Confessions of a quilter

Some more pinwheels

2010-03-24T14:13:00.002+10:00

I have been pretty poor at making time for sewing this year. Expecting baby number two, while chasing my 20-month-old R and trying to get as much work done as possible before baby arrives is wearing me out more than I thought it would!

I did manage to make this little baby blanket for my husband's cousin's new baby girl:

I've made a few more pinwheels for my queen size scrappy pinwheel quilt, too. These I did last month:

And I finished these this week:

I also made Riley a couple of little sunsuits. I don't know why I can't seem to find these for sale anywhere in Australia, especially on the Sunshine Coast. They are great in the heat, as they are so breezy and don't stick to the skin like tshirts or shorts. This one's a little big on him, but I am sure he will grow into it soon.

New quilt: Red square

2009-12-22T20:07:00.006+10:00

I have been on a sewing rampage, and managed to get another quilt top finished. This one (I'm calling it Red Square) is a Christmas gift for my sister-in-law. I'm halfway through quilting it and still hoping to get the binding sewn on before Friday... Nothing like a little last minute pressure!

In between blocks for the Red Square quilt, I've been sewing the scraps together to make scrappy rectangles. As I love quilts with white sashing, I hope to make enough of these for an entire quilt... one day.

I have nearly finished the triple blue irish chain quilt for my mother-in-law... a bit more binding left to sew down. Here is the latest photo, with border and binding sewn on (but not finished).

Close-up:

Front: (R just loves to walk on my quilts... much to my dismay!)

Backing:

Finally, last month I made some more pinwheels for my scrappy pinwheel quilt. Slowly but surely, I am getting closer to my goal of 500 of these!

better late than never

2009-12-09T21:50:00.006+10:00

It's been awhile, but while it appears I'm not really cut out for blogging, I've managed to make a few things since my last post in May.

I finished the black and white rail fence top (but still haven't managed to put it together...) and the Neptune quilt. Photos to come.

This little blanket was for my husband's cousin's baby boy.

I've just finished most of this quilt top. Rushing to get it finished in the next few weeks, as I'm planning ito give it to my mother-in-law for Christmas. Still need to put the border on...

Fabric, fabric and more fabric...

2009-05-12T21:25:00.002+10:00

What a week for fabric! I finally received the fabric I'd ordered to my mom's house! A great big box full - she had managed to cram it all (including the entire Recess fat quarter set) in to a flat rate box and even managed to squeeze in some of my old baby books and a little t-shirt for little R! Thanks mom!!!

The same day I also received a package from another recent order, which had the third charm pack and fabric to finish the Neptune quilt. I felt a bit guilty seeing all of that fabric on my sewing table, but at the same time, I was in fabric heaven!

The Neptune fabrics - one more charm pack to finish off the quilt! The dark blue will be the binding, and the other fabric will be a border for the back.

Some new fabrics! Most of it on sale...

Very quirky Japanese fabric - on sale, how could I resist?

Recess fat quarter set - great bargain, another sale!

Aww... a cute vintage-looking tshirt for my little boy, from his train loving grandfather.

And finally, my baby books from my mom. She's even written little notes on the inside of when I got them and what I loved... Very special.

Neptune quilt

2009-05-01T08:31:00.005+10:00

Although I haven't finished the Japanese box baby quilt I've been working on, I've started another quilt. It is the first quilt I'm making for 'us'!

I decided we need a quilt for the couch, as winter is approaching. My husband argues we have enough blankets already, but in an unveiled attempt to find excuses to make quilts, I argue the blankets aren't good enough, and that we need quilts...

I ordered a couple of charm packs awhile ago when I was on my fabric buying spree (but had them shipped to my mom in America, along with the rest of my huge order... I am still waiting for her to send the rest of the mountain of fabric, as she worries about the high shipping prices to Australia!). I asked my husband for his choice, and he chose the Neptune as his favourite (while at the same time stressing how little he cares about fabric... what is it about men and their phobia of all things perceived to be 'girly'?).

As impulsive as ever, I was keen to start making a quilt right away so I headed to the local fabric store to get some creme to go with the Neptune squares. Ever since I saw "Crazy Mom Quilts" 'vintage kitchen quilt', (http://crazymomquilts.blogspot.com/2009/03/vintage-kitchen-quilt.html) made entirely of half-square triangles, I was keen to do the same. I was so keen to make it NOW that when I discovered two of my local stores were both sold out of creme, I decided to use another colour. I found this very different blue / green, which actually matched the colour in Neptune perfectly.

