Musings

We discovered something interesting during my class on Sunday last weekend. The pattern requires that you work with standard fat quarters as you will be cutting 4 blocks from each  at 9 inches square.

A number of ladies had issues with one or more of their pre-cut FQs being ever so slightly too small to work with. It turns out that almost all of the FQs were purchased from the same store in town and I worked out what has happened.

In New Zealand (and over in Australia) despite us quilters usually working in inches, fabric is sold by the metre. Our FQs reflect this, so are usually approx 50cm x 55cm (around 22" x 24" for the Americans!). An American FQ is a wee bit smaller  at 18" x 24" as they sell fabric by the yard.

It seems that we have one shop that is selling their pre-cuts in American sizes.  Now there is nothing wrong with that in principle (it's certainly one way to improve your profit margins on pre-cuts), but it makes it very awkward when they are a little bit canny about not warning their customers! Using patterns that have been written locally assumes a certain sized FQ and you can easily find yourself short enough fabric! Not a great way to inspire customer loyalty.

The major bug-bear I had with it was that when we measured some of them to see if with careful cutting we could still use them, several of the dodgy FQs measured at only 17.5"!

On another note, I am currently trying to construct my borders on me shhh-secret-squirrel project and I'm loving how it looks. Lets just hope it fits onto the centre piece properly!

Cheaty freezer-paper, starch, and top-stitching. No curved seams!!

Teaching "Going Dotty" for the Wellington Guild

On Sunday I had the privilege of teaching a lovely group of ladies from the Wellington guild "Going Dotty"

I fully admit to being nervous before hand given that the class had 3 times as many as I had taught at one time before. A full 14 enthusiastic ladies plus my wonderful angel-helper FM.

As a teacher, seeing the busy hive of activity is an awesome feeling. As is the feeling of amusement when you tell a class exactly how much bias binding they will be using and watching the horror on their faces slowly change as you show them how to make huge screeds of bias with almost no waste in a continuous strip.

The Karori Arts and Crafts centre is a fabulous space, light and airy, well equipped with plenty of tables. Even with 14 students plus me, we each had a table to ourselves to spread out over.

Concentrating on marking blocks

Piecing up a storm

Rightfully proud as punch of a finished block

I loved getting to see the different fabrics everyone worked with - you could really see personalities coming through. And I can't wait to see finished quilts start to appear at guild meetings over the next few months.

A family tree

This year the Wellington Quilt Guild has their bi-annual exhibition. I have been working on my design for a LOOOOOOONNNNNNGGGG time and I have been really looking forward getting stuck into it. I only have until mid-August to get it finished to give me time to wash and block it before submitting it for the show {panic!}

Unfortunately just before Christmas my extended family had some dramas, resulting in my quilt having to take a back seat while I made a little boy a comfort quilt. That quilt is done now. I made him a family tree, with fat green caterpillars for each of the members of his family and bright yellow butterflies for family members who have passed away

L's Family Tree

Pretty and straight stitches!

Even properly labelled

In the interests speed I used two techniques I usually don't - printing the label rather than hand sewing or writing it, and machine finished binding. Both turned out much better than usual! Yay, I don't mind sending them out to others when they actually look up to my usual standards heh.




Which means.....



I can start putting thread to fabric on MY project....

Shhhh secret squirrel

And no, I am not allowed to relax quietly in the sun by myself. I have to have company with sharp bits

Die hammock, die!

Cheerio.

Nearly two projects down!

Working hard over here! I have finished my new favourite quilt "Shine bright, sleep tight". Great big scrappy polka dot stars for short critic #2's big girl bed.

Helper #2 assisting with quality control

This quilt is completely reversable with brights on the other side.

I think she likes it..

Also (almost) finished is my family tree quilt I have been making for a little lad that lost his father just before Christmas.

Here it is all pinned up ready to quilt:

Once I have finished quilted it, I need to add all the boy's family critters to the tree.  I will hopefully have that done before guild next week!

Then I can work on my BIG project of the year - an entry into the guild exhibition. That is the only project I am going to be working on once the tree has been finished. I will need all the time I can scrounge for sewing.

