Tag: Red Rock Threads

”Triangle Geometry” Quilt Finished

Turkey Tracks: September 29, 2021

I finished this little wall hanging the other day. It is going to a friend where it is going to hang over an electrical utility box that for some reason is in his living room. So, I have set up the hanging system lengthwise, rather than widthwise. It will hang from a curtain rod that uses brackets to extend the quilt from the wall, and I put a dowel in the bottom to give the bottom some weight to keep it hanging straight.

This wall hanging is inspired by Maria Shell and her book IMPROV PATCHWORK—and from work done by Debbie Jeske of A Quilter’s Table blog. Debbie took a class with Maria Shell at the last Quilt Con which resulted in her own version of this improv method using these triangles separated by stripes. And I have done earlier posts about this process. Maria Shell’s original design was her quilt ”Rattlesnake.”

The back is WILD, but no one sees the back with a wall hanging, and it was a piece from my stash that was big enough.

I hand quilted with Sulky 12-weight cotton thread and a Tulip Sashiko needle. I have LOTS of colors now from Red Rock Thread’s ”petite” spools that sell for $1.65 each.

This project was fun—and I’m not done yet. I will play with making the zig-zag ”Rattlesnake” Maria Shell designed where she offsets these triangles.

One of our local quilt groups—Mt. Battie Modern Quilt Guild—is planning a Zoom workshop with Maria Shell this winter, and I am looking forward to participating in that event.

“Offcut Circles” Quilt

Turkey Tracks: August 29, 2021

“Offcut Circles” Quilt

I finished the scrappy wall hanging I have been making from the “offcut” quarter circles left over from the last project of this year’s The Color Collective season. The 7th and final month’s project this year was designed by Latifah Saafir. I loved her block (Tenderoni) and also loved her color palette.

I hung “Offcut Circles” at the entrance to my quilt room, opposite from its parent, the Tenderoni block wall hanging I’m called “Fractures.”

The small quarter circles in “Offcut Circles” comes from the way the small circles are cut and discarded from the Tenderoni block—replaced by a larger quarter circle that makes the math in the Tenderoni block work.

For both quilts, I quilted a grid with Sulky 12-weight cotton thread in many different colors related to the palette. You can buy this thread on small spools that cost under $2 a spool. They have plenty of thread on the spool for most projects where one wants lots of different colors. I get them from Red Rock Threads and order online.

I used the rusty dark brick color for the binding. The backing is just made from whatever I had in my stash that would fit. This time a warm paisley.

I made the circles using the template method Tara Faughnan taught us in our very first The Color Collective project in Season 1 and appliquéd them to the backing square. You know, in thinking about what I did, I don’t think I trimmed out the back of the background block after sewing down the circles. ???? I must have been resisting creating MORE CIRCLES that I would find hard to throw away.

Here’s the very first circle quilt from the very first project in season 1 of The Color Collective. I combined blocks from the first and second months.

Here’s a link to the original post about XOXO.

https://louisaenright.com/2019/04/27/turkey-tracks-xxoo-quilt/

Here’s a link to the quilts I made from the first season of The Color Collective:

https://louisaenright.com/?s=Season+1+quilts+from+the+color+collective

Turkey Tracks: “Whirlygig” Quilt

Turkey Tracks:  August 12, 2018

“Whirlygig” Quilt

It’s always fun to bring a year’s project to a close.

Here is “Whirlygig,” a version of Willyene Hammerstein’s “Valse Brilliante” English Paper Piecing quilt, from her book MILLIFIORE QUILTS.

My “rules” were brights and text in every block.  I used text fabrics to square off the quilt and chose an Essex linen blend for the wide charcoal border.

The backing is an Art Gallery fabric involving printed cuneiforms.

This quilt is lively and fun—a good lap size.

I should also say that several friends are also making this quilt and have found templates that allow them to hand stitch without the English Paper pieces, all the glue involved, and so on.  When they finish I will post pictures.  Their blocks are beautilful.

Additionally, several of us have followed Bonnie Hunter’s recommendation to use Signature thread 60 weight cotton for hand piecing.  We think this American-made thread is perfect for hand piecing as it has very, very few tangles and does not create much extra weight to projects—in terms of the seam folds.  It practically disappears with EPP piecing.  We’ve bought it from both Amazon and Red Rock Threads.

Turkey Tracks: Sewing Clothes And Learning a Serger

Turkey Tracks:  October 2, 2017

Sewing Clothes!

And Learning A Serger

One of the really fun things about sewing is the young women who are making their own clothes these days.  For fun and satisfaction.

They are inspiring!

Leah Ondra of Clementine (Rockland, Maine) was the Coastal Quilters speaker at our September meeting.  She lit a fire under many of us about making clothes.  Including me.

I have not made clothes since my 20’s as a newly married and poor wife and mother.

But…

Here I go.

Linen tunic, which I shortened:

Skirt to go with…

I have no idea what this material is.  I knew when I left the store but I have to learn garment fabric names.  I cut the skirt on the bias, and the material is nice.  I will make this skirt again and make it a tiny bit longer.

On advice, I prewashed the materials.

Together–and best of all both pieces FIT.

Tunic top is 100 Acts of Sewing Tunic No 1

Skirt is Colette, “Ginger”

I can wear a warm t-shirt beneath the tunic for now.  And, tights or leggins with the skirt for warmth.

I bought a table from amazon that I had to assemble myself.  I loved doing it.  Here is just came up from being upside down on the floor.  (Studio Designs:  Comet Hobby Center)

Here it is with the SERGER (Brother 1034DX I also ordered from Amazon.  (Under $200)  Leah Ondra swears by using a serger in garment making and says this one is just fine.  The thread cones (Mettler polyester) came from Red Rock Threads.  The colored thread spools came with the machine, which is fully color coded, which makes it easier to thread.

Sergers are so NOT like a domestic sewing machine.  And they have sharp knives as they trim off the excess material in a seam allowance.  The threading problem seems to be ok what with all the color coding involved here.  Brother is trying to make this easy.  I keep reading the instruction book, watching the DVD that came with it, and patting the machine.  I did sew ONE line of stitching.  But I need to switch out the thread and PRACTICE.  Which will start, maybe, with learning how to disable the knives.  There is no use in letting them get dull, is there?

Next week’s plan:  get comfortable with the serger.  I have a knit top I want to make.

And “En Provence” only needs 2 1/2 passes on the long arm.

And “My Milli” needs to be loaded on the longarm…

Life is fun and busy.