What I’m working on

 The disappearing nine patch that I started a couple of weeks ago is now a finished top. I love how fast this pattern goes together. I can take it with me tomorrow to our sewing group, weather permitting, and get it pin basted and ready for quilting. I need to stay stitch around the edges to make sure none of the seams pop open before that. I’ve also finished another section of the Noah’s Journey quilt. It’s cold and blustery and snowy outside today, so it’s a good day to do some more work on Noah. I’m hoping to get the piecing done in the next week or so. I’m halfway through the last of the embroidered blocks, so if I can get lots of quality sewing time that goal of having this finished by the end of next week should be more than do-able. I’m linking up to Mid Week Makers and then I’m heading back to my machine.

Slow Sunday Stitching

 It’s amazing how much I can accomplish when I focus on one single project at a time rather than multitasking. Last week I had just started the embroidery on the cows and flamingos for Noah’s Journey. I finished them in less than a week.

This is a quilt designed by Crabapple Hill Studios, by the way, found here. It came out as a block of the month a few years ago and as soon as I saw it I knew I had to do it. Never mind that I had no idea what I was going to do with it once it was finished, and still don’t for that matter.

Anyhow, here are the cows sewn into their section of the quilt. Then I went ahead a made up another section using the sheep and camels and goats. I’ve moved on to the second last of the stitcheries that need to be finished, tigers and hedgehogs and cranes. I have ordered threads and needles for the quilting as well as fabric for the backing. I am going to attempt big stitch hand quilting on this. It remains to be seen how that will go. This is certainly a good time of year to cuddle up under a quilt and do the hand quilting. It’s currently snowing and blustery outside today. A good day to stitch and visit the blogs of other slow stitchers at Kathy’s Slow Sunday Stitching

What I’m working on

 I’ve been doing a lot of cutting and a lot of sewing. But it hasn’t really ended up, so far at least, with anything too terribly photogenic. I cut up a lot of scraps and leftovers into 4 1/2 inch squares that will eventually end up being a Disappearing Nine Patch. Right now I’m 2/3rds through sewing and cutting the nine patch blocks, 30 of them in total. So if my math and counting are correct, I have 10 left to do. I should be able to finish that off today, at which point I can start the fun process of laying them out and sewing them back together. They are kinda outdoorsy woodsy watery golfy themed. At the moment they are 12 1/2 inches square. So I’m thinking the finished size of these blocks will be 11 1/2 inches. A lay out of 5 squares by 6 squares will give a nice sized lap quilt.

 I’ve also finished off this month’s Civil War BOM earthy tones blocks. And I have another quilt finished and waiting on being pin pasted. I don’t have it here at the moment, so pictures will have to wait until tomorrow. 

Back on the weekend I was trying to figure out how I was going to set up a design wall. Well during my rummaging around on shelves in the back basement area, during which I found a forgotten tote of fabric that I had been looking for, I also found my old portable design wall. I thought I had given it away before we moved. So my how do I set up a design wall question has been answered. The where is still to be determined. 

I’ll link up to Mid Week Makers and then get back to sewing more nine patches.

Slow Sunday Stitching

 Back at the beginning of January I articulated a goal to spend time on various hand projects in an attempt to get work done on them. I was going to alternate between projects. And here we have an example of why I don’t make resolutions. I have decided, for now at least, to continue with working on the Noah’s Journey blocks on an attempt to get them finished and sewn into their places in the quilt. The quilt is sewn together in segments with the piecing and the embroideries in very specific places. I have the biggest segment sewn together.

 I finished the zebras I was working on last week and am now down to 3 embroideries left to do.

I started the cows and flamingos last night. But I am wresting with a couple of things. As I said, the quilt is constructed in segments, 8 in all. I have 3 done. Each of the remaining segments are made up of multiple embroideries and the three that I have left to do are in separate segments. I can do the piecing, but there are gaps where the embroideries should go. The other bigger issue is that I need to be able to lay it all out so I can make sure the colours are balanced. But I don’t have a space big enough to do that. I haven’t figured that out yet, but I will push forward in the hopes that a solution will present itself. The current thought is a flannel backed vinyl table cloth that I can hang somewhere..... not sure where..... and roll up when I’m not using it to get it out of the way from wherever it is hanging...... yet to be determined.

