Turkey Tracks: My Life in Maine – Page 65

Turkey Tracks: Quilty Projects

Turkey Tracks: February 24, 2017

Quilty Projects

I’ve been quilting The Farmer’s Wife Quilt off and on all week.

One more pass, and it will come off the long arm, ready for binding and a label. Then pics to follow. I love the backing for this quilt.

The downstairs bedroom’s bed is still covered with projects in progress. Yes the goal is to finish them up.

The bulk is what’s on this bed is piles of fabrics for the Katja Marek EPP millifiore quilt. Somehow, I need to see all of the fabrics as I go along.

Units from the 2016 Bonnie Hunter mystery quilt, En Provence, are in a pile ready to be sewn together.

There’s fabric for a 12 1/2-inch foundation pieced block project in a pile there as the long arm table is presently busy.

Ditto the big Aeroplane bag I just made, from Sew Sweetness.

And parts of Jen Baker’s BIG STAR quilt, made from BIG half-square triangles, is on the pillows. I’m going to use color-specific selvages. I think they will work.

A pile of fabric with text is over there, for the Valse Brillante EPP quilt designed by Willlyene Hammerstein I’ve been putting together.

My goodness!!

That leaves out the Tula Pink 100 City blocks. I need to do February’s blocks. I’m using Cotton + Steel fabrics, and they are all in their own bin in the quilt room. These blocks are fun to do and quick and easy.

I don’t know. Maybe it will all get cleared out by…summer visitors.

Here’s where the Milli is now. I’m working on the blue at the bottom–and the last piece will establish the whole left border. This quilt is a wild child for sure. I have no idea if I’ll like this quilt or…not. It’s hard to pick out fabric for the rosettes. I have a somewhat clear idea of the whole, but… It’s still hard to tell exactly. I need to use fabric from my stash as much as I can, so it’s hard to plan too far ahead.

Here are the 12 1/2-inch blocks in progress. They formed a pattern I’ve seen called “crossed kayacks.”

This pattern is from this book by Lynne Goldsworthy–which has some really cool blocks.

We are to have two rainy days now, so I’ll work away at some of these projects.

Turkey Tracks: Some Pretty Pictures

Turkey Tracks: February 24, 2017

Some Pretty Pictures

A number of interesting pictures have come into my email recently. This one is a picture of the environs around our Snow Bowl (our ski run), taken from a place called the Crow’s Nest. (Thanks Marsha Smith.) You can see the bay beyond the land. And the very old mountain/hills that I love. And the beauty I see in winter here.

This amazing picture shows the valley in the cleft between two mountains filled with fog one morning recently–due to our warm temps hitting 3+ feet of snow. This pic was on the Snow Bowl’s Facebook page, with a credit to Marisa Hanning. Marsha Smith sent me this link as well.

Here’s one of Judy Berk’s amazing photos. Yummy. Look at all those blues. They aren’t done via a filter; the blues are just there, especially this time of year.

My turkeys are getting bold this winter.

And winter means amaryllis bulbs. Rose Lowell gave me this one. Isn’t it a beauty?

Turkey Tracks: February Quilty Update

Turkey Tracks: February 14, 2017

February Quilty Update

I love winter because I have lots of uninterrupted time to sew. Plus, I love snow.

I am ticking along with all the various projects and having fun seeing them come together.

Here’s Katja Marek’s EPP millifiore quilt in progress. I have almost finished a large section at the bottom left and will be adding it soon. It’s in shades of blue. And the addition of the blue will make the left edge complete.

Yes, this quilt is very funky, and I have no idea how it will look when it’s done, but… I am having fun.

You can see the piles of completed blocks of the Farmer’s Wife–each a column–above the millifiore.

That top was finished last night.

I liked the zig-zag setting, but it requires cutting four of the blocks in half on the short rows!!! I thought the quilt too long and skinny, so added two columns and used the five extra blocks I had on the upper left (2) and lower right (3).

I got a little OCD–ok, a lot OCD–about setting up blocks for one of Willyne Hammerstein’s quilts, “Valse Brilliante.” Hammerstein is Austrian, and her colors are very European. I’m doing my version in brights and neutrals, and each block will have some text fabric in it. I got a bundle of “pearl bracelet” fabrics that are bright and colorful, so I ironed them all, and I can’t bear to put them away again until I’ve finished. There are also some bright Japanese daisy prints I like–as you can see below. It actually takes a while to set up one of these blocks, but now that I’ve used up all the red wonderclips, I’ve slowed down. I try to sew EPP with matching thead as much as is possible.

I have these fabrics left to cut and glue:

Some of us here in Camden, Maine have formed the Mt. Battie Modern Quilt Guild, which is in addition to our venerable Coastal Quilters, which is a chapter in the Pine Tree Quilt Guild.

I am so drawn to the “modern” fabrics and the graphic nature of the modern quilts. And, there is a strand that is modern/traditional, or some such title. So, we are going to have even more quilty goodness.

