Around the World Blog Hop

Miniature Patchwork of the Crosses

I've been invited to participate in an Around the World Blog Hop by Carol at Postcards from Panama and as promised last week, here I am to answer some questions about myself and my blog.

WHAT AM I WORKING ON

Well currently, I'm working on several projects at once because I can't stay focused on one project at a time.  I'm thinking that makes me unusual. Many or most of my quilt buddies actually finish the projects they start, but I find my follow through lacking.  Not that I haven't finished a great number of projects but let us just say my UFO's are still numerous.  Please visit my blog QUILT FINISHES to view some of my finished quilts.

Most recently, within the last year anyway, I've been focusing on hand piecing my quilts. I've always liked hand piecing, but found the process difficult in the preparation.  Using templates to cut and marking my sewing lines was not fun for me.  I reviewed various ways of doing what I needed to do to get to the actual piecing part like the Jinny Beyer method or using EQ (Electric Quilt Software) to print templates out on freezer paper or directly onto fabric.  I found these methods wanting.

Then I ran across Linda Franz and Inklingo and it all fell into place for me.  Now, at least for the present, I'm focused on hand piecing.  There are so many possibilities with Linda's method.   I find myself wanting to try it all and have trouble staying focused on just one.

 So here are some of the projects  I'm working on.

1. A miniature POTC (shown above).  This top was completed using Inklingo 0.5 Inch 90 Degree Hexagon Collection.  I still need to put a border on it and quilt it. 

2. A carpenters wheel in bright colors, yellows, neutrals, and whites.  I've pieced the blocks together but it still needs a border and quilting.  I'm stalled at the border because I can't decide thick border, thin border, no border.  Colors or neutrals or both.  I used Inklingo's free collection Diamond/Triangle/Square for this quilt top. 

Carpenter's Wheel

The Carpenter's Wheel is one of my first Inklingo projects. I downloaded this shape collection to see if I liked Inklingo.  Well guess what?  I loved it.  It made hand piecing a joy - and big bonus, I could use up my scraps.  Using custom printing, I could print my shapes on my small pieces of fabric.

3.  Texas Tumbler:  I put this top together using Inklingo 1.0/2.0 Inch Star Points, 2 Inch 60 Degree Diamonds, and 60 Degree 1.0 Inch Hexagons.
I named this Texas Tumbler because it combines the Texas Star with Tumbling Blocks.

Texas Tumbler

My Texas Tumbler still needs some work.  I plan to add pieces to square up the sides, add some borders and then of course quilt it.  This was also made using my scraps of fabric.  Using scraps makes me happy.  I hate throwing small pieces out.

4.  Texas StarFish.  This is just about done.  I just need to bind it.  Follow the link to see how I did it. I named this Texas StarFish because the Texas Star blocks are kaleidoscoped using fish fabric.

Texas StarFish

I'm working on a number of other items.  I try to use Inklingo for all the designs I see and like.  My Prairies Women's Group is making little wall hangings.  I've done the following two using Inklingo shape collections and converting patterns to Inklingo. These two wall quilts/table toppers are almost done, just needing binding and quilting.  They are hand pieced and will be hand quilted.

This is not all I'm working on but in defference to those who read my blog, I'll leave this long list to other posts.

HOW DOES MY WORK DIFFER FROM OTHERS OF ITS GENRE

This is an interesting question.  I'm csurious to discover how many Quilt Genres there are.  There are art quilts, traditional quilts, modern quilts, pieced quilts both by hand and machine, applique quilts both by hand and machine, dimensional and flat; and then there are differences in how we quilters quilt our quilts.  We have machine quilting by domestic machines and long arm machines.  We have hand quilting either big stitch or regular stitch.  There are so many varieties.  I may have left some out.  In the hand piecing category some quilters use the English Paper Piecing method and some use the hand piecing using the running stitch method.

So where am I in all this.  I think of myself as a traditional quilter.  There are still some of us left, and our numbers are growing.  Among traditional quilters, I still differ because I do everything by hand.   I hand quilt, hand piece, hand embroider, and hand applique.   I love hand applique and pretty much stuck to this for the first number of years I quilted.  I hand quilt and I don't think there are nearly as many hand quilters as machine quilters.  From what I see many quilters will piece their top and not quilt it themselves, but send it off to a long arm quilter.  I have done that too, but most of my quilts are put together and quilted by hand.   I also like to create my own patterns.  Here are two of my early works both hand appliqued and hand quilted.

Anniversary Rose

Anniversary Rose was made for my Husband upon our 10th Anniversary.  I drew the pattern out on graph paper, transferred the pattern to my background fabric and hand appliqued the pieces down.

I named this quilt Chiroptera.

Chiroptera

From Wikipedia:

Bats are mammals of the order Chiroptera (/kaɪˈrɒptərə/; from the Greek χείρ - cheir, "hand"^[2] and πτερόν - pteron, "wing"^[3]) whose forelimbs form webbed wings, making them the only mammals naturally capable of true and sustained flight.

I love bats and I think there will be more bat quilts in my future.  I created this quilt in October of 2000 from bits of scrap and pieced purchased hand died  pieces of fabric for the background.  It is hand appliqued and hand quilted.

There is a pocket for the label and I  printed a story of Chiroptera on fabric with my inkjet printer, heat set it, folded it and put it in the pocket.  The drawing on the pocket is my own. The photo of the printed story is blurry.  That's my camera and photography abilities.  The story is really clear to read.

   WHY DO I WRITE/CREATE

I write and create my quilts because I can't not write and create.  Does this make sense?  There isn't a day go by that I'm not doing some quilt work or some writing.  I blog because it gives me an outlet for my thoughts and keeps a record of my quilt work.  I quilt because for me, it is a creative outlet.  Quilt work is more than something I do, it is who I am.



HOW DOES MY WRITING/CREATING PROCESS WORK

Not sure....  It's just there in my mind and needs to be let out. If I don't let it out, I get brain fog.

I hope you did not find this blog too long to enjoy. I can tend to be long winded.

Finally, I would like to introduce you to our next Around the World Blogger.   Her name is Jayne and she has been a quilter for over 30 years.  Jayne is a retired English teacher (semi retired), a mother, and a grandmother.  Jayne's blog came to my attention, because like me, she loves hand piecing.  Please visit Jayne's blog Jayne's Quilting Room .  Click on the link and visit her now and on Monday, December 15 when she will be writing about what she is working on and her creative process.

Bye for now.  Thanks for stopping by and come back often.  Please leave comments.  I would love to hear from you.

Sandy White