Free Motion Mavericks - Week 91 - Back to an Old Project

High time to use the experimental panels I quilted a couple of years ago - they have been lurking in the sewing room for far too long, so I have decided to join them together and make a small lap quilt.  This photo shows the panel with bindweed and leaves and berries, together with strips cut ready to use for the joining.  The patterned fabric in the foreground will be used on the back, and the front will probably just have plain colours. 

This is as far as I have got.  Sewing has ground to a bit of a halt recently, with so much going on in the family, and because I have been sorting out the allotment and planting spuds.  But I have made a start, after dallying for nearly two years, so I consider that progress!

Here goes for week 91...

 

The project in Week 90 that really caught my eye was Katy's beach ball quilt, packed full of wonderful FMQ in the white background. If you haven't seen her blog post yet, nip over now and see more photos, including two gorgeous baby pictures.

 

If you love free motion quilting, whether you are a beginner just taking the plunge, or you have reached the stage where you can do ostrich feathers with your eyes shut and still achieve perfect symmetry, then please link up.

Remember, FMQ is FMQ, whether your machine was made last week, or it is older than your granny.

Here are the very easy and slightly elastic rules:-

1.  Link up with any recent post, ideally from the last week but within the last month, which features a free motion quilting project, whether it is a work in progress or a finish.

2.  Link back to this post in your own post and/or grab the linky button for your blog's sidebar.
  
3.  Visit as many of the other participants as possible and say hello in the comments box.

4.  The link up will remain open for four days, from midnight to midnight GMT for the long weekend, Friday to Monday.

So far quilters from the USA, England, Wales, Australia, Canada, Germany, Holland, New Zealand, France, Macau and Russia have taken part.  The first participant from each new country will get a special mention the following week.

Linking up to Sarah's blog Confessions of a Fabric Addict for Whoop Whoop Friday.

 

A Picture for Sunday - Hollyhock Seeds

Seeds arranged in a circle, which are fascinating when studied close up.  This photo was taken late last summer.  I now have seedlings popping up all over the allotment.

Appliqué and Cut Out Doily

I found this rather interesting doily in a charity shop recently.  It measures 12 inches across, and has cut out sections between the brown edging and the flowers and leaves.  I have photographed it placed on top of a piece of plain calico.

The appliqué is stitched in place with a very fine blanket stitch

Some of the yellow fabric has a colour-graded weave.



Looking at the back, you can see how coarse the background material is.  Also, I was slightly surprised to find that all the stitching appears to have been done by machine.

I compared it with a tray cloth that I have because the yellow fabric used for the appliqué is so similar.  The stitching on the tray cloth is definitely done by hand, and so much finer than the stitching on the doily, but they certainly seem to date from the same epoch.

I have been debating how to use the doily.  Tempting as it is to stitch it to a background material and use it on a quilt or cushion, I think it would disintegrate too quickly.  Perhaps it would be better incorporated into a plate stand.  It might be time for a consultation with my husband about how best to make one.

Free Motion Mavericks - Week 90 - Pink Again

No two the same is my motto - so although this cradle quilt with a hundred squares looks very similar to the last pink one I made, there are differences.  The squares are arranged slightly differently...

...the binding is a much deeper pink...

... and I have used the woodland animals fabric as the backing.  At first I wasn't sure about the binding fabric, I thought it might be too strong a pink.  I shouldn't have worried, because the floral pattern broke up the colour on the front of the quilt, and on the back the shade of pink toned in perfectly with the toadstools and blossom on the trees.

Here goes for week 90...

Firstly, many thanks to Bernie for hosting last week's linky!

 

The project in Week 89 that really caught my eye was Gwyned's FMQ design, which she developed during a doodling session.  It makes me think of huge cogs inside a clock.  If you haven't seen her blog post yet, nip over now and see what else she has been doing.

If you love free motion quilting, whether you are a beginner just taking the plunge, or you have reached the stage where you can do ostrich feathers with your eyes shut and still achieve perfect symmetry, then please link up.

Remember, FMQ is FMQ, whether your machine was made last week, or it is older than your granny.

Here are the very easy and slightly elastic rules:-

1.  Link up with any recent post, ideally from the last week but within the last month, which features a free motion quilting project, whether it is a work in progress or a finish.

