2016 New Year Quilting Resolution and Going Cold Turkey!

2015 has been a great year!  My resolution was to improve my FMQ and to produce a wholecloth by the end of the year.  Whilst there is always plenty of room for further improvement, I feel I made a lot of progress.

For 2016 I don't think my resolution will be anything like as pleasant, but it is something I want to get to grips with.  I have built up quite a stash of quilting cotton fabrics.  I want to reduce my fabric buying!  I think it would be unrealistic to buy nothing all year, but my aim is to only buy 1 metre of fabric for every 5 metres I use!  This will mean keeping a record of my stash use in Excel...which is not as easy as it sounds, as I make a lot of scrappy quilts, just using a little piece here and there.  Wish me luck!

I have signed up for the 2016 Quiltmania Mystery quilt which is designed by Petra Prins this year.  I will get a fabric pack for the quilt every two months, so I will have some new fabric to look forward to!

Have been plagued by migraine headaches, but managed to get my Christmas wallhanging finished.

I added crystals for extra bling.

I also made a little bunny from calico and quilting cotton for my grand daughter.  She is made from a pattern by Maureen Mills of  Sweet Meadows Farm.

Happy Christmas, all!

Back to my Tablecloth Project

I rested my finger for about 10 days after putting a machine needle through it, while FMQing my tablecloth quilt.  I say I rested it...I mean, I stayed away from the sewing machine.  In the meantime I hand pieced a couple of rosettes for the Passacaglia quilt.

My finger is a lot better, so yesterday, I got back to machine quilting.  I have missed it.

I have a number of misgivings about this tablecloth.  I'm happy with the way the embroidered flowers are popping off the surface.  I don't dislike the centre of the quilt.  I painted the motif in the centre, as it really didn't look defined enough with just machine stitching.  I don't like the colour of the painted, swirly motifs in the corner.  I may try painting over them with a lighter shade of blue.  I also painted the dragonflies and a few flowers.  I'm OK with these, except that I have noticed from the photo, that one wing of the dragonfly doesn't match the other.  This should be easily fixed.  .  What I really don't like at the moment, is the texture of the scribbling on the quilt or the way the four FMQ motifs around the edge look.  I echoed around the motifs three times.  At the moment, I think they look messy - not the look I was going for.  If push comes to shove, I can scribble over the tops of these, but I'll wait until the whole top is quilted, and then decide.  It might be that I just need to go over the scribbling to improve the appearance and texture of the top.  Time will tell.  The edge of the quilt is rather dull.  In retrospect, it might have been better to add some cotton fabric behind the tablecloth and extended the quilting out further.  Lots of things to think about!

Have I Lost the Plot?

Last Friday I managed to put a machine needle through my finger while FMQing.  Not my finest hour!

I decided to take a rest from my machine until my finger recovers...but in the meantime, I have started a hand sewing project - La Passacaglia.  I am using materials from my stash.  I have a fair old stash of batiks which I am hoping will work for this project.  I have found a lovely, Facebook group for support.  I'm not sure I could have made a start with this without all the helpful information available there. 

I have managed to make the first rosette (90 pieces).  It has gone together well and I am going to enjoy the journey.  I am using Inklingo and hand piecing using running stitch.  I like the idea of having a project that will be portable and that I can pick up or put down as I wish.  I am planning to use a limited palette of colours with occasional shots of brighter colour.

Finish and Dilemma

I finally managed to get the facing on my Vintage Butterflies tablecloth quilt.  I am now struggling with myself.  I have several projects on the go.  I have some Christmas projects that I want to get done, but I am also thinking about starting quilting another vintage tablecloth.  It is lovely to have a choice of projects, but at the same time, I'm dithering.  None of this is made easier by the fact my left wrist is strapped.  I've no idea what I did to it...all I know is that it is painful!  I need to just get on with something!

