Monday 31 August 2015

From Sisters

Nowhere near done yet as I took loads of pictures. . .
Bargellos

Modern and improvisational

I called this group Kaffe's corner because of the Westminster fabrics

Kaffe snowballs


From freddie Moran's display

Sunday 30 August 2015

Wreath block Two



The next step is to add corner triangles. On the blue block these were HST's with the short sides straight of grain. On the modern block the triangle fabric pattern was directional so these were cut as QST's with the straight grain on the long side so the pattern would lie consistently.I pressed in towards the centre piece, The fabric is reluctant but it makes the next stage easier.
Then diamonds are added to either side of the remaining four triangles, pressing out towards the diamonds but gently.
Sewing the diamond units

To ensure the pieces match up I place a pin vertically so that it passes through the 1/4" seam mark on both sections. Then I pin right by the side of this, the side furthest away from the machine needle. You can then add your final corner triangles or you can add them to the diamond sections before piecing these.
Pinning: the point of the right hand pins meet the seam line 1/4" from the edge.

Sewn and pressed outwards.


Wreath Block One

Modern Wreath block

Blue block pieces laid out

The current Bonnie block is a wreath which follows on from the blue EPP piece in that the centre is an octagon not to be confused with  a hexagon. Although it has more sides than a hexagon it is easier to work with because with the addition of corner triangles it forms a square. It is drafted by drawing a circle, however, so if someone has prepared a template for you that's a bonus.
When I first joined Quay Quilters we were told to make ourselves a block board. I used a 14" cakeboard covered with wadding and then a flannel sheeting piece. It's been recovered since and is due for another refurbishment. It's invaluable for laying out pieces and carrying block parts from machine to ironing board. You can also audition your fabrics. When I laid out my blue wreath pieces I wasn't so sure about the final corner white triangles and may swap them for my focus fabric when I get home. In the meantime I've left them off.
The first round is added using partial piecing to start:
The pink pins are holding the fifth piece in place ready to sew while the white pin
indicates where the first piece seam stops to be completed as the
final step.

The first round

Saturday 29 August 2015

Sisters Quilts

More from the lovely wide ranging quilts at the Sisters Quilt Show.
A way to set ninepatch blocks, here in reproduction fabric.

I know this is a Karen Stone pattern because a friend did the her workshop on it.

This is a triple wedding ring made by the gentleman in the baseball cap, a
man who relishes a challenge. He had pictures of past quilts with him, all
major works.

Bonnie blocks update

I've now made my modern fabric version of the pineapple and blue clamshells but have only prepped the modern clamshells. I hope I'll complete them here. We are in Germany near Freiburg in a good sized village and I have brought my sewing machine as time  in our house is also part of our holiday. We have had a slow walk in one direction and been to the bank and the church., paying our respects to Mammon and to God. Now  I'm about to wake up Alan and visit the supermarket. Today I have made a wreath block but here are Bonnie blocks made earlier.
Modern EPP Inner City

Modern pineapple

Bonnie blue clamshells


EPP

Saturday 22 August 2015

Sisters Quilt Show

I'd forgotten all about posting photos I took at the Sisters' Quilt Show. So here are a couple more, obviously modern. Try as I might I can't focus on the labels. There were Kona Solids quilts there and others from the Portland MQG as well as QuiltCon exhibits.


Florence Quilt

Here s the quilt I made for new baby Florence. I hope to get some better quality pictures when I visit my son next week. He's going to hand it over to his friends, the parents. Their hand shapes and the baby's name are on the back of the quilt. A fabric pack which I won in a Village Haberdashery draw was the basis for this quilt with other Valori Wells' fabrics thrown in.

The elephant was a surprise when I
unfolded the fat quarter

The reverse, letters from Tonya Ricucci book

The father's hand

and the mother's

Wednesday 19 August 2015

Sandy Shells

Bonnie Blues clamshells held in place with a Sewline glue pen

This weekend I finally finished hand sewing the binding on my Sandy Shells quilt held up by EPPing Bonnie blocks and binding on the Florence quilt. Yesterday I made a sleeve and pinned that on so I'm set up with more hand sewing for the evening. Most of yesterday was taken up with prepping a clamshell block for the Bonnie blues sampler which was very laborious. Lynne EdwardsNew Sampler Quilt Book was the source.
The Sandy Shells quilt is something of a teaching project about fussy cutting large scale patterned fabrics but although I intended to keep it, I don't like it enough, so it will be given away or sold when the classes are done.





On the bed



Tuesday 18 August 2015

Harbour Day

Whitstable Harbour


I went to Whitstable on Saturday and it was Harbour Day. Although there are hardly any people in my picture it was teeming very happily and I swarmed about with the rest of them and partook of an oyster. Meanwhile in Herne Bay it was the Air Show (where I had dropped off my husband) and planes grouped and regrouped overhead, notably the Red Arrows.
I visited the butcher's (Alan Long) and the greengrocers's as I always do here - you can get "proper" watercress for one thing but my main destination was the Whitstable Quilt Show  and here is some of the work on display there.
Sylvia Bowman: Purple Surprise from a Carolyn Forster class

Sandie Rogers: Scrap Happy

Madeleine Kavanagh: Midnight Origami from a Jenny Rayment Class

Rosemary Jordan: Odds and Ends

Thursday 13 August 2015

Days out

It's been an unusually busy week with days out both quilty and family. At my daughter's it was lovely to see Isla go and get a quilt when it got chilly and to see the cushion she made with me just fitting on her chair.
Keeping warm

The DP9P cushion my granddaughter made
 The usual gathering at Lower Hardres produced some interesting Show & Tell with Judi having made a Roundabout quilt from our class, quite different from mine in moody batiks, and Judy brought in her pretty applique quilt for Maggie to longarm. Maggie produced her "Jill" quilt, her version of the last Jill made. I got my cot quilt back from her and have since bound it - photos yet to come. My daughter loved the cot quilt fabrics so I showed her my Modern Board from Pinterest. Interestingly she said she like the fabrics but in traditional patterns and those were the ones she singled out. So I shall make her one.
Judy O's quilt top

Maggie's quilt

Judi's quilt sandwich, a birthday present for her sister who loves it.

This afternoon the Bonnie ladies met and showed off their paper pieced and pineapple blocks. Next up clamshells and a wreath.
Mavis's Pineapple

and her "Inner City"

Fran's Pineapple

and her Inner City

and another EPP block from a Love P&Q magazine supplement