I don't really love it, as it makes for a pretty dark quilt and I do sort of miss the contrast that creme or white provides, but I am sure it will grow on me. I think it's quite masculine, which is a nice change for me. I've managed to get 12 rows sewn together so far, but this has taken up ALL of my charm squares, so I've ordered another pack online, which should be just enough to finish this lap quilt. I also ordered some of the dark blue for the binding, and a bit of another fabric to provide a border around the back. I look forward to receiving my package in the mail and getting this finished before it gets much cooler!

Neptune quilt so far

My new charm packs (minus the Neptune ones, which I used before I thought to take a photo!)

My new sewing area!

2009-04-30T21:37:00.007+10:00

Well, I am hoping that having a new, orderly sewing area will make me a more fastidious sewer (and blogger). I was thankful when I first got my original sewing area, which consisted of an old metal cabinet for my fabrics and a fold-up trestle table in a corner of our laundry room (before that it was the kitchen counter!). Unfortunately, I didn't think to take pictures before the 'transformation', but then again, it was always in such a state of mess, both from my sewing and the usual spill-over from the laundry area, that I would have been embarrassed to share such a photo anyway.

But last week my husband and I closed down our local company office (we both work for the same company). Due to budget cut-backs on a corporate level, we've been forced to move everything in the office into our home. Giving up a room in our house for work was not exactly our ideal, especially with a very vocal nine-month old crawling around the joint, but once we realised there was nothing we could do to change the accountants minds, we decided to look for the positives. Like... no commute to work. The ability to eat lunch together at home every day (well, when A is not on the road that is). Convenience of having everything close at hand...

One personal positive is that I was able to use some of the left over furniture we weren't able to get rid of from the office in my sewing area, which has made a huge difference to my sewing area! Goodbye old metal cupboard and trestle table... hello lovely big cutting / sewing table and cupboard!!! It looks so much nicer than it used to, and we have moved my sewing table out to the side (the old one used to be in the middle of the room, between the cupboard and the laundry area) which opens the whole area up. I love the 'new look', and really love the current order and neatness of the room! I just hope I can keep it this way, as it is certainly easier to go in and sew when I do get a break. (It used to be too overwhelming, as I'd have to dig out the sewing machine from beneath a mountain of clean clothes, towels, sheets, etc...). I look forward to using it more often! (And new resolution: keep it tidy

My new sewing room

I love all the light from the windows

A glimpse of the fabric stashed in the cupboard

Goodbye metal cupboard and plastic table - ready to be banished to under the house for tool storage

"Japanese Blocks" baby quilt

2009-04-30T19:26:00.004+10:00

I honestly don't know how so many people are able not only to put numerous quilts together every month, but also manage to blog about them as well! I struggle to find time to work on quilts these days, much less make the time to take photos, write and post about them!

That said, I do love to see all the beautiful and creative projects out there in my favourite blogs, and I have loved the few lovely comments that I've received. I guess I'll never be a popular blog like so many that I follow, as I don't think I have the will power to keep posting regularly, but who knows, I may get better in the future...

Anyway, I am delighted that I've been able to make time lately to work on a few projects. This was partly inspired by my new and improved sewing area, which makes me want to sew more! I also have a list of quilts that need to be made - for friends having babies and for our own house as winter approaches (yes, even in Queensland we need quilts! or so i keep telling my husband....).

The first quilt in progress is my Japanese Blocks quilt that I'm making for friends of ours that are expecting a baby in July. I have had this fabric for over a year now, just waiting for a reason to put it all together (and like most fabrics I own, too scared to cut it!!) but decided it would make a perfect baby boy's quilt - especially since our friend spent a year living in Japan.

The blocks alternate with navy and cream linen borders around fussy cut squares. After several trips to the shops looking for a binding, I've finally decided to just go with a plain dark red, which I like more and more. I hope it will really set off the quilt once it's finished. I have finished all of the blocks, and now just need to finish squaring them off and put them together.

The finished blocks, on top of the red to be used for the binding.

Close-up of fish block

Close-up of swan block

First two rows laid out on my new sewing table. The finished quilt will be four blocks wide by five blocks long.

Oops...

2009-04-11T08:20:00.002+10:00

I've really neglected this blog, and have just realised it's been a full month since I last made a post... not that anyone probably cares, as I doubt there are too many people reading it!!! (If any??)
Anyway, the three of us have been really busy the past few weeks. A road trip two weeks ago to see my in-laws and down to Sydney last weekend for a cousin's wedding. Only the trip to the airport took a lot longer than we'd planned after I crashed my car into a gum tree a few kms down the road from our house. Oops...

