I was organizing my linen closet and discovered that I had made a few table runners that I kept.  Usually, I give them away for gifts.

The spiral runner was made with from a pattern “Spicy Spiral Table Runner” by School House Quilts.  It is made with a 10 degree ruler.  The fabric was strip pieced and cut and then sewn back together.  Organization is the key to keeping the strips in order.

 

This table runner is made from a “Piecing with Poppers” pattern by Sharon Mayers.  The poppers make a big difference in the piece.  I pieced the back the regular way and the front with the poppers to show the difference.  The “poppers” really do make the quilt “pop.”I have other Sharon Mayers patterns and will make them in the future.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I was having a dinner party the first part of March and thought a green table runner would be great to celebrate St Patrick’s Day.  This pattern is a free download from Connecting Threads,  I sewed it together a little different than the instructions.  It called for cutting each piece separately,  I sewed the sections in a strata and then cut the strips.

The Guild had a class about modern quilting.  This was the class project.  It worked up quickly.

 

 

 

This runner was made with the flip and sew method.  It was quilted as I pieced it.  I’m not sure which pattern I used as I have many patterns with this runner.

 

This is another Connecting Threads pattern.  It looks difficult to make, but in reality is very easy.

I enjoy making table runners and table mats because they are quick to make and it’s instant gratification.

Have a great day and happy quilting

 

 

It is very interesting how many leaf patterns there are and how many different wall hangings can be made using just a leaf.

For the first wall hanging, I went to the back yard and picked up leaves,  The leaves were used as patterns.  Each leaf was fused together with a backing, making a double sided leaf.  The piece was machine quilted before the leaves were attached,  After stitching around the leaf shape with a zig zag stitch, they were attached to the  piece with built in embroidery stitches, stitching down the center and leaving the leaves free standing.  

 

 

 

Moonlight is made with discharge dyeing. When you discharge dye, you never know what color will remain on a black piece of fabric  Every black has a different base color.   I picked leaves and branches from the yard.  Using a foam brush, I painted the leaves and branches with bleach and pressed them on the black fabric with a brayer.  It is important to have a bucket of vinegar and water prepared ahead of time so the fabric can be immersed as soon as the bleach has done its job.  After the fabric had dried, I made the moon.  A circle was cut out of freezer paper and the paper was  pressed in the middle of the piece.  Bleach was spritzed from a spray bottle. Again, the vinegar rinse is ready for use as soon as the discharge looks like you want it to look.  Quilting with gold thread brought the leaves to life.

 

 

I had a class with Sarah Ann Smith at the Vermont Quilt Festival.  We painted the leaves with  a metallic paint stick and then machine quilted around the with metallic thread.

 

 

 

Look around your house and yard,  There are lots of design elements just waiting for you to use in quilting.

Have a great day and happy quilting.

I have just finished a challenge.  I can remember back to my first challenge, many years ago.  I had just found out that there were quilt groups and joined the Tuesday Night Quilters.  Before then, I had just enjoyed quilting alone at home.  I was introduced to the world of challenges, round robins, classes and the Vermont Quilt Festival.  Who knew that quilting could be so much fun.

For the first challenge, we were given a piece of striped fabric and instructed to make something from that fabric.  We could add any other fabric that we wanted,

 

I made this little wall hanging.  It is hand quilted.  I only did hand quilting at that time.

 

There was fabric left, so I made a second wall hanging.  It is very simple, just half square triangles.  It does look as if I did a lot of piecing.  I like this one because it is simple, yet very striking with the hand quilting.

 

 

 

My last challenge was a paint chip challenge.  We were given the dark teal paint chip and drew two others out of a bag.  We could use only those colors.  No additions,  The piece had to be 18″ square.  We also could use only 10% or less of the dark fabric. 

I found a pattern for appliqued leaves and flowers.  Also a tutorial on framing squares.

When I applique, I draw the whole pattern on heavy stabilizer.      

