Snowmen Through Time

Snowmen Through Time (a wall quilt) is the first of  6 monthly promises to finish 6 UFO’s.  All that was needed for Snowmen was a label and a sleeve.  

In the year 2000, I started Snowmen and actually finished it.  But I’ve been told a quilt isn’t finished until it has a label....attached.  I made a label years ago.  Never attached it.  Really. After an hours search of boxes of UFO’s,  I found the label.  But with years in between, it wasn’t what I wanted.  So I made another..and attached it this time.

This label is a pocket and in the pocket is my poem which can be folded to fit in the space.  The label and the poem were created on my computer and printed with an inkjet printer on fabric backed with freezer paper then heat set with a hot iron.   The label was then appliquéd to the back of the quilt.  

The entire process (label, poem, and sleeve) took me less than half a day including the hour spent looking for the label I never used.

Snowmen is hand embroidered, hand appliquéd, and hand quilted.  The pattern is by Millie Kelso.  

The Splendid Sampler and Milleflori La Passacaglia

THE SPLENDID SAMPLER

Blocks 1- 3 top row; Blocks 4-6 2nd row; Block 7 bottom

In February, Jane Davidson and Pat Sloan, began their 100 block year long odyssey, The Splendid Sampler.   Each week 2 blocks are published after being created by the 80 + Splendid Sampler Designers.  It's been fun for me to prepare the blocks so I will continue to post my progress here from time to time.   I encourage you to visit the site to learn more.  

I love to hand piece so I've been busily converting the blocks to hand piecing friendly but for those of you who would rather machine piece, there are excellent instructions for each block from it's designer including tips and different ideas for piecing.

I've posted my first 7 blocks in the photo above.  Converting to hand piecing is simple when I use the Inklingo Shape Collections.  

I use the Inklingo Shape Collections whenever I can.  There is a list of shapes on the Inklingo site created by Cathi Godwin that is a valuable tool I use all the time.  If I know what size and shape patch I need, Cathi's list leads me to the shape collection where I can find it.

Block 1 - Hearts Aflutter: 3 inch squares and  1.5" squares from Storm at Sea 9 inch, 

Block 2 - Wings: 1 inch squares from 1 inch log cabin and 1 inch half square triangles from TRI HST 00b

Block 6 - Focal Point:   I used HST 00b collection and 1 inch log cabin again.

EQ7 is also a valuable tool.  I create the blocks in EQ and then make templates for my piecing. Below are Block  3 - Lots of Love on the left;  and Block 5 - Simple Simon on the right.  Each block shows the templates on the back of freezer paper.  

Block 3 and Block 5

Blocks 4 and 7 are hand appliqued and hand embroidered...which I love to do just as much as hand piecing.  They went together quickly.  

Appliqued and Embroidered Blocks

I'll be working on Block 8 - Friends Around the Square .  This lends itself well to EQ7. 

 

LA PASSACAGLIA

In between I continue to hand piece La Passacaglia with the aid of Inklingo Shape Collection for this project. This is a big project and will take considerable time.  

Rosettes 1 and 3 joined top left.  Three of the required, completed  Rosette 2

I'm currently piecing Rosette 4.  There are nine of them.  As you can see, my colors are all over the place but I have a little of blue and white in each rosette.  Hopefully this will tie it all together.   More photos of progress to come.

Rose of Sharon

 I've been in Ocala Florida since January 4, 2015.  I didn't expect to be here very long and came here all in a rush when mom and dad called me to say mom was sick and needed help.  I brought just a few things to work on.  Mom saw what I was working on and really liked it.  At the time I arrived in Ocala, I had one section of the four to finish quilting and the borders.  The first week mom would sit with me and talk while I quilted.  After mom passed I continued with my quilting in my spare time and evenings.  I'm just about done now mom...    Tomorrow or the next day, I'll visit the local quilt shop Tomorow's Treasures to find fabric for binding.  This is an old old UFO so some of the appliqué work needs some redoing.  I'll bind it, label it.  It'll need a washing. Then I think I'll use it as a table topper for moms sewing table. 

It looks like I'll be here for another month helping dad. I'll work on another project during this time.  I brought my Celtic Solstice to finish piecing.  Perhaps I'll work on that.  Being away from home without major distractions from unfinished projects in my sewing room, I'm forced to finish what I have.  That's a good thing.  I'm feeling a sense of accomplishment.  I'd also like to finish up the hexagon table topper I pieced a few months back.  I need to hand quilt it.