Luckily, neither of us were hurt. Baby R only had a small mark on his shoulder from the shoulder strap of his carseat! Thank goodness for car seats, as I can't imagine what would have happened to him without it. I was in shock for awhile, and had a few bruises on my face (and since, two black eyes!) from the airbag. Our wonderful neighbours came to the rescue, as A was down in Sydney waiting for us and couldn't get home to help us. THey took us to the hospital and looked after us all day until we got another flight to meet up with the family.

I'm now pretty much stuck at home during the week, so hopefully will find more time to add to this blog! I've got more fabrics to show and have started another quilt finally, so will have some new posts soon. x

New fabric!

2009-03-11T09:14:00.002+10:00

I have been very naughty this month, and went a bit crazy online... I am feeling pretty guilty about spending so much on fabric I don't really need (and not telling my husband) but must admit I was still excited when my first parcel arrived today!

Here is what I received:
From top to bottom: Robert Kaufman "On a Whim" and Alexander Henry "Spotted Owls", "2D Zoo", "Starling" and "Yui Kokeshi"

I am obviously on an Alexander Henry streak at the moment! I bought some of the Yui Kokeshi last year on a trip to Melbourne, and just love this fabric. I was excited to find more online. My second favourite is the 'Starling' fabric - I LOVE these little birds!!! (However, I'm sure it is going to be one of those fabrics I'll be to scared to use...) I've seen a lot of the Zoo fabric in a few people's blogs and look forward to using it in a baby quilt myself.

Close-up of Starling:

More scrappy pinwheel blocks

2009-03-11T08:35:00.003+10:00

Yesterday was a sewing day, and I managed to get a stack of blocks done for my scrappy pinwheel quilt. To be honest, I am so over pinwheels - having made more than 200 of these (I have lost track of how many are completed... must do a count soon.) I am really bored with making them. That said, I'm still trying to finish this queen size quilt as planned... (But doubt I will ever make another pinwheel after this quilt!!!)

Here is a stack of blocks, in a variety of stages of readiness - half blocks, quarter blocks and initial patterned and white blocks ready to sew and cut.

Chain piecing the squares.

I hate pinning anything, and try to avoid it whenever possible. However, I do pin the half blocks together to make sure I get my points right in the middle of the pinwheel. I just stick a pin straight through the points of both sides like this:

I've found it useful to remove the storage tray on my machine when sewing the half-blocks together. This allows me to sew right up to the vertical pin, keeping the pin nice and straight, and pull it out at the last minute.

Pile of corners cut from the halfsquare triangles - for some reason, I don't throw these away and I have been saving these in a jar...

And finally - yesterday's 32 blocks!

close-up:

Finished quilt

2009-03-06T09:39:00.003+10:00

I managed to take some photos of my finished quilt yesterday, and have been trying to learn how to upload them through Flickr. Not as straightforward as I thought it would be!!! But I've finally managed to figure it out.

Here is the front of the quilt

A close-up of the front

The back

The binding - I love this turquoise with the red border

And finally, a picture of my baby R, 7 months old, posing on Krystal's quilt for me.

Killing time...

2009-03-03T11:31:00.002+10:00

Wow - It is just toooo easy to waste time looking at blogs!! I am really enjoying reading so many of the crafty / quilty blogs out there, but today I came across one for the first time that has caused me to waste more time than usual! Check out this blog, full of great quilts and beautiful quilting. I am really impressed with her work! (Though I don't know 'her' name...?!?)
http://emptybobbins.wordpress.com

In other news, I've finished Krystal's quilt! I do still have to put the label on, but the binding is now completed. Hope to get a 'finished' photo on soon....

Almost finished...

2009-02-27T09:27:00.006+10:00

I've been trying to finish Krystal's quilt this week, and I have actually surprised myself with my progress!!! As I've said before, I love to piece quilts, but hate to finish them. (Hmm.... kinda like the rest of the unfinished projects in my life! I think I see a trend...)

