Do you have a specific and defineable quilting style? Can people look at your work and identify a follow-the-thread color scheme? a design style? perhaps that certain something that makes it obvious who you are?... like a Tula Pink, Red Pepper Quilts, Bonnie and Camille, or a Carolyn Friedlander? I would say that each of these designers have a very distinct and easily identifiable style, and there's no questioning whose work it is.
Despite the fact that some of what I do could be picked out in a line up, it does feel like I am not particularly married to one specific style. My heart beats for color, which I assume is more than painfully obvious, but there is something about the traditional that beckons me to also put it on the center stage. My quilting wall this month pretty much sums up what I mean.
My Eads quilt and Summer Garden blocks could not be any more different than day and night, black and white, potato and potahto... well, you get my drift. I started the Eads quilt as my attempt to distance myself from the direction that I normally tend towards. I wanted to do a quilt without a light or low volume background. Somehow this modern and graphic quilt appeals to one side of me.
... the other side of me craves a solid never-let-your-fingers-be-idle project, but my Summer Garden is the slow growing kind. No hurries, and no worries. I've always been attracted to and fascinated by traditional applique quilts, so this seems to somehow fit me too.
I was able to add these three sweet blocks recently and it was the perfectly packed project for our quilting group this past Saturday.
Block #481
Block #487
Block #575
What you don't see on my design wall right now are the pattern writing and other secret sewing projects that I have in the works... all in good time, right?
Linking up this week to Let's Bee Social.
Have you ever sewn with jet lag? Well, I have. Maybe you've noticed, but then again, maybe you haven't, but I've essentially been gone this whole past month. A very, very long overdue trip to visit my family in the States was just what this girl needed this summer. Ahhhh....
As much as I soak up the time being with my family and friends, not to mention the language, I've really missed being at my sewing machine. Does anyone else out there have creative/sewing withdrawal issues in those summer months when the kids are home and are in constant need of entertainment?
It's actually a rather strange feeling when you first walk in your house after being gone for such a long time... even odd how a house is somehow different when there's been no life in it. But as you can imagine, it certainly does not take much time to reacquaint oneself with all those familiar, but sometimes dusty corners.
With a 24-hour-door-to-door and no-sleep-on the-plane trip under ones belt, getting back on track with projects in the works is a level beyond what jet lag will allow. While my Summer Garden applique project, which I took with me, is well organized and ready to go, I simply needed a sit down and sew without too much thinking, planning, or trying to figure out where I left off on an already started project... and it needed to happen BEHIND my sewing machine.
Does it really surprise anyone that I've started another "jump first, think about the plan later" project? Naaa... I didn't think so. You may have seen other projects from the Eads QAL from Carolyn Friedlander on Instagram... and boy, oh boy, was this the perfect, put-it-in-your-cart... pay... and start sewing project.
I will be coming back to reality next week when the kids go back to school and I can mentally work myself up to diving back into my top-of-the-list projects.
... but for now I'm just enjoying a little time at the machine.
With two boys that are fairly close in age, I find that if I do something for one kid, that I have to do it for both kids... so this past Christmas I really wanted to give the boys something that I had made for them. I love paper piecing, and my oldest guy loves pirates... so why not combine the two? For the last three years his birthday parties have been about eye patches, treasure maps, and of course treasure hunts. Ahoy, Matie!
Pirates don't exactly fit to his tractor/automobile themed room, so it was a bit of a stretch, but I knew that this guy would flip over the dangerous pirate ship that was sailing the seven seas, (free pattern found here) and I would simply be happy that it somewhat matches his room.
I'm finding more and more that I actually enjoy spiral quilting, and have used it in some recent projects. I'm still working on feeling comfortable doing it, and practicing on smaller projects really helps.
In addition to the decorative pillow, both boys desperately needed a few pillowcases. I still had leftover fabrics from both rooms, and made a few "burrito pillowcases" This is a really nice way to add a few decorative pipings, but still end up with nice finished edges.
I'm pleased to say that both of pillows were a big hit and I'm looking forward to when I can make quilts for them... I'll wait until they get a little older.
Linking up this week to Let's Bee Social.
I'm finding that I am enjoying having several of my handmade things peppered throughout the house. I haven't always sewn with myself in mind, but find that I love being greeted by this table runner in the hallway, this pickledish table cover in the living room, and this mini mini gone super size adorning my favorite chair.
In the evenings before I go to bed, I usually take up a glass of water with me. I guess this is the part where I shamefully admit that for far too long, I had simply put a towel on my nightstand to protect it from any water damage. But as my Mom always says... if you want to get your house in order, then invite company! And a recent visit pushed me to do something that I should have done a long time ago!
I'm totally smitten with Sew Kind of Wonderful's Green Smoothie quilt, which was the color inspiration for this little table runner. Simple. Fresh. Green. The more I think about this quilt, the more I want to make it, but this at least satisfies my "craving" until I can get some of my other WIP's knocked out the way.
