Free Motion Mavericks - Week 170 - The Perfect Match

For once in my life I am getting enthusiastic about spring cleaning.  I am always ready to confess that I am not the tidiest person on earth.  But every eight and a half years or so, or possibly more, I have a bit of a blitz.  My sewing room is still in a total state; however, the kitchen is beginning to look reasonably presentable.  As a result I have done zero sewing this week.

Nevertheless, I am feeling triumphant.  I made this tea cosy just over two years ago, and photographed it in very dull daylight.  The colours in this photo are far more accurate - ridiculously bright.  Last week I was in town and popped into Whittards because I have been on the lookout for a tea for one pot.  I struck lucky and found this cheerful little stripy number.

It wasn't until I got home I realised that I had the perfect match for this tea cosy.  I couldn't have found better colours for this cosy if I had tried.  Suddenly a solo pot of tea is ten times more enjoyable.

Here goes for Week 170.

The project in week 169 that caught my eye was Deana's Grand Illusion quilt.  If you haven't seen her blog post yet, nip over now and have a closer look.

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.
  
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, Russia, Ireland and Brazil have taken part.  The first participant from each new country will get a special mention the following week.

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.

Free Motion Mavericks - Week 87 - Not Much Done...

 

Only a little bit of quilting has gone on this week.  This panel measures just over 17 x 26 inches, and provided I don't mess up the cutting, it should soon be transformed into two tea cosies.  We shall see.

I am hoping that there are plenty of industrious ladies out there who have got some sewing done over Easter and can put me to shame this week.

 

Here goes for week 87...

 

The project in Week 86 that really caught my eye was Karen's metro rings quilt - here is the quilting as seen on the back. 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.
 

Free Motion Mavericks - Week 77 - Tea with Wally

 

Solutions can present themselves to you when you least expect it.

 

This is the predictable picture for this week - yet another tea cosy, still using up the colourful prints.  The black with white spots makes this one look a bit heavy.  I was toying with the idea of using one of the spotty fabrics for the binding, but took the lazy way out because I had a length of navy blue floral print binding left over from an earlier project.  I think all the different fabrics are fighting a bit, but teamed up with my daughter's Where's Wally mug there is scope for a very bright and cheerful and slightly riotous tea break.

 

While I have been making tea cosies I have been mulling over landscapes, and the other day I had a flash of inspiration.  One of the irritating problems when quilting closely packed lines is that the edges end up frilly.  Worse still, you can end up with tiny little pleats appearing in the fabric, and you just have to quilt over them.  It was while sorting out the lining for this tea cosy that the obvious hit me.  Why don't I use the same stuff for landscapes? 

 

 

So here is today's experiment.  Instead of sewing on calico, I have started a test piece using thermal curtain lining for both the front and back.  There is no need to add wadding, because this curtain lining has a fused fluffy backing, so the wadding is inbuilt.  It is stiff, so I am hoping that frills might be a thing of the past.  

 

 

 

Here goes for week 77...

The project in Week 76 that really caught my eye was Bernie's baby quilt, made using orphan blocks she had found in a shop, with sweet little FMQ birds in the centre.  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 and Macau 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 Nina-Marie's blog Creations... Quilts, Art... Whatever for Off The Wall Friday

and Amanda Jean's blog Crazy Mom Quilts for Finish It Up Friday.

 

Free Motion Mavericks - Week 75 - A Fitting Session for the Teapot

Ever the perfectionist, I am trying to settle on the ideal size for a tea cosy to fit either a large or a small teapot.  This is the near-identical twin of the cosy I made before Christmas.  I can tell which is which at a glance because the binding is different.  I have adjusted the size a little and drawn round a different plate for the curves at the top.

My aim is to prevent too much of a draught at the bottom.  Once the big fat blue teapot is under it the whole cosy bulges, which creates a gap.  Now it lifts no higher than the height of a saucer, so I shouldn't worry about the pot losing too much heat.

My other project over the Christmas holidays was this mystery UFO.  A piece of hand embroidery done by I know not who I know not when should soon be taking on a new lease of life as a wall hanging.

I took the quick option by finishing it with free motion quilting rather than hand stitching.  With a bit of luck all should be revealed next week...

Here goes for week 75...

Happy New Year!

Today's special mention goes to Andrée, who kept on practising and came up with this lovely variation on the paisley design.  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 and Macau have taken part.  The first participant from each new country will get a special mention the following week.

Linking up with Kelly's blog My Quilt Infatuation for Needle and Thread Thursday
and Sarah's blog Confessions of a Fabric Addict for Whoop Whoop Friday
and Amanda Jean's blog Crazy Mom Quilts for Finish It Up Friday.
 

Free Motion Mavericks - Week 74 - A Tale of Two Teapots

 

Somewhere in this picture there is a big blue teapot.

And in this one a little green one.

Yes, I know, it sounds like a quiz for three-year olds, but working out the size and shape of a cosy that will fit snugly over a large teapot yet not totally swamp a small one was definitely a task for grown-ups.   I am still in pursuit of tea cosy perfection, so there will be more.



 

This jolly print is way out of my usual colour range.  To me it screams kitchens rather than bedrooms, but until last week I had nothing that went with it.

