PLACEMAT COMPLETED

I finished my picnic placemat and packed it ready to donate to my guild's boutique collection on Wednesday evening.  The pattern is found here.  It is the September BOM download.

I used an orphan 12 inch finished block, then added the side pieces.  On the right side is a pocket to hold knife, fork and spoon. 





It has ties to roll it up, ready for use.

I chose to use a "quick turn" method to finish the placemat with no binding.  Then I had more time to play with the quilting!  It is difficult to see, but I stitched a knife, fork and spoon in their places.....

STASH REPORT SUNDAY

Used this week  3 yards

Used year to date 168 yards

Added this week 0 yards

Added year to date  36 yards

Net used 2014  132 yards

Two small finishes this week - 2 more "panel quilts" for donation.  I didn't have any suitable backing fabric, so my guild's community quilts stash came to the rescue - therefore I only claimed the top and binding.  I'm sure the "Hugs" program at our local hospital will like these two.

Check out everyone's stash progress at Judy's blog, Patchwork Times.

DESIGN WALL MONDAY

Another panel quilt for the hospital program - as requested.  This is one that was in my stash, and I've layered it with some flannel from my guild's community quilts stash, and some leftover batting.  Now I'm off to machine quilting.

I'll be happy when I can get back to creating new projects!!!!

Head over the Judy's blog, Patchwork Times, to check out all this weeks' creativity!

DESIGN WALL MONDAY

This is a disappearing 9-patch quilt.  The group finished the top, made of lots of scrap 5 inch squares, and sewn, cut and pressed by many hands at our last quilt day before Christmas.  I brought it home, made the binding and finished it with simple quilting.  I even completed the binding by machine - not my usual method, but since this will be a baby quilt, and hopefully see many washings, I think it is the most secure way to finish the quilt.

 This is the stack of 4 baby quilts that I'll be finishing.  The bottom of the stack is a panel, and has racoons on flannel for the backing.  The mauve one was shown last week, and the yellow backed quilt has a large star layout.  These two quilts were made from donated stash.  I've done the "stitch in the ditch" quilting on them all, and tomorrow I hope to get all the free motion quilting complete as well.

Check out others' creativity at Judy's blog, Patchwork Times.








 

HEXAGON FRIDAY

It looks like I'll finish the top of my hexagon quilt before Christmas!  I just checked my file of photos, and my first picture, showing the beginning of the middle row, was on April 16th.  I began cutting squares for basting just before heading north, at the beginning of April, so I'll have completed the top in 9 months of "spare" time!

All the pieces for the next motif are basted, and partly sewn together, so with luck, I'll finish tonight!  Now what will I do next?

I took my camera to my Wednesday quilt group, but discovered both sets of batteries were dead, so no pictures of the flurry of quilting worker bees making disappearing 9-patch blocks!  Some cut 5 inch squares, others placed them into blocks, 3 were sewing, others pressed the seams, 2 of us cut the blocks apart, and then they were placed into their new blocks to be sewn.  By the end of the 4 hours (with a short break for lunch), we had 3 quilt tops assembled, and enough pieces to make 1 more.  Two of the tops went home with others to be finished.  One came home with me, and I cut and prepared the binding for it - hopefully someone will volunteer to quilt it!
Now I have to get serious about my Christmas baking.  I'm making mincemeat tarts, large and small today, and a coco-krispie roll - chocolate and peanut butter - a favourite with our neighbours' grandchildren, who begin to arrive on Sunday!

DESIGN WALL MONDAY

I finished my September BOM project from my guild - I chose to make the applique version, stitching the turned-edge appliques by machine.  I added some thread painting as accents to the flame and pointsettias, then did some simple quilting and added the binding.

It will be donated to the "Every Child Counts" group, to be sold to raise funds for the school the Bahamas.

 This is the start of a project that has been percolating in my brain for 3-4 years.
My son's new wife loves dragonflies.  He found some wonderful photos of them on the internet, and one spoke to me.  We expanded the picture, and printed it poster size to use as a pattern.  I got out my Golden Threads tracing paper, and made a line drawing of the dragonfly.  Then the problem was - how to transfer the image to the fabric.  Since I knew I wanted a dark background, and I also knew that I didn't want to spend time picking our all the tiny bits of tracing paper - I went back to the drawing board.  A while later, I discovered a package of wash-away "plastic" stabilizer.  I put it with the pattern and went on to other projects.  I had found the background fabric and some to make grass, and I also picked up some of the "Frixion" pens in pink, light blue and purple.  The pink was the perfect colour to trace my original drawing!  I used a close-up picture of grass as an inpiration for shapes and colours of the few foreground grasses.  I just have them temporarily glued into place, and still have to applique them to the background.  Of course, DH saw it and made a few suggestions for additional design, but I think I'll stitch it and let it percolate for a while before I decide on the next steps!

Check out all the wonderful design walls at Judy's blog, Patchwork Times.

STASH REPORT SUNDAY

Fabric used this week  0 yards

Fabric used year to date  154.125 yards

Fabric added this week 0 yards

Fabric added year to date  50.375 yards

Net used 2013  103.75 yards

Nothing used this week, although I did start my guild's BOM project.  Friday was a sewing day, making quilts to send to the flood victims in Calgary Alberta area.  I was busy, and it slipped my mind until shortly after 3pm, so I hopped in the car and collected 3 quilts in various stages of completion, to bring home.

The first was pin-basted, and a bit of quilting had been started, so that was my project Saturday morning, and I finished the binding after returning from a friend's birthday party.  Before leaving to attend, I clamped the backing for quilt #2 to my cutting table, laid the batting and the top, and that will be pin-basted next.  Quilt #3 will be done next, but it needs a bit more work before it gets to the quilting stage.

Check out everyones' stash progress at Judy's blog, Patchwork Times.

JUST BACK FROM MY WEDNESDAY QUILT GROUP

DH came for a visit and took a group picture with all the baby quilts that will be donated to the local pregnancy care center.  My congratulations and thanks goes out to each and every one of the great group!  There was a lot of learning about making scrappy quilts, with many hands making light work!

This time of year, there is lots of finishing of projects happening, and a few new ones before we end our season.  We'll be heading home mid-April, and although the group could continue, it shrinks every week, as people prepare to head north.  The few that stay here year-round get together in small groups over the summer.

Today some of them tried their first paper piecing project.  I found a small 3 inch paper piecing pattern that we are making into name tags.  As the group has been growing, it has been more difficult for everyone to remember all the names, especially as some are regular attendees and others come from time to time.  They will be able to turn the finished project into a pin or a pendant, but then I'm sure they'll be forgotten at home!  There were 5 working on the block today, with much supervision - most had not tried paper piecing before!

This gorgeous block (its either 4 or 5 inches), was made by one of the new members to the group, but obviously not a novice quilter.  She has 3 more to go to finish her project!  We all love the colours..... Now that some of them have tried paper piecing, I'm sure they'll appreciate her skill and hard work even more!