New Finish, New Start

It's great having a professional photographer for a son.  Last Wednesday on the way to visit our granddaughter, Stella, in St. Louis, I dropped off 3 quilts for Joshua Black Wilkins to photograph. Yesterday on the way home, I stopped to pick them up.  He did a great job on two very recent finishes and one I finished in 2015 but didn't have good images of:

Rajah Revisited, 65" square

Stars in a Time Warp, 96" square

Antique Rose Star, 74" square, hand quilted with Big Stitch, perle #8

It is good to have these done.  There are several tops I need to quilt myself and I'll be back at that later this week.  And now I have a new start:

I love the Jen Kingwell style and found this new Block of the month on the Homestead Hearth website. I ordered the book and the kit in "Jen Kingwell" colors/styles.  I was lucky to stumble across a Sew-a-Long that is just starting with this pattern:  Gnome Angel. It starts this week and will be at a fast pace, but I like that--the faster it goes, the more I am engaged in the process and eager to keep up.  The downside is the kits only come once a month, this quilt will be done by mid-July, so I'll be using my own fabric for this one and making one, more slowly, over the year as the kits come in.  

Of course, there is the Halo Medallion from The Quilt Show to keep up with.  My small group is enjoying the process, here are some of them with their work so far:

Keeping up and writing a detailed blog each month takes time but keeps me on track and I know the blogs are helping people out there--some are kind enough to let me know.  Next up are those curved flying geese and I'm able to say, they can be done!  I have one so far to prove it.

Here is the reason we went to St. Louis, our adorable grand-girl, Stella, 21 months old:

At the park across the street from her house

Watching Wheel of Fortune with Pop Pop

Give a waffle, get a smile

She was happy with us most of the time, especially if a waffle appeared as soon as she woke up.  There is a reason to have children when young--she is on "Go" all the time.  We had to really keep watch when outside.  

The weather was great until it snowed and we had fun until Lauren, my DIL, and I got food poisoning from a salad we shared Friday night.  We had planned to leave Saturday morning but I couldn't get out of the hotel bed that whole day except to run to the bathroom.  Finally was able to eat some soup Saturday night and was able to travel Sunday.  By then all snow was gone and it was a pleasant day. Still not 100% but I'm getting there.  It's been a long time since I've been sick, hope that never happens again.

I hope you are warm and cozy wherever you are, parts of the US are going to get a big snowstorm tomorrow--sounds like quilting time to me.

Let's Quilt!

Barbara

What's Under My Needle

Yesterday I put the final stitches in Rajah Revisited:

This was the 2016 BOM from The Quilt Show.  It's 68" square and very cozy.  I love the back fabric--bought at the annual Patches & Stitches New Year's Sale, buy 1 yard, get 1 yard free--I buy almost ALL my backs at that sale.    The quilt was beautifully quilted by Deanna Plotts, a Huntsville long arm quilter.  She used Feathered Curls, one of my most favorite pantographs, and sized it small scale to fit those small pieces.  All in all, I really like this quilt.  While working on this kind of heavily pieced quilt, I often just want it done.  I was at this stage with this one, but now, seeing it finished, I'm glad I persevered.  The center panel came from Quilt and Textile Collections.

What else am I doing?  Stella's Splendid Sampler is almost done--later today I'll make block #99 of 100.  I started the pieced border, designed to use up a bunch of the fabrics in this quilt.  Here you see the process and the huge pile of 1.5" strips I cut.  Looks like there will still be lots of strings left:

The Sunday Sew & Sews met last Sunday to discuss the Halo Star Medallion, Month 2.  In conversation, I learned something new and great to know:  Shelia mentioned she uses her Ipad to print the pattern pages.  That had never occurred to me, I just print from my computer in the studio, and run back and forth across the house to the office where the printer is.  Amazing!  I can print from my Ipad too--it's all on the same network.  I LOVE to learn new technology.  No more running back and forth to check the paper.  The lightweight paper often feeds better one sheet at a time, this tip will be such a help.  Thanks, Shelia!

