Commission in progress :)

Here's a wee sneak peek of the commission quilt I'm working on at the minute....

Client wanted a modern style in blue, black, white, grey, brown and gold. I think this is working out ok. Trying to think how to quilt it - am wondering about a grid effect? The way the top is coming together I'll be having to decide v soon!

LOVE chain piecing :D

Work In Progress

Appearances can be deceptive

For example, it looks like a gorgeous spring day - sun beaming down from the blue sky, birds singing - until you step outside and the chill wind goes right through you and freezes your kidneys.

For example, it looks like I am sitting at the laptop, surfing the web, playing Words With Friends and listening to Radio4 Extra - whereas I am actually pondering the commission I have to do and email off in the next couple of days.

Honest.

Small but perfectly formed

Linking up with Crazy Mom's Friday finishes:

Been busy at my sewing machine, but not for quilting - take a look at a few of these babies!

this one's my very favourite :D

 And also some crochet flowers:

I have a craft show coming up and decided I needed something small and cute, inexpensive to make and buy. I realise not everyone has the wherewithall to afford a quilt at the moment, no matter how small, but a pretty card is an affordable treat. I like them a lot - what do you think?

Blankets seem appropriate...

...given that the country has been blanketed with snow for much of the last day or two. Our blanket in Ayrshire has come, gone, come again and is currently hardening under a beautiful clear night sky. At least the stars look breathtaking, so you don't really notice that you're freezing your tits off :)

Anyway. I've made a few blankets over the years, itseems to be something I keep on as low-key background knitting, and I don't mind that they take a while. I can just pick them up, do a few rows, blocks, whatever, and put them down again until it suits me better another time. Some have taken months, and some over a year to do, but I love mindless knitting every so often.

So have some pictures :) There are still a few I've not got photos of so will get round to that soon. I love the crochet one, but they all have a (warm) place in my heart!

This beauty was done on size 3.25mm needles - yes you read right - with Rowan Felted Tweed. I started with the green square block in the centre and carried on out from there. Took well over a year, and just over 23 balls of yarn. Finished size 54" x 72" roughly.

Detail of the ridges - remember every ridge of garter stitch is TWO rows knitted. I must be mad...
Edging was 2 rows of the dark turquoise all the way round:

The crochet one:

This one's about 40" x 65", adore the colours in this.

And my current blanket-in-progress:

Obviously I have had a log cabin love frenzy, but they are very satisfying. This one is Noro Kureyon, shade 161 which reminds me of a Scottish moorland. Love the mix of hues, the brights and the muted, the unexpected interplay of seemingly unrelated shades; unrelated until you look out onto a moor and go 'Oh yeah! I see it now!' This one will finish up at around 4 feet x 6 feet I think.

More soon :D

Experimenting

Time for some quality experimenting, now that I have my latest commissions done and dusted.

Have been browsing some fantastic home design and storage tutorials online, such as Lunch bags, Buckets and Cushion Zip installation with a view to my next project. What really interested me was this: Round bottom storage buckets!

Picture from Film in the Fridge, an excellent blog if you havent found it already :)

Genius.

So inspired by this clever idea, have been experimenting with my own fabric stash. I had no interfacing at the time, nor much in the way of decor-weight or heavier weight fabric, so tried it with quilt batting instead.

First attempt - oookaaaaaay. Lot to be improved upon, but still functional.
Second attempt - better. More in proportion, working out a few niggles.
Third attempt - much happier with the results!

Check this out, in order of making from left to right (Tall one = first one, green one = attempt number three):

I didnt use anyone's pattern, just a rough idea in my head. This is how they were done, roughly:

• Cut out a circle for the base from one layer batting and one layer fabric, quilted together. 

• Quilt more batting and fabric together, and cut a length of this to use as the sides, (used my rusty maths skills) and measuring the circumference of the circle by using Pi x D. Sewed the sides together, sticking in one of my labels about half way up.   

NB Make sure you sew the base to the right end of the side fabric or you will have your label upside down. This is the voice of experience...

• Sew the base to the sides (right side together) using LOTS of pins and a slow speed with approx half inch seam.

