Monday Morning

OK, so really today is the first day of the holidays (edited to add, it really was morning when I started this post - somehow turned into afternoon by the time I got to the bottom).  I have a huge agenda... cleaning, decluttering, redecorating, sewing and quilting.  I know I do best with a list... but I've been putting off writing this one, because there is so much I want to achieve.  Partially because last holidays were so sucky (remember, storms, no power, all roads blocked so no fabric shopping), and nothing really got done. Partially because I'm just sick of the way things are at the moment, and it's time for a change.

First up the redecorating plans.  Tied up with Nadia's birthday, we decided to redecorate her bedroom.  We have a small house, and when we shifted in five years ago (I know, unreal aye?) the smallest person in our family fitted best into the smallest room.  She had a lovely twinkly light fitting and pink striped curtains.  A nice girly bedroom that I could still live with - not being the pink girly type myself. 

Does anyone remember the shelves and the small gremlin?

Then we decided to put both the kids in the larger room with bunk beds, and the small room turned into a studio/computer room... that lasted only a short while because it didn't really work having the two kids in the same room.  Then Dylan moved into the small room, taking his charcoal curtains and orange spaceship looking light fitting, and I moved my studio into the larger room with Nadia.  It stayed like this for quite a while - before my studio moved into the converted garage outside, and Nadia took over the whole large bedroom and proceeded to make a complete mess.  Finally she decided earlier this year that she wanted to move back into the small room, where she had some hope of keeping it clean.  This was just wishful thinking on her part - she makes a mess wherever she goes :o).  After all this jiggling around - Dylan had ended up with the pretty light and pink curtains... and Nadia had the spaceship and the charcoal ones.

This photo was taken on her birthday... 

...I think it's time she had a big girl room. 

It's slowly changing... there's a new light and blind, with some filmy white net curtains, but I'd like to get the rest of her room sorted over the break.  I actually have a whole list of things I want to achieve in her room.  Watch this space.

On the sewing front, I managed to get half of the quilting finished on the first applique border.

Then I started on the baby quilt applique - well, choosing fabrics for the key elements... one of the best things about fusible applique is that you can make changes right up to the last minute.  For those of us who are visual designers, it's the perfect technique.  I needed to cut the pink star points to assess just how pink it was going to be.  Even though it is destined for a home somewhere else - I still have my pink limits :o).

I quite liked didn't hate the pink on pink... but maybe just a little bit too much pink?

And I quite liked the deep blue basket with the pink rick rack... but maybe too bottom heavy?

Finally a compromise...

A last little note about stem making tools.  I'm not huge on specialty tools, but I love my Clover bias stem maker.  This is size 9, which makes a 1/4" stem (I think) which I use for just about everything.  I cut a 3/4" strip and feed it through the gadget, using the iron to set the shape as it emerges - folding the two edges under nicely - all ready for a bit of hand stitching.

OK, I'm off to start that list.

Begin as you mean to finish

Saturday, Day One of the Holidays... sewing.  Yes... I could get used to this.

Today was my appointment with friend and colleague Karen, as we plod our way through Amy Gibson's Beyond the Block 2014 Sugar Club BOM programme.  Karen has amazing sewing powers... although has only dabbled in patchwork previously.  Completing the BOM blocks each month gives us new techniques to learn and discuss, in a very casual learning environment.  I'm using the leftover yardage from my Japanese ladies quilt - a cross-range selection of Bonnie & Camille fabrics, with Moda Bella Feather as the light neutral, and a Moda Weave mid beige as the darker neutral.

This month it was our first foundation paper pieced block.

Although I know this is probably something that improves with experience, I hate it when after all the angst and fiddlyness of paper piecing... you still end up with joins that don't quite meet.  This was after the "pin like heck" technique.

Just as a refresher... this was our first block...the one that almost drove me to drink.

And the second...

Whoops... and this is the "do as I say don't do as I do" third block... still unfinished from last month :o)

I've also spent some of my time after work this week quilting the applique border on B&B.  Remember I thought I might do some "doodling" quilting... but was a bit apprehensive about jumping in.

I started with a strategically placed feather... [I'm using a mid grey Aurifill thread that blends with both of the backgrounds that I used.  I didn't want the quilting to overwhelm the applique - it's subtle, and that's OK.]

