Side Projects!

 

I'm easily distracted, it seems!  Rather than getting on with either of my on going projects, I took an online workshop with Josie Dunn of FunkyNeedlework.com.

It was a fun class, and a good opportunity to use a little of the fabric that I'd won from Creative Quilting - the rainbow Dimples.

This is the wall hanging that I made (15" x 10"), where rather than actually stitching down each link, I opted instead to use a decorative stitch down the lines.

I wonder if I made it again whether I'd use fusible on the back of the fabric.  I can't quite decide.

This was  the piece before I backed and quilted it, with just the ends of the loops caught into the seams.

My next piece was made with the remains of what I'd already cut - so some loops made into a wave pattern (which I thought would be easier to quilt) and the 'inners' again trapped in the seams to make this cheerful fabric base.

This is the picture of the piece once it was quilted.  I just outlined the colour bits with gold thread and a straight stitch - nothing fancy!

And here it is made into a bucket, with a rainbow binding.  Approx 12" high and wide.

  

It feels like ages since I've made one of these, but I haven't lost the memory of how to make them!  I'm pleased to have these two little finished items.

Small - and getting smaller!

Not much sewing this week - I've been distracted (mostly by a short book binding course - I'll share more next week, perhaps).

These are the four 3.5" blocks that I've made for my batiks quilt - and yes, they are very much at the quick and simple end of the ones that I plan to make.  I guess that I just wanted to make progress on it, even if it was only a little!

 And this is the 'smaller' project - a micro mini quilt of just 1.75" square (well, squarish - I'm not pleased with how the corner flared out when I was binding it!).

I remembered to reduce my stitch size for the quilting, so that it was in proportion!  And the binding strips were cut at 3/4" wide, so not much fabric to work with!  

Every year Berry_Birdy runs a micro mini stitch along in May (on Instragram).  This has been my only part of joining in so far this year.  Perhaps I'll manage another before the month is out!

Why stop at Two?

Why stop at two new projects if you can have three?!

My quilt group (Richmond and Kew Quilters) have started a Frame Quilt challenge.  

Over the next few months one of our members will give us instructions or key words to trigger then next round.

 Above is my start point. I'm told that if I was making a medallion quilt it would be like this, but for it to be a traditional style frame quilt, the centre block should be on point, how its shown on the right here.

Difficult colours to show properly.  This photo is probably closer to the real life colours, but the contrast is better on the first photo!

So, project three underway!

Also underway this week in the UK, are A level exams.  Good luck to all the candidates and their families!

Another New Project

 Why only have one project on the go?

This is a Europe wide project - and I like to do anything I can to retain ties from the UK with Europe, however tangential it might be!

These are my first blocks for a challenge called 'Round Bobbin'.  The Swiss quilting guild were given some wooden bobbins when a textile factory was decommissioned.

They have given the bobbins to people who applied for them, along with a series of 35 prompt words, and are encouraging people to make 4" squares, eventually sewn into a length, relating to those words, that will use the bobbin as the hanging mechanism.

Here are my first four.  Paper, cotton, leather and flowers.

My base squares are all from my small stash of hand dyed fabric, dating back to when I dyed some as part of my C&G Patchwork and Quilting course.

The deadline for completion isn't until February 2024, so I've got plenty of time!

New Project Part 2

Here are the next twelve blocks for my latest project.

All will finish at 6" square, and are based on blue batiks.

A right old mish mash of ideas for blocks - just as I wanted it!

Some of the fabrics are a little close together in terms of value, but it does mean that there is still more to look at when you get close to the quilt!

So these are finished, and the one from last week that I spotted had a patch turned around, has had it corrected!