• Turnedight side out and put aside for a minute.

• Cut second base and second sides from lining fabric, making them half inch smaller diameter and according side length. Sewed side, sewed base to side as above.

• Put lining into outer with all right sides showing. Pin sides together at mouth of bucket.

• Cut length of lining fabric for rim overlap - I wanted to have a good 2 inch overlap so used a 6 inch deep piece. Same length as side for lining. Sew short ends together. Fold in half lengthways, iron fold if desired.

• Pin raw edges to pinned raw edges of bucket, with fold on the inside of the bucket.

• Sew all three pieces together at top (inner, outer, rim). Fold rim overlap over the outside edge of the bucket, as in picture. 

My favourite one so far:

I was using some scrap fabric to experiment with so colour choices will be better in next batch. I also bought some interfacing so will try that variation out too. The quilted version is nice in an organic way but bulkier round the seams, so I imagine the interfaced ones will be firmer and finer.

     The overlap is not perfect either but I like the effect. The beauty of this version is that the seam at the top allows a sewn-in hanging loop while still having the overlap; the fantastic ones from Film in the Fridge dont have that option without a separate add on loop.

      The mathematics has not been perfect either - there was a fair amount of fudging it going on, and a few creases. Still, it mostly worked out, and sewing can be very forgiving :)

The lining looks the best in this one too, much less crumpled and it reaches all the way to the bottom nicely!
 
Et Voila! Sorry if my instructions don't make sense,  I have not taken any pictures of the process yet. And I still want to make some with the hanging loop so I can have a wee row hanging over my sewing table with all my bits and bobs in them. I'll just have to keep chugging away till I perfect them! Or till I get bored and try something else.... :D

Ta-dah! A finish!

Guess what I managed to finish? My two commission quilts, Oh yeah!

Have some loverly photos :)

This is the two of them together, not identical but fraternal twins. I used the same fabrics for both but went with whatever star fabric content I felt like at the time.

 

Another shot of the pair of them against my lovely beech hedge :)

I am quite chuffed with how they turned out, after being a bit ho-hum about them to begin with. I still have to finish some pillow covers but am not going to be long with that (despite all the ills that have been hitting me this last 2 weeks. Am beginning to think we are a secret germ-testing laboratory).

Really enjoyed this finish! Really looking forward to making something new! I sense some buckets in bright spring colours in the near future...

Ever Late To The Party

Blogland is so busy! I've been reading for a few years now, and am so impressed with how busy and creative everyone is. I have followed and loved the Swoon craze,

Swoon from Jennifer at Twin Fibers

the Granny craze,

photo from SewCraftyJess

 the Scrappy Trip-a-long quilts....

Chopped Rhubarb from Crazy Mom Quilts

you guys are awesome!

I have a Swoon pattern waiting in the shadows, with fabric set aside all ready to go; I have read the tutorials for the Scrappy Trip along with delight (how clever!) and seen the plethora (good Scrabble word) of handmade bags and scarves which are in every corner of the web.

How much of it have I done?

Nada. Zip. Zilch.

Nothing,

To be fair, I have been busy on my own stuff, but have not managed to jump on any of the virtual quilt trips with you all. Not even the step-by-step Bee In My Bonnet row-a-long has been attempted, much as I love it. Those coffee cups, so cute!

photo from Bee In My Bonnet 

 

 

So.
I'm nearly finished my twin commission quilts, and will be done with them in a few days. And after that......?

I did harbour thoughts of  this wee beauty for my daughter,

but have none of the laminated fabric required. And if my hubby sees me buying ANY more fabric he will probably (and quite rightly) do his nut.

So then,
Any ideas for the next project?

Anyone?

x

Getting better every day

I have some sewing going on, despite feeling a bit rubbish - we had complete viral overload in our house for the last fortnight - and there is some sewing progress Yay! Simple stars and contrasting fabrics, am feeling the love on this commission :)

Chain piecing preparation :

There has also been knitting: Chunky wooly beanies and a couple of cowls and snoods, trying out stuff, and there has been selling: been to a couple of craft fairs, and sold a quilt, xmas decorations and wooly beanies. Photos of knitting soon, when I get myself organised...