Using a light box with this pattern underneath the fabric helps place the pieces in the right spot.

The center is machine cross hatched with a walking foot and then the border is free motion stipple quilted.  

 

 

I think that I like making the smaller pieces.  They, at least, get finished.

 

Have a great day and happy quilting

 

 

 

 

How do you make a queen sized quilt from seven 12″ blocks?  Check with Sharon Craigue’s book – Setting Solutions,  It has a wealth of information.  Sharon tells how to make blocks the same size,  gives templates  so that you can insert your blocks,  and how to incorporate different blocks into a quilt.  It’s an amazing book.

I had several orphan blocks which I made for examples of the block of the month. So far, I have made three quilts and have more to do.  My block bin is still full.

 

                                     

This quilt is 88″ x 106″. I haven’t named it yet.  I sure that a name will come to me soon.  So far, I just call it the big quilt.

 

 

 

UFO’s are going to stop for a while.  I have to make two baby quilts.  The baby shower announcement for one baby came in yesterday’s mail so I have to start that one.  The other baby is due a month later, so I should finish that one also. At least the top is done so it can be counted as a UFO.  Does it count for a UFO if I finish a quilt that never hits the UFO pile?

Have a great day and happy quilting.

 

 

 

 

It’s time for more garbage to Gaa-barge.  This is a fun piece.  It is about 9″ x 9″. First, I made some ” made fabric” from different colors of fabric.  I had a small piece of fish fabric, so I fussy cut several fish to swim near the ocean floor.

One of the background fabrics was a peacock feather.  It was perfect for the bottom of the ocean.

 

 

The background didn’t look just right so I scribbled different colored circles all around the fish. It softened the look of the sea.    The orange thread looks like coral.

 

This piece didn’t need netting as the scribbling held everything down.

This is one of my favorite pieces in the Gaa-barge series.

Have a great day and happy quilting.

There is a lot of contrast in two color quilts, especially red and white quilts.  It is very important to wash the red fabric several times so that it doesn’t bleed  onto the white fabric and spoil all the work.  Using a dye catcher will pull the red dye from the water and let you know when all the bleeding is done.

I have a small wall hanging for each month of the year.  These little wall hangings are about 12″ x 12″ and are changed on the first day of each month.  The February wall hanging is red and white in honor of Valentine’s day. Naturally, it has to have a heart.

 

 

A log cabin in red and white.  The back is blue and white.  It was made in the flip and sew method.  Two  quilts in one.  

 

The red-work quilt had a long shelf life.  I started it many years ago and put it aside.  I had other quilts to make.  But when I picked it up, I couldn’t stop until it was finished.  It is hand quilted in a grid.  Hand quilt is very relaxing.  I feel that if the quilt body is handwork, the quilting must be by hand also.

 

The Hunter Star quilt was made for a red and white challenge in the Maine Guild.  The red and white quilt display at the show was awesome.  Every one was different and beautiful.  I used Deb Tucker’s Hunter Star ruler to cut the pieces.  The diamonds come together perfectly when using this ruler.  I have a few of Deb’s rulers that I just had to have.  The Hunter’s Star and the Tucker Trimmer are the only ones that I have out of the package.  I am going to have to try the others.  I know that there are many  more quilts to make.

have a great day and happy quilting.

One of my favorite quilts to design and make is the Puzzle Quilt.  It is a fun quilt.  I’ve made at least five and gave all but my first puzzle quilt  to family.  They have so much fun trying to solve the puzzle.

The quilt is made of 20 blocks, but only 10 block patterns.  The design uses different fabrics and  different shadings in each set of two blocks. Similar fabrics can be in adjoining sections if the block.  It’s amazing how your eye can be tricked.  

The block patterns should have multiple sections to make this concept work.  Each of the pictures show the same block with different fabric.  Wouldn’t it be fun to make a four block  wall hanging with the same block with different colors.

To solve the puzzle, one must match the similar block patterns.  Even though I made the quilts, I still have to stop and think about which blocks  match.

