REBUILDING

SOMETHING NEW

So my neice asked us to make a quilt out of a single bed quilt cover she had bought and didn't like.  The parcel arrived and we thought about it for a while and put it aside for a while longer until finally it had to be done.  We looked up some patterns to get ideas and maybe download something to follow.  We found one we liked but couldn't get the pattern by download so we made our own just from looking at the picture.  We were very pleased with ourselves our first quilt designed by us.  Well mostly designed by us we didn't have a pattern. This whole project of course required a trip to Hobby Sew for fabric where we found some plain colours and white to match the colours of the cover.  We bit the bullet and cut up the quilt cover, saved the back for backing and proceeded to fussy cut all the birds and trees.    Then it was put asside for another quilting day to piece it.  The backing was a little small so we added squares to make it fit. 

Overall we are very pleased with ourselves we basically designed and pieced the whole thing from a quilt cover.  Quilting it, we decided on something new and did diagonal lines over the whole quilt. 

The only downside was we didn't take a photo of the original quilt cover and I am also disappointed that we didn't think to make a video for You Tube of how to make a quilt from a quilt cover :-(

BERRY

Berry Quilting Retreat

This is the second year we attended this one and its such fun.  We chose the course with Michelle Marvig for the second time.  She is a great teacher and has such lovely patterns and well as an amazing eye for colour.

This one was the Midori Float.  Because we were going away on holiday the week before the weekend we had to make sure we had all our materials ready.  Another shopping trip or two the collect the many different colours of fabrics for this one.

So of course there is another project in the works not sure what i will do with this one but I am thinking that I will try to quilt it with an all over pattern.  When ever I get to that point. So far we have the Centre completed and are working on the corners.

WESTALEE RULER FOOT

New Classes

Some time ago we decided to sign up for the Westalee Ruler Foot course the price included the foot and templates as well as an online course.  Sounded great at the time.  There were some hiccups in the begining waiting on our parts to arrive.  I had mine for some time before Lynne finally got hers.  We set out and bought some fabric to make the project involved which was a quilt as you go.

We watched the first lesson and got into it we were quite enjoying it also involved being part of an online forum which after a while became quite tedious with people discussing there personal problems rather than the course.... grrrr.

Then problems struck Lesson 5 didn't arrive when it should have apparently the lady demonstrating hurt her arm and the video wasns't completed!!!  This is a worry...why weren't they already done before taking our money???  Not happy with this at all and voiced my disappointment on the forum which earned me a blast from all the other ladies...  Lucky I am not sensitive the that type of thing other wise I would have slit my wrists lol  :-)

Then disaster the bloke filming had a heart attack.... unbelievable I am not game enough to comment on the forum but consequently we are still waiting on Lesson 6 which should have been delivered 10 days ago.   Lesson learnt careful what you sign up for check out the reviews first.

So we now have another project half finished lets hope its not too long.

ITS BEEN A WHILE

NEW ROOM

It has been some time since I posted on this blog...  maybe because we get so busy we forget to stop and just think about whats happening around us.  

We have continued to have our Quilting days but now it rotates between houses and I have a wonderful new sewing room.  Thanks to my husband and his grand ideas :-)    He suggested one day that we do away with our formal dinning room and make it into a sewing room.  We never used the dinning room except maybe when we had extras for dinner and christmas.  So the planning began this changed involved somehow reducing the size of the table or selling it and buying a new one!!  

So Gumtree it was in the mean time my husband had a quote to cut down the table!!!!   What!!! you mean cut down that beautiful timber trable!!!  No way!!! The quote came back and wow thats a lot of money.   We had no response to our add on Gumtree and were looking at new tables in the mean time but after all the discussions and looking we decided that cutting down the table was the best solution. So the move began it has taken a few weeks to get it right but now we are very happy with the result we love the new layout of the lounge/dinning room and our new Smaller table.  At the same time I have soooo much room its just great.

 TV was the extra addition although my son in law wanted to know why I needed a TV in a sewing room.  Silly boy doesn't he know we have to watch Youtubes all the time.

We also added a design board which is the best thing its great to be able to stick blocks and quilts up on the wall to stand back and photograph or just look.






 

QUILTING DAY

Old Location

Quilting day was back at my home with the lure of a Spa after Lynne couldn't resist we don't have as much room but we managed to take up the whole lounge room with tables and machines.  We had a great fun day piecing a quilt for a friend now we have to piece the back, baste it and then decide how we will quilt it.

We continued the afternoon working on setting up a new Westalee Ruler foot which we have purchased along with the course on how to use it.  Hopefully this will help with our freehand quilting.

As always there was happy hour followed the dinner and a spa.  I think during winter we must have some more of these.

Pam

UFOs

UFOs or UNFINISHED PROJECTS

Well its been a while since I wrote on this blog but life has just got way to hectic and quilting days are few and far between lately.  What with all of us that 6 of us turning 60 this year we are all busy organising parties and my son had an engagement party as well which I eventually had to help organise and run even though it was his and his fiance's party.  What can I say I am a control freak and they just had no idea how to go about running a party :-)

My blog today has come about because I was sitting thinking about all the quilting projects we have on the go at the moment not to mention the ones on my wish list and the ones Lynne has hidden in boxes in her cupboard.