It's getting better every day! Thanks Mama Cass.

Hmmmmm.

Am quilting the Arrows Quilt. It is going------ well, it's going. I tried a loop stitch, and that was silly. 3 hours of unpicking ensued. I started outlining the arrows on the white, which went well except for my tension issues, which meant another hour of unpicking. So third time lucky - have outlined all the arrows in white.

Now I'm wondering what to do next.

1) Should I quilt inside the arrows with colour?

2) Should I do another smaller design in the white areas?

3) Should I fill in the gaps with stippling or other patterns?

4) Should I just leave well alone and bind it?

All help appreciated! Linking to Crazy Mom's Finish it Friday for some help!


PS My hubby has a vomiting bug. Oh yay. We're all treating him like a leper. Yay for another bathroom. Not yay for him feeling even more ill than he has been already :(

Finish it Friday

Thanks to Crazy Mom Quilts I get to show off some more Game of Thrones loveliness :) I finished another two blocks this week, the Tyrell and the Tully ones. I think they are close enough to the book description to be suitable. Still working out Baratheon - its hard to get a stag's head to look convinvingly regal without it looking like Rudolph.

The sloping pictures are a probem, but I dont have room in the sewing room for a design wall so it has to be a design floor. Ah well, the key elements are there, albeit slightly angled :) I think the simplicity of the design is key too - and any further fancy dan stuff will be quilted in afterwards. I am planning to quilt in the House mottoes too, we'll see how much cursing that produces!


I also managed to get some wee crafty makes, for the craft show I'm doing in Ayr on Nov 25th - come along if you can! Nice to get out and meet people, because you can get a bit closed in when you spend all day sewing and shouting at the radio. Apparently. 

A couple of them need eyes and more detail, but I really like them. Not just good for Christmas either, that dread word which has us beginning crafting in July...

How's all your Christmas sewing going?

Game of Thrones - continued...

Another few blocks made, which makes 5 so far, and 4 to go. Working on Tyrell at the minute (well, when I'm not typing) and still trying to get Baratheon right.

Whatcha think?

From top middle going clockwise :

Stark - Lannister - Arryn - Martell - Greyjoy

(am very proud of the last one, Greyjoy, it was some job going round all those tentacles). Here's a close up - the mottling is deliberate, don't worry:

And I also really like Stark:

It is grey on white, but this is Scotland in winter, so the light is pish. Technical term there, for all the non-Scots in the audience ;)

First Block of Game of Thrones !!

Here's the first one, Martell House, the easiest to practice on, and still with wee bits of paper hanging into the stitches at the back. I will be spending some time picking them out. No hardship next to the fire!

Block size 24 and a half inches.

Game of Thrones, Martell House, Applique

Notes:

• I used spray glue to stick the back of the motifs to the backing fabric, and did the circle first, then the flames 5 at a time. 

• Paper backing to stabilise the sewing. 

• The spear shaft was a bugger, had to unpick the whole thing once but the second time worked once I had swapped the applique foot for a walking foot to cope with the extra layer of fabric. Phew!

• Stitch length almost non existent, stitch width varied from 2 to 1 (my machine goes from 0-5, its a Brother XL5700) 

• Stitch used was a blanket stitch, used both directions of it (nos. 4 and 5 on my machine)

•  See Applique notes for more info

Roll on the next one! 

Winter Is Coming....

...and the need for warmth on the bed is growing ever stronger, so I've been inspired (and am finally well enough) to get on with the Game of Thrones quilt I've been commissioned to do. Seems a long time since I was asked, stupid colds Grrrrr.

But anyway, work progresses. Have cut out all the templates, cut out the fabrics from the templates (am using spray to hold them down to the block backing as they are too intricate to needle-turn)  and started putting them all together! I think the one I've done looks pretty darn good - do you agree?

No prizes for guessing THIS House!

Have attempted a few practice runs of sewing round applique, and they began with Awful and so far have progressed to Mediocre. So I went on to the lovely Interweb last night and found lots of instructions about how to make applique sewing easier and look better. Thank goodness.