I suspect I am going to end up hand quilting this, which is why I am pushing forward with it. I’ve been watching some youtube ideas for big stitch quilting and I’ve ordered some perle cotton threads in colours to match. Past that point, I’m again unsure about how to procede but I’m sure an answer will present itself before then.

I’m linking up to Kathy’s Slow Sunday Stitching

 

Quilty Workings

 I finished off the quilt as you go piece. It has its binding on and has gone off to other hands which enjoy the hand stitching binding down process. It will then get added to the inventory of Prayers and Squares quilts for giving away to needy people. 

Since that is finished I’ve given myself permission to start a couple of new projects. They are the same pattern just done in different colours. I love Barbara Brackman’s Civil War blog and the block of the month designs she does, especially since she always has a history lesson along with them. I am starting a floral version and an earthy version of this years BOM. I am trying to work entirely from stash fabric I have on hand and see if I can’t get some of these bins and boxes tamed down a little. So with the floral version, I’m doing the alternate blocks with the darks as the squares and the lights as the rectangles. This gives that large scale floral a place to shine.The alternate blocks will all be the same. I’ve reversed the placement of the lights and darks for the earthy version. I haven’t done any sewing on this one yet. I got the alternate blocks cut yesterday.

 I’ll take it with me tomorrow to the prayers and squares meeting. I suggested that perhaps we might want to each do a version of these and work on them together. 

The other big project I’m working on is getting the pieced blocks done and sewn in place for My Noah’s Journey quilt. The animal blocks are all coloured with Prisma coloured pencils and then embroidered. It’s a pattern from Crabapple Hill that I’ve been working on for 3 years now, I think.

 I’m trying to keep the colours in the pieced blocks rather muted so that the star of the quilt is the embroidery. I have 4 more blocks to finish the embroidery on, 2 of which still need to be coloured, and then it will be full steam ahead on getting this one put together. I think it is going to be hand quilted, something I haven’t done in many years.

I’m linking up to Midweek Makers

Slow Sunday Stitching

 I seem to be on a roll with the Noah’s Journey stitcheries. I’d forgotten how fast these work up. The bears I started a couple of weeks ago are finished. I decided to keep going since I was in the mood to do these and finished up the block with the rhinos. And because I was still on a roll, last night I picked up the block with the zebras and just barely got it started. These will all eventually end up in a quilt that has quite a lot of pieced units in it, so last week I also got a small start on doing that. While rummaging in the Noah’s Journey storage box I found a couple more stitcheries for it that were traced but don’t have the colouring done on them yet. I use prismacolour pencils and then add a fixative solution over the colouring that is supposed to make it permanent. The patterns suggest what colours to use and where, almost like a colour by number. I might get to that in the next week or two. I have the zebras to finish and one more block that is already coloured before I need the last two.

I’m linking to Kathy’s Slow Sunday Stitching

What I’m Working on

Last week at this time I was anticipating the new lessons involved in doing a quilt as you go method using sashings. I have made great progress on it and really like the process. It takes a while to do it but the results are more than worth it. All of the blocks are quilted and the rows assembled. I have three out of four rows sewn together with just the last to add on. Another hour or two should finish it ready for binding. Here’s a close up of one of the blocks surrounded by the quilted sashing. A couple of days ago I was starting to feel like I was coming down with a bad case of “startitis”.  I have found a new block of the month that I want to do on the Barbara Brackman Civil War blog here. But I managed to fight it off and stay focused on this project instead, hoping to get it finished. I have one more quilt that needs machine quilting, but it is going to have to wait until I can get a backing made and get it layered on Thursday. Perhaps later today I can start that new BOM.

I’m linking to Midweek Makers.