From the Ashes

I wanted to try to make my first One Block Wonder quilt.  I had some lovely Jinny Beyer border fabric that had been sitting in my stash for a long time.  I knew that as much as I loved the fabric I would never use it because I didn't have any fabric in my stash that worked with it. So, I bought a book and watched some videos and started piecing my hexagons.  When I put them together Irealised I had made a big mistake.  Regardless of how I moved the hexis around, it was too much and giving me a headache.

What to do?  I can't bear wasting fabric - especially lovely fabric.  I wondered if I could break up the hexis with a second fabric.  I decided to go with black and try to make a medallion quilt out of it.  It was fun trying to reverse engineer the dimensions of the quilt so that the hexis would fit.

Anyway, the result is below.  No longer a 'one block wonder', but now more 'stack n whack'. I am now working on a second attempt at a OBW, and I think this one is looking more promising.

What have I learned from this disaster?  Fabric choice is everything.  Fabric with lots of straight lines don't work - at least, not for me. You don't necessarily need a lot of different colours, but variations of tone and saturation are needed if I want to create the kind of effect I have in mind.  Onward, ever onward!

Miniature Swap Quilts

I have made a few miniature swap quilts for various swaps over the last few months, but not posted photos.  It is so much fun to play with designing small projects.

I made two for The Quilt Show International Miniature Quilt Exchange.  I made the blue one first and then decided the colours weren't right for my swap partner, so made the second one in pumpkin.

Again, I made two miniatures for the Spring UKQU Miniature Quilt swap.  I wasn't sure about the one with rings, so sent off the ombre one based on the Fibonacci series to my swap partner.

I turned the edges on all of the spirals and circles.  I can only assume my applique is improving as those spirals were a challenge!  I love working with ombre fabrics.  They seem to just add that bit extra to a quilt.

I love the idea of swaps and the design process.  The only issue is the constant worry my swap partner will be disappointed...hence I end up making two every time!

Close Up of Bally Birds

Bally Birds is Finished

I finished making Bally Birds last week, but I have yet to get a decent photo of it.  The photos below seem to have a bit of a green cast.  It was a lot of fun to make and I am happy with the result.  It was a great opportunity to improve my broderie perse and hand applique.  If we ever get a decent day - not too sunny or not too dark - I'll take some better photos.