Tonight (after badminton) I shall be mostly in my sewing room - Experimenting MWAHAHAHAHAHA

My quilts

Hallo blog,
Am spending some time organising the quilts I have made into a separate page, so if you look to the right you can see the start of this - my own My Quilts page! Not very full at the mo, am finally crawling out from under the duvet and reacquainting myself with everyday life like housework (yawn) food shopping (yawn) and sewing (yay!).
I am almost finished the backing of the Arrows quilt, and am going to sew the last backing seam imminently :)
ie when I get my sorry ass off the floor and thrust the interweb to one side....
(I sit on the floor).

And I have finally cut out the templates for my Game of Thrones quilt, which is going to be awesome, assuming I can get what's in my head onto paper and then fabric.

So it's all picking up again! Hurray!

Have some picture joy :

Courtesy of the The Chive

Awesome, eh?

Small but perfectly formed

Updated to join with Crazy Mom Quilts linky Finish it Friday party!  (I think that it counts that I've finished my quilt top, even though its not the whole thing yet )

Even though I have been a bit under the weather, some things are ideal makes when sitting cosily by the fire, in front of some excellent telly (or in this case, Supernatural on dvd).

Check these out - what do you think?

Cushions were bought, and decorated, little brooch motifs are detachable for washing. Each one I finished was my new favourite :)

PS Borders on Arrows quilt, just needs basting and quilting and binding. Well that will keep me busy for about 10 minutes. ha.

Time Warp

I have a deadline looming; the Ayr Town Hall Craft Show is on 7th October, 1-4 pm and I have a table. All of a sudden it's next week! I don't know where this month has gone.

People say it's a side effect of ageing, this accelerated time passing, but I reckon it may be a craft thing. Something about working with your hands and making stuff is a huge time suck. You can lose yourself in the sheer colour and creativity of it all and suddenly its teatime, and the cat's battering the door trying to get in, and you were supposed to pick up the wee one from school (no, its ok, haven't done that. Yet)

Like anything to do with computers is a time suck, but at least you have something to show for it when you finish crafting. Words with Friends, Not so much...

Anyway. Aside from straightening the edges of the Arrows Quilt, I have been designing cushions and making decorations. Really good fun, and partly out of necessity. My tennis elbow is playing up, so no knitting for me just now, so have been crocheting and sewing, and draping ribbons artfully hither and thither, excellent stuff. All I have to do now is unpick side seams on cushions, sew the ribbons and brooches on, and sew the seams all up again. That won't take hours at all, will it? Eh?

Will have some photos tomorrow. Every one I do is my new favourite. Hope other folk like them too!

Pointing the way

Yay! Work is going well on the Arrows quilt, after a zillion hours of sewing squares together (possible slight exaggeration) and half a gabillion hours at the ironing board (hyperbole merely for effect), I have an almost finished quilt top!

Arrows Quilt top

 I love that it looks like there are slight furrows in the bed, even though it is absolutely flat - that's the design kicking in. Cool!

Detail of patchwork

Detail of the patchwork -  the piecing is pretty accurate for me, which is essential on this project, as the HST have to align to get the effect. I haven't decided on quilting yet, but have picked out a scrappy binding, unless I see something amazing instead. It looks like it'll be a double bed size too, which is handy. I'll be adding a small border round the edges, which might include arrow points too depending on what I can manage.

I will work out a pattern for this if anyone is interested, and will be selling the completed item at one of the Craft Fairs this autumn, or in my Etsy shop. Keep an eye out!

So far, so good

I have started laying out the fabric on my (design) floor, and it's going to have to be done in two halves, as I just don't have the room to do it in a oner. I started with one idea, and have decided on a slight tweak which makes it a bit more dynamic, I think, and my hubby does too bless.

First layout was with the arrow ends squared:-

And then I wondered about making them pointed, like below:- 

(the gaps are because I hasn't made enough HST for the new layout, so am currently cutting some more. Thought I'd finished. Rats)

I prefer the second layout, much less static, so the extra work will be worth it in the end. Finished size, not sure yet, as this design is completely off the top of my head, but I reckon it looks like a large single/small double size to finish.

Off to rest before another cutting sesh tomorrow :)