I actually used my free Mini Mini Foliage template and simply let it grow by adding more leaves. If you've never done reverse applique, then you can check out my tutorial here for a complete how to.
I'm really starting to become a big fan of wavy quilting... it really adds such movement to a piece! Now, what would a project of mine be without adding a few Basic Grey grunges to the mix? I used a understated grey fabric for the backing, and Carolyn Friedlader for the background and the binding.
So, do you have any corners in your house that are begging for a little handmade touch? Do you usally sew for yourself and things to use in your home, or do you just sew where your inspriation lies?
Linking up to Let's Bee Social and Sew Cute Tuesday.
Well, it would appear that I've gone just a little beyond auditioning blocks to slipping into a completely new project... but not without good reason! This past weekend was our Modern Patchwork Treffen (quilting group) here in Hamburg, and I needed something to work on. While I'm coming close to the end of quilting my Farm Girl Vintage quilt, I am now in the process of considering quilting options for the border... and I need to have a little more concentration (and space) for actual quilting. Not really the best take it with you project. But I have to admit that it was reassuring that I wasn't the only one with a new project in the works... in fact we all had new projects that we were working on!
It was so fun to see the variety of our projects... each person with their own style, different color palette, and range of tastes. As always the exchange was great... sharing ideas, quilting techniques... and come on, who doesn't love talking about fabric?!? In the end we arranged our finished blocks to admire them all in one spot.
As far as other projects in the works go, I've almost convinced myself that maybe I really can quilt my Facing East quilt instead of sending it off. All the ladies in our quilting group are cheering me on to quilt it myself! I've been playing around with a few quilting design options, but am still debating what is best for this quilt. I drew out a few designs on baking paper and placed them over the top of a picture of my quilt. I had thought either one large graduated circle or several smaller graduated circles with some straight line quilting... any thoughts? too busy? favor one over the other?
Few on words, but heavy on pictures... What's on your work table this week?
Linking ups this week to Let's Bee Social and Sew Cute Tuesday.
Take a really deep breath in, and then breathe out... wheh! Yup, that pretty much sums it up how I feel right now. I've been living in surreal land the last several days, and I have to keep asking my husband, my children, and just about anyone I can find to pinch me because I just can't believe it myself... after having started a little over a year, I finally finished my Facing East quilt top! Somehow the first steps just seemed to drag on for forever, leaving me with the feeling that I would finish this sometime around my 80th year of life, and then bam!... all of a sudden it came together faster than I had realized! Would you believe that this was originally planned to be one or two blocks... perhaps even a pillow... something small to experiment with paper piecing?!?
Help, help, help! So, now what? Well, I really don't know. From the very beginning I've been saying that I would like to send this off to a longarmer, but as I got closer to the finish line, I started wondering if I could quilt it myself? I'm not a stickler for "if you didn't quilt it, then you didn't really make it"... in fact all I have to say to that is hogwash! I know, blah, blah, blah with the fulfillment of having made it from start to finish down to the last stitch, but there is a part of me that is far to practical to be bound by such thinking. I'm pleased with my skills as a piecer, and really enjoy the fabric pull, the combinations, and the design, and I don't even mind basting, but somehow I just can't see quilting designs. Is it on the verge of sounding sacrilegious to say that the quilting part is my least favorite?... the irony is that it's kind of a necessary evil of quilting, isn't it? Free motion is no option for me, because I really am a beginner quilter, and I would need tons more practice before I would even consider tackling a quilt like this! So, as it is with most of my projects, I'm going to ponder this for a while... and bask in my moment!
Quilt pattern: "Facing East" from Savor Each Stitch by Carolyn Friedlander
Started: January 2015
Fabrics: Basic Grey Grunges, selected fabric accents from Anna Maria Horner, Amy Butler fabric, and various additional prints. Low volume background fabrics
Finished quilt top size: ca. 63 x 83 in. (160 x 210 cm)
So what is it for you?... the design? the fabric pull? cutting? piecing? quilting? basting? binding?... what is your least favorite part in the process of making a quilt?
Linking up to Let's Bee Social and Sew Cute Tuesday.
I remember when I was pregnant with my first son, there was a whirlwind of emotions that had to be sorted out, but it only happened in little steps all along the way. On one hand forty weeks felt like an eternity, but on the other hand it felt like it was in the blink of an eye. Gradually, day by day, each uncertainty, worry, hesitation, decision, attitude change, or even roller coaster feeling had to be worked through as the time got closer... but yet once the time was there, baby was coming ready or not! Perhaps you might find it a little strange to compare my working on my biggest and most monumental quilt ever to that of a pregnancy, but oddly enough, it's kind of how it feels.
