Hand Piecing Bedside Table Project

I finally found a use for the edge strips of batting that I have been so reluctant to toss out. Another hand project! 

I piece wider strips of batting to use in Linus quilts. Ever frugal, I feel the batting is so expensive (I buy a bolt) that I'm reluctant to throw anything out.  These little gems are made from scrap users system  2 1/2" x 4 1/2" pieces, with (at the moment) an old polycotton sheet that was my mums, for backing: I'm going to vary the backing  as I use things up and throw in the odd surprise to add interest. Always scrappy! The blue stripe is an old shirt. I anticipate a lot of odd stuff will find its way into this quilt. 

I have decided that quilting isn't necessary as the batting is caught by the stitches as I sew the borders down around the edge. 

You can find the basic instructions for this  quilt as you go project at Stitch with Rachel on Youtube. I'm not using the template, eyeballing is working! 

There is a little stash on my table for bedtime bingewatching: I don't do sitting still at all. If I have to fidget, it may as well be productive. 

I'm using an EPP whip stitch to join the blocks with strong quilting thread in pale yellow, it blends with the cream backing and it was the best option in the stash.  The Aurifil thread I'm using for the piecing won't be strong enough.

I use silk pins with small heads to hold the sandwich as I stitch. Small quilting needes are better as the thread sometimes catches on the pin heads, but I don't want to drop teeny needles in the bed at night when the lighting is poor! 

I started joining the first two rows yesterday.  I couldn't face another tub of stuff accumilating, so this one is continuous assembly. 

It has been heavily overcast here, sorry about the dull photo quality! 

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Say hello, I'll drop by your blog xx

Linky: Finished (or not) Friday

Rainbow Scrap challenge

Oh Scrap!

A finish in time for Christmas

Sisters Square Dance, about 100 x 100".   Quilted in the ditch, with an hand quilted cross in the centre of each block- pattern and setting inspiration  from Bonnie Hunter.  Phew! The recipients are not expecting it!

The learning curve-a finish!!

1/ Take a picture of the finished quilt before you give it away!  This post will have to make do with old pictures from the making of 'Kiss in the Corner, until I can get a picture from the recipients.

This quilt went everywhere, including on holiday to the Premier Inn. It was my first full size double and my first hand quilted project.

2/ Start small when you are a novice!  Especially with hand quilting, it became overwhelming!

3/ I learnt why hand quilting is done in long lines, mostly. I spent a lot of time wrestling it in circles, as each of those white patches on the twisted nine patch block has two hearts on! And I quilted in each of those small blue areas (I need not have) and the brown squares. Total overkill, but it has a very unique quilting design, as the hearts are all random shapes and sizes and the quilting of the brown patches was governed by the fabric pattern of each.

Making the top was relatively quick, all with fabrics from the stash.

That was the idea, of course, as it was a last minute wedding gift for my sons friend (he was best man at his friends wedding). I was contributing the work and he paid some of the cost.

4/ For me, this is a big lesson, don't tell the recipients something is on the way. I'm a terrible 'finisher' always starting something new, so many ideas, so little time.  It' 3 1/2 years late!!  The SHAME!!! 

This is the closest picture I have to what it looks like now, minus borders. I chose a busy backing, as the quilting was an unknown entity and I didn't know what it would look like. That was a GOOD choice!

Here is a picture with the borders- I didn't quilt the border, controversial! There are small hearts printed all over it so it ties in nicely with the quilting. 

For the binding, I used navy blue, with a backing fabric crumb catcher, I'm really pleased with how that looks.  Sewing the binding down only took a couple of evenings, so it went off with my so yesterday to give to his friends just before Christmas.  Phew!

A bit more scrumbling...........

 And some doodling........

And I have ALMOST finished this!!

Big reveal after Xmas as its a gift!

The yukky green dilema

Lesson learnt, yukky greens don't improve by putting them with nice greens, it makes the whole mess look yukky!

I tried inserting some red into the layout-nope, that didn't help.  I tried three layouts and finally found one that's not so bad.

Original layout, pattern pivots round the centre (only half here)

Second try, even more random greens tightly packed, ew.

Ah, better,  this is about 1/4 size, rows zigzag down the quilt, a stronger look  that I can enhance with quilting

 I'll put the rest of this together tomorrow, that's another flimsy ready to go. I have sent my son this picture and the red and green one from the last post, so he can choose which one he wants, before I start quilting anything. 

Now, what to do with 239 nine patches!  This was a leader and ender project that got out of hand!

 I used a few for the baby quilt I made last month.  There are enough here, with enhancement, for a double.  Some thought necessary here.

Another 100 bow ties  with seams spun, that's 500 from this months sewing so far (more to spin).

