Category: Quilting in Maine

Quilting, mine and others

Turkey Tracks: “Orange Sherbert” Quilt

Turkey Tracks:  April 8, 2012

“Orange Sherbert” Quilt

When I was making blocks for “Quilt of Many Colors,” I made some pink blocks that just didn’t work.

So, I used them to make this cute little quilt that I’ve grown to love.  My camera always makes quilts look crooked, but they aren’t.  And, the flash can wash out colors.

Here’s a corner of the quilt top with the backing and binding fabrics, all from my stash:

Here’s the center block, so you can see how I quilted “Orange Sherbert.”  I used the freehand daisy pattern again, but I made it denser by echoing the daisy and by using curves–like the outside curves of the petals–to travel.  I used Signature’s Victorian Rose thread, which is a soft pink.

I’m going to keep this little quilt for a bit–likely until a girl baby is born to one of my kin.  I’m going to hang it in an upstairs bedroom.

Turkey Tracks: “Quilt of Many Colors”

Turkey Tracks:  April 8, 2012

Quilt of Many Colors

I’m now thinking of this whole winter’s work as “The Scrappy Quilting Project.”

The “Quilt of Many Colors” helped use up more of the 2 X 31/2 rectangles I have been cutting up for over 10 years.  Remember, I pulled out most of the blue ones to make the “Blue Fox Trot” quilt.  So, here’s what the pile looked like when I started this quilt.

Clearly they needed to be color sorted first of all:

I had in mind using a pattern from Judy Hooworth and Margaret Rolfe’s book, SUCCESSFUL SCRAP QUILTS FROM SIMPLE RECTANGLES, which has guided me with cutting the 2 x 3 1/2 rectangles in the first place and, then, using them.

But, I didn’t like the way those blocks developed.  Hooworth and Rolfe were working with plaids, and their version of this pattern is lovely.  My colors were just dying in these blocks.  See?

So, I struck out on my own.

I went down to Marge Hallowell’s Mainely Sewing in Nobleboro.  Marge has been a great consultant in The Scrappy Quilting Project.  She helped me pick out four bright colors:  orange, turquoise, acid green, and magenta with a darker purple running through it.  I loved what started happening.   Note that I’m already alternating how the rectangles orient.

But, I began to see that just having these four bright colors was going to present problems with how to arrange them.  Here there’s already a pattern forming on the diagonal of warm and cool blocks in the diagonol lines.  So, I started pulling brights out of my stash, and here’s what happened on the design wall.

I found a great backing in Marge’s 40% off attic.  And, chose a binding that’s hot pink with yellow stars.

Here’s the quilt all finished.  Something about it reminds me of a brand new box of crayons–something to this day I have trouble resisting.

Here’s a block, so you can see how I quilted it–using a freehand daisy chain in lime green thread–which plays nicely against the flowers in the backing fabric.

Here’s the backing and binding.  The yellow stars on the hot pink binding are adding a really lively and fun sparkle to this quilt.

So, there you go.  A beautiful, fun, charming quilt out of the chaos of all those rectangles.

I’m really happy with this one!

Turkey Tracks: Blue Fox Trot Quilt

Turkey Tracks:  March 4, 2012

Blue Fox Trot Quilt

I’ve finished another scrappy quilt in what I’m now thinking about as “The Scrappy Project.”

To remind, I have BAGS of pre-cut pieces of fabric since for over 10 years, whenever I finish a quilt, I cut up the leftover pieces–too small to go back into the stash–into useable pieces–a rectangle, various squares, and any strip that’s at least 1 1/2 inches.

This quilt is made from the 2 by 3 1/2-inch rectangles and was inspired by this book:

First I separated out all the blue rectangles from the HUGE piles of rectangles and further separated into lights, darks, and brights.  Then, I made a trial block.  I pretty much knew this idea would work because about 9 years ago, I made a green version from leftovers of a green rail quilt.  Green Fling hangs in the stairwell of our home in Camden, Maine:

Here’s a few trial blocks going on the design wall–I had to figure out whether or not to turn either the light or dark blocks sideways or not.  I did turn them eventually as I thought it gave more movement.  Somehow, if the blocks are all upright, the quilt is too linear.  Also, turning either the lights or darks means you don’t have seam abutment problems.  Here all the blocks are going one way.  Too…linear…

Here’s the finished quilt.  See how better it is with one set of blocks turned.

Here’s the backing and binding–both of which are perfect for this quilt.

Here’s a close-up of some of the blocks so you can see the quilting and the play of the blocks:

Blue Fox Trot–slow, slow, quick step.  There are two fox trots in each block and enough blocks to dance around the room.

