Retreating 04

On the last day I cut out masses of triangles for square in a square sashing pieces and made use of Mandy's cutting machine to cut out half square triangles for a workshop next year. I also worked on a sample for the log cabin star I'll be doing with the U3A in November. Method Photos to appear in November. 

We all loved this made by someone not on the retreat and using shirtings and checks.

Detail

Colette's set out for pinning

Debbie's with very effective sashing

Maggie's magnum opus using African fabrics

Miriam's Quilt of the Crosses

Kathy's 

Mandy's taupe BOM made larger

Yvette's for charity

Detail

Retreating 03

A lot of work got done yesterday. I had a productive day too, finishing my Westminster blocks and then cutting 200 squares for the sashing units. Mandy had brought in her electric die cutting machine and after some hesitation it came into use. I am doing a workshop next year involving masses of HST's and I took the opportunity to cut up some of my Westminster fabrics, all pales.

Julie's stripped hexagons

Miriam's angel

My Westminster blocks

Heather's baskets

Detail

Heather's fish: Julie was the recipient

This one came my way; I love it

Jackie's aeroplanes

Detail

Belinda's Liberty log cabins

And her jelly roll quilt

Detail

Colette's super top

Mandy's
's

M

and detail

Maggie's: I'll sleep under this when I visit her in South
Africa

Heather  with a quilt which gained an award
at the West Country Show

Retreating 02

Experts from the class tried out my machine; one phoned her expert engineer and the other talked him through it.  Such helpful people. The view was the machine is faulty and needs to be replaced. At least it's not me. I'll get on to it as soon as I go back home. Then a wee morning shopping trip and  then I got out my my trusty basic Bernina and off we went - what a relief! I completed my current stint on our joint (secret) quilt and then got to work on Westminster Chimes blocks.

Julie's pieced hexagons taking shape.

Detail

Isabel's top in the making

Detail

Two of my Westminsters

A whole row

Retreating 01

Colette's Jewel Box made from vibrant South African hand dyes.

  I am on an annual autumn retreat enjoying stunning weather. On Tuesday I completed the first row of Westminster blocks but have yet to take a photo and today I have been working on my and Maggie's joint quilt for a friend which is under wraps. I should have finished my stint on this but still have more to do as my new very expensive machine is giving me problems, mainly tension. There are a number of very knowledgeable people here but after struggling to solve these issues the consensus seems to be the machine should go back. Thank goodness I have a spare machine which I'll get out of the car tomorrow. I have come to bed having tension problems myself! 
Anyway here are projects from fellow retreaters.

Jackie's subtle crosses from her workshop

Progress

I'm now sewing down the binding on my Bonnie Blues quilt but soon I am off on Quilt retreat for 5 nights so the remaining length will have to wait till I got back. I finally machine sewed down the facing on my Safari DNP. When I came to do the label I'd forgotten I'd called it that and put down "Disappearing Elephants". When I turned it over I could only see Rhinos but on closer inspection I could see elephants And here they are with the rhyme I included on the label.

Gathering work for the retreat I had rush of blood to the head and cut out a fresh new quilt, from Kaffe Fasset's Quilts in Provence though I am trying to use a more summery palette.  The sashing will be a lot of work! I've wanted to do this pattern and had this in mind since I saw the original at FOQ (Festival of Quilts). Since then I used Westminster fabrics in two workshops but didn't progress beyond the days as I wanted  to complete this one first and then see what I had left.

Blocks and frames laid out

The picture in the book

This and That

At Show and Tell at Oast Quilters the last weekend in September there was a modern hexagon quilt made in Judi Kirk's workshop: all the results from this have been super. And Judi herself had a finished quilt to show. 

Hexagons from Judi's workshop

Judi's quilt

Now she is teaching (and judging) in Virginia Beach, USA. How impressive is that!!

Judi's classroom

Last night as I hand quilted the border  of Bonnie Blues I had that Channel Tunnel moment of reaching my starting point. I had stayed up late to do so watching "the Reluctant Fundamentalist". I had read the book with my book group and was pleased the film followed it closely. As the border was marked with Berol felt pen I washed it in the machine today. I wanted to hang it from the backing and wadding edge but my clothes poles aren't tall enough. When nearly dry, I'll lay it out flat and (Ssssshhh) iron it. It must have needed a wash anyway after so long in the making and trailing while being quilted.

Bonnie Blues awaiting binding

And at our sewing day yesterday another Judy, Judy O, showed a delightful quilt she has made as a gift.

Judy O's sailing ships

Mrs October: Double Pinwheel

Two mirror imaged sets of 4 double pinwheel blocks, 8.75" unfinished, 8.25" finished size.

I have signed up for a charity quilting bee and each month one of us requests a block to be sent to them which will then be combined into a quilt for a young people's camp where they are reunited with siblings separated from them by the care system. Each child gets a quilt which should be of a good size. Anyway this month it's my turn to chose a block and colours and as so many of us make girly quilts this one will be for the boys with strong colour contrast between blues/navies and reds/oranges, mainly tone on tones, no flowers!
The block is one I used many years (16) ago to make a quilt for my baby grandson and I learnt it from an Eleanor Burns episode on Simply Quilts. Now she has a video on YouTube showing the many colour strategies you can use including a three colour version. 
I chose to cut 2.75" strips as they are fat quarter friendly but as big as possible, 8.75" unfinished, 8.25" finished.
The method results in two mirror imaged blocks either to make two separate quilts or one set as a border.

1. Cut 2 red/orange strips 2.75" wide and 20+" long and 
and 2 blue/navy. They can be the same or different fabrics.

2. Sew in pairs and press towards the blue

3. Cut into four 5." squares

4. Place the strip sets on top of each other right sides together with the blue navy on top of the red orange and vice versa as shown.
With the blue "on top" draw a diagonal line from top left corner to bottom right consistently

5. Sew quarter inch on either side of the drawn line, cut apart on the drawn line
 and press towards the larger blue piece. 

6. This results in 2 sets of four
mirror imaged triangle umits.

7, Sew into counter changed pairs, pressing
towards the larger blue piece and then
combine the pairs but don't press yet.

8. This shows the centre of the block where
 the seams cross.

9. Unpick the stitches in the seam
 allowance on both sides of  the block.

10. Now you can press the seams in an
anti-clockwise direction on the back and clockwise on the
front so all the seams will nest when the blocks are sewn
together. The centre will also lie flatter.

There is no reason why you can't introduce a third or fourth colour as long as you keep to the same colour groups.

  Here I used two different orange/red strips making three colours. Yet to do four .