Last time I turned a few heads with SteamPunk, but in a traditional medallion style.  Let's see what the ladies think of dragons this time. Will post photos when there is something to see.

Cheerio.

Stonestead Outdoor Quilt Festival 2014

After being rained off the previous weekend, it was all go on Sunday.

Unfortunately we were running a wee bit late so only just got to whip around to see everything before prize giving! We were so rushed that I didn't even get the chance to take proper photos of the quilts I loved getting the tags so I could see who made them (damn it).

Very glad we managed to get there though, as Short Critic#1 won the youth section!
So this post will be the quilts I loved that I actually got the details of. Without further ado:

Short Critic #1 with his quilt "My Lion" above him

Oriental Dream by Jill Madgwick

 Loved the soft creamy tones of this and Sue Burnett did a fabulous job of custom quilting it:

Detail of quilting.

 BEST IN SHOW: Gorgeous attic windows quilt where every window was a cross-stitched cat picture

Purrfect Cats by Wanda Borowicz

Detail

 My favourite panel "I don't need your attitude, I have one of my own"

Summer's day by Trish Barry

The next two are by the lovely Christine Singleton (a quilt buddy from Wellington Guild)

Let it Snow

Stonestead challenge, quilt C. Christine won the viewers choice for the challenge

Annnnnnd done.

Cheerio.

Something other than Quilting...

Yesterday I got online to find a new crafty tutorial on one of my favourite blogs:
Epbot.com

Jen from Epbot is my hero. She is one of my go-to inspirations for Steampunk craft ideas and I had a major fan-girl moment when she posted a picture of the Steamy quilt I made for my Enabler on her blog.

Basically, it is a tutorial on how to make things looks like they are made of metal plates (using Aluminium tape and some random other bits for texture. Steampunk up your gear!

Looking around I realised I had nearly everything I needed, and I knew where to get the last things I need.

My Enabler is not just into Steampunk, but he has dreams of one day making his own exo-skeleton suit from scratch. For Christmas I gave him a pouch made of robot fabric to keep his doodle/sketch books and pencils safe and together.

Ha.

Project, plus recipient acquired! When he gets home tonight I'll surprise him with his new artist's sketch book:

Plain page sketch book with a new cover

Detail shot

I'm not claiming that is project was easy or fun, but this is what my 9yo short critic came up with and did himself:

All his own work.

Someone come confiscate my tape before the coffee table gets a work over too!

Cheerio

Kelly

Goals for the New Year

2014! Welcome, I'm glad you are finally here...

I plan to meet you with gusto. It's an exhibition year for Wellington Quilter's Guild and I intend to get the challenge done as well as at least one entry. Big news in this house is short critic #1 wants to enter too!

So a round up of what I'm working on right now, and what I want to get done before Exhibition:

Going Dotty classes:

I have been booked in to run two classes for this quilt. The first one starts in February and runs for four weeks at QuiltWorks in Lower Hutt. This course costs $60 per person, plus your fabrics etc.

I will also be teaching this as a single all-day class through the Guild at the end of March (not sure what the cost for that one is yet).

Kiwi Christmas:

I have finished the whizzery-pokery on mark II and just in the process of binding it and adding the extras. I will get on to writing the pattern for this next month. Then I will need to order enough parts for kits!

Shine Bright, Sleep Tight:

Now that short critic #2 is sleeping in her big girl bed, she needs her own big girl quilt. I have been playing with the technique for Going Dotty and have nearly finished it. Picture and pattern to follow (again the pattern will have to wait until Feb). It will have lots of modern girly polka dots.

Puppy Love:

This is the quilt short critic #1 is making for the exhibition. It will be a doll quilt for short critic #2 (love my kids!)

Zee Family Tree:

Can't show any photos of this one yet as it is a special tree quilt for a little lad who has just lost someone close to him. So instead have a pic of Helper #1 assisting with Kiwi Christmas II.

And then I have to work out what I am doing for the Exhibition! Man alive I am going to be busy this year...

Cheerio

Kelly