Be watching tomorrow for the Link Up Party to go live--I am eager to see if there are more than the four people I know for sure who did the Sew-A-Long.  There is a Giveaway for those who post a photo of their finished top.  Of course, if the quilt is finished, that is extra special.

Let's Quilt!

Barbara

Rajah Revisited is Done

Might be a record:  a Block of the Month quilt finished in less than 13 months.  Rajah Revisited, the 2016 Block of the Month from The Quilt Show is done:

It's about 67" square.  The pattern was based on a quilt made by slave women in 1841, as they were transported on the ship Rajah from England to Australia. A lot of historical information was presented each month, along with the monthly pattern.  My center is a panel I bought from Quilt and Textile Collections, owned by Kay Triplett.  It and several other printed fabrics are still available.

While I enjoyed working on this, I am glad it's done and look forward to spending 2017 making the Halo Star Medallion and finishing Ruffled Roses, the 2011 Block of the Month, also from The Quilt Show.  This year will also be spent developing some new classes I want to teach.

Stella's Splendid Sampler will be finished in 2017--I plan to enter it in my guild quilt show this Fall.  The other day I figured out what quilts I could have done for which categories for our show so now I have a plan.  Just have to execute it.

AND it wouldn't be me if I didn't start something new, right now, when I have so much to finish.  I'm a sucker for projects from Temecula Quilt Company, here is their 2017 Wild Goose Wednesday:

Each week, for 33 weeks, we'll make 8 Flying Geese until we have 264, or I get tired of them.  This is one of my favorite shapes, though this is a larger size than I typically make.  There are so many ways to use these.

I hope some of you are working on the Sew-A-Long.

Let's Quilt!

Barbara

Rajah Revisited

It's December 1 and I just finished the October borders for "Rajah Revisited", the 2016 Block of the Month from The Quilt Show.

Next up are the final outer applique' borders.  Two are cut and await hand applique'.  I don't have enough fabric for the final two though I have something close.  If my local shop has the fabric, I'll buy enough to finish.  If not, the close one will be used.  The women on the ship didn't run to their local quilt shop for fabric, they used what they had.  Works for me.

 Here is  info from the website about this quilt:

It was sewn by women convicts on board the ship Rajah traveling from England on April 1841 to the penal colony of Van Diemen's Land-now known as Tasmania.  The original quilt measured at approximately 128" x 128", but this version is recreated it in quarter scale with fabrics from the designers' stash. The designer, Leesa Siegele,  used many different scraps, imagining that's what might have happened when the original quilt was being made.  She followed the colors of the original quilt loosely, and tea dyed fabrics that didn't look old enough.  

The entire twelve month set of instructions for this quilt will remain available for members until December 31, 2016.  There is so much great information on The Quilt Show and the BOM alone is worth the $42.95 annual membership.  Every two weeks a new 1 hour show is released and I always learn something from each one.  You can be an Basic member for free but being a Star member is the best use of your time and money--in my opinion.  No connection to TQS other than being a perfectly satisfied paid member since the inception of the show.  The 2017 Block of the Month is a Sue Garman design, another fantastic medallion quilt I must not start--until I finish the 2011 quilt she designed, Ruffled Roses.  2017 is the year to finish that one, see my progress here.

Of course, I'm still plugging away at Stella's Splendid Sampler.  Block 84 was released today--I'll make it tomorrow.  Then just 16  more to go:

Let's Quilt!

Barbara

Fall!

It took its' sweet time getting here, but we finally have cooler temps here this week.