Then repeated some of the filler patterns I used in the other applique blocks... clamshells, open clam echoes, pebbles...

the odd weirdo spiral with feathers... and then some plain spirals...

It is slowly filling up (and I do mean slowly) - but I am seriously doubting whether I'll get this finished before the end of October.

This and That

Time has run away with me again.  I always find that this time of year just sneaks up on me, and all of a sudden, I am running to keep up with life in general.

Tomorrow the littlest member of our family will turn 9.  So we've been busy making a birthday cake to take to school... and she's got a fun day planned with friends on Saturday.

We're going to try making a sandwich with jam and then chocolate buttercream icing to top. Yum.

Then this week sees the end of the school term, so I'm frantic clearing my desk at work so hopefully things there will progress as smoothly as possible while I'm away. 

Last night was the open night at the College Dylan will be attending next year as a Year 7.  For the old school... this is Form One Intermediate.  I don't think I'll ever get used to the "year" system.

Last weekend I had a work colleague come around for some FMQ tuition... and this weekend another work colleague will come around to make another Amy Gibson BOM block.

On the sewing front, I've been plugging away at Bluebirds & Berries... now the entire centre panel is quilted.  I think that deserves a Woohoo!!!

I discovered this little filler pattern from Jess at The Elven Garden (it's like a mini clam shell with an echo round)... although she demonstrates a larger version of this pattern, it is super for filling in and around tiny applique spaces... who would have thought?

I also decided to do a wishbone sort of pattern around the first cream border.  I'll probably repeat this in the dark narrow border too.
 

I just winged this one, no marking... the pattern evolved somewhat from start to finish (as they usually do) but I think the biggest change to technique was when I realised I shouldn't be quilting side to side... because the whole quilt was never going to fit into the throat space, and changed to quilting down the border (which made a lot more sense, but affected the style of the quilting pattern).

This is the start and finish meeting point, see how it started quite roundy... and ended up quite pointy...

Now it's onto quilting the first applique border.  I'm thinking about a bit of a doodle mix to fill in the spaces... but at the same time this scares me silly.  It is a large area... crap, what was I thinking??? 

I spent a blissful wee "child free" while petting fabric at my fav The Country Yard, choosing a mix of fabrics to add to the original bundle to match this bunting fabric.  I have been asked to make a cot quilt for a yet to be born baby girl... with the request for very girly. I really like the way this bundle has grown.

Although I love the fabrics with the bunting... I would really want to use white as my background to make all those fabrics pop... but I know it is just hopelessly impractical.  So I've decided to keep the bunting for the back, and use this soft pink spotty speckle for the background.

A what I hear you ask?... well what would you call it?  It looks like a spotty speckle to me.

Once I had the fabrics sorted out, it was just time to find a design.  These blocks are still lying around my studio, and are a block that I absolutely love.  Wouldn't it be cool to just blow this block up to about 36"?  and add a narrow background border...

...and replace the centre framed square with an applique block.  That would be a 12" square - plenty big enough to fit something interesting and girly.  I can't decide whether to use this vase block?

Or this basket one?

 Come on people... give me a hand.  Which one (once it's done in my fresh girly fabrics of course) reads as more baby girly to you?

Nek Minute... two weeks later...

The last couple of weeks have been very busy - just not particularly crafty.  The weekend before the big ski trip was spent washing and drying clothes (in preparation for packing the suitcases).  Then my Dad came to visit and we spent a great weekend tiki-touring around the local sights and tourist spots.  The final Sunday night was spent packing those last few essentials, and then Monday morning, 6:30am it was time to meet the bus and send the menfolk off for the week.  Nadia and I had a pretty quiet week at home without them.  Although it was good girl bonding time - and she was excited to be allowed to wash the dishes in the sink (as opposed to putting them into the dishwasher)!


Friday the boys came home again, and it was back onto the washing chain gang.  Not to be confused with chain piecing of course :o)  Once again, the house has returned to it's somewhat normal state of confusion... and finally, today, I got to venture back out into my shed for some well deserved peace and quiet (I didn't realise Nadia talked quite so much until it was just me that had to listen to it!)