I have made a start on Christmas projects. I used Superior metallic threads and attempted to use random, continuous feathers as a background fill. I saw the panel as part of a free project by Karen of Redbird Quilt Co on www.bearcreekquiltingcompany.com/blog/2015/09/19/chickadees-and-berries-christmas-gift-trio/

I was able to buy the panel here in the UK, (I have to admit, I bought 3), but not the other fabrics, so I have had to make changes to the given pattern.  I have enough left from the first panel to make 4 coasters and two placemats, so the panel goes a long way. I should probably add the binding to the wallhanging first!.

Happy quilting, all.

A Finish - Almost

I don't know how many hours I've spent quilting this tablecloth, but it has been fun!  It is lovely to be able to take a damaged, but pretty tablecloth and make it usable again.  I don't know if it qualifies as recycling or upsizing.  I'll have to look at the definitions!

This time, I wanted to try using a finer quilting thread, so used 60 wt Superior Bottom Line in white.  It behaved very well and I was really happy with it, particularly for all the scribbling.  It is one of the very few threads I've used, that haven't left the bobbin case area covered in lint.

One of the challenges of quilting old tablecloths, is to design motifs that will fit comfortably between the embroidery motifs already on the cloth.  I really enjoy this aspect, but must have spent three weeks mulling over the look I wanted for the quilt.  I was worried that feathers might overwhelm the existing embroidered butterflies, so chose to quilt flowers instead.  There was quite a large empty space near the scalloped edges of the quilt, so I drew scallops to break up the space.   I didn't want to have exactly the same flowers on each side of the quilt, so I mixed them up a bit.

Once again, I made extensive use of Cindy Needham's background stencils.  I used the circular Universal stencil to mark out the centre medallion and clamshells to add interest.  I used the 3/4 inch grid stencil for the circles and the triple line stencil for the border.  By the time I had finished quilting the tablecloth, I was looking for a border that would be elegant, simple and quick.  I LOVE the triple line stencil, and can see myself using it a lot.

Happy quilting, all!

A New Project is making Progress

After several weeks of indecision, I have taken the plunge and started to quilt my old butterfly tablecloth.  I don't think it is terribly old, as the embroidery is done by machine, but it is pretty and I can only hope I make a decent job of it.  The tablecloth was very inexpensive, as it had a small hole in the middle.  I have fused a small patch of cotton behind it and strategically placed some lace butterflies (another eBay purchase) over the top to disguise the hole.  I used Superior Monopoly to sew them down.

I decided I didn't want to use trapunto for this project.  The stitching twice aspect gives some potential for a lack of tidiness on my part, not to mention the extra work, so I thought I'd try a double batt for this project to see if I like the effect and whether or not it is a viable alternative.  I am using a layer of Hobbs Tuscany wool on top of a layer of Hobbs Polyester.

I have done very little stitching so far, but I am getting a nice puff.  I won't know if I'll get the light and shade I want until I start the background fillers.  I still have quite a bit of blank space around the motifs and edges so will need to break these areas up, before I background fill them.  I haven't decided what stitches to use for the fillers, yet...so I still have a lot to think about.  It would probably be better to work out ALL the design aspects first.  I would probably end up with a more coherent design, and wouldn't have that slightly queasy, anxious feeling in the pit of my stomach!  The irony is that in real life, I am very risk averse.  I look three times before crossing the road, etc...but when it comes to quilting, I fly by the seat of my pants!  Perhaps it's because if I make a bad design decision, no one will die!  :) 

I normally use Isacord for my main quilting, but have decided to use white Superior Bottom Line this time...another experiment.

A corner of the tablecloth

 The first few stitches

The lace butterflies that hide the hole in the cloth

I am finding the design aspect one of the most interesting and most enjoyable  parts of each tablecloth project.  I enjoy the quilting most of all.  I love the purr of my little, old  Bernina 1008 as we stitch along.  It is very therapeutic and a bit compulsive.

Happy stitching, all!