I managed to get the September segment of Rajah Revisited done before the end of the month, it's 50.5" square at the moment:

This pattern is the 2016 Block of the Month quilt from thequiltshow.com, a subscription internet quilt show and so much more. It is based on an historic quilt made by slave women shipbound to Australia from England, in the 1840's.  There are two more borders to go.  If you subscribe before the end of 2016 you will have access to the entire year's patterns.  A new Block of the Month will start in January, 2017, and it is designed by the incomparable Sue Garman.  I am a huge fan of The Quilt Show--even when I am not particularly interested in one of the shows, I still learn things.  And the forums and puzzles, and special features are just terrific.  You can sign up as a basic member and look around before you decide to subscribe.

Next up is making two garments for International Quilt Market and Festival in Houston--I head down there 4 weeks from now for thirteen days.  It is the highlight of my year.  Having these garments really helps with wardrobe issues for that long.  Each year, fabric companies donate fabric to the Education Team.  Each person selects her choice of fabrics from a specific line and can make her choice of garments.  We wear specific garments on specific days.  This helps us look like "staff" to the thousands of students on the 3rd floor and helps us look professional but comfortable.  Several pairs of black slacks, a handful of tank tops/blouses, and I am good to go with my jackets.  This year we are sporting Amy Butler's latest line, Eternal Sunshine by Free Spirit Fabrics and Cherrywood Fabrics, with our choice on one print to be added to the Cherrywood suede-look solids:

I rarely figure out what I'm making before I order, just take a guess and make it work.  Some of the others plan their order for the specific garments they plan to make.  I am excited about this years' fabrics and eager to get my jackets made.  For me, selecting the patterns and which fabrics will go where is the challenge--once that's done, making them just comes together.  We'll see if my luck still holds in that department.

Here's hoping Fall has made an appearance at your place too.

Let's Quilt!

Barbara

Retreat 2016

Each summer my two best quilting buddies and I get together for a private retreat to sew and catch up.  Ellen lives 2 hours south of here so we don't get to see each other as much as we'd like.  We have a great room to work in at a local church.  We brought healthy lunches to share each day, went out to dinner one night, and Sharon's husband always cooks grilled chicken for dinner one night.  My husband gets to enjoy that meal as well and he looks forward to that.

Here is what I worked on:

Ruby, my painted Featherweight, to commemorate the Red and White Quilt and the year 2014

This is the June segment of Rajah Revisited, the 2016 Block of the Month from www.thequiltshow.com . I enjoyed making the 72 units of 2" square in a square by paper piecing--it is precise and allows me to use a wide variety of fabrics efficiently.  There are different ways to make them--that's why there is chocolate AND vanilla--pick the method you prefer.

I started a new class sample, a folded log cabin--I'll save that for another post--when it's farther along.

Then I got to work on a class sample for Fall:  Southern Star by Calico Carriage Quilt Designs.  This is my go-to quilt for gifts--all of our nieces and nephews have received one upon college graduation.  As I've given all of them away, I needed to make another sample.  I got things a bit off-kilter, as Sharon discovered when we were packing up.  My successful full day of work needed some fixing:

It is easy to get these pieces mixed up and I sure did.  So last night I spent some quality time with my stitch ripper and removed the pieces that were turned the wrong way--of course, they were interior pieces, not on the outside edge  AND only 1 star point was correct--UGH!  Boulder, Boulder, Boulder... (That's a big dam...)

 Today I fixed it:

Now it's on to the center. That will be Monday's job.  Tomorrow I teach two quilt classes and Sunday we plan to see a movie--summer heat means movies.

Ellen worked on these and more:

Her Splendid Sampler blocks around a center we all worked on a few years back

Sharon was in heaven making Antique Rose Star blocks, each one more delicious than the last:

And here we are in our send-off selfie:

It's great to spend time with friends.  We're already planning for next year.

Let's quilt!

Barbara

Wednesday Wonderful--Feeling Happy

I love Wednesdays.  It means, usually, I am done teaching for the week, we get a morning newspaper (only now on Wed, Fri, and Sun), I can work on sewing projects all day, and tonight is Survivor--the one show my husband and I always watch together--it's the little things, right?