We are going to do a “traveling” quilt and will turn in our initial pieces on March 2nd. I have made this piece as my offering and look forward to seeing how it comes back to me. I’m not thinking this piece will be a center medallion that gets developed. And I will go back in with pearl cotton when the quilt is layered to embellish such as the exclamation point at the end of the “Love.” The “blue moon” and the back side of the sliver moon were cut with one of those rotary circle cutters–which I learned from our workshop with Timna Tarr.

My alphabet was modeled on the one I found in Mary Lou Weidman and Melanie Bautista McFarland’s OUT OF THE BOX WITH EASY BLOCKS.

We had a major snowstorm starting Monday night and ending Tuesday night–a blizzard. There was a near complete “white out” and lots of high wind. I have about 2 feet of MORE snow on the ground now. As the storm abated, I made my way down the steep drive to my mailbox and retrieved the first Cotton+Steel fabric club package from Pink Castle fabrics. Isn’t it pretty?

I’m already thinking about making the next set of Tula Pink’s 100 City blocks. Some of us are doing 8 blocks a month. (You can see an earlier post on that challenge.)

I hope your winter is wonderful!

Enjoy it. Slow down. Hibernate. Spring with all of its energy will be here in due course.

Turkey Tracks: Tula Pink’s 100 Modern Blocks

Turkey Tracks: February 4, 2017

Tula Pink’s 100 Modern Blocks

Some Coastal Quilters have issued a new challenge for 2017 to members: to make Tula Pink’s “City Sampler” from her book 100 Modern Blocks.

(We are sewing our Farmer’s Wife blocks into tops now.)

Again, we will do about 9 blocks a month, ending in December.

These blocks are all about the fabric and, unlike the Farmer’s Wife blocks, are pretty easy. Indeed, they are FUN!

I am going to use Cotton + Steel in all of my blocks, but will allow myself some digressions with other designers mixed in, like some of the Japanese fabrics I like, some Carolyn Friedlander, and some solids, including shot cotton.

Here my first 9 blocks:

As with the Farmer’s Wife blocks, adding solids can work to sharpen other fabrics–which I did not do unfortunately. The top left block needed some solids as the fabrics are too jumbled together. What can be pretty when looking at big pieces of fabrics can…not be…when pieces are small. You would think I would have learned that lesson after all the Farmer’s Wife blocks. But, no…

The bottom right “jacks” block also needed more definition. The aqua is too busy.

Having said that, as with the Farmer’s Wife blocks, they all look pretty when they get into a quilt top.

The main thing is to have some fun with each block and not to stress about perfection. Some work better than others.

This collection came in the mail today, from Craftsy: Cotton + Steel “basics.” They should help with the basics problem. If you haven’t discovered Craftsy fabrics yet, take a look. Also, I like the Etsy store, Stash Builders for specific colorways, etc. And, of course, I continue to love Becca Babb-Brott’s Etsy store, Sew Me A Song.

I got my first low-volume monthly shipment from Pink Castle fabrics, and it was beautiful. I treated myself some time around Christmas. I have since changed this fabric club to Cotton + Steel, but I really loved the first low-volume shipment from them. Hmmmm… I continue to be enchanted with low-volume fabrics.

I hope readers are having a good quilty winter. I know I am.

Turkey Tracks: Cabbage “Steaks”

Turkey Tracks: January 30, 2017

Cabbage “Steaks”

I saw a recipe for cabbage “steaks” on Facebook not along ago.

I am one of those people who LOVE all roasted vegetables, so I thought I’d try this one. I’ve roasted cabbage sliced thin into shreds before and like it a lot, especially if there is garlic in the mixture. In this recipe, one slices cabbage into rounds, drizzles olive oil over the “steak,” adds salt and pepper and whatever else one wants, and roasts in a 350º oven for something like 40 to 45 minutes. The edges of the “steak” will get brown, as will the bottom. (I cover the pan with parchment paper as I long ago stopped using toxic aluminum foil around food.) Thicker steaks might take longer. One that is about 1/2 inches or a bit bigger is about right. The thicker the “steak,” the longer it takes to get that caramelized sweetness roasting can bring.

Here’s what the “steak” looks like on a plate alongside fresh peppers and carrots and some roasted haddock:

Yumminess!

Turkey Tracks: Sew Sweetness Aeroplane Bag

Turkey Tracks: January 21, 2017

Sew Sweetness “Aeroplane” Bag

I love this bag!!

The top is pieced in the “Becca Babb-Brott” style. Becca helped me a lot as this bag was a huge learning curve for me. I love, also, the way the charcoal shot cotton fabric looks for the bottom and the straps.