I did actually get a small amount of sewing done during the week.  Monika's birthday had come and gone, although I had an idea of what to make her.  She has recently announced an impending move to Brisbane... so I just knew that she would desperately need a small tote bag (very suitable for carrying fabric or small techie items) made from a souvenir tea-towel to remind her of all the best NZ has to offer.  When I saw this particular towel, I knew she would enjoy both it's bright colours, and the beautiful birds and foliage in the design.  Having random left over bits of batting comes in handy for projects like this , and a bit of simple quilting just finished it off.

Side One

Side Two.

Simple boxed corners

Modelled by my able assistant

 Today I've got a bit further with the machine quilting on Bluebirds & Berries.  I'm about halfway through the central panel.

I did add a tiny bit of McJobbiting...

... a little bit of tiny clamshells...

... a little bit of poorly executed but OK echoing

... a whole heap of stippling.

Getting in and around applique is not my favourite kind of quilting... I didn't want to do tiny, tiny quilting... to me the style of the quilt is soft and relaxed, and I wanted the quilting to reflect this too.  Stippling is good for getting into those tight spots, gives a nice open feel - and finishes nice and soft.  But stipple all over can be a bit much.  I'm happy with how the small blocks that I've quilted differently just help to break it up, add a bit of different texture, and as the blocks are the small ones - it doesn't add too much stiffness.  I will need to think of a good solution for the applique borders... I think if I stipple those too - we might just have stipple overload.

 The threads I'm using are mostly 50wt Aurifill in a subtle range of neutrals - 2000, 2310 & 2314.  In the coloured squares I'm using a Gunold 40wt variegated khaki.

Heard of Cows?

It's been a busy old time in the All the Good One's household.  Last weekend we helped family and friends celebrate my husband's Uncle Simon's 80th Birthday.  Staying on the Marae was a great experience for Dylan, who doesn't remember staying on his family Marae before.  The communal style of living is not conducive to a full nights sleep - so it took me most of the week just to recover!  Something to do with getting old :o)

As the days disappear until Dylan's big school trip to the snow, the fundraising effort seems to just keep continuing.  Wednesday was a big cross country event held at school - so another opportunity to impress with my vast baking skills.  Well actually, I just try for something edible...

My go-to recipe is a basic chocolate cookie... this time I went to town with the decorations (thanks for the inspiration from the latest cake decorating weekly magazine that is being promoted in NZ at present).

Heard of cows???

 Now, before I had children I had a naive image of what parenthood would be like - me doing crafts with my children... spending time decorating biscuits and cakes... little did I know that I had zero tolerance and even less patience.  I soon discovered that cake decorating was not my forte (around about the time of Dylan's first birthday, although I did try again somewhere around Nadia's first birthday), and after tears and swearing - decided that a basic iced cake was the most the kids could ever expect, and I've been training them ever since to have low "cake expectations".

Every now and then - I think, hmm, maybe I could manage that?  Now these cows aren't rocket science in the decorating world - chocolate buttercream icing, jellybeans, chocolate melts, marshmallows and chocolate drops.  I figured I could do these... and they turned out not too bad.

In my spare moments I've been reading - recently downloading the first book in David Edding's series The Belgariad.  I purchased these books for my brother as they were published back in the 1980's???, probably reading them several times in my teenage years; and haven't read them since.  The first few pages were like curling up with an old friend... comfortable like a pair of old slippers.  I'm really enjoying the repeat performance.

Sorry no sewing this time... maybe next week?

The Great Around The World Bloghop

Hi There, today is Monday and my turn to participate in the Around the World bloghop, to share my take on The Creative Process.  Many thanks to Raewyn who blogs at Love to Stitch for inviting me to share in this interesting topic.

One of Raewyn's latest Mystery quilt adventures - in miniature this time! 

I often feel disappointed that fellow bloggers don't share anything about their craft, other than The Eye Candy: what the latest project is and what the latest fabric purchases are.  Not that there is anything wrong with that now and then (sometimes that's about it in my world too) - we all love new projects and certainly love new fabric - but there is a whole other side to this quilting thing, that I feel, is often neglected - How did this wonderful project come about?  Why did you choose that background, or feature fabric?  Why did you choose this technique over that one?  The design process, the quilting decisions... the list goes on... I want to know it all!

So this is a bit about me, how and why I create the things I do.