Another version of this quilt is called Old Maid’s Puzzle.  It has several two block patterns with different fabric, etc. and one block that does not have a partner.  To solve this puzzle, you have to find the odd block,

Quilt making should be fun !!!

Have a great day and happy quilting.

A quilt should be basted before quilting if it is quilted by hand or by machine.  In the summer,  I baste using safety pins and clamps on a 4 X 8 basting table.  It is quick and easy to baste a large quilt.  The quilt is very heavy with the added weight of the pins.  The table is in a shed and I don’t slog through the snow in the winter to bring it into the house.

In the winter I  thread baste on a PVC pipe frame. I could pin baste, but I enjoy thread basting while watching TV.

 

 

The pipe frame goes together easily.

 

 

 

The backing is centered with the right side down and clamped on the rails.  The under side is checked several times during the clamping to make sure the backing is taut.

 

The batting is and top are centered and the pipes are re-clamped.  Again, the underside is checked.  This is the time to make sure that there is enough backing and batting to cover the top.  If the backing and batting are cut several inches bigger than the top, there should be no problem.

 

I use my “bad” thread for the basting.  There are some threads that shouldn’t be used in the sewing machine.  I have a lot of thread that I inherited from my Grandmother and Mother.  It is old polyester and old clunky threads that say they are hand quilting threads. These threads have a wax coating and would damage your machine.  I like to use thread with a contrasting color to the top as it is easier to see when removing it after quilting.

I baste, with a big needle, in a grid of three inches horizontally and vertically,

 

 

After the center if completely basted, the package is moved to baste the edges.  Again, checking the bottom to see if the backing is taut and smooth.

 

After the quilt is completely basted, I fold the outer edges over to the top and baste around the completed quilt.  This prevents the batting from fraying while you are quilting the quilt.

 

 

Now that this quilt is basted, I’ll get busy and quilt it.  It will return to the blog when it is finished.

Have a great day and happy quilting.

A few years ago the Guild gave us a paint chip challenge.  I received brown, gold and green.  The colors looked like sunflowers.  I had to make a sunflower wall hanging.

 

 

I had several sunflower embroideries in my file so I used them.

 

 

My signature butterflies were recolored with the correct colors.  I use these three butterflies often, usually on my quilt labels.  They can be colored to go with the quilt.

 

After all the pieces were embroidered, I sewed them together where they fit.

 

 

 

Making a piece out of colors that you don’t usually use is sometimes difficult, but it helps you explore different options.  It’s good to get out of your comfortable box.

Have a great day and happy quilting.

Several years ago, when taking classes at the Vermont Quilt Festival, I noticed a lot of laughter coming from one class.  I signed up for that very popular teacher and finally after four years of trying, I was accepted to her class.  It was wonderful.

The class was held on a very HOT  day in July.  There was no air conditioning.  The teacher, Doreen Speckman arrived, wearing a bathing suit and her signature cow earrings.  We had a wonderful time , laughing and learning. The class was worth the wait. 

Our project was a Carolina Lily made using Doreen’s Peaky and Spike templates.  I immediately changed the name of the wall hanging to “Poinsettia”.  It is one of my favorite Christmas wall hangings.  It is 34 x 34″ and is machine pieced and hand quilted.

Our Guild was having a challenge that year that used different shades of black and one other color.  I couldn’t figure out what to do.  The design presented itself to me as I left Doreen’s class.  I went to the dorm and cut out the squares and started sewing.  This quilt was pieced before I went home.  I was on a roll.  It was hand quilted after I got home.  It took a little longer to finish the class project. The name of the 30″ x 30″ wall hanging is “Peaky and Spike Meet the New Fish on the Block”.  I wonder – Is the little red fish brave and bold enough to visit with the big gray fish?  Do they accept him even though he is   different?  Did he go back where he came from, never brave enough to venture in the big world again? I’m glad that I saw him out and about at least one time.