Yesterday I got the May segment of Rajah Revisited done:

This quilt is a replica of an historical quilt made in 1841 by women prisoners being transported by ship from England to Australia.  The pattern is a free Block of the Month for paid subscribers to www.thequiltshow.com, my favorite Internet quilting site.   I didn't finish the April segment until the very end of the month so I decided to get in front of this month and now it's done.

I've got to brag on my most recent class of beginner students--we concluded their 5 week class last night.  For the first time all the students who had attended all 5 sessions came to the last class with their tops complete--I was impressed as that's a lot of work to complete in one week for true beginners. They all said they didn't want to be the slacker! Here they are:

Barbara Z Christmas-y

Beca S Happy

Donna D--Also Happy, similar fabrics as Beca but distinctly her own

Holly R Spring-y

Katy W Lively--the black adds such a pop!

Marilyn R daughter of Barbara Z LOVE her own take on the pieced border

The pattern is Mix 'N Match Stars, Glad Creations.  From the beginning this group of mostly strangers was a lot of fun, arriving early each week, full of enthusiasm and questions.  Classes like these are why I teach.  The first week I tell them I have 3 goals for this class:

1. At the end of class I want them to feel that both their time and money was well-spent
2. That they actually finish the project, not leaving it in a box under the bed for their descendants to wonder what they planned to do with all that fabric
3. Most importantly, and I am always successful at this, I want to addict at least one of them completely and totally to quiltmaking--I think I hit the jackpot with this group!

I also tell them right up front that quiltmaking is an expensive way to make bedding.  If you want a blanket, go to Belk.  We are making gifts for generations yet unborn.  This is how we say "I was here".  At the end of class I always get choked up when discussing why they HAVE TO put a label on their quilts--to say, this is who made this quilt, this is why, this is where, this is when.  Future generations will thank them.

Tomorrow I get to travel to Birmingham, two hours south of here, to give a lecture and teach a two-day workshop to the Evening Star Quilters.  The lecture is The Hard Stuff, a favorite of mine, and the workshop is one of my most favorite to teach--photos of that next week.  Get ready, Birmingham, here I come!

Let's Quilt!

Barbara

TUTORIAL: The Magic of "Floater" Borders

One of the best things I learned to do as a quiltmaker is how to make pieced borders fit accurately and easily on my quilts.  I learned this from Sue Garman, when I made her Washington Medallion quilt in 2009.  It is a great gift for me to know how to do this and I use this technique often in my work.

I will use Rajah Revisited to describe the way this works.  This quilt is the 2016 Block of the Month pattern from www.thequiltshow.com  It is a smaller version of a quilt made in 1841 by women prisoners being taken by ship from England to Australia.

Here is the basic idea:  The instructions for month 3 took us through the appliqued border--the light tan border with appliques on it.  Instructions for month 4 had us make the squares on point border and join those to the middle, with a very narrow "floater" border.  Those 2" finished green squares with cheddar triangles around each square were paper-pieced, easy and accurate.

To ensure your pieced borders will fit precisely to the middle of your quilt, you piece those borders FIRST, before calculating what size the "floater" or "spacer" border has to be--this is the narrow medium blue border here.  We will do some simple math to determine what size that narrow border has to be to precisely fill the space between the middle part and those pieced borders.

1.  Length of Pieced Borders:  26.5"  (2" squares x 13 = 26" + .5" seam allowance)
2.  Length of Quilt Center"  25"  including seam allowances
3.  Subtract 2 from 1:  1.5"
4.  Divide the result in half:  .75" This is the width the floaters need to be, finished size.  Add .5" seam allowance.

So, my blue borders were cut 1.25" x 25". two of those for the left and right sides AND 1.25" x 26.5", two of those for the top and bottom edges.  I sewed on the left and right blue borders and pressed toward the narrow blue border.  Then I sewed on the top and bottom blue borders and again pressed toward the narrow blue border.  All that was left to do was add the pieced left and right borders to each side then add the top and bottom pieced borders, adding a corner square to each side of those borders.  Everything fit like a glove.