I was determined that I would finish this one off before I started a new one, as I am somewhat embarrassed that this was supposed to be a Christmas present and it is still not finished!! I finally started putting it together on Tuesday. I tried using quilt basting spray for the first time, instead of safety pins. I am now a convert! I found it sooo much easier to use and much less frustrating. I had no problems sticking it all together (though I have yet to give the wood floor a much-needed mop, as there is the messy issue of overspray...) and was able to get straight onto the machine to start the quilting. I used my walking foot, and quilted it in straight lines around the squares. I have yet to try stippling - I did just get a free-motion needle thing, and really want to give it a go, but this quilt was so symetric, I wanted to keep it that way. I used white thread on the top and red on the back, and I really like how it turned out.

Here are pics of the back and front:

I really couldn't believe my progress - by the end of the day I had finished all of the quilting! I had expected this part to drag on, as I normally don't have the patience / concentration to stick with it, but it just flew. I think I must be improving??

By the end of the night, I even had the binding sewn on! (Although I wasn't really thinking by that point, and cut the binding strips too thick - only realised it when I was 3/4 of the way through sewing it on, so I decided just to go with it... The binding is really wide on the back, but I don't actually mind it now!) I have finished one of the sides, three more to go and then another finished quilt!

Great giveaway!

2009-02-24T09:29:00.002+10:00

As much as I wish I was the only one entering this giveaway, I'm sharing this link to get another chance to win it myself! (Selfish, I know....) I absolutely covet this Japanese charm pack that Kerri is giving away on her blog "Lovely little handmades". She has a lot of cute stuff on her blog - check it out!

http://lovelylittlehandmades.blogspot.com/

It's back!

2009-02-23T15:49:00.007+10:00

The sewing machine is back and running better than ever. So nice to have a light again, and to no longer hear 'clunk clunk clunk' whenever i sew.

Today I managed to finish a few pinwheel blocks for the scrappy quilt (two of each of these). Only 200 or so more to go...

I also started putting together a quilt I made for one of my best friends for Christmas... I thought I could get it quilted on our holidays, but didn't even come close. I love finishing quilt tops, but hate putting them together!!! It is a simple quilt - the front is a mix of squares with white sashing and a red butterfly border - but I really like it. Another one I'd like to keep....!On the back porchI love the back - more of the butterfly fabric with a white border.

Close-up of the back -

Close-ups of a few squares - the top left one is my favourite.

Finally!

2009-02-18T10:58:00.002+10:00

No pics today, but I just received a phone call with good news - my sewing machine is all fixed up and ready for me to pick it up! Just in time, as we are getting a lot of rain, which is keeping me out of the yard and gives me a good excuse to get some sewing done! Fingers crossed, Baby R will cooperate and I'll get some time to catch up on a few projects!

Strange fruit

2009-02-09T10:02:00.003+10:00

Well, the sewing machine is in for a service, and i'll have to wait at least two weeks before it's ready. Sigh. I just hope once i get it back it will stop all of that start / stop business!

So I thought I'd share a photo of 'doughnut peaches'. I'd never heard of them before in my life, but I saw them at our local fruit stand and they looked so strange (like a squashed peach) I had to try them. They were delicious! They are a white peach - very sweet and juicy, and only a TINY little pit.

Saturday sewing

2009-02-02T16:08:00.004+10:00

I managed to find some time on Saturday to do some sewing. I finally finished a little self-binding blanket for my husband's cousin's new baby girl that I've been wanting to send off for ages! (She's almost three months old...whoops.)

I've made a couple of these now - they are simple and pretty quick to make. Well, not so simple the first time I made one, for little R, and sewed 3 out of 4 of the mitred corners the wrong way, only discovering my mistake AFTER I chopped them all off! I managed to sew the cut bits back on and redo the corners. The blanket corners look rather silly, but we've gotten a lot of use out of it. But anyway - now that I have the hang of those corners, they are fun and relatively quick to make.

This is the finished blanket - just very wrinkled (as I'd already folded it before I remembered to take a photo). It's pretty simple fabric - pink and green striped, backed by a soft pink - but I liked the simplicity of it.

I wanted to keep sewing and planned to get a lot more done on my scrappy pinwheel quilt, but my machine kept stuffing up! I had to keep taking it apart and putting it back together, but after about 20 times and only a few half-square triangles completed, I finally gave up. I am going to take the machine in tomorrow to be serviced (and a new light bulb put in finally!), and hope that fixes the problem.

A slow start to 2009

2009-01-17T14:13:00.008+10:00

After more than a month off from sewing (family trip to the States for Christmas, entertaining family back home for New Years, cleaning up after family, etc...) I finally got back into it last Saturday (it's just taken me four days to find time to write about it). I think I had sewer's block or something - I kept trying to get into one of the projects on my list, but would end up just cleaning my sewing area... only I can never quite get it clean... I did manage to sort out most of my fabrics, and cleared the huge pile of misc sized pieces on top of my cupboard.