Turkey Tracks: The O’Bryan Quilt–an old friend

Turkey Tracks:  February 26, 2012

 The O’Bryan–An Old Friend

When we visited Charleston, SC, last Thanksgiving, we stayed with each of our sons for half of our visit.  At Bryan’s we slept under the 9th quilt I made:  “The O’Bryan.”  It was like visiting an old friend to see it again, never mind sleeping under it.

Here’s what it looks like now:

Bryan helped picking out the colors.  I used a King’s Crown block, machine pieced it, and hand quilted it–so I really had it in my hands for a long time.

Here’s a closeup of one of the blocks so you can see the hand quilting.

And, here’s a picture of some of the blocks:

I rarely hand quilt anymore.  I love to piece quilt tops too much I guess.   And I especially love my long-arm machine, which is allowing me to finish more quilt tops.  It seems knitting–and putting the binding on quilts–is supplying my need to do something with my hands at night.

It’s really fun to go into family or friends’ houses and to see one of my quilts being used and loved.  Or to get a picture from someone showing the quilt in their homes.

Turkey Tracks: String Symphony Quilt

Turkey Tracks:  February 24, 2012

String Symphony Quilt

One set of scraps I’ve saved for the past 10 years or more now are strips of fabrics that are at least 1 1/2 inches wide.  For the past two months, I’ve been making WONDERFUL! quilts with these pre-cut scraps–as you can see on this blog.

What to do with these strips though?

I had been thinking for years of a log cabin quilt, so I tried a traditional block, as I love those, but the initial block was tedious to make and dull.  I knew I’d go quite mad if I started down that road…   Besides, I wasn’t sure I had enough lights and darks to make a log cabin quilt work well.  Here’s that block:

What about a string block?  I cut 6 1/2 muslin blocks and started strip and flip sewing a few, which you can see untrimmed here.

Four blocks together looked interesting.  The mixed colors worked quite well together…

Now what?

Float the blocks in a print?  Maybe surround the block with a fabric that is solid or appears solid–much like Kaffee Fasset likes to do with a wild print?  Here’s a block surrounded with one of Kaffe Fasset’s fabrics.  I set in 9-patch squares along the sides and into the strip above the big blocks.  If I could change anything, it would be to use a bolder fabric to edge the blocks–one that blended more with the background fabrics.  A brighter block edging that also faded into the background print with the 9 patches.

Here’s the finished quilt, which I called “String Symphony” because the quilt plays music your heart can hear.  It “sings.”

Here’s the back (another fabulous Kaffe Fasset!) and the binding is an orange and pink polka dot fabric that works with both sides:

I love this quilt!  It’s a very happy quilt.  And, it’s my 74th quilt.

I used up most of the fabric strips and have already started saving more as I continue quilting.  And I have about 5 single blocks left over.   HMMMM….   I wonder if I could make placemats…

Turkey Tracks: The Aurifil is Finally Gone

Turkey Tracks:  February 18, 2012

The Aurifil is Finally Gone

Here it is:  the –finally–empty Aurifil spool:

I must be the only quilter in the world who does not like Aurifil.

And, I don’t like it.

Yes, it lasts FOREVER.  It’s like the Energizer Bunny of quilting threads.  And, it doesn’t produce much lint.

I feel like I’m sewing with spider silk, though.  And, it isn’t very strong.  And, it does not “stick” to the cotton fabric in the way the Mettler I mostly use does.  It has a tendency to unravel at the edges of seams as a result–which is a HUGE pain when piecing blocks as they start to come undone at the edges as you handle them.

I bought this light grey Aurifil years ago when everyone raved about it.  So, in this moment of using up and reorganizing in the quilt room, I used up the Aurifil.

Thank heavens it’s gone!

Turkey Tracks: Tuesday is Clean Sheet Day

Turkey Tracks:  February 12, 2012

Tuesday is Clean Sheet Day

Or, wash day.

And the day we change sheets.

Last Tuesday I took this picture of the counter over the dryer.  I throw my wool socks on to the counter when they come out of the washer.  (Make sure your wool socks are washable!)  I can dry them in the dryer, but I never do as I have the notion that they will last longer if I don’t subject them to the dryer’s heat.

Anyway, all the colors seemed pretty to me lying all next to each other.

Turkey Tracks: “Nature the Greatest Show on Earth” Quilt

Turkey Tracks:  February 12, 2012

“Nature:  The Greatest Show on Earth” Quilt

Here’s this lively, happy  finished quilt:

Here’s a picture of a block close-up:

This block pattern is a very old one–and I have been unable to put a name to it.  It’s just always–there.  If anyone has a name for it, please let me know.

