Just a quick note to say that my very popular Chocolate & Teal Puzzle Quilt now has a pattern available to download from my original post.
Chocolate & Teal Puzzle Quilt Pattern
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Category Archives: Quilting
Autumn Lily Layer Cake Quilt
I finished a mammoth quilt last week, the first I have designed using a Layer Cake – Blackbird Designs ‘Autumn Lily’ by Moda. For the uninitiated, layer cakes are usually forty two 10×10″ pre-cut squares of fabric from a coordinating collection. I augmented this with a lot of calico to make a relatively inexpensive throw for the bed – it reaches over the sides, but only goes 2/3rds of the way up the bed by design (and by the fact that I would have needed more patterned fabric!). Each block in the above photo is just under 10″ square for a sense of scale, and the finished quilt size is 110″x67″ (roughly 3m by 1.5m). Each square has been quilted, and the repeating motif is my own continuous line quilting design.
I spent yesterday afternoon having my first play with Electric Quilt 7 – a quilting software package that I purchased last week to aid in production of quilt patterns, as well as designing my own quilts. As all the reviews I looked at have said, there’s a steep learning curve, but the help screens and tutorial videos do help you get to grips with what is actually an unintuitive interface (at least at first). It does have the benefit of being able to import photos of the fabric swatches, and Moda are kind enough to provide these as a download via their website.
Overlocked Layer Cake Quilt
Following on from my speedy success with my first overlocked (serged) quilt, I popped into Quorn Country Crafts for some spare overlocker needles, and I left with some woolly nylon spools, the needles, a layer cake and another jelly roll of fabric; oh, and an offer to talk to me about leading some quilting classes later on in the year.
For the uninitiated, a layer cake (in quilting terms) is made up of 42 10×10″ squares of coordinating fabric. There’re many different ways of cutting up these squares, but it does also allow for larger squares to be used in patchwork quilting. This is my first layer cake quilt, and I’ve kept to straight lines so that I can use my overlocker for all but the quilting.
Here’s the interim pics – trialling the quilt-as-you-go overlock technique I’m developing – and I’m pleased to report success!
The Imperfectionist’s Quilt
The overlocker/serger has been flying away over the last couple of days. Buoyed by the success of my thread catcher, I decided to attempt a quilt using only the overlocker to make. Including making up my own design, working out how to quilt as I went, and all the ironing and cutting and hand-stitched binding, it has taken 14 and a half hours. I think that’s pretty fast! Feature fabric is a Fabric Freedom Noodles Roll (FJ-1/11 Sherbets), alongside calico sashing. The finished size is 44″ x 60″ and I used the majority of the jelly roll.
And the title? Well this made up pattern/technique does not have matching corners – which is just as well, as it’s fairly tricky to line things up on the overlocker as pins and overlockers don’t get on. So I know some quilt purists who would shudder at the thought of this, but I reckon it’s turned out ok! The alternate title is the noughts and crosses quilt… and it’s Quilt No. 011.
Christmas Quilt 2014
I started this year’s Christmas Quilt earlier in the year, but it stalled, and as has started to become traditional, I spent a week in December finishing it off. I didn’t follow any particular pattern, being guided by the sizes of fabric pieces I had. After designing and cutting a stencil for the swirl and spending two days doing all the quilting on the calico border alone, I am so glad it’s finished. The overall quilt size is 56″ x 71″ (142cm x 180cm). The centre blocks are from fat quarters, with the borders added and mitred (finally got the hang of that!). There’s approximately 1 km of sewing thread, with 400m of quilting (I know this as I used exactly one 400m reel of the variegated gold/brown thread!).
I’m looking forward to the arrival of my ‘what do I get a man who has just about everything’ Christmas present, which after much thought is going to be …. an overlocker 🙂
I’m also going to be hosting a sewing/stitching/quilting session in the studio on Wednesday afternoons in the new year, so keep an eye on my workshops page if you’re interested in joining the group.
Christmas Quilt
Here’s my happy-accident Christmas Quilt that I’ve just finished, my ninth quilt. I started it early this year using a January sale jelly roll, with a hiatus during studio construction and starting the new business. Unfortunately, the lone star pattern I was following wasn’t followed closely enough, and I completely ballsed up the strip cutting. Hence the single lone star in the middle, and the hash borders – which by happy accident have worked nicely. Given everything outside the centrepiece is completely made up, I’m pleased with the outcome. I still haven’t quite mastered the layering of backing, batting and top sheet, especially on my own which is why things are a bit baggy in places. That may settle a little after a couple of washes. Mind you, after 22 feet of hand sewing the binding on, which took 4.5 hours, I’m pretty good at that! Now to find somewhere large enough to display a 6’6″ square quilt… that hasn’t already been bedecked with decorations…
Mandala Faux Batik (for Creative Expressions)
When I saw the contents of the latest DT goodie bag lots of ideas sprang to mind. We’ve been sent the newest set of ‘Henna’ inspired Creative Expressions ‘Singles’ stamps – rubber stamps that are pre-mounted and cut ready for slapping onto your acrylic blocks and printing with straight away. This project uses embossing powder and spray dyes to create a faux batik effect on a handkerchief – although any cotton fabric would work just as well. For more making details, read on 🙂
Dedication Quilt
During my ‘quiet times’ here on the blog, I’m rarely resting! Complete with a conservatory and hall refurbishment over the last couple of months, I’ve been busy on various projects I can’t share at the time. This is one of them – quilting a pre-printed topper (roughly 36×48″) for the dedication (equivalent to christening) of our friends’ newborn son. That happened earlier today, so now I can share without spoiling the surprise!
I used the free motion setting on my sewing machine to quilt round each of the letters and the main lines of each of the illustrations. As normal, I have hand bound the edging and used an 80/20 cotton-polyester wadding. Being able to wash the quilt is a pre-requisite for this age group! At points I wished I had chosen simpler quilting lines, but the finished article was worth the three days worth of man-hours. Now to move onto quilting my very large happy-accident Christmas quilt: more on that in another post 🙂
250,000 views – the giveaway
It’s not long to wait before my little corner of the blogosphere captures it’s 250,000th view. I gave you a sneak preview of my giveaway a couple of weeks ago… and here’s the whole thing! I’m giving away an A3 quilt featuring 100% cotton fabric onto which I have hand drawn and shaded tangle patterns that I’ve published on this blog, quilted with cotton/polyester wadding and then hand bound with a black fabric binding. It’s labelled on the back with my name and the fact it’s my seventh quilt.
Pentel Gel Pen for Fabrics
Derwent Inktense block and water
Quilting on Pfaff Quilt Expression 4
As mentioned before – all you have to do to win this giveaway is to be the person closest to the 250,000th view that leaves a meaningful comment somewhere on this blog (spam doesn’t count!). All you have to do then (Sandy F. take note – that’s twice now) is respond to the email from me asking for your postage details!
Just a little thank you from me for supporting me over the months and years 🙂
Handprinted Quilts
I’ve just put the finishing touches to two small quilts. They both feature my own pattern design, which I hand screen printed at college onto fabric offcuts using black textile ink. The first shows the patten, unadulterated, quilted using black cotton and free motion machine stitch round each of the circle motifs. The second is dyed with Adirondack Color Wash sprays (which despite my best efforts still covered everything nearby!), dried, heat set, rinsed, ironed and then quilted in the same way. Both are hand bound and labelled. I use backstitch to hand sew labels for my quilts as this is unlikely to wash off! They are both 22.5″x42″ in size.
Quilt No.5 – ‘Pattern No. 1’
Quilt No. 6 – ‘Rainbow’