On Saturday, A took the kids for a few hours (and even better, did all of the grocery shopping!!!) so that I could sew. I worked on the pile of squares I'd cut for the scrappy pinwheel quilt (which I started when Riley was born and doubt I will finish anytime soon). Or rather, I tried to start working on it, but encountered problem after problem...

First, I realised I'd marked the wrong side of my white squares - all 100+ of them. So I begrudgingly remarked them all on the other side. Finally got through that stack and started sewing my squares together. Only to realise that it had been way too long since I'd worked on this quilt - I was sewing on the cut line!! Whoops...

Felt like an idiot, but went back to square one... again... Only this time, my bobbin kept stuffing up. Can anyone help me fix this problem?? I have no idea what causes it, but out of the blue, I will suddenly have heaps of thread bunched up on the bottom of whatever I'm sewing. The only way I can fix it is to take out the bobbin, fiddle with it, and put it all back together and start over. Only it tends to take about 100 tries before finally, it seems to kick in and work! This happened two different times, and after I'd taken the machine apart upteen times, it finally seemed to fix itself. Can ANYONE help me with this? I'm sure it will happen again in the near future...

Finally got that problem fixed, and got into my squares.

After a full afternoon of sewing in my pyjamas, I was nearly cross-eyed (especially since the light went out on my machine late last year and I still haven't fixed it...) but happy to have made some progress.

Riley's quilt

2009-01-15T19:49:00.001+10:00

The very first quilt I made was supposed to be for my first baby, but at the time we didn't know if it would have a boy or a girl. A and I picked out some green fabric, which we thought was rather neutral, and I made a very basic nine patch (hope to take photos of this quilt soon...). It seemed to take forever to complete each step along the way, as I didn't really know what I was doing and had to keep refering to a quilting book that my mom had given me years ago constantly. (I was actually shocked and a little proud when I actually finished it - hand quilting and all!)

But upon finding out that we were having a boy, I decided it was too girly and decided to make another one. I fell in love for the first time with fabric - Japanese carp with bamboo and waves - and fussy cut the fish out. I had sewn about 9 blocks of this together (with the fish squared and the green / blue boxes turned), when A suggested I change directions and turn the fish squares instead! It was a challenge to turn it without taking it all back apart, and I wasn't as happy with the way the fish were cut this way, but overall we preferred the look, and I'm glad we did it. I like the way the finished quilt turned out.

This was only the third baby quilt I had made and I must confess - I look at the green and blue solids (and the plain blue backing) now and think, "How boring!" At the time, I was worried about spending too much on fabric (that worry is now loooong gone... replaced by periodic fabric splurges followed by guilty conscience), had only gone to two fabric shops (one quilt shop where I bought material for quilt number two and nearly died at how much it cost and a local craft shop with cheap fabrics) and wasn't brave enough to start experimenting with more adventurous fabric combinations. It's a pretty simple quilt, but I remind myself it is all a learning experience.

(By the time I made my fourth quilt (the fish and bubbles rail fence in previous post) I decided what the hell, and started to really get into fabrics, resulting in a more adventurous backing and binding!)

My first post

2009-01-12T17:13:00.000+10:00

Well, I never thought I'd be into quilting, much less starting a blog about it! I was once a globe-trotting marketing manager, circling the globe several times a year for work, never in one place long enough to even think about a quilt, much less start one. My mom always liked quilting, and after we kids left home, had devoted more and more time to her hobby. But her encouragement to take up the 'art' only made me swear never to like it... I always considered quilting to be an old lady craft! But here I am, a fabric-obsessed thirty-something, fantasising about all the quilts i'm going to one day find time to make... and I certainly don't consider myself OLD! Not yet, anyway.
So how did this happen? My husband, A, bought me a sewing machine for my birthday last year. I had big plans to start making my own clothes, but had no clue where to start. But as I was newly pregnant with our first child, I decided I would make a baby quilt. A actually helped me pick out the fabric and I got busy 'fussy-cutting' (though I had no idea at the time there was such a term) little Japanese dolls out for my first quilt.

Then I found out my best friend was also pregnant, so I got to work picking out gender-neutral fabric for her baby, and made this railfence quilt.

Then my husband's sister-in-law fell pregnant, and I decided to make her expected boy a baby quilt...

And voila - I was hooked!