A colleague had a baby a few months ago, and I was invited along to his naming ceremony last weekend. What to take as a gift? Ohhhh that was a hard decision ;) This fabric seemed to be the ideal choice for a simple baby quilt for a little boy - it's called "Jolly Farm" and is by Henley Studio for Makoweruk. I chose a selection of Aurifil threads for the quilting. First of all the 3 layers were spray basted together, then using a Clover Hera marker I marked out a 6" grid, which was then quilted with white thread (I really do love Aurifil thread - it glides through my machine, and it has a beautiful sheen to it too), then I quilted through the grid again (I didn't mark it out the second time, I just quilted it by eye), using the turquoise thread, then finally quilted through both grids using the green thread. I used the same colour thread in the bobbin as in the machine, so the quilting is the same on both sides... ...a smart orange stripe was used for the binding, and really lifts the colours in the fabrics. A label machined into place in the top corner was the finishing touch, before hand-stitching the binding to the back of the quilt. This style of quilt is great for showcasing prints that are too nice to cut into small pieces, and either side of this quilt can be used... ...this was such a simple and quick project to make, especially if you're in a hurry or working to a tight deadline! As it was made with all cotton fabrics and cotton wadding (I used "Quilters Dream" wadding, select weight) it can be easily washed in the machine and either tumble dried or dried on the washing line. I trimmed each of sides by about 4 inches, so the finished quilt was rectangular rather than square. I just hope Luke enjoys being snuggled up in it as much as I enjoyed making it!
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Several of my runners and place mats were made a few years ago, when I first started quilting, before I had a blog. This was a kit called "Hot and Spicey" - the pattern was designed by Hilary Gooding. This was bought as a kit from the Lady Sew and Sew booth at the Festival of Quilts, Birmingham, 2006 and uses a fabulous range of "Zanzibar" fabrics by Makower UK. The circles were fused into place using steam-a-seam-lite and then machine appliqued using a blanket stitch and a variegated YLI quilting thread. I then quilted curvy lines along the length and width of the runner. When I made the place mats, I quilted a circular spiral around the appliqued circles. I had been quilting for about a year when I made these, and they're still looking great! Oh and if any of you want to make one of the runners, the pattern is available as a free download from the Popular Patchwork website over here http://www.popularpatchwork.com/news/article/hot-and-spicy/5044
A few weeks ago I bought a fabulous collection of fat quarters from the "Music" collection by Henley Studio for Makower UK. I'd already made a couple of toiletry bags with this fabric, and then decided to make a scrappy guitar strap too, using a tutorial by oneshabbychick. I bought the Ernie ball hardwear from Amazon UK, and unpicked it from
it's nylon strap. I used a varigated orange Gutterman Sulky thread for these straight rows of quilting. Now I've just got to get it wrapped up! If you want to buy some of this fabric, it's available from Secret Garden Quilting. A few weeks ago I went to the Autumn Quilt Festival at Duxford and bought a fat quarter bundle of "Music" fabrics by Henley Studios for Makower from the Secret Garden Quilting stand. I chose another pattern by the Norwegian designer AnnAKa, this one is called "Godværsveske" and is not too fancy and frilly, so perfect for these fabrics. I used Pellon wadding, and this is quilted very simply with a variegated orange Gutterman Sulky thread... ...this makes a small boxy-style toiletry bag, with a curved edge. I've added 2 small tabs at each end of the zipper, and I've added one of my labels to the inside seam... ...and here it is - now I just need to buy some toiletries to put inside, and that's another Christmas gift sorted out!
Another one of my projects from the past - this is a wall hanging called "Valentine Bouquet" and was designed by Hilary Gooding. This was a kit that I bought from my local quilt shop, Quilters Haven, and is uses the "Hearts and Flowers" range of fabric by Makower. The finished size is 48"..... ...this shows a close-up of the roses in full bloom and the rose buds. This was my first major attempt at machine applique - and I don't think it looks too shabby!! This wall hanging is completely machine quilted with a cream variegated quilting thread, using a mixture of cross-hatching, straight row quilting and finally free-motion quilting. I suppose I should've really shown you this one in February!
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About me...Hi - welcome to my quilting blog! My passions are my family, my dog, my friends and sewing, not necessarily in that order! Archives
July 2023
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