guilds doing the PEI Modern Guild mytery, another one of my guilds is doing its own mystery this year, and I've decided to join in.  Colour choice was 2 light, 2 dark, 1 medium. So I hunted through my stash and found a great background fabric - the dotty white.  Then I picked 4 more colours from the dots in that fabric.  I might regret this, but mysteries are all about stepping outside our comfort zone, so here goes!


I had originally chosen a darker yellow, but on examination, that was too similar in value to my mediums. So I hunted up something a little bit softer. 

Block number 1 - here's where my regrets start to show themselves. Pink and yellow - hmmm.

Saturday 14 October 2017

PEI Modern Guild mystery - step 2



Step 2 of the PEI modern guild mystery was released on October 1. I have officially decided to make 2 quilts - one in a light background, one with a dark background. Here are steps 1 and 2 complete, for both quilts.

I'm using the same colours for the main quilts, but mixing up their positions, since PEI just told us the fabrics are numbered/ordered in some way.   A group of 4, then a group of 8. So I did 2 sorts and came up with a plan.

Looking at it now I wonder if I should have made the dark one in pinks and the light in blues, but I'm committed now and moving forward with this arrangement. 

Linking up with the PEI Modern Guild for this month's clue.

Thursday 12 October 2017

Mini Checkerboard

As I mentioned in my last post, I am starting a miniature version of my Bulging Checkerboard quilt. Mostly, I want to see how small I can possibly make the reveals between the small square and the neighboring block, without going crazy. If I can make this work, I'm planning to update my pattern with instructions for the smaller version.

Here are the first 9 blocks, not yet sewn together.  I'm aiming for 1/16th or 1/32nd on those little reveals when it's done.

Tuesday 10 October 2017

Bulging Checkerboard

This is an older quilt, but I realized recenlty my post about it has been sitting in draft form for over a year. It's been on my mind recently, because I just started a half-size version of it.  So, here is the story behind the original quilt.

I saw this quilt online one day and knew that I needed to add it to my list.  I love optical illusions, and this is a really cool one.  I inspected the construction of the quilt I saw online. It was done with applique, which I knew was not going to be my plan. So I sat down with EQ6 and planned the blocks.  Each block contains 2 "dots" in opposite corners.  I first tried drawing the quilt with these dots set right at the edge of the block. But that completely lost the illusion, and it because an X instead.  So, I realised that some amount of contrast colour was needed around each dot.  I played around in EQ and decided that 1/4" exposure was about right.

6" blocks, with a border, gave me a quilt about 100" square.  About right for my queen size bed (yes, this was going to be MY quilt).  So I worked out the fabric requirements (6 yards of each of 2 colours) and went shopping on "Buy 2, get 1 free" day at the local quilt store.  But what colours to choose? I could go with the traditional - black and white.  Or, mix it up. Blue and white - no, I have too many of those, and don't want another.  Red and white - doesn't seem right for a checkerboard.  Looking around, I also discovered that there were very few bolts with a full 6 yards on them in the shop.  Hence the sale - she was trying to reduce inventory to bring in new fabrics.  So, maybe a mix of different fabrics in each colour would have to suffice.

Then I was pointed towards civil war reproductions in brown.  I was immediately sold, in part because I had just finished a quilt in brown/blue/red for the August colour challenge this year and I loved working with the browns in it.  Then it didn't take too long to decide that 5 fabrics would work (2 yards of one, to do squares and borders, and 1 yard of each of the others).  We found a suitable cream fabric to complement the browns (with enough fabric on the bolt), and I brought my treasure trove home.

 Then the fun started.  Cut and sew.  Cut and sew.  And sew some more.  The quilt requires 225 squares.  88 are plain 6" squares, but all the rest are pieced, with the little 1/4" exposure around each "dot".  As I started to plan my cutting, I contemplated working with that 1/4".   And decided to make my life a little easier by working with 3/8 instead of 1/4.

This all seemed well and good until I put it on the wall and started thinking about it a bit more.  The designer of the quilt I saw online commented that she was not happy with how the illusion came out, and she wished she'd made the spacing smaller.  But the photo looked great - the illusion was perfectly clear.  And my original 1/4" was very close to hers.  What I realised as I put it on the wall was that it is not the percentage of the exposure against the rest of the block that matters.  It is more an absolute number.  It needs to be small enough that from a normal viewing distance it appears to be thin lines, not blocks of colour between the blocks.