Since my end goal quilt had grown to such epic proportions, it felt like the end was so far away, that I almost could not imagine it having an end... and I realized that now that I am coming into the home stretch. Each block consists of four separate paper pieced rays/corners, that too have to be connected... and then the center applique circle! So, working on it day by day, here and there, week after week, only felt like drip-drop, gradual progress, but now it is almost a surreal feeling that I can see the light at the end of the tunnel!... and it gives me that ready-or-not-here-I-come feeling that I experienced as a mom-to-be once my due date drew close.
I'm three quarters of the way through, and it hit me that this work-in-progress actually drapes now!... no more blocks on the wall that are being re-arranged, waiting to have the circles finished, and then and only then be connected.
And like a new mom, the feelings of... and now what are coming up! How in the heck am I going to quilt this thing with a walking foot?!? (no free motion for this gal yet) I originally thought that I wanted to give it away to a longarmer, but now I'm just not sure. So while I'm just ONE ROW away from a quilt top finish, I'm still processing (as usual) about what to do once I'm finally finished. (So, I hope it obvious that I am more than open to suggestions!)
Have you had any quilts that almost felt like it was birthing a baby? How long did your longest quilt in the works take to finish?
Linking up this week to WIP Wednesday and Let's Bee Social.
One of my Dad's all time favorite phrases for when someone is going to do something regardless is: "well, it was like trying to hold back a hurricane with a palm branch"... you get the picture right? I guess it would be safe to say that this pretty much sums up my stash explosion fabric shopping spree while in the US. Believe it not, there has actually been a method to my madness, and it's been a lot about basics and fabrics that I have coveted for too long:
In addition to my previous stacks, I've added several low volumes to my stash, but I really wanted to add a few low volumes with color. I love this pastel mix and can't wait to make something sweet and delicate with them.
While I find so many solid quilts to be beautiful and just plain brilliant, when it comes working with solids myself, I feel completely at a loss. Somehow creating with a fabric that is almost solid is more my to my taste. Zen Chic's city map and Carolyn Friedlander's crosshatch fabrics are just perfect for that work-like-a-solid-look without actually being solid.
And what would a shopping spree be without one little splurge? This hard to find, OOP (out of print) little bundle of fabrics again from Carolyn Friedlander completed my stash. I justified the price by figuring that this would essentially be the normal price that I would pay for fabrics in Germany anyway. I'm pleased to say that these have not landed into the "fabrics to pretty to be used" category (or in this case to expensive)...
... and here they are in the works: For my Facing East quilt, I currently have two blocks that feature designs from one collection. While I have generally avoided sticking with all one collection for each block segment, I opted to feature two of my favorites as a whole.
What are your stash building strategies? Do you build with basics, and add in fun prints here and there, or do you build project by project?
Linking up this week to WIP Wednesday & Let's Bee Social.
I'm quilting now, so the way I think about fabrics is a little bit different than I did a year ago. Over the years I've collected a lot of fabrics that I would consider to be "main" or "focal"
prints, but since I am now regularly quilting, I realized that my fabric stash was seriously lacking in the supporting prints section... not
everyone can take center stage, right?
If you live on the US side of the pond, then you might look at my newly acquired stash and think "cha'ching"... dollar signs showing up in your head, knowing very well how much a stack like this might cost. If you live on the German side of the pond, then you know a different story. So to bring the first group up to speed with the second, I'll calculate it for you this way: Take that price that you just calculated, and then double it, yes, I said DOUBLE IT! - that's the price you would pay for the same high quality quilting fabrics in Germany! So while States side, I just had to take advantage of prices that essentially feel like half-priced (I'd be crazy not to, right?) - but I think it's safe to say, that this will be my stash for the year!
The quilting scene in Germany runs at a totally different pace as it does in the US. Quilting in Germany is not as big, even though there are some really fantastic quilters on this side of the pond, and as you could very well guess, tastes, interests, and skills are quite different. Often I can't find fabrics for quilting projects in one place like you can at some of the one-stop-shop, we-carry-EVERYTHING online shops in the US. There are a lot of main fabric prints available here, but often the supporting fabrics are missing, or maybe just one or two other fabrics from a collection are sold together.
Supporting Prints by: Lizzy House Jewels & Constellations, Alison Glass various Sun prints, Marin Sutton Good Natured, Bee in My Bonnet Gracie Girl, Eric and Julie Comstock S'more Love, Carolyn Gavin Spring Street, Gypsy Girl Woodland Key, Carolyn Friedlander Botanics, Jane Dixon.
Text Prints by: Patty Young's Just My Type, Kumiko Fujita First of
Infinity, Carrie Bloomston Paint, Eric and Julie Comstock Baby Jane,
Sweetwater Elementary Penmanship.
What are you stacking today?
Linking up for the first time for Sunday Stash from Molli Sparkles.