2.  Link back to this post in your own post and/or grab the linky button for your blog's sidebar.
  
3.  Visit as many of the other participants as possible and say hello in the comments box.

4.  The link up will remain open for four days, from midnight to midnight GMT for the long weekend, Friday to Monday.

So far quilters from the USA, England, Wales, Australia, Canada, Germany, Holland, New Zealand, France, Macau and Russia have taken part.  The first participant from each new country will get a special mention the following week.

Linking up with Sarah's blog Confessions of a Fabric Addict for Whoop Whoop Friday
and Michelle's Romantic Tangle for Let's Make Baby Quilts
and Amanda Jean's blog Crazy Mom Quilts for Finish It Up Friday.

Free Motion Mavericks - Week 89 - Please Visit My Guest Host

After a hectic few days for the family we all now breathing a collective sigh of relief.  My nephew is recovering well after his operation yesterday, and could be discharged as early as tomorrow so that he can convalesce at home.  Options for future treatment have yet to be considered.

While I am busy and preoccupied with everything that has been going on, Bernie at Needle and Foot has very kindly stepped into the breach and is my guest host this week.  

If you have a free motion quilting project that you would like to share, please go Bernie's post here.

Thank you Bernie!

Free Motion Mavericks - Week 88 - Spot the Template

By now you might have noticed that there is not much sewing going on here at the moment.  All I have done this week is cut the panel I made last week into four pieces so that I can make two more tea cosies.  This time the task was super quick and easy because I now have a perspex template made to the exact measurements I need - so no more fooling around with rulers and dinner plates and getting the measurements wrong.  The template is another little present to emerge from my husband's shed, and if you squint hard you might just see it in the centre of this photo.  From now on tea cosies are going to be so much easier!

Not that I can plan any sewing for the immediate future.  Next Wednesday my nephew is having a serious operation, and I shall be going to stay with my brother and sister in law to help look after my nephew's children.  So there will be no more blog posts until next Thursday, and then I would like someone to be guest hostess for the linky.

If anyone would like to volunteer, please email me!

Here goes for week 88...

 

The project in Week 87 that really caught my eye was Deana's amazing windmills quilt - such skilled piecing combined with several different FMQ designs.  If you haven't seen her blog post yet, nip over now and see more photos.

If you love free motion quilting, whether you are a beginner just taking the plunge, or you have reached the stage where you can do ostrich feathers with your eyes shut and still achieve perfect symmetry, then please link up.

Remember, FMQ is FMQ, whether your machine was made last week, or it is older than your granny.

Here are the very easy and slightly elastic rules:-

1.  Link up with any recent post, ideally from the last week but within the last month, which features a free motion quilting project, whether it is a work in progress or a finish.

2.  Link back to this post in your own post and/or grab the linky button for your blog's sidebar.
  
3.  Visit as many of the other participants as possible and say hello in the comments box.

4.  The link up will remain open for four days, from midnight to midnight GMT for the long weekend, Friday to Monday.

So far quilters from the USA, England, Wales, Australia, Canada, Germany, Holland, New Zealand, France, Macau and Russia have taken part.  The first participant from each new country will get a special mention the following week.

A Picture for Sunday - Number 8

Regular and uncomplicated - this house front (on a little square near the city walls in Salamanca) could easily be adapted as a design for a picture quilt.

A Splash of Colour

On Wednesday last week I had the great pleasure of being a steward at the most recent exhibition at Midsomer Quilting. On display was a collection of work by two quilters, Gillian Travis and Sheena Norquay, who both have 40 years' experience of quilting.

The first time I had seen Gillian's work was at the West Country Quilt Show in Bristol in November 2014, and I was struck by the vibrant colour, so last week I was delighted to be able to take a few photos of some of her quilts.

Many of the pieces were based on Indian textiles.

This quilt is padded horizontally to resemble a pile of folded quilts.

Gillian has a great love of travel and photography, and produces beautiful picture quilts.  This is a detail of a quilt showing a street scene bedecked with washing.

This picture of bathing ladies is definitely one of my favourites.  There are five ladies altogether on the quilt, but I just photographed these three.  This scene is so realistic that I could almost feel the chill of the water around my middle - bathing can be such a chilly business!