Monday 31 October 2016

Floating squares


I'm working on Score 1 from Sherri Lynn Wood's "Improv Handbook for Modern Quilters".

This photo is the result of yesterday's effort; I really was on a roll for the first time in three weeks!

Since I last posted on Floating Squares I've added a fuchsia and orange and a brown and orange section. Two days ago it looked like this; those green squares had been hanging around for about ten days, and I couldn't think what to do with them. They've gone back in the box. Maybe they'll be back; who knows!


Time to change the background:

Added yesterday: orange (again!) and pink with dark green background
 Not only the background, but also the arrangement. And to ditch the orange and use bright yellow.

Work in progress

Now I feel like making a section with royal blue and emerald green! But first finish the yellow/pink!

I'm linking up to
AHIQ

Call in there to see lots of fabulous improv patchwork and finished quilts.

Happy sewing

Marly.



Saturday 29 October 2016

Autumn Sunshine

Angela at Soscrappy gave yellow as this month's colour.

Bear's paws basking in the sunshine
I had lots of 2" yellow strips left from last year's Quiltville mystery from Bonnie Hunter. But if  I needed confirmation that my guest bedroom/sewing room needed tidying I got it when I couldn't find them anywhere! Yesterday evening, having just finished sewing these, guess what ... I found the 2" yellow roll already set aside and ready to use!

A week or so ago I laid out all my bear's paws to date to see what I had and how I could mix the colours. 

I still have to make two red pairs and at least one more blue pair, and split the purple and pink combination (top right) as there's too little contrast. I'm certainly nowhere near being finished with this one! I don't even have enough for a lap quilt, but I hope to have some of these units joined into blocks before the end of the year. Next year will see the same quilt moving along with the Rainbow Scrap Challenge!

I'm linking this post to
RSC16
Pop over there and look at all the creative yellowness!

Happy Sewing

Marly.

Saturday 1 October 2016

Wide open pouch

Last week I posted this photo:

The coloured fabric is the front, the grey raindrops the back.
as a sneak preview.

Here is the whole thing:


I used Noodlehead's free pattern for the "open-wide pouch". It all came together really easily, although the lining doesn't sit as neatly as I would have liked. That was my inexperience, I'm not complaining and I shall certainly be making more of these, also in the larger sizes.

pale grey lining: easy to find things
And one last photo: with a few small things; you can't give someone an empty pouch, now can you!


I shall be giving it to a friend this evening. She should have it by the time this goes online.

Happy sewing

Marly.

Star Light, Star Dark finished top, plus ...


For the Star Light ,Star Dark quilt along at Quilty Habit I made a big effort to get my quilt completely finished before the link-up ends on Monday. I know now I'm not going to make it! There is no way I can quilt the right half, join the two halves and get on the binding by Monday. So, although half quilted, I'm linking this to the "finished top" category.

On 3 September I took this photo of the blocks, more as a reminder of the layout than for publication, but it's the only one I had of all the blocks before today.

3 September


1 October: left: quilted; right: only layered and pinned!
here are some close ups of the quilting so far:


dark green with small stars

dark yellow
dark purple

The reverse of the dark purple star - poor quilting: to unpick or not to unpick, that is the question!
 On the large dark purple star I quilted feathers, from the centre into each of the star points. At least I tried to quilt feathers, but this bird had weathered a hurricane! Feathers of very dark and busy fabric was a mistake: I could hardly see where I was going! I'm seriously considering unpicking, but as my husband pointed out, "No-one can see them on the dark purple anyway!". Of course we can see the mess on the back, but looking now at the photos I see that the purple insert coincides with the worst of the feathers! Maybe they'll stay!

small dark purple star

small dark yellow star

Reverse, showing the quilting:
















 
(I really wanted to put these two photos side by side, but my Canon software doesn't seem to run to making a panorama view and Blogger won't co-operate either.)




I'm not proud of the dot to dot quilting: the lines are far too wobbly, but I'm leaving them. I hate unpicking quilting.
Statistics:
Fabric: Assorted FQs from stash, Bella solid "sand"(?) for backing with an inset from stash (nameless)
Thread:  Aurifil 40 wt - 2324 (light khaki) bobbin; 5017 (green); 2540 (purple); 2130 (yellow)
Wadding: Cotton
Quilted on my Bernina 440.
Now I'm going to further plan the quilting of the light side. I hope I'll have finished by the end of this month.

I'm linking up to 
 Quilty Habit
Pop over there and see all the fascinating interpretations of this quilt. 
Don't forget to look at all the categories! 

Happy Sewing

Marly.