 The formal bloghop questions are:

1. What am I working on? 

2. How does my work differ from others of its genre? 

3. Why do I write/create what I do? 

4. How does my writing/creating process work?

I'm not sure if I can formulate my thoughts into answers to these exact questions... but we'll see how it goes.

 

The first one is easy... what am I working on?  Everything!  I have many projects in different stages of construction and turn to different projects depending on my mental and emotional state, what the weather's been like, and the ups and downs of parenthood.  I enjoy the monotony of chainpiecing, and when the world all becomes a bit much - I love to pull out an old, or start a new, pieced quilt.

Amsterdam Star blocks from Judy Hopkins 101 Rotary Cut Quilts, with minor adjustments

Other times I feel a strong pull towards the creativity of applique, and have far more applique quilts started than I can probably ever finish. 

One of the My Tweets BOM blocks

 My projects are somewhat similar in that they tend to use a wide variety of fabrics.  I love these soft greyed fabrics, and duckegg blue is among my favourite colours - but I also enjoy contemporary and modern prints, as well as bright and fun designs - so I try not to be limited by a particular genre.  I tend to buy small quantities of fabrics - often fat quarter or fat eighth size, and have collected an impressive collection, which I am always on the look out to add to.  When there is a designer range of fabrics that I just have to acquire, I'll often purchase a charm pack - this satisfies my need for all those different fabrics... but also gives the credit card time to cool down.

This quilt designed by Denyse Schmidt features an upsized block that was the perfect solution for a layer cake of Sweetwater's Hometown range that I adored, and just had to have

I make big quilts.  I don't know exactly why this is... but even my little quilts are bigger than the average bear.  The challenge of making small amounts of fabric add up to a large quilt top is part of the magic of what makes my quilts uniquely mine.  My quilts have been described as scrappy, and yes, they do have a lot of different fabrics - but there has also been an enormous amount of care, attention and time that has gone into curating the final palette.  Because I am limited by the quantity of individual fabrics on hand, I need to be creative in choosing quilt designs that embrace variety... as well as lots of small bits.  I love the challenge of finding a quilt pattern that highlights the fabric in the best way possible - and, like many others, I rarely make the same design twice.

Sometimes it is traditional...

 

This is basically a two colour quilt - but includes purple through to navy and black in the dark zones, turquoise, green and everything in between in the light.  I collected these batik fabrics over a three year period with no idea what I was going to do with them.

 Sometimes it is modern...

My Tokyo Subway quilt is a modern scrap quilt

And sometimes it is somewhere inbetween...

And the leftover Tokyo Subway squares will one day form a stunning and completely different Supernova quilt

I think for me, in the great chicken/egg debate, the fabric comes first, and the quilt design comes second.  I start with a beautiful stack of fabric...

... that will grow and evolve, and take on a new character...

...and I start looking for a quilt design that will enhance the fabrics that I have chosen.

When I find the right one... I just know that it will all work out.  I have confidence in the Quilting Gods :o)


Sometimes I find a pattern that is just perfect as it is...

Playground Quilt by Camille Roskelley, featuring Reunion by Sweetwater.  This one was so perfect that I used the pattern as well as the same fabric line!

 

OK I did make minor modifications to the star block, but barely noticeable to the original pattern

...other times I need to tweak it a bit - which usually means making it bigger...

The centre section was the end of the pattern, the outer triangle corners are all my own invention

Other times I create something from scratch (pencil, graph paper, EQ7 and making it up as I go along)...

The Bulls-eye Quilt made from one charm pack, plus a small amount of yardage

... and I'm completely happy to embrace all quilt creation methods.

I think that's enough about me... please leave a comment if you have a burning question!

Now to pass you on to the lucky bloggers continuing the bloghop, continuing with the International theme are two other Northland quilters who have moved to NZ from other countries.

First up, Monika who blogs at Himmelgarten Quilts here.  Monika has been my friend for over 10 years, over which time we both succumbed to the quilting bug.  She enjoys both pieced and artistic quilts, and has a real talent for FMQing...

Mathea is a newer friend, who although she creates using a variety of patchwork techniques - her focus is often a small, amazingly creative art piece - you'll find her blog here.

Both ladies will be posting on the 1st September - so check out their posts on how they create their own masterpieces.