What’s different here is that I surrounded the block with a stripe and used a unifying corner stone.  Then I set the blocks on point.  The idea for using stripes, a unifying corner stone, and setting the blocks on point came from “Quilt Magazine,” Susan McDermott, and her remake of an older traditional quilt using these tatics.  The article was called “Old World Comfort.”  When I xeroxed the article so I could “play the magazine forward,” there were no dates on the pages.  My memory is that it appeared in the late fall/winter of 2011.  The magazine’s web site does not have any listings of what has been published when…so I was unable to find McDermott’s quilt reproduction again.

For over ten years I have been cutting leftover fabric that’s too small to fold into my stash into useable pieces.  The most versitile show up in this block:  3 1/2-inch squares, 2 by 3 1/2- inch rectangles, and 2-inch squares.  The 3 1/2-inch 9-patch you see in the above pic is from a quilt given to my niece, Kerry Enright, some years ago.  I had a few of those 9 patches leftover and just threw them into the bag of 3 1/2-inch squares.  And, for me, it’s fun to see all the pieces of quilts I have made over the years.  I can feel their good energy vibrating in this happy quilt.

What’s cool about this quilt, though, is the backing:

 

I absolutely love this fabric!  It’s called “June Bug.”  You may see some of it turn up in quilt blocks down the road, too…  I especially love the dragonfly which is my artist symbol.  I often use the term “Lovey Dragonfly” to sign a piece of artwork.

The name comes from the binding fabri , which has a round stamp scattered across it that says “Barnum and Bailey Circus:  The Greatest Show on Earth.”  I had been going to call the quilt “Nature Sings” since there is a lot of “nature” in the front blocks as well.  But, the Circus stamp chinched the name for me.

I quilted using an “antique rose” thread, which did not detract from the back and which “dumbed down” the red border on the front, and I used an all-over feather pattern pantograph.  (I really love pantographs!)

This quilt went with love and affection to my great niece and fellow artist, Fiona Whittle.

Turkey Tracks: “Fine China” Quilt

Turkey Tracks:  February 12, 2012

“Fine China Quilt”

This quilt started out with a set of blue and white squares and rectangles.

Here’s the first block–made and placed tentatively on the design wall–four-square blocks alternated with rectangles:

 Here’s the finished quilt:

I alternated the placement of the rectangles on the second block–the first block has the four-patches to the outside; the second has the rectangles to the outside.  What results, still, are lines of light and dark blocks on diagonal lines up and down the quilt.  Since I have a lot of “medium” blues, the lines are not always as stark as if I were using starker darks and lights.

Here’s a close-up of the blocks, so you can see some of the beautiful feather and swirl quilting I did freehand on the long-arm:

John went with me down to Marge’s at Mainely Sewing to choose a backing.  He chose this paisley fabric, which we both thought was perfect, and I chose the binding fabric, which has a lot of visual interest:

This quilt went to Hannah Rheault Kreibich, first daughter of Willow Rheault Kreibich, who is the daughter of our neighbor Sarah Rheault, who is English.  The blue and white floral prints have always looked like English china to me.   But this name is a bit more complicated.  “Fine China” is what our grandsons thought they heard when their parents used real words to describe their younger sisters’ body parts.  Willow topped this story with a similar one from her family.  A son thought his mother had a “china.”  It all became very complicated when they went to a zoo and he saw a panda bear from “China.”  Too funny!  Thanks, Willow.

Turkey Tracks: Quilts, Quilts, Quilts: “Star Light, Star Bright”

Turkey Tracks:  February 12, 2012

Quilts, Quilts, Quilts:  “Star Light, Star Bright”

I’m still quilting like a madwoman.

And, having such a good time making creative use of 10 years of scrap fabric cut into useable pieces.

I sent off three quilts this week.

Here’s “Star Light, Star Bright”–a baby quilt made for a little boy–Meyer James Kelly–who will be born any minute now.  The bed gives you some size references.

 These blocks are in the “La, La Log Cabin” style, taught to Coastal Quilters by Rhea Butler of Alewives Quilting in Damariscotta, Maine.  For the centers, which are deliberately cut “wonky” so the block develops “wonky,” are a set of blocks from a Wynkin, Blikin, and Nod line of fabric that I used in another baby quilt.  I loved the blocks so much that I couldn’t bear to toss what was left.  I had to make two star blocks–I traced the star on a blue fabric, fused it to the star print, and blanket-stitched around it.

Here’s an upright view:

Here’s a close-up of one of the “Wynkin, Blinkin, and Nod ” blocks–there were different pictures in the blocks:

I quilted with a big meander pattern broken by stars–so it will be soft–and tried one of my curved templates in the border.

I love the orange binding with blue stars.  That fabric was a find.

The backing is plain–and I’ve been printing labels and hand sewing them on to the back of the quilt.  I like it that I can put in little sayings, poems, how the quilt emerged for me, and so forth–even pictures!  You can see both backing and the label in this pic:

So fun!  So happy!