So here is our combined list

Block of the Month 2013
This one is in the process of quilting but has come to a stop because we both were unhappy with our quilting skills and that has caused another UFO :-)

Wishes quilt along 2014
Blocks completed waiting on putting it all together and quilting

Pebble Pathway
This is a combined gift for our friends turning 60 so far we have the kit and cut out and pieced just waiting for an opportunity to piece the back, baste it and then decide how we will quilt it.  So far we are very happy with the top.

My King Size Town Square
This is one for my own bed I have all the fabric (bought on special) ready to go just need some time to start on it.

Lynne's Reece and Scannell Queen Bed
This is one bought at the Berry Retreat last year and has finally got to work on it its almost ready to baste then... how to quilt it???

Snap Shots
I am working on this one with my Daughter its Fat Quarter Shop quilt along unfortunately she is a shift worker so we need to pick our times to get together but when we do its fun we have completed two blocks each so far.

Dear Jane
The ever present Dear Jane will be finished when its finished.  Who knows when, its just something to play with every now and then.  I quite enjoy paper peicing in my lunch hour some of the harder blocks.

Double Wedding Ring
The mother of them all.  We are tackling this as a threesome My daughter, Lynne and I so far we have the fabric and the templates and a day allotted to cut we have until June 2016 so there is plenty of time ( she says with confidence)   But will we but rushing at the end... possibly :-)

This is just a small part of the list I know Lynne has at least two more kits in her cupboard and I have several patterns I am planning to make with my left overs.  So I suppose these are not UFO but a wish list.  Of course we also have the Berry Retreat comming up.... she talked me into it again it falls the weekend after we return from holidays not the best time but we have chosen a class with Michelle Marvig so I couldn't resist.  We still have to buy the fabric for this one thats always complicated when it a Michelle Marvig project also quite scarry.

So we best get on with all this.

Pam.

NEW PROJECTS

New Personal Projects

We seem to have a very busy life lately so quilting days are spread out seemingly only 1 per month at the moment.  Although that was the original idea we just seemed to squeeze in some extras.

We both had projects we wanted to start this time although we still have a BOM to quilt.  That was to be part of our day....  Oh well we just sometimes get caught up on new projects.

Lynne started on a quilt for her mothers friend.  It was a pattern we found on Fat Quarter Shop made with Layer Cakes and Charm squares.  It was to be a simple quick quilt but when you take into account directions of patterns and which way to press seems it becomes a little more complicated.  That is all good for the brain though.  She got through half of it and finished it later on in the week.  So I spent one lunch time helping here "Stick" it together it is beautiful and I am sure it will be a pattern we will repeat many times with different fabrics.

For myself I purhcased some really cute Caravan material and I decided to make some placemats for our caravan and also for our friends van.  There much planning and measuring and I decided to fussy cut the centre panel and then border is with pictures in the corner.  This was a quick project to complete.  Although when I got home and tested them on my table they were much too big..... ooops we miss calculated on the size of the border by only including one side.   Never mind I am in the process of cutting them down and soon they will be finished. 

New quilting day must must must include some of the quilting for a BOMs

QUILT CAMP

Our own Personal Quilt Camp

This is the first of many we hope.  Our plan this week was finish our Fat Quarter Shop Mystery Block of the Month from 2013 we finished all the blocks some time ago so it was time to finish.

First job was to square up all our blocks.  Lynnes were all pretty good because she had redone some to correct some obvious errors in sizing.  Mine were all trimmed down to 12 1/4"

When we first started this project we had no idea what we were doing which is very obvious when we look back at some of the things we have done.  Like the small 9 patch blocks that go into the sashing.  Unfortunately we didn't have enough material to redo them completely so in the words of Lynne's old Granny "we will just make it come right"  :-).

By the end of day one we have all the blocks joined with red and cream strips and 9 patch blocks and we were very happy with outselves.

Day 2 saw addition of the next two borders and the begging of the flying geese....50 of them.  I suggested we skip this part of the part of the border but Lynne made us push on.  I am glad she did.

Day 3 Flying geese and guess what!!! they fit we were very very happy with the finished product and with the addition of the final border  and preparation of the batting and backing we were ready to glue the layers toger.

50 Flying Geese

They Fit Yay!!

 

Day 4  We spent quite some time thinking and pacing around the table deciding which way to attack this large quilt but we worked it out in the end and the second one went very quickly.  Followed by some washing of the timber deck as it had become very sticky and then a swim to cool off.

Next we set up the room and began with some ditch stitching just a few rows as it was late in the afternoon and time to close our very first Quilt Camp with a swim and Champagne.

Ready to Quilt

 
 
 

CHRISTMAS

The End of the Year is Comming

We have had a couple of quilting days comming up to Christmas we both had projects to finish some for Pressies and others just for fun like the Owl Pot holders.  I though it was a cute pattern :-) Turns our they are a pain to make took us most of the day..... what a waste :-)  Never mind my Son's Fiance loved it... although I don't think we will be making more.  I completed my Santa wall hanging and we both completed a Ribbon Pattern Quilt for two separate babies.

Santa Banner

 

Ribbon Quilt

 

Own Pot Holder

Looking forward to our planned week of quilting after New Year.  Our own personal Quilt Camp.  Should be lots of fun.