I had to put the top zipper in THREE TIMES before I got it right. Oh my!! Don’t even ask…why… Dense seamstress who has not put in zippers in probably 30 years or more. AND what I think is a kind of misdirection about how to handle the ends of the zippers in the pattern. Probably everyone else who sews in the world “got” what to do or not do according to the type of zipper one had, but not me…

I also learned with this top zipper that one has to sew a generous quarter of an inch on the first basting in of the zipper or the inner lining will not come up far enough to be caught when one does the final top stitching.

BUT, I loved the way the inside zippers and red pockets came out. Those I mastered right away.

Can’t wait to use this bag AND I can’t wait to make another one.

The pattern comes in two sizes; I did the LONG bag.

Turkey Tracks: “Bee Land” Quilt

Turkey Tracks: January 9, 2017

“Bee Land” Quilt

I can’t quite believe that I have finished this quilt.

I started it in Charleston, SC, Thanksgiving 2015 as my “take along” project. I used scraps from my 2 1/2 inch square bin. It felt more than a little daunting to take on a project this size with so many tiny (1-inch) pieces to make by hand using English Paper Piecing.

I called it “Bee Land,” after finishing the binding a few days ago.

The design is from Edyta Sitar’s “Flower Garden,” which is on the cover of her book HANDFULS OF SCRAPS.

I did NOT attempt to do Edyta’s amazing applique borders, as you can see.

As a side note, I met Edyta in Houston in October 2014 and saw this quilt in her booth. It is so gorgeous “in person,” as is Edyta Sitar. It was a pleasure to meet and talk with her. I have many of her books and so love her tiny, tiny pieces and exquisite work.

The quilting went so well on this quilt. Lucy the Longarm behaved beautifully. And I like the warm old gold thread color I used. The pantograph is a 12-inch version of “Simple Feathers” by Anne Bright.

The doll faces look lacy from a distance.

I had another fabric for the borders, a blue fabric with medallions, but discarded it in favor of the warmer red/orange. AND, I had TWO other backings, one to go with the blue fabric and another modern fabric that was whimsical. At the last minute I settled on a more traditional fabric that I had bought in last year’s April “Shop Hop” for 40% off. It’s perfect for this quilt.

It is a really good feeling to finish a quilt you have spent a year +++ making. There were hours of sewing pleasure with this project It is all done by hand except for the binding and the quilting on Lucy.

I would love to make this quilt again using low-volume fabrics that are very light and bright, whimsical fabrics.

Turkey Tracks: The Reveal of Bonnie Hunter’s “En Provence”

Turkey Tracks: January 4, 2016

The Reveal of Bonnie Hunter’s “En Provence”

I finished the last clue last night.

And, now THIS…

…is going to turn into THIS!!

The above is Bonnie Hunter’s computer rendering of “En Provence.”

You can see her real version at quiltville.com–on the blog.

I have the Farmer’s Wife blocks on the design wall, and I think I’ve finished moving them around now. I will sew those blocks into a quilt top before starting turning all the “clues” into a quilt top.

Turkey Tracks: Quilt Label Fixed

Turkey Tracks: January 3, 2016

Quilt Label Fixed

Remember this snafu?

It’s fixed!

I used a Micron pen this time. I bought a fine one, and when I replace it, I’ll get a thicker point. The colors are more limited than the Sharpie pen colors, but…

Friend Margaret Elaine Jinno asked me to soften the label’s color. She thought it “too white.” I think she was right.

Can I just say that taking out one of the labels, especially when you have WASHED the quilt, is not much fun. It gets doubly sewn in because I machine baste in the edges before sewing on the binding.

But I am pleased that this project is no longer haunting me.

Turkey Tracks: “Sweet Thing” Quilt

December 31, 2016

“Sweet Thing” Quilt

Here she is, this “Sweet Thing.” I’m quite, and unexpectedly, besotted with this quilt.

Megan Bruns picked out the red school houses border fabric one day when she went with me to Augusta to take No No Penny to the homeopathic vet there. (Love that vet!) And I chose to make the binding neutral. I didn’t want anything fighting with the small red border.

I used clam shell groovy boards for the quilting. These groovy boards are hard to find now since long arms are using computer packages. You cannot lay down a pattern like this by hand on a long-arm.

Here’s a close-up of the front.

She’s going to live in the living room for a bit.

I used this kind of setting in an earlier quilt, “Happy Baby Quilt.” You can search for it by that name with the search button on the right sidebar. I saw this kind of four-patch setting used by designer Lissa Alexander in the America Patchwork and Quilting four-patch challenge, April 2015, Issue 133, “Rainbow Rows” quilt. Here the colored squares are set into on-point rows.

Readers may recall that two summers ago I spent the whole of the summer practically sewing light/dark 4-patches out of the 2-inch scrap box, which created 1600 4 patches. I have made four quilts to date from those four-patches. Again, you can search for these quilts on this blog if you want to see more information and pictures of each.

“Bee Beauty”:

“Crayon Crumb Box”:

“Winter Blue Jays”:

There is a fifth quilt in the making–a leader/ender project. And I still might have some four-patches left over!!!

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!

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