So I put together the center of the quilt twice.  First, with my designed spacing (on the left in the photo).  And I knew immediately that this was not right.  In a photo, it's not bad.  But in person, it is just a bunch of square blocks.  No illusion showing up at all.  Then I put together another center (right in the photo).  This time I used 1/2" seams, leaving 1/8" exposure around the dots.  MUCH better.  Now I can see the illusion, even with this small 5x5 section of quilt.

Now to assemble the rest, using 1/2" seams throughout.  Another 8 5x5 blocks is the first step.  Pressing these blocks is challenge however.  After making the center 5x5, I realised my mistake. On the remaining sections, I snipped the seam allowance on each short seam in the rows, so that I could press the seam allowance away from the dot in each case.  I thought I'd do the same on the longer seams, until I realised that the dots meet at the corners.  So that plan went out the window. Careful pressing was required, to ensure I didn't distort the blocks when pressing the very thick seams around the dot.  If I were to do this again, I might press the borders of each dot in towards the center instead.  That would reduce the bulk between blocks, although it would increase the issues within each block.

I finished section #2, and put it up on the wall.  Can you spot the error?  One row is inserted upside down. So I'll be unstitching that one next.

More progress in this picture.  Notice the yellow tag in the upper left corner.  I numbered each section as I assembled it, so that I wouldn't get confused.  I still managed to - I had to stop several times to think.  What does "2-1" mean.  Second row first column, or second column, first row.  In the end, I figured it all out, and got all 9 sections assembled and ready for borders.

The borders went together pretty easily, although they were long, and used a lot more fabric than I had planned on. There is not enough of the border fabric to use for binding, so I'll do a scrappy binding when I'm ready to take that step.  In the picture it is hard to tell, but there is a dark brown border around the outside.

Next step - quilting.  The quilt is 95" square - which is just 2" larger than a queen size batting.  So, I had to buy a King instead.  Fortunately, I caught a sale at the LQS and got my batt for 40% off.  Not  a bad deal.

Sunday 8 October 2017

Anita's Arrowheads

This is my completed project from my Block Party group this year.  The pattern is "Anita's Arrowheads", a free pattern I found online.  I loved the technique used to make the block, but struggled with the layouts I saw online. Finally, I decided to try a layout similar to a blooming 9-patch, to see if I liked that.  Success! 

The pattern is offset simply because I didn't have enough of my medium gold/orange in the 4th round.  It was my favourite of all the fabrics, and the one that inspired the other colours, so I wasn't willing to swap it out completely. To compensate, I moved the pattern over and in the other corner I used a different dark gold in place of the missing fabric. Since it's separated from the first section, I think it looks intentional rather than "I ran out".

Borders are extensions of the primary colours - mostly because I didn't have enough of any one fabric left to border the quilt. And the quilt is carefully sized (50x70") to be a donation for Victoria's Quilts.

Friday 6 October 2017

Improv

Krista Hennebury (poppyprints) was in town in September, and as another Krista I just had to attend her workshop :)  "Speed Dating with Improv" gave us a chance to try several different improv piecing techniques.

I have to admit I'm struggling with the randomness of this project.  The class was a lot of fun, the techniques are great. But this quilt is WAY outside my comfort zone.  I now have all these bits and pieces which need to go together somehow.

I will finish it! And to make sure of that, it's staying up on my design wall until I do (that will also ensure I don't lose any bits).

Wednesday 4 October 2017

Hexies

This quilt isn't mine. It came from a quilting friend, who received it when the original maker passed away.  It was about 1/3 done at the time, with a number of other  diamonds ready to go but not attached.  As a group, we came up with a layout and finished assembling the diamonds into a final product.  I appliqued it onto borders one night (way too late at night), and now it just needs to have the papers removed from the hexagons and then to be quilted.  When it's done, it will be donated to a worthy recipient.

Monday 2 October 2017

Halfway there!

 And more red & white.  Another weekend, another attempt to get closer to being on track.  Up to #78 (I think), which means I'm half-way there! 

However, as soon as I took this photo, I noticed the error in one of the blocks. So out came the seam ripper.

Ah, that's better. A few more blocks to put away safe and sound.