 

 

Then I found an ideal match in the oddments bin when I was having a rummage in the quilt shop.  By adding the bold spotty material, I have worked out that I have enough to make six tea cosies.  I am hoping that by the time I reach number six I will no longer be agonising over the dimensions.  The colours will certainly cheer up the miserable damp grey days we have been having.

 

Here goes for week 74...

This is the last linky before the Christmas and New Year holidays.  The next linky will be on 7th January.

The project in Week 73 that really caught my eye was Julie's bright scrappy quilt, a great blast of colour incorporating scraps, stash fabrics and even a recycled dress. Definitely my cup of tea.  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 and Macau have taken part.  The first participant from each new country will get a special mention the following week.

Linking up to Kelly's blog My Quilt Infatuation for Needle and Thread Thursday
and Sarah's blog Confessions of a Fabric Addict for Whoop Whoop Friday
and Amanda Jean's blog Crazy Mom Quilts for Finish It Up Friday.

 

 

 

Free Motion Mavericks - Week 73 - Tea Time

Every finish calls for a quick celebration of some sort - in this case a mug of tea.  The large mug has tea in it, and the tea pot is under the cosy.  At the moment I am having a bit of a sort out in the sewing room, and have finally got round to making cosies from a panel that I quilted with a hawthorn design a couple of years ago.  The panel was large enough to make two cosies.  As soon as I have put on the binding around the bottom of the second one, this one will have a twin. 

Here goes for week 73...

The project in Week 72 that really caught my eye was Karen's intense quilting on  a top made in patterned fabrics by her friend.  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 and Macau 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 Amanda Jean's blog Crazy Mom Quilts for Finish It Up Friday.
 

Free Motion Mavericks - Week 18 - Gone to Germany

No, not me.  The tea cosy and mat have gone to Germany.  

We have had a friend staying with us who now lives in Germany, and he wanted to take home a present for his friend Birgit. She enjoys tea, so a matching cosy and mat in bright pink English tweed seemed like the ideal present for her.  She does felt making and is a dab hand at making slippers and hats, so all this colourful woolliness should be just up her street.

The tea cosy was finished some time ago and has already appeared in pictures.  This time the light was better and I have managed to capture the colour more accurately.  The mat was the cut off piece of the free motion quilted panel left over after making the cosy.  All I had to do was put the binding on and the job was done.

So here goes for week 18...

Firstly, many thanks to  Maartje, Hilary and Gwyned for linking up last time  - a great collection of projects.  

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 bloggers from USA, England, Wales, Australia, Canada, Germany and Holland have taken part.  The first participant from each new country will get a special mention the following week.

Linking up to Kelly's blog My Quilt Infatuation for Needle and Thread Thursday
and Sarah's blog Confessions of a Fabric Addict for Whoop Whoop Friday
and Amanda Jean's blog Crazy Mom Quilts for Finish It Up Friday

Free Motion Mavericks - Week 10 - A Present for Bonnie!

It has been a busy week, so I shall tell it mainly in pictures... another project with the free motion quilting done on the 1945 Singer 15K treadle, and all the rest of the stitching done on the 1949 Singer 15K hand machine.

Last week's fancy leaves were such fun to do that I dived into my mini-stash of Oakshott cottons and varied the design, this time combining the leaves with berries.  

Here is the back of the panel, which shall never see the light of day again, so the few tails left hanging don't matter.

Three different variegated threads were used against the different background colours.

I took the opportunity to make a test video, using a mini tripod on the table.  In the past the focus has kept shifting if I move my hands in the foreground, but this time I zoomed in on the action, and I think the result is better than previous attempts.

The quilted panel was enough to make two identical tea cosies, made using the same method I have shown before, lined with thermal curtain lining.  Here is the one that has stayed at home with me.

First I tried the cosy out with bold colours and everyday crockery.  Peach for the tablecloth with a lime green mug isn't my usual style, but somehow the colours of the cotton lend themselves to taking risks with clashes and getting away with it.  Also, don't ask me how a Canadian Coastguard sugar bowl found its way into a local charity shop.  I expect someone nicked it years ago.

Next I tried it with the posh crocks, and decided it teamed up quite well with the Royal Doulton too.

I love this bird doing a plunge into the teacup.

This tea cosy's twin was specially gift-wrapped and given to its new owner last night.

Dawn, Brenda, Bonnie, Julia and me

There she is in the middle - Bonnie Hunter out with the girls on her last night in Bath.  It was a very cosy and noisy affair, and the very sweet waitress (from North Carolina, would you believe, just about 12 miles from Bonnie) was a great sport and took photos for us.

It was such a pleasure meeting Bonnie.  A few years back I would stay up till silly times of the morning studying all her wonderful piecing methods. Thank you Bonnie! Then as time went on we were acquiring some very similar vintage machines.   It was a delight having such a good night out with her, hearing how much she is enjoying being in England, meeting three new friends, and giving Bonnie a souvenir to take home.

                                                       

So here goes for week 10...

Firstly, many thanks to Esther, Gwyned, Cynthia, Myra and Dora for linking up last week - another wonderful collection of projects!

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.

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 bloggers from USA, England, Wales, Australia, Canada, Germany and Holland have taken part.  The first participant from each new country will get a special mention the following week!

Linking up with Kelly's blog My Quilt Infatuation for Needle and Thread Thursday
and Sarah's blog Confessions of a Fabric Addict for Whoop Whoop Friday