NOTE: Because this quilt is square, I only have to do one set of measurements.  With a rectangular quilt, you do two sets of measurements, the left/right borders and the top/bottom borders.

I was lucky because my pieced borders turned out the correct size--after I made a few "adjustments". After piecing the first 13 squares together and pressing the seams open, it measured 26.75", one-quarter inch too large.  I looked at each seam to find two that were a little bit narrow and tightened them up--and just like magic, the border became 26.5" as it should have been.  For the remaining 3 pieced borders I paid more attention and checked the seams as I went to be sure they were accurate--no more "snugging" necessary.

If all of your borders turn out 26.75" you can still make this work just fine.  Let's try:

1. Length of Pieced Borders:  26.75"
2. Length of Quilt Center:  25"
3.  Subtract 2 from 1:  1.75"
4.  Divide the result in half:  7/8" Width each floater needs to be, finished.  Add .5" seam allowance so you cut the floaters 1 3/8".  Your ruler has a 3/8 measurement, just use it.  Now your slightly too large pieced borders will fit your center perfectly, no tugging or squishing necessary.

Here is Joyful Journey, my version of Sue's Washington Medallion--as you can see, there are many floater borders and each one was calculated in this manner so the next pieced border would fit the growing center of the quilt perfectly.  This quilt was juried into AQS Paducah 2010 and appears in the book 500 Traditional Quilts.  It was included in the special exhibit from that book at International Quilt Festival Houston 2014 and Chicago 2015 and Portland 2015.

Now you know how to make pieced borders fit precisely.  Remember, there are only three things you can do wrong in piecing a quilt top:  the cutting, the sewing, and the pressing.  Take your time, measure as you go, and press firmly.

Let's Quilt!

Barbara

Rajah Revisited

I have begun the Block of the Month project from The Quilt Show: Rajah Revisited.  Here are the first two months steps:

The center panel replaces an applique' pattern provided.  The panel is available from an Etsy shop owned by Kay Triplett, Quilt & Textile Collections. It was just a smidgen too narrow so I trimmed the panel to 12.75" and added a .75" finished narrow border to make the center the size I needed to join the pieced border.  It is now just a tiny bit large, no more than .25", and I'll fix that with the next added border.

The Quilt Show is an online subscription world-wide quilt guild.  I have been a member since before it went live.  I get far more than my annual $42.95 membership in things like this pattern, wonderful hour-long shows every two weeks, and so many other videos and articles.  And I've made friends from around the world.  There is usually a free show you can watch to see if you want to subscribe and there are often great shows made available free as a gift from time to time.

 Here is the information from TQS about this Block of the Month patterns, which also provides the history of the quilt and the women who made it:

The Rajah Quilt was sewn by women convicts on board the ship Rajah traveling from England on April 1841 to the penal colony of Van Diemen's Land-now known as Tasmania.  The original quilt measured at approximately 128" x 128", but Lessa Siegele recreated it in quarter scale with fabrics from her stash. She used many different scraps, imagining that's what might have happened when the original quilt was being made.  She followed the colors of the original quilt loosely, and tea dyed fabrics that didn't look old enough.  You can obtain the same look with reproduction fabrics, or make a more contemporary-looking version like the one created for TQS.

While looking at photos of antique quilts I have saved, I discovered the original Rajah Quilt had caught my eye some time ago.  Here is the original:

I'm not sure if I'll stick with the pattern provided, in quarter scale, or work bigger.  Time will tell.

Today I also made the first block of the Westering Women block of the month, provided by quilt historian, author, fabric designer, Barbara Brackman:

This is a 12" block and there will be 12 blocks for this sampler.  The posts are so full of wonderful historical information--I learn so much by reading them.

I hope you have found something new and wonderful to work on.

Let's Quilt!

Barbara