Also been working on

The most comfortable place is propped up in bed watching Quiltcam archives or The Quilt Show episodes.   It's been cold this week, so that's been rather snug!

Booksnobbery

This weeks read was the Sugar Camp Quilt, which I read via Bookcrossing.   I have realised I'm rather snobbish about my reading having studied it at university level~these books are well enough written, sometimes a girl needs a gentle easy read with a bit of history, quilting and romance for good measure!  It did me the world of good in a very stressful week.  



On to this, that I was sent by the author in a RABCK (random act of Bookcrossing kindness).  I will be sending it to the International Sweepstake winner in Canada when I'm done, so its back home to Continental America for this book.

Next,  The true history of the Kelly Gang, for a swap with another Bookcrosser.

Sewing is still Kiss in the Corner, I am approaching the second corner!!  One long side, one short side done by the weekend!  I think my technique is improving slightly, though its a good job there is a 'busy' backing.  Moo!


I have been watching shows from thequiltshow.com whilst I sew.




A few brown hexies over the last week or so at lunchtimes and at a picnic.......

Remember these from past posts?

Vitreous enamel sample plates from work as design inspiration.  I asked if we had a manual of defects (not that we EVER make aything like that!) and we did.........

Dry old reading for most people, I know, but it's an atlas of quilting inspiration for me!

I'll be doing some design work on this at the weekend.

Turning a corner...

 ....on Kiss in the Corner

OK, now I can see the end, one side completed, second side started!  Woohoo!

 

 A few more sisters choice blocks.  these are being put away for the time being.

I had another walk round work with the camera.  I see more design possibilities with this vitreous enamel colour sample plate. 

Pressing on

I have to get this done!  It's well overdue.  I did about three hours yesterday.

To do this month list....

.......or at least progress things:

I'm recovering from an operation, thus fairly restricted: as my son said, a guilt free opportunity to please myself- he has been a good cook and bottle washer for the last week!

1. caterpillar corner fill-in to cover my inaccuracies on 'moth in the window'-I have been thinking about what to do with this for ages, caterpillars now seem so obvious to go with the moths-these will be my first public attempt at hand applique and shouldn't take long, so they're at the top of the list                                                                      
   
                                                                                   
2.  finish the green corner strips and stow away for a later date (next couple of days                
   
                                        
3. Unpick the aborted  machined in the ditch quilting (only a few rows) and finish this long overdue gift AFTER deciding on the new quilting pattern that will test my wobbly skills and enhance what I did with the colours-you can barely see this as the blocks are too big, the eye doesn't follow what's happening, it just looks 'busy' at the moment. I think it needs ribbons of dense quilting to enhance the colour layout
   
   
4. layer and machine quilt two of the five playmat flimsies-again practicing technique.
   
5. Find a smaller hoop so I can do the hand quilting for another overdue gift-I can't hold the hoop against my stomach at the moment!                                                                                                               
   
   I am soooo frustrated, I have so many ideas and no time to play with them, partly as I work full time and partly as I already have so much on the go, promised to others (ALL of the above!).  I will try to treat this week as an opportunity to practice what I will do with my retirement and GET IT DONE!    I had a really good week last week propped up with hours spent guiltlessly browsing blogs that I wouldn't normally spend, seeing what everyone is doing, its been great!  You are all such inspirational people.

I would love you to leave a comment, share if you are doing something similar or 'follow' me! xx

What a wind-up!

 

More sorting through the room full of stash-today, I tackled the yarn.   

I used to buy sacks of bin-ends, cones of 1 and 2 ply yarn, to make Kaffe Fassett jumpers.  Today I wound 5 strands to make DK yarn for a jumper, balls numbered so the colour mix flows when I get round to knitting it up.  It barely scratched the surface of whats there!

I took the pink-red-coral-lavender downstairs and wound these balls to crochet into Aran weight chevron blanket whilst I watched Mr Attenborough's 'Africa'.

 

Evenings have been spent on hand quilting 'Kiss in the Corner'-I have almost reached an edge, I feel progress is being made!

Dominance

Tile log cabin blocks: one light, one dark dominant. I think I'm going with the dark dominant, to use up more of the murk green uglies.

 Spiral stitching on the back........

Handiwork

At the weekend I wanted a bit of non-thinking hand sewing so I  put the last few hexies onto five of these 'random hexie' blocks and sewed a few more papers in whist watching catch-up TV.  

I need to press ahead with the hand quilting project for the next month and get it finished. I did a bit last night and should get  a lot done over Christmas.

A rather fuzzy photo-as this is my first go at hand quilting, I wisely chose a 'camouflage' backing so you can't see the beginners uneven stitching on the back!  Love it!