Four squares of Celtic Solstice

Hexagon Table Topper

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

MY TREATS REVERSE APPLIQUÉ

In the 90's I started to put my sewing skills to quilting.  I enjoyed piecing and spent hours in my sewing room. Then I discovered Appliqué.  Back then there wasn't much machine appliqué.  That came later, so I was lucky to find people with hand appliqué skills to help me along.  I took classes from my local quilt shop and fell in love with the process.  So much can be done with hand appliqué. Like hand piecing, it's portable and social. Most recently, I discovered Dutch Treat by  Judy Garden.  A very inspiring book.  If you have an interest, it can be purchased on Amazon. The blocks are done in reverse appliqué.

I have this beautiful fabric. It's black with shots of green, red, white.  It has metallic silver shimmers.

Hoffman Winter Wishes

I love it but I don't have a lot of it.  I decided to make a small quilt using some of Judy Gardens Dutch Treat blocks.  I'll also make some blocks of my own.  Here's what I've done so far.

I'll continue to make these blocks until I run out of fabric.  I love the hexagon.  So many possibilities come to mind.

IRISES REVISITED

IRISES

Working every project by hand takes time.  Today and many yesterdays and many tomorrows I will be piecing 70" x 70" Celtic Mystery Quilt by Bonnie Hunter.  I love doing it, but today  I needed a break.  So I took this wall quilt down to clean.  It's been washed, dried, pressed, and re-hung.  IRISES is one of my first appliqué quilts...made in the mid 90's.  Back then I machine quilted it...I didn't know how to hand quilt and guess I didn't know how to machine quilt either...it was awful.    So a number of years ago, I took all the quilting out, re-did the border, re-did my first attempts at appliqué, hand quilted it, and put on the binding.   Not perfect but much nicer.

I've learned so much about myself since beginning this love of quilts and quilting.  At first I tried doing all by machine because everyone I met in the quilt world was doing it this way. For me machine work was beginning to annoy...although machine quilt work was a natural progression..I've been sewing on my own from age 12 on on Gramma's lap with her treddle from age 4...  But as I said, beginning to annoy.

 As I progressed, I discovered hand appliqué.  While many around me called it the "A" word, I loved loved loved it.  I took classes, read books, got involved with others who loved hand appliqué.  Formed a group in the late 90's (we still meet).  Hand appliqué was beautiful.  It was so much more relaxing then machine piecing.

I was still doing the piecing and quilting by machine and really not enjoying myself all that much. ..so what was this hand quilting? I picked up a book by Nancy Brenan Daniel LEARN HOW TO QUILT IN JUST ONE DAY.   Well, ahem, it took me way way more then one day.  I worked and worked at it.  Many, many ("just one day")'s later with sore and pricked fingers, I finally got it.  Not easy for me.  No one around to really give advise at this time but no one can really teach you the hand coordination...you just have to practice and keep at it.  I loved it.  Even though I was not very good at first,  I enjoyed the process.  This was fun!  Beginning to see a pattern?  Machine work was boring to me and frustrating, but I enjoyed working fabric and thread by hand.

I was still machine piecing.  ...I still do, but the process was and still is not all that enjoyable to me ...so what was handpiecing?  I wondered if I would like it better.   Again, not much out there.  I discovered and read Jinny Beyer.  I used my EQ program to create blocks to do by hand.  No one local teaching hand piecing.  Like hand quilting, I learned from books and on line.  I loved hand piecing from the start. It's relaxing, social, and accurate.  I discovered Linda Franz back in 2006 and just recently began to use Inklingo.  Love Inklingo.  No more line drawing for accuracy.  Inklingo does it for you.   So full circle to Bobbie Hunter's Celtic Solstice.  I'm hand piecing this quilt top with Inklingo.  Now finishing up clue five.  I'm doing it all in blues and grays and creams.  Can't wait to see how it all comes out.

Celtic Solstice Clue 5

Rose of Sharon Four Block Appliqué Quilt

Ready to Quilt - Four Block Appliqué top in the hoop

I began quilting an old UFO today.  Some years ago...over 10, my appliqué group talked about putting together  a four block Rose of Sharon .  Some of us did.  I did...but never quilted it.  Today I prepared the top for quilting, sandwiched it..using Hobbs Wool Batting and began quilting.  I'm using a new lap frame from Jeans Impressions.  It's not as well made as my 12 inch hoop, but it does work out much better for me.  I like quilting in my easy chair and this fits nicely.

The lap frame.  Mine has a hole in the middle of the bottom.

More posts as I progress.

Hand Quilting Project

This little quilt is almost done.  Hand appliquéd.  Hand quilted. The quilting is done.  The binding is done. The markings are removed.  Still have to add Yoyo flowers.

Prairie Women's Sewing  Circle Project 

Back of Quilt

Close Up 

I love the dimension that wool batting gives to the quilt.